Having a weird summer? These television shows will fit right in
Summer has always been a strange time to watch television.
While there are plenty of acclaimed dramas and sharp comedies to choose from this summer, you also can savor a mini-golf competition, a fake talk show about a fake TV show, a fake variety comedy show, meta-mockumentaries and zombie tidal waves. Of all the weird, campy and strange series available this summer, these five are the most wonderful.
‘What Just Happened??! with Fred Savage’
Fox’s new summer series is a fake after-show, like AMC’s “Talking Dead,” for a TV show that doesn’t exist. Fred Savage, playing a slightly sadder version of himself, talks about the fictional sci-fi series “The Flare” with celebrity guests and “stars” of “Flare,” about a solar flare that eventually leads to an post-apocalyptic Earth, cast members, all the while staging weird bits (like trying to sneak into Helen Mirren’s house). The series even has other celebrities playing heightened versions of themselves, like Rob Lowe hawking a book he actually wrote but also making fun of his pretty-boy persona. It requires a lot of insider knowledge to fully enjoy, but it’s a wild ride. 8:30 p.m. Sundays on Fox, locally on WITI-TV (Channel 6)
‘Holey Moley’
If you ever wished that mini-golf was a little more maxi, ABC has the summer series for you. The network’s new competition is exactly the kind of over-the-top, emotional and brightly colored summer fare that broadcast networks do best. The high-intensity mini-golf matches go well with corny cameos from NBA star and producer Stephen Curry in “Steph Curry Moments,” and hosting antics from Rob Riggle and Joe Tessitore. 7 p.m. Thursdays on ABC
‘Frankenstein’s Monster’s Monster, Frankenstein’
If Season 3 of “Stranger Things” didn’t have quite enough David Harbour for you, Netflix has you covered with this meta-mockumentary, in which Harbour searches for answers (and found footage) from his “father’s” past “televised play,” “Frankenstein’s Monster’s Monster, Frankenstein.” The 28-minute comedy special shows the many sides of Harbour — and his beard — as he plays himself, and his father. Or something. On Netflix July 16
‘Sherman’s Showcase’
Fans of IFC’s “Documentary Now!” will be happy about the network’s newest offbeat comedic parody. Instead of satirizing nonfiction filmmaking, “Sherman’s” pokes fun at variety shows like “In Living Color.” The series takes place during the decades-long history of a fictional series hosted by Sherman McDaniel (Bashir Salahuddin). Salahuddin co-created the series with Diallo Riddle, who cut their comedic chops working on “The History of Rap” and “Slow Jam the News” segments on “The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon.” Guest stars include Common, Tiffany Haddish, Quincy Jones, Morris Day, John Legend and Mike Judge. 9 p.m. Wednesdays starting July 31 on IFC
‘Zombie Tidal Wave’
If sharks can have tornadoes, why can’t zombies have tidal waves? Syfy’s latest horror shlock film stars Mr. Sharknado himself, Ian Ziering, set in a world where, the network promises, “zombie-slinging tsunamis offer a special brand of maritime mayhem, going from bad to worse when they make landfall.”