Hallmark Movies & Mysteries shines brightly with several returning and new mysteries to excite their fans. Alison Sweeney is back as Hannah Swenson after a near two-year break, and she’s joined by co-stars Cameron Mathison, Gabriel Hogan, and Barbara Niven to maintain the entertaining continuity.
Poker Face, the television show launched in January 2023, is a murder-mystery-of-the-week series featuring an offbeat, quirky premise. Its great episodic storytelling hearkens back to the classic TV crime shows like Colombo. In other words, these are fun “howcatchem” adventures.
For years, the Speakers Forum held at Fresno City College has brought high-profile names to grace their stage. There was the actor Taye Diggs, the philosopher and activist Cornell West, author Max Brooks, and Sheryl Underwood who is an FCC Graduate and Co-host of The Talk on CBS … just to name a few. These events are for the students and are free to the public. Those who attended these events walked away with knowledge and lessons learned, no matter who was the speaker.
Prime time Tuesday nights on ABC are all about crime drama television at our house. After The Rookie and Rookie Feds, there’s a newer one, Will Trent. I will admit that I did not love it at first, but after I got familiar with the characters, both I and Mr. C. have come to enjoy it over the more than a dozen episodes.
AcornTV can be a life-savor when rainstorms rage outside and power goes out. I still have my trusty iPhone, iPad, and computer for several hours (times three) to stream my favorite shows from this decade or several decades in the past: intense detective drama, quirky cozy mysteries, laugh-out-loud comedies, and informative documentaries. For me, it’s a reasonable membership fee (monthly $6.99; annual special $69.99), one my budget can easily handle.
Hallmark Movies & Mysteries experienced some changes with the departure of a few established stars, but they didn’t just sit around pining for the good ol’ days; they started looking forward. Their newest Signature Mystery, The Cases of Mystery Lane, just aired starring Aimee Garcia, known for many roles including Dexter and Lucifer, and Paul Campbell, a popular Hallmark lead actor with many roles including the recently aired Three Wise Men and a Baby. Together they portray a crime-solving couple.
Hallmark Movies & Mysteries have added to their Signature Mysteries group Curious Caterer: Grilling Season, the second movie in the Curious Caterer series starring a pair of Hallmark regulars: Nikki Deloach and Andrew W. Walker.
Hallmark has recently had a bit of a shake-up with several of its stars opting to sign contracts with a competing channel reportedly for varying reasons from money to creative differences to positions of power. This has Hallmark Movies & Mysteries looking in other directions to fulfill the need for more romance and holiday movies as well as cozy-style movies in their Signature Mysteries.
AcornTV continues to provide outstanding programming to entertain to no end this Anglophile with quality audio and video, easy access online or through their app, and the freedom to stream anywhere, anytime, and on a variety of devices. For a reasonable membership fee ($6.99 monthly; annual $69.99 special), I have enjoyed classics that never made it across the pond as well as engaging detective shows, intense dramas, sidesplittingly comedies, and informative documentaries.
Masterpiece Mystery is a popular PBS series bringing excellent mysteries and thrillers set around the world and in various time periods. Your PBS station can be found through many locations: KQED is the Bay Area, KVIE is Sacramento/Stockton, and KVPT is the Fresno area. No membership requirement, although each station takes frequent pledge breaks during the year and some have special access opportunities. PBS KVIE Passport is available to members donating $60/year or more or $5/month or more.
