On newsstands June 7, 2017

Ashton Kutcher is Back on ‘The Ranch’! Plus, Everything You Need to Know About New and Returning Summer Streaming Series

Colorado’s Bennett brothers—comprised of ex-football star Colt (Ashton Kutcher) and semi-screwup Rooster (Danny Masterson)— were grappling with a whole new herd of issues (pun intended) when we last saw them in Netflix’s The Ranch. Colt’s plan to propose to high school sweetheart Abby (Elisha Cuthbert) was derailed by the fallout from a one-night stand; Rooster had abandoned the family’s failing farm for a more corporate outlet elsewhere; and their parents, Beau and Maggie (Sam Elliott and Debra Winger), had finally, painfully signed their divorce papers after a valiant attempt to mend fences.

Not exactly typical sitcom fare, but The Ranch is not a typical sitcom. With salty language abounding and the show shot in multicamera format before a studio audience, it is more like the sister-wife to Netflix’s socially-up-to-speed, Norman Lear–produced One Day at a Time reboot. What results is an oddly endearing hybrid of broad comedy and tense family drama that doesn’t telegraph its laughs as much as mine them from the characters’ many flaws.

But at its heart, the show remains an exploration of the relationship between the boys, which gets a boost of riotous realism from the evident bond shared by former That ’70s Show costars and longtime pals Kutcher and Masterson. “His big break was That ’70s Show, and if you watch the first couple of episodes of Season 1, our timing was already on,” Masterson told TV Guide Magazine when The Ranch premiered in 2016. Here, the smarter-than-anyone-ever-gives-him-credit-for Kutcher expands on how the Netflix series is doing what no other TV show is attempting to, sharing the small screen with bona fide legends and which of his costars can actually kick his ass.

Also in this special Streaming Preview issue:

  • Streaming Preview 2017: Kelsey Grammer returns to the small screen in The Last Tycoon, GLOW brings back the wild world of ladies’ wrestling; Bloodline signs off after three tension-filled seasons; Billy Crudup joins Naomi Watts for the psychological drama Gypsy, and Marvel unveils its Defenders.
  • Fargo: Ewan McGregor previews the acclaimed FX series’ conclusion and tells us why it’s the best role(s) he’s had in a decade.
  • Power: On the set for Season 4’s of Starz’s most-watched drama.

• Plus: A column by new contributor David Bianculli on TV’s Platinum Age, Derek Hough tells us what it’s like to be on the other side of the dance floor as a judge for World of Dance, all about those shocking spring finales and what’s coming, a new adventure for the lost souls of Preacher, The Handmaid’s Tale and Better Call Saul wrap things up (for now), and the best of movies, streaming, sports and more.

Gordon Ramsey Is All Fired Up! The Super-Chef Gets Summer Cooking With Gas With His Hot New Live Competition Show

Get your mind out of the gutter! According to international superchef Gordon Ramsay, the F in his new Fox series, The F Word, stands for “food” and “family.” But we’ll see about that. With this latest TV venture, the hilariously temperamental potty mouth—whose string of hits includes Kitchen Nightmares, Hotel Hell, Hell’s Kitchen, MasterChef and MasterChef Junior—is boldly going where he’s never gone before. This is live TV, people! And the stress and anxiety will be off the charts. Each episode pits two groups of amateur cooks against each other—they’re families, friends, coworkers—and they must take over a state-of-the-art restaurant and prepare a dazzling meal for over 80 nitpicky guests. The winners pocket $100,000. But will they survive the wrath of Ramsay? We corralled the bodacious Brit to get a taste of what he serves up best: hot dish!

Plenty goes wrong on all your TV shows. In fact, you’ve made a fortune yelling profanities at cooks who screw up. What makes going live so different? It’s uncharted territory. I’ve never been this excited about a show! This is the first time the public will truly experience the electrifying buzz of a happening, functioning restaurant. Professional chefs go live every night—and it’s so theatrical! Our restaurant opens half an hour before we hit the air so that, at exactly five seconds past 9 o’clock, the viewers will be thrown right into the energy and excitement. [Laughs] We’re also live because I enjoy putting people on the spot.

Admit it. You also love to torture the censors. I like nothing better than when I do a cooking segment on one of the morning shows and they say, “We’re live!

Also in this special Summer Preview issue:

  • Best of Summer: Dramas: Meet the thespians behind Still Star-Crossed, the Romeo & Juliet-inspired latest from ShondaLand; Jessica Biel makes a bloody return to the tube with The Sinner.
  • Best of Summer: Game Shows: Mario Lopez hosts an all-new Candy Crush, this time on your TV screen!; an all-new Gong Show fulfills your need to watch amateur talent peddle their wares.
  • Best of Summer: Sci-Fi/Fantasy: Who will rule them all in the penultimate season of Game of Thrones?; Preacher gets holy once again; Midnight, Texas—from the author of True Blood—is ready to scare up some summer thrills.
  • Best of Summer: Comedies: Niecy Nash bares some Claws in TNT’s newest; Sutton Foster clues us in on the newest Younger shocker.

• Plus: Matt Roush names his early picks for the best of the fall, an early look at Ray Romano and Chris O’Dowd in Get Shorty, Prison Break‘s Mark Feuerstein tells us his TV favorites, a remembrance of character actor Powers Boothe, Master of None writer/producer Alan Yang weighs in on his impressive résumé, and the best of movies, streaming, sports and more.

On newsstands May 10, 2017

The Return of ‘Twin Peaks’! Kyle MacLachlan and David Lynch on the Cult Series’ Legacy and What Fans Can Expect

When David Lynch and Mark Frost’s surreal Twin Peaks debuted on ABC in April 1990, the nascent World Wide Web was not yet a delivery service for instant feedback—or spoilers. Audiences found themselves frustrated yet intrigued with having to wait, week after week, to learn clues about the trippy show’s central mystery: Who bumped off small-town bad girl Laura Palmer (played by Sheryl Lee)? But even in today’s era of information overload, Showtime has unveiled only the most cryptic of teasers about the much-anticipated 18-episode revival, leaving fans waiting yet again.

Returning star Kyle MacLachlan, who revisits his lead role as unorthodox FBI special Agent Dale Cooper, also has remained mum on what Coop’s beat will be. Is there a new murder? is java-loving Agent Cooper still seeing apparitions? Will anyone’s deceased soul find its way into a drawer’s knob? (Yes, that actually happened— along with jazzy dance breaks, soul-stealing supernatural entities in jean jackets and lots of ebullient appreciation of doughnuts and sandwiches.) “I wish I could tell you more,” the actor says with a laugh. “I’m just incredibly excited about what people’s response is going to be.”

Here’s what’s known: It’s now 25 years after the northwest community of Twin Peaks parsed out the demise of homecoming queen Palmer, with her last seven days rumored to provide a crucial clue to the new narrative. Lynch is directing and cowriting—with producing partner Frost—all 18 installments of the limited series. so how was it to be back in the director’s chair? “Close to heaven on earth,” says Lynch. “It’s like a feature film divided into parts, so in order for it to hold together, it should be [made] by the same bunch.”

Also in this issue:

  • Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt: Ellie Kemper’s chipper gal takes on higher education in the third season of the hit Netflix comedy. Also: the show’s five funniest episodes!
  • Dirty Dancing: Get Baby out of that corner and back on screens! ABC remakes the classic 1987 film with Abigail Breslin, Colt Prattes, Debra Messing and Kate Sagal taking on the Housemans and beyond.
  • The Wizard of Lies: Robert De Niro and Michelle Pfeiffer lend their star power to HBO’s event movie about the rise and fall of shady businessman Bernie Madoff and his scorned wife Ruth.
  • Live With Kelly and Ryan: Seacrest in! The popular morning show finally has a cohost in the form of a very familiar face of American Idol.

• Plus: NCIS and its harrowing season finale, Amy Brenneman talks some Leftovers, Law & Order: SVU keeps it topical in a two-part season ender, a look at which of your favorite shows may not return for the 2016-17 TV season, diving into the controversy that has emerged out of Netflix’s 13 Reasons Why, and the best of movies, streaming, sports and more.

On newsstands April 26, 2017

‘The Voice’ Soars! The Coaches Dish About What it Takes to Win and What Keeps the No. 1 Reality Show on Top

The Voice coaches—Maroon 5 frontman Adam Levine, No Doubt’s Gwen Stefani, country superstar Blake Shelton and multiple-Grammy winner Alicia Keys—may spend a lot of time together when filming their hit singing competition, but absence (during the break between the Knockout rounds and the live playoffs) sure made the heart grow fonder for this fab four. “I was genuinely excited to see everybody again—it’s very rare,” joked Levine as he geared up to reunite with the team for Season 12’s live shows.

Thanks in part to this camaraderie, the NBC juggernaut remains the No. 1 show in its timeslot, beating competitor Dancing With the Stars in viewers age 18–49 and snagging musical luminaries John Legend, Luke Bryan, Celine Dion and Shania Twain to mentor this season’s contestants.

And though all four coaches desperately want to win (Shelton’s team has claimed victory five times in the show’s history, while Levine’s singers have won three times; Stefani and Keys are looking for their first championship), the mood is light as the competition gets more intense. Each of the coaches has a viable contender—Team Adam’s Jesse Larson, Team Alicia’s Chris Blue, Team Blake’s Lauren Duski and Team Gwen’s Hunter Plake appearing to have an early edge. But now is the time anything can happen.

The coaches sat down with us to talk strategy, their off-screen bond and how long they’ll stay in those big red chairs—turns out not very long for Keys.

Also in this brand-new finale preview issue:

 

  • Finale TV Preview: The scoop on all the biggest season enders, including Scorpion, Blue Bloods, black-ish, Grey’s Anatomy, The Blacklist and many more.

 

  • Kevin Can Wait: It’s a King of Queens reunion! Kevin James and Leah Remini are together again on the CBS comedy’s Season 1 finale.

 

  • Ashley Johnson: I Was a Child Star and Lived to Tell About It: Blindspot star Ashley Johnson talks about what it’s like to go from Growing Pains sweetie Chrissy Seaver to a code-cracking FBI agent.

 

• Plus: The latest on the writers’ strike and how it could affect the shows you love, The Big Bang Theory star Melissa Rauch tells us her TV favorites, Steve Harvey takes over Summer TV, first looks at the Manny’s Modern Family graduation and Animal Kingdom‘s sophomore season, Once Upon a Time‘s musical episode, and the best of streaming, sports and more.