This week’s TV recommendations are all locations from The Kingdom to Magic City to Alien: Earth. When it comes to Sammy Suggestions for #MustSeeTV I’m a #SetTheVCR Rainmaker.
Monday, August 11
Irish Blood: Season 1 (Anytime / Acorn TV)
An Acorn TV Original Series, this six-part murder mystery focuses on Fiona (Alicia Silverstone), whose path in life is earmarked by her father, Declan, who seemingly abandoned her and her mother on her tenth birthday. After years of channeling anger toward him, to the benefit of her litigious clients, a message from her father sends her to Ireland. There, she learns key truths about her father as well as a family that doesn’t know she exists, and, moreover, that the story of abandonment that has shaped her entire life – was a lie. A lie intended to protect her and her mother from her father’s shady business dealings. Fiona resolves to uncover the full truth about her father and reconnect with the parent she only thought she knew.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: MILLERS IN MARRIAGE (ANYTIME / CRAVE)
Eve Miller, a former indie rock singer, struggles with her toxic marriage while growing attracted to a music journalist. Her sister Maggie, a bestselling author, faces marital discord as her career overshadows her husband’s.
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Oh man: I saw Millers in Marriage at TIFF 2024. The rude audacity of this movie: it demands the audience accept dude cheats on Morena Baccarin with Minnie Driver? Come on, man. Even if you’re cheating on Morena Baccarin you ain’t shacking up with Minnie Driver? Yo, man. Rude. Otherwise this is a charming indie movie, fit for streaming.
Tuesday, August 12
Sharp Corner (Anytime / Hulu)
A dedicated family man becomes obsessed with saving the lives of the car accident victims on the sharp corner in front of his house – an obsession that could cost him everything.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: ALIEN: EARTH: SEASON 1 (ANYTIME / FX ON HULU & DISNEY+ CANADA)
When the mysterious deep space research vessel USCSS Maginot crash-lands on Earth, Wendy and a ragtag group of tactical soldiers make a fateful discovery that puts them face-to-face with the planet’s greatest threat.
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June 3, 2122: After detecting a distress signal Mother awakens the Nostromo’s crew to investigate. Many facehuggers later, here we are. While it’s always a thrill to hang with the Xenomorph, I wanna get “something off my chest:” my relationship with Alien is…complicated. Alien: Resurrection floundered. Prometheus was an unwarranted disaster—awful, inferior filmmaking. I dunno about Alien: Romulus yet. I’m concerned Romulus expects me to sit there and watch generic characters slowly perish while rooting for the Xenomorph. Equally vital, those that survive…I’m not invested in the new characters; they’re Alien’s Finn and Rey. How does any of this successfully evolve the mythology? (It’s a small mercy: Alien movies aren’t as insufferably terrible as Predator movies.) Now here’s Alien: Earth, set two years before the 1979 classic. No. No. No. No pre-Kirk Star Trek. That’s the rule. I can’t stand origin stories or prequels. I refused to sit through Enterprise and I have ignored Star Trek: Strange New Worlds but I’ll happily jump into “current” Star Trek anytime. So irritating. Prequels are determined efforts to secure new fans and free them up from consuming “tedious” continuity. I believe continuity should be dense and I believe all nerd IP should have a bouncer at the door. Prequels are an offensive attempt to go mainstream (i.e. the aptly named Star Trek: Discovery) when often…the unique world shouldn’t be for everyone. Here’s the setup for Alien: Earth: “In the year 2120, the Earth is governed by five corporations: Prodigy, Weyland-Yutani, Lynch, Dynamic, and Threshold. In this Corporate Era, cyborgs (humans with both biological and artificial parts) and synthetics (humanoid robots with artificial intelligence) exist alongside humans. But the game is changed when the wunderkind Founder and CEO of Prodigy Corporation unlocks a new technological advancement: hybrids (humanoid robots infused with human consciousness). The first hybrid prototype named Wendy marks a new dawn in the race for immortality. After Weyland-Yutani’s spaceship collides with Prodigy City, Wendy and the other hybrids encounter mysterious life forms more terrifying than anyone could have ever imagined.” FX said this about this Alien TV series: “We’ve got to get this one right, and we’re going to take whatever time it takes to do that.” The pressure to get this Alien series both right and good is crushing. It’s not one or the other. Do the work. Then work harder. Nerd Prayers Up: Please Don’t Suck.
Wednesday, August 13
Freaky Tales (Anytime / HBO Max & Crave)
Four interconnected stories set in 1987 Oakland, CA. will tell about the love of music, movies, people, places and memories beyond our knowable universe.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: BUTTERFLY: SEASON 1 (ANYTIME / PRIME VIDEO)
This six-episode spy thriller, which explores complex family dynamics within the treacherous world of global espionage, centers on David Jung (Daniel Dae Kim), an enigmatic and highly unpredictable former U.S. intelligence operative living in South Korea, whose life is blown to pieces when the consequences of an impossible decision come back to haunt him.
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Another day, another comic book adaptation. Butterfly is 2015 Boom! Studios graphic novel from Arash Amel and Marguerite Bennett, Antonio Fuso and Stefano Simeone. Like Revival and Resident Alien on Syfy I’ve never read these comics. Comics to TV is the real butterfly effect. “David Jung’s life is blown to pieces when the consequences of an impossible decision from his past come back to haunt him, and he finds himself pursued by Rebecca, a deadly, sociopathic young agent assigned to kill him, and Caddis, the sinister spy organization she works for.” Ah, yes I’m a fan of sinister spy organizations. Rest assured, towards the end of the first episode Daniel Dae Kim issues “come with me if you want to live.” Always a good spy-thriller sign. Plus, this series should offer a wicked fun mix between Korean filmmaking and American filmmaking. Let’s see which style stings like a bee and which one floats like a Butterfly. Programming Note: This is a binge release all six episodes will debut on Wednesday, August 13, 2025.
Thursday, August 14
Drop (Anytime / Prime Video-Canada)
A widowed mother’s first date in years takes a terrifying turn when she’s bombarded with anonymous threatening messages on her phone during their upscale dinner, leaving her questioning if her charming date is behind the harassment. Programming Note: This is for Canadians. For Americans Drop was added to Peacock on July 11.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: THE KINGDOM (ANYTIME / ESPN+ & DISNEY+)
The remarkable run builds upon nearly a decade of tremendous success, during which the team made the playoffs every year (2015-24), won the AFC West Division title nine years running (2016-24), appeared in the AFC Championship Game seven years in a row (2018-24), and ultimately made five Super Bowl appearances over the past six years, raising the hallowed Vince Lombardi Trophy three times. Along the way, the series will spotlight the 65-year history of the Chiefs franchise, dating back to its earliest days in Dallas, Texas, when the team was founded by the legendary sports innovator Lamar Hunt. It will explore the many highs and lows of the club’s iconic path to modern-day dynasty, detailed by countless untold stories and behind-the-scenes moments that have shaped its legacy.
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“The Kingdom was filmed over the course of the 2024 season and includes unprecedented access into the players’ lives on and off the field, details the Chiefs’ journey as the club completed a franchise-record 15-win regular season, captured a third-consecutive Lamar Hunt Trophy as AFC champions and made a third-straight Super Bowl appearance in New Orleans.” Back in November 2024, I struggled to understand the irrational premise that the Chiefs were “barely winning.” “Barely winning” was the sports media’s knock on the Chiefs. Huh? It doesn’t matter if the games are close; the games still count. A win is a win. And they were winning. Sadly, this is the Tom Brady Template: success inevitably generates crappy clickbait. The more Brady won, the greater volume of clickbait was created—annoyingly it’s popular and profitable. Toward the end of his NFL career, most Tom Brady criticisms weren’t rational or grounded in reality. Whenever the Chiefs make the Super Bowl, that’s exactly what you want: domination. A dynasty. Winning is paramount. Winning is beautiful. This is what you’re supposed to do—like a doctor healing an ill patient. Build a dynasty. And yes, it’s incredibly difficult to pull off in the NFL compared to the NBA. Do it anyway. Satisfaction is how you accept “good enough.” Good enough is a compromise. Stay hungry. Build boldly. That’s why I’m excited to check out the Chiefs’ documentary. I am enjoying this Kingdom. Programming Note: All six episodes of the Kingdom will premiere on ESPN+ and Disney+ on August 14.
Friday, August 15
Jaws @ 50: The Definitive Inside Story (Anytime / Disney+ Canada)
Steven Spielberg shares an authorized look inside the story of JAWS in this documentary. From Peter Benchley’s epic novel to Spielberg’s film, JAWS continues to influence pop culture, cinema and shark conservation. With interviews from Hollywood’s most influential directors and shark scientists, the legend of JAWS is endless.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: THE RAINMAKER: SEASON 1 (10:00 P.M. / USA NETWORK)
Based on the bestselling novel by John Grisham, The Rainmaker follows Rudy Baylor (now Milo Callaghan), who is fresh out of law school, as he goes head-to-head with courtroom lion Leo Drummond (John Slattery), as well as his law school girlfriend, Sarah. Rudy, along with his boss, Bruiser and her disheveled paralegal, Deck, uncover two connected conspiracies surrounding the mysterious death of their client’s son.
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First The Rainmaker was John Grisham’s 1995 legal thriller. Then The Rainmaker was adapted into a 1997 feature film by Francis Ford Coppola. Now, The Rainmaker is a 10-episode David-vs-Goliath legal thriller. Talk about badgering the IP. Milo Callaghan replaces Matt Damon as Rudy Baylor. John Slattery is now the senior partner Leo F. Drummond. In the movie a smarmy Jon Voight played Drummond. P. J. Byrne has replaced Danny DeVito as Deck Shifflet. New to TV is another silly gender swamp following female Matlock, female Equalizer (such a wearisome TV trend): meet Lana Parrilla as Jocelyn “Bruiser” Stone. In the movie Mickey Rourke was J. Lyman “Bruiser” Stone. He looked and talked like a Bruiser, a ruthless ambulance chaser. I’m not sure she pulls of the Bruiser vibe. Is it better than the Francis Ford Coppola movie? It’s TV so it’s different, however different doesn’t count. The question remains as it does with every single remake and or reboot from the recent Naked Gun to the upcoming Running Man to Rainmaker TV show: Is it better than the original? If the answer is no then the reboot automatically has no value and it failed. It’s a waste of time and money when a better, stronger (original) story should have been told. Lastly, this is the third John Grisham TV series following 1995’s The Client and 2012’s The Firm. Both barely lasted a season. Will The Rainmaker make it rain? Programming Note: Rainmaker episodes will stream on Peacock. While in Canada Rainmaker debuts on Saturday, August 16 at 10 p.m. on our USA Network, then it’s on Crave the following day. Eh…just watch the series on Peacock and Crave.
Saturday, August 16
Sausage Party: Foodtopia (Anytime / Prime Video)
Saturday Morning Cartoons: The second season of the animated series finds Frank (Seth Rogen), Barry (Michael Cera), and Sammy (Edward Norton) exiled in New Foodland, a shining utopia for food and humans alike. But beneath the city’s glossy fridges and cheery smiles lies a dark secret that threatens the entirety of sentient food society.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: MAGIC CITY: AN AMERICAN FANTASY (ANYTIME / STARZ)
Magic City: An American Fantasy is a riveting docuseries that takes viewers on a wild and unexpected ride detailing the legendary club’s storied history as a cultural hub in Atlanta. Having evolved into the definitive king-maker in the hip-hop community, the club caters to high-profile celebrities such as 2 Chainz, Nelly, Shaquille O’Neal, Quavo, Killer Mike and Big Boi, all of whom share their firsthand Magic City experiences in exclusive interviews. Additionally, the docuseries offers a powerful platform for the lives of the many women who work there and are responsible for building the club’s mystique.
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During the 2020 NBA Bubble Lou Williams was caught at Magic City. (Remember how obnoxious COVID protocols were all fear and ignorance??! Dumb times.) Lou was getting chicken wings for dinner; he has a wing named after him: Louwill Lemon Pepper BBQ. Magic City is NBA famous. Yo. “This star-studded documentary explores the rise of Atlanta’s iconic strip club, Magic City, and its massive influence on hip-hop culture. With exclusive interviews from Drake, T.I., 2 Chainz, Jermaine Dupri, Big Boi, Killer Mike, Quavo, and more, this docuseries dives into how Magic City shaped Atlanta’s nightlife, sound, and swagger.” Hip hop culture, Atlanta, NBA and more…it is all happening. This is where the Magic happens…
Sunday, August 17
Resident Alien – Series Finale (Anytime / Peacock & Crave)
“I’m so proud of how good season 4 is and especially proud that we were able to finish as strongly as we did, with a finale that is probably my favorite episode of the series,” creator and showrunner Chris Sheridan told TV Insider. That’s it. Resident Alien has come to an end. I’m disappointed but oh, how I had many laughs and enjoyed the sci-fi. Everything is expected to end. Smell Ya Later Resident Alien.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: JIM JEFFERIES: TWO LIMB POLICY (ANYTIME / NETFLIX)
Comedian Jim Jefferies unleashes his thoughts on tiny mustaches, straight-guy struggles and why acting doesn’t count as a real job.
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If a meeting shoulda been an email then most Jim Jefferies articles shoulda been a bland tweet. Skip the Clickbait. If you wanna Netflix and chill with Jim, go for it. You’ll laugh and have a good time. It’s Jim Jefferies; you know what to expect. He’s been growing on me. I watched his 2018 comedy special This Is Me Now twice. Really strong work. I wasn’t sold on him until that special. I’ll go out on a Two Limb for this new Netflix special.
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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.
