Hello Anim8r,
Thank you (and Robin) again for the weekly list of programming. I’ll
comment on some of it below after recounting what I’ve been watching.
This morning I saw an article on Jameela Jamil from THE GOOD PLACE. It
indicated that she was “queer”, but also that she has been in a
relationship with some guy for the last 6 years. I was curious as to what
“queer” meant for her so I looked at her IMDB page. Yikes! No real answer
to her gender identity claims, but her “medical issues” abound. She might
be a good nominee for craziest person in Hollywood.
This week I finished up the last season of LUCIFER. It had a decent final
arc and ending. I’m not sure I find their version of heaven satisfactory,
but when is it ever.
I watched BRAVE SERIES on Netflix. It is an odd little anime series that
pokes fun at the political/military agenda. It was somewhat disjointed and
certainly won’t find mainstream popularity, but it was still enjoyable.
I watched THE VOYEURS on AmazonPrime. This was a really bad film starring
a sickly looking Justice Smith and a bunch of people with no acting
ability. The premise here regarding watching neighbors through their
window was hokey and even though the film had a couple twists at the end
that made it slightly more than totally worthless I still wouldn’t
recommend it.
I watched KATE on Netflix. Mary Elizabeth Winestead did an above average
job in this far too often Hollywood film trope about a person who takes
down dozens of bad guys with street fighting and gun head shots.
I watched ON THE VERGE on Netflix. This series about a bunch of neurotic
women living messed up lives felt early on to be almost without script.
Everyone was just given a character description and then told to be
annoying. It got a bit better later on as there was some plot development,
but I was still left with the impression that all of these people are train
wrecks.
I started BLACKSPACE on Netflix. This is an Israeli series centered around
the police investigation of a school shooting. Very good so far.
I started the latest season of SEX EDUCATION on Netflix. Good as always
even if some of it is a bit campy.
As for the upcoming week of programming choices and the start to the Fall
tv season…
Monday, Sept. 20
The Big Leap [new] (9 pm, Fox)
Fox's first new fall series is a scripted dramedy about the contestants
of a semi-fictitious reality series that finds amateur ballet dancers
attempting to mount a live production of Swan Lake. (A reality show along
similar lines really did air in the UK.) Scott Foley heads a cast that
also includes Jon Rudnitsky, Teri Polo, and Piper Perabo.
[RM: I enjoyed Piper Perabo in Covert Affairs and wish she would be cast
in a show I wanted to watch.]
I like Piper Perabo, too. I guess that maybe makes this one worth
sampling.
Ordinary Joe [new] (10 pm, NBC)
The first of two new NBC shows debuting this fall is a variation on the
Sliding Doors formula, with James Wolk starring as a man at a crossroads.
You'll see not two but three different possible futures for him: one in
which he is a rock musician, one a nurse, and one a police officer.
Producer Matt Reeves (best known for directing films such as War for the
Planet of the Apes) has been trying to get the series made since 2006 (!)
and finally succeed this year, albeit for a different network (NBC rather
than ABC). Also stars
Natalie Martinez, Charlie Barnett, Elizabeth Lail, David Warshofsky and
Teddy Sears.
Might be worth sampling, though the limit of 3 storylines makes this sound
more like a THIS IS US style soap than a QUANTUM LEAP style anthology.
Tuesday, Sept. 21
Love on the Spectrum (complete season 2) (3:01 am, Netflix)
I enjoy ATYPICAL and SPECIAL and SEX EDUCATION and a few other scripted
shows which have Autistic characters, but I’ll pass on this documentary
style stuff.
Our Kind of People [new] (9 pm, Fox)
Inspired by the book of the same name by Lawrence Otis Graham, Fox's
latest primetime soap from producer Lee Daniels is centered in the upper
class, mostly Black Martha's Vineyard enclave of Oak Bluffs. The
adaptation comes from Karin Gist (Star, Grey's Anatomy) and stars Yaya
DaCosta, Morris Chestnut, Joe Morton, and Nadine Ellis.
Good to see that Yaya DaCosta is still finding work, but I have no interest
in this.
New Amsterdam (season 4 premiere) (10 pm, NBC)
Only if it was about an immortal New York City cop.
Wednesday, Sept. 22
Dear White People (complete final season 4) (3:01 am, Netflix)
The fourth and final season finds the Justin Simien-created series becoming a musical.
I enjoyed the first 3 seasons. I’m not sure what the “musical” reference
is, but I look forward to finding out.
Jaguar [new; complete season 1] (3:01 am, Netflix)
In 1960s Spain, a Holocaust survivor joins a group of agents seeking
justice against the hundreds of Nazis who fled to the nation to hide
after WWII. Spanish series.
I might sample this one.
The Wonder Years [new; reboot] (8:30 pm, ABC)
I’ll have to sample this.
Alter Ego [new] (9 pm, Fox)
Fox's latest oddball reality series is described as the "world's first
avatar singing competition" and finds contestants performing not as
themselves but as virtual characters. The judging panel features Nick
Lachey, Grimes, will.i.am, and Alanis Morissette. Another new episode
airs Thursday at the same time.
I’ve seen a few Youtube videos where people used computer animation
software to “seamlessly” turn singers into avatar singing versions. Neat
technology, but I’m not much into singing competition shows.
Home Economics (season 2 premiere) (9:30 pm, ABC)
I watched season #1, but it is a mediocre show.
Friday, Sept. 24
Birds of Paradise (movie) (12:01 am, Amazon Prime Video)
Sarah Adina Smith (Buster's Mal Heart) directs a drama that follows an
aspiring American ballerina as she heads to Paris to attend a
prestigious—if a bit cutthroat—ballet school. The adaptation of A.K.
Small's novel Burning Bright Stars stars Diana Silvers, Jacqueline
Bisset, and Kristine Froseth.
Maybe
Blood & Water (season 2) (3:01 am, Netflix)
After crossing paths at a party, a Cape Town teen sets out to prove
whether a private-school swimming star is her sister who was abducted at
birth. South African series. Six episodes?
I watched season #1, but I don’t recall much of anything about it at the
moment.
Ganglands (Braqueurs) [new; complete season 1] (3:01 am, Netflix)
To protect his family from a powerful drug lord, skilled thief Mehdi and
his expert team of robbers are pulled into a violent and deadly turf war. French series.
Based upon the trailer, I will sample this.
The Great British Baking Show ("collection 9") (3:01 am, Netflix)
I will watch this as previous seasons have been relatively entertaining.
Midnight Mass [new; complete miniseries] (3:01 am, Netflix)
Zach Gilford and Hamish Linklater head the cast for the latest Netflix
thriller from Mike Flanagan (The Haunting of Hill House) that is set on
an island where the arrival of a mysterious young priest coincides with
some supernatural happenings. . All seven episodes stream today.
I will sample this.
The Starling (movie) (3:01 am, Netflix)
Also releasing in a few theaters on September 17, this $20 million
Netflix acquisition stars Melissa McCarthy as a woman who turns to
gardening as a form of therapy after a shocking tragedy, only to be
thwarted by a bird who frequently attacks her. She then turns to a
veterinarian (Kevin Kline) for help dealing with the starling. Timothy
Olyphant and Chris O'Dowd also star. Don't expect another broad Melissa
McCarthy comedy; this one is actually far more drama than comedy, comes
from director Ted Melfi (Hidden Figures), and made its debut at a major
film festival (TIFF). Nevertheless, critics mostly hated it when it
actually screened in Toronto.
I might watch this since Timothy Olyphant is in it.
The Fall season has begun. I think that Netflix has spoiled me to not
watch much ad-backed TV, though.
Ob Veeus
--
“The last thing I want to do is hurt you, but it’s still on my list.”