As you’ve undoubtedly heard by now, the Kansas City Chiefs won their second consecutive Super Bowl on Sunday night.
And, of course, Taylor Swift was on hand to cheer on her boyfriend, Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce.
Super Bowl ratings have been on the rise in recent years, and the combination of a hard-fought overtime game and the world’s most famous entertainer no doubt delivered a massive audience for CBS.
For Swift and Kelce, it was the culmination of a fairy tale romance, and for the good people of Kansas City, it was the perfect ending to a storybook season.
But if you’re a fan of neither football nor somewhat bland pop melodies (sorry, Swifties), you might be growing a little tired of the Traylor saga.
You are now free to rejoice in the news that another season of America’s favorite sport has come to a close, which means that Tay-Tay will only be the subject of every fifth post in your Facebook feed rather than every third one.
Now that the big game is over and we’ve witnessed our last 50-yard line PDA of the season, it’s time to get back to the kind of television in which tall, good-looking people only pretend to be madly in love with each other.
Yes, we’re talking about actors reading lines others have written for them, as God intended.
So, without further ado, here’s the rundown on what’s been happening on TV while you (and the rest of the country) have been fixated on the Taylor and Travis Show.
True Detective: Night Country Is Building to a Bonkers Conclusion
If you haven’t been watching True Detective: Night Country, you’ve missed out on TV’s most bonkers police procedural.
The investigation into the grisly demise of a group of scientists at a remote Alaskan research facility has taken us down an unexpected path to a place where corporate corruption intersects with what appear to be actual freakin’ ghosts.
In addition to the fact that the current season seems to have veered into supernatural territory, new showrunner Issa Lopez is doing what creator Nic Pizzolatto never even attempted by linking the new story to the events of True Detective Season 1.
Will all of these risks pay off?
It’s too soon to tell, but we know our curiosity is piqued, and we’ll be tuning in when the season comes to a close on February 18.
Monsieur Spade Revealed the Monster Among Them
We thought Philippe Saint Andre was a whiny loser who couldn’t go toe-to-toe with Sam Spade on a good day. Boy, were we wrong!
Monsieur Spade Season 1 Episode 5 showed the madman at his coldest, casually shooting a watermelon off the top of some dude’s head in his quest for answers.
This wasn’t some simple gun-to-melon scenario, either. Philippe went as far as the range of his precision assassin’s rifle would allow, making the poor man under the melon ripple with fear but unable to move lest he lose his life.
The shiver-inducing scene set the tone for another fantastic episode of this all-too-short series, which will lead to an exciting finale.
While this show has been billed as a limited series, we were thrilled to hear it’s been picked up for an international market, which is always a good sign that maybe there’s life ahead and it will be limited no more.
Is Event TV a Thing of the Past?
We have to wonder: Was the Super Bowl a ratings bonanza because of Traylor or because we’re eager for more Event TV?
Anybody on social media would have witnessed what we did: a great divide between those who thought the game was beyond boring and those who were enjoying every play.
Usher’s half-time show earned similar reviews, showing how divided we are as a country. How can half of you think it was a blast, and the other half had to be awakened from naps before the second half?
Well, here’s our take on Event TV from Friday. Maybe it will shed some light on the matter.
Justin Hartley Returned to TV with Tracker
If you were still reveling in the Chiefs’ win and imagining what’s next for the Swift-Kelce union once the on-screen action died down, you might have missed Justin Hartley’s heart-pounding return to TV.
Tracker Season 1 Episode 1 introduced us to a new CBS hero who lines his pockets while using a very special set of skills to find missing people.
While it’s not necessarily a new angle for a procedural, it does have a hot lead and a capable support cast that helps our hero accomplish the seemingly impossible.
It checks all the boxes for a typical CBS hit, but whether it will stand out from the crowd and fire up a franchise similar to FBI or NCIS remains to be seen.
TCAs are in Full Swing
The TCAs are rolling right along, and there was a lot of news from ABC and FX over the weekend.
Deadline reported that Alexi Hawley tried convincing people that The Rookie: Feds was canceled for myriad reasons, but it wasn’t a creative decision. Anyone who watched the show would probably argue with that, but we understand nobody wants to admit their show isn’t worth renewal.
David Shore was similarly responsive in his presentation about how The Good Doctor would go out with a truncated season, which wasn’t their wish.
Still, Shore is happy they’re going out on their own terms, and EP Liz Feldman said, “We get to plan a great finale and do something the fans will love.”
Other ABC news includes the upcoming Golden Bachelorette, which isn’t surprising with the ratings of the Golden Bachelor. It seems that older folks want romance, too! Who knew?
And, no surprise here, but Freeform is getting out of the scripted originals game. Cable is quickly becoming a thing of the past, with most people watching a day later on streaming. They might as well produce for the audience that watches live.
There was some Grey’s Anatomy news that will be covered in its own article, and we’ve got another piece coming about FX, Shogun, and their focus on prestige limited series as they grapple with a content glut after losing so many long-running series.
It’s the end of Peak TV, friends. We lived through it. Will it swing in the other direction again, or will original scripted content suffer long-term as the steady stream of money dries up and competition between networks and streamers takes a significant turn?
We hope to be at the forefront of that discussion, so keep an eye on TV Fanatic for the latest editorials and reviews!