AMAZON & NETFLIX

HOMECOMING

NEW SERIES Mind-bending mystery of mangled memory

The first series of the creepy psychological thriller was about memory manipulation and a dodgy military project. It starred Julia Roberts and reminded everyone what a great actor she is. Series two is a new mystery but with similar themes and some returning characters, although Roberts won’t be back. Janelle Monáe stars, playing a woman who wakes up in a rowing boat on a lake, with no memory of how she got there or even who she is. Again, the secretive ‘wellness’ company, the Geist Group, is involved. Amazon, from Friday

HIGHTOWN

NEW SHOW A party-loving cop faces a tough lifestyle choice

Jackie Quiñones (Monica Raymund) is a National Marine Fisheries Service agent – a ‘fish cop’ – who lives in tourist hotspot Provincetown on Cape Cod. She insists that she doesn’t have a drink and drug problem. She just likes ‘to party a little’, like everyone else in ‘P-Town’. But when she finds the body of a murder victim on the beach – seemingly linked to the local drug trade – she becomes embroiled in the investigation and realises she has to make some serious changes in her life. New crime drama with eight episodes. Starzplay (via Amazon), from Sunday

THE BIG FLOWER FIGHT

NEW SHOW Bloomin’ ambitions with Vic Reeves

Think of Netflix’s charming, cheering, colourful show as The Great British BloomOff. Comedians Natasia Demetriou and Vic Reeves are the hosts and, over eight episodes, ten teams of amateur gardeners compete to create ever more ambitious flower sculptures. Reeves and Demetriou have genuine empathy with the contestants, who are an eccentric but hugely talented bunch from several countries. ‘Florist to the stars’ Kristen Griffith-VanderYacht judges their creations and decides who continues and who gets sent to the compost heap. The winning duo gets the chance to design an installation for Kew Gardens. ‘It’s not Gardeners’ World,’ says Reeves. ‘It’s punk rock gardening.’ Netflix, from Monday

AGENTS OF SHIELD

Sci-fi fantasy fulfilment for superhero fans

Starved of Marvel Cinematic Universe movie action? Don’t forget Agents Of Shield, the TV show that debuted in 2013. All six series of the consistently entertaining and frequently funny sci-fi drama are available ahead of the release of the seventh and final season. It’s about the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement, and Logistics Division (S.H.I.E.L.D.), which keeps tabs on people with extra-normal powers, sentient robots trying to take over the planet, that sort of thing. The final series will see team timetravel and get stranded in Prohibition-era New York. Amazon, from Monday

DYNASTY

NEW SERIES Get your shoulder pads out: it’s back!

The third season of the glossy 2017 revamp of the glitzy 1980s soap has been a long time coming – it was broadcast on US TV back in October. We hope it will have been worth the wait because, let’s face it, we could all use a little of its bonkers escapism right now. The run opens in a suitably melodramatic fashion as the bodies in the lake are recovered, leaving the Carringtons with a bit of a headache. If that isn’t overblown enough for you, Adam tries to kill a comatose Liam, Fallon is haunted by visions of Trixie, and Blake is arrested. Just a typical Dynasty day really… Netflix, from Saturday

THE LOVEBIRDS

NEW SHOW A romcom couple running from the law

Netflix snapped up this romcom when the planned cinema release was cancelled because of the pandemic. Issa Rae and Kumail Nanjiani (left) star as a couple whose car is commandeered by a ‘cop’ who uses it to run down and kill someone. In order to clear their names they have to solve the murder while on the run, which places something of a strain on their relationship. Directed by Michael Showalter, whose last film, The Big Sick, was also a romcom starring Nanjiani. Netflix, from Friday