Westeros goes to war, The Bear serves its last, and Larry David rewrites American history
It’s a big week for TV with some of the biggest titles of the year returning.
Just a few quick thoughts:
I was a big fan of the first season of Paramount+’s The Agency. A spy thriller with a fantastic cast including Michael Fassbender, Richard Gere, Jeffrey Wright, Harriet Sansom Harris, John Magaro, and Jodie Turner-Smith, the first season flew under the radar of many. And the second season release feels like a burn-off by Paramount+. I fear we won’t get a third season of the show, so I am going to do my bit this weekend by re-watching the entire first season this weekend and all of season two next weekend. Get those hours up.
House of the Dragon is back for season three. My Game of Thrones passion was never huge, but I liked it. My enthusiasm for the spin-offs have been far lower to the level that I don’t think I ever pressed play on season two. The viewership for the franchise still seems pretty strong, so I accept I’m an outlier.
The Bear plates up its fifth and final season. Quietly, I haven’t actually seen the show since the second season, so I’ve missed the episodes that saw public sentiment turn on the show. I’m looking forward to binge watching the three seasons I haven’t watched over the next few weeks.
Life, Larry and the Pursuit of Unhappiness is Larry David‘s first show since Curb Your Enthusiasm wrapped, which he and Jeff Schaffer describe as “Curb in costumes.” Like Curb, you can expect a lot of guest stars, though I would assume there will be far fewer people playing themselves as the sketch shows are all based on historical moments. Larry was studying a History major at college, so this is him firmly in his wheelhouse.
As longtime Larry David fans know… not every project is a winner and this one has a bit of a Sour Grapes, Clear History smell to it…
Returning TV
House of the Dragon (s03) Emma D’Arcy, Matt Smith, Olivia Cooke, Rhys Ifans, Ewan Mitchell, Tom Glynn-Carney, and Steve Toussaint
The Agency (s02) Michael Fassbender, Jeffrey Wright, Jodie Turner-Smith, Katherine Waterston, Richard Gere, and Hugh Bonneville
The Bear (s05) Jeremy Allen White, Ayo Edebiri, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Lionel Boyce, Liza Colón-Zayas, Abby Elliott, and Oliver Platt
Avatar: The Last Airbender (s02) Gordon Cormier, Kiawentiio, Ian Ousley, Dallas Liu, Paul Sun-Hyung Lee, Elizabeth Yu, and Miya Cech
Camp Snoopy (s02) An animated Peanuts series with Snoopy, Charlie Brown, and the gang.
Pokemon Horizons: Rising Hope (s03) The twenty-eighth season of the Pokémon anime series and the third season of Pokémon Horizons: The Series.
New TV
Life, Larry and the Pursuit of Unhappiness — HBO Max [US]
Who’s in it: Larry David, Jerry Seinfeld, Jon Hamm, Bill Hader, Kathryn Hahn, Susie Essman, and Barack Obama
What’s it about? A seven-episode sketch comedy from Larry David and his Curb Your Enthusiasm collaborator Jeff Schaffer, produced by Barack and Michelle Obama’s Higher Ground. Largely improvised, it takes a comedic run at major moments in American history, timed to the United States’ 250th anniversary.
Notes From The Last Row — Netflix
Who’s in it: Choi Min Sik
What’s it about? A literature professor and failed writer becomes enamoured by the talent of a mysterious student who always sits in the back row of his class. Based on the stage play.
Agent Kim Reactivated — Netflix
Who’s in it: So Ji-Sub
What’s it about? A man living as an ordinary office worker while hiding a secret past, embarks on a dangerous journey to find his missing daughter.
Notes from the Last Row — Netflix
Who’s in it: Choi Min-sik, Choi Hyun-wook, Huh Joon-ho, Yunjin Kim, and Jin Kyung
What’s it about? A disillusioned literature professor and failed novelist (Choi Min-sik) discovers the raw talent of a quiet student (Choi Hyun-wook) seated in the back row of his class, and offers him private writing lessons. As he becomes consumed by the student’s stories, the line between mentorship and obsession collapses into manipulation and chaos. A six-part Korean psychological thriller adapted from Juan Mayorga’s stage play.
The Doomies — Disney+
Who’s in it: Max Mittelman, Madison Calderon
What’s it about? Best friends Bobby and Romy mistakenly open a gateway to another world.
New Movies
In the Hand of Dante — Netflix
Who’s in it: Oscar Isaac, Gal Gadot, Gerard Butler, John Malkovich, Al Pacino, and Jason Momoa
What’s it about? Julian Schnabel’s time-spanning crime epic. Oscar Isaac plays dual roles: a present-day New York author recruited by a mob boss to steal Dante Alighieri’s handwritten “Divine Comedy” manuscript, and Dante himself in the 14th century chasing the inspiration for his masterpiece, the two men unknowingly bound across the centuries.
Little Brother — Netflix
Who’s in it: John Cena, Eric André, Michelle Monaghan, Christopher Meloni, and Ego Nwodim
What’s it about? Rudd (John Cena), a tightly wound and highly successful real estate agent, sees his carefully ordered life upended when Marcus (Eric André), an eccentric “little brother” from a childhood mentorship program, reappears after a car accident and moves in, becoming a full-blown agent of chaos.
Strung — Peacock
Who’s in it: Chloe Bailey, Lynn Whitfield, Lucien Laviscount, Anna Diop and Coco Jones
What’s it about? From director Malcolm D. Lee, a talented violinist takes a prestigious job as a music tutor for the gifted daughter of an influential and enigmatic family.
That’s the newsletter for this week.
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