NOW SEE THIS

NOVEMBER 20, 2020

Welcome to Now See This, THR chief TV critic Daniel Fienberg's weekly viewer guide newsletter dedicated to cutting through the daunting clutter of the broadcast, cable and streaming TV landscape! Comments and suggestions welcome at daniel.fienberg@thr.com.

Master of Nun

If this newsletter were a grifter, it would be an example of a long con, because back in June I recommended you watch Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger’s Black Narcissus as an alternative to Netflix's Warrior Nun. It's all paying off, because if you watched Black Narcissus, you can check out FX's miniseries adaptation of the Rumor Godden novel about nuns going bonkers at a remote Himalayan palace and be insufferable comparing the two. The FX version, directed by Charlotte Bruus Christensen, is well-produced and well-acted, but sticks much too close to the perspective and style of the movie to be fully necessary.

Deus 'Axe' Machina

What do you call a series of weekly stories airing under the same banner on a TV/streaming entity that was funded entirely by said TV/streaming entity? Me, I call it a TV show! Steve McQueen calls Small Axe a collection of movies and it will be premiering over five weeks on Amazon. Like a TV show! And yes, I'd love to quibble about semantics all day, but whatever Small Axe is, apparently it's great. The first episode, Mangrove, focuses on a 1970 police harassment trial in London and THR's David Rooney raved that it's "a blistering indictment of sanctioned racism." 

'The World' Is [Maybe] Enough

Must-read books only rarely become must-watch documentaries, but THR's Inkoo Kang was a great admirer of HBO's Between the World and Me, based on Ta-Nehesi Coates' provocative exploration of Black identity in America. It premieres on Saturday night. For something completely different, but still from the same parent company, HBO Max has made the first episode of The Flight Attendant available ahead of the show's Thanksgiving premiere. I called the Kaley Cuoco mystery-dramedy the TV equivalent of a “beach read,” in the best way possible.

American Horror Rory

It's funny, because if you talk to "the kids," most of them think that The CW shows like iZombie and The 100 are Netflix shows, so here's The CW trying to return the favor by airing the Netflix's limited series Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life as semi-original Thanksgiving Week programming. And heck, if you haven't seen it before, it is indeed new to you. When it actually aired on Netflix, I wrote both a regular, spoiler-lite review and a spoiler-heavy piece about Amy Sherman-Palladino's famous "last four words" and why Rory has always been the worst.

What's Up, Docs?

The airing of weekly documentaries has long been an HBO staple, but Showtime has been pushing into that space for a while, especially when it comes to entertainment-themed docs. This Sunday, Showtime is airing R.J. Cutler's Belushi, which THR's Frank Scheck deemed "loving but incisive." If that's not drug-fueled enough for you, the following Sunday is the Showtime premiere of My Psychedelic Love Story, an LSD-laced chronicle that Scheck deemed "pretty far out."

The Dream of the '90s Is Still Alive

If you're afflicted with a perpetual case of '90s nostalgia, the current TV landscape has been shaped for you for years, but rarely quite so aggressively as at this very moment. HBO Max has a new special reuniting the stars of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and while I have some severe quibbles about its approach, I agree with Inkoo that it's "surprisingly emotional." Returning in series form is the beloved Animaniacs — and while the Hulu reboot is a minor disappointment, it's still peppered with meta laughs. And if you can't wait until Wednesday for Peacock's reboot of Saved by the Bell, check out last week's TV's Top 5 podcast for showrunner Tracey Wigfield's explanation for why she wanted to return to Bayside.

This Week's THR Staff Pick

Speaking of '90s flashbacks, THR.com's East Coast deputy editor Hilary Lewis raves: "As an enthusiastic fan of the '90s version of Supermarket Sweep, I’ve been thoroughly enjoying ABC's Leslie Jones-hosted reboot. The latest iteration features the same formula of riddles with brand-name answers and contestants racing through the aisles along with new, food-centric team names, revamped sweatshirts and higher cart totals. Despite a few misguided tweaks — the mini-sweep competition, those grocery store characters — it’s a fitting escape and everything my nostalgic heart desires."

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NOVEMBER 20, 2020

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