There was lots of love this past February; it was like Valentine’s Day was all month long…at least on TV. Here are some TV highlights that are #CouchWorthy. Maybe you missed em or didn’t hear about em. What about something fresh? Or something different? Or fun! Then here ya go!
February Highlights
Carnival Row: Season 2 (Anytime / Prime Video)
In a fantasy world where humans and creatures clash, Season Two of Carnival Row picks up with former inspector Rycroft Philostrate a.k.a. Philo investigating a series of gruesome murders stoking social tension. This 10 episode season served as the series’ final season, concluding on March 17, 2023.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: HELLO TOMORROW!: SEASON 1 (ANYTIME / APPLE TV+)
Set in a retro-future world, Hello Tomorrow! centers around a group of traveling salesmen hawking lunar timeshares.
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The leads are weak! Glengarry Glen Ross for the space jet set. Set in the future, the show follows a group of traveling salesmen selling lunar timeshares. Oh…yes. Freeze-dried coffee’s for closers! Welcome to the future: vacation on the moon and on Earth cruise in hovercars with fins. Another alternative American saga from the streamer who gave viewers For All Mankind. Programming Note: The 10-episode, half-hour series debuted on Friday, February 17, 2023 and concluded its season on Friday through April 7, 2023. As of this writing it has neither been renewed or cancelled so “Hello Tomorrow” is a bit premature.
February Highlights
Jim Jefferies: High N’ Dry (Anytime / Netflix)
In the special, newly married and loving life with his wife and kids, Jefferies sounds off on the laziness of koala bears, the injustices of male pattern baldness and the reason why he’ll never drink again. His tenth stand up special and latest since 2020’s Jim Jefferies: Intolerant. And yes there are jokes about stoned koalas. I mean it’s Jim Jefferies; this is what you signed up for.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: THE ARK: SEASON 1 (ANYTIME / PEACOCK (US) & CRAVE (CANADA))
Created by Dean Devlin, The Ark takes place 100 years in the future when planetary colonization missions have begun as a necessity to help secure the survival of the human race.
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Ark One is the Godspeed Little Doodle of the human race. The 12 episode sci-fi show is set “100 years in the future when planetary colonization missions have begun as a necessity to help secure the survival of the human race.” Only a year away from reaching the target planet Ark One suffers catastrophic damage. Nothing disrupts a road trip like a passenger who has to pee…right now! This is a harrowing tale of human race survival. To far from home and not close enough to safety…The Ark is adrift and only Noah can relate. Programming Note: The first season debuted on Wednesday, February 1, 2023 and concluded its season on Wednesday April 19, 2023. In April 2023, the series was renewed for a second season.
February Highlights
The Circus: Season 8 (Anytime / Paramount+ & Crave)
Hosts John Heilemann, Mark McKinnon and Jennifer Palmieri pull back the curtain on this extraordinarily fractured and volatile moment for American democracy. The political docuseries will air its final episode on November 12, 2023; ending its run after eight seasons and 130 episodes.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: STAR TREK: PICARD: SEASON 3 (ANYTIME / PARAMOUNT+ (US) & CRAVE (CANADA))
Vadic a mysterious alien captain of the Shrike, a warship has set its sights on Jean-Luc Picard and his old crewmates from his days on the Enterprise.
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One last epic adventure across the galaxy for the hopes and heroes of the Enterprise. Most of the Star Trek: The Next Generation crew — including Michael Dorn’s Worf, LeVar Burton’s Geordi La Forge, Jonathan Frakes’ Riker, Marina Sirtis’ Troi and Gates McFadden’s Dr. Beverly Crusher — are set to appear alongside Patrick Stewart’s Jean-Luc Picard. All Good Things…Part 2. Programming Note: The season premiered on Paramount+ on February 16, 2023 and ran for 10 episodes until April 20, 2023.
February Highlights
Pamela: A Love Story (Anytime / Netflix)
In her own words, through personal video and diaries, Pamela Anderson shares the story of her rise to fame, rocky romances and infamous sex tape scandal.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: UFOS: INVESTIGATING THE UNKNOWN (ANYTIME / HULU)
At long last, it looks like the truth about UFOs may finally be revealed.
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A 5-hour UFO docuseries with Mark O’Connell whose book is outstanding: The Close Encounters Man: How One Man Made the World Believe in UFOs. Yes a compelling biography of J. Allen Hynek who attempted to debunk or dismiss UFOs. How…did we get there? The US Government’s recent revelations about their UFO/UAP (Unidentified Aerial Phenomenon) program is currently challenging our beliefs. Something…is out there. And this is why I’m recommending this docuseries. Rather than focusing on the difficult to explain experience of an individual; this is an exploration of the American Government’s role in our UFO lore. What they’ve made public is just as fascinating as what they’ve kept hidden; there’s a push for transparency (in all aspects of government really) and a frustrating mystery that even with their resources and experts cannot neatly solve. Something…is out there. But what? But who? And can we trust the American Government to tell us what is out there? You can hear the X-Files eerie theme in your head as you read this huh?
February Highlights
Stand (Anytime / Paramount+)
The raw and unflinching documentary details Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf’s unprecedented journey from schoolboy prodigy to NBA All-Rookie team to national pariah.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: THE GRIZZLIE TRUTH (ANYTIME / CRAVE)
Filmmaker Kat Jayme investigates a sprawling true sports crime: who’s responsible for robbing us of the Vancouver Grizzlies.
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The Grizzlie Truth is an investigation; it’s documentary detective work to unpack and explore a number of factors that lead to the Grizzlies basketball team moving from Vancouver to Memphis. Having been to both cities I can assure you they are completely different vibes. Vancouver won 101 games, lost 359 games and never qualified for the NBA playoffs. Oof! They subsequently moved to Memphis, Tennessee for the 2001–02 season. So…what happened?
It’s never one thing, sports teams don’t always leave for one specific reason. Just as couples don’t always break up over one thing. Kat’s documentary (she’s a diehard Vancouver Grizzlies fan) The Grizzlie Truth about the Grizzlies’ departure underscores that. This is director Kat Jayme’s second Grizzlies documentary; Finding Big Country came out in 2018. And now she’s back on the case. Do the clues add up? Watch and find out. (This doc is also floating around TSN so check your local listing for times/dates. And hear my interview with Kat in Never Gonna Give You Up: Sing Rick Astley’s hit for the Vancouver Grizzlies.)
February Highlights
You: Season 4 – Part 1 (Anytime / Netflix)
The logline is accurate for Season 4 of You: “New year, new country, new persona – and yet Joe can’t seem to shake off his past.” Yup that’s about right. Joe dips his toes (well some of them) in a new country and ends up murdering hot chicks. “You” know how it goes by now. Programming Note: Part 2 streamed on March 9, one month later just for…You.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: RED ROSE: SEASON 1 (ANYTIME / NETFLIX)
This creepy show about a supernatural app and horny teens is a BBC-Netflix co-production; it was already broadcast on me telly back in August last year. For now all 8 episodes of Red Rose are available on BBC iPlayer and now on me Netflix.
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What does the Red Rose app want and why is it taking over the lives of these Bolton schoolgirls? Remember Black Mirror’s 2016 episode Shut up and Dance, in which a teenage boy downloads what he thinks is an anti-malware program called Shrive? There’s also Countdown a 2019 movie about an app that can predict when a person will die. Red Rose is the latest supernatural infused technology which ensnares hapless teens in a dark web. Originally released in the UK on August 15, 2022 this original horror series is now streaming on Netflix. (It’s rare but this is indeed an original series not adapted from anything.) Well let’s see how these kids navigate and survive the evil entity they’ve unleashed by downloading the Red Rose app. I’m sure the insidious app will no doubt “Force Quit” some of these wayward youths.
February Highlights
Bel-Air: Season 2 (Anytime / Peacock)
Season two picks up with Will at a crossroads in his life as a new figure comes into his life who challenges what he’s learned in Bel-Air and competes for control of his influence. Programming Note: The Canadian Broadcast Premiere was March 20 on Showcase. Programming Note: In March 2023, the series was renewed for a third season.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: THE CONSULTANT: SEASON 1 (ANYTIME / PRIME VIDEO)
No one is who they seem in Sharper, a neo-noir thriller of secrets and lies, set amongst New York City’s bedrooms, barrooms and boardroom.
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At a hospital it’s not good if Annie Wilkes is your nurse. Similarly Christoph Waltz is the Annie Wilkes of the tech industry. If you’ve read Bentley Little’s novel (same name) Waltz was brought in to improve the business at the app-based gaming company CompWare. Only some workers are curious about The Consultant. Perhaps his murder-life balance is off? It appears so. What is happening and who is in charge are never static. Office Space meets Misery? You can watch all 8 episodes as this is a binge drop…unless you hand in your resignation letter halfway through the season. Programming Note: As of this writing it has neither been renewed or cancelled .
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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.
