Alternative Viewing: This Week’s TV Premieres
Welcome to the weekly TV thread! As I’ve long said going back to the earliest days online doing this, one cannot live on anime alone. And compared to twenty years ago, there’s so much more content out there now and so much more to talk about. This coming week of new shows brings us to the latest week of regular TV and a number of premieres. I look forward to getting way too many suggestions about good shows to check out!
Optional discussion topic: It’s Secret Santa time! Who did you get from what show and what do you get them
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The latest Netflix adaptation of one of Pittsburgh native August Wilson’s plays, the filmed-in-Pittsburgh “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” stars Viola Davis and the late Chadwick Boseman in a period piece that feels relevant and timely.
An almost unrecognizable Davis, jettisoning any semblance of vanity, stars as Ma Rainey, a real historical figure and one of the earliest African-American blues singers to record her performances in the 1920s.
Wilson’s 1982 play it made its Broadway debut in 1984 is set during one of Ma’s last recording sessions where her approach to business (do it Ma’s way) clashes with brash upstart trumpeter Levee (Boseman), who tries to ingratiate himself to the record’s white producer by giving the producer what he wants.
As incongruous as it might seem, holiday season and horror-based entertainment offerings often go hand in hand. Perhaps it s the legacy of the visitation spirits in Charles Dickens
A Christmas Carol, Central European fables of the evil anti-Santa called Krampus, or an overindulgence of eggnog spurring nightmarish phantasms, but wild imaginations and wintertime superstitions seem to come alive during long, dark nights. and we love it!
To add to the festive frights, AMC s horror-centric streaming service, Shudder, is offering fans a terrifying seasonal treat in the form of
In SYFY WIRE s exclusive sneak peek, titled
The Test, our confused hero, Weston (Adam Pally), learns the scary truth of his actual identity. He has reason to think he s a vicious shapeshifter, but blacks out every time he transforms, so he s clueless as to exactly what creature he s turning into. Lucky for him, Irina (Anna Camp) and the other members of Shapeshifter s Anonymous know how to find out.
The Expanse:
Season 5 In the first three of 10 new episodes, Earthers venture out beyond our solar system to seek their destiny. Careful, fellas: The last time we did that, we ended up as Molly Maids for Dr. Zaius. (
Amazon Prime)
The Ripper Not as in Jack, but as in the Yorkshire Ripper, who as seen in this four-part series terrorized 1970s England, murdering a total of 13 women. Forty years later, it s much easier to kill the British: Just give them the COVID vaccine! (
Netflix)
Premieres Thursday:
Homeschool Musical: Class of 2020 Laura Benanti produced this documentary series, which shows how high-school theater students surmounted the challenges of the Year of the Rona. Boy, it must have sucked to have to sell that crappy intermission orange drink through Uber Eats. (
The Expanse. Oh, and a new holiday horror flick from SYFY. Thanks Satan oops, we mean,
Santa!
The biggest stories this week are arguably the premieres of Season 5 of
The Expanse on Amazon Prime and the series premiere of CBS All Access big budget, eagerly-anticipated event series adaptation of Stephen King s
The Stand. Both have a ton of buzz and look to be two of the biggest genre premieres of the winter. Turning to big finales, Season 2 of
The Mandalorian is coming to what will certainly be a universe-shaking end, with Mando gunning for Moff Gideon.
On the scary side, SYFY is dropping the new horror flick