Hello friend,
Of all the new and returning shows this week, the one that actually clicked with me is the Quibi show Mapleworth Murders. If you like 30 Rock, maybe give the show a look. I don’t love it, but Mapleworth gave me a couple of chuckles.
The doco on Apple TV+ Boys State is probably the wisest new thing to focus your attention on. 97% on Rotten Tomatoes, it’s a look at what is effectively a summer camp for kids who want to get involved with government/politics.
Brian Lowry at CNN on Boys State:
"Who we elect matters," a teacher tells the assembled group near the start of the documentary. If these children are, to quote the song, our future, the sobering message from "Boys State" lies in what we're teaching them about morality, principles and their relationship to governance right now.
Oh… and one more thing…
I feel a bit responsible for this one. A couple of years ago I was working at SBS and was in the programming team’s ear about a US sitcom The Carmichael Show. To my mind, it is a perfect fit on the multicultural SBS - the show explores modern culture and challenges audiences with perspectives on some of the most hot-button issues of the moment. Also, it comes at it from the perspective of an African American family.
Anyway, my constant persistence paid off - the stars aligned and it is now airing in blocks on SBS VICELAND on Saturday afternoons/early evenings, with every episode streaming at SBS On Demand.
My advice: The first episode is a bit choppy. Skip it. It’s a sitcom - you don’t need to start with episode one. Did you really need to start Seinfeld with the pilot? No. I always recommend people start with the episode from season 2 Fallen Heroes. In it, the family debate whether it is okay to go and see Bill Cosby performing. This episode was produced, obviously, before he was finally jailed. It’s just a marvelous episode of TV.
SBS On Demand is also streaming Kolchak: The Night Stalker. Listeners of the Always Be Watching podcast may recall us talking about that show in one of our quizzes a few weeks ago.
returning:
Infinity Train (s3), 3% (s4)
new:
Teenage Bounty Hunters - Netflix
Stars: Maddie Phillips, Anjelica Bette Fellini, Kadeem Hardison
After joining forces with a veteran bounty hunter, sixteen-year-old fraternal twin sisters Sterling and Blair dive into the world of bail skipping baddies while still navigating the high stakes of teenage life.
Ted Lasso - Apple TV+
Stars: Jason Sudeikis, Stephen Manas, Colin Blyth
Follows US American Football coach Ted Lasso heading to the UK to manage a struggling London soccer team in the top flight of English football.
Boys State - Apple TV+
A thousand 17-year-old boys from Texas join together to build a representative government from the ground up.
Fearless - Netflix
Stars: Gabrielle Union, Yara Shahidi, Miles Robbins
A teen gamer is forced to level up to full-time babysitter when his favorite video game drops three superpowered infants from space into his backyard.
Mapleworth Murders - Quibi
Stars: Paula Pell, Annie Mumolo, Tina Fey, John Lutz
A murder-mystery writer named Abigail Mapleworth solves homicides in her quaint small town of New Woodstream.
YOLO: Crystal Fantasy - Adult Swim
Stars: Sarah Bishop, Michael Cusack, Todor Manojlovic
Two Australian party girls, Sarah and Rachel, looking for fun times, new experiences, positive vibes, and hopeful horoscopes in the bizarre town of Wollongong. Sarah's quest is to find love, whereas Rachel hungers for chaos, often bringing them into conflict as they encounter surreal Australiana, strange bush creatures, and eccentric nomads.
We Hunt Together - Showtime | Alibi | Foxtel
Stars: Babou Ceesay, Hermione Corfield, Kamara Abraham
A gripping twist on a classic cat-and-mouse story, this British drama series explores the intoxication of sexual attraction and the dangerous power of emotional manipulation as two conflicted detectives track down a pair of deadly killers.
Magic Camp - Disney+
Stars: Gillian Jacobs, Josie Totah, Aldis Hodge
Follows Andy, who, at the urging of his former mentor and Magic Camp owner Roy Preston, returns as a counselor to the camp of his youth hoping to reignite his career.
Let’s talk again next week.
