TV & Movies/Reviews

Where: Disney+
What: Miniseries, 6 episodes, 60 mins.
When: Tue., May 31
Genre: Drama
Why you should watch: An in-depth telling of the rise of punk icons Sex Pistols, this miniseries has all the substance abuse and aggressive music you would expect but also the heart and emotion often missing from the crude newspaper headlines that surround this band.

Where: HBO/Crave
What: Series, 10 episodes, 58 mins.
When: Now, new episodes Thursdays
Genre: Drama
Why you should watch: Stylish series set in 1999 has it all: great inside look at journalism in Japan, compelling crime drama, ’90s nostalgia, cultural clashes as a gaijin tries to negotiate life in Japan, cool shots of Tokyo and two fantastic leads with Baby Driver’s Ansel Elgort and skilled veteran actor Ken Watanabe. Based on a memoir, Tokyo Vice is, at times, adrenaline-popping combined with challenging details navigating life in Japan as well as journalism drudge work.

Where: Netflix
What: Series, 3 seasons, 51 episodes, 25 mins.
When: Now, originally 2015
Genre: Sitcom
Why you should watch: Maybe we shouldn’t be surprised that Volodymyr Zelensky is so good at playing president of Ukraine on this sitcom, he’s proven pretty amazing at it in real life. Zelensky brings an affable and slightly inept Mr. Beanlike quality to his “accidental” servant of the people that’s adorable — and funny. It’s a slickly produced show that delivers laughs and a few, now historically, loaded moments, including Putin jokes.

Where: Crave
What: Miniseries, 8 episodes, 30 mins.
When: Now, new episodes Sundays
Genre: Creepy comedy
Why you should watch: Michelle de Swarte plays a parenting-adverse 30-something, irritated by her baby-bearing friends, who suddenly has her own direct experiences of the “horrors” of infant rearing when an apparently ‘‘possessed” baby literally falls into her arms. Funny, creepy and with a metaphor as obvious as a dirty diaper. It’s a smart, well-acted show that will have you rooting against a baby.

Where: Netflix
What: Miniseries, 6 episodes, 60 mins.
When: Now
Genre: Drama
Why you should watch: Smart and sensational, if this series were a book, it would be a page-turner. A British take on The Good Wife scenario, Sienna Miller, no stranger to scandal herself, is strong and struggling as the wife determined not to be a cliché as the collapsing career of her entitled husband (played by Rupert Friend) upends their world. Michelle Dockery (Downton Abbey) icily plays a powerful attorney with her own secrets. The series ably demonstrates women’s often empty but essential search for justice.

Where: Crave
What: Special, 48 mins.
When: Now
Genre: Standup comedy
Why you should watch: Not everything works in Indigenous standup comedian Paul Rabliauskas’ promising, if uneven, comedy special debut. It’s a set that draws on the last two, COVID years the comic spent back home living in the fly-in community of Poplar River First Nation. While not all the jokes land and some might offend, his hilarious and insightful take on land acknowledgments is worth the viewing alone.

Where: Crave
What: Series, Season 2, 6 episodes, 50 mins.
When: Now, new episodes weekly
Genre: Drama
Why you should watch: Chaotic, crisis-fuelled romp around the world that follows Kaley Cuoco (The Big Bang Theory) as the often-freaking-out titular flight attendant turned CIA spook. She alternately chases or is being chased, battling bad guys, mysterious strangers and her own demons along the way. Like the archetypal whispering devil-onthe- shoulder, much of the series features the flight attendant in agitated inner dialogue with her various selves, all vying to control our out-of-control heroine.

Where: Netflix
What: Series, 10 episodes, 60 mins.
When: Now
Genre: Reality
Why you should watch: This extreme reality dating show differs from the Netflix formula by tracking down warring couples instead of singles looking for love — here, one half of every couple is ready for marriage while the other is not so sure. The show gives the couple an ultimatum to decide or break up on air, and in case that wasn’t stressful enough, has each person date and even live with other potential love matches before making their final decision. Yikes!

Where: Apple TV+
What: Miniseries, 4 episodes, 60 mins.
When: Now
Genre: Documentary
Why you should watch: Like the man himself, They Call Me Magic, profiling LA Lakers basketball legend Earvin “Magic” Johnson, is a an often lighthearted look at the man who helped bring flash to the NBA. Without the same gravitas as Netflix’s The Last Dance series on Michael Jordan, even the player’s challenges get a light touch. Features a treasure trove of archival footage going back to Johnson’s high school days highlights.

Where: Netflix
What: Series, 1 season, 10 episodes, 30 mins.
When: Now
Genre: Animation
Why you should watch: Quirky cartoon set in Tokyo features Yoda-like five-year-old who inexplicably lives alone in an apartment complex where young adult neighbours mostly help, without question, this boy who speaks in feudal formulations. A struggling manga artist next door is Kotaro’s best pal in this primitively but beautifully inked series that is both sweet and bizarre. A yakusi neighbour vies with the artist for the kid’s attention while a sweet young woman captivates them all.

Where: Netflix
What: Season 5, 10 episodes, 30 mins.
When: Now
Genre: Docusoap
Why you should watch: The campiest, wildest, most ridiculous (but undeniably most addictive) show is back for another (yes, another) season of real estate listings and low-stakes drama. This soapy reality show about a girl-boss team of realtors in L.A. strikes the perfect balance between Million Dollar Listing and Real Housewives: think dream homes and juicy drama and the wildest cast of L.A. yuppies you’ll ever binge-watch.

Where: Prime Video
What: Miniseries, 3 episodes, 60 mins.
When: Now
Genre: Historical drama
Why you should watch: The Crown’s Claire Foy is very unqueenlike (only a duchess this time) as the wife in a nasty couple whose ugly divorce splashed across the British press in the midcentury. The pre-swinging ’60s fashion and art direction are as intoxicating as the ever-present cocktails. This scandal is of the brooding type, a slow burn with no apparent good guys, just stylish rich Brits behaving badly.

Where: Netflix
What: Movie, 88 mins.
When: Now
Genre: Documentary
Why you should watch: An even-handed but scathing look at a once dominant brand that pandered to the “cool kids,” which meant thin, white and young. Explicit hiring practices that kept cute white kids on the retail floor and people of colour and “non-models” in the backroom or after hours are just some of the disturbing details in this compelling doc. A&F branddefining iconic photographer, Bruce Weber, faced many sexual harassment claims, settling one as recently as 2021. A solid entry into crowded Businesses-That- Implode field.