Hard to lose thread of ‘Worn Stories’
We’ve seen peak TV come and go. I think we’ve entered an era of “weak TV.” Sometimes I blame the pandemic, other times the endless and indulgent nature of podcast storytelling. But there is an emerging school of tightly focused, almost absurdly banal series that are not only aimed at homebound bingers, but seem to be about the chores bingers can be doing while watching unchallenging programming. Or instead.
Start with “The Laundry Guy” on Discovery+. Time was, it was the commercials that told you (or sold you) on ideas for fabric softening, stain-busting and bleaching. Now there’s a whole series dedicated to the rinse cycle. Or is it the presoak?
Then there’s Netflix’s recent launch “Worn Stories.” In this show, folks from all walks of life discuss their favorite piece of clothing and the emotional, spiritual or personal “meaning” they invested in these garments.
Oddly enough, “Worn” kicks off at a nudist colony in Kissimmee, Florida, where a retired couple from Wisconsin dairy farm country have invested great meaning in their birthday suits. In some ways, this husband and wife reminded me of characters in “Nomadland,” a film about rootless people searching for community and belonging. But it’s still a Florida nudist colony, so I just wanted to avert my gaze.
Other “Worn” subjects discuss the talismanic nature of their motorcycle jackets, their team uniforms or a yellow sweater somehow wrapped up in Buddhism. Or something.
This is hardly the first tale of garments endowed with special powers. The 1953 Technicolor blockbuster “The Robe” saw centurion Richard Burton haunted by a red blanket that once cloaked the crucified Christ. And then there’s Linus’ blanket. Or a whole episode of “Seinfeld” about his favorite T-shirt, “Golden Boy.” And the “Puffy Shirt.” In each, clothes offered material for a bigger story. Something with a beginning, a middle and an end.
The stories and storytellers in “Worn Stories” are so random and purposefully self-important that they’re almost amusing. Almost. None dare call them boring.
Seriously, if you were at a cocktail party and somebody regaled you with a long story about their favorite socks, would you listen or go freshen your drink? Or flee via the fire escape?
Too many of us would kill for a cocktail party right now. Or any party. And a chance to get away from the small-bore nature of COVID-era weak TV, a genre where people spin legends from their laundry baskets.
› Chris Pine stars in the 2014 thriller “Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit” (8 p.m., BBC America), based on a character created by novelist Tom Clancy. Elsewhere, Ryan has been played by Alec Baldwin, Harrison Ford, Ben Affleck and John Krasinski.
OTHER HIGHLIGHTS
› The Phillies host the Mets in Major League Baseball (7 p.m., ESPN).
› Some watch “Live From the Masters” (7 p.m., Golf) just for a glimpse of a glorious Georgia spring.
› Cain gets caught in traffic on “The Resident” (8 p.m., Fox, TV-14).
› The Spanish Civil War offers a new canvas as “Hemingway” (8 p.m., PBS, TV-14, check local listings) continues.
› Beastly attacks on “FBI” (9 p.m., CBS, TV-14).