So many quality shows are streaming these days! Here is a list of some of my faves:
The Queen's Gambit (Netflix) - Historical Drama, set in the 1950s and 60s. A young orphan girl becomes a chess phenom. We watch her grow up, struggle to defeat her personal demons, and rise to the top in the competitive chess worldwide. Expectations and stereotypes gracefully sidestepped time and again. (The orphanage is not horrible, the male competitors are not all jerks, the alcoholic mother turns out to be a charming and wise ally.) Plus some killer outfits and over the top home decor from the era. Watch the trailer here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDrieqwSdgI
Ted Lasso (Apple TV+) - Comedy featuring a good-hearted small town American football coach who goes to England to coach a professional football (soccer) team despite not knowing the sport. Hijinks ensue. The plot thicken. We fall more in love with Lasso with each episode. The most life-affirming, heart-warming show I've seen in years. Season two coming July 23rd. Trailer: https://tv.apple.com/us/show/ted-lasso/umc.cmc.vtoh0mn0xn7t3c643xqonfzy
Call My Agent (Netflix) - Comedy/Drama feature a team of French talent agents and their feisty clients; in French with subtitles. Charmingly French. Four fantastic seasons. Watch the trailer for Season One here: https://www.netflix.com/title/80133335
Schitt's Creek (Netflix) - Canadian Comedy. A rich family is brought low when they lose all their money and have to relocate to a ramshackle motel in a small town where they try to adjust/escape/integrate and get to know each other and themselves in the process. Great comedic team. I've watched all six seasons twice.Watch Season One trailer here: https://youtu.be/W0uWS6CnC2o
Giri/Haji (Netflix) Arty Gangster Drama. Japanese police detective goes to London to find his gang member brother and save him from the Yakuza. Gorgeous. Tense. In English and Japanese with subtitles. One season only, sad to say. Watch the trailer here: https://www.netflix.com/title/80190519
The Expanse (Amazon Prime Video) Science Fiction Thriller. Set hundreds of years in the future when human communities on Earth, Mars, and the Asteroid Belt mistrust each other but maintain an uneasy peace. Tensions erupt when devastating attacks occur from an unknown source. Gorgeous cinematography. Political Intrigue. Great team of actors. Five seasons, a sixth due to come out in December 2021.
Unorthodox (Netflix) German-American Miniseries Drama. A young woman flees to Berlin to escape from her tight-knit, controlling Hasidic community and sweet but clueless husband in New York."Where I come from there are many rules." Watch the trailer here: https://www.netflix.com/title/81019069
Crash Landing On You (Netflix) Korean Drama. Wealthy South Korean business woman on a paragliding adventure crash lands in North Korea and is found by North Korean soldiers who try to help her get home. Love blooms but is thwarted by politics, family intrigue, and conflicting allegiances at every turn. Cheesy fun. This was my first K-Drama and I'm a convert! Watch the trailer here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXMjTXL2Vks
Devs (Hulu) Science Fiction Miniseries. Arty, mysterious, odd. Silicon Valley high tech computer company employee disappears when working on a secret project. His girlfriend spends her days trying to get to the bottom of things, which turns out to be delightfully convoluted and creepy. Grapples with concepts of high tech manipulation and the nature of determinism. Nice surprise to see Parks and Rec star, Nick Offerman, play a completely different character.
The Detectorists (Amazon Prime) Quirky, low-key, heartwarming British comedy about two "odd duck" guys who spend their free time searching the English countryside for treasure using metal detectors. Three perfect seasons. Took me some time to warm up to this show, but ended up loving it. The theme song by Johnny Flynn is gorgeous: "Will you search the lonely earth for me, climb through the briar and bramble; I will be your treasure. . .I am waiting for you." You can hear the song here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q58Gm18-IMY
The Morning Show (Apple TV+) Loosely based on Today Show Matt Lauer's scandal of sexual misconduct as well as the overall cutthroat dynamic of morning television. What an all-star line up: Jennifer Anniston, Reese Witherspoon, Steve Carrell, Billy Crudup. A second season is set to release September 2021.
The Money Heist
The Flight Attendant
The Great
Last Tango in Halifax
Shadow & Bone
Call the Midwife
