TV Talk: ‘Gossip Girl’ returns, ‘The White Lotus’ opens for business

With summer in full swing, TV networks and streaming services are premiering series after series with hopes for a buzzworthy smash.

‘Gossip Girl’

This latest reboot gets off to a stronger-than-expected start before it begins to deflate.

Directed by Karena Evans (“Snowfall”) from a teleplay by showrunner Josh Safran, the new “Gossip Girl,” now streaming on HBO Max, updates the 2007-12 CW series by revealing the identity of Gossip Girl up front, rather than keeping it a years-long secret.

That twist — and the identity and intent of the gossip slinger (still voiced by Kristen Bell) — along with a greater emphasis on humor (“We’re getting so many hate DMs, we might as well be DeBlasio!”) give this reboot a reason to exist, at least initially.

But four episodes in and the new “Gossip Girl” begins to devolve, as a central conflict becomes repetitious and the new twist grows leaden.

There’s a refreshing diversity in characters’ ethnicities and sexuality (on a spectrum so broad you’re never quite sure which characters might have a sexual history together).

The teachers at New York’s elite Constance Billard and St. Jude prep schools play a more significant role this time, for better (at the outset they serve as an audience surrogate, inviting older viewers into the show) and for worse (there’s nowhere for their story to go without blowing up the new show’s new premise).

The primary drama comes from conflict between influencer Julien (Jordan Alexander) and scholarship kid Zoya (Whitney Peak), who is drawn to Julien’s boyfriend, Obie (Eli Brown). Julien’s besties Luna (Zion Moreno) and Monet (Savannah Smith) provide a mean girl Greek chorus, doing most of the dirty work, so Julien can avoid being labeled a bully.

Pansexual Max (Thomas Doherty), who evinces shades of the original’s Chuck Bass, seems drawn to monogamous (or are they?) couple Aki (Evan Mock) and Audrey (Emily Alyn Lynd).

Yes, this is a sexier, more drug-fueled and risqué “Gossip Girl,” but only by a matter of degrees. It’s not all debauchery and the conflict generally comes from character and not gender (so far, no cat fights).

For curious viewers without HBO Max, an edited version of the first episode will air at 8 p.m. Friday on The CW.

‘The White Lotus’

Writer Mike White specializes in character-driven dark comedy, from the short-lived 2001 Fox soap “Pasadena” to HBO’s 2011-13 “Enlightened.” White, a past contestant on “Survivor” and “The Amazing Race,” delivers social satire that marinates in uncomfortable moments that also provide insight on the characters caught in those awkward situations.

In HBO’s six-episode limited series, “The White Lotus” (9 p.m. Sunday), which White wrote and directed, the focus is on wealthy guests and staff at an upscale Hawaiian resort.

“The White Lotus” plods through its first episode — a cringe-worthy luau of misery — but the longer viewers sit with the show, the better and more engrossing it becomes.

White’s use of music — a mix of original score, traditional Hawaiian music and sacred hymns — helps move the story along, telling tales of desperate resort staff and their entitled, privileged and always-damaged guests.

The show sets up a mystery in its opening moments — in a future-set scene, viewers learn someone died at the resort — and then White lays the track for the victim to be any of the show’s many unlikable characters: the resort manager (Murray Bartlett), obnoxious teen guests (Sydney Sweeney, Brittany O’Grady), wealthy newlywed jerk (Jake Lacy), a woman in mourning (Jennifer Coolidge), scuba diving dad (Steve Zahn) or his tech guru wife (Connie Britton, excellent as always).

White’s fellow “Survivor” contestant, Alec Merlino, plays a resort bartender/server.

There’s a bit of a “Succession”-in-paradise vibe to “The White Lotus” — though it’s not nearly as fun — as White gives most of the characters the chance to show more than one personality trait, offering the occasional redemptive moment before returning to their self-centered status quo.

‘Wellington Paranormal’

A spin-off of the 2014 film, “What We Do in the Shadows” (but not the current FX series of the same name), The CW import “Wellington Paranormal” (9 and 9:30 p.m. Sunday, WPCW-TV) follows two cops from the “Shadows” film as they patrol a New Zealand town, encountering supernatural creatures and events “Cops”-style.

More deadpan than laugh-out-loud funny, “Wellington” will require some American viewers to turn on closed captions, as the New Zealand accents pose a significant barrier to entry/comprehension.

Neither of the “Wellington” leads, Mike Minogue and Karen O’Leary, had much acting experience prior to the “Shadows” film.

“They were just instantly like a comedy duo, and that’s rare to find even with existing comedy duos, to have a chemistry and have a real rhythm together,” said Jemaine Clement, executive producer of the original movie, the FX series and “Wellington,” in a recent virtual press conference. “We just want to follow these guys around a little bit more.”

Kept/canceled

HBO Max renewed “Made for Love” for season two.

A third season of “War of the Worlds” will air on Epix in 2022.

Netflix canceled comedies “Mr. Iglesias,” “The Crew,” “Country Comfort” and “Bonding.”

HBO won’t bring back “Lovecraft Country” after a single season.

Channel surfing

Last week the Pennsylvania legislature followed through on plans to remove $750,000 in funding that in recent years has been split among Pennsylvania PBS stations to help cover the cost of PBS Kids programming and production of statewide programs. The legislature previously zeroed out funding to Pennsylvania PBS stations during the 2008-09 financial crisis. … Philadelphia native and former University of Pittsburgh student Jeff Bergman continues to voice Bugs Bunny, as he has since at least 1990, in “Space Jam: A New Legacy,” premiering in theaters and on HBO Max July 16. He’ll also voice Yogi Bear in HBO Max’s “Jellystone!,” premiering July 29. … The release of the next “Downton Abbey” theatrical film has been delayed from December 2021 to March 18, 2022. … Meghan McCain will leave ABC’s “The View” this month after four seasons.