This is a very strange week of television. After weeks of nothing particularly new and notable debuting, this week we’re hit with two major superhero tentpoles. It’s Marvel vs DC with Captain America spin-off The Falcon and The Winter Soldier fighting for eyeballs with the high profile re-edit of Zack Snyder’s Justice League.
If superheroes aren’t your thing, I strongly recommend checking out the new Australian comedy Fisk. It’s genuinely laugh out loud funny with some really great characters populating it. Kitty Flannagan plays a middle-aged lawyer who is taking on contracts work after moving interstate to avoid the ruins of her marriage. It’s very much a generic story of the week comedy as she deals with new clients, but the show has a lot of low-fi heart to it.
Because there has been such a lack of new things worth checking out, last week I asked readers to send through some shows they wanted to spread the word about.
Listener Jay writes:
I don't think you can go past the criminally underappreciated Legion. I know people have been fawning over WandaVision for being a creative and unique superhero series, but every time I heard people talking like this all I could think was "has no one seen Legion!?". I mean, WandaVision didn't have a single dance-off or rap battle...
He also suggests:
I'll also throw in The Magicians (2015) as a smokey. Probably not exactly prestige TV, but it was a guilty pleasure to watch with some good characters and held up pretty well across all 5 seasons.
Great recommendations both.
podcast:
It’s time to visit the Hall of Justice for another Screen Watching podcast. Dan and Simon review Zack Snyder’s Justice League, French Exit, and White Riot.
You’ll also hear some news. And there’s an interview with director Miranda de Pencire about her new Inuit lacrosse movie The Grizzlies.
Listen on: Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Pocketcasts, and all the usual places you listen to your pods.
returning:
Mayans MC (s03), B: The Beginning (s02),
new:
The Falcon and Winter Soldier - Disney+
Stars: Daniel Brühl, Anthony Mackie, Sebastian Stan
Following the events of 'Avengers: Endgame,' Sam Wilson/Falcon and Bucky Barnes/Winter Soldier team up in a global adventure that tests their abilities -- and their patience.
Zack Snyder’s Justice League - HBO Max / Binge
Stars: Henry Cavill, Ben Affleck, Gal Gadot
Zack Snyder's definitive director's cut of Justice League. Determined to ensure Superman's ultimate sacrifice was not in vain, Bruce Wayne aligns forces with Diana Prince with plans to recruit a team of metahumans to protect the world from an approaching threat of catastrophic proportions.
Operation Varsity Blues: The College Admissions Scandal - Netflix
Stars: Matthew Modine, Cullen Arbaugh, Sarah Chaney
Reenactments drive this documentary investigating the mastermind behind a scam to sneak the kids of rich and famous families into top US universities.
Waffles + Mochi - Netflix
Stars: Diona Elise Burnett, Taleia Gilliam, Andy Hayward
A whimsical supermarket with friends and aspiring chefs hop aboard a magical shopping cart to seek out ingredients all over the world.
Zero Chill - Netflix
Stars: Grace Beedie, Dakota Taylor, Jeremias Amoore
Talented teen figure skater Kayla is forced to leave everything behind when her family follows her twin brother, Mac, to a prestigious hockey academy.
Sky Rojo - Netflix
Stars: Enric Auquer, Lali Espósito, Asier Etxeandia
Coral, Wendy and Gina go on the run in search of freedom while being chased by Romeo, their pimp from Las Novias Club, and his henchmen, Moises and Christian.
Country Comfort - Netflix
Stars: Katharine McPhee
An aspiring young country singer (Katharine McPhee) finds the band she's been missing when she takes a job as nanny for a musically talented family, helmed by a rugged cowboy (Eddie Cibrian) and his five children.
Fisk - ABC
Stars: Kitty Flanagan, Marty Sheargold, Julia Zemiro
Fast-paced comedy about high-end contracts lawyer Helen Tudor-Fisk, who is forced to take a job at a shabby, suburban law firm following a humiliating marriage breakdown and a professional fall from grace.
Calls - Apple TV+
Stars: Nicholas Braun, Lily Collins, Karen Gillan
Told through a series of interconnected phone conversation, it chronicles the mysterious story of a group of strangers whose lives are thrown into disarray in the lead-up to an apocalyptic event.
Grace - ITV
Stars: John Simm, Richie Campbell, William Andrews
Brighton-based Detective Superintendent Roy Grace, a hard-working police officer who has given his life to the job.
That’s another week done with. Let’s be careful out there.