#SetTheVCR: January 08-14, 2024

Monday, January 08

Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project (Anytime / HBO Max & Crave)

Travel through time and space to reveal the enduring influence of Nikki Giovanni with intimate vérité, striking archival footage, and visually innovative treatments of her poetry, revealing the lasting impact of Giovanni’s work on American culture.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: ANOTHER BODY (ANYTIME / CBC GEM)

A documentary that follows a college student’s search for answers and justice after she discovers deepfake pornography of herself circulating online.
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The Sammy Suggestion for December 30th revisited Y2K because as we dashed towards a new year and a new millennium we were facing certain doom via technology. We magically survived Y2K and cried wolf about it. Now as we’re recognizing AI issues it’s vital to face 2024 determining the type of internet we want…and don’t want. Another Body is a 2023 British-American documentary about a college student who seeks justice after finding deepfake pornography of herself online. That’s right. Her face was deepfaked onto real porn. That’s jarring. What’s worse…have nudes you willing took leaked onto the internet? Or being insert into a porno you did not make? We’ve consistently seen (and tolerated) the warped sense of identity which many people promote online: terms like virtue signaling for example. So there is a deep lack of critical thinking online where identity is augmented by a herd narrative (no matter how stupid) is readily accepted. That lack of intelligence meeting deepfakes is going to cause us much grief over the next decade. How do we fix this? How do we start thinking on our own? What kinds of laws do we draft that prevent this from happening yet do not impact the freedom and creativity of the cybersphere? Is there Another Body who can help us?

Tuesday, January 09

La Brea: Season 3 (9:00 p.m. / NBC)

The third and final season of epic adventure drama: La Brea follows an epic family adventure after a massive sinkhole opens in Los Angeles pulling people and buildings into a mysterious and dangerous primeval land where they have no choice but to band together to survive. This season is only 6 episodes and streams the next day on La Peacock.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: MARVEL STUDIOS ECHO: LIMITED SERIES (6:00 P.M. / DISNEY+ & HULU)

Maya Lopez returns home to face her past as it’s the only way for her to move forward and embrace the true meaning of family.
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Limited Series Premiere: There’s a lot to unpack here so let’s get down to business. This past November Marvel Studios established a new banner called Marvel Spotlight. Head of Streaming Brad Winderbaum commented on the decision to launch the new banner with Echo saying: “Marvel Spotlight gives us a platform to bring more grounded, character-driven stories to the screen, and in the case of Echo, focusing on street-level stakes over larger MCU continuity. Just like comics fans didn’t need to read Avengers or Fantastic Four to enjoy a Ghost Rider Spotlight comic, our audience doesn’t need to have seen other Marvel series to understand what’s happening in Maya’s story.” Basically…the MCU was too much homework so you don’t hafta watch all of it. Echo will be the first Marvel-produced series to receive a TV-MA rating from the TV Parental Guidelines, as the show will explore a more gritty and violent story than any other Disney-produced Marvel series until now. And this is a binge release so all 5 episodes are dropped today. So…is this the template? A specific date and time? A binge release? Outside of the MCU continuity? Or will this Echo fade…

Wednesday, January 10

Mr. D: Seasons 1-3 (Anytime / Netflix – Canada)

The series follows the misadventures of an underqualified schoolteacher named Gerry Duncan (played by (Gerry Dee), nicknamed Mr. D. He’s juggling being a teacher and dealing with his students while trying to maintain his not so cool lifestyle.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: PETE DAVIDSON: TURBO FONZARELLI (ANYTIME / / NETFLIX)

Pete Davidson delivers on what it means to grow up and turn 30, discussing love, life, and living in the woods.
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I don’t get Pete Davidson. I’ve tried. I’ve done SNL, The King of Staten Island, the entire first season of Bupkis…and I dunno what else. Meet Cute I think? I don’t get Pete Davidson. Do people think he’s good? What is his value? What does he contribute? I don’t get Pete Davidson. Pete Davidson’s second Netflix hour-long special, Turbo Fonzarelli is now streaming. The production company is Above Average. See? I don’t get Pete Davidson. His first Netflix special, Alive From New York, premiered in 2020. Not sure if I watched that? Whatever. At what point do you give up on a creator? What’s the size of the sample size necessary to give up on them?

Thursday, January 11

Safe Home: Complete Limited Series (Anytime / Hulu)

Safe Home is a 2023 Australian drama four-part miniseries: Phoebe leaves her job at a law firm and begins work at a family violence centre and she must navigate a path that isn’t always clear, and people and events that aren’t always as they appear. Safe Home premiered on SBS Television and SBS on Demand on 11 May 2023; this is its U.S. debut.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: TED: SEASON 1 (ANYTIME / PEACOCK & 9 P.M. / SHOWCASE)

The series serves as a prequel to the hit film franchise and will take fans on a hilarious R-rated nostalgic journey back to the ’90s.
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Series Premiere: “Our series is a prequel to the Ted movies. It takes place in the nineties but is based on the timeless truth that being sixteen sucks. The only thing that makes it tolerable is going through it with a friend, even if that friend is a has-been magical teddy bear with a foul mouth and a proclivity for drug use.” So says Seth MacFarlane who “plays” Ted. Do we really need a prequel? Probably not. But it’s wildly sarcastic and it is Seth MacFarlane and it is January so options are limited. I’ll be Frank…while this is not Art…I’ll Chuck out Ted.

Friday, January 12

Strays (Anytime / Prime Video – Canada)

An abandoned dog teams up with other strays to get revenge on his former owner. It’s Will Ferrell!
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: LIFT (ANYTIME / NETFLIX)

In the movie, an international heist crew, led by Cyrus Whitaker, race to lift $500 million in gold from a passenger plane at 40,000 feet..
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Kevin Hart goes all Fast and Furious. Which is no surprise. I may just be The Man From Toronto but I know Die Hart has been like action Night School for him. I’ll book some Me Time and Ride Along as Kevin and friends go all Oceans 11…in the air. Does this make him Passenger 57?

Saturday, January 13

NFL Wild Card Playoff Games (4:30 p.m. / NBC & Peacock)

The road to the 2024 Super Bowl starts today with the Wild Card Games which will run January 14-16. First game is on at 4:30 pm and it’s Bows vs Texans. That’s followed by Game 2 on at 8:15 pm and it’s a true wild card game…Dolphins at Chiefs. 3 more games on Sunday, then 1 more game on Monday (it’s the Eagles and they’ve struggled so much lately. Can they beat the Bucs??) And that’ll conclude the NFL’s Wild Card Round.
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: SELF RELIANCE (ANYTIME / HULU & PARAMOUNT+ CANADA)

Tommy receives an invitation to win $1 million by playing a game where he must outwit hunters attempting to kill him.
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Andy Samberg shows up in the first 5 minutes of Self Reliance and says to Jake Johnson: “Congrats. You’ve been selected.” Yes…Samberg is playing himself. Jake Johnson is playing Tommy Walcott a disillusioned man stuck in a world that he wants to be in while the world isn’t sure it needs him. He’s trapped in a routine so the opportunity for an adventure is most welcome. What exactly is the adventure? Again to quote Samberg don’t ask me any specific questions. He’s invited to win $1 million by taking part in a reality television game on the dark web. For 30 days, he must outwit hunters attempting to kill him. Well if you know Jake Johnson you know he is no John Wick. Fortunately, he’s found a Nick Miller sized loophole! Even Schmidt would be proud of him. Jake Johnson wrote, produced and directed Self Reliance.

Sunday, January 14

True Detective: Night Country: Season 4 (9:00 p.m. / HBO Max & Crave)

When the long winter night falls in Ennis, Alaska, the eight men who operate the Tsalal Arctic Research Station vanish without a trace. That’s fine because for 6 episodes Jodie Foster is on the case!
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SAMMY SUGGESTION: MONSIEUR SPADE: LIMITED SERIES (ANYTIME / AMC+ & ACORN TV)

Clive Owen as the hard-boiled private detective Sam Spade, Monsieur Spade centers around the infamous protagonist of American writer Dashiell Hammett’s 1930 classic novel The Maltese Falcon.
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Limited Series Premiere: “The year is 1963, and the legendary Detective Sam Spade is enjoying his retirement in the South of France. By contrast to his days as a private eye in San Francisco, Spade’s life in Bozouls is peaceful and quiet. But the rumored return of his old adversary will change everything. Six beloved nuns have been brutally murdered at the local convent. As the town grieves, secrets emerge, and new leads are established. Spade learns that the murders are somehow connected to a mysterious child who is believed to possess great powers.” Oh that’s got enough intrigue. Welcome to a Detective Double Bill tonight with True Detective on HBO Max and Monsieur Spade on AMC Networks. (It’s on TV via AMC at 9 p.m. exact same time as True Detective over on HBO Max.) Both of them should effectively solve the mystery of what would you like to watch tonight?

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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.