For the weekend of June 2, Streamline recommends “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt” in the top Netflix spot for the first time.
What’s New This Week
“Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt” returns with half of a new season. Netflix is now splitting seasons in two, presumably so important shows don’t get immediately forgotten as the company premieres so much content every week.
This show has been one of my favorites over the last few years and these new episodes don’t disappoint.
“Arrested Development” also returns with a half-season. The recent controversies surrounding star Jeffrey Tambor definitely leave some clouds hanging over the show.
For a long time, I considered “Arrested Development” my absolute favorite show, but this comeback just isn’t that great. The storylines are a mess, and at times this thing is hard to watch.
The show leans into Donald Trump jokes that probably seemed fresh while filming last year, but now seem dated and pale in comparison to the deluge of other Trump humor out there.
The characters have also gotten more ridiculous instead of more mature since the early seasons. I had felt that part of the brilliance of the original seasons was how the show found a way to still ground these characters in reality, so the ridiculous moments truly shined. Now nobody makes any sense as a person and the episodes are just a series of zany set-pieces.
It’s still funny. It’s still worth watching (Tambor aside). But, unlike the original, it’s far from the best show out there.
Anyway, watch the trailers for the new seasons below. And if you want to stay up to date with what to watch on a weekly basis, subscribe to the Streamline newsletter.
Top 5 Netflix News Items From This Week
1. The new season of “13 Reasons Why” had an average audience of 2.6 million viewers in its first three days, according to Nielsen. The premiere episode of the second season had 6 million viewers.
2.Keanu Reeves and Daniel Dae Kim joined the cast of the upcoming Ali Wong and Randall Park comedy “Always Be My Maybe.” That movie is expected to debut in 2019.
3. Uma Thurman is going to star in an upcoming show called “Chambers.” Thurman will play a mother whose daughter dies, but the daughter’s heart is used as a transplant. Then her daughter’s traits start showing up in the recipient.
4. Not content to just dominate the streaming world, Netflix is launching its first original comic book series. The project is called “The Magic Order.”
5. And Netflix had a rare good tweet. Usually, as you see below, the Netflix Twitter is one of those media brand accounts that tries really hard to be funny. This often manifests itself in jokes about things like “Shrek.” But on May 30, the Netflix Twitter account actually had a good tweet.
This all started when ABC abruptly canceled “Roseanne” on May 29, after star Roseanne Barr sent a racist tweet that same day.
“Muslim brotherhood & planet of the apes had a baby=vj,” Barr tweeted, referring to Obama White House adviser Valerie Jarrett, who is black and was born in Iran to American parents.
Barr has a long history of being racist on Twitter so this wasn’t a one-time mistake or momentary lapse in judgment ― despite Barr’s claim she only made that comment because she was on Ambien.
After the ABC cancellation, other outlets such as Hulu, TV Land and CMT quickly pulled “Roseanne” episodes as well. Now it’s near impossible to watch the show.
With that in mind, Netflix made the good tweet:
“One Day at a Time” is a critically lauded show on Netflix about a Cuban-American family trying to make it in Los Angeles. Sitcom legend Norman Lear is an executive producer as he developed the original “One Day at a Time” on which this reboot is based.
If you liked “Roseanne” because it was a reboot to a comedy style you enjoyed in past decades and centered around a working-class family, then you should definitely consider checking out “One Day at a Time.”
But if you liked this new “Roseanne” because of, well, Roseanne, then you’re going to be increasingly out of luck in this quickly diversifying television business that has no time for her kind of statements.
Random Netflix Tweet
The Netflix Twitter account is one of those try-hard media brands that like to make jokes. Streamline will present one a week without comment.
One Weird Thing
Robert Pattinson and Timothée Chalamet are going to be in a Netflix movie together. As Vulture points out, this must be because Netflix “wants to send stan Twitter into cardiac arrest.”
The movie is called “The King” and is expected to debut in 2019.
Streamline includes related reading below the show recommendations, as well as a list of other shows and movies joining the service this week.
Note: This list only includes shows that debuted their most recent episode less than a year ago. Much like the main list, it prioritizes newness.
The 5-word plot: Woman slowly finds her way.
Pro: This might have the most solid jokes per minute of any show out there right now. As this show comes to a close, it's still as strong as ever.
Con: Episodes are probably slightly too long and often could use some tightening. The humor can be overly zany for long stretches in which it fails to ground itself to make the jokes work. Episodes are probably slightly too long and often could use some tightening. The humor can be overly zany for long stretches where it fails to ground itself to make the jokes work.
Here's the trailer.
The 5-word plot: Family struggles to stick together.
Pro: The original iteration of "Arrested Development" is one of the best shows of all time. The new jokes are still strange and unique after all these years.
Con: This is probably the worst season. Characters used to make some sense, but now everyone is a cartoon character. Plus, the whole Jeffrey Tambor controversy hangs over this.
Here's the trailer.
The 5-word plot: College students struggle with racism.
Pro: One of the most accurate portrayals of contemporary young adult life. Also has much to say about the resurgence of vocalized racism in America and does so with nuance.
Con: Directing choices don't always allow the characters to be believable, but this heavy-handedness still kind of helps emphasize important points.
The 5-word plot: Crime thriller in contemporary London.
Pro: It's a compelling watch that stays fun with a constant sense of humor. At just a few episodes, “Collateral” resembles one long movie.
Con: At times it certainly feels like yet another crime thriller.
The 5-word plot: Familial violence shocks gated community.
Pro: The pulpy mysteries at the root of the show make this the streaming equivalent of a page-turning beach read.
Con: Everything it does well here is done better by other shows. This is a visceral watch that ultimately isn't that intellectually stimulating and deserves a few eye-rolls along the way.
The 5-word plot: Survivors rebuild after deadly virus.
Pro: It has a pretty decent virus-genre storyline, which tends to be a crowd-pleaser. The pace of the plot is extremely quick.
Con: This is pretty melodramatic and the dialogue can be cringeworthy. It's also one of those infuriating tales where characters act like idiots and cause their own trouble.
The 5-word plot: Couple sometimes loves each other.
Pro: The show depicts relationships in a generally more realistic, mundane way that's strangely compelling.
Con: Because not much happens plot-wise, the show occasionally forces characters to act irrationally, which is frustrating to watch.
The 5-word plot: Space colonists crash onto planet.
Pro: It looks amazing. The special effects are thrilling and beautiful.
Con: The storyline takes predictable turns. Somehow, despite all the action and strangeness of the new world presented on screen, this is really boring.
And here are the shows and movies arriving on Netflix through the rest of this week:
June 2
- “The King’s Speech”
June 3
- “The Break with Michelle Wolf” (Season 1, new episodes on Sundays, Netflix Original)
June 5
- “Marvel Studios’ Thor: Ragnarok”
June 7
- “Hyori’s Bed & Breakfast” (Season 2, new episodes on Thursdays)
- “The Night Shift” (Season 4)
June 8
- “Alex Strangelove” (Netflix Film)
- “Ali’s Wedding” (Netflix Film)
- “Marcella” (Season 2, Netflix Original)
- “Sense8: The Series Finale” (Netflix Original)
- “The Hollow” (Netflix Original)
- “The Staircase” (Netflix Original)
- “Treehouse Detectives” (Netflix Original)