#SetTheVCR: June 10-16, 2024

Monday, June 10

Snowpiercer: Season 1-3 (Anytime / AMC+)

A dystopian thriller set more than seven years after the world has become a frozen wasteland, Snowpiercer centers on the remnants of humanity who inhabit a perpetually moving train, with 1001 cars, that circles the globe. Class warfare, social injustice and the politics of survival play out. Snowpiercer‘s anticipated fourth and final season will premiere on AMC+ on Sunday, July 21. As such all 3 Seasons have been added to AMC+ now. Coming soon to Crave on June 21st.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: MARLON WAYANS: GOOD GRIEF (ANYTIME / PRIME VIDEO)

They say comedy is the best therapy.
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Good Grief, Charlie Brown! Shot at the iconic Apollo Theater in Harlem, the material for Marlon’s comedy special is all grief. Wayans sarcastically works through his grief after recently losing both of his parents. In his new hour, he meditates on how his father taught him to be a man, the requirements to join the “Dead Mama Club,” the surprises you encounter when changing your aging parents’ diapers, who is the funniest Wayans, and more. Marlon cracks me up, so I’m totally IN for this. I miss In Living Color.

Tuesday, June 11

Becoming Karl Lagerfeld (Anytime / Hulu & Disney+ Canada)

In 1972, Karl Lagerfeld was 38 and not yet wearing his iconic hairstyle. He was a ready-to-wear designer unknown to the general public. While he meets and falls in love with the sultry Jacques de Bascher, an ambitious and troubling young dandy, the most mysterious of fashion designers dares to take on his friend (and rival) Yves Saint Laurent, a genius of haute couture backed by the redoubtable businessman Pierre Bergé.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: HOW MUSIC GOT FREE (ANYTIME / PARAMOUNT+)

Uncover the secrets behind the crime we all committed: Produced by Eminem and Lebron James, How Music Got Free details the series of fateful, isolated steps in the mid-’90s that nearly killed the music industry as file-sharing moved from underground to a global phenomenon.
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Long live Napster! The two-part documentary “details the fascinating, and often funny, inside story of the technology-driven disruption that changed music during the late-’90s and early-2000s. File sharing technology, combined with the insatiable demand for new music, created both the means and the motive for millions of young people to participate in outright theft — and be celebrated for it.” It’s…odd to return to that era in 2024, I wonder what fresh insights that return yields. How Music Got Free features interviews with the likes of Eminem, 50 Cent, Timbaland, Jimmy Iovine, Rocsi Diaz, Rhymefest and Steve Stoute, among others. (Would it be irony if you saw this for free instead of having a Paramount+ subscription?) Well, let’s go back to the ’90s shall we?

Wednesday, June 12

Basketball Stories: 20 years of Summer League in Vegas (Anytime / NBA TV)

Turn back the clock and look back at two decades of memorable moments and future stars at the Las Vegas NBA Summer League. Programming Note: This documentary is on the NBA App while on NBA TV there will be a number of repeat broadcasts, check your local listings for dates and times.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: MY NEXT GUEST NEEDS NO INTRODUCTION WITH DAVID LETTERMAN: SEASON 5 (ANYTIME / NETFLIX)

David Letterman returns to the host seat with My Next Guest Needs No Introduction with David Letterman, combining humor, curiosity and in-depth conversations with extraordinary people.
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I couldn’t pull the trigger on Letterman’s recent My Next Guest Needs No Introduction with John Mulaney. I don’t care about Mulaney, his comedy or his dumb life (TMZ junk about his rehab and baby). Now, Miley Cyrus has cultural moments depending on her producer (Pharrell! Mark Ronson!) but I can’t sit through that. Maybe if Letterman mocks Hannah Montana? I’m up for that. But Charles Barkely, oh yes! That’s all wonderful sarcasm. Miley’s Right: Come Get It Bae.

Thursday, June 13

Bridgerton: Season 3 – Volume 2 (Anytime / Netflix)

As a new crop of debutantes yearns to become the brightest of the ball, a wallflower with a double life finds her light amid secrets and surprises. It Is What It Is.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: THE BOYS: SEASON 4 (ANYTIME / PRIME VIDEO)

The world is on the brink. Victoria Neuman is closer than ever to the Oval Office and under the muscly thumb of Homelander, who is consolidating his power. Butcher, with only months to live, has lost Becca’s son as well as his job as The Boys’ leader. The rest of the team is fed up with his lies. With the stakes higher than ever, they have to find a way to work together and save the world before it’s too late.
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At the risk of losing my nerd street credit, I haven’t watched a single episode The Boys. (Ironically, I’ve watched and thoroughly enjoyed To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before. It’s a whole choice, I regret nothing.) Another terrible confession: while I enjoy comic book adaptations of violence, comedy and some morally complicated people…I also haven’t read the comic book of the same name by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson. Sigh. Clearly, I’m not one of The Boys. I must rectify this. Due to the wonky nature of streaming, I haven’t watched any of these episodes. Rather, I was waiting for the end but we’re four season in so that’s enough for me to start watching. I mean…when meeting your heroes what’s the worst that can happen right? Programming Note: It premieres its first three episodes followed by a new episode each week, ending with the epic season finale on Thursday, July 18.

Friday, June 14

Remembering Gene Wilder (Anytime / Netflix)

Documentary on the life and career of the beloved actor: the only good Willy Wonka.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: BRATS (ANYTIME / HULU)

Looks at the iconic films of the 1980s that shaped a generation and the narrative that took hold when their young stars were branded the Brat Pack.
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In 1983 we scored The Outsiders a freshtastic Francis Ford Coppola movie (adapted from S.E. Hinton’s phenomenal novel.). The Outsiders was a trailer: a stunning big bang of all that was to come. Including The Brat Pack. Director and Brat-Packer Andrew McCarthy, who rose to stardom in such movie as Pretty in Pink (John Hughes!), St. Elmo’s Fire (eh…) and Less Than Zero (Robert Downey Jr.!) and wrote the bestselling memoir Brat: An ‘80s Story, goes right to the source, reuniting with his fellow Brat-Packers — friends, colleagues and former foes, many of whom he had not seen for over 30 years — to answer the question: What did it mean to be part of the Brat Pack? We’re talking about Rob Lowe, Demi Moore, Ally Sheedy, Emilio Estevez, Jon Cryer, Lea Thompson and Timothy Hutton. Is that really the entire Brat Pack? I was never really sure who was a Brat Packer. Rat Pack I know forwards and backwards. This is one of those you hadda be there things. Programming Note: Hulu’s goodness typically ends up on Disney+ Canada, sometimes there is a delay though. At the risk of sounding like a Brat, it’s sooooo annoying.

Saturday, June 15

Counsel Culture (Anytime / Prime Video)

A podcast turned talk show hosted by Nick Cannon seeks to help destigmatize topics around male mental health, will address issues including grief, loyalty, financial security, marriage, trust, and emotional vulnerability.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: KEITH ROBINSON: DIFFERENT STROKES (ANYTIME / NETFLIX)

From trying to order Popeyes after his stroke to popping Viagra on a plane, revered comedian Keith Robinson gets real in this hilarious stand-up special.
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I’m not a big Keith Robinson fan, I find his humour subtle, but I want to see how he handles this material. In the one-hour special, Robinson shares personal stories from the aftermath of two life-altering strokes (one in 2016, and one in 2020) as well as insight into his recovery and the challenges he’s faced while navigating his disabilities. This is all wonderfully reminiscent of Richard Pryor: Live on the Sunset Strip a 1982 stand-up comedy special. The witty (yet dark) material includes Pryor’s frank discussion of his drug addiction and of the night that he caught on fire while freebasing cocaine in 1980. It was funny and tragic and hard and it was good comedy. You work through pain by joking around. Well most people do. Different Strokes for different folks, right?

Sunday, June 16

House of The Dragon: Season 2 (Anytime / HBO Max & Crave)

Based on George R.R. Martin’s Fire & Blood, the series, set 200 years before the events of Game of Thrones, tells the story of House Targaryen. Westeros is on the brink of a bloody civil war with the Green and Black Councils fighting for King Aegon and Queen Rhaenyra, respectively. As each side believes theirs to be the rightful seat on the Iron Throne, the Green and Black trailers reflect those two perspectives in separate yet complementary halves of the same story. It Is What It Is.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: PERFECT DAYS (ANYTIME / HULU)

Hirayama is content with his simple life cleaning toilets in Tokyo. Outside of his structured routine he cherishes music on cassette tapes, books, and taking photos of trees. Unexpected encounters reveal more of his story in a deeply moving and poetic reflection on finding beauty in the world around us.
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A Film by Wim Wenders. That’s it…that’s the entire hook. The trailer is below, you can Google for more details but honestly…that’s all you need to know. A Film by Wim Wenders. Make a strong tea and sip this movie slowly like you’re have one of those Perfect Days.

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Sammy Younan is the affable host of My Summer Lair: think NPR’s Fresh Air meets Kevin Smith: interviews & impressions on Pop Culture.