The fifth and final season of Poldark picks up only a few months after Season 4 ended and follows the lives of the Poldarks, Enyses, Warleggans, and Carnes. The eight-episode Season 5 focuses on the first two years of the 19th century between Winston Graham’s Poldark Book 7 (The Angry Tide) and Book 8 (The Stranger From the Sea). The show creator Debbie Horsfield filled in the gap years not only with the well established Poldark characters but also with historical events and people of the time, namely over 20 new characters.

It is a new century, but instead of hope the past casts a long shadow over Cornwall. Only a few months after the tragic death of Elizabeth Warleggan (Heida Reed), Ross Poldark (Aidan Turner) still grieves the loss of his ‘first and only love.’ He’s devastated and tormented with all-consuming guilt for Elizabeth’s scheme gone wrong. Ross and his estranged wife, Demelza (Eleanor Tomlinson), decide to forgive and forget each other’s sexual indiscretions (because they’re even?) and move on with their ‘head-down, mouth-shut’ quiet life in Cornwall.

Ross, however, believes that the remedy for a sore heart is a mission. A welcome opportunity arrives in the shape of Kitty Despard (Kerri McLean) carrying an SOS message from her jailed husband, Colonel Ned Despard (Vincent Regan). Captain Poldark rushes to his former officer’s rescue and once again challenges the establishment. Forget the quiet life! He’s not about to sit still, feel the pain, and work through his emotions.

Demelza has no choice but to stay put and be in charge of Nampara, the mine, and her needy brothers. It’s a matter of time before she gets into all kinds of troubles; she’s a wild card and has always played with fire. Demelza is too busy fixing Ross to own up to her gigantic mistakes, get with the program, and change her tunes. And stop telling people how you had found a way to privilege. Have you no shame? I can guarantee you Verity Blamey (Ruby Bentall), Ross’ favorite cousin, would not proudly tell people how she had caught her Mr. Right. That’s so common! I guess you can’t help it considering your upbringing and competitive streak! Action speaks louder than words. Ross & Demelza are like two bulls staring at each other, waiting for the other one to give in.

Recruited for Ross’ mission are the most sensible, sensitive, yet fiercely loyal Dr. Dwight Enys (Luke Norris) and his privileged and entitled wife, Caroline (Gabriella Wilde). Dr. Enys’ devotion to his noble profession is always the point of contention and the frivolous busybody is jealous of all the women who get Dr. Enys’ attention and compassion. I can’t believe she would jeopardize his career by blackmailing George Warleggan (Jack Farthing) with illegitimately obtained medical records. Thank God Dr. Enys doesn’t have to suffer the consequences any more, but I wouldn’t be mad if a spin-off series featuring Dr. Enys and his research on causes and treatments of insanity were produced. He turned out to be my true hero after all!

The grieving George is haunted by the ghost of Elizabeth for a while, but eventually has to be exorcised, tortured, and purged by a quack his henchman Cary Warleggan (Pip Torrens) brings in. George, of course, comes back with a vengeance and adds another offense to his long list of evildoing by associating with Ralph Hanson (Peter Sullivan), an unsavory mahogany trader whose business is built on the backs of enslaved people. Even the knighthood cannot make up for his inferiority complex and self-loathing. Having Valentine Warleggan (Woody Norman) around rubs Sir George the wrong way; he is a living proof and constant reminder of undying love between Elizabeth and Ross. Valentine is a ticking time bomb in a cute little Mini-Ross package that could go off at any moment. Tick, tick, tick!

Instead of jam-packing Season 5 with so many new characters we barely care about, I wish Horsfield focused on the Cornwall couples who do not see eye to eye any longer. The disappointed, disillusioned, and disenchanted couples certainly could use couples therapy to figure out how they’ve contaminated their relationships! I know it’s not that kind of a show, but the final season was uninspiring to say the least. No pains faced head-on! No lessons learned! No phoenix rose from the ashes! What a bummer!

Poldark returns Sunday, September 29, 2019 for the last time on PBS’ MASTERPIECE.

About the Author

Meg Mimura is a TV critic who actually watches shows zealously in search of thought-provoking and paradigm shifting human drama worth our precious time. She is a member of Television Critics Association. Follow her on Twitter.

The D23 Expo has come and gone. This fifth Expo (every other year) did not disappoint the thousands of guests that came from all around the world. With panels, signings, demonstrations, merchandise, exhibits, and more, the Anaheim Convention Center was filled with Disney fans who were willing to wait in long lines, spend out their hard earned cash, and enjoy everything Disney related. And remember, Disney now includes Fox so the Simpsons and others made their debut at the Expo.

One of the highlights (among many) was the addition of Disney+, a new streaming service. It seems like streaming services are the wave of the future when it comes to entertainment.

“Storytelling is the cornerstone of The Walt Disney Company and we’re thrilled to unveil a new slate of original shows from the Star Wars and Marvel cinematic universes, along with popular television franchises set to return with all-new series streaming only on Disney+,” said Kevin Mayer, chairman, Direct-to-Consumer & International.
Original series and films announced for the streaming service included Lucasfilm’s Obi-Wan Kenobi series starring Ewan McGregor. Marvel Studios will offer Ms. Marvel, Moon Knight, and She-Hulk.  There will be a short-form series starring The Muppets.

Excited fans learned about the rebooted Lizzie McGuire series with Hilary Duff returning as the iconic Disney character.

Lucasfilm’s The Mandalorian is from executive producer Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni. It is about a new droid, IG-11. The series is set after the fall of the Empire and before the First Order. It follows a lone gunfighter in the outer edges of the galaxy.

And High School Musical: The Musical: The Series (what a title!) is set for a 10-episode scripted series.

Noelle stars Anna Kendrick and Billy Eichner. Kendrick plays Kris Kringle’s daughter in this holiday film.

Actor Jeff Goldblum has a 12-episode series, and the cast of the high school musical films comes together in “Encore,” where they will recreate their original performances. There will be some new animated shorts from Pixar and a slew of other new shows will launch on Disney+ like the upcoming Monsters At Work that takes place in Monstropolis.

There were plenty more announcements about Disney+ programming. With Marvel, Pixar, Disney, Fox, ABC, National Geographic, and Star Wars, there are plenty of themes from which to pull original programing for the new streaming service. It will debut November 12. There will be no commercials (what a refreshing idea) and the App allows viewers additional content.  Disney+ has a monthly price of $6.99 or an annual rate of $69.99.

About the Author

Francine Brokaw has been covering all aspects of the entertainment industry for over 25 years. She also writes about products and travel. She has been published in national and international newspapers and magazines as well as Internet websites. She has written her own book, Beyond the Red Carpet The World of Entertainment Journalists, from Sourced Media Books, is the entertainment correspondent for Good Day Orange County, and has her own TV show, Beyond the Red Carpet, on Village Television in Orange County. Follow her on Twitter.

The latest D23 Expo unveiled plenty of new announcements. One is the newest addition to the animated lineup on Disney Channel.

Marvel’s Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur is based on the Marvel comic books. Laurence Fishburne is one of the executive producers.

The series will follow a 13-year old genius named Lunella and her T-Rex pal, Devil Dinosaur. They accidentally travel through a time vortex to present day New York City. There they work to protect the city from danger.

Meredith Roberts, senior vice president, Animation Strategy, Disney Channels said, “Disney TV Animation is thrilled to collaborate with renowned producers Laurence, Helen and Steve and the talented Marvel Animation team to bring this modern-day roller-skating, gadget-wielding tween superhero and her larger-than-life partner to Disney Channel.”

Cort Lane, senior vice president, Marvel Animation & Family Entertainment said, “Lunella doesn’t know she is the smartest person on the planet, but audiences will soon know how very cool Moon Girl is. Her adventures with giant buddy, Devil Dinosaur, are filled with so much wonder and joy, and this historic partnership with Disney Television Animation and Cinema Gypsy Productions proved the right formula to bring them to television.”

There is no date as yet for the premiere of this show so watch the program guide or the website for updates.

About the Author

Francine Brokaw has been covering all aspects of the entertainment industry for over 25 years. She also writes about products and travel. She has been published in national and international newspapers and magazines as well as Internet websites. She has written her own book, Beyond the Red Carpet The World of Entertainment Journalists, from Sourced Media Books, is the entertainment correspondent for Good Day Orange County, and has her own TV show, Beyond the Red Carpet, on Village Television in Orange County. Follow her on Twitter.

From 1969-1974 viewers were engaged in the lives of The Brady Bunch. Carol (Florence Henderson), Mike (Robert Reed), and their blended family, Marcia (Maureen McCormick), Jan (Eve Plumb), Cindy (Susan Olsen), Greg (Barry Williams), Peter (Christopher Knight), and Bobby (Mike Lookinland), along with their devoted housekeeper Alice (Ann B. Davis), entertained television viewers with their antics, family drama, and 70s clothing. The adults have all passed away, however the six “kids” are still around and recently met with the media to reflect on their past and the renovation of the iconic Brady house for HGTV.

“I think when they approached me about it what resonated with me the most was that it was a different take on Brady,” Plumb said about this latest project. “They weren’t asking us to come back and play ‘Brady Bunch’ characters again. It was let’s explore what the house would be like if we could make it in real life, and please help us do that, and I started watching all the HGTV shows, and I went this is going to be good.”

Maureen McCormick explained, “For me, I always look at each project on its own and see if it resonates with me as something that would be real and just good, and when I heard about this, I’m a huge fan of HGTV and all the shows that they do, and I talked with the people, and I just felt like they had a love for this project, and I felt like this would be a really good gone to be involved with, and I was very excited in getting back together with everyone. It’s been a really long time since we’ve all been together and working together, and it’s just been so beautiful to be a part of this.”

“We were right in thinking that this was the right thing to do, because it’s proven to be a path with heart,” Olsen added.

The cast did not know the location of the actual house used for the exterior shots for many years. When he took on this project, Knight explained, “I think one of the most interesting aspects of working on this project was learning just how connected the audience was to this house. But we had no recollection of it. I mean, it was placed as an establishing shot into the show. And like I said, I didn’t know where it was and everybody else, you know, nobody worked there. And I don’t think anyone else during the period the show was being filmed knew where this house was.”

Williams told a funny story about being in the actual house years ago. “After our original show was cancelled, I was invited by a mutual friend for a lunch in the Valley. And I went into the house and we’re having lunch and they’re all looking at me and laughing. ‘Doesn’t this remind you of something?’ And I’m looking around going, ‘No.’ They said, ‘Well, don’t you know where you are?’ And I said, ‘No.’ They said, ‘Well, you’re in the Brady house’.” And I said, ‘No.’ They had to walk me back outside to look at the photograph that we see on television for me to make the connection because the inside resembled it not at all.”

“I had such an affinity for this house,” McCormick chimed in, “just because it’s weird but in some sort of a way I’m a fan of it just like America I think loves it. Like, I have that same love for this house and when I was told that I could be a part of this and that they were going to really let us demolish things and then rebuild them, I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, the chance of a lifetime.’”

The six “Brady” kids did plenty of work on the renovation of the house, although they were carefully supervised by professionals and those in the HGTV family like Jonathan and Drew Scott, Lara Spencer, and others. But yes, in case you are wondering, the six actually did physically take part in the renovation process. And everyone hunted extensively for items from the 1970s to replicate the interior as closely as possible to the set used on the show.

September 26 will be the 50th anniversary of The Brady Bunch series. A Very Brady Renovation begins on September 9, 2019.

About the Author

Francine Brokaw has been covering all aspects of the entertainment industry for over 25 years. She also writes about products and travel. She has been published in national and international newspapers and magazines as well as Internet websites. She has written her own book, Beyond the Red Carpet The World of Entertainment Journalists, from Sourced Media Books, is the entertainment correspondent for Good Day Orange County, and has her own TV show, Beyond the Red Carpet, on Village Television in Orange County.Follow her on Twitter.