Welcome to a pretty short newsletter. This week, I am looking at the new season of Will Trent, the latest episode of Abbott Elementary and the end of Mr. & Mrs. Smith along with thoughts on Expats, some recent renewals and the SAG Awards!
I didn't stick with Will Trent in its first season even though I liked the couple episodes I watched. But I felt like it continued to get decent buzz by broadcast TV standards so I gave it another shot as Season Two kicked off. I'm not sure if there's a better chance of me sticking around long-term but I do think it's a pretty good example of the show it's trying to be. I think by broadcast procedural standards, it's quite solid. It has some quirky characters and styles and does just enough things well and different to be a cut above some of the more bland network entries.
The second season premiere (spoilers ahead) featured Susan Kelechi Watson in the guest starring role of Cricket, a bomb specialist who takes a liking to Will. I was hopeful that she'd be a recurring character but the show went and killed her off in the first episode of the season! I respect that for a show that probably could have tried to do more of an arc for her. But I also liked the chemistry she had with Ramon Rodriguez. Even if I stick with Will Trent, I probably won't be writing about it a lot but it's a pretty solid show.
I finally finished Mr. & Mrs. Smith after a couple weeks. I slowed down on it because I was enjoying it so much. I really wish Prime Video had not done a binge drop for this one because I think there would have been some good chatter about it over a few weeks. But anyway, this has been one of my favorite shows in the last several months. I love that the show had such a different take on how to do a spy show. After early episodes, I compared it to Poker Face with a Case of the Week feel. But it turns out the show had higher aspirations than Poker Face. Yes, there was a weekly case element with some great guest stars. But the show actually wanted to be a commentary on marriage and relationships more than anything else. The nonchalant attitude about the spy business really was a fresh take because too many shows with high pressure jobs make everything seem like life and death. There were life and death situations here treated very casually. It was not only comedic but also an interesting approach.
There's been some buzz about the Sarah Paulson therapy episode (episode #6) and I felt like it went on a little long even thought the payoff at the end was great. The next episode though, featuring Micaela Coel, was a highlight for me. Coel was probably my favorite guest star of the season and that entire episode was loaded with a perfect blend of suspense and comedy. The final episode had things I liked and things I didn't. I really hope there's a second season but the series did wrap things up well in case there's not. I wasn't a fan of the extended drug-induced haze the main characters were in but the return of Parker Posey and Billy Campbell really pulled the season together.
This was such a great vehicle for both Donald Glover and Maya Erskine and they had incredible chemistry together. It's really hard to envision Phoebe Waller-Bridge, the original co-star and co-creator in Erskine's role. I already mentioned the great guest stars but the show also made good use of its New York filming locations. The show was a bit of a victim of being only eight episodes because they developed the relationship between Glover and Erskine really well but I felt like they felt the pressure to go through the entire arc of a relationship in only eight episodes. If a second season was guaranteed, I wonder if they would have chosen to only go about halfway through the relationship arc and be a little more episodic throughout. Either way, I really hope there's a second season of this one.
It was another strong week for Abbott Elementary. I like that this episode didn't really try to advance any of the serialized elements of the show. That's the beauty of broadcast comedies, some episodes can just be standalone stories. And this one had some truths about teachers trying to tell kids not to do things that they engage in. As a teacher, the very lame assembly scene rung very true. I also think the story of Janine struggling to watch a struggling substitute with her class was very in character. I'm not sure this episode was quite as funny as the first couple but Abbott is just rock solid week-in and week-out.
SCRIPTED PREMIERES THIS WEEK
This week features a couple high profile premieres starting on Tuesday with FX's Shogun. The long-awaited big budget limited series finally makes it debut and it has been pretty well received with early reviews so it could be a big player in the Limited Series world. On Wednesday, Disney+ has the premiere of Iwaju, an animated series set in a futuristic Lagos, Nigeria. On Thursday, CBS has the premiere of Elsbeth, the latest show in the Good Wife universe. It's gotten decent buzz for a broadcast show. Thursday also has the premiere of Perimeter on BET+ and the second season premiere of The Tourist on Netflix. Finally, Friday has the premiere of British comedy The Completely Made Up Adventures of Dick Turpin on Apple TV+ as well as the season premiere of BMF on Starz. Finally, HBO has its next Sunday series with The Regime, a limited series starring Kate Winslet that could be the next awards-bait show for Winslet.
ODDS & ENDS
- I stuck with Expats but didn't really think it ever came together all the way. I thought there were enough intriguing elements in the early episodes and there were things I enjoyed, but nothing worked completely There was some interesting direction and enjoyed the performances from Sarayu Blue and Ji-young Joo. Nicole Kidman was a pretty glaring weak spot here. I don't need one more show ever where Kidman plays a wronged wife or mother. The Hong Kong setting was interesting and the fifth episode seemed to hint at the show creator Lulu Wang wanted to make. Despite the good things, I would call this a miss.
- There were two high profile renewals last week with True Detective renewed for a fifth season with Issa Lopez returning as showrunner and the revival of Frasier renewed for a second season. Both renewals are not surprising as they are high profile properties for their respective platforms. I was mixed on the season of True Detective but there were enough good things that I would definitely check out another season. As for Frasier, it was a pretty big disappointment but maybe it can find its way in a second season.
- The SAG Awards were held on Saturday night on Netflix. Aside from no commercials and the ability to swear, it wasn't very different being on a streaming service. As for the TV winners, it was no surprise that Succession won Drama Series and The Bear cleaned up in comedy categories. But it was surprising that Sarah Snook and Kieran Culkin lost. Snook lost to Elizabeth Debicki, which isn't totally surprising since Debicki has won other awards and they weren't in the same category in other awards shows. But Culkin losing to Pedro Pascal was pretty surprising (including to Pascal himself). It bodes well for The Last of Us when it returns to a world with no competition from Succession.
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