Summer TV Roundup, Week 11

 


The month of July is flying by and with it has come a major slow down in original scripted content. Still, you might be wondering if the few new offerings are worth your time. Let this weekly post be your guide as I look at the pilot and second episode of new scripted series this summer. Don’t see a new show listed below? Check previous weeks.

Fridays:
My Adventures With Superman, Streaming Fridays on Max (Premiered July 7)
About: The latest for Max is another animated series. When HBO Max became earlier this year, animated series were part of the launch platform. Now, we get another one, this time a DC series that is also airing the day before on Adult Swim. The series tells of the adventures of Clark Kent (Jack Quaid), Lois Lane (Alice Lee) and Jimmy Olsen (Ishmel Sahid). We get another origin story of sorts for Clark, and we see a different kind of Clark, Lois and Jimmy, serving as interns at the Daily Planet and just breaking into the industry. It’s the start of their friendship, too, as Clark grapples with his other powers and what it means for his purpose. The episodes are a crisp 20-25 minutes and move at a good pace. I enjoyed the story and the voice performances. For those who enjoy superhero stories, this will be worth checking out.
Pilot Grade: C+
Second Episode: B-

Streaming:
The Horrors of Delores Roach, Now Streaming on Prime Video
About: The second new series is a horror series, of sorts. It centers on Delores Roach (Justine Machado) who is in Washington Heights in the early 2000s. She ends up going to prison because of her boyfriend’s drug dealing, and 16 years later she finds a much different world. She tries to re-build her life, but it is far from easy, leading her to a downward spiral from which the show draws its name. Actually it’s a show within a show, focused on Delores telling her story to the actress playing her in a one-woman show. The series itself is based on a one-woman show and a podcast of the same name from Aaron Mark. The first two episodes move at a decent pace. The series is eight-episodes, all now streaming and all around a half an hour. By the end of the second episode we’ve begun to get to the horrors, but it’s a slow build. This likely has something of a built-in audience, but if you’re coming to it fresh, it takes a bit to grab you.
Pilot Grade: C+
Second Episode: C+

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