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TNT’s summer line-up looks to be a powerhouse with six returning series and the debut of two new dramas Franklin & Bash and Falling Skies.
TNT’s mid-season card kicks off with a brand new original series, Franklin & Bash on Wednesday June 1st at 9pm EST. Mark-Paul Gosselaar takes the lead in this new series as lawyer Peter Bash. Gosselaar was previously seen on TNT’s Raising the Bar with Jane Kaczmarek and Gloria Reuben. He has an extensive resume in film and television, including his starring in the Steven Bochco hit series, Commander in Chief with Gina Davis. Mark’s character Bash strives to win his cases and will do anything necessary to do it. He has a bag full of tricks and will use it to secure a victory for his clients. On the personal side, he does quite well with the ladies and has no qualms about telling everyone about his escapades.
Mark is joined by Breckin Meyer, who plays Jared Franklin, a lawyer who will fight for the underdog, and he is also quite the showman when he’s in the courtroom. Meyer also has extensive credits to his name including film and television. To some, these two would be called ambulance chasers and are at the ready with business cards in hand to snag a new client. Though they’re methods of gaining clients is questionable, their dramatic flair and tenacity inside the courtroom is undeniable.
In addition, Dana Davis plays Carmen Phillips, a paralegal and private investigator who assists Peter and Jared with their cases and keeps the lawyers in check. She’s smart, tough, and willing to be candid when necessary. Kumail Najiani, who plays Pindar Singh, the researcher and writer of the legal team and becomes invaluable with his photographic memory; however, he is somewhat neurotic.
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Ray Ramano, Scott Bakula, and Andre Braugher return for Men of a Certain Age, a series focusing on three men who lean on each other as they experience the journey of being middle aged men. All three will face new challenges this season, as they continue the adventure of their lives. Ray, a divorced recovering gambling addict has decided to pursue a career as a professional golfer. Owen struggles with the decision of taking over the family auto dealership from his father. Terry is still searching for who he is, after a disastrous attempt at managing an apartment complex and trying to re-start his acting career. He takes a job at Owen’s dealership as a salesman. Men of a Certain Age returns Wednesday, June 1st at 10pm EST.
Memphis Beat returns with Jason Lee as Dwight Hendricks, a southern detective who has the passion for blues music. He also has a knack for being unconventional when it comes to his police work and usually not on the good side of his boss, Lt. Tanya Rice (Alfre Woodard). Jason’s co-stars include DJ Qualls (Davy Sutton), Celia Weston (Junebug, Dwight’s mother), Sam Hennings (Charlie White), Leonard Earl Howze (Reginald Greenback) and Abraham Benrubi (Sgt. JC Lightfoot). Memphis Beat returns on Tuesday, June 14th at 9pm EST.
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Jada Pinkett Smith returns as Christina Hawthorne the third season of TNT’s original medical drama, Hawthorne, airing Tuesday, June 14th at 10PM. The hit series is a drama that is told from the point of view of nurses who give the best care possible to all who enter their hospital. Smith is joined by Michael Vartan (Dr. Tom Wakefield), Suleka Mathew (nurse Bobbie Jackson), David Julian Hirsh (nurse Ray Stein), Christina Moore (nurse Candy Sullivan), Vanessa Lengies (nurse Kelly Epson) and Hannah Hodson (Christina’s daugher, Camille).
On Sunday, June 19th at 9pm EST, Noah Wylie (ER) stars in Falling Skies, a new series about the aftermath of an alien attack that has left most of the world devastated. Six months after the initial invasion, surviving citizens are fighting back and have become an organized group who are facing every day challenges and trying to stay alive.
The resilience of the survivors and their determination to maintain humanity as everything around them has been destroyed is a key focal point of the series. Every day citizens become heroes as they find the courage and commitment to survive. They are outmatched, outnumbered, and outgunned but they won’t give up their fight; the survivors bind together to under the gravest of circumstances. The alien faction are mysterious and merciless. The human survivors have named the two groups, Skitters, who are spider-like beings and have impeccable strength and agility, while the robotic Mechs stand upright and can shoot bullets from their arms, are a force to be reckoned with.
Wylie plays Tom Mason, a history professor from Boston, whose family has been torn apart. His wife was killed in the first invasion and one of his three sons has been captured. His extensive knowledge of military history gets tested as he becomes the leader of a resistance movement located in Boston, Mass. His main goal is to rescue his son and to keep his other two sons safe. The main goal of the group, 2nd Mass, is to counter intelligent the alien invaders and to regain control the world.
Joining Wylie in the new series are Moon Bloodgood (pediatrician, Anne Glass), Will Patton (Weaver, a fierce leader of the resistance), Drew Roy (Tom’s eldest son, Hal), Maxim Knight (Tom’s youngest son, Matt), Connor Jessup (Tom’s son who has been captured, Ben), and Seychelle Gabriel (Lourdes, an orphaned teen who helps Anne at her medical clinic). Also Colin Cunningham (John Pope, the leader of an outlaw motorcycle gang), and Sarah Carter (Margaret, the lone survivor of John’s motorcycle gang).
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Sunday, June 26 will be the return of Leverage, starring Timothy Hutton and his counterparts, Christian Kane, Gina Bellman, Beth Riesgraf, and Aldis Hodge. In the third season, Nate faces challenges at every turn. Nate was in prison, sacrificing himself for his team, but soon found out the prison he resided in, was corrupt. Calling upon his team to stage a jail break was the least of his worries as Nate faced an Italian beauty who blackmailed him into helping her with a financier. Nate and his team had leverage on their side, if nothing else and the high drama continues this June.
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Kyra Sedgwick’s hit series The Closer returns on Monday, July 11 at 9pm EST. Many familiar faces are returning for the final season of the popular crime drama. Mary McDonnell will reprise her role as Capt. Raydor of the Force Investigation Division, who has butt heads with Brenda (Kyra Sedgwick) on several occasions. This time her presence may have major complications for Brenda and her department.
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Following The Closer, at 10pm EST, Rizzoli and Isles makes their return to television. The police drama follows female detective, Jane Rizzoli (Angie Harmon) and female medical examiner, Maura Isles (Sasha Alexander), best friends and complete opposites, solve crimes and lock up the criminals of Boston. The series also stars Lorraine Bracco (Angelina, Jane’s mother), Lee Thompson Young (Det. Barry Frost), Bruce McGill (Det. Vince Korsak), and Jordan Bridges (Frankie, Jane’s brother).
TNT programming offers something for everyone this summer. Crime drama, adventure, action and hospital drama all summer long. I don’t think it can get better than this! TNT will be a powerhouse to be reckoned with starting June.
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