Summer TV Roundup, Week 10

 

We’re done with July and on to August. Summer is coming to a close and it’s just about time for Fall. But before the torrent of Fall begins, we have a few last series staking their claim on Summer. But what of these new shows is worth your time to check out? Let this weekly post be your guide as I review the pilot and second episode of new series this Summer. Don’t see a new show listed below? Check previous weeks.

Thursdays:
Stuart Fails to Save the Universe, Streaming Thursdays on HBO Max (Premiered July 23)
About: This spin-off of the Big Bang Theory is a wild departure from the original series. And yet, from a casting perspective, it’s the most closely tied spin-off to the original. It centers on four peripheral characters from the show—Stuart (Kevin Sussman), Bert (Brian Posehn), Barry (John Ross Bowie) and Denise (Lauren Lapkus)—on a series of adventures through the multi-verse. We learn in the pilot it’s due to a device created by Sheldon, Leonard, and Howard, but those three remain unseen. However, the pilot featured a cameo by a version of Raj (Kunal Nayar) and the second episode featured a version of Penny (Kaley Cuoco), among other cameos. It figures that will be a sign of things to come as our heroes get trapped in different scary dimensions and have to try and find a way home. There is some comedy here, but this is of a vastly different flavor than the original series. The pilot was a bit awkward at times, but I thought the second episode worked better (or maybe my expectations had just changed). The teaser for the third episode looks fun, too. This works OK for those who like comedy, and had a connection to the original franchise, just don’t expect something that is the same.
Pilot Grade: C-
Second Episode: C+

Fridays:
Fightland, Streaming Fridays on Starz (Premiered July 31)
About: This is the new drama for Starz, that like much of their programming is produced by 50 Cent. This one focuses on a heavyweight champion (Howard Charles) in London who, after a tragedy, ends up in prison. With his career ruined and life derailed, he’s offered a way out—literally and metaphorically. He’s out of prison and given a chance to get revenge on the gangsters who set him up to take a fall. The cast includes Nicholas Pinnock and has some solid performers. But the pilot was overly gritty and felt dry. I wasn’t as taken with the narrative and some of the plot felt a little confusing in the pilot. Perhaps that will improve with time. Overall, this felt like a bit of a forgettable exercise at this point.
Pilot Grade: C-

Streaming Series:
The Bombing of Pan Am 103, Now Streaming on Netflix (Premiered July 30)
About: This new docuseries focuses on the aftermath of the infamous bombing over Lockerbie, Scotland during the Reagan administration. We follow investigators in Scotland and the United States as they try to make sense of what happened. The cast includes Connor Swindells, Patrick J. Adams, Tony Curran, Eddie Marsan, and Peter Mullan, among others. The series is six episodes, all about an hour. This is more of a police procedural approach to the material, which will satisfy those looking for that kind of entertainment. But it is a story that’s been covered many times, including a Peacock mini-series last year. That one focused on the families, providing some palpable emotional stakes and an incredible re-creation of the crash in the pilot. This is a more clinical approach and as a result a bit less interesting given we know how this all played out over years and decades. Still, for completists this is worth checking out and is a quick enough binge.
Pilot Grade: C
Second Episode: C

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