A BOX OF GIFTS
Giving thanks for the series and storylines that have resonated
QUANTITY, not quality, has definitely been the name of the game on TV this year. Forgettable shows disappear like objects seen in a rearview mirror, giving the series — and performers — that really stand out a special luster.
If you haven’t caught up with these series, give yourself an early Christmas present.
“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” (Amazon)
The fall season has been a serviceable lineup of medical and legal dramas that will get the timid networks through one more year of programming. The streaming services, meanwhile, have bestowed upon us their equally predictable lineup of dystopian dramas featuring film stars in search of new horizons. But the show everyone has been waiting for is finally back next weekend: “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.” A preview of Season 2’s first five episodes reveals that none of the rapid-fire repartee, grit or sophistication has been squandered. One elegant bonus: the series features two episodes shot in Paris as Abe Weissman (Tony Shalhoub) leaves his classic six on Riverside Drive to win back his unhappy wife (Marin Hinkle). As creators Amy Sherman-Palladino and Daniel Palladino trace Midge’s evolution, we see their heroine engage in a delicate balancing act, honoring the traditions of her culture while secretly perfecting her standup comedy act.
“Killing Eve” (BBC America)
No limited series this year has been as clever, sleek or suspenseful. Now available on demand on AMC, the show, developed by Phoebe Waller-Bridge from a series of novellas by Luke Jennings, features a pair of perfectly matched performances from Sandra Oh as an ambitious MI5 agent who becomes obsessed with catching an assassin she knows only as Villanelle (newcomer Jodie Comer as the enigmatic, glamorous — and funny — killer).
“A Very English Scandal” (Amazon)
“A Very English Scandal” took a true story that unfolded over 14 years and boiled it down to three crackling episodes without sacrificing history, detail or entertainment value. Hugh Grant earned rave reviews as Jeremy Thorpe, a closeted MP whose fears about the revelation of his affair with Norman Josiffe (Ben Whishaw) drove him to hire someone to have the cheeky stable boy murdered.
“This Is Us” (NBC)
At the end of its second season, “This Is Us” previewed a storyline about Jack Pearson’s (Milo Ventimiglia) Vietnam years. Having just seen the series finally tell us how Jack really died, another flashback did not seem promising. But we didn’t know that creator Dan Fogelman was bringing novelist Tim O’Brien, whose book “The Things We Carried” is a blistering chronicle based on his war experiences, on board to co-write those episodes. “This Is Us” has its best storyline in a long time as Jack searches for his brother Nicky (Michael Anganaro) in Vietnam.
Lisa Emery, “Ozark” (Netflix) With Aunt Lydia sidelined on “The Handmaid’s Tale,” we found a new villain to root for: Darlene Snell. Equally adept at blowing the head off drug cartel kingpin Del (Esai Morales) and poisoning her own husband, Jacob (Peter Mullan), Darlene proves she’s frightening, fearless and determined not to give her power (or land) to smarmy money launderer Marty Byrde (Jason Bateman) and his smug wife, Wendy (Laura Linney).