#SetTheVCR: August 04-10, 2025

Monday, August 04

Borderline (Anytime / Peacock)

A helplessly romantic sociopath escapes from a mental institution and invades the home of a ’90s pop superstar. He just wants to be loved; she just wants to survive.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: FINAL DESTINATION BLOODLINES (HBO MAX & CRAVE)

Plagued by a violent recurring nightmare, college student Stefani heads home to track down the one person who might be able to break the cycle – her grandmother, Iris – and save her family from the grisly demise that inevitably awaits them all.
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Final Destination: Bloodlines is now streaming. How bad is it? Ironically, this franchise refuses to die. My Bad. I’ve been Day One with Final Destinations. I saw all five movies in cinemas. My foolish efforts got this horror franchise to 6. Sorry? (Eh, I regret nothing.) The first Final Destination is still the best of the bunch. (The first one was clever; using famous directors last names as character names. And instead of Jason or Freddy; it’s death stalking the horny teens. Fresh. Get those teens!!) Finals are reverse Star Trek movies in quality: the odd ones are the strongest entries in the dark franchise. Part 3 > Part 2. Part 4? Total nonsense title using The. Let’s retire this weary franchise. Especially now since Tony Todd passed away in 2024. What a run that guy had; he will be missed.

Tuesday, August 05

Hard Knocks: Training Camp with the Buffalo Bills (Anytime / HBO Max & Crave)

This marks the first time the Buffalo Bills have been selected to take part in this NFL series. (And marks the first time this is on Crave.) Head coach Sean McDermott and general manager Brandon Beane will be featured alongside the 2024 NFL Most Valuable Player, quarterback Josh Allen, and an array of veteran and rookie players training at St. John Fisher University in Pittsford, New York. This five-part docuseries is narrated by Liev Schreiber. This is also a rare Canadian Premiere.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: SEC FOOTBALL: ANY GIVEN SATURDAY: SEASON 1 (ANYTIME / NETFLIX)

Follow college football’s most elite players and coaches in this unfiltered documentary series that goes behind the scenes of the 2024.
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I’ve always been against paying college athletes. I’ve never agreed with the deeply flawed narrative that college athletes should be paid. Like most public pronouncements the popular premise was sloppy and misguided. Since then, I’ve opposed and been openly critical of NIL. NIL transforms athletes into loser influencers who play sports. So? That doesn’t mean they’re good, doesn’t mean they’re gonna win or that they’ll even be great. Why would I ever be excited about an influencer with no accomplishments? NIL is like going viral. That ain’t a valid accomplishment. Just as going viral is super cringey; NIL is embarrassing. What other options are there? Constantly I was told I was wrong yet fools pushed for this anyways. All of this mess is on you. So let’s check out this SEC window and see what happens on Any Given Saturday.

Wednesday, August 06

Platonic: Season 2 (Anytime / Apple TV+)

Season 2 picks up with everyone’s favorite pair of best friends (played by Seth Rogen and Rose Byrne) as they contend with new mid-life hurdles, including work, weddings and partners in crises. The duo tries their best to be each other’s rock, but sometimes rocks break things. Programming Note: The 10-episode second season premieres on Wednesday, August 6, 2025, with the first two episodes, followed by one episode weekly until October 1, 2025.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: THE PICKUP (ANYTIME / PRIME VIDEO)

A routine cash pickup takes a wild turn when two mismatched armored truck drivers, Rusell (Eddie Murphy) and Travis (Pete Davidson), are ambushed by ruthless criminals led by a savvy mastermind, Zoe, with plans that go way beyond the cash cargo. As chaos unfolds around them, the unlikely duo must navigate high-risk danger, clashing personalities, and one very bad day that keeps getting worse.
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Andrew Dice Clay and Eddie Murphy?! Man, I feel bad for the youths…all you got to look forward to is Ilana Glazer and John Mulaney. We had Dice and Eddie: it was loud, New York City crude…just solid filthy fun. Wisely nobody played it safe. I’m not exactly gonna Pickup solid laughs from this movie but eh…it’s streaming on Prime. So why not?

Thursday, August 07

Wednesday: Season 2 Part 1 (Anytime / Netflix)

Wednesday Addams returns to prowl the Gothic halls of Nevermore Academy, where fresh foes and woes await. Programming Note: Part 1’s Premiere Date (with episodes 201-204) is August 6, 2025. Part 2’s Premiere Date (with episodes 205-208) is September 3, 2025.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: BOB TREVINO LIKES IT (ANYTIME / HULU)

A people-pleasing young woman is involuntarily estranged from her narcissistic father and unexpectedly befriends a childless man with the same name as her father on the internet.
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This isn’t You Got Mail. This isn’t a boy meets girl story or movie. Rather it’s the slow tender relationship where two people can fluently communicate in the same language because they’re both broken. Bob has lost his infant son and Lily is estranged and hurt by her real father. Pain is a universal language. They’re both grieving loss and unsure how to move forward. No one really knows what they’re doing. Filmmaker Tracie Laymon has grappled with this grim experience. In an effort to reach out to her distant father…she put his name into Facebook. And was quickly friended…but wait…is this her Dad? Turns out it was not. He was a total stranger from Wichita, Kansas. He had the same name as Tracie’s father (who also lived in Wichita). Now…what? They stayed Facebook friends. They used the platform to correspond. They hit Like. And slowly…this stranger became her Facebook Dad. This movie offers a completely different social media message from what we have heard lately. It’s the noble opposite of what we’ve seen the last little while as well. It’s easy to think common good is eroding. It’s easy to think but perhaps it isn’t true. It all sounds so serious and perhaps it is. There’s a gravity to love; romantically we talk about falling in love, after all. Bob Trevino Likes It. I bet you will, too.

Friday, August 08

The Monkey (Anytime / Hulu & Prime Video-Canada)

When twin brothers Hal and Bill discover their father’s old monkey toy in the attic, a series of gruesome deaths start occurring all around them. Another flawed Stephen King adaptation.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: CLOWN IN A CORNFIELD (ANYTIME / SHUDDER & AMC+)

Quinn and her father have just moved to the quiet town of Kettle Springs hoping for a fresh start. Instead, she discovers a fractured community that has fallen on hard times after the treasured Baypen Corn Syrup Factory burned down. As the locals bicker amongst themselves and tensions boil over, a sinister, grinning figure emerges from the cornfields to cleanse the town of its burdens, one bloody victim at a time.
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We’re swimming in clown horror lately. There’s plenty of low-budget clown junk on Tubi if you’re brave—or bored?—enough to search. Terrifier 3 dropped in 2024, once again featuring Art the Clown. And of course, Pennywise returns this October in the ironically titled Welcome to Derry. Georgie: “I’m not supposed to take stuff from strangers. My dad said so.” Pennywise: “Very wise of your dad, Georgie. Very wise indeed. I, Georgie, am Pennywise the Dancing Clown! You are Georgie! So, now we know each other! Correct?” Enter Frendo the Clown—Pennywise for the TikTok kids. Frendo stalks the town’s wayward teens, picking them off one by one. Ah, yes that’s got a classic ’80s slasher style I can enjoy. Clown in a Cornfield is based on the 2020 YA horror novel by Adam Cesare. (Did you read it?) The film was shot in Winnipeg from September 18 to October 23, 2023, though it’s set in the town of Kettle Springs, Missouri. (Is that a real place?) Well now…send in the clown…

Saturday, August 09

King of the Hill: Season 14 (Anytime / Hulu & Disney+ Canada)

Saturday Morning Cartoons: It’s time once again to stock up on propane and propane accessories and make a big plate of spa-Peggy and meatballs. So what’s the big deal about the 14th season of yet another adult animated comedy? For one thing, it’s the first new batch of episodes in 16 years. Hulu revival brings 10 new episodes which pick up some years later, with Hank and Peggy Hill retired and son Bobby now 21 and working as a chef in Dallas. The original cast—including Judge, Pamela Adlon, Kathy Najimy, Lauren Tom, Stephen Root, Toby Huss, and the late Johnny Hardwick (who passed away after recording a few episodes)—returns.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: AMERICAN PRINCE: JFK JR. (10 P.M. / CNN)

The remarkable life and enduring legacy of John F. Kennedy Jr. are explored in this three-part CNN original series.
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“American Prince: JFK Jr. traces his early years marked by his father’s assassination and the societal and familial pressures to carry the Kennedy torch, through his decision to create George, a new kind of political magazine within the rapidly evolving media landscape of the 90s. It also reveals the love story he shared with Carolyn Bessette, which was relentlessly targeted by media attention.” Huh, okay then. Back in the day I enjoyed George Magazine. Thing is I don’t know much about Jr. So I’m up for this.

Sunday, August 10

Taurasi (Anytime / Prime Video)

A three-part docuseries chronicling the extraordinary journey of basketball legend Diana Taurasi, whose relentless pursuit of greatness has transcended the boundaries of sport—including three NCAA championships with the University of Connecticut, three WNBA titles with the Phoenix Mercury, six Olympic gold medals, and six EuroLeague crowns.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: THE HOBBY: TALES FROM THE TABLETOP (ANYTIME / HOOPLA)

Explores the passionate world of modern board gaming, following enthusiasts who find community and meaning through games. Filmmaker Simon Ennis examines the massive subculture of modern board games, featuring personal stories of competition, compulsion, creativity and connection.
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Growing up did you play board games like Uno or Sorry or even Monopoly? Fun, right? Now forget those classic experiences. An entire board game subculture has emerged that recognizes tabletop games as works of artistic expression and community-building and even cerebral engagement. About 3 minutes into The Hobby a tabletop board game documentary, a gamer looks into the camera and confirms: “People don’t realize how big the world of board games is.” He is talking about me, of course. So this puzzling world…this subculture of games and gamers was brand new to me. And that’s what fascinating documentaries do: they allow you to visit a strange and unfamiliar world. All of this…this passion, this enthusiasm, this creativity, the board games, the community and even the World Series of Board Games is covered in Simon Ennis’ documentary The Hobby: Tales from the Tabletop. You’ll wanna roll the dice on this documentary.

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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.