“The Boys”
The superhero series continues to rip the mask off the billion-dollar genre when it returns with a second season of sharp social commentary tucked inside a dark, irreverent comedy about the perils of hero worship. Developed by Eric Kripke and based on the comic book by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson, the series follows a team of vigilantes lead by Billy Butcher (Karl Urban). They are determined to expose the crimes of America’s beloved superhero squad, the Seven, and destroy the corporation that
promotes and profits from their masked malfeasance. Season 2 continues the keen satire, tackling everything from corporate greed to cancel culture with new themes and characters that feel made for this moment. (Amazon Prime, Friday)
“Woke”
This comedy series that interrogates race and identity seems particularly timely as America continues to reckon with systemic racism, and as we pay close attention to whose creative voices get elevated and why. Among the themes the show is poised to explore is the difference between a Black artist and an artist who happens to be Black. How does a person navigate art and politics when their identity has been politicized? Created by Marshall Todd and Keith Knight, “Woke” is about a Black cartoonist on the cusp of a new career milestone. But a run-in with the police leaves him shaken and unable to escape new voices that challenge his ideas and approach to life. (Hulu, Wednesday)
“We Are Who We Are”
Director Luca Guadagnino, the sensualist behind “I Am Love,” “A Bigger Splash” and “Call Me by Your Name,” shows off yet another side of his native Italy in his first TV series, the HBO/SKY Atlantic co-production “We Are Who We Are.” Starring Jack Dylan Grazer and Jordan Kristene Seamon as U.S. Army brats coming of age on an overseas base, the drama shares a sensibility with much of Guadagnino’s prior work — it's queer, it’s nostalgic and it’s as suffused with romance as an Italian summer — this time refracted through a structure (dual perspectives), a genre (the teen melodrama) and a political moment (the months preceding the election of 2016) that take the filmmaker’s work in bold new directions. Swoon. (HBO, Sept. 14)
“A Wilderness of Error”
Decades before accused murderers O.J. Simpson, Robert Durst and Adnan Syed captivated the public, there was Jeffrey Macdonald, a Green Beret who was convicted for the murders of his pregnant wife and two daughters in 1970 and blamed the crime on a gang of drug-crazed hippies. The notorious case already has inspired a TV miniseries and two well-known books, Joe Mcginniss’ bestseller “Fatal Vision” and Janet Malcolm’s provocative study of journalistic ethics, “The Journalist and the Murderer.” The five-part docuseries “Wilderness of Error,” which is based on the book by documentary filmmaker Errol Morris, is likely to revive interest in one of true crime’s foundational stories. (FX, Sept. 25)
“Fargo”
It seems like forever since the last season of FX’S quirky anthology series “Fargo,” although it has only been three years. But judging from the story line and the star power of lead Chris Rock, the fourth edition will be worth the wait. Rock takes a dramatic turn as the head of a crime family who faces off against a competing syndicate in 1950s Kansas City. “Fargo” was scheduled to premiere last April, but production was shut down due to the pandemic. (FX, Sept. 27)
“Monsterland”
Horror and fantasy allows us to examine our humanity — and inhumanity — in particularly poignant ways, and recent films and TV shows such as “Get Out” and “Lovecraft Country” have set a high bar. This anthology series, based on Nathan Ballingrud’s collection of short stories, “North American Lake Monsters,” boasts an impressive cast and promises encounters with “mermaids, fallen angels and other strange beasts.” Ballingrud’s work has been noted for being dark, fraught and challenging, so it will be interesting to see how that is adapted for TV. (Hulu, Oct. 2)
“The Right Stuff”
This account of America’s first astronauts, first popularized in Tom Wolfe’s bestselling book and dramatized in Philip Kaufman’s 1983 film featuring an all-star cast, will be revisited in a new series from National Geographic. The eight-episode project will air on Disney+ and launch with a two-episode debut on Oct. 9. Unlike the film, the cast of astronauts here is composed of relative unknowns: Patrick J. Adams (“Suits”) plays Major John Glenn, while Jake McDorman (“Limitless”) plays Commander Alan Shepard. Leonardo Dicaprio joins showrunner Mark Lafferty (“Castle Rock”) and others as an executive producer on the series. (Disney+, Oct. 9)
“The Crown”
The last time we caught up with the Windsors — 1,000 years ago, in 2019 — Prince Charles was falling hard for Camilla and Queen Elizabeth was grappling with middle age. When “The Crown” returns for its fourth season, the lavish drama will dive headlong into the scandal-plagued Diana years. Based on the recent teaser trailer, the series evidently has spared no expense in re-creating the Princess of Wales’ ginormous wedding dress (or her iconic feathered bob). “The Crown” has thrived when dramatizing less familiar moments in the lives of the royals; it will be fascinating to see how creator Peter Morgan navigates this more recent, exhaustively chronicled chapter of British history. (Netflix, Nov. 15)
“Moonbase 8”
There will be fancier sci-fi shows and starrier super-casts, but on paper this sitcom created by and starring three great weirdos of modern comedy looks to be just our bag of cats. Even if it turns out to be awful by conventional standards of art and taste, there is no way it won’t be interesting, and likely great. Fred Armisen, Tim Heidecker and John C. Reilly play would-be astronauts living in a lunar simulator in the Arizona desert and hoping to qualify to go to the moon. It’s a PRE-COVID production, but isolation is conveniently a theme we are now living through. (Showtime, TBA)
“Selena: The Series”
After nearly two years of waiting — and waiting! — Netflix’s series about Selena Quintanilla will finally make its debut this fall. Billed as a comingof-age story, the series stars Christian Serratos of “The Walking Dead” as the late Mexican American singer, and it will chronicle her rise to becoming the queen of Tejano music. It arrives 23 years after the release of the Oscar-nominated biographical film, which launched the acting career of Jennifer Lopez. The Quintanilla family, who have always been protective of the singer’s name and image, are on board as executive producers, so it will be interesting to see how much more revelatory the series will be than the classic biopic. But there is little doubt the soundtrack will have viewers Bidi Bidi Bom Bom-ing a lot in quarantine. (Netflix, TBA)