Neal Justin's TV picks for Oct. 11-13: 'Charmed,' 'El Camino,' 'The Banana Splits Movie,' 'Inside the Actors Studio'

October 10, 2019 at 8:52PM
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Aaron Paul in "El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie."
Aaron Paul in “El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie.” (The Minnesota Star Tribune)

Witchy women

The "Charmed" sisters start the second season in charge, but soon find themselves stripped of their powers, forcing them to dive in and out of portals to escape demons. The fast-paced itinerary, which includes a brief stop in Minneapolis, is a little too hectic, but the characters somehow find time to flirt and do tequila shots.

7 p.m. Friday, WUCW, Ch. 23

Going bananas

"The Banana Splits Movie" turns the animatronic characters from the short-lived children's series into killing machines, a dark joke that lands more often than you'd think despite a low budget and South African actors barely pulling off American accents. Fleegle and the gang aren't all that intimidating — Droopy Dog would lap them in a foot race — but their bloody antics will still trigger a fair amount of nightmares.

8 p.m. Saturday, Syfy

Stage hands

"Inside the Actors Studio" returns but without original host/kiss-up James Lipton. Instead, celebrities grill each other. In the season premiere, interviewer Alec Baldwin relies way too much on his notes, but it's amusing to watch him trade Christopher Walken impressions with guest Henry Winkler, an exchange Lipton could never pull off. Next week's host Jane Lynch channels Barbara Walters just enough to get "Selma" star David Oyelowo to tear up.

9 p.m. Sunday, Ovation

The morning after

Vince Gilligan risked tarnishing the reputation of his stellar series "Breaking Bad" by creating the prequel "Better Call Saul" — and pulled it off. Now he takes an even bigger risk with "El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie," which picks up moments after Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul) made his Great Escape from the original drama's carnage. On paper, this is a terrible idea. But history already has taught us not to bet against Gilligan.

Now streaming on Netflix

Neal Justin

Cast members Bryan Cranston, left, and Aaron Paul pose with creator Vince Gilligan at the Los Angeles premiere of "El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie," at the Regency Village Theatre, Monday, Oct. 7, 2019, in Westwood, Calif. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP)
Gilligan (The Minnesota Star Tribune)
Madeleine Mantock as Macy in the Season 2 premiere of "Charmed." -- Photo: Colin Bentley/The CW
Madeleine Mantock in “Charmed.” (The Minnesota Star Tribune)
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