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The Daily Star, Oneonta, N.Y., Friday, July 22, 2016 2 By Kyla Brewer TV Media A s the summer swelters on, game shows and re- ality TV programs rule prime time. But for those who prefer more traditional TV fare, TNT serves up a police proce- dural with a fresh cast and plenty of drama. Taye Diggs ("Private Prac- tice") and Kathleen Robertson ("Boss") star as Terry English and Hildy Mulligan, homicide inspectors investigating the murder of all-star quarterback Normandy Parker in a new epi- sode of "Murder in the First," airing Sunday, July 24, on TNT. Set in San Francisco, the show was created by 10-time Emmy winner Steven Bochco ("NYPD Blue") and Eric Lodal ("Lare- do"), the latter of whom left the show midway through the second season for undisclosed reasons. As in previous seasons, sea- son 3 follows a single, compli- cated investigation instead of wrapping up a new mystery each week like many other prime-time dramas. When "Murder in the First" debuted in 2014, Bochco explained his preference for examining a single case throughout the season to the L.A. Times. "What's fun about the sin- gle storyline is you get to de- velop characters, to really make them well examined," said the producer. Three seasons in, English and Mulligan are much more than stereotypical prime-time cops. Their personal lives are every bit as fascinating as the cases they tackle, from his grief over the death of his terminally ill wife to her struggles as a single mom. This season is ex- pected to be particularly heart- breaking as Mulligan faces a potentially life-threatening ill- ness. The stress over what might happen to her daughter overwhelms her, even as the Parker case looms. Season 3 had originally been slated to begin June 19, but due to the tragic Orlando Pulse nightclub shooting, the debut was pushed to June 26, out of respect for the victims and their loved ones. The same thing happened with TNT"s "The Last Ship." With a little more than 1.3 million viewers, numbers were down for this year's season premiere, but it's important to note that the June 26 opener aired opposite the finale of the HBO jugger- naut "Game of Thrones," so there was bound to be a dip. "Murder in the First" has shown tremendous potential since its debut in 2014, when it ranked among cable's top 10 prime-time dramas. Season 1 pulled in more than five million viewers per episode over mul- tiple platforms, including about 3.76 million live viewers. The 12-episode second season clocked in with more than two million average live viewers, and in December 2015, TNT announced "Murder in the First" had been renewed for a 10-episode third season, along with fellow hit dramas "Major Crimes" and "The Librarians." Although English and Mulli- gan are undoubtedly the focus of the series, Diggs and Rob- ertson are supported by a strong cast. Currie Graham ("Raising the Bar") stars as chief prosecutor Mario Siletti, who's struggling in the wake of a tragic car accident this season. "Once Upon a Time's" Raphael Sbarge works along- side the two leads as philo- sophical homicide detective David Molk, who's been part- nered up with Edgar Navarro, played by Lombardo Boyar ("The Bernie Mac Show"). Their SFPD squad is supervised by Ian Anthony Dale ("Hawaii Five-0") as Lieut. Jim Koto. The returning cast also includes Mimi Kirkland ("Safe Haven," 2013) as Hildy's young daugh- ter, Louise. Back in March, news broke that Michael Gaston ("The Leftovers") had joined the third season cast of "Murder in the First." He portrays defense attorney Alfred Arkin, billed as a "warm family man." The role marks a reunion for Gaston and Bochco, who previously worked together in Bochco's "Blind Justice" for ABC. He isn't the only "Murder in the First" rookie, either. The cast also welcomes Corey Reynolds ("The Closer") as assistant dis- trict attorney Martin Reardon. Sara Paxton ("Darcy's Wild Life") stars as Alicia Barnes, a troubled 22-year-old pop star who'd caught Parker's eye be- fore his untimely death. Eight- ies movie icon Anthony Mi- chael Hall ("The Dead Zone") has been tapped to play Barnes's father, Paul. The cast is top notch, and it also helps that Bochco is no stranger to police dramas, with such legendary TV series as "NYPD Blue" and "Hill Street Blues" under his belt. He was also behind hits such as "L.A. Law" and "Doogie Howser, M.D." In fact, the producer and writer is such a luminary in the television industry that some credit him with changing the face of prime-time television dramas by pioneering the large ensemble cast and con- tinuous story arcs. His legacy continues in "Murder in the First," which returns with a new episode Sunday, July 24, on TNT. In the episode, a suspect in the Parker case is murdered, giving some weight to English's conspiracy theory. Meanwhile, Siletti's le- gal troubles become even more complicated because of a ruinous civil suit, which threatens to fracture the frag- ile peace he's made with his family. Also, Mulligan attempts to move on by going on a date. TNT will make the episode available on demand the day after broadcast for anyone who might miss it, and other season 3 episodes will also be available if fans want to re- watch or play catchup. A/Bulls Head Inn B/Laura Reyda 2 x 2 coverstory A different beat 'Murder in the First' shakes up police dramas By Adam Thomlison TV Media Q: I noticed today in the TV listings that "Little Big Shots" is not being shown. What happened to it? It was a great tribute to our talented young people. What a loss. A: Whoa, slow down there. I know a lot of shows get can- celed in their first season, and that NBC is a particularly bad of- fender on that front (NBC Entertainment president Jennifer Salke said so herself), but this isn't one of those times. The news is good, for once. "Little Big Shots" was such an instant hit that NBC actually renewed it for a second season back in March, after only two episodes had aired. You aren't seeing any episodes right now because the first season is done. (As a prime-time series, it's expected to only produce a handful of episodes per year, unlike host Steve Harvey's daytime gig, "Family Feud," which pro- duces many times that.) The quick renewal was certainly due to its ratings, which were exceptional, especially for a series airing outside the reg- ular season. But it helped that it has star power off the screen as well as on it. Harvey is the face of the show, but it's pro- duced by another daytime notable, Ellen DeGeneres. Q: Can you tell me if BBC's "The Musketeers" has been canceled? It was such an awesome show and it hasn't been on now for over a year! A: I have bad news for you, and then good news, which turns into more bad news. "The Musketeers" has been canceled, as you suspect. But, there is a third season which, it seems, you haven't seen yet. However, you won't see it on TV. "The Musketeers" was a British show that aired all over the world. Canadian viewers got to watch the whole series on Showcase and BBC Canada, but American viewers only got the first two seasons on BBC America. After that, it was dropped from TV entirely and moved to the online streaming site Hulu.com. The whole third season is now available there. But that season was indeed the last. Executive producer Jes- sica Pope is happy with this, saying it allows the show to finish strong. "We did want to go out on a high," she said in an interview with the British TV site CultBox. "We wanted to just prove to ourselves we'd done all the biggest stories we could do with- out then sort of filtering out into something that just repeated itself, really." Have a question? Email us at questions@tvtabloid.com. Please include your name and town. hollywoodQ&A Losie's Gun Shop 1 x 4 oneontaacupuncture.com 320800 Attention: All new handgun permit owners, Come check out our inventory!! Receive $25 Off the purchase of your first Handgun with this Ad.

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