The Week’s guide to what’s worth watching
1971: The Year That Music
Changed Everything
Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On. Carole King’s Tapestry. Joni Mitchell’s Blue. The Who’s Who’s Next. Something about 1971 brought out the best in the rock era, and this new eight-part series never seems to run out of great artists reaching similar peaks. Expect quality time revisiting the Stones, David Bowie, Led Zeppelin, Sly Stone, and a few ex-Beatles, with all the music grounded in a wide view of a tumultuous historical moment. Available Friday, May 21, Apple TV+ Army of the Dead
The zombies in Zack Snyder’s new dystopian thriller have overrun Las Vegas, and they’re smarter and faster than the usual undead stiffs. In a film arriving on home screens a week after its theatrical debut, former wrestler Dave Bautista plays an ex–war hero who assembles a well-armed team to pull off a $200 million heist. Little do the thieves know that they’ll have to fight their way out of Sin City. Available Friday, May 21, Netflix
Solos
Actors don’t often get a chance to go it alone.
This new anthology series lets them do just that, presenting six 30-minute dramas focused on a single character. Anne Hathaway portrays a scientist who discovers time travel. Helen Mirren plays a solo intergalactic passenger. Other episodes showcase Anthony Mackie, Uzo Aduba, Constance Wu, Dan Stevens, and Morgan Freeman.
Available Friday, May 21, Amazon Prime
Master of None
Aziz Ansari’s critically acclaimed comedy series is back. Put on hold in 2018 shortly after a woman accused creator and star Aziz Ansari of sexual misconduct, the show is returning with a five-episode season that focuses on Lena Waithe’s Denise and her marriage to Alicia, played by rising star Naomi Ackie. Ansari co-wrote the story with Waithe and directs each episode.
For now, Denise’s friend Dev, Ansari’s semiautobiographical character, slips into a side role. Available Sunday, May 23, Netflix
The Chi
Sunday must be Lena Waithe day. The ensemble drama series she created about the neighborhood of her youth, Chicago’s South Side, is returning for a fourth season, a six-episode run that will tackle the national crisis in policing head on. Kevin, Jake, and Papa, the three friends who are coming of age in today’s Chi Town, are discovering how society views young Black men when the city’s new Black mayor, Otis Perry, makes a bold move to change the status quo. Sunday, May 23, at 9 p.m., Showtime
Other highlights
Who Killed Sara?
This twisty Mexican thriller series had a buzzy debut in the U.S. just two months ago. Now Season 2 arrives, resuming a brother’s quest to find his sister’s killer almost 20 years after he was framed for the murder. Available Wednesday, May 19, Netflix
Special
Ryan O’Connell’s delightful semi-autobiographical comedy series about a gay man with cerebral palsy loosens up in its second and final season. Available Thursday, May 20, Netflix
2021 Billboard Music Awards
The Weeknd, after his snubbing by the Grammys, leads all nominees heading into next week’s awards show. Pink and Drake will receive career honors. Sunday, May 23, at 8 p.m., NBC