TV Show Reviews
'What If...?' Season 3 Review
‘What If…?’ Season 3 Closes Out the MCU’s Multiverse Series in Entertaining Style. Jeffrey Wright’s Watcher faces the consequences of his actions in a season that, while not as consistent as the second, still has its pleasures. Landing on Disney+ daily across eight days from December 22nd,...
'Black Doves' Season 1 Review
‘Black Doves’ Stars Keira Knightley in a Solid British Espionage Thriller with a Christmas Feel. The new show from Joe Barton, the creator of ‘Giri/Haji’ and ‘The Lazarus Project,’ also stars Ben Whishaw and Sarah Lancashire. Launching with all six episodes on Netflix on December 5th,...
'Star Wars: Skeleton Crew' Season 1 Review
‘Star Wars: Skeleton Crew’ Brings an Amblin Movie Feel to that Galaxy Far, Far Away. A roguish Jude Law and an appealing young cast lead a story that harkens back to movies such as ‘The Goonies’. Launching with its first two episodes on Disney+ Monday, December 2nd, ‘Star Wars: Skeleton...
'Creature Commandos' Season 1 Review
‘Creature Commandos’ Kicks off James Gunn’s DC Universe in Violent, Funny, Wild Style. Gunn brings his trademark wit and love of genre to the series, which features an entertaining voice cast and some DC deep cuts. Launching with its first two episodes (of seven) on December 5th on Max, ‘Creature...
'Cross' Season 1 Review
‘Cross’ Features a Great Lead in Aldis Hodge But Goes Through the Serial Killer Motions. The new TV adaptation hedges its bets by not directly adapting any one of James Patterson’s novels, but can’t quite break out of the rut of its genre. Launching on Prime Video on Thursday 14th November with...
'Dune: Prophecy' Season 1 Review
‘Dune: Prophecy’ Gives Frank Herbert’s Sci-Fi Saga the ‘Game of Thrones’ Treatment. The new series, set 10,000 years before Paul Atreides’ birth, follows the early days of the mystical Bene Gesserit movement and those who sought power through bloodlines. Launching on HBO and Max on Sunday,...
'The Diplomat' Season 2 Review
‘The Diplomat’ Season 2 Brings More Political Intrigue and a Powerful Allison Janney Keri Russell stars as Ambassador Kate Wyler, who in the new season must navigate the shifting sands of an international crisis as her husband (Rufus Sewell) lies injured. Arriving on Netflix on October...
'Agatha All Along' Season 1 Review
The WandaVision Spin-Off Boasts an Enchanting Kathryn Hahn and a New Mystery. Hahn stars as Agatha Harkness, who looks to reclaim her power after Wanda Maximoff removed them –– but it won’t be as easy as she hopes. Launching on Disney+ on Wednesday, September 18th with its first two episodes, ‘Agatha...
'The Penguin' Season 1 Review
‘The Penguin’ has charismatic performances but also a lot of gangster cliches. The limited –– so far –– series is spun off from ‘The Batman’ and features Colin Farrell as the club owner/criminal fixer with eyes on running his own empire. Launching on HBO and Max with its first episode...
'Slow Horses' Season 4 Review
Spy series ‘Slow Horses’ returns for its fourth season in all its sweary glory. The series, which adapts Mick Herron’s bestselling novels about a group of intelligence agents exiled to a low-rent office, is full of typically spiky dialogue. Returning for its fourth season with one episode on September...
'Slow Horses' Season 3 Review
Launching on Apple TV+ on November 29th (with two episodes), ‘Slow Horses’ makes a triumphant return to screens with another winning blend of character work, memorable dialogue and compelling action.While Gary Oldman’s Jackson Lamb continues to be the standout, but there isn’t a weak link in...
'The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power' Season 2 Review
‘The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power’ Finds its Momentum in Season 2. The Tolkien-derived series, which takes place thousands of years before the events of ‘The Hobbit’ and ‘The Lord of the Rings’, returns on strong form. Returning for its second season with three episodes via Prime...
'The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power' Season 1 Review
Premiering on Prime Video beginning September 1st is the highly anticipated new series ‘The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power.’The new show is based on the work of author J. R. R. Tolkien, and is set thousands of years before the events of 'The Hobbit' and 'The Lord of the Rings.' Specifically...
'Bel-Air' Season 3 Review
‘Bel-Air’s third season struggles to balance the stories of its big cast. The series, which began life as a trailer for a dramatic version of the classic 1990s sitcom, still has plenty to offer and a committed cast bringing it to life. Returning to Peacock for its third season on Thursday, August...
'Bad Monkey' Season 1 Review
‘Bad Monkey’ mixes crime with colorful characters. The new show from ‘Ted Lasso’ co-creator Bill Lawrence finds Vince Vaughn as a cop-turned-food inspector who becomes embroiled in the mystery surrounding a severed arm. Launching on Apple TV+ with its first two episodes, ‘Bad Monkey’ represents...
'Cobra Kai' Season 5 Review
‘Cobra Kai’, which just returned to Netflix, has reached Season 5, an accomplishment even its creators might be surprised to see.The series, which continues the story from 'The Karate Kid' movies (the first three, at least), has become one of Netflix’s most entertaining titles, walking the line...
'Cobra Kai' Season 6 Review
‘Cobra Kai’ kicks off its final season with a fun first part. With an ambitious, three-part season planned, it’s (mostly) business as usual for the merged Eagle Fang and Miyagi-do dojos, while Kreese continues to scheme. Arriving on Netflix on July 18th, ‘Cobra Kai’, which has successfully...
'The Bear' Season 3 Review
‘The Bear’ Serves Up Problematic Pacing in Season 3. Success in this case appears to have bred a major belief in self-indulgence, as the story is largely pushed aside in favor of seriously arty pretension. Arriving on FX with its entire third season of 10 episodes on June 26th, ‘The Bear’ marks...
'House of the Dragon' Season 2 Review
‘House of the Dragon’ returns with more intrigue and death. The ‘Game of Thrones’ prequel series doubles down on its stories of the warring Targaryens, albeit more of a cold war through assassinations to start. Arriving on HBO/Max for a second season with its first episode on June 16th, ‘House...
'House of the Dragon' Season 1 Review
‘House of the Dragon’, which just premiered on HBO and HBO Max, represents an attempt to draw back the ‘Game of Thrones’ faithful to the world of Westeros.How you respond to that attempt, will likely be impacted by your reaction to the final couple of seasons of the original show. There are those...
'The Boys' Season 4 Review
‘The Boys’ Season 4 is back with new characters and shocking Reveals. The popular superhero series is back with a three-episode premiere, examining the topic of mortality and forcing the characters to face their past. ‘The Boys’ are back, and they’re not pulling any punches. The series returns...
'The Boys' Season 3 Review
Debuting with the first three episodes on Prime Video today, ‘The Boys’ returns for its third season having lost none of its capacity to shock and delight in equal measure.The show about dysfunctional superheroes – and the vigilantes who are dedicated to keeping them in check – is back in a more...
'Presumed Innocent' Season 1 Review
‘Presumed Innocent’ is a slick but sometimes overstuffed crime drama. Jake Gyllenhaal stars in this new series, adapted from the same novel that fueled the 1990 Harrison Ford-starring courtroom murder mystery movie. Launching on Apple TV+ on Wednesday June 12th with its first two episodes (before...
'The Acolyte' Season 1 Review
‘The Acolyte’ spins a powerful, nuanced story of sisterhood. The new offering is set 100 years before the Skywalker saga, and gives a fresh look at the ‘Star Wars’ universe with a variety of interesting characters. Landing on Disney+ on June 4th with its first two episodes, ‘The Acolyte’...
'Star Wars: Tales of the Empire' Season 1 Review
Star Wars: Tales of the Empire’ takes a walk on the dark side. This follow-up to 2022’s ‘Tales of the Jedi’ fills in backstory for former Jedi Barriss Offee and powerful witch Morgan Elsbeth in a new animated series. Landing on Disney+ on –– when else? –– May the 4th, new animated limited...
'Hacks' Season 3 Review
Debuting on HBO and Max with the first two episodes of its third season on May 2nd, ‘Hacks’ returns to our screens with more outrageousness from Jean Smart’s Deborah Vance and more conflicted, panicky support from Hannah Einbinder’s Ava.While Smart continues to be the focus, Einbinder still proves...
'Fallout' Season 1 Review
Launching on Prime Video with all eight episodes on Thursday April 11th, ‘Fallout’ manages the tough ask of bringing a complex and sprawling video game to life in a way that will feel familiar to fans of the game and its darkly humorous style while also spinning its own tale set in that universe.Continuing...
'The Regime' Season 1 Review
Premiering on HBO and Max on Sunday, March 3rd, ‘The Regime’ is an attempt to create a new satirical series to fill the gap left by ‘Succession’, and also to provide another welcome starring role for Kate Winslet, who shines in an oddball role.Yet the whole in this case is somewhat less than...
'3 Body Problem' Season 1 Review
Launching on Netflix with all eight episodes on Thursday March 21st, ‘3 Body Problem’ represents two gigantic challenges all at once: how do the creators of the ‘Game of Thrones’ TV adaptation follow their mammoth fantasy undertaking, and how do they do it using one of the most acclaimed science...
'X-Men '97' Season 1 Review
Premiering on Disney+ on March 20, ‘X-Men ‘97’ will pick up from where season 5 of the original series left off in 1997. The series consists of ten episodes with updated animation in the same style and features returning voice talents such as Cal Dodd, Lenore Zann, Alison Sealy-Smith, and George...
'Sugar' Season 1 Review
Arriving on Apple TV+ with its first two episodes on Friday April 5th, ‘Sugar’ throws Colin Farrell into the search for a missing young woman, who hails from a wealthy, influential Hollywood dynasty.The new series, which comes from Mark Protosevich, the writer of movies including ‘The Cell’ and...
'The Afterparty' Season 1 Review
Premiering January 28th on Apple TV+ is the new murder mystery comedy ‘The Afterparty,’ from the creative minds of Christopher Miller and Phil Lord (‘Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse’). The series features an impressive cast of comedic actors including Tiffany Haddish (‘Girls Trip’), Sam...
'Obi-Wan Kenobi' Season 1 Review
Premiering May 27th on Disney+ are the first two episodes of the new six-part ‘Star Wars’ series, ‘Obi-Wan Kenobi.’ Ewan McGregor reprises his role as the title character, and the series is set ten years after the events of ‘Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith.’ In addition to...
'Ms. Marvel' Season 1 Review
Premiering June 8th on Disney+ is the new Marvel series ‘Ms. Marvel,’ which introduces the title character to the MCU, who will next be seen in ‘The Marvels.’The first and final episodes of the six-part series were directed by executive producers Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah (‘Bad Boys for...
'Resident Evil' Season 1 Review
Released July 14th on Netflix, ‘Resident Evil’ stars Tamara Smart, Siena Agudong and Lance Reddick, following the three in the past, amid a corrupt biotech company and the future, after a worldwide zombie apocalypse has decimated the planet.Developed for TV by Andrew Dabb (‘Supernatural’), the...
'The Sandman' Season 1 Review
Arriving on Netflix August 5th, ‘The Sandman’ is the culmination of years of efforts to bring Neil Gaiman’s classic graphic novel series to screens.Filmmakers including Joseph Gordon-Levitt (‘Inception’), Roger Avery (‘Pulp Fiction’) and Eric Heisserer (‘Arrival’) have all tried to...
'She-Hulk: Attorney at Law' Season 1 Review
The new nine-part MCU series ‘She-Hulk: Attorney at Law,’ will premiere on Disney+ beginning August 18th. The series revolves around lawyer Jennifer Walters (Tatiana Maslany), who also happens to be Bruce Banner’s (Mark Ruffalo) cousin, and the hero known as She-Hulk.The show was created by writer...
'Wednesday' Season 1 Review
Now showing on Netflix, ‘Wednesday’ represents the latest attempt to bring ‘The Addams Family’ to screens, and one that succeeds partly because of its star.The Addams Family, which originated with Charles Addams’ single-panel cartoons and strips in the 1930s and 1940s, have long since been...
'The Last of Us' Season 1 Review
Launching with its first episode on Sunday, January 15th on HBO Max, ‘The Last of Us’ represents the latest successful translation of a video game title to another medium.Of course, the source material––game creator Neil Druckmann is deeply involved in the show as an executive producer––offers...
'Poker Face' Season 1 Review
Premiering with its first four episodes on Peacock on January 26th, ‘Poker Face’ marks Rian Johnson’s latest successful stab at the mystery genre.The filmmaker, who made his name with Sundance sensation ‘Brick’, has often tackled mysteries in his work, most notably with the two ‘Knives Out’...
Movie and TV Reviews
