USA TODAY International Edition
5 new shows to sink your teeth in this spring
Which new TV shows should be on your radar this spring? From offbeat comedies to star-studded prestige dramas, here are the five we think you should give a try.
From offbeat comedies to star-studded dramas, these television newbies are bound to grow on you.
On My Block (Netflix) Friday (all episodes streaming)
It’d be a shame if this delightful teen comedy gets lost in the incessant barrage of Netflix content. Co-created by
Awkward’s Lauren Iungerich, On My Block is part high-school soap and part tantalizing mystery, as it follows a close-knit group of gawky teens in a rough inner-city neighborhood whose friendship is tested by love triangles, gang violence and a hunt for a missing lump of cash. The show’s effortless diversity and incorporation of Hispanic culture make this a refreshing alternative to more vanilla coming-of-age stories such as Everything Sucks! and
Stranger Things, while the quirky chemistry among its central trio (Sierra Capri, Brett Gray and Jason Genao) is infectious. – PR
Krypton (Syfy) March 21 (Wednesdays, 10 ET/PT)
There was a lot of juicy drama happening on Krypton before an infant Superman escaped the dying planet to come to Earth. At least, Syfy is hoping that the drama is juicy enough to lure you to this new prequel series, which takes place on Kal-El’s home planet decades before he came around. The series centers on Superman’s grandfather, Seg-El, played by British newcomer Cameron Cuffe, who’s struggling to save his grandson’s future and his planet. Thanks to time travel, the series will sometimes take place in the present day, but don’t expect it to cross over with The Flash or Gotham. – KL
Barry (HBO) March 25 (Sundays, 10:30 ET/PT)
A dispassionate hit man (Bill Hader) follows his target into an acting class, only to catch the bug and realize his thespian dreams. It’s an outthere premise that should by no means work, but is squeamishly entertaining thanks to a committed performance from Hader, who co-created the violent half-hour comedy with Silicon Valley’s Alec Berg. Henry Winkler co-stars as Barry’s prickly acting coach, while Office Space favorite Stephen Root plays the assassin’s handler trying to keep his eye on the target. – PR
Trust (FX) March 25 (Sundays, 10 ET/PT)
The Gettys are so in this year. FX’s limited series, from Slumdog Millionaire director Danny Boyle and writer Simon Beaufoy, is the second Hollywood retelling of the Getty kidnapping to arrive in recent months, after All the Money in the World, which starred Christopher Plummer as J. Paul Getty Sr. The FX version has Donald Sutherland in the role, along with Hilary Swank, Brendan Fraser and Harris Dickinson as kidnapped grandson John Paul Getty III. The series begins with the 1973 crime and takes a broader look at one of America’s richest and most enigmatic families. – KL
Killing Eve (BBC America) April 8 (Sundays, 8 ET/PT)
Amazon’s smutty and sweet Fleabag was one of our favorite shows of 2016, introducing the outrageous talents of British writer/actress Phoebe Waller-Bridge. Although she doesn’t appear in this European spy thriller, her sharp voice and dark humor pervade this eight-part series, which she created based on Luke Jennings’ novellas. Grey’s Anatomy’s Sandra Oh stars as Eve, a desk-bound MI5 officer who goes undercover for a twisty cat-and-mouse game with an international assassin (Jodie Comer). – PR