Using the ‘Allen’ key
Some “Assembly Required”: Pull out the tools and start practicing your grunts because everyone’s favorite ‘90s TV handymen are back in the workshop. Join Tim Allen and Richard Karn as they host the new History Channel competition series, “Assembly Required,” premiering Tuesday, Feb. 23, on the network.
Made famous from their shared time as Tim “The Toolman” Taylor (Allen) and Al Borland (Karn) on the popular family sitcom “Home Improvement,” this dynamic duo is returning more than 20 years later to host a new unscripted series that pits the best builders and renovators in the country against each other in a challenge to rebuild and improve upon a broken everyday household item of the hosts’ choosing. Joining Allen and Karn this time around is DIY YouTuber and host of “House Hacks”April Wilkerson.Together the team will not only set the parameters for and oversee the competition, but they will also give viewers a brief history of the item being fixed over the course of that episode by detailing the inspiration, creation and original intended purpose of the object.
“Let’s face it, we’re living in a throwaway society,”Allen said in an official statement regarding the show. “We buy, break, replace … rinse and repeat. Whatever happened to repair and rebuild?! … I’ve created a show to remind people of the satisfaction and pride that comes from rebuilding something on their own.And who better to join me than my buddy from the old ‘Tool Time’ days – Richard Karn! Now we’re talking more power!”
The show features America’s best and brightest builders working from their own toolsheds, workshops and garages so that physical distancing is always in mind and all health and safety protocols are being followed in this new era of television (and life in general). Still, that won’t stop the builders from getting up close and personal with their favorite tools as they take on the challenges dished out by the hosts. Join Allen, Karn and Wilkerson as “Assembly Required” makes its debut Tuesday, Feb. 23, on History Channel.
Act like a Baroness: The first ladies of comedy are back for more fem-forward farce in extra episodes of “The Baroness von Sketch Show’s” fifth and final season, beginning Wednesday, Feb. 24, on IFC.
Fronted by Aurora Browne (“Lars and the Real Girl,” 2007), Meredith MacNeill (“Your Money or Your Wife,” 2015), Carolyn Taylor (“Portrait of a Serial Monogamist,” 2015) and Jennifer Whalen (“To Die 4,” 2004), this Canadian sketch-comedy series has been causing giggles, happy hyperventilation and slapped knees since it debuted on CBC (its originating network) and IFC back in June 2016.
After making the decision early last year to end the series following five seasons on the air, Sally Catto, general manager for factual, entertainment and sports at CBC, issued a statement saying, “Season after season, their sketches have continued to be clever and bold and reflect the perspectives and experiences of women in refreshingly authentic new ways. Jennifer, Carolyn, Aurora and Meredith have changed the landscape of Canadian comedy forever, and we are so very proud of their achievement.”
But, in typical Baroness fashion, the cast wasn’t ready to let viewers go without pulling one last trick out of their collective metaphorical sleeve: five bonus episodes of the show will be added to the end of Season 5.Talk about a high-society farewell!
Be sure to catch the Canadian funnywomen before they move on to their next projects — MacNeill’s new series, “Pretty Hard Cases,” just launched (Feb. 3), while Taylor has been working hard on her first full-length Queer experimental pop album, “The Untitled Carolyn Taylor Project.” By now, though, it’s fairly clear that no matter what these women choose to do, it’s sure to be top notch!
Don’t miss the Baronesses before they take their leave — tune in for the first of five series-ending extra episodes of “The Baroness von Sketch Show,” airing Wednesday, Feb. 24, on IFC.
Enrolling in “quintergarten”:
America’s first all-female quintuplets and their family are back and Busby-er than ever — yeah, OK, even we thought that pun was too much.The Busby family, complete with their six daughters, are returning to the small screen for Season 8 of “OutDaughtered,” premiering Tuesday, Feb. 23, on TLC.
Like everyone else adjusting to the new normal, the Busbys have to practice proper health and safety as they emerge from lockdown and try their tiny hands at bicycle riding, RVing in the wilderness and, for quints Ava, Olivia, Parker, Hazel and Riley, attending kindergarten for the very first time. Not to mention that while super parents Adam and Danielle always somehow manage to keep spirits up around the house, Danielle has had to undergo nerve testing due to a painful condition that seems to be worsening — something that could end up proving rather scary for the girls (and Adam and Danielle, too!) this season.
Despite all the drama and their high-energy lifestyle, Adam still manages to stay active on his Instagram page to give fans of the show little teasers and tidbits to cling to. Most recently, he posted a photo of himself and Danielle, wearing masks and looking shocked in what appears to be a dentist’s office with the caption: “Glad the wait isn’t too much longer to find out what freaked @dbusby out on the upcoming season of @outdaughtered!” And, boy, is he not the only one who’s glad!
Be sure to catch all the action as America’s favorite family of eight returns for an eighth season of “OutDaughtered,” Tuesday, Feb. 23, on TLC.