Burt Reynolds’ ‘Gunsmoke’ Days, ‘GMA Day’ Premiere, a Better ‘Saul’
A critical checklist of notable Monday TV:
Burt Reynolds in Gunsmoke (1 pm/12c, MeTV): As the New York Times’ obituary of Burt Reynolds recalls, the actor was known to joke that the only Native American he never played was Pocahontas. Part Cherokee, that heritage often factored into Reynolds’ early acting career, much of it on TV — including one of his first significant roles as half-breed blacksmith Quint Asper on the classic Western Gunsmoke for 50 episodes that aired between 1962-65. In honor of the versatile and popular star, who died Sept. 6 at 82, MeTV will replay a “Quint-essential” episode of Gunsmoke each day through Saturday, starting with the Season 8 “Quint Asper Comes Home” from 1962 in which he seeks revenge for his father’s murder. (An episode reported to be his favorite, Season 10’s “Crooked Mile” from 1964, airs Saturday, featuring guest star Katherine Ross as his girlfriend.)
GMA Day (1 pm/12c, ABC, check local listings): ABC expands its Good Morning America franchise into the early afternoon with this third hour of mostly light infotainment, hosted by GMA’s Michael Strahan and former The View regular Sara Haines. Those still mourning The Chew (which this replaces) will likely still be able to get their fill of cooking segments on a show that vows to be fun and even inspiring.
Better Call Saul (9/8c, AMC): There’s quite a bit of forward momentum, at last, in one of the best episodes yet for the uneven fourth season of the Breaking Bad prequel. One of my favorite parts of any episode is the prologue, often showing Jimmy McGill/future Saul (Bob Odenkirk) at an earlier, or later, stage of his evolution, and this week’s doesn’t disappoint. But the real dramatic juice comes from Jimmy realizing that his ambitions for a revival of the Wexler-McGill partnership don’t match Kim’s (Rhea Seehorn). So it’s back to hawking cell phones—if only he can work out a deal with the street thugs who mugged him the last time. Other takeaways: a mesmerizing soliloquy from Gus (Giancarlo Esposito) and the arrival of the Germans who’ll build his underground meth-lab fortress. Under Mike’s (Jonathan Banks) steely supervision, of course.
Inside Monday TV: Streaming highlight du jour: a new six-part season of Australian noir thriller Jack Irish on Acorn TV, starring Guy Pearce as the scrappy lawyer-turned-debt collecting private eye. As the new season begins, he’s once again hit rock bottom, but a case involving foreign students dying at a shady private college gets him back on his feet to expose a global conspiracy… Can you handle the truth that’s out there? To mark the 25th anniversary of The X-Files, BBC America devotes the next five days to a marathon of episodes from all nine seasons, plus the two feature films. The macabre wallow begins at 6 am/5c… Keith Carradine is TCM’s Guest Programmer for the night, and his choices include 1937’s Captains Courageous (8/7c), with his father, John Carradine, playing Long Jack opposite Oscar winner Spencer Tracy, and 1974’s Thieves Like Us (2:30 am/1:30c), in which he was directed by the great Robert Altman. … “America’s Favorite Dancer” will be revealed on the season finale of Fox’s So You Think You Can Dance (8/7c)… What’s love got to do with it? Bestselling author Nancy Jo Sales investigates the online dating industry in the HBO documentary Swiped: Hooking Up in the Digital Age (10/9c).
Conversation9 Comments
Please read the TV Insider Community Guidelines.
Comments are closed on this story.
-
R
Usual Monday shows: Salvation & Elementary
Someone last week surmised that the asteroid may not be completely deflected, or that Earth may be hit or affected by the asteroid in some way. This made me think: the Good Guys can't be completely successful in their aim to deflect the asteroid, otherwise there would be no reason for a third season. (Not that that's all that likely, anyway...) Just a thought. But I guess there's always more conflict to be had here on Earth, asteroid or not. (Nah... conflict? On THIS planet? In THIS country?? Never happen! 😉 )
1
-
R
Jena..."Not that that's all that likely, anyway"...
What? A semi-deflected asteroid hitting Earth...or a THIRD season???
-
R
Haha, I meant that a third season of the show isn't all that likely (more's the pity).
1
-
R
Well...if you believe that it's..."Better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all"...then I figure ya' gotta believe that it's..."Better to have enjoyed 2 Seasons of Salvation and lost than never to have enjoyed Salvation at all"...
-
R
Yes, I've enjoyed this second season of Salvation. I honestly would like to see a third season, too, but I'm not counting on it. For these summer shows, I try to keep low expectations of renewal.
1
-
-
R
By the way, I don't think anyone here watches The Last Ship, but the final season premiere last night was very good. I kind of don't like when shows do a time-jump between seasons, but this one was pretty necessary, I guess. It sure ramped up the drama, that's for sure.
-
C
I watch it (we've discussed episodes many times before), but I haven't seen last night's episode yet.
-
-
R
Will check out "CBS Fall Preview"...more, I suspect, to see what shows to AVOID filling up my DVR with...
-
G
I'll sample FBI and Magnum. The previews look good to me.
Ironically my favorite CBS show is Salvation and it's their lowest rated.
-
Watchlist Easy access to only the shows you care about — all in one simple place
Alerts Only important notifications — when a show is returning, when it becomes available to stream, and more.
Special Offers Exclusive products we release related to your favorite shows and streaming services