AllAboutMBTV

Aw, man... I loved this show and SO wish it had found a bigger audience. And such a good cast! Le sigh... Still, good to know they're working on future projects. Celebrate me scone! (Argh, now I'm going to have THAT stuck in my head for the rest of the day...)

Oh, show, why so Not Good? You've got great, tasty ingredients, and you just lie there like a slumped souffle. I think a lot of the blame lies with the script. Some of the dialog just clangs, especially in Nina's scenes (I call shenanigans in her not being able to walk in heels). Still, Tom Riley had one line reading early on that made me laugh. Are we supposed to care about the creeper who followed him up to the studio for some grab-ass, because at this point I care more about his sick cat. I think the answer to everyone's questions is: Nazis.

I'm really only watching this for Tom Riley ("Claude"), whom I've loved since Lost In Austen (he's still the best Mr. Wickham ever, albeit a skewed one). I sat through ALL of DaVinci's Demons for him, and that was often a slog and an often ridiculous one. (Tom! Get a better agent!) Oh, and this also has the divine Frances de la Tour swanning around in furs, so I'm in, but I'll forget I ever watched it the minute it's over.

If there is a S15 -- and I hope there is -- please let the producers go back to SYTYCD Original Flavor -- no All Stars, just a variety of contestant partnerships showing off a variety of dance styles. And please, for the love of all that is holy, get a decent third judge, one who doesn't just gush. Even Jesse Tyler Ferguson was better than Hudgens-Derulo-Abdul.

Milk Street is not breaking any new ground, and that's fine. (One episode has aired here in SF on the local PBS station, and as Sew Sumi noted above another airs tonight.) I don't think there can be too many well-produced instructional cooking shows that focus on the food and not the personalities making it. (I couldn't tell you that last time I watched anything on FN, even for five minutes. It's just painful.) I'll certainly keep watching Milk Street, as well as ATK and CC because the latter two are Comfort TV for me as I've been watching them for years (and one of their on-screen personalities is a good friend of mine). One suggestion for Milk Street: Get rid of the audience. They add nothing. But keep the guest experts like the London woman who was an expert on Chinese cooking. That's surely a vast pool from which to draw.

Wayna Morris can get it. He was terrific. There's a very small list of guest stars that I wouldn't mind seeing rotate in and out occasionally (not as the fourth chair, just as guest). He's one of them (and, of course, I can't think of the rest right now).

The day after the Cambodia episode I could barely remember what happened on it. Something about a jewel and a scepter? Oh, and the underdeveloped big, bad villain fell in a snake pit. C'mon, show, I'm only watching you for Jonathan Bailey anyway. (Note to Irlandesa: Bailey's also on W1A, also streaming on Netflix, as is Lady Alex and her female British Museum co-worker whose character's name escapes me right now. Also, I've watched Crashing far too many times.)

I'll cop to the fact that I'm only watching this for Jonathan Bailey (Alex's fiance) and Jessica Hynes (never ever have I wanted to strangle a character so much as her Siobhan in "Twenty Twelve" and "W1A," but she was also hilarious, so kudos to her). The Hooten pilot was pretty dreadful, but it's gotten a bit better as it goes along. But, yeah, summer fluff. Still, anyone know if there'll be a second season? Oh, wait, never mind, a little Internet digging tells me there won't be, here or in the UK. If you want to see Ophelia (Alex) Lovibond, Bailey and Hynes, they're all in "W1A" (Netflix-streamable), which I believe will have a new season.

Mrs. C has her own (lovely) house, as we saw in the episode in which her now-late husband Ronnie stole her savings account book and locket. She doesn't live at the vicarage. I hope there's another season, mainly because I enjoy just looking at the show (and several of the actors). As I said farther upthread, they need to refocus on the mysteries and ditch the soap operatics. If they must have B and C plots, Sidney apparently has a whole church full of parishioners he can deal with. The ladies who do the flowers for the altars could easily be a running subplot (see Alan Bennett's "A Bed Among the Lentils" from his "Talking Heads" series), never mind the choir director, the choristers, the warden, the verger, etc. The Grantchester cricket match made for a nice change (and, lordy, James Norton in cricket whites...), so how about the local garden show, the village summer fete, the local WI, any college at Cambridge, etc. I know they're all British cliches, but they're better than the cliches of miserable affairs.

Final two episodes in the Bay Area this Friday as well, per my DVR. I wish they weren't burning them off like this, but August is apparently pledge month, and I guess KQED doesn't want to deprive us of all those Joan Baez, Simon & Garfunkle and Motown specials. Again. Some more.

For a show in which the set decoration is so well done (and one of my favorite things about Grantchester), I had to laugh that there was a red phone box in the woods at a fork in two muddy roads. Total contrivance for the plot and emblematic of the semi-mess the show has become. I think there is a non-twee show to be done about a crime-solving vicar and his cop pal that balances the mystery of the week and their non-crime-solving lives, but the soap operatics was the wrong muddy road to take this season. I like the actress who plays Amanda well enough, but the character should have been written out once she married (please keep Margaret -- she can do math in her head and the men can't). Sidney could easily struggle with any crisis of faith in any variety of dealing with his parishioners, a flock we have never seen outside of sitting in a pew. Is there a choir director or organist? The ladies who do the flowers for the altar? Community outreach? Deacons, ushers, acolytes? A warden, bell ringer or janitor? Yes, James Norton is a handsome man who looks great in period costumes, but the show doesn't have to be about sex and lurve.

Agreed. I never saw any of the Tennison-to-come in either the way the character was written or in Martini's performance. But as a standalone police procedural I liked it. I always enjoy Alun Armstrong (Bentley Sr.), and, hey, it's Neil from The Inbetweeners (Gibbs)! While I thought Sam Reid's Bradfield was rather one-note, I've liked him in other things. (Sidebar: Can people having illicit affairs look around them before they start macking and then get busted for doing it? It's happening on every Sunday night show on PBS now -- My Mother and Other Strangers, Grantchester and this. Get a room, people!) My favorite aspect of PS:T was the production values. They spent a fortune on period cars alone.

Am I the only one who thought it odd that the gorgeously renovated Loews King Theater was surrounded by... empty lots? Oh, Brooklyn... Never change. (Or, always change...) Please let Chaz make the Top 10. He was a delight; I watched his audition three times. Although some of that may have been down to that arrangement of If My Friends Could See Me Now (sung by Sammy Davis, Jr., I think?). Would like to see a little more extension in his legs, though. Bless you, Bigger Cheese, but save it for the club.

I'm picking nits here: I get why computer-illiterate Mike would have a paper diary, but why would Leon? Plot contrivance? The whole episode was hilarious, but Uncle Jeff (a character I'd completely forgotten about) was the icing on the cake. As a former actor, I can tell you that being able to laugh like that realistically is So. Hard. And someone upthread (EarlGreyTea) wondered if they'd cast Ezra. I'm pretty sure we saw him in an early season. He's military-poster-boy handsome.

If you want to see the Not-Jane Gemma Jones cook up a storm (or at least act like she's cooking up a storm) watch the ye olde Masterpiece Theatre series The Duchess of Duke Street (two seasons, I think). She's fantastic, the Edwardian-era series is delightful and the food is drool-worthy (although I don't remember a lot of desserts).

I did my college junior year abroad in London and lived in Earl's Court. When a classmate and I would go to movies in the West End, we'd buy a package of McVities Chocolate Digestives to eat upstairs on the No. 14 bus on the way. Every time we'd promise to save some for the movie, but we'd always eat the entire package on the bus. One of my favorite memories of London. And now I'm craving jaffa cakes. Thanks, show! (I can get McVities at a kinda spendy grocery store near where I live, but I don't think it sells jaffas.)

While I'm certainly no Amanda apologist, she and her soapy plight(s) don't bother me much. I watch Grantchester from the shallow end of my sofa -- it's pretty, James "Shoulders" Norton is prettier and I enjoy his obvious camaraderie with Robson Green. The secondary and tertiary characters -- Mrs. Maguire, Leonard, Phil, Margaret, Aunt Cece ("Duckface!") and DIckens -- are all worth spending time with. Oh, and the mysteries are usually good, too. (Although I could have done without last season's season-long arc of that poor kid who accidentally killed his pregnant friend, never mind Geordie being a twat.) It's solid, largely well-made comfort food, a main course, perhaps, to the comfort-food dessert that is The Great British Baking Show. Also, props to the Grantchester production and design teams. I love the look of the show, the costumes particularly. And the CGI for the Leonard and Amanda's bench scene was spectacular.

Here in the San Francisco Bay Area we're getting the first two episodes episodes of the season (Cake, then Biscuits) on Friday night at 9:00p. Or so says my DVR. So check your local listings!

Like so many others, I skipped the kids' version last season, so I'm delighted to have The Cat Deeley Show back, especially with Mary. Sure, I can do without the Hot Tamale Train and the screaming, but she knows her stuff and isn't afraid to give real criticism. Hudgens seems... fine? but doesn't seem to bring a lot to the panel other than fandom. (I had no use at all for Jason Derulo or Paula Abdul.) If they can bring Mary back, can we have Debbie Allen back, too? Or Mia Michaels? Dan Karaty? Misty Copeland? I'll even take Adam Shankman. (And Jesse Tyler Ferguson makes a nice occasional guest judge.) No real reason to comment on the dancers shown (OK, those Russian girls gave me the creeps -- in a good way) since the Top 10 or 20 always seem to be dancers we've never (or barely) seen audition.

I laughed/barked out loud at Selina calling Stephen Fry's character "Scab Calloway." In fact, I'm still laughing. And I clapped like a small child when Minna appeared (I love that character) and yet again when Fry appeared (I love him and fervently wish Acorn had more than the first seven seasons of QI on offer).

My thought was, Why can't David be the butcher shop's accountant and/or general manager? Even with a desk job, he'd still be involved in the shop, and dad could keep the "...and Son" on the window.

If you want to see more of the actor (sorry, I have no idea what his character's name is -- like so many other characters on the show!) he was one of the leads on Bravo's "Imposters." I watched it on on demand. It's a light, con-man caper show, 10 episodes, I think. Perfect for summer watching. The actor's name is Rob Heaps, and he does an excellent American accent. You'd never know he's British. And if you watch TV from the shallow end of the pool, there is gratuitous shirt removal.

It's on NBC Sports today (Thursday), Friday and Saturday.

Get your cassocks out! Dreamy McVicarson is back on June 18. (Seven episodes, so maybe one of them is the 'lost' Christmas special.)

I said it upthread that many of the woman look and are dressed the same. Now when they appear onscreen I think to myself "Vicar's Wife," "Doctor's Wife or Daughter," "Aunt Rosamunde's Companion/Secretary," "Teacher, Rooms with Accountant," etc. For some reason, Pat is the only one whose name sticks (other than, ugh, Bob); you could beat me with sticks and I couldn't immediately tell you the first names of the other characters. Can someone remind me who the young blind woman is? (I am enjoying Home 'Fries' -- I can't see it any other way -- but I just have a block against their names. Too much good TV -- my brain is full!)