Festivals and awards season have taken a toll on my schedule, but I keep watching episodes of TV series as punctuation between the movies. It's amazing how much you can get through just watching an episode or two here or there. Some of the series below started back in the summer, and others dropped in binge-worthy bundles just in time for a free weekend. But there were several shows I simply didn't have time to watch, such as
House of the Dragon, The Rings of Power and
The English, to name three...
O H T H E D R A M A
The White Lotus: series 2
Shifting to Italy with only the awesome Jennifer Coolidge's Tanya as a returning character, writer-director Mike White gets even more ambitious this time around. Enormous themes, ideas and even plot points are hidden in between the dialog and situations, offering constant moments of discovery for the audience. And just enough remains ambiguous to keep our brains spinning. It's still a story about haves and have-nots, but this time the lines are even more fiendishly blurred. And the first-rate cast includes Aubrey Plaza, F Murray Abraham, Theo James, Tom Hollander, Haley Lu Richardson, Michael Imperioli and Will Sharpe. Provocative, unmissable television. (HBO)
The Crown: series 5
It's all change once again for this series, which follows the British royal family into the 1990s with Imelda Staunton now playing Queen Elizabeth. Appropriately, she's a bit more aloof than before, although this makes the show far less engaging. This also leaves her in the background as episodes centre more on Diana (Elizabeth Debicki) and Charles (Dominic West), plus a very odd episode that spirals away to tell the story of Mohamed Al-Fayed (Salim Daw). But the show is still immaculately produced and beautifully acted across the board. And it finds intriguing angles on things like press intrusion and the collapse of the Soviet Union. (Netflix)
The Handmaid's Tale: series 5
Diving even further into darkly disturbing thriller territory, this show is unafraid to send its characters into some properly horrific corners, although it perhaps seems a bit odd that almost all of them are still alive considering the hideous violence all around them. Elisabeth Moss continues to shine as June, and she directed a few belting episodes as well. She's now in exile in Canada with her husband (O-T Fagbenle), but still intricately involved in the goings-on in Gilead, especially with Serena (Yvonne Strahovski) and the now-more-sinister Joseph (Bradley Whitford). In its penultimate season, the stakes are getting higher, and characters continue to get more complicated. So bring it on. (Hulu)
The Sandman
Ambitiously adapting Neil Gaiman's darkly complex comic book, this series is visually stunning, with an excellent ensemble cast circling around a skilfully nuanced Tom Sturridge as Lord Morpheus, the ruler of the Dreaming. The show's structure, which sees Morpheus trying to restore order after he's released from a century of captivity, involves frequent shifts in settings and tone, veering from wacky comedy to grim horror to wrenching drama. This makes it feel uneven at times, but each scene is dazzling. And when you have ace costars like Gwendoline Christie, David Thewlis, Charles Dance, Joely Richardson and John Cameron Mitchell on hand, it's impossible to look away. (Netflix)
Andor Oddly dry and dull, this
Star Wars series is a prequel to the 2016 film
Rogue One, shifting between bickering officials in the Empire and the bickering rebels who are trying to undermine them. While it's enjoyably layered and intriguing, the narrative is scattered over a wide range of characters, each of whom has something interesting to do. But even with a terrific cast, no one emerges as a person who is terribly engaging. Even Diego Luna, in the pivotal role, feels like a side character. While expertly staged the action sequences seem oddly random, and the plot's spiralling political machinations remain rather clinical. So let's hope for a more personal approach in the second season. (Disney)
The Resort
I was intrigued because this show was created by Andy Siara (
Palm Springs) and has a cool cast that includes William Jackson Harper, Cristin Milioti, Skyler Gisondo and the always fabulous Nick Offerman. A sometimes remarkably dark mix of comedy and fantasy, the story centres around a holiday resort in the Yucatan and two young people who went missing 15 years earlier. Then tantalising clues hint that there's time travel involved. The gradually unfolding mystery is engaging, but it's the edgy humour and continuous stream of quirky characters that keeps us entertained. So there's a slightly bittersweet tone as things begin to come together, because we know this will mean that the gang will break up. Then the conclusion suggests that there's more to come. (Peacock)
Elite: series 6
This guilty-pleasure drama from Spain continues to get darker, nastier and more convoluted. And also repetitive. After killing off another central character, the teens continue to indulge in drugs and partying while occasionally attending school. This time they're grappling with horrific violence in the form of a vicious public outing, attempted hit-and-run murder, drug-fuelled gang rape and homophobic murder, among other things. Yes, what these kids are dealing with is extremely grim, and the fact that they're all wildly wealthy doesn't help them at all. It leaves us hoping there's a glimmer of hope in the next season. (Netflix)
J U S T F O R L A U G H SOnly Murders in the Building: series 2
After setting up a new mystery at the end of the first season, this show slides effortlessly into back into its groove, with a confident storytelling approach that's even more engaging. The writing crackles with wit, including continuous references to the difficulty of ramping things up for a second season of the eponymous podcast. All three leads (Steve Martin, Martin Short and Selena Gomez) add amusing wrinkles to their characters as they interact with a collection of properly ridiculous people. In addition, the central mystery is genuinely knotted and intriguing, offering lots of twists, turns and scene-stealing moments for the fabulously hammy cast. (Hulu)
She-Hulk: Attorney at Law
Marvel stays in sitcom mode (see also
Ms Marvel) for this refreshingly silly series starring Tatiana Maslany as the cousin of Mark Ruffalo's Hulk, who is inadvertently infected with his blood and develops her own distinct giant green alter-ego. Hilariously, she hates the name "She-Hulk", as she should, and the show centres on her efforts to live a normal life as a lawyer, as if she could. Some of her antics are a bit gimmicky, such as trying to date as either Jennifer or She-Hulk, but the show is grounded by her relationships with friends, family and of course her various super-powered clients (including Tim Roth and Megan Thee Stallion). Maslany has a wonderful offhanded charm in the role, although She-Hulk's digital design is somewhat iffy. (Disney)
The Bear
An unusually edgy tone makes this comedy-drama remarkably riveting, as it charges through a situation that never quite feels under control. Set in Chicago, it's anchored by another powerful performance by Jeremy Allen White (see also
Shameless) as a disgraced world-class chef who returns home to run his family's sandwich shop. Clashes abound with relatives (including the fearlessly abrasive Ebon Moss-Bacharach) and employees, and everywhere else for that matter. Ayo Edebiri shines as a young genius who joins the team. But then the entire cast is strikingly realistic, as is the claustrophobic mayhem in the kitchen. (FX)
What We Do in the Shadows: series 4
After ramping things up in the previous season, it's been fun to watch the heightened craziness boil over in various directions in these episodes. The writers continue to gleefully lampoon a range of societal issues, with added nuttiness as Nandor (Kayvan Novak) is granted a series of wishes by a slippery djinn (Anoop Desai), Guillermo (Harvey Guillen) starts taking a stand for himself, and Colin Robinson (Mark Proksch) is reborn as a bratty kid. These episodes progress at a remarkably brisk pace, throwing all kinds of nuttiness into the mix, with Nandor remarrying his favourite wife (Parisa Fakhri) and Nadja (Nastasia Demetriou) opening a nightclub, both with predictably messy results. (FX)
Acapulco: series 2
This brightly inventive comedy further develops its now-and-then plot strands by sending Eugenio Derbez's Maximo to Mexico with his nephew (Raphael Alejandro) while reminiscing about his adventures as a young man (Enrique Arrizon). Much of the story centres around romantic complications this time, including a big Valentine's Day episode that makes particularly good use of the show's candy-hued nostalgic colour palette. A bit of intrigue emerges this season as well. But what sets this show apart is its terrific depth for such comical characters, strongly complex relationships and some deeper themes in subplots involving diversity and gossip. (Apple)
Reboot There's a lot to like about this gimmicky comedy, with sees Hannah (Rachel Bloom) set out to revive the vintage sitcom her father (Paul Reiser) turned into a hit a couple of decades ago. As the reuniting original cast members, Keegan-Michael Key, Johnny Knoxville, Judy Greer and Calum Worthy have a lot of fun with their seriously messy characters. The interaction between them is gleefully soapy, making pointed jokes about the television and film industries and the nature of being an actor. And while it leans heavily toward both goofy and sentimental moments, there's enough knowing realism to make it genuinely hilarious. (Hulu)
SmileyThe title may refer to the emoticon, but it's also indicative of the tone of this Spanish comedy, which keeps the audience happy with its sometimes simplistic romcom tale about two men who seem completely wrong for each other and yet still click. Carlos Cuevas and Miki Esparbé are terrific in the roles, as a sexy bartender and a slightly nerdy architect who know that having a relationship won't work, but of course they can't resist each other. Their circle of friends is unusually sparky for a series like this, taking the show in some refreshingly offbeat directions. And the complexity of the situation gives the comedy an unusually unpredictable tone. (Netflix)
Inside Amy Schumer: series 5
For the fifth season, this sketch show comes back with five episodes that are tightly written and performed to take on specific themes. While poking fun at everyday life, the media and politics, the scenes dig more deeply into the way we react to these things. So everything strikes a nerve, and it's expertly played by Schumer and her terrific ensemble of costars, including Tim Meadows and Cara Delevingne, plus witty music from Ron Weiner. Most impressive is the momentum these episodes build as they go along, almost creating an overall narrative that touches on topics we all grapple with. And Schumer's unapologetic approach is engaging and refreshing. (MTV)
T H A T ' S A L L F O L K SKevin Can F**k Himself: series 2
Annie Murphy is back for a second and final season of this offbeat hybrid sitcom/thriller, which feels much darker this time around. Even the studio-audience sequences have a bleak edge to them, as Murphy's Allison continues to try to escape her hellish marriage to the goofball Kevin (Eric Petersen), this time plotting with her pal Patty (Mary Hollis Inboden) to fake her own death. The mix between the bleak comedy and pitch-black drama feels a little forced now, but the point the show is making about male and female perspectives is provocative and important. And where the story goes is genuinely involving, and chilling too. (AMC)
Dead to Me: series 3
Lively and more than a little absurd, this comedy thriller series concludes with a snaky series of episodes in which our heroines (Christina Applegate and Linda Cardellini) desperately scramble to avoid trouble with the police, even as they become increasingly entangled with them for a variety of random reasons. We also get the return of James Marsden, as the twin brother of the late Steve. And the show's dance with death continues through a cancer diagnosis. But at its heart, this is the story of an unexpected friendship, and Applegate and Cardellini make it hugely enjoyable even when the plot begins to get very silly indeed. (Netflix)
I G I V E U P
Quantum Leap
From 1989 to 1993, this zippy time-travel series was a guilty pleasure, so it's almost surprising that it took three decades to reboot it. Alas, the writing this time is abysmal, including the feeble attempt to create an ensemble cast and the painfully undercooked adventures as Ben (Raymond Lee) leaps from period to period. Scripts aren't rooted in even the most cursory logic or detail, leaving it impossible to connect with, so I stopped trying. (NBC)
NOW WATCHING: Welcome to Chippendales, Marie-Antoinette, Abbott Elementary (2), His Dark Materials (3), Young Rock (3), The Conners (5).
COMING SOON: That 90s Show, Shrinking, Extrapolations, Ted Lasso (3), Star Trek: Picard (3), The Mandalorian (3).
Previous roundup: AUGUST 2022 >
