The Cottage Again, 90s Love And Game Time

And once again, here we are with a catch up of everything I've been watching since the last time I did one of these.

911: Will this show ever give audiences what they truly want with Buck and Eddie or are doomed to this weird place both characters are stuck in for eternity? They continue to act like a couple without actually being one and Eddie went into protective boyfriend mode during Buck's kidnapping episode. It's really long past time for this show to either go there with Buddie or give them permanent love interests.

911: Nashville: There's no denying that this show might be the weakest in the brand but there's a few moments where some hints of improvement are creeping in. I liked Don's flashbacks with Dixie and Blythe, the Blue/Taylor romance has potential and we even got some backstory for Roxy. Not to mention having Buck and Eddie appear certainly didn't hurt things.

Bridgerton: Into the second half of the love story between Benedict Bridgerton and Sophie Baek. While their wedding was a mid credit scene (odd choice), the show did an excellent job with building towards their romantic conclusion. Luke Thompson and Yerin Ha absolutely delivered in their scenes together. Also, who the hell is the new Lady Whistledown? There was also Anthony/Kate's return, Francesca losing John, Violet choosing herself and good scenes with Queen Charlotte/Lady Danbury but the show could've done something with Cressida and Araminta. 

How To Get To Heaven From Belfast: How do you follow up a show like Derry Girls? Lisa McGee certainly had a task on her hands but this turned out to be a worthy follow up. Saoirse, Robyn and Dara working together to solve the mystery of their "dead" friend. Some familiar faces in the mix with Bronagh Gallagher on fine form as well as the more skittish Saoirse Monica Jackson. Oh and that ending nicely set up a potential second season.

Love Story: Ryan Murphy will forever stoke ire for these anthologies based on real people but the more they're watched, the more he's gonna keep making them. Paul Anthony Kelly and Sarah Pidgeon are on great form with the show giving a good depiction of John F. Kennedy Jr and Carolyn Bessette's turbulent relationship. I do think Pidgeon's the stronger actor of the two but Kelly held his own. Saying that, Naomi Watts was a bit wasted as Jackie Kennedy.

Vladimir: You know what, I totally get it. Netflix wanted a more unhinged version of Fleabag and this show kind of did that. I can't blame Rachel Weisz going cuckoo for Leo Woodall's titular character and her obsession with him was oddly entertaining to watch. Less interesting was anything involving the family of Weisz's character and some of the MeToo commentary just didn't land as well as it could've done. Given it's viewership numbers, I wouldn't expect a second season though.

• Netflix have officially cast their Scooby Doo live action show. McKenna Grace, Tanner Hagen, Abby Ryder Forston and Maxwell Jenkins will play Daphne, Shaggy, Velma and Fred respectively. Frank Weller will voice Scooby Doo.
• Amazon Prime has renewed Cross for a third season. The second season is currently being released weekly.
• The White Lotus has added more to its cast including Max Greenfield, Kumail Nanjiani and Chloe Bennett to name a few. Filming begins in France next month.
• Danielle Deadwyler has been cast as a lead in the reboot of Hulu's The X-Files.
• Firefly is being revived as an animated series with the original cast slated to reprise their roles.
• The Bear will end with it's upcoming fifth season. It'll air on FX during the summer.
• AMC have renewed The Audacity for a second season, ahead of it's first one airing next month.
• The Harry Potter series will film it's second season later this year. The first will premiere on HBO in 2027.
• FOX have renewed Doc for a 22 episode third season.
• ABC have renewed both 911 shows for further seasons.
• Family Guy is getting a Stewie based spin-off. FOX have given a two season order for the show, due to debut in the 2027-2028 TV season.
• The Vampire Lestat (aka Interview With The Vampire Season 3) will premiere on AMC from June 7th.

Space Races, Tornadoes And Serving The C Word

I did one of these about two months ago and I might slip in another before the year ends. Anyways, a lot of other things I've been watching the last few weeks.

9-1-1: I can't believe we're on to a ninth season of this show but I can also believe that ABC will bleed this show dry. Anyways the first four episodes had Athena and Hen up in space because at this point, it's not even the most ridiculous thing the show can do these days. There was Eddie losing his grandmother, May and Harry becoming regulars, Buck dealing with Bobby's absence more than Athena and Howie officially becoming captain. It's a bit of a weak start for the show.

9-1-1: Nashville: As one spin off ended, another rose in its place but I can't tell if this show will be a success story like 9-1-1: Lone Star or crash and burn like Doctor Odyssey. It's a very haphazard show so far with the opening three parter tornado story doing little to properly establish the character dynamics. Right now, it feels like a spin off for the sake of having one rather than a show that genuinely justifies it's existence.

All's Fair: Ryan Murphy might be having one of his most challenging years in a long time because not only have some of his shows gotten cancelled, his new line of shows seem to be leaving audiences rather cold. I guarantee if this show had been released a decade ago, it would've been lapped up. It's got a strong cast with Sarah Paulson, Glenn Close, Niecy Nash-Betts, Teyana Taylor and Naomi Watts and then there's Kim Kardashian. The first five episodes threw in some big guests, moments of sheer opulence and savage one liners from Paulson's venomous Carrington Lane but it's also a case of Murphy reheating past triumphs in an underwhelming way.

Big Brother UK: It's been twenty five years since the most influential reality show hit UK screens and this series was a very mixed bag. Fortunately we got a likable winner with Richard but we also had to endure unbearable people like Caroline, Sam, Nancy and George and the inconsistencies with rule breaking and often disastrous late night spin off often tested my patience with the show. It'll be back for a 2026 series but ITV2 need to make some changes if they're going to continue with the show.

Devil In Disguise: John Wayne Gacy: For those who find Netflix's Monster series on the exploitative side of things in it's depiction of real life serial killer, Peacock has an alternative. This first season might have been about John Wayne Gacy but the emphasis was more on the lives of his victims and the trauma their families had to endure more than Gacy himself. At eight episodes, it did lag a little but it's a good alternative to it's Netflix counterpart.

Marvel Zombies: I gotta admit, this really just came and went. Aside from Daredevil: Born Again, it feels like none of the MCU shows really made much impact this year. This didn't even need to be a four part series. It could've been a 70 minute animated movie and it would've worked better. If you're a fan of Ms Marvel, Kate Bishop and Ironheart, this one's for you.

Only Murders In The Building: Season 5 hasn't been the show at its strongest but it hasn't been horrible. I do feel there's a lot of life left with the show but the Lester mystery was by far the weakest in terms of execution and eventually resolution as well. I mean the killer was someone we barely knew and therefore it was harder to care about them being caught. Saying that, I am looking forward to seeing what things will be like next season when Charles, Oliver and Mabel head to London.

• The fourth season of Bridgerton will be released from January 29th and February 26th respectively on Netflix.
• Stranger Things Season 5 will be released on Netflix from November 26th, December 25th and December 31st.
• Peacock have cancelled Poker Face after two seasons but have renewed Twisted Metal for a third season.
• Fallout Season 2 will premiere on Amazon Prime from December 17th.
• The BBC have renewed both Line Of Duty and Doctor Foster for seventh and third seasons respectively.
• The Sophie Turner starring series, Steal will premiere on Amazon Prime from January 21st.
• FX have cancelled English Teacher after two seasons.
• Jason Momoa has signed on for another Apple TV series called Nomad.
• Grotesquerie has been rumoured to be cancelled after one season by FX.
• Season 2 of The Night Manager will be released on Amazon Prime from January 11th.
• The eighth and final season of Outlander will air on Starz from March 6th.
• Amazon Prime have ordered Escorted to series, which will be written, produced and star Brett Goldstein.
• FX have renewed Alien: Earth for a second season.

The Future Of Ryan Murphy Shows - Part 4

A surprise update here. I was going to hold this off until later in the year but a few tantalising bits have materialised the last few weeks.

Filming for 9-1-1: Nashville has begun and the cast has further expanded. Last time I mentioned Chris O'Donnell as Captain Don Sharpe and Jessica Capshaw as Blythe Warde along with LeAnn Rimes and Kimberly Williams-Paisley in undisclosed roles. Added to the cast include Michael Provost as Ryan, a cowboy firefighter as well as Don and Blythe's son. Then there's Hunter McVey as haunted bad boy firefighter Blue, Juanita Felix as former trauma surgeon Roxie and Hailey Kilgore as singer Taylor. Both Roxie and Taylor are also firefighters. The show will premiere in the Fall on ABC with the ninth season of parent show, 9-1-1.

Speaking of filming, FX's next anthology series, American Love Story has given us some goodies here. First of all, this rather nice photoshoot with leads Paul Kelly and Sarah Pidgeon as JFK Jr and Carolyn Bessette in character mode. On top of that they will be joined by Grace Gummer, Sydney Lemmon and Alessandro Nicola as well as the previously announced Naomi Watts. It was also confirmed the show will premiere on FX from February 2026.

After months of radio silence, we finally got the tiniest of crumbs for American Horror Story. Now, it's nothing to get too excited about but someone did ask Ryan Murphy if we were going to get Season 13 in 2025 and while Murphy didn't exactly confirm that we would, he did give something. He confirmed that both him and Sarah Paulson were working on something cool in regards to the long running FX stalwart. It's not really anything to go on but here's hoping that more concrete information will surface soon enough. I'd be surprised if Season 13 does air this year but stranger things have happened.

Announced after my last blog on Ryan Murphy shows, it does look like he's collaborating with Kaia Gerber once again. This time, it's adaptation of Bret Easton Ellis's The Shards for FX. The book released in 2023 focused on a coming of age story set in 1981 where a group of privileged prep school students navigate their senior year as well as the presence of a serial killer. Gerber's character will be the lead and so far, she's the only cast member announced with Max Winkler set to direct the pilot episode. Filming has yet to start, so this one might be a while yet. I hope this fares better for Murphy than Scream Queens did a decade ago for him.

Last but not least, there's Doctor Odyssey. It's been a month since the first season wrapped up on an unsatisfying note on ABC. The lack of an update on the nautical series is definitely frustrating as both ABC and Ryan Murphy seem to yet to decide on its fate. If it is returning, it's definitely moving to another night on ABC and will likely be a mid season return. If it's cancelled, then why not just the few people curious about the show out of their misery and tell them? I expect this with streaming and cable shows but not a network TV show. Make a decision already.

That's my update for now. Unless major news is revealed about multiple Ryan Murphy soon, it'll be a while before I do another of these blogs.

The Future Of Ryan Murphy Shows - Part 3

Last year, I did two blogs (months apart) on the future of Ryan Murphy shows and I thought I'd do another one. Buckle in.

9-1-1/9-1-1: Nashville will form a double bill for ABC on Thursdays during the 2025-2026 TV season. I expected this to be honest. ABC have made it clear that the former show won't end with it's upcoming ninth season while the latter not only has Chris O'Donnell and Jessica Capshaw as series regulars but joining them will include LeAnn Rimes and Kimberly Williams-Paisley.

Although it was announced ages ago as a series, it's only been in recent weeks that actual progress for FX's upcoming anthology series, American Love Story has been made. The casting so far includes Naomi Watts, Paul Kelly and Sarah Pidgeon as Jackie Kennedy, JFK Jr and Carolyn Bessette respectively. No release date has been given, so I'm assuming it'll likely be a 2026 release.

Given the biggest push during Disney's upfronts this week was upcoming Hulu legal drama, All's Fair. The series which has Kim Kardashian, Sarah Paulson, Naomi Watts, Niecy Nash-Betts, Teyana Taylor and Glenn Close certainly delivered a very camp trailer. It's uber glossy, focusing on a group of women lawyers working only to represent women while dealing with the men in the lives. It'll premiere during the Fall and it certainly looks like it could be a lot of fun. Sarah Paulson in particular seems to be playing a more antagonistic role.

Then there's the imminent arrival of FX's upcoming comic book series adaptation The Beauty. You've got the four main leads with Evan Peters, Anthony Ramos, Jeremy Pope and Ashton Kutcher. There's also Rebecca Hall, Vincent D'Onofrio, Isabella Rossellini, Ben Platt and Bella Hadid. It's getting comparisons to The Substance (which may or may not be a good thing) and while a trailer played at the upfronts, it has yet to be released. An airdate has yet to be confirmed.

Then there's everything else. Ryan Murphy has a lot of shows on his plate, has been spreading himself too thin for too long and it's starting to become noticeable that it's almost too much.

Plus side, Monster: The Original Monster with Charlie Hunnam as Ed Gein should release on Netflix later this year. However once that's released, it'll mark the end of Murphy's collaboration with the popular streamer.

As for everything else, both Doctor Odyssey (airing it's last episode tonight on ABC) and American Horror Story (FX) are down to Ryan Murphy in terms of getting future seasons, though it wouldn't surprise me if the former has been cancelled.

Then there's American Crime Story, American Sports Story, American Horror Stories, Feud, Grotesquerie and Mid-Century Modern. None of these shows as of now have been confirmed for further seasons. I'll admit that's a lot of shows to have up in the air in terms of future seasons. I can see some of them being quietly cancelled with others eventually brought back. 

Which Ryan Murphy shows should return and which should be cancelled? Which upcoming ones are you looking forward to?