Ask Matt: ‘Trek’ Hits the Right Notes, ‘Diplomat,’ ‘Justified’ & More

Welcome to the Q&A with TV critic — also known to some TV fans as their “TV therapist” — Matt Roush, who’ll try to address whatever you love, loathe, are confused or frustrated or thrilled by in today’s vast TV landscape. (We know background music is too loud, but there’s always closed-captioning.)

One caution: This is a spoiler-free zone, so we won’t be addressing upcoming storylines here unless it’s already common knowledge. Please send your questions and comments to [email protected] and follow me on Twitter (@TVGMMattRoush). Look for Ask Matt columns on most Tuesdays and very occasional Fridays.

This season of Trek Is Out of This World

Comment: I’m writing to express my profound joy at the current season of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. Each episode has been well done (as I’ve come to expect). Still, three deserve particular accolades: “Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow” was a great example of multi-verse, alternate timeline, time travel storytelling. While a self-contained episode, that action continues to impact La’an and has prompted her growth as a character. The “Those Old Scientists” crossover with Lower Decks — the title is a play on how Trekkers refer to the first show as TOS, the original series — had me laughing out loud. I felt great joy in seeing two of my favorite animated characters come to life. And finally, last week’s “Subspace Rhapsody” boldly went where no Star Trek show has gone before — to a musical episode that was done to perfection. As you can tell, I’m a nerd and have been a Star Trek fan for a VERY long time — it is with surprise and glee that the framework of a show that has been around since the 1960s continues to entertain and delight! — Mitchell

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Matt Roush: Couldn’t agree more. And I’m always thrilled to see this kind of positivity in my mailbag, especially when we’re on the same wavelength. These episodes in particular have helped elevate Strange New Worlds to the top tier of TV sci-fi, and following the fabulous final season of Star Trek: Picard (in essence a nostalgic final bow for the Next Generation cast), I’d declare this a banner year for the Trek TV franchise. And about that musical episode …

The Musical Trek Gave All the Feels

Comment: Your comparison of the musical Strange New Worlds episode to Buffy the Vampire Slayer’s “Once More with Feeling” episode was apt — during the first few numbers I even checked the credits to see if Joss Whedon had anything to do with the episode, the songs sounded so familiar. And while the songs may have not been quite up to the level of Buffy, I don’t recall anyone on Buffy having the chops of Celia Rose Gooding (Uhura) or Christina Chong (La’an). Their numbers were the highlights of the episode. Kudos to the producers as well for moving the story and the characters forward with the episode, rather than just treating it as a gimmick. On a related note, since the strength of this show is the heart and humor of Anson Mount’s Captain Pike, why isn’t this guy doing romantic comedies?

And on an unrelated note, are there any actors on TV having more fun than Michael Sheen and David Tennant on Good Omens? — Rick C.

Matt Roush: On a second viewing, I enjoyed even more callouts I missed the first time to Buffy (the crack about “rabbits,” for one). And I get what you’re saying about the vocals, although James Marsters (as Spike) rocking his way through “Rest in Peace” in the Buffy episode has long been a favorite. What makes “Subspace Rhapsody” work so well, on a par with Buffy, was how the songs propelled many of the characters to new realizations about themselves and their relationships—also glad to see the return of Paul Wesley as pre-Captain James Kirk for the occasion. Can’t say I’ll ever view this as many times as I have “Once More with Feeling,” but I’m not done with it yet. And a big yes on enjoying those Good Omens hams, now with an extra side of (Jon) Hamm!

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A Non-Diplomatic Snub

Question: Am I the only one who thinks Rufus Sewell of Netflix’s The Diplomat was snubbed by Emmy voters? When one is sharing a screen with Keri Russell and more than holding his own, I think it should be acknowledged. I couldn’t keep my eyes off of him and eagerly awaited his scenes. — Melissa M

Matt Roush: The Diplomat wouldn’t have been the same, or nearly as much fun, without Rufus Sewell. I’d have applauded his nomination, as I did Keri Russell’s, but it’s his bad luck not to have been part of the cast of either Succession or The White Lotus, because all eight slots in the drama supporting actor category were filled by actors from those two shows in one of the worst cases of tunnel vision we’ve seen in a while. Maybe for Season 2, they’ll take notice. He’s deliciously deserving.

Justifying Raylan Givens’ Comeback

Comment: I wanted to sing my praises for the return of Justified. Back in 2015 when the series ended, I felt it was one of the best and most satisfying series finales that had been done in a long time. It felt like everything was wrapped up but with the chance that we might see Raylan Givens again. When I saw that Justified was returning this summer as a limited run series (City Primeval), I was thrilled to see Timothy Olyphant once again donning his cowboy hat and wry southern drawl. From the very first episode, I was amazed at how seamlessly and expertly he has gone right back into being Raylan, not missing a beat with his performance. Sometimes when actors reprise their roles, especially after the initial series is wrapped up so well, the result can be stilted or not quite what it once was. I give high praise to Timothy and the entire cast, the excellent writing, and the production team that has made this appointment TV if only for eight weeks. I will miss this when it is over but hope that Raylan will return again for another Justified event. This is a truly class act and deserves all the praise it receives. — Jane G.

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Matt Roush: Not going to argue with this — and again, loving the positivity. Raylan is a great character, and Timothy Olyphant has lost none of his charm (and simmering anger, when called for) in the role with the passage of time. His interplay with the story’s good (Aunjanue Ellis) and bad guys (Boyd Holbrook) is, as ever, a joy to behold. And without giving any spoilers away, when his Detroit adventure comes to an end, there are teasers that suggest this isn’t the last we’ve seen of him. Here’s hoping.

Flowing from Streamer Back to Network TV

Question: CBS‘s newly revamped fall schedule has an empty slot on Mondays at 10 pm/9c that (for now) says “Paramount + Original TBD.” I think that if NCIS: Sydney isn’t ready to air yet that Criminal Minds: Evolution might air there. What do you think? –Maria L.

Matt Roush: Makes sense to me. The latest scheduling update from CBS has NCIS reruns airing for several weeks in October in the Monday 10/9c time period—also a no-brainer since the show repeats fairly well and keeping its presence on its regular night brings a bit of continuity to a disrupted fall lineup. But should CBS need to import one of its streaming shows to fill the hole, returning the long-running Criminal Minds to the schedule with the Evolution season-long arc would be fitting. (Paramount+ also has seasons on the bench of The Good Fight, The Good Wife spinoff that previously enjoyed a brief run on CBS, as well as Evil, whose first season aired on CBS before moving to the streamer. Plus all those Star Trek shows. Still, Criminal Minds is more in keeping with CBS’s brand identity.)

Can Actors Perform in Reality Shows During the Strike?

Question: I had a question concerning upcoming celebrity reality shows taping this summer for the upcoming fall/winter TV season. These are for programs that are taping around this time, now that both strikes are going on concurrently. The networks have laid out their fall reality show schedules, and some shows like The $100,000 Pyramid and Celebrity Family Feud have been pre-taped. Others like Celebrity Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune are taping in the next few months, but with the actors’ strike on right now, things are up in the air. How come the only celebrity currently rumored for Dancing with the Stars is Ariana Madix from Vanderpump Rules? Celebrity Wheel was supposed to start taping their fall series last month. The first tape date happened on the date that the actors strike was called, but the next two tape dates the following week were dropped and replaced with regular Wheel shows. I am not positive what’s going on with Celebrity Jeopardy, which was supposed to start taping soon. Will Mayim Bialik take part, or will she, as an actor, drop out as host for the length of the strike? Are actors not allowed to take part in any reality program? I mean they can get sports, reality or music celebs, but no actors right now?

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I am a bit confused with all of the issues concerning actors and their involvement in other programs. Are they not supposed to appear on other programs? I wonder if they are not supposed to be promoting anything past or present that they have filmed. I remember seeing a recent article where people were slamming Zachary Levi for a tweet he had put out bemoaning the fact that he not only couldn’t discuss upcoming roles, but he couldn’t talk about his past roles (Chuck, Shazam…) What are these actors guidelines? Do you think that upcoming reality shows scheduled for the remainder of the year will go off without a hitch? Will Celebrity Wheel go back into production? Will Celebrity Jeopardy! and Dancing with the Stars and any other upcoming celebrity shows find good celebs and air right on time as long as both strikes are happening? Hope that you can enlighten me as to what’s going on. — Philip

Matt Roush: Wish I could, but I’m not up to speed on which shows are taping when or where the celebrity versions of game shows are in terms of production and casting. The way I look at the issue is that as long as the actors (and writers) are on strike, most will be reluctant to participate in a show, even if they’re playing for charity (usually the case), if the show is produced by a major studio that they’re striking against on a network also owned by a conglomerate that they’re striking against. Until this is resolved, I wouldn’t expect actors in the guild to appear on any sort of show, including the few remaining talk-show outlets where they would ordinarily promote their latest projects. These shows will most likely need to lean on reality, music, social media and sports stars, and even then, I would imagine many would be reluctant to cross picket lines for this sort of exposure. That also applies to Mayim Bialik, who I wouldn’t expect to return to any form of Jeopardy! until the strikes are behind us. The sooner the better, of course, but until the conversations begin again in earnest, the waiting game continues.

That’s all for now. We can’t do this without your participation, so please keep sending questions and comments about TV to [email protected] or shoot me a line on Twitter (@TVGMMattRoush), and you can also submit questions via the handy form below. (Please include a first name with your question.)