Tuesday, March 04, 2014
Dancing with the Stars Season 18 Cast Has Sitcom Stars; Episodic Reviews: The Goldbergs - "Goldbergs Never Say Die" Airing Tonight on ABC and Brooklyn Nine-Nine - "Tactical Village Day" Airing Tonight on Fox
ABC has announced the stellar new cast of Dancing with the Stars. Season 18's dynamic lineup of stars includes plenty of sitcom actors, two Olympic Gold Medalists, a game show host, a swimming legend and a teen pop star. The two-hour season premiere will air on Monday, March 17 at 8:00-10:01 p.m. on ABC.
Sitcom stars appearing this season will be Candace Cameron Bure (Full House), Drew Carey (The Drew Carey Show, The Price Is Right), NeNe Leakes (The New Normal, The Real Housewives of Atlanta), James Maslow (Big Time Rush) and Danica McKellar (The Wonder Years). Other celebrities include former pro hockey player Sean Avery, Olympic Gold Medalists Meryl Davis and Charlie White, swimming legend Diana Nyad, Paralympic snowboarder Amy Purdy, pop star singer Cody Simpson and actor Billy Dee Williams.
In a first for Dancing with the Stars, the competition will feature a new game changing twist called The Switch Up. This season, America will be given the power to vote and change celebrities and professional dance pairings. This new rule will affect all couples as they will be required to switch partners at a point in the season. Never before have dance partnerships been split up during the course of competition.
Viewers may cast their votes for their favorite teams via phone on Monday nights during and up to 60 minutes after the end of the Dancing with the Stars broadcast in each time zone. Online voting at www.ABC.com and on Facebook at https://apps.facebook.com/votedwts/ is open for 24 hours, beginning from the start of each episode on the East Coast at 8:00 p.m., ET/5:00 p.m., PT and closing at 8:00 p.m., ET/5:00 p.m., PT on Tuesday evenings. For the final week, on Monday, May 19, online voting will open for 15 hours, beginning from the start of the episode on the East Coast at 8:00 p.m., ET/5:00 p.m., PT and closing at 11:00 a.m., ET/8:00 a.m., PT the next day. A custom Facebook app lets fans vote, share whom they voted for and say why, as well as see whom friends voted for.
On the next...The Goldbergs:
By: Pavan
ABC's Tuesday freshman comedy anchor set in the '80s, airs Tuesday nights at 9:00pm and we have just watched the next episode that airs tonight (March 4). In the episode airing tonight, "Goldbergs Never Say Die," Adam (Sean Giambrone) is obsessed with the movie The Goonies and when Beverly's (Wendi McLendon-Covey) mother's jewelry goes missing, he bands together Erica (Hayley Orrantia), Barry (Troy Gentile) and his friends Emmy Mirksy (Stephanie Katherine Grant), Dana Caldwell (Natalie Alyn Lind) and Chad Kremp (Jacob Hopkins) to look for the missing treasure, just like the film.
The Goldbergs is a hilarious show that keeps getting better and better. Sometimes you even forget we are back in 1980-something. We're really invested in this family and the series might be set in the '80s but this family is still very relatable in 2014. Tonight's episode shows us why this family is special. The kids, parents and granpda are all just so essential to this show and each one of them were vital to tonight's plot. The episode centers around a comical spoof of the hit movie The Goonies when Adam assembles a group of his friends, both of his siblings and even a random guy Adam doesn't know that well named Dave Kim to play "Data." It's so funny! They are trying to find some missing jewelry that belonged to Beverly's mom and leave it to Adam to try to find it. It's a fun adventure and you'll be saying "Goldbergs Never Say Die!" I mean there are no pirates or anything here, but we get a cool treasure map!
This is such a gem of a show. It has quietly become one of the best family comedies on television right now, right up there in the same league as Modern Family and The Middle. The show is consistently funny and you can tell the family loves each other. They might call each other "morons" or "putz" but that is what makes this family so real (and funny in the process). If there is no yelling at each other, then there is no Goldbergs frankly. ABC has found a treasure of a show in The Goldbergs. Never Say Die, because this show is going to be around for quite some time (and even Nielsen is beginning to think that). B+
On the next...Brooklyn Nine-Nine (Fox, 9:30pm):
By: Vincent
Fox's new Tuesday police comedy starring an ensemble cast airs Tuesdays at 9:30pm and we have just watched the next episode that airs tonight (March 4). In the episode airing tonight, "Tactical Village Day," a mandatory training course in which all the regional precincts compete. While at the course, Amy (Melissa Fumero) runs into Teddy (guest star Kyle Bornheimer, Worst Week, Romantically Challenged), a fellow officer whom she used to date. Meanwhile, Holt (Andre Braugher) becomes addicted to a game on his phone and Rosa (Stephanie Beatriz) is angry with Charles (Joe Lo Truglio) for not inviting her to his wedding.
Brooklyn Nine-Nine has established itself over the course of its first season as being a very well-constructed sitcom. From nearly the very first episode, the show functioned like a well-oiled machine – its characters were solidly established and relatable, its actors gelled together to form a genuine ensemble, and the writing was clever and frequently hilarious. These are all hallmarks of a truly great sitcom, and most shows don't hit this kind of balance until much later in their first seasons. Because it started off so well, Brooklyn Nine-Nine could've easily coasted from there on out and remained an enjoyable show. And in fact, there are times when I sort of feel like the show is coasting a little bit. Over the back half of the season, there have been several episodes that felt like the show was on auto-pilot, hitting its familiar beats well but never eclipsing them. Luckily, Brooklyn Nine-Nine's beats are funny enough that this still made for a pretty great show, but it was a bit dismaying to see the show not pushing itself.
Luckily, the past few episodes have been really promising step forwards for the show, and tonight's episode is a strong contender for the shows' best episode yet. Aside from a hilarious plotline featuring Gina and Captain Holt that sees Holt getting addicted to a Candy Crush-esque game on his cell phone, "Tactical Village" puts most of its cast in the same location – a 'tactical village' training program that requires the officers to act out a hostage simulation. This, predictably, leads to many extremely funny sequences, but what was most interesting was the way the show used the simulation to expose some of the feelings the precinct members are hiding from each other. Without spoiling anything, there's some very interesting character moments between both Jake and Amy and Rosa and Boyle, and – for the first time in this show – the episode ends on a bit of a somber, uncertain note for both pairings. The shows' handling of Rosa and Boyle, in particular, feels very well-done, in the show is focusing on the effects that Boyle's past feelings for Rosa is having on their friendship, rather than being caught up in relationship drama. I'm genuinely curious to see what's next for these characters, and I'm excited that the show seems to be pulling off an intriguing endgame for the end of its first season. A-
Sitcoms Airing Tonight
Tuesday, June 6
none scheduled
Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of June 5)
Tuesday, June 6
- Mayim Bialik (Call Me Kat/The Big Bang Theory/Blossom/Molloy) - Catch Mayim on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
- Bryan Cranston (Malcolm in the Middle/The Louie Show) - Bryan is a guest on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
- Nicole Byer (Grand Crew/Loosely Exactly Nicole) - Nicole appears on a repeat of Late Night with Seth Meyers at 12:36am on NBC.
- Oliver Hudson (Splitting Up Together/Rules of Engagement/My Guide to Becoming a Rockstar) - Oliver and his sister Kate are guests on a repeat of The Late Late Show with James Corden at 12:37am on CBS.
- Mark Consuelos (Alpha House/Hope & Faith) - Mark appears on Watch What Happens: Live at 10pm on Bravo.
- Natasha Lyonne (Poker Face/Russian Doll) - Natasha talks about Poker Face on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your listings.
- Mädchen Amick (Freddie) - Mädchen breaks down what's coming up on the series Riverdale on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your listings.
- Poorna Jagannathan (Never Have I Ever) and Richa Moorjani (Never Have I Ever) - Poorna and Richa give the Tam Fam the scoop on the final season of Never Have I Ever on Tamron Hall, so check your local listings.
- Yvette Nicole Brown (The Mayor/The Odd Couple/Community) - Yvette appears on a repeat of The Jennifer Hudson Show, so check your local listings.
- Ron Funches (Loot/Poweless/Undateable) - Ron is a guest on a repeat of The Jennifer Hudson Show, so check your local listings.
- Luna Blaise (Fresh Off the Boat) - Luna talks about Manifest on CBS Mornings sometime between 7-9am.
- Patricia Arquette (High Desert) - Patricia talks about High Desert on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
- Tammy Townsend (K.C. Undercover/Sherri/Rock Me, Baby) - Tammy discusses her starring role in the new BET+ series Average Joe on Sherri, so check your local listings.
- Eva Longoria (Telenovela) - Eva will be on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am.
- Melissa Joan Hart (Melissa & Joey/Sabrina the Teenage Witch/Clarissa Explains It All) and Soleil Moon Frye (Punky Brewster/Sabrina the Teenage Witch) - NBC's Today catches up with Melissa and Soleil in the 9am hour.
New on DVD/Blu-ray (January-June)
01/03 - Andy Richter Controls the Universe - The Complete Series (2023 Release)
01/27 - Master of None - Season Three / The Complete Series
02/21 - The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - The Complete Season Nine / The Complete Season Ten
02/28 - Growing Pains - The Complete Series
03/28 - Rick and Morty - Season 8 (Blu-ray) (DVD)
04/04 - South Park - The Complete Twenty-Fifth Season (Blu-ray) (DVD)
04/18 - Blondie - The Complete 1957 Television Series (Blu-ray)
04/25 - Cheers - The Complete Series (Blu-ray)
05/23 - The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet - The Complete Season Eleven / The Complete Season Twelve
05/23 - Go On - The Complete Series
05/23 - Kate & Allie - The Complete Series (Universal)
05/29 - Gimme a Break! - The Complete Series (VEI)
05/29 - Kate & Allie - The Complete Series (VEI)
05/30 - Looney Tunes Collector's Choice - Volume 1 (Blu-ray)
06/13 - Mayberry R.F.D. - The Complete Series
06/13 - Night Court (1984-1992) - The Complete Series
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