varn.dev

I like to spend my weekend afternoons watching TV, and lord knows I have enough streaming services (like most people) to be able to do that. Some I pay for due to just the volume of stuff to watch and/or for the kids (Netflix, Disney+), some I have through a swap with family members (my Paramount + for my parents HBO Max) and some just because I got a good deal (Peacock) and the comfort food they provide. But pound for pound, I think that the absolute best service when it comes to the quality of the stuff out there, Apple TV can’t be beat. It’s like HBO of the early 2000s, with no ads or tracking, which I highly appreciate.

So I’ve spent the past summer watching some of the new, great stuff on Apple TV and here are the ones that stood out:

• Widow’s Bay - This one sorta came out of nowhere and is way way better than it has any right to be. Described as a “horror comedy” and starring Matthew Rhys (of The Americans fame, one of the best shows in the last 15 years), it’s all about a small Northeastern coastal town where strange, creepy and bizarre things happen. It’s heavy on the dark humor and lighter on actual horror and gore (though plenty creepy), each episode is under an hour and thought each one has a sort of “theme”, they all build to a bigger storyline about the horrors of the island, leaving lots unexplained. Think Stephen King meets Lost meets…well, I can’t think of anything else that is like this. If you can handle some jump scares and a little bit of blood or “thematic elements” then this is a must watch.

• Margo’s Got Money Troubles - Based on a book of the same name, it follows a young woman starting college named Margo (Elle Fanning) who falls for her creepy literary professor, gets knocked up and then has to deal with the ramifications of being a single mother and the challenges that brings in America today, eventually turning to OnlyFans as a way to make ends meet. It offers a lot of social commentary on how our society fails and shuns women who don’t follow their “expected” path, and features amazing performances from her selfish and terrible mother Michelle Pfeiffer who went through the same situation herself with Margo and having to raise her solo, and Nick Offerman as her father, a former professional wrestler struggling to stay sober. Not exactly light topic fare but the show has a lot of heart and humor and like I said, poignant social commentary that makes it worth checking out.

• Star City - A spin-off of the soapy Apple TV launch show For All Mankind (an alternate reality in which Russia got to the moon first), but this time the entire story is told from the Russian perspective. It’s not a rehash of For All Mankind but instead more of a thriller of the awfulness of trying to be innovative and ground breaking in science under the overbearing and stifling, mistrusting rule of the USSR. Hopefully this one gets renewed, because it’s plot lines offer almost limitless possibilities navigating the world of espionage and science.

What are you watching these days?