‘Good Cop,’ ‘Maniac’ and ‘Quincy’ (Jones) on Netflix, ‘TKO’ Finale

Matt Roush
26 Comments
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Netflix

A critical checklist of notable Friday TV:

The Good Cop (streaming on Netflix): Until the broadcast networks kick in next week, most of the activity this Friday is happening on streaming—although this breezy procedural from the creator of Monk would be right at home on any network. Tony Danza and singer Josh Groban are surprisingly well matched as Tonys Sr. and Jr., an odd father-son couple indeed. The elder Tony is a shady ex-cop currently on parole, a far cry from by-the-books T.J. (Tony Jr.), a straight-shooting—with amazing aim—New York City detective who won’t even use stolen sugar packets. Which is why he’s likened to a boy scout, a choirboy, even Nancy Drew by his peers. For all of T.J.’s prissy nagging, he naturally loves his gregarious pop, who somehow gets embroiled in his son’s cases. If The Good Cop took itself even remotely seriously, it would be a disaster. But Groban is a good sport in nerd mode, and Danza relishes chewing the scenery (and crooning when he can), so kick back and relax. Sometimes it’s good for you.

'The Good Cop' EP Says Tony Danza-Starring Series Has 'Old School' Vibe
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'The Good Cop' EP Says Tony Danza-Starring Series Has 'Old School' Vibe

Maniac (streaming on Netflix): From another TV world entirely, this surreal hybrid of sci-fi/comedy/drama pushes the envelope about as far as it can go. From director Cary Fukunaga (True Detective) and creator Patrick Somerville, the trippy limited series is also starry, with Oscar winner Emma Stone and Jonah Hill as lost souls who intertwine as participants in a hallucinatory pharmaceutical drug trial. Imagining themselves in strange new worlds, they keep encountering each other with increasingly bizarre results, while a peculiar doctor (Justin Theroux) looks on. Sally Field plays the doc’s controlling mother.

'Things Go Haywire' in Netflix's Trippy Series 'Maniac' Teases EP Patrick Somerville
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'Things Go Haywire' in Netflix's Trippy Series 'Maniac' Teases EP Patrick Somerville

Also from Netflix’s incessant pipeline: Quincy, a biographical documentary of legendary musician-producer-mentor Quincy Jones, directed by his daughter Rashida Jones and Alan Hicks. Besides Jones’s reflections, the film features Oprah Winfrey, Paul McCartney, Tony Bennett, Bono, Will Smith, Peggy Lipton and more. Netflix movie premieres include Nappily Ever After, starring Sanaa Lathan as a Type-A personality whose bad hair day changes her perspective on life.

What's Streaming on Netflix? 'Hold the Dark,' 'Chef's Table,' & More
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What's Streaming on Netflix? 'Hold the Dark,' 'Chef's Table,' & More

TKO: Total Knock Out (9/8c, CBS): This comedic knockabout competition series didn’t turn out to be the next Wipeout CBS may have expected, especially with a marquee host like Kevin Hart attached. Shuffled quickly to Fridays when it didn’t pull strong ratings, the series’ first season ends with the top five contestants with the fastest times returning for a final round—and a $100,000 grand prize.

Kevin Hart on Game Show 'TKO: Total Knock Out': 'You're Going to Laugh a Lot'
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Kevin Hart on Game Show 'TKO: Total Knock Out': 'You're Going to Laugh a Lot'

Inside Friday TV: Disney Junior’s new animated movie Elena of Avalor: Song of the Sirenas (7/6c) revisits the popular and groundbreaking series, as Princess Elena (voiced by Aimee Carrero) visits Nueva Vista, where she meets and defends a family of mermaid-like sea creatures. Guest voices include Jane the Virgin’s Gina Rodriguez, Edward James Olmos, Rosario Dawson, the legendary Rita Moreno and Hamilton’s Javier Muñoz. … HGTV star David Bromstad returns in My Lottery Dream Home (9/8c) to help lucky winners find the homes of their dream, now that they can afford it. … Back to back episodes kick off a ninth season of PBS’s Art in the Twenty-First Century (9/8c, check local listings at pbs.org), introducing viewers to artists in Johannesburg, South Africa, and post-Cold War Berlin. … Syfy’s Killjoys (10/9c) wraps its fourth season with Dutch (Hannah John-Kamen) preparing for a final confrontation with The Lady in greenspace.

KilljoysManiacThe Good Cop



Conversation26 Comments

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  1. G

    GoldSubmarine

    Last night I was bored watching ABC"s dramas so went On Demand to NBC and decided to check out one of the first new Fall shows " I Feel Bad".

    I can't believe I managed to get through the pilot . And I'm shocked NBC aired it after the AGT finale, what a waste of a lead out. After not laughing once, I figured I might as well check out the second episode to see if it was just a bad pilot like Dr. Ken (later episodes improved significantly).I didn't laugh but it was marginally more amusing to watch. This show reminds of ABC's Alex Inc from last season, but not quite as funny. Not that Alex Inc was a good sitcom, but it was better than I Feel Bad!

    I doubt I'll watch the third episode when it airs. I'm sure the schedule will be filled with more entertaining shows.

    If you all are curious check out I Feel Bad and let me know if you laughed even once.

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    1. C

      CyanCoathanger

      I started to watch it on demand and fell asleep. I wasn't paying much attention to it anyway. How many "Your butt looks like your mother's" jokes were there?

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    2. G

      GoldSubmarine

      At least two maybe three.

      Not just that stupid running joke , the overall aura of the show is horrible . The work place scenes are painfully unfunny . And the family part might be worse!

      Critics hated ABC's Dr.Ken and Alex Inc but they were funnier , especially the workplace scenes.

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    3. C

      CyanCoathanger

      I'd like to know what your mother thought of it.

    4. R

      RedCupcake

      There was a show called Alex Inc last season? Must not have lasted long, did it?

    5. C

      CyanCoathanger

      It starred Zach Braff from Scrubs. It was cancelled after 10 episodes. I didn't find it funny at all.

    6. C

      CyanBus

      Couldn't get through the first one, which is a death knell these days. Too many decent shows to watch to force myself to watch something unwatchable!!

  2. G

    GoldSubmarine

    The Good Cop seems like a breezy light show, I would enjoy during the summertime.

    I do admire Tony Danza (loved him on Taxi and Who's the Boss).

    Probably wont stream it on Netflix anytime soon, there are way too many other new and returning shows I rather watch on the traditional networks. NBC's Manifest looks very intriguing. CBS's big budget Magnum P.I. looks like a fun and will most definitely check that one out. CBS's FBI also looks very exciting. If it even comes close to the level of Quantico (in terms of addicting storytelling and tension) , I'll be satisfied.

    Will also sample ABC's new comedies, CBS"s Murphy Brown, FOX's Last Man Standing, The Gifted (hope to see some improvements) among many other new and returning shows starting up very shortly.

    1. C

      CyanCoathanger

      Did you see my reply to you yesterday? You had said that you had nothing to watch until Tuesday, and I reminded you of all the new shows that were on Monday. I see you've listed some of them as shows to watch. I wouldn't want you to miss them.

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    2. G

      GoldSubmarine

      I just replied. For some reason I missed it yesterday. Usually all replies show up in my email

      Not this one

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    3. R

      RedCupcake

      Yeah, my email system has been slow in telling me about replies lately. On THURSDAY I got an email telling me that someone replied to a comment I made.... and it happened on TUESDAY. 😮

  3. P

    PurplePizza

    Forgot to mention the whole reason I decided to leave a comment: I got a pop-up that took over the entire window and kept ambushing my back-button attempt to flee. That hasn't happened on this site before, in recent memory at least, but if it does again I may not return for a possible third strike.

    1. C

      CyanCoathanger

      I haven't gotten one of those. The one they used to have had an X in the corner that you could click on to make it go away.

    2. G

      GoldSubmarine

      This used to happen with me. An entire TV GUIDE magazine ad (for which I already subscribe) blocked my entire screen and clicking the X wouldn't work! Thankfully this site has been behaving now.

    3. R

      RedCupcake

      Do you use an ad-blocker? I will never use a computer that does NOT run some sort of ad blocking program. 😀

    4. P

      PurplePizza

      I do, and rarely encounter this situation on my own computer, not to mention on an established corporate site.

  4. P

    PurplePizza

    The penultimate(ish) episode of Wynonna Earp before next week's two-part season finale here, plus baseball if we don't go out. Although I want to see Quincy at some point and we're intrigued by Maniac. Not to mention we have stuff on the DVR to get to.

  5. R

    RedCupcake

    CBS is re-airing the MacGyver season finale from May, so that the new season's premiere next week will be a smooth flow. I wish more shows would do that, especially when there's some sort of cliffhanger, or continuity thing going on from one season to the next.

    Not sure yet what I'll watch Saturday, I'll have to wait and see when I check the listings. Too lazy to do it now.

    1. R

      RedQuill

      Actually...Jena...interestingly...I had, close to, the exact opposite reaction when I across the many shoes that were re-airing their previous season's Finales this past week...

      Since I do NOT have UNlimited TV viewing time...for shows I follow...I can find NO reason to spend my time RE-watching the previous season's Finale...

      On the other hand...for shows I do NOT follow...I can find NO reason to spend my time watching the previous season's Finale...

      Two Cents, of course...

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    2. C

      CyanCoathanger

      I sometimes forget how a show ended especially since some shows have a year and a half between seasons nowadays.

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    3. R

      RedCupcake

      I forget too. Apparently the past season of NCIS ended with Director Vance being in jeopardy. I honestly don't remember seeing it. I *do* watch NCIS, but it's not a Tier One show for me (on my personal grading system) and I confess my attention sometimes wanders. (I think the show takes itself too seriously. Plus, I don't really like all the twelve hundred new characters they seemed to introduce lately.)

      Anyway, when there's a cliffhanger, I like to be reminded of what happened last.

      1

    4. R

      RedCupcake

      What about cliffhangers? I can barely remember what I had for dinner two nights ago, so remembering what happened in a TV show four months ago is practically impossible. That's why I like to review the previous finale. (I watched last year's finale of The Last Ship before the current season started, even though I knew it wasn't a cliffhanger and I wouldn't "miss" anything. I just wanted to remember the various characters and what they had done previously.)

      2

    5. R

      RedQuill

      Yea...but...but...if I RE-watch last season's Last Ship Finale...one (more) episode of the CURRENT season's Lodge 49, Shameless or AHS will back-up on my DVR...

      (I'd RE-watch ALL my favorites last season's Finales...IF I had UNLIMITED viewing time...and was IMMORTAL.)

    6. R

      RedCupcake

      I don't have unlimited viewing time, either. I don't even have DVR capability. If I don't watch something 'live' I have to watch online, or (if I'm lucky) on my cable provider's On Demand program. (But they don't carry a lot of stuff I watch, so that's iffy.)

      1

  6. C

    CyanCoathanger

    Killjoys again for me. I might just turn on Live PD all night for the noise. 😉

    1. This comment was removed by its author.

    2. C

      CyanCoathanger

      Mute the screen? The show is just silly fun. Even when it doesn't make any sense, it makes me laugh.