The Week ’s guide to what’s worth watching
Bargain
Anyone betting on which Korean series might become the next Squid Game would do well to put some money on Bargain. The six-part crime thriller begins in a motel room where a man who arrives expecting an encounter with an escort is tied up, bound, and gagged. Visitors arrive and begin placing auction bids on his organs. Then an earthquake strikes, and things really start to get strange. Thursday, Oct. 5, Paramount+
Everything Now
Rising young actress Sophie Wilde (Talk to
Me) stars in this promising British high-school drama with hints of Heartstopper and Euphoria. Having missed months of school while being treated in the hospital for anorexia, 16-year-old Mia returns to find that her friends have leapfrogged her in illicit rites of passage. To catch up, she creates a bucket list and begins checking off items. Thursday, Oct. 5, Netflix
Our Flag Means Death
Is there anything Taika Waititi can’t do? The polyglot New Zealander breathes life into this romantic comedy about the amorous relationship between a pair of disaffected pirates: restless British aristocrat Stede Bonnet, played by Rhys Darby, and the infamous captain Blackbeard, hilariously rendered by a hirsute, tattooed Waititi. Season 2 finds Blackbeard in a funk after Bonnet leaves the pirating life to repair things with his estranged wife. Thursday, Oct. 5, Max
Totally Killer
Slasher-flick season begins with this fun entry, which splits the difference between Halloween and Back to the Future. Kiernan Shipka (Chilling Adventures of Sabrina) stars as Jamie, a teen who accidentally time-travels to 1987, where she teams up with her teenage mother to stop a knife-wielding maniac from murdering three of her mom’s friends. Julie Bowen, Randall Park, and Olivia Holt co-star. Friday, Oct. 6, Prime
Desperately Seeking Soulmate: Escaping Twin Flames Universe
The concept of a “twin flame”—something like a soulmate, only more intense—has been buzzing about social media for years now. A Michigan couple named Jeff and Shaleia Ayan ran with it, creating a mini empire devoted to helping people find their twin flame. But some former adherents say they’re leading an abusive cult. Based on an in-depth Vanity Fair exposé, this documentary dives into their “Twin Flames Universe” in search of the truth. Friday, Oct. 6, Prime
Other highlights 2023 MLB Wild Card Games
Baseball’s playoff season begins with four games that open the best-of-three series that will determine which clubs move on to the next round to play for a chance to reach the World Series. Matchups and start times to be determined. Tuesday, Oct. 3, ABC, ESPN, and ESPN2
Chucky
The murderous, butcher knife–wielding doll that wouldn’t die makes his way to the White House in the third season of this horror-comedy spinoff series. Wednesday, Oct. 4, at 9 p.m. USA Network/Syfy
Loki
Tom Hiddleston returns for a second season as the God of Mischief, joined by Owen Wilson as Mobius and newcomer Ke Huy Quan, fresh off an Oscar for Everything Everywhere All at Once. Thursday, Oct. 5, Disney+