What to stream: TV shows pick up the slack this month
With few new movies, consider these series.
January is a notoriously slow time for new movie releases, a break after the crushing release of awards contenders in November and December, while the ballots are tallied and statuettes are prepared to be handed out. Omicron is not helping the situation either, as new releases are scattering from the calendar to dates later in the year. The good thing is that there’s a plethora of fresh new TV debuting on streaming platforms, so curl up on the couch with a series or two, there’s plenty of watching to do.
Some beloved series are back with highly anticipated new seasons, including Season 2 of “The Righteous Gemstones” on HBO Max, the riotous comedy set in the world of high-stakes televangelism. Created by and starring the impish comedic actor Danny McBride, the series co-stars Adam Devine, John Goodman and Walton Goggins. The genre-defying hipster mystery series “Search Party” is also back with it’s fifth and final season (all episodes are available now on HBO Max), wrapping up the twisted tale of Dory Sief (Alia Shawkat), who went looking for a missing acquaintance and ended up losing herself in the process. Created by G. Charles Rogers and Sarah-Violet Bliss, the series is an absurdist and incisive comedic cultural commentary.
Now available on Netflix, the gritty cheerleading docuseries “Cheer” is back for Season 2, and the cheerleaders at Navarro College in Texas are dealing with more than just the brutal, bone-crunching practices for the championships in Daytona Beach. They’re also contending with the newfound fame and attention that came with the debut of Season 1 in early 2020, as well as the legal issues facing breakout star Jerry Harris. The series, which now includes a look at rivals Trinity Valley, remains as dramatic and searing as ever, the athleticism on display still unparalleled.
Exciting new series that debuted in the past week include the half-hour dramedy “Somebody Somewhere” on HBO Max, starring New York City cabaret star Bridget Everett in a lightly autobiographical show that imagines what might have happened if she never left Kansas. The series is chock-full of New York cabaret and theater types, including the iconic Murray Hill and Jeff Hiller, who co-star as friends attempting to help former show choir star Sam (Everett) discover a safe space for creative expression in her hometown.
Also on HBO, James Gunn’s irreverent take on
“Peacemaker,” the character played by John Cena in Gunn’s take on “The Suicide Squad,” which hit theaters last year. Come for the choreographed spectacle that is the opening credits, stay for Gunn’s signature style of comic book snark and soundtrack deep cuts. For “Star Wars” fans, Jon Favreau is behind the latest Disney+ series to delve into that world. “The Book of Boba Fett” stars Kiwi actor Temuera Morrison as the iconic bounty hunter.
And if you haven’t caught up with the Showtime sensation that gripped Twitter for the past 10 weeks, get thee to “Yellowjackets” as soon as possible. The series follows a group of women as they reckon with their past surviving a plane crash as teen soccer players. The series just wrapped up this past weekend, so now is the time to binge to your heart’s content.