I may need to rethink my classic DVR strategy. Famously, I’ve burned through shows that I don’t really like first, saving the good ones for “dessert.” But there are simply too many shows, arrgh!!, and I have ended up stockpiling entire seasons of shows I want to watch, and yet am totally caught up on mediocre offerings such as Brooklyn Nine-Nine. Still managed to sample some new stuff, which I will list forthwith.
LIKED A LOT
Fleabag (Amazon) Well of course I’m now madly in love with Phoebe Waller-Bridge. The creator and star of this British import is, beyond being a total charmer, self-deprecating in the extreme and very willing to put herself in humiliating single-person situations. The amazing Olivia Colman gets to be so wonderfully nasty, and I’m always glad to see my boy Brett Gelman. Sure, the comedy works better than the drama but it’s just one of those streaming shows, lighten up.
Maniac (Netflix) Well of course I’m still madly in love with Emma Stone. Jonah Hill, sometimes I like, other times, ehhh. But in Maniac they were both terrific. The recognizably futuristic concept — technology tapping into our unconscious — allowed both to stretch their acting muscles and have a lot of fun. I did too (the fun, not the acting).
I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson (Netflix) I was bummed when the sweet and hilarious Detroiters was canceled, but barely had time to mourn before SNL vet Tim Robinson returned with this offbeat sketch show. He still loves commercial parodies and portraying dumb, obstinate, simple, outburst-prone characters. And most of the time it’s an absolute hoot.
Escape at Dannemora (Showtime) I followed this true prison-break story in the New York Times and was glad to see such a quality production come from it, shepherded by Ben Stiller of all people. Excellent performances by Paul Dano and Benicio Del Toro but especially by Patricia Arquette and Eric Lange as her long-suffering husband Lyle. Poor Lyle!
The Little Drummer Girl (AMC) Michael Shannon as an Israeli? I must admit I was skeptical but he totally pulls it off in this adaptation of a John Le Carré novel. His performance is more than matched by Alexander Skarsgård (and kudos to me for finding the little circle over the second “a”). They really make it look and feel like 1979, and I appreciated the nuanced look at the grey areas of Middle East politics. Plus it was sexy and thrilling!
LIKED
True Detective (HBO) Early on, I was enjoying this third go-round quite a bit, impressed by the dynamic between Mahershala Ali and Stephen Dorff, and the frequently shifting time period. But ultimately I thought the ending got away from them, and, yes I’m going to say it, I preferred the much-maligned season 2!
State of the Union (Sundance) A unique format, for television, anyway: ten 10-minute episodes. And what an all-star team — veteran director Stephen Frears, increasingly disappointing writer Nick Hornby, and stars Chris O’Dowd and Rosamund Pike. What we get is a married couple meeting up in a bar before their counseling appointment for 10 consecutive weeks. O’Dowd is basically playing the same grumpy aging music-obsessed guy he portrayed in Hornby’s Juliet, Naked; luckily Pike is a breath of fresh mature air. News flash: Married couples have problems.
DIDN’T LIKE
Homecoming (Amazon) A TV series based on a podcast? Erm, ok. Strong cast — Julia Roberts looking very surgery/Botox-damaged, Bobby Cannavale, Shea Whigham — but this was crummy.
ONE AND DONE
Derry Girls (Netflix) Granted, I’m not a girl and didn’t grow up in Northern Ireland, but I did live through the 90s. This just didn’t feel real to me; I blame the writing.
The Other Two (Comedy Central) I watched Only One. They seemed to be going for an “Always Sunny but with heart” vibe and it didn’t grab me. Lorne Michaels production plus quality cameos doesn’t guarantee funny.
DELETED AFTER 10 MINUTES
The Fix (ABC) Really? A Marcia Clark-created series starring Adebisi as a famous black guy acquitted of murder who, years later, is suspected of killing his girlfriend? Really?!?
THE SIMPSONS
You know how at the beginning I griped about good shows piling up while I watch substandard ones? Perfect example: Watched yet another season of The Simpsons, yet still have most of the recent season of the vastly superior Bob’s Burgers on the DVR. Something’s gotta give!!
THANK YOU AND GOODBYE
Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt (Netflix) and Veep (HBO) I’m lumping these two together because, with them both ending, we’re hurting for really sharply written comedies. With no 30 Rock, Great News, and now Kimmy, America is going through Tina Fey withdrawal. Veep was especially brilliant, so tuned into the absurdity of the political zeitgeist, with that rapid-fire dialogue that kept me with one finger primed on the 8-second-rewind button.
LOOKING FORWARD TO
Watching and deleting more things from my DVR. And Curb, someday.
SHOWS I USED TO WATCH AND IN MANY CASES STILL DO
Links to Edition I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII, VIII, IX, X, XI, XII, XIII, XIV, XV, and XVI.
Jack Silbert, curator