Q Wave’s Watchlist: November 2020
"There's nothing to watch," is not a phrase that should exist in a world drowning in content. Join us every month to get curated content - from the latest and greatest to revisiting oldies - we'll help you avoid the dreaded “Netflix Block” and find something to watch!
Explained (Netflix)
This provocative series from Vox Media dives deep into a wide variety of topics from athleisure to cults, racial and gender wealth gaps, cryptocurrency, and even one episode on the exclamation point! It was in this episode that I discovered it’s possible to be excited about punctuation and learned what an “interrobang” is. Each episode is a mini-documentary, narrated by celebrities such as Leonardo DiCaprio, Kristin Bell, Hilary Swank, JK Simmons, John Legend, and many more.
There are also topic-specific seasons, such as Coronavirus, Explained and Sex, Explained. Their latest focus: Whose Vote Counts, Explained. In this 3-part mini-season, the producers get into the nuances of the American electoral system and how voting in the United States is not as simple as you might think.
The show makes complicated issues easy to understand, and does an excellent job of, well, explaining things. Sources and facts keep the show on the up-and-up while slick graphics help keep ideas digestible. If you want to learn more about random topics, this is your show.
You'd like this if you enjoyed: Rotten, Broken, 13th
Runtime: 2 Seasons (and 4 spin-off mini-seasons)
Genre: Documentary
The Morning Show (Apple TV+)
When The Morning Show launched last year as one of Apple TV+’s flagship shows, it was initially met with mixed reviews. It’s flashy, has a stellar cast, and has the backing of Apple. It also deals with the #MeToo movement and draws fairly large parallels with Matt Lauer’s ousting.
When TV talk show host, Mitch Kessler (Steve Carell), is fired for sexual misconduct, his co-host Alex Levy (Jennifer Aniston) and the rest of the studio are left to pick up the pieces. Office politics are featured heavily episode-to-episode as Alex faces off against studio execs, and the introduction of a new co-host, Bradley Jackson (Reese Witherspoon), shakes things up in ways no one could have predicted. The cast is rounded out by a smarmy network exec played by Billy Crudup (Big Fish, The Watchmen), and the show’s relentlessly panicky executive producer played by Mark Duplass (The Mindy Project).
Let’s be clear, the #MeToo movement deserves attention, and this show handles it well. But that’s not the only reason to add The Morning Show to your watch list. The cast spends most of their onscreen time yelling and being over-the-top, and it’s that campiness that makes the show engaging.
You'd like this if you enjoyed: Succession, The Newsroom
Runtime: 10 Episodes
Genre: Drama
The Mandalorian - Season 2 (Disney+)
Baby Yoda is back! Oh, and so is the mysterious bounty hunter known as Din Djarin (played by Pedro Pascal, most famously remembered as Oberyn Martell on Game of Thrones). When last we saw our hero and his precious cargo, they were being pursued by Imperial forces led by Moff Gideon (Giancarlo Esposito of Breaking Bad).
Joining the Mandalorian are former rebel shock trooper, Cara Dune (Gina Carano), and bounty hunter guild leader, Greef Karga (Carl Weathers). Long-time Star Wars fans will also be excited to see some familiar characters this season, including: Rosario Dawson as Ahsoka Tano (an ex-Jedi and once-padawan of Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader), Temuera Morrison as Boba Fett (Temuera voiced the clone troopers through the prequel movies and Star Wars: The Clone Wars), and Katee Sackhoff as Bo-Katan Kryze (former ruler of Mandalore).
If you want more of the back-story on Moff Gideon’s black lightsaber or the fall of Mandalore, check out our September Watchlist.
You'd like this if you enjoyed: Star Wars
Runtime: 8 Episodes
Genre: Action, Adventure
Bob’s Burgers (Amazon Prime Video)
When Netflix removed Bob’s Burgers from their viewing catalogue on January 1st, 2019, the outcry could be heard around the world. So much so, that Netflix Canada resorted to begging Canadians to stop asking questions about the show. Thankfully, you can now watch the Belcher family on Amazon Prime!
The show centres around Bob and Linda, and their three children Louise, Tina, and Gene, as they go about running a burger restaurant. Recurring roles include Aziz Ansari, Sarah Silverman, Kevin Kline, Megan Mullally, and Zach Galifianakis. Bob and Linda run a semi-successful burger business, while the three children help out after school. But this seemingly boring premise doesn’t account for the wacky nature of the Belcher family. Bob is ever the pessimist while Linda contrasts with her regular flights of fancy. Gene epitomizes the weirdness of a 14-year old boy, Tina is socially awkward (and that’s being generous), and Louise is the maniacal youngest daughter who always has a scheme in the works.
Keep an eye on the intro and outro sequences, they change from episode to episode.
You'd like this if you enjoyed: Rick & Morty, Bojack Horseman
Runtime: 10 Seasons
Genre: Comedy, Animated
The Spanish Princess (Crave)
This loosely-based historical drama, centres around Catherine of Aragon (Charlotte Hope), Henry VIII’s first wife, as she arrives from Spain to meet her first husband, Prince Arthur of Wales (Angus Imrie). After he (spoiler alert!) dies, she marries his brother, Henry, Duke of York, (Ruairie O’Connor) and the rest, as they say, is history.
The show features grand set designs, and even more dramatic costume designs. It never quite reaches Game of Thrones levels of theatricality, but what it lacks in visuals, it makes up for in drama. There is plenty of intrigue, political manoeuvering, plotting, and scheming, as one might expect from a kingdom renowned for death and upheaval.
Fortunately, filming for the entire second (and final) season was completed a day before COVID-19 lockdowns were put in place. The story was written with a definitive end in mind, so enjoy the 16 episodes while you can. If you are a fan of Tudor history, this is the show for you!
You'd like this if you enjoyed: The Tudors, Game of Thrones
Runtime: 16 Episodes
Genre: Historical Drama
Kim’s Convenience (CBC Gem)
This little Canadian gem (no pun intended) revolves around the Kim family, and their Toronto corner store. Kim’s Convenience is one of CBC’s standout shows (the first season has a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes) and routinely gets nominated/wins at the Canadian Screen Awards.
The Kims are “Appa” (Paul Sun-Hyung Lee) the patriarch who runs the store with his wife, “Umma” (Jean Yoon) and their two children, Jung (Simu Liu, who will -when COVID ends- be joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Shang-Chi) and Janet (Andrea Bang). Nicole Power, who plays Jung’s boss (Shannon), and Andrew Phung (a Calgarian!) as “Kimchee,” Jung’s best friend and roommate, round out the main cast.
As an Asian person watching an Asian family being positively represented (and received) on TV, it is refreshing to see these characters not as “token” characters. This show has plenty of laughs, and always comes back around to family as its central theme. You might not be able to “shop local” at their store, but watching them on TV is about as close as you can get to supporting a hard-working Canadian family and their small business.
You'd like this if you enjoyed: Schitt’s Creek, Corner Gas
Runtime: 4 Seasons
Genre: Comedy
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