One show I’m not looking forward to: “American Crime Story: Impeachment” …I have no idea why Ryan Murphy decided to stop work on a Hurricane Katrina-themed season (which would’ve been excellent) to rehash a “scandal” that was already ridiculously overblown. The first two “Crime” stories centered around murders…this is about the world’s costliest blowjob, still one of only 3 times an American President has ever been impeached (by the House). And Clive Owen as Bill Clinton? What the hell?
Note: This might be the year that television drives people literally insane, and not in a good way. The “streaming wars” are in full-effect, and now Disney (which owns a majority stake in Hulu…in addition to Disney Plus) has decided to release some FX series (since it also owns Fox) exclusively on Hulu, which is incredibly confusing…And does an HBO Go subscription mean I get HBO Max or do I have to pay for that separate? Those are just two examples of how keeping up with Peak TV might be more work than fun, and people might say “fuck it, I’ll just watch CBS…but is that regular or All-Access? AAAHHHHHHHHHH!” [Howls of anguish.]
Also, it’s somewhat of a fool’s errand trying to hype TV shows for the coming year because it’s never been less clear what will actually be released this year. As of now, several dozen 2019 shows (like “True Detective,” “The Terror,” “Watchmen,” and “Mindhunter”) have not been officially renewed or cancelled. Having said that, here’s a few TV series that I am pretty sure will come out in 2020, and am hoping will be good (what salesmanship!)…
Runner-Ups: “Run,” “Love, Beth,” “Love Life,” “Mrs. America,” and “Quiz” seem promising. And there’s the “Real Housewives of Salt Lake City” that may be the first time I actually watch a ‘Real Housewives’ series since even I’m curious how Mormons will fit into the usual ‘Housewives’ mold of trash talk and table flipping. What’s their idea of shit-talking? “Betty served non-decaf coffee at brunch! That hussy!”
10. “Vikings” Series Finale…Yes, most people have given up on this show years ago, but I’m as loyal as a dog, and I’m really, really looking forward to this series ending so I don’t have to watch it anymore. And now that Ivar the Boneless is leading the Rus Vikings (ancient Russian vikings), who doesn’t want to see what they’re made of battle-wise?
9. “The Outsider”…This miniseries is based on a strong Stephen King novel, and has a cast that includes Jason Bateman, Ben Mendelsohn, and Cynthia Erivo. What’s not to like? [The Nicole Kidman/Hugh Grant starring “The Undoing” and “The Plot Against America” also seem like promising miniseries from HBO.]
8. “Space Force”…Steve Carell makes his TV comedy return as the man tasked with actually creating Trump’s 6th branch of the military. Diana Silvers and John Malkovich co-star in a show that seems pretty hard to fuck up.
7. “Your Honor” and “The Good Lord Bird”…Somehow Showtime has landed two extremely promising looking mini-series: “Your Honor” stars Bryan Cranston as a morally compromised judge and “Bird” is no less than Ethan Hawke’s TV debut (as a series regular or lead). Both Cranston and Hawke have excellent taste, so you have to figure these are something special to get them involved.
[I’m also looking forward to the second season of “Kidding,” “On Becoming a God in Central Florida,” the sure-to-be-nuts 2020 “The Circus” episodes, “Vice” moved from HBO, and check out my number 3 pick, meaning this is Showtime’s most promising year in a long time.]
6. “Ozark”…Season 3 didn’t air in 2019 (which surely means it’ll happen this year), and I can’t be the only one excited to see what else Marty Byrd and Co. can fuck up.
5. “Fargo”…Noah Hawley takes so long in-between seasons that most may have forgotten there will even be a season 4. But each of the first three seasons were excellent, and there’s no reason to think 4 (about a black crime family fleeing the Jim Crow-South and running into trouble with the Kansas City mob of the 1950’s) won’t be just as good.
4. “Primal” returns…I’m going to keep banging the drum for this excellent animated series until people take me seriously, but the terrific first season was split in half. The second half will air in 2020, hopefully sooner than later.
3. “Homeland”‘s Final Season…Remember nearly a decade ago when this was the most critically acclaimed show on TV and won Best Drama pretty much anywhere it went? Well I have good news: the series got a lot better once most people stopped watching it–beginning with season 4 set in Afghanistan. The final season will also take place in Afghanistan, and hopefully will include some of the Russian-intrigue that last season did too.
2. “The Good Place” Series Finale…Will Chidi save all of humanity? Can Michael Schur deliver a finale that isn’t disappointing? To me, these questions are equally important, and I have a lot of faith.
And Finally: Election Night 2020…Well, this is a political blog (in theory anyway), and what TV event could possibly be more anticipated than whether our country commits suicide or elects a Democrat? No pressure