HOT SUMMER TV,
Late summer heats up with great new, returning series
Can three dragons save summer?
That's a lot of pressure to put on Drogon and his brothers as “Game of Thrones” returns for its seventh season tonight at 9 on HBO. Thankfully, they'll be backed up by some of the most conniving and altogether fascinating humans, with a sprinkling of demonic White Walkers.
“Game of Thrones” is returning at just the right time.
Because — and there's just no other way to say it — the summer of TV has been a tedious chore.
What can you say about a season in which the highlight has been a show based on a game app? And not even a good one. (CBS' “Candy Crush,” the stupidity is mighty with you.)
“American Gods” ended too soon. “Twin Peaks” turned out to be David Lynch's nightmares spun from a blender and tossed in our faces. ABC seems to have tumbled back to the '70s with creaky remakes of “The $100,000 Pyramid” and “Battle of the Network Stars.”
If it weren't for Netflix's “GLOW,” there would be nothing to enjoy.
Don't write off the entire summer. This is only the halfway point, and there's a lot more TV coming our way — returning shows and newcomers — that just might make staying in and cranking up the AC worth the expense. Consider:
With a Mexican drug lord after him, a Chicago money launderer (Jason Bateman, “Arrested Development”) relocates his family to the
“Ozarks” (Friday on Netflix). Then things really get weird. Laura Linney (“The Big C”) co-stars.
When “Insecure” (July 23 on HBO) returns for its second season, it's three months after Issa's breakup (Issa Rae) with her longtime boyfriend. Now she struggles to move on in a world ruled by dating apps. Also returning,
“Ballers” (July 23, also HBO) with some guy who might be our future president. You know, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.
In “Somewhere Between” (July 24 on ABC), a mother (Paula Patton, “Mission Impossible — Ghost Protocol”) is shattered when her 8-year-old daughter is murdered. Then somehow she is transported back in time one week — can she save her little girl?
“Midnight, Texas” (July 24 on
NBC) might fill the vacuum left by “True Blood.” Based on the books by the same author, Charlaine Harris, it centers on a town filled with paranormal folks — including a weretiger — who must protect the planet from demons. Francois Arnaud (“The Borgias”) and Dylan Bruce (“Orphan Black”) co-star. “Wet Hot American Summer: Ten Years Later” (Aug. 4 on Netflix) reunites the merry band of misfits, including Amy Poehler, Christopher Meloni, Elizabeth Banks and Janeane Garofalo.
Matt Bomer (“White Collar”) stars in “The Last Tycoon” (July 28 on Amazon) as a 1930s Hollywood golden boy fighting it out with studio boss (Kelsey Grammer, “Frasier”). The series is based on F. Scott Fitzgerald's last known work.
Marvel's hard-luck heroes are together at last. Marvel's “The Defenders” (Aug. 18 on Netflix) unites Daredevil (Charlie Cox), Jessica Jones (Krysten Ritter), Luke Cage (Mike Colter) and Iron Fist (Finn Jones) as they take on a new villain threatening their neighborhood — played by Sigourney Weaver.
Hey, it wouldn't be a summer without some stormy weather — and a film so bad, you'll laugh. That means it's time for “Sharknado 5:
Global Swarming” (Aug. 6 on Syfy) with Ian Ziering returning as our chainsaw-wielding shark hunter and featuring such celebs as Fabio, Olivia Newton-John and Charo as the queen of England. Yes, you read that right.