The Week’s guide to what’s worth watching
Frederick Douglass: In Five Speeches
Among the great orators in American history, few can match Frederick Douglass for his reach and reputation. This new documentary gives voice to the most famous Black American man of the 19th century by enlisting actors to deliver five speeches that span his long public career and bring to light his life experiences, his moral case against the slave system he was born into, and the perspicuity with which he viewed the entire American project. Wednesday, Feb. 23, at 9 p.m., HBO
Snowfall
It’s criminal that a series as good as Snowfall has been mostly lost in the blizzard of other prestigeTV fare. Season 5 of the period drama co-created by John Singleton and now in the care of novelist Walter Mosley inches into 1986 and the height of the crack epidemic in Los Angeles. The excellent Damson Idris returns as Franklin Saint, a once powerless kid from South Central who has risen to kingpin status. But the LAPD, the CIA, and even his own family are gunning for him. Wednesday, Feb. 23, at 10 p.m., FX
Law & Order
Twelve years after its 20th season, Dick Wolf’s seminal crime procedural series is launching its 21st. And the good news for fans of rippedfrom-the-headlines crime drama gets even better: The returning cast includes black-ish’s Anthony Anderson as Det. Kevin Bernard and Sam Waterston (!) as rule-bending District Attorney Jack McCoy. The show will now anchor three hours of regular Law & Order programming, as two established spin-offs will follow. Thursday, Feb. 24, at 8 p.m., NBC
Vikings: Valhalla
The Vikings throw themselves into an all-out war on England in this new spin-off of the History Channel’s hit historical action drama. A century after the events in the earlier series, England’s king had all Danes on his soil slaughtered, and the Vikings’ king wants revenge. The younger generation, including his son, future explorer Leif Eriksson, and Eriksson’s sister, Freydis, lead the charge. Available Friday, Feb. 25, Netflix
Super-Pumped: The Battle for Uber
Former Uber CEO Travis Kalanick holds a special place among reviled tech magnates. As played by Joseph Gordon-Levitt in this rollercoaster new drama series, Kalanick was a brash disrupter who in building his ride-share empire flouted laws, exploited the drivers who made it all work, and nurtured an office culture that bred sexual harassment. Kyle Chandler and
Uma Thurman co-star as two of Kalanick’s early champions: venture capitalist Bill Gurley and HuffPost founder Arianna Huffington. Sunday, Feb. 27, at 10 p.m., Showtime
Other highlights
Nova: Augmented
A profile of Hugh Herr, who had both of his legs amputated below the knee at 17 before becoming an MIT scientist devoted to developing better prosthetics. Wednesday, Feb. 23, at 9 p.m., PBS; check local listings
2022 NAACP Image Awards
Anthony Anderson hosts the latest edition of the awards show that celebrates Black achievement in the arts. Saturday, Feb. 26, at 8 p.m., BET
2022 Screen Actors Guild Awards
Stars of film and TV gather for a night that may offer clues about the upcoming Oscars. Here, Lady Gaga is a contender but Kristen Stewart is not. Sunday, Feb. 27, at 8 p.m., TNT and TBS
unofficial national dish, is “a scrumptious sweet-and-savory supernova” that combines minced beef, green apples, onions, raisins, cinnamon, yellow curry powder, apricot jam, and mango chutney. The restaurant takes its name from the Zulu word for “home.” On busy nights, “the place can feel more than neighborly.” 1614 Third Ave., (212) 722-0490
Lucian Books and Wine Atlanta
At this unique wine bar in Buckhead, “the intellectual and the gustatory harmonize,” said Christiane Lauterbach in Atlanta magazine. Jordan Smelt, late of Cakes & Ale, is “one of Atlanta’s most gifted wine directors.” His wife, Katie Barringer, is “a book dealer with the soul of a collector.” Together with chef Brian Hendrickson, they have created an elegant gathering place where the food is “ambitious yet simple,” the wine is carefully researched, and the art books lining the walls are more than just décor: You can read as you sip. “No dish signals the restaurant’s aims better than the omelet with crème fraîche and caviar.” This is food that can stand alone or gracefully complement a refined wine selection: a brilliantly balanced hamachi crudo, crisp fries with sorrel mayonnaise, a cheese plate free of jams and fruit. Lucian is more than just the sum of its food, wine, and books, though. “It’s a gentle, selfcontained universe that wants to be shared.” 3005 Peachtree Road, (404) 549-2655