Premieres Wednesday: Eater’s Guide to the World – Anthony Bourdain may be long gone, but there’s no end in sight to the genre of the foodie travelogue. Witness this seven-episode trip around the culinary globe, narrated by none other than … Maya Rudolph. And here you thought she only ate Mike Pence for breakfast. (Relax, Mother, it isn’t what it sounds like.) (Hulu)
Premieres Thursday: Lingering – South Korean horror, with a young woman and her kid sister confronted by evil at a strange hotel. The footage that’s been released so far looks like a cross between The Shining and Edgar Wright’s short “Don’t” from Grindhouse. Yeah, I didn’t know how badly I wanted that, either. (Shudder)
Premieres Friday: I Am Greta – Climate-change activist Greta Thunberg gets her own An Inconvenient Truth: a documentary about her fight to preserve the planet. I’d point out that An Inconvenient Truth had a sequel, but I don’t want to imply that Greta will be washed up by the time she’s 28. (Hulu)
Inside Pixar – Go behind the scenes of the landmark computer-animation studio in a docu-series that focuses on Pixar projects and personalities. Can’t wait for Episode 4, “John Lasseter Is Just a Big Hugger.” (Disney+)
The Life Ahead – Filmmaker Edoardo Ponti directs his mother, Sophia Loren, in this story of a Holocaust survivor who decides to look after a 12-year-old Senegalese immigrant after he robs her. Subtle subtext from director to star: “So would it be so hard for you to forgive me for boosting the car keys that one time?” (Netflix)
James May: Oh Cook – Top Gear‘s May hosts a cooking show that uses his own ineptitude in the kitchen as the inspiration for would-be chefs. Desserts will doubtlessly be spotlighted in next season’s spin-off, Fake It ‘Til You Bake It. (Amazon Prime)
Premieres Sunday: The Crown – In Season 4, England witnesses the once-in-a-lifetime spectacle of Prince Charles marrying Lady Di, then cleanses its palate with a slightly less fractious undertaking: the Falklands War. (Netflix)
Murder on Middle Beach – Documentarian Madison Hamburg spends four episodes trying to solve the mystery of who murdered his mother. And also what she did with his GODDAMN BASEBALL CARDS! (HBO Max)
Premieres Monday: His Dark Materials – In Season 2, young heroine Lyra ventures into another dimension and meets up with a boy who needs to be returned to his father. If she had the number of a good men’s-rights lawyer, this could be over in two episodes. (HBO Max)
Premieres Tuesday: The Lego Star Wars Holiday Special – One of the most unfortunate TV specials ever gets a winky animated update, with the casts of the Star Wars sequels, prequels and … um … good movies coming together to celebrate Life Day. Personally, I’m holding out for The Playmobil Paul Lynde Halloween Special. (Disney+)
We Are the Champions – Rainn Wilson executive-produced and narrates an exposé of some of the world’s wackiest competitive sports, from cheese-rolling (what about beets, Dwight?) to dog dancing (WHAT ABOUT BEARS, DWIGHT?). (Netflix)
This article appears in Nov 11-17, 2020.