Alison Sweeney returns for another Hannah Swensen Mystery on Hallmark Mystery  (and Hallmark+). This time her bakery is involved in a murder.

When a famous chef comes to town to film an episode of her popular cooking show, Hannah is ecstatic. She has been a fan of the show for years. And when The Cookie Jar is selected to be the location of the shoot, well, that excites Hannah even more. And the cherry on top, no pun intended, is that Hannah is invited to help on the show – in the background. 

This news also excites her mother Delores (Barbara Niven) who is a sleuth/actress and prides herself on knowing about the film industry. Well, to a certain extent.

In the meantime, District Attorney Chad (Victor Webster) is about to go to trial on a big case that will put the serial jewel thief in prison for a long time. Needless to say, Delores is happy about this as she has been afraid her precious jewels will fall prey to the thief.

Things are going all right for all of them until one of the crew is found murdered in the bakery. Hannah inserts herself as usual in the investigation. After all, it did happen in her bakery and she was acquainted with the victim.

Norman (Gabriel Hogan) joins in the investigation as the gang go to work finding clues to who killed this person and why.  In this episode Norman gets to put his dentistry skills to use while also helping Hannah solve the murder.

Fans of the show know there is an attraction between Hannah and Chad, however to date they have skirted around their affection for each other. It looks like they are getting closer to a first date, but in not this episode. Perhaps they will take the next step in the next movie. For now their mutual respect and attraction is kept at bay, although cracks are showing in their platonic relationship. 

Chad invites Hannah to court to watch his opening statement to the jury, which is something intriguing to her as she sees his talent up close and personal. 

Also back in this movie are police detective Lonny (Daylin Willis) and Hannah’s sister Michelle (Tess Atkins). 

This is another fun mystery with the usual cute interactions between the entire cast. This group is entertaining even without a mystery to solve.

Reality Bites: A Hannah Swensen Mystery premieres February 6, 2025 on Hallmark Mystery and will be available the following day to stream on Hallmark+. Also, viewers can catch up on past movies in this fan-favorite series.

About the Author

Francine Brokaw has been covering all aspects of the entertainment industry for over 30 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, 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. She is a longstanding member of the Television Critics Association and is accredited by the MPAA.

Image courtesy: Hallmark/Crown Media

Nominated for three Academy Awards (including Best Animated Feature Film) The Wild Robot is a fun story filled with humor and heart. It is based on a book however the screenplay was written by Chris Sanders who wrote Lilo and Stitch, and there are many similarities between the two films.

The story begins when a package containing a robot crashes on a deserted island. This robot, Rozzum 7134 (now to be called Roz), is programed to help complete a task. She is intimidating to the wildlife on the island who wonder if she is there to kill them.

Roz accidentally destroys a nest of goslings however one egg survives. She takes care of the egg until it hatches then she thinks her task is completed. Wrong! The gosling attaches to the first thing it sees, and the first thing this little fellow sees is Roz. 

Roz is instructed by the mother opossum that she is now the little guy’s mother. “I do not have the programming to be a mother,” she says. “No one does,” says Pinktail, the opossum mom.

Roz soon learns being a mom is “a full time thing.” She names the little guy Brightbill and sets out to help him perfect the three tools he will need to survive: eating, swimming, and flying. If he masters these he will be able to join other geese when they migrate for the winter, even though he is at a disadvantage due to his small size. 

Fink the fox befriends the two and soon they are all working together to help Brightbill gain the tools he needs. Throughout this time Roz and Brightbill become a family. In Lilo and Stitch they call it “Ohana.” 

Then Brightbill learns that Roz’s accident killed his real family yet she is the one who saved him. He is not keen to forgive her but they both realize they “love” each other and that together they are their own family.

Roz learns about love and all the animals on the island learn to trust each other and work together even though they are a mixture of predators. It is Roz and more so Fink who brings them all together to live happy lives. 

Then – you didn’t think there wouldn’t be a “then” did you? – Universal Dynamics, the company that created Roz and all the Rozzum robots, sends a team to retrieve her and bring her back so they can find out how she deviated from her programming. They have never had a robot learn to love.

Just like in Lilo and Stitch when The Grand Councilwoman came to Earth to retrieve Stitch, Contra, a floating robot, brings her team to retrieve Roz. But Roz does not want to go back. She does not want to lose her memories of Brightbill, Fink, and all the others. She does not want to lose the love and family that is now programmed inside her. 

When Roz realizes Universal Dynamics will keep coming after her, she relents and goes back. But don’t be discouraged. She found love once and that love is too strong to lose. And take heart, DreamWorks is working on the sequel to this heartfelt story of life, love, and family. 

Yes, there are many similarities between Lilo and Stitch and The Wild Robot, but each movie has its own heartwarming story. 

Lupita Nyong’o is the voice of Roz, Pedro Pascal voices Fink, Catherine O’Hara voices Pinktail, and Kit Connor is the voice of Brightbill. 

The beautiful scenery on the island and the fun of the various characters combine to make The Wild Robot a great family film.

The Wild Robot is now streaming on Peacock. It is rated PG for action/peril and thematic elements.

About the Author

Francine Brokaw has been covering all aspects of the entertainment industry for over 30 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, 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. She is a longstanding member of the Television Critics Association and is accredited by the MPAA.

The Murdoch Mysteries episode titled “Bombshells” brings up an issue of the time – the suffragette movement. This is episode 11 in the 18th season of this hit detective series on Ovation.

William Murdoch, his wife Julia Ogden, and their daughter Susannah are in England. The threesome are almost killed when a bomb explodes on the street as they are walking by. No one was injured but Murdoch discovers a dead body inside the building.

As he and Julia work on solving the mystery of who planted the bomb, Murdoch discovers his wife has been elemental in the suffragette movement in England. She has even been part of protests and some mischievous behavior. This does not please him at all. He knows she has strong beliefs, but insists she does not break the law in her struggles to bring the fruits of the movement to fruition.

Meanwhile, back in Toronto, coroner Violet Hart once again finds herself in a dangerous predicament when her husband from America tracks her down and intends on bringing her back to Ohio. He refuses to grant her a divorce, which she desperately wants.

Thanks to her boyfriend, all is well that ends well when it comes to Violet’s situation.

Back in England the mystery of the dead body and the bomb leads Murdoch to an interesting conclusion.

As faithful viewers of the series know, Julia has been living in England working at a new women’s and children’s hospital. This estrangement from her husband and Toronto has left viewers confused and saddened as she has been a fun character to watch through the years. Will she return to her full-time life in Toronto? Time will tell. Stay tuned…

Meantime, episodes of Murdoch Mysteries airs Mondays with repeats on Saturdays via Ovation Channel.

About the Author

Francine Brokaw has been covering all aspects of the entertainment industry for over 30 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, 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. She is a longstanding member of the Television Critics Association and is accredited by the MPAA.

Image courtesy OVATION