David Hyde Pierce, Jane Leeves, Kelsey Grammer, John Mahoney and Peri Gilpin star in
“Frasier”
actor Levi Dylan, “Scooter Boyz”) in warmth and the smell of food, they
By Dana Simpson
a fatal car accident, music manager make the decision to stay the night
TV Media
“Frasier”
Go ahead — we’re listening. Don’t
miss all 11 seasons of “Frasier,”
available now on Hulu. Starring
Kelsey Grammer (“Like Father,”
2018) as the eponymous Dr. Fra-
sier Crane (a character first made
popular on the hit ‘80s sitcom
“Cheers”), the half-hour comedy
began in 1993 — hot on the heels
of its aforementioned predecessor’s
series finale — and chronicles Fra-
sier’s move from Boston back to his
hometown of Seattle to live with
his aging father (John Mahoney,
“Barton Fink,” 1991) and host a
call-in talk-radio therapy show.
With his feisty producer Roz (Peri
Gilpin, “Mr. Robinson”) at the helm
of his popular radio hour, Frasier is
an absolute wizard when it comes
to dealing with the problems of
others, though he often struggles
with the issues in his own life. Now
sharing an apartment with his
overly honest father and his ador-
able dog, Eddie, Frasier also has to
endure the plights and fancies of
his upper-crusty brother, Niles (Da-
vid Hyde Pierce, “Down with Love,”
2003), when he often comes to visit
— including Niles’ enduring crush
on their father’s live-in caretaker
and physical therapist, Daphne
(Jane Leeves, “The Resident”).
A hilarious and frequently relat-
able look at family relationships,
daily stresses and mental health,
“Frasier” remained on the air until
2004, beating out its parent show,
“Cheers,” by two years for number
of seasons on the air. Both shows
were created by writers Peter Casey,
David Angell and David Lee.
“Mighty Oak” (2020)
Explore whether those we love
are ever truly lost when “Mighty
Oak” comes to the Hulu lineup on
Wednesday, Jan. 6. A decade after
she lost her brother (also her band’s
lead vocalist), Vaughn (budding
Gina Jackson (Janel Parrish, “Pretty
Little Liars”) connects with a young
and gifted guitarist, Oak Scoggins
(the newly introduced Tommy Ra-
gen), whom she believes to be the
reincarnation of her late brother.
The more time Gina spends with
Oak, the more she believes that he
was meant to be a part of the band
and the lives of all those involved
in their music. As suspicion mounts
and tensions rise with the band’s
popularity, each musician is forced
to draw their own conclusion about
Oak’s involvement in their life as
they face a resurgence of emotion
connected to Vaughn’s death 10
years prior. Also starring Carlos
PenaVega (“The Loud House”),
Alexa PenaVega (“Nashville”),
Nana Ghana (“Savages,” 2012),
Ben Milken (“Bosch”) and Raven-
Symoné (“Raven’s Home”), this
musical dramedy was written by
Matt Allen (“Four Christmases,”
2008) and directed by “Soul Surfer”
(2011) producer/director Sean
McNamara.
“Gretel & Hansel” (2020)
Draw your own morals from
“Gretel & Hansel” when it comes
to Hulu on Thursday, Jan. 7. This
reimagining of the classic Brothers
Grimm fairy tale, “Hansel and Gre-
tel,” brings the sinister story to life,
highlighting the darkest aspects of
the beloved cautionary tale for chil-
dren. When a rural mother (Fiona
O’Shaughnessy, “Utopia”) begins
struggling to support her family and
eventually turns her children out to
fend for themselves, young Gretel
(Sophia Lillis, “It,” 2017) leads her
little brother, Hansel (Samuel J.
Leakey, “MotherFatherSon”), on a
trek through the woods in search
of food, lodging and work to earn
a living wage. Eager to escape the
dark uncertainty of the woods,
when the siblings stumble upon a
house that appears to be nothing
short of a godsend teaming with
in the care of the old woman who
lives there. But as they awake the
following morning, the effects of
their relief and hunger from the
night before having warn off, Gretel
and Hansel come to realize that
perhaps they aren’t as safe as they
had first thought themselves to be.
Starring Alice Krige (“Thor: The Dark
World,” 2013), Jessica De Gouw
(“Dracula”), Charles Babalola
(“Mary Magdalene,” 2018) and
Donncha Crowley (“King Arthur,”
2004) in supporting roles, this new-
est adaptation of the classic tale
was written by Rob Hayes (“Chew-
ing Gum”) and directed by Osgood
“Oz” Perkins (“I am the Pretty
Thing That Lives in the House,”
2016).
“Vanderpump Rules” Season
8
If there is anything that the Season
8 trailer for “The Vanderpump
Rules” makes clear, it’s that “we are
gathered here today — to party!”
So, join the party on Thursday,
Jan. 7, as this reality series’ eighth
season joins the Hulu roster. Since
2013, Real Housewife of Beverly
Hills Lisa Vanderpump has been
wowing viewers with drama,
scandal and the salacious details
of those behind the doors of her
exclusive Hollywood restaurant
and lounge, SUR. From servers and
bartenders to family, friends and
patrons, it would appear that the
Vanderpump rules apply to no one
at all. Season 8 kicks off with Jax,
Brittany, Schwartz, Katie, Sandoval
and Ariana all moving into their
own homes as Stassi and Kristen
face the tension between them
head on. Created by Lisa Vander-
pump herself, all 171 episodes
over the course of the show’s eight
seasons were developed by Alex
Baskin (“The Real Housewives of
Beverly Hills”) and Douglas Ross
(“The Real Housewives of Orange
County”).
Malin Akerman, Damian Lewis, Maggie Siff and Paul Giamatti star in “Billions”
By Dana Simpson
TV Media
“Herself” (2020)
Learn what it really means to fight
back when the new Irish film, “Her-
self,” lands on Prime on Friday, Jan.
8. Faced with the daunting task of
fighting to keep her children while
managing to drudge up a suitable
place for her whole family to live
amid a broken housing market in
Dublin, Sandra (Clare Dunne, “Spi-
der-Man: Far from Home,” 2019)
has left her abusive husband to
start a better life for herself and her
family. In the process of searching
for a home or a parcel of land upon
which to build a brand-new home,
Sandra not only rebuilds her life,
but herself. Co-written by Dunne
and Malcolm Campbell (“Ackley
Bridge”), “Herself” was directed by
“Mamma Mia!” (2008) and “The
Iron Lady” (2011) director Phyllida
Lloyd and also stars Molly McCann
(“Vivarium,” 2019) and Ruby Rose
O’Hara (“The Secret Market,”
2017) as Sandra’s daughters, Ian
Lloyd Anderson (“Love/Hate”),
Cathy Belton (“Philomena,” 2013)
and Ericka Roe (“Dublin Murders”).
“Billions”
Follow the money through all five
seasons of “Billions,” available
now on Prime. When this hour-long
Showtime corporate drama series
hit the small screen in 2016, it made
big waves. Now partway through
its fifth season (production was
halted during the pandemic and the
remaining five Season 5 episodes
are expected to air in 2021) and
confirmed for a sixth, “Billions”
— like its strongest characters —
shows no signs of wavering. The
show begins centered around U.S.
Attorney Chuck Rhoades (Paul Gia-
matti, “Sideways,” 2004) as he is
confronted with one rather unusual
and high-profile case of insider
trading that points to ties between
three separate firms and one
billionaire hedge fund manager,
Bobby “Axe” Axelrod (Damian Lew-
is, “Homeland”). Once Rhoades
begins his hunt for the king of cash
and corruption, the two men be-
come ensnared in a highly personal
game of cat and mouse. As the
seasons progress and the power
shifts back and forth between the
two men and their associates, the
one thing that remains an absolute
certainty is that no one’s jobs, rela-
tionships or principles will ever be
the same again. Created by Brian
Koppelman and David Levien of
“The Girlfriend Experience,” and
“Squawk Box” journalist Andrew
Ross Sorkin, “Billions” also stars
Malin Akerman (“Childrens Hos-
pital”) as tough lady Lara Axelrod;
Maggie Siff (“Sons of Anarchy”) as
Chuck’s strong-willed wife, Wendy
Rhoades; David Costabile (“Suits”)
as COO and Axe’s right-hand man,
Mike “Wags” Wagner; and Condola
Rashad (“Good Posture,” 2019)
as eager assistant district attorney
Kate Sacker.
“Downton Abbey”
You are cordially invited to binge-
watch “Downton Abbey,” all six
seasons of which are now stream-
ing on Prime. Renowned for its
costumes, sets and scandal, follow
the lives of the Crawley family as
they battle changes to life plans,
opposing world views, mismatched
values and the evolving constructs
of high-class English society be-
tween 1912 and 1926. When the
heir to the Crawley estate is killed
aboard the R.M.S. Titanic, Lord
Robert Crawley, Earl of Grantham
(Hugh Bonneville, “Notting Hill,”
1999) begins to see the future of
his family home, Downton Abbey,
less clearly than ever before. With
the arrival of the family’s next in
line, his distant cousin and lawyer
Matthew Crawley (Dan Stevens,
“Beauty and the Beast,” 2017),
conservativism clashes with mod-
ernism as the world spins madly on.
Still the daughters must be married
off, the estate must be kept up and
the servants have their own lives to
tend to when the Crawleys aren’t
looking. Starring Dame Maggie
Smith (“Gosford Park,” 2001) as
the conservative Violet Crawley,
Dowager Countess of Grantham,
opposite the reputation-hungry
social butterfly, Isobel Crawley
(Penelope Wilton, “After Life”),
“Downton Abbey” proved to be a
captivating sensation from early on
in its run on-air. Created by Julian
Fellowes (“Vanity Fair,” 2004), Lau-
ra Carmichael (“The Spanish Prin-
cess”), Jim Carter (“Shakespeare
in Love,” 1998), Michelle Dockery
(“Defending Jacob”), Elizabeth Mc-
Govern (“War of the Worlds”) and
Robert James-Collier (“Coronation
Street”) also star in all 52 episodes
of the series.
East Oregonian and Hermiston Herald | January 6, 2021
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