Too Much TV: Your TV Talking Points For Friday, February 2nd, 2024

Here's everything you need to know about the world of television for Friday, February 2nd, 2024.

SOME PROGRAMMING NOTES
This will be an uncharacteristically short newsletter. I'm headed off Sunday to Pasadena for the twice-a-year (in theory) Television Critics Association tour. I'll be there for the entire ten days and for those of you in the industry, if you're going to be there please reach out so we can meet face-to-face.

During the TCAs, the timing of the newsletter is going to be a bit unpredictable. Between the regular schedule of panels, set visits and other events, it can be a long day. And I'm also nabbing a number of one-on-one interviews along the way. I'll update you on the latest news each day, share some interviews excerpts and provide some behind-the-scenes coverage of the event.

I am also going to experiment with producing some short daily-ish videos that I'll likely record at the end of the day. They'll be casual, stream-of-thought takes on the day and hopefully some fun stories. I don't want to add even more to your newsletter burden here, so I'll be posting them on my YouTube channel and I'll make sure to link to them in the newsletter.

And speaking of YouTube....

SCOTT BAKULA AND MARIA BELLO - NEVER FORGET
I'm not going to link to the piece, but a post in one of the trades today mentioned that the new Prime Video series Mr. & Mrs. Smith is the first TV remake of the 2005 Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie film. And while that's true, it's not the first television series with that name.

In 1996, Scott Bakula and Maria Bello starred in the short-lived CBS breezy spy drama Mr. & Mrs. Smith and while it's not quite the same plot as the newer film and series, it's also not all that different, according to the original CBS logline:

A spy known only as Mr. Smith (Bakula) works for a private security organization known as "The Factory". Using covert operatives and the latest technology they gather information on technology, science, and economics in an effort to protect corporate America from espionage. They are also hired out as private security or to help with covert operations like the recovery of stolen Stinger missiles. In the pilot, a rival named Mrs. Smith (Bello) becomes entangled on a case with Mr. Smith. After losing her job when her mission fails, The Factory hires her and assigns them to work together. Though they often bicker, and know nothing about each other's personal lives, including real names, they make a good team.

On paper, Bakula and Bello should have nailed the series. And it's not bad, but the two weirdly don't have much chemistry. Although they are both good enough actors to give it a solid try. 

Of course, the series isn't available for streaming, but someone has posted the entire series on YouTube, including the four episodes that didn't originally air in the U.S.

And this is one of aggravating problems with the streaming video business right now. If you are a legitimate SVOD or AVOD and want to stream a show like the old Mr. & Mrs. Smith, you have to jump through all sorts of licensing hoops, including clearing music rights. On the other hand, someone can just post the episodes on YouTube without any restrictions. YouTube can then sell ads against the episodes, and the worst case scenario is the the studio or perhaps a composer files a copyright claim. And in that case, YouTube then splits the ad money with the copyright claimant.

Even better from YouTube's perspective, all of this is done automatically behind-the-scenes. So the overhead is minimal and the opportunities to request a review are limited.

I could build a pretty great streaming TV service using just the videos that are available semi-legally on YouTube.

ODDS AND SODS
* Beginning tomorrow, the Hallmark Channel is airing four weekly movies "honoring" Jane Austen:

A love of Jane Austen’s stories helps two people to overcome their pride and admit to their belief in love in “Paging Mr. Darcy,” premiering February 3 and starring Mallory Jansen (“Francesca Quinn, PI”) and Will Kemp (“Christmas Waltz”). A woman finds guidance from Jane Austen, quite literally, in “Love & Jane,” premiering February 10 and starring Alison Sweeney (“Hannah Swenson Mysteries”) and Benjamin Ayres (“Field Day”). A librarian who thinks that no man can live up to Mr. Darcy gets an unexpected chance to find out if that’s true in “An American in Austen,” premiering February 17 and starring Eliza Bennett (“Dynasty”), Nicholas Bishop (“A Paris Proposal”) and Nell Barlow (“Doctor Thorne”). Lastly, on February 24, Hallmark Mahogany presents a sumptuously beautiful adaptation of “Sense and Sensibility,” starring Deborah Ayorinde (“Them”), Bethany Antonia (“House of the Dragon”), Dan Jeannotte (“Good Witch”) and Akil Largie (“The Sandman”).  

WHAT'S NEW TONIGHT AND THIS WEEKEND

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 2ND:
* Bosco (Peacock)
* Dario Argento: Panico (Shudder)
* Gilded Newport Mysteries: Murder At The Breakers (Hallmark Movies & Mysteries)
* Kokomo City (Showtime)
* Let’s Talk About CHU Series Premiere (Netflix)
* Love & WWE: Bianca & Montez Series Premiere (Hulu)
* Marvel's Moon Girl & Devil Dinosaur (Disney)
* Mr. & Mrs. Smith Series Premiere (Prime Video) - [first look video]
* Orion And The Dark (Netflix)
* Self (Disney+)
* Serving The Hamptons Season Premiere (Max)
* The Tiger's Apprentice (Paramount+)

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 2ND, 2024:
Bosco (Peacock)
Dario Argento: Panico (Shudder)
Gilded Newport Mysteries: Murder At The Breakers (Hallmark Movies & Mysteries)
Kokomo City (Showtime)
Let’s Talk About CHU Series Premiere (Netflix)
Love & WWE: Bianca & Montez Series Premiere (Hulu)
Marvel's Moon Girl & Devil Dinosaur (Disney)
Mr. & Mrs. Smith Series Premiere (Prime Video) - [first look video]
Orion And The Dark (Netflix)
Self (Disney+)
Serving The Hamptons Season Premiere (Max)
The Tiger's Apprentice (Paramount+)

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 3RD, 2024:
A Mother's Intuition (Lifetime)
Jeff Dunham: I'm With Cupid (Comedy Central)
Paging Mr. Darcy (Hallmark)

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 4TH, 2024:
Arctic Ascent With Alex Hannold Series Premiere (NatGeo)
A Woman Seduced (Lifetime)
Baked With A Kiss (UP tv)
Curb Your Enthusiasm Season Twelve Premiere (HBO)
66th Annual Grammy Awards (CBS)
The Harlem Hellfighters (History)

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 5TH, 2024:
Below Deck Season Premiere (Bravo)
Country House Hunters Canada Series Premiere (fyi)
Dee & Friends In Oz Series Premiere (Netflix)
Solar Opposites Valentine's Day Special (Hulu)
Tiny House Nation Season Premiere (fyi)

SEE YOU MONDAY!