Acclaimed Pittsburgh-set ER drama “The Pitt” would be a hard act for any medical show to follow, but Netflix’s “Pulse” fares extremely poorly by comparison.
“Pulse” is pretty much “Grey’s Anatomy” set in the post- #MeToo era if Meredith complained to HR about McDreamy instead of dating him for years.
As a hurricane bears down on a Miami Level 1 Trauma Center, Dr. Danny Simms (Willa Fitzgerald) starts her first day at work after reporting chief resident Dr. Xander Phillips (Clon Woodell) is sent to HR for undefined reasons. Phillips gets benched, Simms gets appointed interim chief and then Phillips is pressed into service despite his suspension because of the storm and the whole HR issue seems to get at least temporarily waved away.
Flashbacks fill in the blanks of the Simms-Phillips romantic relationship and a copious amount of exposition, poorly deployed, introduces the show’s other characters, including Dr. Cruz (Justina Machado, “Six Feet Under”).
Created by Zoe Robyn (“Hawaii Five-O”), “Pulse” may appeal to “Grey’s” fans who prefer their medical shows on the soapy side, but anyone who’s given up on “Grey’s” and embraced “The Pitt” would be wise to let “Pulse” flatline on its own.
‘Dying for Sex’
FX’s latest half-hour comedy won’t be for everyone due to the graphic depiction of a woman, Molly (Michelle Williams), who explores her sexual desires after an incurable cancer diagnosis leads her to leave her husband (Jay Duplass).
“I wanna be touched by someone who wants to touch me. Is that crazy?” Molly says before joining an online dating site and reveling in the photos men send her of their exposed genitals.
But “Dying for Sex” — all eight episodes stream April 4 on Hulu — inspires a lot of laughs, too, thanks to Molly’s voiceover observations and her interactions with scattered best friend Nikki (Jenny Slate).
The show is inspired by the true story of Molly Kochan, originally shared on a podcast by her best friend. The series, co-created by “New Girl” vets Kim Rosenstock and Elizabeth Meriwether, “Dying for Sex” explores emotional terrain from trauma to desire, from impending grief to seeking sexual gratification.
‘1923’
The second season of Paramount ’s “Yellowstone” prequel “1923” improved on the pace of the first season, moving from snail’s pace to turtle’s pace, but it probably doesn’t matter because the characters endeared themselves to viewers even as they continue to make dumb choices (driving into a Montana snowstorm in a Model T? Really!?!)
This week we learned April 6th’s season two finale will be super-sized, running two hours.
Even at that and even if there’s resolution to the war over the Dutton land, a reunion of Spencer (Brandon Sklenar) and Alex (Julia Schlaepfer) and resolution for Indian teen Teonna (Aminah Nieves), will these last two hours prove a satisfying conclusion? Or will “1923” return for a third season once it completes what felt like a long, slogging, two-season prologue?
WPXI reporter exits
Jillian Hartmann, who grew up near Wexford, exited Channel 11 last week for a job at the Fox affiliate in Houston.
WPXI’s Gabriella DeLuca posted images from Hartmann’s going-away party to Instagram last week. Hartmann’s profile on the station’s website has been removed.
Prior to her stint as a reporter at WPXI, Hartmann worked at WJAC in Johnstown and at a station in Fort Myers, Fla.
‘Donkey Hodie’s’ new character
A week of new episodes of PBS Kids puppet series “Donkey Hodie,” produced by Spiffy Pictures and Pittsburgh-based Fred Rogers’ productions, debuts April 14. The first new episode (12 p.m. April 14, WQED-TV) introduces Jeff Mouse, a character born with congenital muscular dystrophy, inspired by the late Jeff Erlanger, who appeared in a 1981 episode of “Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood” demonstrating his wheelchair to Fred Rogers.
Requiem for press tour
For the second time in a row, the Television Critics Association press tour has been canceled due to a lack of participation from networks/streaming platforms who say they can’t afford the hotel/audio-visual costs associated with making TCA presentations.
In winter and summer for almost five decades, TV critics from newspapers across the country gathered in Southern California to interview network executives, showrunners and stars in a press conference format. (Full disclosure: I’m a past TCA president, 2005-07, and current TCA hotel coordinator.)
Press tour offers access to critics of all stripes, whether they’re from a Hollywood trade, the New York Times (Maureen Dowd used to show up in sunglasses and what appeared to be pajamas) or the Salt Lake Tribune. Network executives, stewards of the public airwaves, answered for their choices every six months.
What doomed press tour in its current hotel-based form?
• Economics: The demise of features beat reporting, including TV critics, at many newspapers, meant the ranks of TCA, while consistent at more than 200 journalists over the past two decades, shifted from predominantly out-of-towners to Los Angeles-based press. Networks would rather host the locals at their studios (and show off their new programs to out-of-towners virtually once the covid-19 pandemic popularized Zoom) than spend hundreds of thousands of dollars to stage press conferences at a swanky hotel, especially after streaming made the media business significantly less profitable. Tech giants with more money than sense were the first to bail on presenting at TCA. Netflix hasn’t shown up since the early seasons of Nicole Byer’s “Nailed It,” which premiered in 2018. Amazon’s been a no-show since before the pandemic. Apple TV last presented in January 2023.
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• Fear: The entertainment business has long been driven by fear (see: “The Studio”) and that’s truer than ever. Publicists would rather not expose their executives and talent to uncomfortable questions when they can hire a moderator who will only ask fawning questions. In a recent HBO press conference the moderator asked the cast of a returning series, “How does it feel to be back?,” which, predictably, did not yield any useful answers from the show’s stars, but the happy talk responses ate up 10 of 30 minutes allotted for the discussion.
• Control: As we’ve seen in recent months with the treatment of the White House press corps, the ability to control the narrative is easier when you mostly call on sycophants. In the entertainment biz, that means a preference for “influencers” over journalists, but it all amounts to the same thing: A greater ability to control how your company and content get portrayed to the public (until an influencer’s lack of journalism training/ethics leads to unintended consequences). Networks/platforms clearly have the money to continue press tour — just look at the elaborate “activations” at the recent SXSW festival — but they’d rather spend that budget on hip promotions than soliciting coverage that reaches the general population that, you know, actually watches TV. A decade ago, at the end of each press tour, network publicity chiefs would scramble to lock down their network’s date for the following press tour six months later. They’d often gripe about having to go on a weekend. One network pulled out of this summer’s planned tour because it didn’t get the weekend date it wanted. Others felt mid-March was too soon to commit to present in July, even though they used to commit to July presentations every January.
• Consolidation: Even networks (think: FX, HBO) that attempt to lead with quality and have the most interest in cultivating a productive relationship with critics at TCA press tours can no longer act independently after being absorbed by corporate behemoths that tightly control the purse strings.
TCA still exists and the TCA Awards, bestowed on the best in TV every summer, will continue to be handed out, but without a hotel base, it seems likely the awards gala — a rare, intimate, Hollywood celebration that’s not televised — will be reduced to a press release.
The press tour will likely attempt to evolve into a new format that brings those of us dubbed “the reporters who cover television” (by a supercilious reporter who covered television) onto studio lots rather than meeting in a neutral hotel location.
The more control networks/streamers get, the more they will want. The quality and quantity of TV industry coverage will suffer as networks’ refusal to participate in press tour forces TCA to forsake the independence that’s characterized the organization since its founding in 1979.
Renewed/in development
Disney Channel/Disney will bring back “Wizards Beyond Waverly Place” for a second season.
Adult Swim renewed “Common Side Effects” for a second season.
Paramount with Showtime renewed “Dexter: Original Sin” for a second season.
Hulu ordered “The Testaments,” a follow-up series to “The Handmaid’s Tale” with Ann Dowd reprising her role as Aunt Lydia.
CBS is developing a “Yellowstone” spin-off procedural featuring Kayce Dutton (Luke Grimes).
Channel surfing
Sunday’s season finale of “The White Lotus” will run almost 90 minutes. … Christian Siriano is in and Tim Gunn is out as contestants’ mentor in the latest iteration of “Project Runway” coming to Freeform later this year. Heidi Klum returns as host and judge with OG judge Nina Garcia joined by Law Roach on the judging panel. … John Lithgow will return as the Trinity Killer and Jimmy Smits will reprise his role as Miguel Prado in Paramount with Showtime’s “Dexter: Resurrection.” … MSNBC data analyst Steve Kornacki will move to NBC News as MSNBC prepares to be spun off into a separate company … “America’s Most Wanted” returns to Fox at 9 p.m. April 21.
You can reach TV writer Rob Owen at rowen@triblive.com or 412-380-8559. Follow @RobOwenTV on Threads, X/Twitter, Instagram, Bluesky and Facebook. Ask TV questions by email or phone. Please include your first name and location.