Pick of the week
Pluribus
Breaking Bad creator Vince Gilligan returns with a gripping, funny, bleak, bewildering head-spinner of a series.It begins with a mysterious communication from outer space. On the face of it, it seems to contain answers to many of humanity’s problems. Great news, right? If you are one of the few people across the world seemingly immune to this zombified bliss, not so much. The superb Rhea Seehorn stars as Carol Sturka, a cranky writer of bad, extremely successful historical romances and, reluctantly, the keeper of the flame of righteous human cynicism. Pluribus establishes and maintains a tone all of its own – dark humour, oddball surrealism and existential horror.
Apple TV, from Friday 7 November
***
All’s Fair
This “dysfunctional rich people” drama follows two rival law firms as they tussle over the divorces of LA’s elite. It’s blazingly camp and deals in the affairs of musclebound jocks, creepy sugar daddies and women whose faces have been Botoxed to sleep. But it also contains an entertaining turn from Sarah Paulson as comically aggressive attorney Carrington Lane, plus a chance to ponder the (limited) acting chops of Kim Kardashian. This is a Ryan Murphy creation and, as such, manifests an all-encompassing emotional blankness. But for better or worse, it feels as if that’s kind of the point.
Disney+, from Tuesday 4 November
***
Robin Hood
Another take on England’s favourite forest-dwelling revolutionary, this one stars Jack Patten as “Rob” and Sean Bean as his villainous nemesis, the Sheriff of Nottingham. It’s a comparatively deep dive into character and backstory – we first meet Robert of Locksley as he learns archery from his father, who is subsequently executed by the sheriff. Thus radicalised, Robert hooks up with posh rebel Marian (Lauren McQueen) and begins a campaign of guerrilla warfare against the state. The cliches are very much intact but it’s a cheerfully romanticised romp.
MGM+, from Sunday 2 November
***
Crutch
This family sitcom is loosely set in the fictional world of CBS comedy The Neighborhood, though in truth there isn’t much crossover. It stars Tracy Morgan as abrasive but good-hearted Frank “Crutch” Crutchfield. Frank is the cousin of The Neighborhood’s Calvin – he’s a no-nonsense shop owner in Harlem who suddenly finds chunks of his family moving into his home. A generational clash unfolds as Crutch butts heads with his gentrified and aspirational son before hugging and learning ensues. Morgan is a likable presence, even if the premise is overfamiliar.
Paramount+, from Monday 3 November
***
Squid Game: The Challenge
If the drama was a satire on winner-takes-all capitalism, this gameshow feels as if that value system is being used to provide queasy, borderline ugly entertainment. That isn’t to say the result isn’t utterly gripping, just that you may feel a little grubby afterwards. The format remains the same: 456 people, green tracksuits, an aircraft hangar full of bunk beds, insultingly basic games. But with millions at stake for the winner, there’s real brutality to the three-week-long spectacle, and a long way to fall for the losers. As one says: “This moment will haunt me for ever.”
Netflix, from Tuesday 4 November
***
Heweliusz
An intense drama focusing on the deadliest ever peacetime disaster involving a Polish ship. The Jan Heweliusz capsized in the Baltic Sea in early 1993 and 55 people lost their lives. However, as tragic as this was, the series locates the real intrigue in the bitter aftermath. As an investigation into the accident began, suspicions of a cover-up regarding the true causes increased. What unfolded was a tale of silenced whistleblowers, corporate failure and official cowardice as traumatised relatives fought to establish the truth about what happened to their loved ones.
Netflix, from Wednesday 5 November
***
Death By Lightning
A pair of parallel American stories collide in this drama: the straight-shooting preacher, lawyer and civil war general James A Garfield, who became the 20th president of the United States; and the intelligent but unstable misfit Charles Guiteau who assassinated him. It tracks Garfield’s rise from humble beginnings and explores Guiteau’s various doomed ventures, too. Eventually, the paths of the two men cross, with explosive results. Michael Shannon and Matthew Macfadyen are sympathetic leads but the story never quite leaps out of the history books.
Netflix, from Thursday 6 November
