Tag / Mr. Mercedes

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2025: The Year In Television

With fewer good productions airing on network and cable networks and instead moving to the various streaming platforms, that seems to have taken over as my main form of non-game show or sports television watching. Now that I work from home full time, I have plenty of time to take in whatever they have to offer. Since we cover the network and cable shows that I watch elsewhere, let’s take a look at the 17 seasons of shows I streamed on eight different platforms this year.

Based on a True Story Season Two (Peacock)
A copycat killer starts terrorizing LA.

Black Doves Season One (Netflix)
When a spy’s lover is killed, she puts her undercover identity in jeopardy to find out what happened.

Black Mirror Season Seven (Netflix)
The British anthology returns with a strong six-episode season, including a sequel from a previous favorite.

Criminal Minds: Evolution Season 18 (Paramount+)
The BAU returns once again, following up on plot threads from the previous season.

Doctor Who Season Two (Disney+)
Ncuti Gatwa exits what was intended to be a new era for Doctor Who.

Ginny & Georgia Season Three (Netflix)
Georgia’s past comes back to haunt her, and her kids pay the price.

Mr. Mercedes Seasons One – Three (Peacock)
An adaptation of the Bill Hodges trilogy of novels by Stephen King.

On Call Season One (Amazon Prime)
A training officer and her rookie try to keep the streets of Long Beach safe.

Only Murders in the Building Season Five (Hulu)
Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez return for another investigation into a murder in their building.

The Pitt Season One (Max)
Noah Wylie returns to the emergency room.

Pluribus Season One (Apple TV)
A space virus has turned the human race into a single hive mind, save for a handful of immune survivors.

Poker Face Season Two (Peacock)
Rian Johnson and Natasha Lyonne return after more than a year for a second installment.

The Sex Lives of College Girls Season Three (HBOMax)
The final season sees Reneé Rapp move on for a music career and a new roommate move in to take her place.

Shrinking Season Two (Apple TV+)
Brett Goldstein joins the cast as the drunk driver who killed Jimmy’s wife.

The White Lotus Season Three (HBOMax)
The third season action moves to Thailand.

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Book 27 (of 52) – End Of Watch

End of Watch – Stephen King

Though physically incapacitated, Brady Hartsfield has developed telekinetic and mind-control abilities through experimental drugs and begins a new wave of terror by manipulating others into committing suicide, starting with the survivors of his attack at the Civic Center.  The police, unable or unwilling to do their own investigation, turn a blind eye as retired detective Bill Hodges follows the leads.  As the body count rises, Hodges, facing his own terminal diagnosis, and his partner Holly Gibney must stop Brady’s deadly influence before it is too late.

The third and final installment of Stephen King’s Bill Hodges Trilogy, End of Watch, which won the Goodreads Choice Award for favorite mystery and thriller back in 2016, brings back the cat and mouse game between Brady Hartsfield and Bill Hodges that started in Mr. Mercedes.  This was a good end for Hodges, though I can see why King decided to continue on with the Holly Gibney character.  Speaking of which, her latest adventure was just released, so I should add that to the waitlist.

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Book 8 (of 52) – Finders Keepers

Finders Keepers – Stephen King

Morris Bellamy has hit the jackpot.  After killing John Rothstein, author of his favorite books, for what he did to Jimmy Gold, his favorite character, he finds cash and hundreds of notebooks containing at least one more Gold novel.  Burying his haul in case the police are on to him, he gets arrested and sentenced to life for a different crime before he can enjoy any of it.

Decades later, a teenager finds the buried treasure, using the money to help his family get through hard times.  Things go awry, though, when he tries to sell some of the notebooks to a shady bookseller.  Around the same time, Bellamy is let out on parole and, finding his buried treasure is missing, goes after the one person he told about his crime years before: the crooked bookseller.  Can a local PI, a former cop, and his ragtag collection of civilian helpers stop Morris from killing the teen and his sister in order to get his hands on the notebooks and the unpublished novel?

The second entry in Stephen King’s Bill Hodges Trilogy, Finder Keepers continues the adventures of Hodges, Holly Gibney, and Jerome Robinson, although they play a much smaller part in this tale than they did in Mr. Mercedes.  While this is mostly a self-contained story, there are some small vignettes throughout which I assume are setting up the final entry in the trilogy, which I hope to get to soon.

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Book 33 (of 52) – Mr. Mercedes

Mr. Mercedes – Stephen King

A retired cop finds a new purpose when he is contacted by the perpetrator of one of his unsolved cases.  As his off-the-books investigation gets closer to finding its target, he finds himself, and those closest to him, in the crosshairs.  Can the cop and his collection of civilian helpers stop the perp before he turns a popular concert into a bloodbath?

Mr. Mercedes is the first entry in Stephen King’s Bill Hodges Trilogy and introduces readers to the Holly Gibney character that also popped up here and here.  This was more of a thriller than the horror King is usually known for, but it was still a thrilling ride.  I’ll be getting to the remaining two entries sooner rather than later.