It’s a tough time to be a fan of the political world in that it’s, well, basically on fire. And so it’s an interesting choice to drop the 6-episode second season of Netflix’s Emmy-nominated “The Diplomat” into the vitriolic stew that passes for international politics in late 2024. Someone must have decided that a season … Read more
It’s the time of year when even casual fans are looking for something spooky to watch, but where do you begin? Of course, all the streaming services have robust catalogs of some of the best that the horror genre has ever offered, but maybe you want to catch up with something from this year too? … Read more
In Apple TV+’s “Before,” protagonist Eli (Billy Crystal) tells his therapist that his life has “turned into a Dali painting.” A few hours prior to their meeting, the series established that Eli is quickly losing touch with reality. The pilot opens with a dream sequence where Eli falls into an empty indoor swimming pool, cracking … Read more
In its sixth season, the existence of “What We Do in the Shadows” still feels like something we’ve taken for granted. The FX mockumentary had much to prove when it premiered in 2019, coming off the cult following of the 2014 film of the same name. Despite the time between the two, the series quickly … Read more
While some of the flaws of the first year of Apple’s hit “Shrinking”—nominated for a pair of Emmys, including Best Actor—remain at the start of the sophomore outing, this is the year in which the Jason Segel dramedy really finds its voice, confidently balancing its comedic and emotional currents in a way that’s entertaining and … Read more
When we are first introduced to “Sweetpea’s” Rhiannon Lewis (Ella Purnell), she goes over a list of people she would like to kill. From the supermarket worker who ignores her to the boss who sees her as nothing but an assistant, the list is extensive, and obviously thought out. Slight in frame and timid in … Read more
There’s a great show buried in the poor filmmaking decisions that constantly drag Peacock’s “Teacup,” produced by modern horror icon James Wan. It’s probably due to the source-altering choice to take a novel that has been compared to The Stand in its scope, Robert McCammon’s Stinger, and reduce it to a tale of a smaller … Read more
Lara Croft has had many death-defying adventures across the decades of the “Tomb Raider” video game franchise. The biggest puzzle for this iconic character has been her inability to find a worthy adaptation in other formats. The silly, Angelina Jolie-led duology was kitschy, and the reboot with Alicia Vikander, meant to resemble the Crystal Dynamics-developed … Read more
What you need to know about Hulu’s, Spanish-language “La Máquina” is that Diego Luna is downright hilarious in it. The six-part show follows old friends (and “Y Tu Mamá También” co-stars many years ago) Gael García Bernal and Luna as boxer Esteban “La Máquina” and his agent Andy. Is García Bernal totally convincing as an … Read more
Going into “The Last Days of the Space Age,” I admit I didn’t know much about 1970s Australia. But honestly, great TV doesn’t require a deep understanding of its setting, historical or not, to work. I knew far less about feudal Japan when I started “Shōgun,” and it completely transported me. In fact, part of … Read more