First watchlist of the new month! It’s still like 90 degrees outside here, but soon we’ll have pumpkins and new episodes of our network comedies (see you soon, Abbott Elementary).

— Jenni and Jess

What’s new to streaming…

Chad Powers — Season 2

Watch if you like: Mrs. Doubtfire, Shoresy, Ted Lasso with splashes of Billy Madison
Length: 30-min runtime, 2 seasons / 6 episodes in S2
Jenni’s rating: 4/5⭐ after 5 episodes

This show has no business being as good as it, given its hollow premise. Chad Powers is based on a viral Eli Manning bit from the early 2020s in which he posed as a new Penn State recruit during tryouts. Somehow, that one-joke sketch has been fleshed out to stretch across not just one season of entertaining television, but two. And I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I really hope there’s a third.

The disgraced Russ Holiday has finally strung together a successful college season disguised as Chad Powers, eight years after the Rose Bowl incident that initially ended his career. But now that he’s a breakout star, he’s risking more than his own reputation by continuing the ruse; the jobs of his coaches and the record of his new friends and teammates on the South Georgia Catfish are all on the line. These heightened stakes give what is fundamentally a heartwarming sports comedy the underlying pulse of a thriller as Holiday struggles to protect his identity.

In that vein, this new season leans a little less on the absurd (though there are still plenty of laughs mined from dramatic irony and cartoonish humor), and a little more on skin-of-the-teeth getaway thrills. Glen Powell remains excellent as Chad/Russ; he was seriously born to be a character actor. And Perry Mattfeld is incredibly winning as Assistant Coach Ricky, now fully in on Holiday’s secret and complicit in protecting it for the sake of her team. With the help of its strong cast, Chad Powers has become a well-tuned machine, balanced on a razor-thin edge between big gags and emotional stakes. It’s a little ridiculous, but oh so compelling. — Jenni

Our take? This show has really hit it’s stride, watch it! All episodes streaming now on Hulu.

The Whisper Man — Movie

Watch if you like: Hide and Seek, Seven, The Silence of the Lambs
Length: 1h 54m
Jess’s rating: 1.5/5⭐

In classic Netflix fashion, this streaming original has a wildly overqualified cast for a thriller this rote. Based on the novel by Alex North (which I DNF’d after 20%), The Whisper Man follows Tom (Adam Scott), a recently widowed crime writer who moves back to his hometown with his young son, Jake. When Jake disappears just as someone begins copying the crimes of notorious child killer “The Whisper Man”, Tom turns to his estranged father Pete (Robert De Niro), a retired detective who caught the original killer decades earlier.

I don’t need a serial killer thriller to be particularly original, but this one is a hodgepodge of tropes: a creepy house, freaky nursery rhyme, foreboding imaginary friend, etc. The mystery is easy to solve but somehow the story gets more convoluted as it goes, mostly because the characters overlook basic clues and repeatedly ignore clear danger. The Whisper Man targets lonely children, but he is a less interesting central figure than the negligent fathers who are responsible for that loneliness. Tom is too consumed by grief to see what Jake needs, just as Pete’s obsession with the original case kept him from being there for Tom. That is the most interesting nugget in the film, but it’s tossed aside in favor of more twists. Scott is very good as a terrified father and basically the only reason I kept watching. Oh, and Hamish Linklater is in it briefly, which is cool. I hope they got paid a lot! — Jess

Our take? Skip it. Streaming now on Netflix.

Mayday — Movie

Watch if you like: Top Gun, Lethal Weapon, Midnight Run
Length: 1h 50m
Jess’s rating: 2.5/5⭐

The new Apple TV action comedy comes from John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein, the directors of Game Night (one of my favorite comedies!) and Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves. It pairs Ryan Reynolds with Kenneth Branagh in a Cold War buddy comedy that is reminiscent of better ‘80s action movies.

Set in 1987, Mayday follows Reynolds as a cocky Navy pilot whose covert mission over Soviet Russia goes wrong. He is rescued by a former KGB agent (Branagh) who lives alone in the woods and is obsessed with Top Gun. Branagh is utterly charming as a foreigner whose enthusiasm for American culture could have easily tipped too far into joke territory. He is also unexpectedly convincing as an action star. Unfortunately, disliking Ryan Reynolds’s shtick is a significant obstacle in a movie where he is one of the two main characters. Reynolds is his usual smirking wiseass, and at this point, that act is like nails on a chalkboard.

If you like ‘80s action films, there is enough to enjoy in the throwback, but Mayday mostly made me want to rewatch Top Gun. The plot is too thin for a movie that runs almost two hours. There is no substantive subplot, so things get repetitive quickly as the two men move from one obstacle to another. Branagh makes Mayday much more enjoyable than it otherwise would have been, but to be really successful, the movie needed more happening beyond the central pair and less Ryan Reynolds. — Jess

Our take? Watch it if you want a throwback to ‘80s action films, and if you can stand to watch Ryan Reynolds play Ryan Reynolds. Streaming September 4 on Apple TV.

Checking back in…

(🚨THIS SECTION MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS FOR RECENT EPISODES🚨)

finished…

Furious — A perfect finale to one of the best shows of the year. Every woman in this show is free from the shackles of “being likable.” Thank god for complex, morally gray women on screen. Catherine and Alice’s arcs across this season were excellent, particularly in how they trade places on the spectrum of revenge and justice. And Nora’s warning that you have to become inhuman to catch the worst of humanity rang especially salient by the end… 5/5⭐ (JS)

still watching…

• Silo —

  • Last week’s episode was bonkers (in a great way). Tonight is going to be epic. (JC)

  • Insane episode!!! I’ve been digging the past storyline (as I’ve mentioned) and I was hoping it was building up to something extraordinary. Boy, was it. (JS)

• Ted Lasso S4 —

  • I’m liking minor parts of this season (mainly the team bonding/sports plot lines) but could really leave behind a lot of the side character side-quests. I don’t care at all about Rebecca’s relationship, and I agree with Jess’s take from last week: some of the Keeley/Roy stuff is ringing a little false, sorry! (JC)

  • I want more of the women’s team and I want less of the old characters. I love Rebecca, but I don’t particularly care about her new boyfriend or their woes. The writers did not learn their lesson from Season 3—these overstuffed episodes are working against the quippy comedy that everyone loves. (JS)

• Lanterns — I really enjoyed this episode and its focus on John’s backstory, but I’m dreading going back to the alien mystery. (JS)

on pause…

Star City, The Shards

Also streaming this week…

• The Runner (Movie) — Gal Gadot stars as a London lawyer whose morning run turns into a race to save her kidnapped son when a mysterious caller orders her to keep moving and follow their every command.
  Watch on Prime Video: September 2

• The Gentlemen (Season 2) — Guy Ritchie’s series, inspired by his 2019 film of the same name, returns with Theo James and Kaya Scodelario expanding their criminal empire beyond England and into Italy.
  Watch on Netflix: September 3 (all 8 episodes)

In theaters…

Finding Emily

Watch if you like: Easy A, Set it Up, While You Were Sleeping
Length: 1h 51m
Jenni’s rating: 4/5⭐

After a long string of disappointing modern rom coms, this new one from the producers of Bridget Jones and Love Actually knows exactly what it is, and is utterly charming for it. In Finding Emily, a hopeless romantic musician (Spike Fearn) spends a whirlwind night with his dream girl who, fatefully, leaves out one digit when she keys her number into his phone. To track her down, he teams up with a driven and cynical psychology student (Angourie Rice), who involves herself only because she thinks he’ll make a useful case study for her dissertation.

If you love rom coms, you know that they can be incredibly formulaic. Sometimes that formula feels stale or groan-worthy, but other times, it is applied just right—to the right set of actors and settings and musical choices—and everything just clicks. It helps, too, when a film takes real time for its relationship-establishing scenes, not just between the leads, but also in the friendships and family around them.

Finding Emily gets it right on all these fronts, and after a string of limp recent rom coms, that is its own small relief. This movie is cozy and grounded, and even though I knew where it was going the entire time, I was glad to be along for the ride. — Jenni

Our take? It’s very cute! If you like this genre even a little, go see it. Now in theaters.

Also in theaters this weekend…

• Fall 2: Deadpoint — The sequel to 2022’s Fall follows two new climbers who become stranded thousands of feet above the ground while attempting a dangerous climb on Thailand’s Mount Kwan.

• By Any Means — Inspired by a true story, this 1960s crime thriller pairs a young Black FBI agent (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) with a notorious mafia hitman (Mark Wahlberg) to investigate the murders of civil rights leaders in Mississippi.

• Onslaught — This action-horror film stars Adria Arjona as a former Army sniper forced to protect her daughter when genetically engineered super soldiers escape into the desert.

• The Sun Never Sets — Dakota Fanning stars as a woman caught between her current boyfriend (Jake Johnson) and an ex (Cory Michael Smith) who reenters her life during a relationship break.

Comment to let us know what you’re watching or dreading. If you liked reading this, click the ❤️ button on this post so that more people can discover us on Substack :)

Thursday again. We lost a legend this week. Dolly Parton was not only immensely talented, she was also principled and kind—using her fame and fortune to implement massive child literacy programs, fund significant medical research, and contribute to vital disaster relief organizations. We should all be more like Dolly!

Not nearly as sad, but still bummer news: Mindy Kaling’s new sitcom Not Suitable For Work was officially canceled on Tuesday. We both liked this show and thought it had promise. Shame on streamers for not giving their projects a) enough episodes, and b) enough time to actually amass an audience. Ugh. Anyway, more positive content ahead in this watchlist.

— Jenni and Jess

What’s new to streaming…

It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia — Season 18

Watch if you like: Seinfeld, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Workaholics
Length: 20-min runtime, 18 seasons / 3 episodes available in S18
Jenni’s rating: 3/5⭐ so far

Admittedly, it’s been a while since I last tuned in to the hijinks of this misanthropic quintet of characters who run a bar in the City of Brotherly Love. Dee, Mac, Charlie, Dennis, and Frank are always fun to fall back on when I’m in the mood for a punchline-heavy, nihilistic comedy, but this show was never the type to require continuity of viewing. So I had no problem dropping into this eighteenth season without the full context of the last four.

I guess the question for a show as long-running as this one is: does the new season hold up? The characters have neither grown nor learned in eighteen years, and this installment is more of the same—but that’s always been…if not the charm, at least the central gimmick of the show. Every sitcom has its ups and downs, but this one stays fairly consistent; there are always occasional bits that don’t quite hit the mark, but I chuckled more than once in these first episodes. My bet is this: if you’ve ever enjoyed It’s Always Sunny, it’s safe to say you’ll like the new season. — Jenni

Our take? Perfect if you’re in the market for some silly depravity + egocentric shenanigans. Now streaming on FX; new on Mondays, next day on Hulu.

Dark Matter — Season 2

Watch if you like: 3 Body Problem, Severance, Constellation
Length: 55-min runtime, 2 seasons / 1 of 10 episodes in S2 available
Jenni’s rating: 3.75/5⭐ after 3 episodes

The first season of Dark Matter adapted the complete story of Blake Crouch’s standalone novel, following physicist Jason Dessen (Joel Edgerton) after he was abducted into an alternate version of his life and forced to fight his way back to his wife and son. Season 2 picks up where that story left off, but with no sequel to draw from, the episodes strike off into uncharted territory.

The Dessens are trying to settle into a quiet life in a world that seems safe, but soon the reappearance of rival Jasons from alternate universes sends them running again. Our main Jason’s obsession with the Box continues to deepen, much to the dismay of his wife (Jennifer Connelly), who is pushed toward a breaking point by paranoia and the fear that they’ll spend the rest of their lives being hunted down. Elsewhere, former friends and colleagues (played by Alice Braga Jimmi Simpson, Amanda Brugel, and Dayo Okeniyi) are caught in the fallout, each chasing their own way home or growing intoxicated by the the idea of controlling the Box.

So far, I’m enjoying where the show is taking the story past the novel. There’s a lot going on, but the season is smart to lean into the emotional and mental toll this insane multiversal situation takes on the characters rather than relying on action and suspense alone. It’s a grounding lens to latch onto, and the show still has forward drive (and the obligatory cliffhanger here and there) to keep the story from turning too introspective. It’s early, but so far this season of Dark Matter has me hooked. — Jenni

Our take? It’s getting a little tangled, but it’s still a pretty riveting thriller-meets-thought experiment. Now streaming on Apple TV; new on Thursdays.

Adults — Season 2

Watch if you like: Overcompensating, Not Suitable for Work, New Girl
Length: 30-min runtime, 2 seasons / 16 episodes

Read more

Happy Thursday. Today’s watchlist may only boast a single 4-star review, but there wasn’t an obvious skip in the bunch, so that’s something! It's been a decent summer for TV (and a strong one for movies), but fall is fast approaching. The next few weeks are stacked with exciting arrivals, including the return of some of our faves: Adults, Dark Matter, Chad Powers, to name a few. It’s been good but it’s about to get better (we hope). Enjoy this week’s rundown!

— Jess and Jenni

What’s new to streaming…

Lanterns — Season 1

Watch if you like: The Green Lantern, Watchmen, True Detective
Length: 60-min runtime, 1 season / 1 of 8 episodes available
Jess’s rating: 3/5⭐ so far

Take Green Lantern, strip away most of the comic book spectacle, and reshape it into an HBO prestige drama. That’s the pitch for Lanterns, and with Damon Lindelof (The Leftovers) at the helm, I should be the ideal audience. But while others seem to be enjoying the new series, after one episode, I’m not entirely convinced.

Created by Lindelof, Tom King, and Chris Mundy (Ozark), Lanterns pairs longtime Green Lantern, Hal Jordan (Kyle Chandler), with John Stewart (Aaron Pierre), the serious new recruit expected to replace him. The original writer’s room pitch was to make a True Detective version of Green Lantern, and that comparison is apt at least structurally: two mismatched cops, a bleak small town, and a multi-timeline narrative. Here, the pair is in rural Nebraska investigating a murder with a possible alien connection. While Chandler and Pierre play the parts well, I’m not buying their chemistry yet.

The strange thing about Lanterns is that fans of the comics are getting a version of their beloved story stripped of all the things they love. Non-fans—like me—are getting what looks like a prestige drama but actually involves a lot of alien and superhero mythology, intergalactic police, all-powerful rings, and years of unfamiliar backstory. The final scene of the first episode feels important, but the first hour with the character in question (I’m being purposely vague…) did not give me reason to care. I like Damon Lindelof too much to give up after one episode, but I’m not hooked. — Jess

Our take? It will work best for people who like superhero and alien mythology but aren’t devoted Green Lantern / DC Comics fans. Streaming now on HBO Max; new episodes Sunday at 9pm ET.

My Brilliant Career — Season 1

Watch if you like: Little Women, Anne of Green Gables, Dickinson
Length: 45-min runtime, 1 season / 6 episodes
Jenni’s rating: 3.5/5⭐

There’s a style that’s become popular in literary period adaptations—call it the Marie Antoinette or Buccaneers treatment, depending on your most recent reference point—where a corseted classic gets a jolt of modern energy through its musical, linguistic, or otherwise contemporary stylistic choices. Netflix’s adaptation of Miles Franklin’s 1901 feminist novel is the latest to receive this treatment, and for the most part it suits the material.

Sybylla Melvyn (Philippa Northeast) is living a modest, rural life in Possum Gully, Australia, content to help her family make ends meet while pursuing her dream of becoming an author. When a wealthy aunt and grandmother invite her to stay at their sweeping estate to be properly presented to society, she goes reluctantly. Her mother openly wishes for her to find a wealthy husband to save them from their debts, while Sybylla hopes to widen her perspective of the world and avoid marriage altogether.

My Brilliant Career is a plucky story of self-actualization and resilience that also takes a good long look at the trappings of patriarchy in the twentieth century. In her new milieu, Sybylla faces plenty of hurdles and unfair expectations, but she also finds kinship with others around her, constrained by the same gender roles and societal norms she wishes to subvert. The story occasionally spreads itself too thin, but Northeast keeps the whole project afloat. Her headstrong, quick-witted Sybylla—scandalizing polite society and turning a few young men’s heads along the way—is exceedingly watchable, enough to paper over the stretches where the storytelling feels underdeveloped. In the end, the show succeeds at telling a story about the boldness it takes to live life on your own terms when everyone and everything is urging you to accept the path laid out for you. — Jenni

Our take? Stream if you’re in the mood for a spunky period drama with more emphasis on personal independence and growth than on romance. Streaming now on Netflix.

Don’t Say Good Luck — Movie

Watch if you like: Lady Bird, The Farewell, CODA
Length: 1h 35m
Jenni’s rating: 3.75/5⭐

Seeing Happy Madison (Adam Sandler’s production company) with top billing on a bittersweet musical drama definitely earned an eyebrow raise from me. Then I saw his daughter, Sunny Sandler, in the main role, and the other eyebrow went up with it. But don’t be as jaded as I was; this combination coming-of-age story, theater-kid love letter, and family drama was sweet and surprisingly affecting.

Written by Laura Hankin and inspired by her real-life teenage experiences, Don’t Say Good Luck follows Sophie (Sandler), a sophomore theater-kid who lands the lead in her school’s production of Waitress just as her mother’s cancer returns. What follows is a tender drama full of classic teen growing pains alongside mother-daughter relationship dynamics as each tries to protect the other from the weight of what they’re going through.

There are some moments when the film tips toward over-sentimentality—not quite clunky, certainly a little corny—but it mostly lands on the side of tender and authentic. Melanie Lynskey and Max Greenfield as Sophie’s parents are excellent; both are such gifted comedic actors that they bring a welcome levity and lived-in realism to scenes that otherwise could easily turn sappy. Sandler holds her own, too, with a nuanced turn that embraces both the girlish insecurities and the more adult curiosities of a teenager finding her place in the world while simultaneously confronting the possibility of losing her mother too soon.

I kept thinking the film might play particularly well for an audience slightly younger than I, but it does a nice job of bridging the gap between teen drama and full-on tragic family drama. The theater-kid elements give Sophie’s coming-of-age arc its own personality, while the family story keeps it from feeling like a conventional high-school musical. It neither overplays its hand nor overstay its welcome. On the whole, Don’t Say Good Luck is gentle, well-paced, and ultimately much more emotionally affecting than I expected.

One final warning for anyone considering it: the “She Used to Be Mine” solo from Waitress will break a sane person on any given day, but in this context, I needed a full hour to recover. — Jenni

Our take? Watch it, but be prepared to cry. Streaming now on Netflix.

Checking back in…

(🚨THIS SECTION MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS FOR RECENT EPISODES🚨)

still watching…

• Furious — A jaw-dropping ending to a fantastic episode. Alden is hilarious, Nora is a badass, and I can’t wait to learn how much Alice knows about what Danny found. (JS)

• Silo —

  • Once again, last week’s episode moved and I love that for us. So much is currently happening inside the silo (and out!) and I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I’m actually looking forward to more of the “before times” thread to develop in tonight’s ep. Fingers crossed it keeps up with this momentum. (JC)

  • I didn’t want this episode to end! Lukas and Kennedy’s journey combined with the tease of more backstory in the past timeline!! Colin Hanks is perfect casting as a douchey trillionaire. (JS)

• Ted Lasso S4 —

  • A couple of bits were certainly overplayed, but I was happy that this episode included more of the team dynamics and setup for the rest of the season. Alice is wonderful. (JS)

  • I’m mostly still here for Tanya as Alice. (JC)

on pause…

Star City, Lucky

dropped…

• The Shards — I have watched one more episode since my review last week, and I simply can’t see myself going any further. I don’t like slashers in the first place, but I feel like this is barely working as a slasher! After the first two episodes, the tone and focus has gone off the rails and spiraled further into 80s-wild-vibes-only territory. There’s so much less focus on the internal feelings and paranoia of our main character—which I hear is a huge departure from the novel—and was the main point of interest for me. Time to move on. (JC)

Also streaming this week…

• It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia (Season 18) — The longest-running live-action American sitcom returns as Charlie, Mac, Dennis, Dee, and Frank continue their increasingly terrible schemes at Paddy’s Pub.
  Watch on FX/Hulu: August 17 (2 of 10 episodes, then weekly)

• Lion (Limited Series) — Executive produced by the live-action The Lion King director Jon Favreau, this nature docuseries follows a lion cub over four years as he grows from a vulnerable cub into the leader of his pride.
  Watch on Nat Geo/Disney+/Hulu: August 20 (all 4 episodes)

• Outer Banks (Season 5) — The Pogues return for one final adventure as the hit teen drama wraps up its five-season run with another high-stakes treasure hunt.
  Watch on Netflix: August 20 (all 10 episodes)

• Mother Mary* — Anne Hathaway and Michaela Coel star in this A24 drama about a pop star and a fashion designer whose creative partnership is reignited years later, bringing old tensions back to the surface.
  Watch on HBO Max: August 21 (*Streaming Premiere)

In theaters…

Tony

Watch if you like: Almost Famous, Adventureland, The Way Way Back
Length: 1h 46m
Jess’s rating: 4/5⭐

I knew almost nothing about Anthony Bourdain before watching Tony, which may have been the best way to watch it. If you’re chronically online you may have seen “fans” of his expressing distaste for the film—even though they haven’t seen it—because “Anthony Bourdain would hate an Anthony Bourdain biopic” (source: the top comment on the YouTube trailer). As someone with no vested interest in Bourdain’s legacy, I thought the production made for a great summer coming-of-age film that has very little to do with Anthony Bourdain as the public knew him.

Rather than compressing a famous life into two hours, director Matt Johnson (BlackBerry) focuses on one summer in Bourdain’s life when he was 19. Tony is smart and ambitious, with dreams of becoming a writer but no idea how to do so. On a whim, he follows a girl he has a crush on to Provincetown and stumbles into a job washing dishes at a local seafood restaurant. Dominic Sessa portrays Tony with a perfect mix of arrogance, youthful naïveté, and fragility, and I can’t imagine anyone better suited for this part.

The film’s greatest strength is in its sense of place—Provincetown is depicted in vivid, textured detail. The restaurant is worn and crowded, the streets buzz with tourists, Tony sleeps in a hammock and spends his nights in dim bars or around a beach bonfire. The summer has the hazy, romantic quality of a memory. You may not walk away from this with a better understanding of Anthony Bourdain, but you will be moved by this one formative summer in which a young man figures out where his life might be heading. — Jess

Our take? Watch it, even if you don’t know anything about Anthony Bourdain. In theaters everywhere August 21.

Also in theaters this weekend…

• It Ends — This indie horror film follows four recent college graduates who become trapped on a seemingly endless road, where stopping the car brings terrifying consequences.

• Mutiny — Jason Statham stars as a former cop who is framed for his billionaire boss’s murder and goes on the run, uncovering an international conspiracy along the way. (Classic Jason!)

• Spa Weekend — Leslie Mann, Isla Fisher, Michelle Buteau, and Anna Faris star as longtime friends whose luxury spa getaway devolves into a weekend of bad decisions.

• Insidious: Out of the Further — The horror franchise returns with a new family, following a mother who discovers she can enter The Further and bring its inhabitants back with her.

• The Magic Faraway Tree — Based on Enid Blyton’s children’s books, this family adventure follows a family who moves to the countryside, where the children discover a magical tree that transports them to fantastical worlds. Andrew Garfield and Claire Foy star.

Comment to let us know what you’re watching or dreading. If you liked reading this, click the ❤️ button on this post so that more people can discover us on Substack :)

Happy Thursday. New episode of Silo tonight, are you as pumped as we are? There are also a slew of new streaming premieres this weekend, including Camp Rock 3, which feels a bit like a fever dream to write, and a promising Australian period drama that looks like a cross between Little Women and The Buccaneers. Lots to see, lots to talk about, let’s get to this week’s reviews!

— Jenni and Jess

What’s new to streaming…

The Shards — Season 1

Watch if you like: Cruel Summer, American Horror Story: 1984, Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story
Length: 50-min runtime, 1 season / 4 of 9 episodes available
Jenni’s rating: 3/5⭐ after three episodes

Based on Bret Easton Ellis’s autofictional novel of the same name, The Shards is part serial killer thriller, part coming-of-age story, and part period teen drama. Set in 1981 Los Angeles, it follows 17-year-old Bret (Igby Rigney) and his friend group as they navigate their senior year at an elite prep school—their lives punctuated by the arrival of both an enigmatic new student and a brutal killer terrorizing the city.

Ellis worked with Ryan Murphy to bring his story to the screen and that influence is immediately apparent. There’s plenty of Murphy maximalism in the show’s nosedive from psychological thriller into stylish, seductive ‘80s horror. Flashy outfits, ample pop-culture references, drug-fueled parties, and long tracking shots of characters entering a room all ooze his particular brand of campy decadence.

Unfortunately, that’s where The Shards (along with many Murphy-led projects) loses me. The series is a lot of style and very little substance, despite its attempts to capitalize on the complicated interiority of its main character. Rigney is strong enough as young Bret, but the detached, performative voice through which his character narrates and processes adolescent desire, paranoia, and repression is clouded by the lavish choices in the rest of the show. The struggle to meld all the series’ sensibilities is particularly noticeable in its serial-killer storyline, which is genuinely disturbing and full of gruesome body-horror. For viewers like me who don’t particularly enjoy horror, the increasingly graphic mutilation is both unwelcome and not meaningfully offset by the central mystery or character drama.

Only three episodes in, the lavish ’80s aesthetic, campy excess, and relentless visual flourishes have quickly become exhausting—and a little boring. I can’t say I’m likely to tune in for the back six. — Jenni

Our take? The Shards certainly looks the part, but the vibe doesn’t feel cohesive. Streaming now on Hulu; new episodes Wednesdays.

The Last House — Movie

Watch if you like: 10 Cloverfield Lane, A Quiet Place, Leave the World Behind
Length: 1h 52m
Jess’s rating: 2/5⭐

You can always count on Netflix to deliver a movie with a premise that sells itself and an execution that leaves a lot to be desired. The Last House has a great cast (Wagner Moura and Greta Lee) and a gripping, high-concept setup (a family wakes up to discover that every exit of their home has been sealed), but it doesn’t add up to more than a mishmash of ideas that other movies have executed much better.

The Last House’s best stretch follows the Delgado family as they adapt to their confinement and become a self-sustaining microcosm. Written during lockdown, the film is surprisingly good at capturing the overlap between boredom and fear. I also liked that the family remains loving and functional; instead of the crisis causing manufactured domestic conflict, the circumstances drive them closer together, and they behave like people who genuinely care about one another. Lee and Moura make their relationship convincing, although Lee’s Ann is frustratingly underwritten compared with Moura’s Jason.

As is typical of Netflix, The Last House put far more thought into getting us to press play than into what happens next. Though it starts as a promising, claustrophobic survival thriller, it quickly becomes a much sillier sci-fi movie. As questions are answered, the film becomes less interesting, and its internal logic fails to hold up. I don’t necessarily need a sci-fi thriller to be scientifically accurate, but it should at least follow the terms it establishes for itself. The premise and performances in the film kept me watching, but in the end, The Last House leaves a lot to be desired. — Jess

Our take? Skip it. Streaming now on Netflix.

You, Me & Tuscany — Movie

Watch if you like: La Dolce Villa, French Kiss, While You Were Sleeping
Length: 1h 45m

Read more

Happy Thursday. August is here, and if you've been watching the release calendar, you know this stretch of late summer can be a little unpredictable. Premieres tend to arrive in fits and spurts, with quiet weeks followed by a flood of new titles. Right now, we're firmly in the latter. This week's lineup brings plenty to dig into, so read on to see which TV and movie recommendations are worth adding to (or crossing off) your watchlist before the fall rush begins.

— Jess and Jenni

What’s new to streaming…

Ted Lasso — Season 4

Watch if you like: Shrinking, Rooster, Friday Night Lights
Length: 35-min runtime, 4 seasons / 1 of 10 episodes available in S2
Jenni’s rating: 3/5⭐ after two episodes

Three years after Richmond’s men’s team got their big sendoff, Ted is back—this time to coach the women’s team. A revival is always a gamble, and to many, a fourth act will read as an unnecessary victory lap. To its credit though, the Lady Greyhounds premise at least stakes out some new terrain: fresh faces join the fold, and the women’s football setting opens up plot lines around pay disparity and overlooked athletes. Plenty of fan favorites return, too, including Keeley, Rebecca, and Roy. Tanya Reynolds (Sex Education) is a welcome addition as Ted’s new assistant coach, but otherwise, I wasn’t overly impressed by the first two episodes.

Full disclosure: I am known to friends and family as the resident Ted Lasso grump. It’s not that I don’t understand why people love it, it’s just that its charms and relentless positivity started to wear on me after Season 2. The premiere doesn’t do much to convince me that this new installment will win me over—stranding us in Kansas City for 45 minutes while Ted resists his inevitable return—but the second episode fares a little better. As previously stated, I love Tanya Reynolds in any scene, and seeing Keeley and Roy back on screen together did make my grinchy heart grow a few sizes.

My husband adores this show, so I’ll be watching regardless. But so far, the humor and “band’s back together!” energy aren’t doing enough to override my otherwise lukewarm feelings about the whole thing. — Jenni

Our take? If you’re less of a grump than I am, check it out. I hope I’m wrong and this season turns out to be a delight. Streaming now on Apple TV; new episodes Wednesdays.

Sterling Point — Season 1

Watch if you like: My Old Ass, The Summer I Turned Pretty, Hal & Harper
Length: 45-min runtime, 1 season / 8 episodes
Jess’s rating: 4/5⭐

Megan Park wrote and directed My Old Ass, a coming-of-age movie I really loved, so her move into television came with a degree of built-in goodwill (from me, at least). Her new series Sterling Point follows Annie (Ella Rubin), a high-achieving teenager who learns that her estranged grandfather left her and her twin brother an island in Canada. She travels there looking for answers about her late mother and finds an increasingly elaborate web of family secrets, a chaotic friend group (complimentary), and the requisite two love interests representing different paths for her future.

Sterling Point is a welcome return to the teen dramas of the early ‘00s—the ones with an ensemble you actually wanted to spend time with. It also reminds me of the first season of The Summer I Turned Pretty; it has the same light summer atmosphere and appealing escape from everyday life, but with more emotional substance than I expected. The romance has yearning, the friendships feel lived-in, and the complicated dynamics between the teens and their parents give the story its depth.

Park’s teenagers are witty and emotionally fluent, albeit to the point where you can sometimes hear the writers straining to approximate how the youths speak. The dialogue has a tendency to tip into cringe, but the characters feel like real people even when their lines don’t. Despite the throwback trappings, Annie is a very 2026 protagonist with her anxieties and willingness to be abrasive. She, and the characters around her, feel like more than a collection of stereotypes, which is a welcome change from the teens of those old dramas.

The main flaw is that the family mystery is absurdly over-engineered. Much of the plot could be resolved by any one adult giving a straight account of what happened 16 years earlier. But the contrivances are forgivable because the mystery matters less than how it pulls the group together. This crew is simply fun to watch, and I was surprised by how quickly their world became addictive—and perhaps more tellingly, by how much my husband wanted to keep watching, too. — Jess

Our take? Watch it if you’re in the mood for a sweet summer coming-of-age tale. All episodes streaming now on Prime Video.

Adults — Prequel Episode

Watch if you like: Overcompensating, New Girl, Crashing
Length: 20-min runtime
Jenni’s rating: 5/5⭐

FX is starting to make a habit of surprise-dropping prequel episodes of shows I adore: first “Gary” for The Bear, now this. But “Marathon Day”—slotted into Hulu’s ecosystem as the show’s new first episode—plays less like a prequel and more like a pilot-do-over. Considering the original pilot opened with Issa trying to out-masturbate a man on the subway (a scene many viewers found off-putting), it’s not hard to read this as a chance to redo their first impression.

“Marathon Day” is an origin story revealing how the group’s newest member, Paul Baker (Jack Innanen), met the crew and joined the fold. The story hinges on a lie: Anton (Owen Thiele) has spent months telling his coworkers he’s a runner, and the bill comes due when they turn up to the New York City Marathon with banners, ready to cheer him on. Rather than confess, Anton doubles down, drafting Samir (Malik Elassal), Issa (Amita Rao), and Billie (Lucy Freyer) to help fake his participation. When actual runner Paul Baker joins the con, he also officially joins the friend group.

The slightly tempered register of this episode pays off: all the jokes land and there’s more room for the characters to breathe and for the group’s particular brand of chaos to click into place. I’ve already watched it twice, and it immediately sent me back to revisit the rest of Season 1. Can’t wait for the new episodes later this month. — Jenni

Our take? Watch it, duh. Streaming now on FX and Hulu; new season airing August 27.

Checking back in…

(🚨THIS SECTION MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS FOR RECENT EPISODES🚨)

finished…

• Cape Fear — From the beginning, this adaptation was pure campy pulp in an expensive container. And I loved it for that. The visual style was interesting, and Javier Bardem was magnetic. But it’s a lot to ask this story to sustain ten episodes, and as the season went on, the characters had to make increasingly stupid decisions just to keep Max Cady one step ahead. By the finale, the show’s ridiculousness had been stretched too far. 3.5/5⭐ (JS)

• The Vampire Lestat — The season continuously hinted at a catastrophic concert, then when we got to the finale, we just…skipped over to its aftermath. I liked parts of the episode, but was disappointed that it mostly revisits things we had already watched him work through and deprives us of the big conclusion that I’d been waiting for. Nevertheless, I largely enjoyed this season. The storytelling is messier than in the first two, but Sam Reid is so good as Lestat, and it’s fitting that his story was turned into a chaotic glam-rock musical. 4/5⭐ (JS)

still watching…

• Furious — Nora is becoming the true standout of the show, and I delighted in watching her sarcastically confront her old boss at the mental health seminar. Side note: how did Plop become the go-to actor for casting directors who need a misogynistic asshole boyfriend/husband?! Justice for Plop! (JS)

• House of the Dragon — What was going on in my head during much of this episode: “wooooo big dragons, hell yeah!!!!!” Finally living up to the name! But I can’t believe this season is almost over already; this show always has a million storylines moving at once, and eight episodes is definitely not enough time for all of them. (JS)

• Silo — Ok, last Thursday’s ep had exactly the amount of "before times" screentime I want in every episode. I had fun! Feels like they’re finally getting the dystopian Scooby gang together and I’m here for it. (JC)

• Lucky — Caught up on two episodes this week, and dang…Annette Bening is doing remarkable work here. Episode 4 was a whirlwind of action and emotion; episode 5 tries to grapple with the fallout, though the whirlwind never really lets up (poor Lucky et al, stuck in a prison of their own design…sorta. Too much to get into that now). I'll admit I haven't loved this show as much as I'd hoped, but that's mostly on me: I'm not an action-first kind of person. But this latest episode landed more for me emotionally, and the show has enough hold on me to see it through. (JC)

on pause…

Star City

dropped…

• Sugar — I don’t think Sugar is a bad show, but it lost me with its S1 twist, and I should have known that I wouldn’t be interested in a second go-round. If anyone out there is particularly loving this season, though, let me know! I’m not against trying again.

Also streaming this week…

• The Shards (Season 1) — Ryan Murphy adapts Bret Easton Ellis’s novel of the same name about a group of high schoolers in the 80s navigating prep school as a serial killer trawls the city.
  Watch on FX/Hulu: August 5 (2 of 9 episodes, then weekly)

• One Hundred Years of Solitude (Part 2) — Based on Gabriel García Márquez’s landmark novel, the final episodes continue the multigenerational story of the Buendía family.
  Watch on Netflix: August 5 (7 of 8 episodes; finale released Aug 26)

• Anna Pigeon (Season 1) — Based on Nevada Barr’s mystery novels, this crime drama follows a National Park Service ranger investigating a series of murders in America’s national parks.
  Watch on USA: August 7 (1 of 8 episodes, then weekly)

• The Last House (Movie) — Greta Lee and Wagner Moura star in this sci-fi thriller about a family mysteriously trapped inside their own home with no way out as an unseen threat closes in.
  Watch on Netflix: August 7

• You, Me & Tuscany (Movie - Streaming Premiere) — In this romcom, a free-spirited young cook (Halle Bailey) squats in an abandoned Tuscan villa owned by a man she barely knows, and things go off the rails when she falls for the owner’s cousin (Regé-Jean Page).
  Watch on Peacock: August 7

In theaters…

Spider-Man: Brand New Day

Watch if you like: Spider-Man: Far From Home, Spider-Man 2, Thunderbolts*
Length: 2h 25m
Jess’s rating: 4/5⭐

Spider-Man: Brand New Day picks up with the world having forgotten Peter Parker, leaving him isolated and increasingly consumed by his Spider-Man persona. It’s the first Marvel movie in recent history to return to the intimate, more character-driven stakes that once defined the MCU, rather than trying to shove the multiverse and a hundred different crossover elements down our throats. The story stays refreshingly street-level and best of all, you don’t need an encyclopedic knowledge of the MCU to follow what’s happening.

Where this film really worked for me was in its emotional layers, specifically Peter’s journey with MJ and Ned. Tom Holland is so good at conveying the agony of watching the people you love continue their lives without you, and I’m not ashamed to admit I cried multiple times. Brand New Day wisely lets Peter’s grief and isolation take center stage, giving his emotional journey more weight than the villain-of-the-week part of the plot.

Not everything works as well. The introduction of one major new character is surprisingly underwhelming where it should have been pretty cool. And the central storyline feels like it’s reheating some of Thunderbolts* ideas about loneliness and anger. Fortunately, Peter’s personal journey is compelling enough to carry the film through its weaker moments. Brand New Day gives Peter room to grow up—without losing any of the humor, charm, and earnestness that makes his version of the character so lovable. — Jess

Our take? Go see it, even if you have superhero fatigue (not that I need to convince you… the film has already passed $1B at the box office). In theaters everywhere now.

One Night Only

Watch if you like: Friends with Benefits, Superbad, Blockers
Length: 1h 42m
Jess’s rating: 3.5/5⭐

One Night Only takes place in an America where premarital sex is illegal except for one government-sanctioned 12 hour window per year. This is, obviously, an insane premise for a romantic comedy. The film knows that, which helps. From the first moments, it’s clear that the writers are in on the joke. Will Gluck (Easy A, Anyone but You) is simply unconcerned with building a plausible dystopia. The fascist, Christian-nationalist mandate set-up is just an excuse to send two attractive people ping-ponging through New York on an extended pseudo-date.

You can’t think about the premise for longer than a minute. There is enough satire to make it clear the government is the joke, but not enough to explain how America got here or what living under the mandate would actually involve. The stranger contradiction is that, for a movie about the one night everyone is allowed to have sex, it is remarkably invested in two hot people not having it. So, the movie has a more conservative streak than its marketing would suggest, but again, you just have to go with it. It’s interested only in being a straightforward romcom—how dare we think too much about its high-stakes, bizarro conceit!

Monica Barbaro and Callum Turner are charming together, with Barbaro doing a lot of the heavy lifting. I’m convinced she would have chemistry with a brick wall, but Turner is good enough to not detract. And most importantly, they don’t just stand next to each other while the screenplay tells us that they have chemistry. There are scenes that prove their building attraction, in a way that modern romcoms seem to have forgotten how to do. In the instances when the movie separates them, I yearn to see them back together.

In short, the politics are incoherent at best, and frustratingly glib and insulting at worst, and the sexual attitude is surprisingly prudish. But I still had a good time! Sue me! If you have the ability and/or interest in turning your brain off, go see it with friends and be ready to discuss afterward. — Jess

Our take? Just go along with it, and you’ll have a good time. In theaters everywhere August 7.

And a few more in theaters this weekend…

• Super Troopers 3 — A group of unconventional Vermont state troopers find themselves investigating a drug ring in this slapstick crime comedy.

• Ice Cream Man — Eli Roth’s latest horror film follows a mysterious ice cream vendor whose treats unleash terrifying consequences in a small town.

• Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma — From I Saw the TV Glow filmmaker Jane Schoenbrun, this horror film follows a young director (Hannah Einbeinder) who tracks down the reclusive star (Gillian Anderson) of a cult slasher franchise.

• Tony — Dominic Sessa stars as a young Anthony Bourdain in this biopic exploring the formative summer that shaped his future as a chef and storyteller. (NY/LA this weekend; wide August 21)

Comment to let us know what you’re watching or dreading. If you liked reading this, click the ❤️ button on this post so that more people can discover us on Substack :)

Happy Thursday. Both of us are itching to see the new Spider Man movie—a statement I (Jenni) can’t believe I’m making. It just looks so much better than any of the recent MCU releases?! Also, sorry if we can’t resist Zendaya x Tom Holland content wheresoever it arises. Unfortunately, we’ll have to wait ‘til next week to share our thoughts on that. For now, read on for our usual look at what's new on streaming and what's worth your time this week.

— Jenni and Jess

What’s new to streaming…

Furious — Season 1

Watch if you like: The Fall, Killing Eve, Promising Young Woman
Length: 55-min runtime, 1 season / 3 of 8 episodes available
Jess’s rating: 4/5⭐ so far

From Liz Meriwether, the creator of New Girl and last year’s excellent Dying for Sex, Furious follows Alice (Emmy Rossum), an FBI agent looking into a series of suspicious overdose deaths that seem to be connected to the same person. Her investigation leads her to a woman (Lola Petticrew, Say Nothing) who is less concerned with getting caught than with enacting her agenda.

Unlike many traditional crime thrillers, Furious is not a whodunnit, opting instead to introduce us to the killer immediately. The mystery comes from uncovering her reason for the murders, which we catch glimpses of through slowly revealed bits of backstory. Similar to the dynamic in Killing Eve, the investigator and the murderer understand each other well, despite being on opposite sides of a cat-and-mouse chase. But where Killing Eve had levity and a dark sense of humor, Furious is much angrier. I don’t want to give too much away, so I’ll just say that the series pushes back against the idea of the “perfect victim.” The two leads are complicated women capable of both deep empathy and causing harm, and Rossum and Petticrew are fantastic at embodying their nuances. Petticrew in particular manages to be frightening without reducing her character to a monster.

The material is heavy, but Furious moves quickly and works well as a compelling “whydunnit”. I’ve only seen the first three episodes, but it’s off to an extremely promising start. — Jess

Our take? Watch it. Streaming now on Hulu; new episodes Sunday at 9pm ET on FX, Monday on Hulu.

Ransom Canyon — Season 2

Watch if you like: Virgin River, Heartland, Yellowstone
Length: 40-min runtime, 2 seasons / 8 episodes in S2
Jenni’s rating: 2/5⭐ after 3.5 episodes

I’ve confidently dubbed Ransom Canyon the Hallmark version of Yellowstone despite having never actually seen a lick of Yellowstone. Season 2 of this drama does nothing to beat the empty, dumb hot, ranch-soap allegations.

After six months in New York, Quinn O’Grady (Minka Kelly) is back in her beloved small Texas hometown. Meanwhile, the ex she left behind (Josh Duhamel) is now fighting to get both his land and his love back. Around them is a fresh crop of characters and subplots to sort through as the series continues to cast a wide net, hitting every soap trope you could dream up. You want high school drama? You’ve got it. A small-town girl with a dream and Juilliard-level musical talent? No problem. Love triangles aplenty; a family business menaced by big capital; grifters with hearts of gold; the obligatory “one big event” that just might save the town? A menu that long doesn’t bode well for the quality of the kitchen.

Every thread in Ransom Canyon gets a sliver of the screen time it would need for proper development. It is, theoretically, a romance drama crossed with a neo-Western, but stretched so thin, the series is left with underbaked chemistry and hollow stakes. There are too many side characters and subplots packed into too few episodes (this season got an even smaller order than the first), as though the show were storyboarded specifically for a generation of deteriorated attention spans. Season one was already lacking substance, and the sophomore outing does nothing to meaningfully expand the world of this show; it remains at best a soapy guilty pleasure to fold laundry to. For any actual depth—or steaminess for that matter—look elsewhere. — Jenni

Our take? Reserve for smooth brain viewing only. All episodes streaming now on Netflix.

The Devil’s Mouth — Movie

Watch if you like: 47 Meters Down: Uncaged, Thrash, Under Paris
Length: 1h 44m

Read more

— Jenni and Jess

First time reading? Subscribe to receive Double Take weekly.

What we’re reading…

Jenni: The first thing I read in July shared some surprising similarities to a book I reviewed last month. Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil by V.E. Schwab is also speculative fiction following three women separated by time and bound by blood. But that’s all I’d really care to say about the plot; I think it’s better to go into this one blind. Some keywords for you instead: dark, vibes-based, and a tad lengthy. (3.5/5⭐)

Everything is Tuberculosis by John Green was a nice non-fiction palate cleanser mid-month. I learned a lot about a disease that should be far less devastating than it still is. Forever will enjoy an accessible, educational book, even on a topic as frustrating as this one.

Then it took me the rest of the month to get through Alchemised by SenLinYu—a dark fantasy I picked up mainly because I'd heard it started as a wildly popular Dramione fanfic before its traditional publication. It's possible I didn't give this one a fair shake; if I’m being honest I spent a lot of energy and time getting distracted trying to figure out which characters mapped back to those in Harry Potter. The concept of the novel is interesting, though, and often well-wrought. Unlike a lot of other dark, epic fantasies, Alchemised dwells on the cost and futilities of war. But it's also dense, and borderline romanticizes some questionable depictions of sexual assault. I think SenLinYu has earned, and will keep earning, a devoted following. I can appreciate that and still admit I didn't feel the devotion myself. That being said, I did finish the veritable tome of a novel, and the ending did genuinely gut-punch me. (2.5/5⭐)

Jess: This month I read the book club pick that I’d missed in May, Kill Your Darlings by Peter Swanson (my first missed book in 4 years… blame the baby!). It begins with a woman murdering her husband—like in the first sentence, that’s not a spoiler—and then moves backwards through their decades-long marriage to reveal how they got there. It’s much more of a literary thriller and character study than the twisty mysteries Swanson usually writes, and I think my expectations probably worked against it. Reverse chronology is rarely used as a narrative structure for thrillers… for a good reason. Retracing the history of this marriage felt more tedious than revealing. It’s being adapted into a movie starring Julia Roberts, and I have to assume they’ll re-structure it for the film. (2/5⭐)

What (else) we’re watching…

Jess: I’ve been making my way through screeners for Furious, Sterling Point, and the new season of Ted Lasso. Furious is really intriguing so far—it’s reminding me a lot of Killing Eve, but a little darker. Sterling Point is the new series from Megan Park, who wrote the incredibly sweet and funny coming-of-age movie My Old Ass. I haven’t made much progress yet, but I’m hoping to be equally charmed.

Read more

Happy Thursday. You may have noticed the mid-summer lull has arrived. There are definitely some solid weekly release shows we’re keeping up with, but if you feel like there’s seemingly so much on and kinda nothing to watch…you’re not alone. Read on to see what’s new and how much of it is worth your time.

— Jess and Jenni

What’s new to streaming…

(Our thoughts on brand new streaming content, and where you can watch.)

The Hawk — Season 1

Watch if you like: Talladega Nights, Blades of Glory, Happy Gilmore
Length: 30-min runtime, 1 seasons / 10 episodes
Jess’s rating: 2/5⭐

Will Ferrell is once again playing a loud, arrogant washed-up athlete in The Hawk, a new Netflix comedy that plays like a watered down version of Talladega Nights x Happy Gilmore. Here, he plays Lonnie “The Hawk” Hawkins, a former golf legend who is well past his prime, but refuses to accept retirement. When his son’s success threatens to overshadow his own, he decides to make one last attempt at winning a major, competing against both his son (Jimmy Tatro) and his longtime rival (Luke Wilson).

The main problem with this series—other than the stale premise—is that Lonnie is a less funny version of characters Ferrell has already played. Most of the jokes go on for far too long, and despite the PGA Tour being officially partnered with the show, there’s nothing particularly interesting happening for golf fans other than a few lackluster cameos.

Caught between a redemption storyline and a family comedy à la Running Point, The Hawk never quite finds its footing as either, and it all feels rather inert. And stretched across ten episodes, it gets boring quickly. I expected it to be dumb fun, but it’s mostly just dull. — Jess

Our take? It’s a background watch at best. All episodes streaming now on Netflix.

The Dink — Movie

Watch if you like: Dodgeball, Galaxy Quest, Talladega Nights
Length: 1h 42m
Jenni’s rating: 3/5⭐

Consider this hopecore for everyone who took up a pickleball hobby back in 2021 and has had to defend their obsession to friends and family ever since. In The Dink, Jake Johnson plays a washed-up tennis pro, aptly named Dusty, desperate to save a struggling country club and earn his father’s respect. Unfortunately, all of that means doing the unthinkable for him: playing pickleball. Thanks in part to his charming new doubles partner (Mary Steenburgen), he finds himself actually enjoying it.

The pedigree of this film does a lot to sell it. Produced by Ben Stiller (who also turns up in a quick cameo), the all-star cast includes Ed Harris, Patton Oswalt, Chloe Fineman, Chris Parnell, Aaron Chen, and Andy Roddick. But The Dink is an occasionally-laugh-out-loud, very silly underdog story that (for me) rides almost entirely on the charm of Johnson and Steenburgen. While they’re both excellent, if you’re not bought into this genre, I wouldn’t recommend chancing it just for them.

The Dink plays into the classic “loser guy learns to change” hero’s journey encased in a 2000s-style sports parody—one that lampoons both the pretension of tennis and the dorkiness of pickleball—full of self-aware goofiness and misfit camaraderie. Plenty of scenes land as sketch-worthy bits on their own, which is both part of the movie’s charm and its ceiling. It never quite adds up to more than the sum of its gags, but everyone involved sure looks like they had fun making it. — Jenni

Our take? Know thyself and watch if you like a good-natured ‘lob’ of a sports comedy without any pretense. Streaming July 24 on Apple TV.

Masters of the Universe — Movie

Watch if you like: He-Man, Dungeons & Dragons, Thor: Ragnarok
Length: 2h 21m
Jess’s rating: 2/5⭐

Nearly 40 years after He-Man last appeared on the big screen, Masters of the Universe resurrects him and his comrades for a new adventure. Travis Knight’s reboot sees young Prince Adam swept away from his home of Eternia after the villainous Skeletor conquers the kingdom. Fifteen years later, Adam (Nicholas Galitzine) is stuck in an Oklahoma City desk job, still searching for the Sword of Power that can take him back.

I haven’t seen any of the old He-Man shows or movies, but as a bystander to the franchise, the target audience here seems to be nostalgic elder millennials/Gen Xers. But at the same time, it so badly wants to be appealing to teens, filling every exchange with self-conscious banter and dad jokes—regurgitating a style that Marvel has already run into the ground. To Gen Z, this is a bad knock-off of Thor, featuring ugly CGI, badly choreographed action, and a runtime of almost 2.5 hours.

Galitzine is charming enough in the lead, and Jared Leto delivers the strongest performance as Skeletor (sorry, I hate to say it as much as you hate to hear it). But they can’t save a bloated plot with thin emotional beats and an anticlimactic final showdown. Masters of the Universe ends by obviously setting up a sequel—one that’s already been greenlit despite the film’s box-office failure. Amazon is apparently committed to making this thing a franchise against all odds. — Jess

Our take? Skip it. Streaming now on Prime Video.

Checking back in…

(🚨THIS SECTION MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS FOR RECENT EPISODES🚨)

still watching…

• House of the Dragon —

  • Now that we’ve expanded past the purely familial feud of the Greens and the Blacks, HoTD is feeling even more like GoT. There are so many parallels in this latest episode to the early seasons of Thrones—with the wavering loyalty of the Gold Cloaks and the smallfolk uprisings especially—it’s giving me deja vu. I’m certainly interested in this new (if familiar) political chessboard, but can’t pretend I’m not itching for any sort of return to the voicey, near-workplace comedy horror vibe of episode three. Unfortunately, that was probably a one-off. (JC)

  • I think I’ve finally reached the point in this series where I don’t yearn for more Alicent & Rhaenyra scenes. Their complicated relationship has played out, and in a mostly satisfying way. Now we can move on to larger political machinations involving more players, and like Jenni said, it’s feeling very GoT. (JS)

• Silo — I know we’re only three episodes in, but I’m already getting a little sick of the slow drip of information in both timelines. This week’s pacing dragged quite a bit until the final 15 minutes when all hell broke loose and we finally caught a glimpse of Lucas as well as a deceased Orla (still not sure what she’s got to do with anything though!). I’m lowkey rooting for Camille, even though she’s made some rough “for the greater good” calls lately. More than anything, I’d love to see her and Jules team up soon to figure out the cold, dispassionate “Algorithm” together. (JC)

• Cape Fear — After a bunch of mediocre, bloated episodes, we’re finally getting back to the good stuff! As someone who has never seen the prior adaptations or read the book, I’m so curious to see how it ends, but I have to admit it’s been a somewhat tiresome journey. (JS)

• Lucky — We reviewed the first 3 episodes last week; check back next week for our next update!

on pause…

Star City, Sugar, The Vampire Lestat

Also streaming this week…

• King of the Hill (Season 15) — The second year of this animated comedy’s revival sees Hank and Peggy settling into a Texas that’s moved on without them.
  Watch on Hulu: July 20 (all 10 episodes)

• Pompeii: Out of Time (Limited Series) — This docuseries on the infamous volcanic disaster is helmed by Tom Hiddleston.
  Watch on Nat Geo/Disney+/Hulu: July 23/24

• Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (Season 4) — The most well-rated of the modern Treks returns with more adventures for the Enterprise crew.
  Watch on Paramount+: July 23 (1 of 10 episodes, then weekly)

• Ransom Canyon (Season 2) — The Texas ranch drama returns six months later with Staten (Josh Duhamel) fighting to reclaim his family’s ranch and Quinn (Minka Kelly) deciding where she belongs.
  Watch on Netflix: July 23 (all 8 episodes)

• Stuart Fails to Save the Universe (Season 1) — The newest The Big Bang Theory spin-off sends Kevin Sussman’s comic-shop owner through the multiverse to test whether a supporting player can carry a franchise on his own.
  Watch on HBO Max: July 23 (1 of 10 episodes, then weekly)

• 72 Hours (Movie)— Kevin Hart stars as a fortysomething ad exec who crashes a Gen Z bachelor party in Miami after he’s accidentally added to their group text.
  Watch on Netflix: July 24

• Breaking Bear (Season 1) — This adult animated comedy from Julien Nitzberg follows a family of bears who turn to crime to save their forest home.
  Watch on Tubi: July 24 (2 episodes, then 6 more July 31)

• Nirvanna The Band The Show The Movie (Movie*) — Matt Johnson and Jay McCarrol star as fictionalized versions of themselves in a band called “Nirvanna the Band” as they attempt to book a gig at a bar in Toronto despite having never written or recorded a single song.
  Watch on Hulu: July 24 (*Streaming Premiere)

• President Curtis (Season 1) — This Rick and Morty spin-off follows Keith David’s President Andre Curtis and his staff as they handle inter-dimensional crises.
  Watch on Adult Swim: July 26

• The Walking Dead: Dead City (Season 3) — Now under a new showrunner, Maggie and Negan’s uneasy alliance continues in post-apocalyptic Manhattan.
  Watch on AMC/+: July 26 (1 of 8 episodes, then weekly)

New in theaters…

• Her Private Hell — From Nicolas Winding Refn (The Neon Demon) comes this sci-fi horror thriller about a troubled young woman (Sophie Thatcher) who searches for her father.

Comment to let us know what you’re watching or dreading. If you liked reading this, click the ❤️ button on this post so that more people can discover us on Substack :)

Welcome back to the watchlist. You know a movie is expected to be big when it’s the only one premiering in a given weekend. The Odyssey is “that girl” today, making a solo debut worldwide. If you haven’t secured your tickets yet, now is the time! Stick around to the end for Jess's full review of Christopher Nolan's latest blockbuster, and along the way we'll run through what's new on streaming and what's worth your time this week.

— Jenni and Jess

What’s new to streaming…

Lucky — Limited Series

Watch if you like: Catch Me If You Can, Dark Matter, White Collar
Length: 45-min runtime, 1 season / 2 of 7 episodes available
Jenni’s rating: 3/5⭐ after 3 episodes

Apple TV has adapted yet another crime thriller for your summer viewing pleasure. In this limited series based on Marissa Stapley’s bestselling novel, Anya Taylor-Joy plays the eponymous Lucky, a former con-artist on the lam after her “one last job” goes terribly wrong.

The episodes run an hour or more, but the plot rarely lags. There are chase scenes, skin-of-your-teeth getaways, and, of course the obligatory slow-motion stroll away from a fiery wreck. As Lucky reluctantly embraces her darker criminal instincts in a desperate attempt to outrun her past, the show splits its time showcasing her talents as a charming grifter—armed with a smile and a convincing lie—and indulging in pulse-pounding action movie iconography.

Three episodes in, I’m having a decent time. Taylor-Joy’s solid performance is matched by those of the supporting cast, namely Annette Bening, Timothy Olyphant, and Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, but it’s all mostly surface level in terms of character department in these early episodes. So far, the show is not world-changing, but it feels very summery: propulsive and stylish, if a little too in love with its own “cool”. — Jenni

Our take? If you love pulpy action thrillers, stream it; if you’re looking for something with more depth, skip. First two episodes streaming now on Apple TV, new on Wednesdays.

Ride or Die — Season 1

Watch if you like: PONIES, Big Mistakes, Good Girls
Length: 50-min runtime, 1 season / 8 episodes
Jess’s rating: 3/5⭐ after 5 episodes

The “civilians in over their heads” genre is getting crowded. Between PONIES, Big Mistakes, and Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed, this year alone has given us plenty of ordinary people stumbling—often to comic effect—into criminal conspiracies they’re unequipped to navigate. Ride or Die does nothing to reinvent the formula, and it isn’t even the best of the ones released this year, but pairing Hannah Waddingham and Octavia Spencer together turns out to be reason enough to retread familiar territory.

Ride or Die follows two lifelong best friends whose relationship is upended after one reveals she’s been living a double life as an international assassin. What follows is part spy thriller, part buddy comedy stretched to drama length, with the duo generally making a mess of things as they attempt to stay alive. Waddingham and Spencer are excellent together, and their chemistry is the show’s greatest strength. Even when the plot drastically stretches credibility and the comedic beats lean predictable, the sheer force of their personalities keeps the show afloat.

The central mystery is interesting enough to propel the season, but it becomes increasingly convoluted as it goes on. I couldn’t help frequently comparing the show to the better female-duo crime caper from earlier this year, PONIES, but I suppose I won’t complain that we got two charming, female-created buddy comedies in the span of a few months. — Jess

Our take? Watch it for something breezy and funny. All episodes streaming now on Prime Video.

Little House on the Prairie — Season 1

Watch if you like: Anne with an E, Heartland, 1883
Length: 45-min runtime, 1 season / 8 episodes

Read more

Happy Thursday. Emmy nominations were announced yesterday and oh boy do we have thoughts. 19 noms for Widow’s Bay? Heck yeah!!! Your Friends and Neighbors in the Best Drama category? Ehhh. Unfortunately, you’ll have to wait for more of an award show breakdown, for this is first and foremost the Weekly Watchlist. Read on to see what’s new, what’s coming up, and how much of it is worth your time.

— Jess and Jenni

What’s new to streaming…

(Our thoughts on brand new streaming content, and where you can watch.)

Avatar: The Last Airbender — Season 2

Watch if you like: Percy Jackson, Blue Eye Samurai, Legend of Korra
Length: 50-min runtime, 2 seasons / 7 episodes in S2
Jenni’s rating: 1.5/5⭐

My opinion about the live action adaptation of Avatar: The Last Airbender has not improved since the first season aired two years ago. Closely following the events of the original cartoon (which, for the record, I adore), the latest chapter follows the Gaang as they journey deeper into the Earth Kingdom, help Aang master earthbending, and navigate secrets in a walled city untouched by the Hundred-Year War.

The scenery in these episodes is breathtaking—the visual effects remain one of the coolest things about the show—but the other aspects of production are still lacking. I truly don’t understand why you would spend time crafting a set so majestic, and then turn around and make your actors look like glorified cosplayers in exaggerated hair pieces. It could be an issue of the team not knowing what audience they’re serving with this adaptation, but ultimately, it feels lazy and unpolished.

In my initial review I said that this show takes a fun and gripping story and bogs it down with clunky exposition dumping; I stand by that. Replete with rushed pacing, heavy-handed dialogue, and uncanny valley costuming choices, this season does nothing to breathe new life into the series and is even more lackluster than the first. — Jenni

Our take? Skip it and watch the original. All episodes streaming now on Netflix.

The Five Star Weekend — Limited Series

Watch if you like: The Family Stone, Parenthood, Grace and Frankie
Length: 45-min runtime, 1 season / 8 episodes
Jenni’s rating: 4/5⭐ after 4 episodes

One of the best things in life is going into an experience with low expectations and coming out pleasantly surprised. I was sure this adaptation of Elin Hilderbrand’s novel would be predictable and maudlin—”recently widowed food influencer (Jennifer Garner) invites four friends to Nantucket after a personal tragedy” sounds like a setup engineered for a glossy girls trip peppered with tears on cue. It has every ingredient for a schmaltzy beach read, but The Five Star Weekend is far less saccharine and surface-level than I expected.

There are moments of the series that could easily tip soap operatic, but the show stays grounded thanks to a real commitment to interior character work over plot mechanics. There’s no big mystery or twist engine (though there are a few light twists)—and yet, it never plods. Credit for that goes in big part to the cast: alongside Garner, Chloë Sevigny, Regina Hall, Gemma Chan, and D’Arcy Carden are excellent, each skilled at drawing out the intricacies of their character rather than playing a type.

That complexity is the appeal. Everyone here is messier and more layered than they first appear, which feeds directly into what this series is mainly interested in: the human condition and the quotidian problems people face. It’s a quieter, more generous show than its premise first suggests, one that trusts its actors and its audience enough to let people just be people. It may not hook everyone, but as a nosy person who loves dissecting personal interactions, I’m all in. — Jenni

Our take? This surprised me! Stream it for the gentle character-driven drama. First two episodes streaming now on Peacock, then weekly on Thursdays.

Enola Holmes 3 — Movie

Watch if you like: Nancy Drew, Indiana Jones, Sherlock Holmes
Length: 1h 45m
Jess’s rating: 2/5⭐

If the appeal of the many Sherlock Holmes adaptations is watching a brilliant mind work through a mystery, Enola Holmes doesn’t offer that. These made-for-Netflix movies occupy a specific niche: family-friendly mystery adventures that are made for second screening. And by this third installment, the charm that once acted as a buoy is long gone.

This time around, Enola (Millie Bobby Brown) travels to Malta, where Sherlock’s disappearance pulls her into a conspiracy involving the island’s colonial past. The film also continues her romance with Lord Tewkesbury (Louis Partridge), which means it’s juggling detective story, family drama, adventure, and coming-of-age romance all at once.

Despite the name Holmes being most associated with the act of deduction, the mystery is the least interesting part of Enola Holmes 3. Not only is it vying for attention with the other plot lines, but it’s dampened by heavy exposition. As is typical for Netflix, everything is explained—and then re-explained—so that people on their phones can stay afloat. Given that the movies are breezy family adventures first and detective stories second, I don’t mind that they’re accessible. But with an underbaked central mystery and none of the plot threads given the chance to breathe, I would only recommend this for a family movie night where you’ve exhausted your other options. — Jess

Our take? Skip it. Streaming now on Netflix.

The Long Walk — Movie

Watch if you like: The Hunger Games, Squid Game, The Maze Runner
Length: 1h 48m
Jess’s rating: 4/5⭐

You may think fifty boys walking until they die would be an inherently repetitive thing to watch, but Francis Lawrence (The Hunger Games) pulls it off in this adaptation of an early Stephen King novel. The setup is a simple but brutal dystopian nightmare, with young men signing up for the televised competition in order to win a life-changing amount of money. Focusing less on world-building and more on the emotional state and relationships between the participants, Lawrence keeps the film tense and fiercely evocative.

Cooper Hoffman is strong as Garraty, ostensibly the film’s lead, but David Jonsson 100% steals the show as McVries, the walker who becomes his closest ally. Their friendship is the emotional throughline, grounding the violence and paranoia with tenderness. The supporting cast feels distinct enough that each loss hits hard, and the film rarely drags despite its monotonous conceit.

Not everything works—in particular, the dictactor-esque villain (Mark Hamill) is sorely underdeveloped—but The Long Walk is gripping, moving, and far more effective than I dared to hope. It’s a devastatingly bleak story, but told with much care and precision. — Jess

Our take? Watch it, but be prepared to feel bad. Streaming on HBO Max on July 10.

Checking back in…

(🚨THIS SECTION MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS FOR RECENT EPISODES🚨)

finished…

• Half Man — Yes, Half Man ended in May, but I’m late! An extremely dour show is simply not what I wanted to watch while caring for a newborn. But then I caved, and I’m so glad I did. It is indeed depressing. It’s dark, and it will make you uncomfortable. It’s also one of the best limited series I’ve ever seen. I saw the merit in Baby Reindeer without obsessing over it the way everyone else seemed to, but Richard Gadd far outdid himself here. Half Man is a character study of two codependent, tormented men, and their trauma and insecurities are played with perfect conviction by Gadd and Jamie Bell (and notably by Mitchell Robertson and Stuart Campbell as their younger counterparts). The drama unfolds in two timelines, working back from present day to slowly reveal the intimacies and painful history of the central relationship. It’s hard to recommend this—you will have to be prepared to embrace discomfort—but still, I 100% do. 5/5⭐

still watching…

• House of the Dragon —

  • Sunday’s episode was as surprisingly funny as it was anxiety inducing. Rhaenyra is learning that ruling a kingdom may be more work than winning a throne, and I’m here for the shift in energy. Less warring and increased Alicent/Rhaenyra screentime? I’m in heaven. (JC)

  • The seeds are clearly being planted for the downfall of Rhaenyra, and I’m not ready! She finally got what she wanted only one episode ago! (JS)

• Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed — I have been loving the recent character development of Rudy (Charlie Hall) and Geri (Kiarra Hamagami Goldberg)—nosy fact-checking coworkers who become Paula’s detective sidekicks. Their dynamic is so insane and fun and it has added a dimension to this thriller that I didn’t know I needed. (JC)

• Silo — We covered the first two episodes of the season in last week’s newsletter, so tune in next Thursday for more of our thoughts on the latest season.

on pause…

Star City, Cape Fear, Sugar, The Vampire Lestat

Also streaming this week…

• Trying (Season 5) — In the new season of this British comedy, Nikki and Jason continue navigating parenthood as their family enters a new chapter.
  Watch on Apple TV: July 8 (1 of 8 episodes, then weekly)

• Little House on the Prairie (Season 1) — Netflix delivers a new adaptation of the classic story following the Ingalls family as they build a life on the American frontier.
  Watch on Netflix: July 9 (all 8 episodes)

• Reminders of Him (Movie - Streaming Premiere) — The third Colleen Hoover adaptation follows Kenna Rowan (Maika Monroe), out of prison after a fatal mistake, as she returns to small-town Wyoming to reach the young daughter she’s never met.
  Watch on Peacock: July 10

• The Westies (Season 1) — Chris Brancato’s 1980s crime drama drops in on Hell’s Kitchen’s Irish gang as a construction boom sharpens the friction between old-guard leadership and a younger crew itching to deal cocaine. J.K. Simmons and Titus Welliver star.
  Watch on MGM+: July 12 (1 of 8 episodes, then weekly)

New in theaters…

• Evil Dead Burn — The sixth franchise entry, from Infested director Sébastien Vaniček, turns a grieving widow’s visit to her in-laws’ secluded home into a Deadite family reunion.

• Gail Daughtry and the Celebrity Sex Pass — David Wain and Ken Marino reunite for a Wizard of Oz–shaped farce: a Kansas hairdresser (Zoey Deutch) heads to L.A. to even the score after her fiancé cashes in his celebrity hall pass.

• Moana (Live Action) — Disney’s remake sends Catherine Laga’aia’s voyager beyond the reef with Dwayne Johnson’s Maui. Director Thomas Kail hews close to the 2016 story with a new Lin-Manuel Miranda song and a largely Pacific Islander cast.

Comment to let us know what you’re watching or dreading. If you liked reading this, click the ❤️ button on this post so that more people can discover us on Substack :)

— Jenni and Jess

First time reading? Subscribe to receive Double Take weekly.

What we’re reading…

Jenni: I’m still waiting on my library hold (currently 818th in line) for Yesteryear, but in the meantime, I read its unofficial companion piece: this Vulture interview with influencer Hanna Neeleman of Ballerina Farm. The whole tradwife phenomenon and anti-tradwife movement is fascinating; I can understand why Caro Claire Burke’s debut novel is such a hot commodity. More on all of this once I actually get my hands on the book.

Cross-country travel to my cousin’s wedding in San Francisco mid-month afforded me the time to burn through two decent reads. The first—Weyward by Emilia Hart—is a bittersweet story about the strength of three women separated by time, but tied by blood. I enjoyed the prose and the slow reveal of the familial connections throughout the book, even if they were easy to predict. (3.5/5⭐) I also finished Two Can Play by Ali Hazelwood on the plane; it’s a cute enemies-to-lovers novella about two video game designers forced to work together on a new project. As I’ve mentioned before, Hazelwood’s writing is always breezy and palatable, so even if I was growing a bit bored toward the end, this was a fun enough vacation read. (3/5⭐)

Finally, after the teaser trailer for the new adaptation came out, I dusted off my old copy of Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility for a re-read. I love this story and its two heroine sisters who choose to interact with the world and romance in very opposite ways. (4.5/5⭐)

Jess: It turns out it’s harder to find time to read with a 2-month-old at home, but I managed to finish my book club pick for the month: The Rom-Commers by Katherine Center. This was my first time reading a novel by this author, and it will probably be the last. The writing style didn’t work for me at all—first person is rarely my cup of tea, and Center used a lot of rhetorical questions to deliver exposition, like “and can I just say?” and “can I add?” that gave it a juvenile diary vibe. The two main characters felt underdeveloped, with the male lead never evolving beyond a cynical grump, and there was zero chemistry between them. (1.5/5 ⭐)

What (else) we’re watching…

Jess: My husband and I have started a bunch of older long-running shows to pass the time while the baby naps on us, so that we don’t have to constantly answer the question “what should we watch now?” The list so far has included Friday Night Lights, Mad Men, and Ozark. I’m taking requests for what we should watch next!

Read more

Happy Thursday of a long weekend! We hope you are staying cool in this heat wave. It’s the perfect time to stay inside in the AC and watch the new season of Silo. Or, to rewatch Friday Night Lights. We know how y’all really operate.

— Jenni and Jess

What’s new to streaming…

Elle — Season 1

Watch if you like: The Carrie Diaries, Clueless, Legally Blonde
Length: 45-min runtime, 1 season / 8 episodes
Jenni’s rating: 2.5/5⭐ after 3 episodes

Before Harvard, before the bend-and-snap, this Reese Witherspoon-produced Legally Blonde prequel rewinds to 1995, ripping 16-year-old Elle Woods (Lexi Minetree) from her sunny Bel-Air home and dropping her into a grey, unfamiliar, and unwelcoming Seattle high school.

This endeavor might look like a slam dunk on paper, but strip away the strong IP and the series is indistinguishable from any other fish-out-of-water high school teen dramedy. The bigger issue, however, is that given any second of extra thought, the “prequel” premise doesn’t hold up. The cornerstone of Legally Blonde is Elle’s transformation: an entitled Malibu girl who thinks landing a man is the “be all, end all” evolves into a hardworking, empowered lawyer who still owns her hyper-femininity. That growth (along with all its camp) was the movie. Theoretically, a prequel asks us to invest in Elle before she’s made any of that progress, and the writers seem to sense the problem with that conceit. Three episodes in, the show is already retreading her transformation arc in a new setting and a different decade. So now we have the issue of two diverging Elle Woods timelines—and I don’t think I’m ready for the Legally Blonde multiverse.

There are some bright spots: Lexi Minetree is genuinely great as young Elle, nailing the mannerisms, physical comedy, and cadence that made Witherspoon’s original performance iconic. June Diane Raphael as Elle’s mother finding her place in a new society is wonderful, too. But the show surrounding them is missing the spark that made the original movie a classic. As a cute-enough teen comedy featuring a beloved IP personality, I guess it’s fine. But so far, Elle doesn’t make a great case for its existence. — Jenni

Our take? Ehh, skip it. There are better things out there, including the OG Legally Blonde. All episodes streaming now on Prime Video.

Sugar — Season 2

Watch if you like: Perry Mason, Poker Face, The Resort
Length: 40-min runtime, 2 seasons / 2 of 8 episodes available in S2
Jess’s rating: 3/5⭐ after 2 episodes

Sugar is back for a second season with a new showrunner, and you can feel the changing of the guard within the first few minutes—but not necessarily for the worse. The loose thread from the first season’s finale is promptly resolved, but a new mystery is quickly introduced. Colin Farrell returns as the cinema-loving John Sugar, and he’s once again pulled into a missing persons case. This time, a boxer named Danny Moon is looking for his brother, Ji, who is on the run from a dangerous group of people.

Colin Farrell is remarkable, and remains the draw of the series. But Sugar also deserves credit for its visuals and for its excellent homage to old school Hollywood noir. I like that it’s weirder than the average detective series, and I appreciate that it’s trying to be more than just another rote missing-person mystery. But right now, it’s in an awkward middle ground: the larger mythology lurks mostly in the background, and the central case itself isn’t strong enough yet to compel me to watch the rest of the season. I get why some people like this show so much, but for me, it’s not doing enough to maintain a place in my weekly must-watch list. — Jess

Our take? Watch it if you’re into the neo-noir mystery angle. Streaming now on Apple TV; new episodes Thursdays at 9pm ET.

Silo — Season 3

Watch if you like: Westworld, Fallout, Andor
Length: 50-min runtime, 3 seasons / 10 episodes in S3, released weekly

Read more

Happy Thursday and happy 300th edition of Double Take! We’re so happy to have you all here. Thanks for helping to enable our obsessive need to consume so much content and talk to people about it. <3

Professional milestone aside (or included), it’s an exciting stretch of days: The Bear is back for its fifth and final season, House of the Dragon has returned to take HBO’s Sunday night slot, and Silo Season 3 arrives next Thursday. Summer TV is in full swing and we couldn’t be happier. Read on for reviews and more on what’s new, what’s coming up, and how much of it is worth your time.

— Jess and Jenni

What’s new on streaming…

(Our thoughts on brand new streaming content, and where you can watch.)

House of the Dragon — Season 3

Watch if you like: Game of Thrones, Shōgun, The Last Kingdom
Length: 60+ min runtime, 3 seasons / 1 of 8 episodes available in S3
Jess’s rating: 4/5⭐ so far

The popular criticism aimed at House of the Dragon’s second season was that it felt like an eight-hour setup for a finale that never arrived. Episode one of the new season is the answer to those complaints: the battle that we expected to get two years ago.

The scale and spectacle of this first episode was a reminder that this is television’s biggest production. I can hardly wrap my head around the budget, time, and organization that was required to pull this off. The action is thrilling, the political maneuvering intriguing, and the production design and visual effects are top tier. My only complaint is that I spent a decent amount of the episode trying to remember why I was supposed to care about certain characters and political alliances. Unless your memory is significantly better than mine, I’d strongly recommend a season 2 refresher before diving in.

As has been true since the beginning, I’m still most invested when Rhaenyra and Alicent are sharing the screen. Or even when they’re reckoning with their complicated relationship and the consequences of their actions from afar. But some of the supporting characters are becoming interesting in their own right—especially Aemond—and I’m excited to see where the season takes them. — Jess

Our take? It’s just getting better—if you haven’t been watching this, now’s the time to start. Streaming now on HBO Max; new episodes Sundays at 9pm ET.

*Note from Jenni: I have always been less enamored with this series than Jess is, but I can’t deny the spectacle of this season’s premiere. I mainly wish we had a more robust storyline about the lowborn folk learning to become dragon riders!

I Will Find You — Limited Series

Watch if you like: Fool Me Once, His & Hers, Missing You
Length: ~40-min runtime, Limited Series / 8 episodes
Jess’s rating: 2/5⭐

Here I go again, watching a Harlan Coben thriller when I know damn well I’m going to be disappointed. For the uninitiated, Coben is the prolific author of airport thrillers that are heavy on misdirects and twists and light on logic and character development. In I Will Find You, a man (Sam Worthington) is serving time in prison for the murder of his three year old son, but he maintains his innocence. After five years of his sentence, his sister-in-law (Britt Lower) shows up with a photo that suggests his child is still alive. He sets out to clear his name and find his son.

The good first: this is the most watchable Coben thriller I’ve seen in years. Remember though, the bar is low. The casting department deserves a raise, because Britt Lower and Milo Ventimiglia are the reason I wanted to watch, and kept watching, instead of writing off this venture entirely from the start. Sam Worthington pretty much has one expression throughout, but even he is a step up from the usual Coben fare. How they got this cast to sign on after reading the script is beyond me—so again, mazel tov to those responsible.

I can hear them now, the voices of the people angry that I have higher standards beyond episodic cliffhangers and a big twist at the end. If you like mindless thrillers, you’ll enjoy this! I don’t mean that derogatorily. I watched the whole thing and was happy to have something to put on. But I also laughed out loud at the twist. Set your expectations appropriately. — Jess

Our take? Mindless thrillers have their time and place, and this one is better than Coben’s last few. All episodes streaming now on Netflix.

Voicemails for Isabelle — Movie

Watch if you like: You’ve Got Mail, Love Again, About Time
Length: 1h 58m
Jenni’s rating: 3.75/5⭐

I must be a glutton for punishment, because I keep assigning myself the straight-to-streaming rom-coms to review. But my hopeless romantic sentimentality paid off this time! I actually thought Voicemails for Isabelle was quite lovely—it even elicited a few tears, and the ever illusive hybrid cry-chuckle from me.

The setup is like a more depressing, one-sided You’ve Got Mail: Jill (Zoey Deutch) is an aspiring pastry chef in San Francisco, working under a saltbae-type Top Chef tyrant (Nick Offerman). When Izzy, her sister and best friend, suddenly passes away, Jill continues to leave her voicemails as a way to cope. But numbers get reassigned, and suddenly, a cute real-estate agent (Nick Robinson, charming as ever) is on the receiving end of a stranger’s grief and slowly falling for her in spite of himself.

It’s a serviceable rom-com that hits many classic beats: the grand gesture, the third-act breakup, the running-toward-a-midnight-deadline sequence, the cheesy dance break. Deutch and Robinson are extremely cute together and their chemistry is contagious. But what’s most compelling and beautiful about this story is less the romance, and more the picture of sisterhood at its core.

Jill and Izzy’s bond is built on inside jokes, shared movie quotes, consistent oversharing of romantic escapades, and a passion for culinary experiments. Flashbacks to their childhood (with Alice Comer and Iris Everly doing lovely work as the younger version of the sisters) only deepen the lore of their love. The loss of that is where the film finds its real emotion, exploring the difficulty inherent in mourning a relationship that shaped who you are, and sharing new memories with a person that never knew your “person”.

Like most rom-coms, Voicemails for Isabelle is a little far-fetched and occasionally flawed. But somehow, it’s still romantic and moving. — Jenni

Our take? It’s better than a lot of recent streaming rom coms. Streaming now on Netflix.

The Sheep Detectives — Movie

Watch if you like: Knives Out, Babe, The Thursday Murder Club
Length: 1h 49m
Jenni’s rating: 3.5/5⭐

It was surprising for many people (myself included) to hear that Craig Mazin, writer behind prestige dramas The Last of Us and Chernobyl, had scripted an animated whodunit about a flock of sheep solving their shepherd’s murder. And yet here we are.

The Sheep Detectives, adapted from Leonie Swann’s novel Three Bags Full, is a gentle, family-friendly romp of a comedy/mystery that comes with an equally surprising and stacked cast. Hugh Jackman, Emma Thompson, Bryan Cranston, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Patrick Stewart, Nicholas Braun, Molly Gordon, and Nicholas Galitzine all star, but the list goes on.

Jackman plays George, a shepherd so well-loved by his flock that when he’s murdered, the sheep draw on the detective novels he used to read them every night to crack the case. It’s like a whimsical, family-friendly Knives Out meets Charlotte’s Web; the mystery itself isn’t trying too hard to outsmart anyone, but the reveal is decent for what is otherwise a charming comfort watch. The whole film is a little silly, a little magical, and very sweet. I think if I had kids this would’ve landed closer to a 4-star watch, but as is, it’s a pleasant, low-stakes diversion with a lot of heart. — Jenni

Our take? This was surprisingly tender and easy to enjoy. Now in theaters and streaming on Prime Video.

Checking back in…

(🚨THIS SECTION MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS FOR RECENT EPISODES🚨)

finished…

• Not Suitable For Work —

  • It’s crazy to me that the first season is already over after only nine episodes. I was just starting to feel more at home with this Friends-like group of GenZ Murray Hill inhabitants, and now we have abruptly reached a finale cliffhanger without even the official promise of a second season. This show is fun! I wound up looking forward to it week after week, but I maintain that sitcoms of this ilk (character-driven ensemble comedies) should have way more episodes. (JC) 3.5/5⭐

  • Echoing the above, this season needed twice as many episodes. But I looked forward to putting it on each week, even after its rocky start. A second season would give the less likable characters a chance to become more specific/funny/enjoyable, so I hope it gets that. (JS) 3.5/5⭐

still watching…

• Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed — I’m finally back to watching live after binging through all my screeners a few weeks ago, and wow what a rollercoaster episode 7 was. If I were Paula, my blood pressure would be through the roof; I do not understand how she’s even partially keeping it together. But also…why would you leave without making sure that man is really, truly dead, Paula?! Whyyy. My only other coherent thought from this episode (and all the previous ones as well) is that Tatiana Maslany remains a star. (JC)

on pause…

Star City

dropped…

Half Man — I’m finally admitting to myself (and to you all) that it’s very likely I won’t pick back up this depressing, if very well done, drama for a long long time. The subject matter was so so bleak and I selfishly don’t want that energy around me in the happy summer months. Maybe I’ll return to these two troubled men in the fall. (JC) *Note from Jess: I still plan on catching up on this! But it’s been hard to want to put on something so bleak while taking care of a newborn.

On the horizon…

(New shows and movies out this week that we haven’t seen yet)

• Wild Cherry (Limited Series) — In this BBC thriller, two mothers in an affluent community are pitted against each other when their teenage daughters get caught up in a scandal at their elite private school.
  Watch on Paramount+: June 24 (all 6 episodes)

• Avatar: Fire and Ash (Movie*) — James Cameron’s third chapter of the Avatar saga returns to a Pandora rife with escalating conflict.
  Watch on Hulu: June 24 (*Streaming premiere)

• In the Hand of Dante (Movie) — Oscar Isaac pulls double duty in this drama as both 14th-century poet Dante Alighieri and a present-day New York author recruited by a mafia don to steal a manuscript of the Divine Comedy in Dante’s own hand. Gal Gadot, Gerard Butler, Al Pacino, Jason Momoa, and Martin Scorsese also star.
  Watch on Netflix: June 24

• Avatar the Last Airbender (Season 2) — In the latest installment of this live-action reimagining, Aang, Katara, and Sokka venture deep into the Earth Kingdom toward the walled city of Ba Sing Se and cross paths with the most anticipated newcomer to the universe, earthbending prodigy Toph Beifong (Miya Cech).
  Watch on Netflix: June 25 (all 7 episodes)

• The Bear (Season 5) — The Emmy-winning kitchen drama returns for its fifth and final service. We’re not ready.
  Watch on Hulu: June 25 (all 8 episodes)

• Life, Larry and the Pursuit of Unhappiness (Season 1) — Larry David’s first series since Curb is a sketch comedy that takes an improvised, comedic approach to major historical events in honor of the country’s 250th anniversary. Guest stars like Jerry Seinfeld, Jon Hamm, Bill Hader, and more abound.
  Watch on HBO/HBO Max: June 26 (1 of 7 episodes, new weekly)

• Undertone (Movie*) — In this A24 sonic horror film, a paranormal-podcast host receives eerie audio recordings of a young couple plagued by unexplained noises.
  Watch on HBO/HBO Max: June 26 (*Streaming premiere)

• Little Brother (Movie) — This edgy buddy comedy follows a tightly wound, successful realtor (John Cena) who sees his orderly, picture-perfect life upended when an eccentric man (Eric André) from his childhood reappears in his life.
  Watch on Netflix: June 26

In theaters…

• Jackass: Best and Last — Johnny Knoxville, Steve-O and the rest of the gang return for more outrageous stunts.

• The Invite — Joe and Angela's marriage is on thin ice. When they invite their enigmatic upstairs neighbors for a dinner party, the night spirals in unexpected ways. Olivia Wilde, Penelope Cruz, Seth Rogen, and Edward Norton star.

• Supergirl — When an unexpected adversary strikes too close to home, Supergirl (Milly Alcock) reluctantly joins forces with an unlikely companion for an interstellar journey of vengeance.

• Lucky Strike — Trapped behind enemy lines with only a radio, an American soldier must use his wits to outsmart advancing Nazi troops during the Battle of the Bulge. Colin Hanks, Scott Eastwood, and Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor star.

Comment to let us know what you’re watching or dreading. If you liked reading this, click the ❤️ button on this post so that more people can discover us on Substack :)

Happy Thursday! This weekend is chock full of premieres, including the much-anticipated Season 3 of House of the Dragon (coming this Sunday). Read on for more of what’s new, what’s coming up, and how much of it is worth your time.

— Jess and Jenni

What’s new on streaming…

(Our thoughts on brand new streaming content, and where you can watch.)

Patience — Season 2

Watch if you like: Elementary, The Good Doctor, Ludwig
Length: 50-min runtime, 2 seasons / 1 of 8 episodes in S2 available
Jenni’s rating: 2.75/5⭐ (after 1 episode)

Cozy-ish procedural lovers rejoice, for Patience has returned for another stateside run. If you missed our season one review and need a refresher on the premise: this British crime drama follows self-taught, autistic criminologist Patience Evans (Ella Maisy Purvis) as she works her way through cases at the York criminal records office. This season sees DI Metcalf (Laura Fraser) replaced by DI Frankie Monroe (Jessica Hynes), meaning Patience will have to prove herself all over again to a new brusque and impatient detective.

The heart of this series’s first season lay in the relationship between the central pair. An evolving mutual respect between Evans and Metcalf lent warmth and depth to an otherwise conventional, somewhat uninspired procedural. Now, Patience is effectively rebooting itself, and I’m not sure that its to a productive end. Purvis continues to avoid caricature in her performance of a bright, neurodivergent young woman matched with a straight-shooter partner, but I was looking forward to her dynamic with Fraser and their continued growth together.

Despite the changes, the show is set up to deliver exactly what it’s always promised: a case-of-the-week, easy mystery. So, if that’s your comfort genre, you won’t be disappointed. — Jenni

Our take? Stream it if you live for a by-the-book, odd-couple procedural. Streaming on PBS; new episodes Sundays.

How to Make a Killing — Movie

Watch if you like: The Menu, Saltburn, Bad Sisters
Length: 1h 45m
Jess’s rating: 3/5⭐

How to Make a Killing stars Glen Powell as Becket, a lower-middle-class man who was disowned by his obscenely wealthy family at birth. When he discovers he’s in line—albeit very far down—for a massive inheritance, he decides to eliminate the relatives standing between him and the money.

Writer-director John Patton Ford previously made Emily the Criminal, which astutely explored the ethical compromises engendered from systemic poverty, so I expected a sharper take here. In a time when we’re drowning in “eat the rich” stories, How to Make a Killing doesn’t have much to say beyond “rich people suck.” Becket is ostensibly the character we’re meant to root for, but he’s never given much interiority beyond wanting money. When people say they can’t get into shows like Succession because they don’t have anyone to root for, I don’t generally agree; the characters are complex and interesting. Here, I finally understood the complaint. Becket isn’t interesting enough to be a villain, noble enough to be a hero, or complex enough to be something in between.

For those less critical of this type of satire, the movie is entertaining enough. Powell is effortlessly watchable, and Zach Woods lends a comedic jolt in a guest role. How To Make a Killing settles for being bleakly relatable in regards to money and class resentment, and that’s just not enough for me in 2026. — Jess

Our take? You’d be better off watching the similar-in-theme but much better film, No Other Choice. Begins streaming on HBO Max on June 19.

Never Change! — Movie

Watch if you like: Bottoms, Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion, Pizza Movie
Length: 1h 38m

Read more

Welcome back! You may have Knicks or World Cup games on your watchlist this weekend (go team!) but those are a little out of our purview. If you’re looking for what’s new, what’s coming up, and how much of it is worth your time in the scripted world this week, we’re your gals.

— Jess and Jenni

What’s new on streaming…

(Our thoughts on brand new streaming content, and where you can watch.)

Every Year After — Season 1

Watch if you like: The Summer I Turned Pretty, The People We Meet on Vacation, Virgin River
Length: 50-min runtime, 1 season / 8 episodes
Jenni’s rating: 2.5/5⭐ (after 6 episodes)

Prime’s latest romantic drama, adapted from Carley Fortune’s novel, Every Summer After, delivers a decade-spanning friends-to-possibly-lovers story full of heartbreak and second chances. Childhood best friends Percy and Sam grew close over a series of formative summers at a picturesque Ontario lake town; now, ten years later, they are reunited for one charged week and forced to reckon with whatever it was that broke them apart.

It’s a familiar formula, sharing the same coming-of-age longing and and pining-after-close-friends DNA as The Summer I Turned Pretty. But Every Year After earns some distinction by following its characters into their 30s, which may make it an appealing option for those growing weary of romantic dramas that never leave high school (or even college).

There’s a lot that’s “okay, not great” about this show. The lead performances are serviceable without being especially memorable, but the supporting cast picks up the slack. A dual-timeline structure is one of the series’s more ambitious—and questionable—choices. Early on, past and present are easy to tell apart, but as the timelines converge, the same actors carry both versions of their characters, which can make scenes something of a guessing game of “when are we?” until the right context clues surface. The layering in of multiple timelines also contributes to a stuttering pace; just as you start to feel some momentum in the relationships and plot, you’re yanked back into the past or forward into the future and left to regain your footing.

If you’re already a devoted follower of Prime’s romantic drama slate, Every Year After will scratch the itch well enough. For everyone else, it’s the kind of show that’s easy to have on in the background and just as easy to forget. — Jenni

Our take? Skip it unless you’re in the mood for TSITP’s reheated nachos. All episodes now streaming on Prime Video.

Cape Fear — Limited Series

Watch if you like: Fatal Attraction, The Undoing, Presumed Innocent
Length: 60-min runtime, Limited Series / 2 of 10 episodes available
Jess’s rating: 4/5⭐ so far

Adapting decades-old genre films into prestige limited series is popular with the streamers lately (Fatal Attraction, Dead Ringers, and Presumed Innocent all come to mind), and Cape Fear is the latest to get that treatment. In this version, Amy Adams and Patrick Wilson play Anna and Tom Bowden, a married pair of lawyers whose lives are upended when Max Cady (Javier Bardem), a man they helped send to prison years earlier, is unexpectedly released.

What could have been a straightforward cat-and-mouse thriller is made much more interesting by multiple layers of intrigue. I’ve only seen the first two episodes, but the show has already established a complex family dynamic, fractures within Anna and Tom’s marriage, and questions around Max’s culpability and the circumstances around his conviction—and that’s not even mentioning the shocking and mystery-shrouded cold open.

Those who appreciate a subtle, cold-blooded approach to thrillers should look elsewhere. This Cape Fear is pulpy, lurid, and it radiates pulse-pounding paranoia. The camera pans and zooms in quick, frenetic jolts, mimicking the energy of someone constantly looking over their shoulder. It’s the kind of heightened energy I like in a thriller, but I have to wonder how they can sustain it for ten hour-long episodes. We’ll see! — Jess

Our take? Watch it if you like a pulpy thriller. Now streaming on Apple TV; new episodes Fridays.

Office Romance — Movie

Watch if you like: The Hating Game, The Proposal, Two Weeks Notice
Length: 1h 54m
Jenni’s rating: 3/5⭐

There’s a version of Office Romance that gets five stars from me. Or rather, there’s a version of me 15 years ago that gives it five stars. It has plenty of winning ingredients; rom-com royalty Jennifer Lopez plays Jackie Cruz, the driven CEO of an airline who finds herself drawn to the sharp new company lawyer played by Ted Lasso alum Brett Goldstein (who also co-wrote the script). There’s a no-fraternization policy standing between them, a stacked supporting cast, and the clearly genuine affection of a crew who wanted to pay respect to the classic rom-coms of yore. And yet…

The film is so enamored with the skeleton of its ‘90s and early 2000s predecessors that it ends up feeling more like an homage than a movie in its own right. It is broadly appealing in a comforting way, but it also projects a version of romantic life that feels increasingly disconnected from the here and now. Somehow it is both nostalgic and fun and, regrettably, a little stale and soulless.

What bumps it up quite a few notches is the ensemble. Goldstein and co-creator Joe Kelly clearly know how to write for actors, and Office Romance takes full advantage: Betty Gilpin, Bradley Whitford, Tony Hale, and Amy Sedaris are all orbiting the central plot, and every one of them elevates their scenes beyond what’s on the page. The return of genuinely excellent character actors in supporting rom-com roles feels like a small cultural good, and I won’t pretend I‘m not happy to see it.

I didn’t hate Office Romance. But I left it feeling a little sad for what it could have been with this cast, and for a genre that keeps reaching for a blueprint that no longer quite fits. — Jenni

Our take? Skip it unless you’re in want of smooth-brain viewing with a killer cast. Now streaming on Netflix.

Checking back in…

(🚨THIS SECTION MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS FOR RECENT EPISODES🚨)

finished…

• Your Friends & Neighbors (S2) — It’s only a step above a daytime soap at this point (albeit with 100x the budget), but at least the finale wasn’t boring! This season was plagued by nonsensical character choices and poorly paced plots. I will not be watching a third. 2.5/5⭐ (JS)

still watching…

• Rivals (S2) —That mid season finale got me like *gasp*. The storm (both literal and metaphorical) was so dramatic and intense; I cannot believe we have to wait until November to see how this all shakes out. What a perfect show. (JC)

• Widow’s Bay —

  • I don’t know what else to say to make more people watch this series other than: I am not a horror person and I can’t get enough of this quirky spooky town and its residents and mysteries. (JC)

  • Who knew tracing 400 years of lineage could be so riveting? I dread the coming end of this season—it’s been so nice having a spooky (and excellent) summer watch. (JS)

• Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed — I was gloriously granted another 4 screener episodes since this premiered, and have already binged them all. This show is so addictive! (JC)

• Not Suitable For Work —

  • I’m settling in with these characters, but I can already feel the negative effects of having a mere 8 episodes in a sitcom season. Twice now I’ve been surprised by a kiss preceded by an utter lack of sexual tension and/or chemistry. (JS)

  • I’m with Jess, this kind of show is screaming for a 22-episode season. It’s still fun enough for a summer watch though. (JC)

on pause…

Half Man, Star City

On the horizon…

(New shows and movies out this week that we haven’t seen yet)

• Alice and Steve (Season 1) — Nicola Walker and Jemaine Clement star as longtime best friends whose relationship implodes when Steve starts dating Alice’s 26-year-old daughter.
  Watch on Hulu: June 8 (all 6 episodes)

• Sweet Magnolias (Season 5) — Maddie, Helen, and Dana Sue return for another season of romance, friendship, and life changes, this time with Maddie chasing a publishing dream in New York.
  Watch on Netflix: June 11 (all 10 episodes)

• Power Book III: Raising Kanan (Season 5) — The final season of the Power prequel follows Kanan as he embraces his ruthless side and solidifies his place in the Queens drug business.
  Watch on Starz: June 12 (1 of 8 episodes, then weekly)

• The Listeners (Limited Series) — Rebecca Hall stars as an English teacher whose life unravels when she begins hearing a mysterious low hum that no one else around her can hear.
  Watch on Starz: June 12 (1 of 5 episodes, then weekly)

• Patience (Season 2) — The British detective drama returns with autistic police archivist Patience Evans solving new crimes in York alongside a new detective partner.
  Watch on PBS: June 14

• Grantchester (Season 11) — The final season of the long-running mystery series returns to 1963 as Reverend Alphy Kottaram and Geordie Keating face new cases and personal crossroads.
  Watch on PBS: June 14

In theaters…

• Disclosure Day — Steven Spielberg returns to sci-fi with a conspiracy thriller about a cybersecurity expert (Josh O’Connor) and a meteorologist (Emily Blunt) racing to expose the truth about extraterrestrial contact.

• The Furious — This action thriller follows a former soldier who wages a one-man war against a criminal syndicate after his daughter is abducted.

Comment to let us know what you’re watching or dreading. If you liked reading this, click the ❤️ button on this post so that more people can discover us on Substack :)

— Jenni

First time reading? Subscribe to receive Double Take weekly.

What we’re reading…

Jenni: I started the month with Best Offer Wins by Marisa Kashino, which I sort of hated reading (it made me so anxious lol) but I also couldn’t put it down. I loved the concept of wrapping a thriller around the mania of buying a house in this insane economy. Would recommend it to a friend so I could have someone to talk to about it; wouldn’t ever read it again. 3/5⭐

Then I spent basically the rest of May working my way through the first book in The Stormlight Archive: The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson. I love Sanderson, but this is a whale of an epic fantasy—tread carefully if you’re put off by sprawling casts and slow-converging plotlines. The world in this series is constantly battered by supernatural storms and ancient wars, and the story follows a disgraced slave, a scholar, and a warlord as they uncover the secrets of legendary knights while facing a looming apocalypse. I had an okay time with it, but it’s massive, and there are so many flashbacks…perhaps too many for an opening book in a series. 3/5⭐

What (else) we’re watching…

Read more

Happy Thursday! June is here, let the summer watchlists begin. I’ve got company again this week: Jess is slowly returning to the regular review schedule, plus we have another guest to help us round up what’s new, what’s coming up, and how much of it is worth your time.

Please welcome Sam—a playwright, actor, comedy writer, and drumroll…Jess’s twin (yes, another nepo situation, sue us). They bravely took on a series that neither Jess nor I were particularly interested in. Everyone say: “thank you, Sam!” Great, now let’s get to it.

— Jenni and Jess (feat. Sam)

What’s new on streaming…

(Our thoughts on brand new streaming content, and where you can watch.)

Not Suitable For Work — Season 1

Watch if you like: Adults, The Sex Lives of College Girls, New Girl
Length: 30-min runtime, 1 season / 3 of 9 episodes available
Jenni’s rating: 3/5⭐ (after 3 episodes)

Maybe it’s the summer heat, but after a very pilot-y first episode, I found myself warming up to this show.

Mindy Kaling’s latest comedy follows five work-obsessed twenty-somethings as they balance early career ambitions with personal happiness in Manhattan’s Murray Hill neighborhood. It’s a familiar formula at the core: young professionals in the big city, job woes, romantic entanglements (see: Friends, HIMYM, the list goes on). But setting the series in Murray Hill—ground zero for both finance bros in Patagonia vests and UN diplomacy hopefuls, a neighborhood where recent college grads mingle with old money lifers—promises a culturally distinct, largely unexplored comedic ecosystem. Unfortunately, the first few episodes have barely scratched the surface of it.

Other than the untapped potential of the setting, there’s not much new here, and it isn’t hitting the same chord or specificity that the similarly-premised Adults managed. For a show set in the 2020s, it feels remarkably old-school. But what Not Suitable for Work lacks in ingenuity, it makes up for in comfort. The vibe is reliably funny enough and the cast has good chemistry. This is already the kind of show that doesn’t demand much and delivers just enough. It has plenty of room to grow into something worth returning to week after week. — Jenni

Our take? It’s a nice hang if you like this kind of NYC ensemble comedy. Now streaming on Hulu; new episodes Tuesdays.

Spider-Noir — Season 1

Watch if you like: Jessica Jones, Watchmen, Boardwalk Empire
Length: 42-min runtime, 1 season / 8 episodes
Sam’s rating: 3/5⭐

Spider-Noir follows Ben Reilly (Nicolas Cage), an aging, down-on-his-luck private detective in 1930s New York who gets pulled back into his former life as The Spider, a Spider-Verse-adjacent super hero. I’m not necessarily a Marvel fan, but I liked Wandavision and Jessica Jones, which both had great acting and compelling, twisty plots. The plot of Spider Noir, however, mainly plays out as expected, and as far as the acting, your bandwidth for consumption will correlate with where you stand on the hate/tolerate/love scale for Nicolas Cage—who, by nature of being Nicolas Cage, makes it difficult to get lost in the Humphrey Bogart-era “noir” sauce. And I land on the “tolerate” section of the scale.

Still, I could have bought into it more if it wasn’t for the entire show looking like an immersive ride at Disney World. (Disclaimer: I live in LA and recognized most of the filming locations.) Even the incredible Brendan Gleeson (who plays Silvermane) seems stifled by the production’s apparent need to be “four-quadrant” — designed to appeal equally to the major demographic groups: men, women, under 25, and over 25. The result is a show that appeals to no one other than die-hard Marvel or Spiderman fans, I assume.

Reasons to watch: Li Jun Li is captivating as Cat Hardy, the lounge singer involved with dangerous men; Lamorne Morris is enjoyable as Robbie Robertson, the journalist; Karen Rodriguez is delightful as Janet, Reilly’s secretary.

Call me a hater, whatever. I loved the HBO Max series The Penguin (of the Batman universe), but while Spider Noir similarly involves underground crime, it never feels dark or dangerous. The show has decently fun action sequences, and if you’re a fan of the superhero genre, I’d even recommend it. I spoke to a Marvel-loving friend who was hooked by the end of the first episode. So, there ya go. — Sam

Our take? Skip it unless you’re a Marvel-loving viewer and enjoy fairly light entertainment. All episodes now streaming on Prime Video.

The Four Seasons — Season 2

Watch if you like: Grace & Frankie, Wine Country, Four Weddings and a Funeral
Length: 30-min runtime, 2 seasons / 8 episodes in S2
Jess’s rating: 4/5⭐

I expected to love The Four Seasons from the start. A Tina Fey-created comedy starring her and Steve Carell? I’m so there. But much to my chagrin, I found season one to be pretty disappointing—the comedy wasn’t as funny as I expected, and the characters felt broad and subdued.

With updated expectations, I got what I was looking for from these episodes. The life-changing events of the S1 finale gave the show and the characters something to adapt around, giving them much-needed specificity. Anne (Kerri Kenney), in particular, becomes much more interesting, and the dynamic between her and Ginny (Erika Henningsen) is the season’s best material. Danny (Colman Domingo) and Claude (Marco Calvani) also get a more developed arc. And the show does a better job overall at balancing comedy and poignancy.

While the first season lightly touched on aging, this one taps deeper into themes of midlife malaise and how time can strain friendships and marriages. It also has a stronger sense of found family, with a more lived-in quality that reminds me of all my favorite sitcoms. I hope there’s a third season. — Jess

Our take? Watch it for warmth & light laughs, even if you didn’t love S1. All episodes now streaming on Netflix.

Deli Boys — Season 2

Watch if you like: The Brothers Sun, Breaking Bad, Arrested Development
Length: 25-min runtime, 2 seasons / 6 episodes in S2
Jenni’s rating: 4/5⭐

A year after their unexpected ascent to crime bosses, siblings Mir (Asif Ali) and Raj (Saagar Shaikh) are thriving. With Lucky Auntie (Poorna Jagannathan) to guide them, they’re ready to take the Philadelphia drug scene to the next level, or at least cause a lot of chaos trying.

Now that the setup of Season 1 is firmly in the rear view, Season 2 of Abdullah Saeed’s comedy has fully settled into its groove as a perfect, deeply unserious blend of sitcom hilarity and crime thriller parody. Where the first season spent time finding its footing, this one hits the ground running, and it turns out there’s a tremendous amount of comedic mileage to be had from a mashup of the sentiments of Breaking Bad and Arrested Development.

New additions to the cast sweeten the deal; Andrew Rannells fits right into the ensemble’s frequency as an irritating politician, while Fred Armisen’s unhinged casino boss and Kumail Nanjiani’s corrupt lawyer are exactly the kind of inspired characters the show thrives on. And still, none of them touch Poorna Jagannathan. As Lucky Auntie, she remains the show’s beating heart, grounding the madness while somehow being the most unhinged person in any given room. I love her so.

Deli Boys is still messy and broad and proud of it; Season 2 proves that was always the point. — Jenni

Our take? Watch if you love an inventive premise and don’t mind some (slapsticky) gore. All episodes now streaming on Hulu.

A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder — Season 2

Watch if you like: One of Us is Lying, Shelter, Veronica Mars
Length: 45-min runtime, 2 seasons / 6 episodes in S2
Jess’s rating: 2.5/5⭐

The second season of A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder sees Pip (Emma Myers) pulled into a new investigation despite swearing off amateur sleuthing. After her friend’s brother disappears, she is forced once again to dig into the secrets and lies hidden beneath her sleepy English town.

I wasn’t particularly fond of the first season, largely because it fell short of what made Holly Jackson’s book work, and it dulled the main characters. This season is more of the same, with the added detriment of less exciting source material. The main problem here is the same problem I had with the novel: it feels like a story that exists because a sequel was ordered, not because there was more to tell.

The show is still an easy binge, and that’s what many people are looking for. But the mystery is convoluted from the start, and the plotting strains credibility as the season continues. While the first season saw Pip untangling a web of lies to get to a truth, this one manufactures inane reasons to keep her investigating. The stakes are supposedly higher, but the mystery is far less compelling. Considering the third book is my least favorite of the series, I’m not feeling particularly optimistic about where things go from here. — Jess

Our take? Skip it unless you’re in need of a background thriller. All episodes now streaming on Netflix.

Checking back in…

(🚨THIS SECTION MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS FOR RECENT EPISODES🚨)

finished…

• Hacks (S5) —

  • These last few episodes have been bordering on overly sentimental, but it’s hard not to lean that way when you’re wrapping up an iconic show. Part of me thinks this season would’ve been more impactful if Deborah had really died…but that wouldn’t be Hacks. Main lingering thoughts: I loved the Europe montages so much; Jimmy & Kayla spinoff series when? 4/5⭐ (JC)

  • Initially, I had the same thought as Jenni: that the end of the season leaned a little too saccharine for my usual liking. But then I decided I don’t care! Give me warmth and happiness over realism and/or heartbreak—it’s what we deserve. Creators Lucia Aniello, Paul W. Downs, and Jen Statsky landed the plane on a nearly-perfect series, and that is incredibly hard to do. 4.5/5⭐ (JS)

still watching…

• Rivals (S2) — I am here for the obvious, but extremely slow burn Taggie-Bas dynamic. Count me a Luke Pasqualino fan for life. Also there’s so much happening with this ensemble cast, it’s crazy to me that this week was the penultimate episode of the first half of the season, and we don’t even know when the next installment will drop. BRB, starting a petition for this to be a 20-episode summer mainstay. (JC)

• Widow’s Bay — If you remember, I am not a horror girlie, and even though I got a warning that this week’s episode was scarier than the rest…I was absolutely not ready for a slasher. That said, Patricia is an icon, a legend, the moment. Love that girl.(JC)

• Your Friends & Neighbors (S2) — I think I’ve made it clear that I’m not the biggest fan of this season, with all its meandering and weak character motivations, but at least the last episode brought some excitement to the plot. Why wait until the episode before the season finale, though?? (JS)

dropped…

• Euphoria S3 — Attempting to watch this was an ill-fated experiment. I just couldn’t get into the wild world of Sam Levinson with his mix of over-the-top LA fantasy and grasping attempts at gritty realism. The season (series?) finale was also spoiled for me, and I feel like it was for the best. I really didn’t want to be watching this show anymore. (JC)

on pause…

Half Man, Star City, Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed

On the horizon…

(New shows and movies out this week that we haven’t seen yet)

• Hoppers* (Movie) — Pixar’s animated hit about a young woman who hops her consciousness into a robotic beaver to save a forest glade comes to streaming.
  Watch on Disney+: June 3 (*streaming premiere)

• The Witness (Limited Series) — This true crime dramatization follows the aftermath of the 1992 murder of Rachel Nickell from the perspective of her husband and son.
  Watch on Netflix: June 4 (all 3 episodes)

• Pillion* (Movie) — A directionless man (Harry Melling) is swept off his feet when an enigmatic, impossibly handsome biker (Alexander Skarsgård) takes him on as his submissive.
  Watch on HBO Max: June 5 (*streaming premiere)

• Office Romance (Movie)— Jennifer Lopez stars as a no-nonsense airline CEO who falls for a new lawyer at her company, played by Brett Goldstein (Ted Lasso, Shrinking).
  Watch on Netflix: June 5

• Groundswell (Movie) — This documentary narrated by Demi Moore and Woody Harrelson explores how farmers, scientists, and Indigenous leaders across five continents are restoring soil health and fighting climate change.
  Watch on Prime Video: June 5

• Mexico 86 (Movie) — Martín de la Torre (Diego Luna) is an audacious and soccer-mad civil servant who uses ingenuity, political maneuvering, and reckless improvisation to win the bid to host the 1986 world cup for Mexico over the United States and Canada.
  Watch on Netflix: June 5

• Cape Fear (Season 1) — The newest adaptation of The Executioners stars Javier Bardem as a vicious ex-convict who takes revenge on the married couple who sent him to prison 17 years earlier.
  Watch on Apple TV: June 5 (2 of 10 episodes, then weekly)

• Interview with the Vampire (Season 3) — Retitled The Vampire Lestat after the book its adapting, the third season of IWTV shifts focus to Lestat’s perspective, following the vampire as he sets the record straight by starting a rock band and going on tour.
  Watch on AMC+: June 5 (1 of 7 episodes, then weekly)

In theaters…

• Masters of the Universe — The live-action sword and sorcery sci-fi stars Nicholas Galitzine as the legendary defender of Castle Grayskull, He-Man.

• Scary Movie — A group of friends reunite when a masked killer they encountered 26 years ago returns. This is the sixth installment in the franchise and the spiritual sequel to the first two films.

• Power Ballad — This musical comedy drama follows a wedding singer (Paul Rudd) who bonds with boy-band member (Nick Jonas) But when one uses the other’s song to reignite his solo career, the fight for recognition begins.

Comment to let us know what you’re watching or dreading. If you liked reading this, click the ❤️ button on this post so that more people can discover us on Substack :)

Happy Thursday! Surprise, our guest reviewer today is actually Jess, temporarily back from maternity leave to review the new Duffer Brothers show. <3 Big thanks to her baby for being a good napper and letting her watch and write about TV this week. Read on for your rundown of what’s new, what’s coming up, and how much of it is worth your time in the TV and movie arena.

— Jenni and Jess

What’s new on streaming…

(Our thoughts on brand new streaming content, and where you can watch.)

The Boroughs — Season 1

Watch if you like: Stranger Things, Wayward Pines, Wayward
Length: 45-min runtime, 1 season / 8 episodes
Jess’s rating: 3/5⭐

Produced by The Duffer Brothers, The Boroughs feels engineered to be the next Stranger Things, nostalgia-bait and all. The sci-fi series follows a group of residents in a retirement community who suspect something is amiss underneath the neighborhood’s glossy veneer. It not only nods to Stranger Things, but also exists in the “small idyllic town is hiding dark secrets” mystery sub-genre that I typically love.

I seem to be on outlier island here, but The Boroughs lacks the spark that the first season of Stranger Things had, and it falls into all the usual Netflix traps of overly telegraphing plot beats and padding out material that would have better fit a much shorter season. Some people are really connecting with the show’s focus on retirees, which I appreciate in theory, but the characters themselves aren’t developed enough to allow for real investment in their lives.

The show is much more interesting when it’s focused on aging, grief, and loneliness than when it’s furthering its sci-fi mythology, which leans more Goosebumps or Scooby Doo than Stranger Things. Between the obvious reveals, dodgy special effects makeup, and heavy plot armor, The Boroughs feels more suited for children than for the older audience the series is speaking to. I wish the series built out its emotional depth more and leaned harder into the interpersonal dramas of the main characters, but I know most people are going to enjoy the twists and turns that play out while they’re folding laundry. — Jess

Our take? It’s not the next Stranger Things, despite the Duffer Brothers’ involvement, but it’s fine. All episodes streaming on Netflix.

Star City — Season 1

Watch if you like: For All Mankind, The Lives of Others, Chernobyl
Length: 60-min runtime, 1 season / 2 of 8 episodes available May 29
Jenni’s rating: 4/5⭐ (after 2 episodes)

Though it is a spinoff and prequel to the critically acclaimed For All Mankind, Star City doesn’t require any familiarity with the original series to shine. Set in the late ‘60s and early ‘70s, the series rewinds to a pivotal moment in the show’s alt-history retelling of the space race: when the Soviet Union became the first nation to put a man on the moon.

Where For All Mankind took that premise and told a story from the American side of things, Star City flips the perspective, pulling us behind the Iron Curtain to follow the cosmonauts, engineers, and the intelligence officers spying on them in the Soviet space program. The result is a tense and propulsive thriller set in a world full of paranoia, where ambition and surveillance are permanently entangled.

The cast is a major asset to the production. Rhys Ifans and Anna Maxwell Martin anchor the ensemble with authoritative performances, while Agnes O’Casey and Alice Englert bring added texture to a show that has a lot of moving pieces to service. Though the episodes are long and sometimes drag, the groundwork that the show is laying feels purposeful and worth a bit of patience to let the plot unfurl. It’s still early to say for certain, but Star City seems to exist in the rare category of spinoffs (think Better Call Saul or Andor) that earn their existence on their own terms. For anyone with an appetite for slow-burn, morally complex drama, this one looks promising. — Jenni

Our take? If you’re on board with all the Soviet characters speaking with British accents, stream it. Streaming soon on Apple TV; new episodes Fridays.

Ladies First

Watch if you like: What Women Want, Shallow Hal, The Power
Length: 1h 24min runtime

Read more

Welcome back. It’s almost a three day weekend, hallelujah. But before we all head outside to catch some much needed rays and fresh air, here’s your weekly rundown of what’s new, what’s coming up, and how much of it is worth your time in the TV and movie arena.

— Jenni

What’s new on streaming…

(Our thoughts on brand new streaming content, and where you can watch.)

Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed — Season 1

Watch if you like: Orphan Black, The Flight Attendant, Big Mistakes
Length: 40-min runtime, 1 season / 2 of 10 episodes available
Jenni’s rating: 4.5/5⭐ after 3 episodes

The sun is shining, the birds are chirping, and all is right with the world because Tatiana Maslany (Orphan Black) is back on my screen in a new thriller series. Created and written by David J. Rosen, Maximum Pleasure Guaranteed follows newly single mom, Paula (Maslany), who witnesses a crime during her online session with a cam boy, then falls headlong into a dangerous rabbit hole of blackmail and conspiracy when she decides to investigate it herself.

The tone and cadence of this show really hit a sweet spot for me. The writing is witty and offbeat, and though it never tips fully into dark comedy territory, it’s more nuanced and cheeky than a straight action thriller. A sharp ensemble helps it thrive in this middle ground. Alongside the always excellent Maslany, Jake Johnson (New Girl) plays the exasperated ex-husband; Charlie Hall (The Sex Lives of College Girls) is a sardonic, nosy coworker; Dolly de Leon (Triangle of Sadness) shines as an investigator who runs on logic and low empathy; and Murray Bartlett (The White Lotus) rounds things out as a mysterious adversary.

The result is an incredibly bingeable psychological thriller—stressful in the best way. Every episode leaves me immediately reaching for the next one, and I’m on the edge of my seat waiting to see where the ever-escalating stakes take Paula.

Our take? Stream it! Now streaming on Apple TV; new episodes Wednesdays.

Rivals — Season 2

Watch if you like: Mad Men, The Gilded Age, Dynasty
Length: 50-min runtime, 2 seasons / 3 of 8 episodes in S2 available
Jenni’s rating: 4/5⭐ after 3 episodes

Rivals is back and better than ever. This raunchy, wildly fun period drama based on Dame Jilly Cooper’s Rutshire Chronicles is exactly the kind of binge-worthy indulgence that summer was made for.

The new episodes pick up right after the events of season one’s shocking finale, continuing to follow the rivalry between upper-echelon neighbors Rupert Campbell-Black (Alex Hassell) and Lord Tony Baddingham (David Tennant). By now, their feud has spilled well beyond the cutthroat world of British media and deep into their personal lives. I could try to summarize the finer details of their competition to control independent television, but honestly, the plot is almost beside the point. Rivals is less about what happens and more about the vibes.

The show spins an intoxicating web of sex, romance, jealousy, and ambition set against a lavishly rendered Cotswolds backdrop. Decked out with a killer soundtrack, flamboyant ‘80s fashion, and dialogue so sharp and outrageous, I sometimes rewind just to hear it again, this series is peak prestige camp. Only three episodes in, the season is already adding delicious new layers of tension to an already-overstuffed web of entanglements. It’s going to be a fun summer.

Our take? Shhhh, my show is on. Now streaming on Hulu; new episodes Fridays.

Off Campus — Season 1

Watch if you like: Heated Rivalry, One Tree Hill, Bridgerton
Length: 45-min runtime, 1 season / 8 episodes
Jenni’s Rating: 3.5/5 ⭐

Adapted from Elle Kennedy’s series of BookTok sensations, Off Campus leans fully into the heightened, pulpy energy of a mid-tier romance novel. It is unabashedly melodramatic and often cheesy1, but for the right viewer (me, I guess), that shamelessness is part of its charm.

This season focuses on the unlikely love story between a music student (Ella Bright) and the star hockey player (Belmont Cameli) at a fictional Boston-based college. But the series, already renewed for a second season, follows a large ensemble of characters in the hockey-adjacent world as they maneuver life and love, with other couples promised to take center stage in future installments (à la Bridgerton). That setup combined with a soundtrack of eclectic needle drops2 gives the whole thing the addictive, rewatchable energy of a late-2000s teen drama—the kind that could easily sustain six or seven seasons.

It’s clear Prime Video is making a concerted effort to become the go-to streamer for swoony BookTok-sourced romance in the wake of The Summer I Turned Pretty ending, and Off Campus makes a strong case that they’re on the right track.

Our take: If you love romance tropes and can handle a high level of corniness (par for the course here), stream it. All episodes now streaming on Prime Video.

On the horizon…

(New shows and movies out this week that we haven’t seen yet)

• Game Changer (Season 8) — The latest season of this comedy game show with a constantly changing premise is finally here!
  Watch on Dropout: May 18

• You’re Killing Me (Season 1) — Brook Shields stars in this cozy mystery as a bestselling novelist who forms an unlikely alliance with an aspiring writer and podcaster to investigate a murder in a small New England town.
  Watch on Acorn TV: May 18

• The Boroughs S1 (Season 1) — In this supernatural mystery series produced by the Duffer brothers, a group of unlikely heroes in a retirement community band together to stop an otherworldly threat. Geena Davis, Bill Pullman, and Jenna Malone star.
  Watch on Netflix: May 21

• Ladies First (Movie) — An arrogant, but charismatic ladies’ man (Sacha Baron Cohen) is transported to a parallel matriarchal society, where he faces challenges from a formidable female version of himself (Rosamund Pike) in this new comedy.
  Watch on Netflix: May 22

In theaters…

(If you feel the need to leave the house.)

• I Love Boosters — This crime adventure comedy stars Keke Palmer as a professional shoplifter who targets the wrong cutthroat fashion mogul.

• The Mandalorian and Grogu — Jon Favreau directs this adventure sci-fi that continues the story of the bounty hunter Mandalorian and his foundling, Grogu (colloquially known as Baby Yoda).

• Passenger — In this supernatural horror film, a young couple witnesses a horrific accident a few weeks into their van life adventure. Soon, they’re pursued by a demonic stalker who’s impossible to outrun.

Checking back in…

(🚨THIS SECTION MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS FOR RECENT EPISODES🚨)

Finished…

• Margo’s Got Money Troubles — After my early praise of this series, I was disappointed when the middle stretch lost some momentum. I would have preferred a more gradual reveal of Jinx's relapse and the custody threat hanging over Bodhi—as it stood, it made for an abrupt shift of tone for a few episodes. But the finale pulled everything back together, and reminded me why I enjoyed this show in the first place. Margo's Got Money Troubles is, at its heart, an escapist comedy-drama built around the warmth of a found family, and the season ultimately delivered on that promise. 3.75/5 ⭐(JC)

Still watching…

• Hacks (S5) — Ava’s continued beef with magicians really tickles me. Also, does this Kayla and Jimmy storyline smell like a spinoff to anyone else? (JC)

• The Testaments — Woof, a shocking episode and apparently a huge departure from the book. It feels like an apt expansion of the source material though, with a young girl now to be punished for the sins of her father—quite literally. This was such an impressive turn from Mattea Conforti as Becka. (JC)

• Your Friends & Neighbors (S2) — There’s finally movement on the Ashe front, so here’s hoping that the last 3 episodes of the season are more interesting than the first 7 have been. (JS)

• Widow’s Bay — Matthew Rhys as a spiraling mayor unwillingly high on mushrooms was one of the funniest things I’ve seen in a minute. Until, of course, it wasn’t. (JC)

On pause…

Ghosts (S5), Monarch: Legacy of Monsters (S2), Half Man, Euphoria S3

Comment to let us know what you’re watching or dreading. If you liked reading this, click the ❤️ button on this post so that more people can discover us on Substack :)

Happy Thursday! There’s so much to watch right now it’s making me a little crazy trying to keep up, but I’d take that over a drought any day. And this week I’m not alone. Jess makes an appearance in the “checking back in” section, and I’ve brought in my first guest reviewer to help me round up what’s new, what’s coming up, and how much of it is worth your time.

Please extend a warm welcome to Carter—a biologist, and full disclosure, my husband (yes, it’s a bit of a nepo situation). He enjoys writing but will be the first to tell you he feels qualified to do this mainly because he's watched me write roughly 500 of these. To give you a sense of his taste, his favorite TV shows are Atlanta and Hacks, and Fantastic Mr. Fox is in his top 5 movies maybe ever. With that, let’s get to it.

— Jenni (feat. Carter and Jess)

What’s new on streaming…

(Our thoughts on brand new streaming content, and where you can watch.)

Legends — Limited Series

Watch if you like: Slow Horses, Undercover, The A-Team
Length: 55-min runtime, 1 season / 6 episodes
Jenni’s rating: 4/5⭐

I went into Legends with low expectations and was rewarded with a well-balanced crime thriller about a group of gutsy underdogs. Inspired by a true story, the series follows a team of civil servants in the early ‘90s who are given a few weeks of training and scant resources, then sent undercover to infiltrate and bring down two massive drug cartels flooding Britain’s streets with heroin.

Steve Coogan stars as the former undercover officer who assembles the ragtag team, schools them in how to craft their “legends”—the fake identity every agent must inhabit as completely as possible—and warns them to not let the darkness and trauma of that alter ego consume them. Tom Burke, Hayley Squires, and Aml Ameen round out the core ensemble as the recruits, each worn down by years of work with the feeling that they were meant for something more.

The show teeters on the edge of something slightly comedic—in the manner of Slow Horses—but maintains its thrilling composure and momentum throughout. It’s restrained and well-crafted, if occasionally hand-wavy about the finer details of the operation. Though it presents its morality as a binary, and ties up its loose ends a little too neatly, Legends still manages to be an engaging, emotionally satisfying ride. — Jenni

Our take? Watch if you like this genre—I couldn’t put it down, metaphorically speaking. All episodes now streaming on Netflix.

Remarkably Bright Creatures — Movie

Watch if you like: Lessons in Chemistry, Paddington, We Bought a Zoo
Length: 1h 51m
Carter’s rating: 2.5/5⭐

I should start by saying you’d have to be a real grump to not at least smile a little at the end of this cozy bestseller-turned-Netflix-movie. Remarkably Bright Creatures takes a story of unlikely friendship between Tova (Sally Field), an elderly cleaning lady fending off her self-imposed loneliness, and Cameron (Lewis Pullman), a washed up guitarist trying to track down his long lost father, and throws a self-aware octopus into the mix. The shape of the story is familiar-bordering-on-boring, but the core pieces are new, the setting is beautiful, and octopuses are cool, so it works.

That said, it is very much a Netflix Movie, in the same way that one might talk about a made-for-TV movie or a Hallmark Movie. While the main pair of actors are solid, many of the side characters underperform, delivering exposition rather than dialogue. The lighting feels too bright, maybe too digital, in a way that detracts from the otherwise soft atmosphere of the Pacific Northwest. Marcellus the octopus comes to life nicely on screen, apparently leaning on hours of live footage mixed with CGI, but his voiceover leans dramatic when the story calls for whimsical.

If you were a big fan of the book, this is a faithful adaptation, and the shortcomings in execution don’t take away from the big picture. It’s a pleasant watch, but unlikely to really stick with me, except perhaps to encourage a visit to my local aquarium some time soon. — Carter

Our take? Octopuses are cool. Now streaming on Netflix.

Big Mood — Season 2

Watch if you like: Extraordinary, Broad City, Such Brave Girls
Length: 30-min runtime, 2 seasons / 6 episodes in S2

Read more