#CouchWorthy: August 2023 TV Highlights

Gal Gadot // Steve Martin // Elvis // John Wick // RoboCop // #SetTheVCR

Sep 05, 2023

Yo…

A terrific TV recap of August 2023.

Turns out Gal Gadot has a Heart of Stone, Prime Video gave us a G League Hoops Dreams, the latest Star Wars TV show sounds like someone just sneezed: Ahsoka (“Bless you!”) and Apple TV is still hosting an alien Invasion.

If you haven’t seen any of the August highlights listed below; I dunno how you’ll find time.

Today Holly Stephen King’s latest novel drops, Toronto International Film Festival starts on September 7…the day before Star Trek Day 2023 while Batman Day is September 16th.

There’s a crapload (or buttload? Which measurement do you want to use?) happening in September but let’s wrap up August.

MLB is winding down their regular season, college football has started and this weekend the NFL kicks off it’s 104th season. Even though I don’t follow much of those sports I find the clockwork rhythm comforting.

Regular seasons Summer into Fall into winter sap my life. There’s a brief grief that accompanies each seasonally shift while the ebb and flow of sports is comforting. I appreciate that there’s an off-season as well as a regular season. Bands do that too. They go away for a while and dream it all up again.

Post-Labour Day weekend…the off-season of life (such as it was…) has come to an end. We’re back in the regular season.

Speak Now Or Forever Hold Your Peace:

When you look back at August 2023…what are you thankful for?
Do you have any TIFF recommendations?
Did you take a nap on the ironically named Labour Day like I did?

🎥 SAMMY SUGGESTION: GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY VOL. 3 (ANYTIME / DISNEY+)

Peter Quill, still reeling from the loss of Gamora, must rally his team around him on a dangerous mission to save Rocket’s life - a mission that, if not completed successfully, could quite possibly lead to the end of the Guardians as we know them.
~~~

Smell ya later Guardians of the Galaxy! (And smell ya later James Gunn!) The recent Ant-Man movie was just okay; bit long but not terrible. I’ve been skipping MCU movies lately, had no love for the recent Thor, Black Panther 2…I mean what value can it offer; dude is dead etc. I did see and enjoyed Doctor Strange 2.

(When The Marvels opens on November 10th it’ll be the 33rd film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Naturally there is Marvel-burnout.)

So: Are you ready for one last ride with the Guardians of the Galaxy? Thank you James Gunn; the soundtracks alone were out of this world.

(August was all IP blockbusters on TV: The Flash on Crave & HBO Max, The Super Mario Bros. Movie on Peacock & Prime Video-Canada and Transformers: Rise of the Beasts showed up on Paramount+.)

🎥 SAMMY SUGGESTION: ROBODOC: THE CREATION OF ROBOCOP (ANYTIME / SCREAMBOX)

An immersive 4+ hour journey into the making of the seminal sci-fi movie RoboCop. With over 60 cast/crew interviews and exclusive behind the scenes materials, RoboDoc is a unique, comprehensive and fully explorative scene-by-scene retrospective.
~~~

Following Living With Chucky, Pennywise: The Story of IT and Hollywood Dreams and Nightmares: The Robert Englund Story Screambox’s latest IP documentary is RoboDoc: The Creation of RoboCop.

The 1987 film was in part inspired by writer Edward Neumeier’s work in the art department on Blade Runner. Makeup effects vet Rob Bottin (The Thing, Total Recall) created the RoboCop design and handled the film’s makeup effects. Like, yo: what a pedigree.

Produced by Gary Smart, the docuseries is directed by Chris Griffiths and Eastwood Allen who previously collaborated with Smart on Pennywise: The Story of IT. The second episode is outstanding as that episode focuses on the goons including my favourite Joe Cox.

RoboCop is a remarkable movie based on a ludicrous premise that effectively works. RoboDoc reveals how the magic of this 1987 movie works; crafting an indelible character who continues to have a powerful pop culture presence. Programming Note: Episode 1 airs August 29th, Episode 2 is September 5th, 3 is September 12th and 4 is September 19th.

📺 SAMMY SUGGESTION: TRACY MORGAN: TAKIN’ IT TOO FAR (ANYTIME / HBO MAX & CRAVE)

Tracy Morgan leaves it all on the stage in his first HBO Max stand-up special taped live from the Wilbur Theater in Boston, Massachusetts.
~~~

Tracy Morgan telling jokes and stories for an hour. What else could you possibly want? Enjoy this. Be grateful he’s still here.

(Side Note: The callback in comedy is an amazing technique. There’s a sharp skill to the comedy callback. So watching (for the second time) Takin’ It Too Far...Tracy’s wearing the same adidas shoes as his 2014 special Tracy Morgan: Bona Fide. Right? Is that a comedy callback?)

🎥 SAMMY SUGGESTION: ALL UP IN THE BIZ (ANYTIME / PARAMOUNT+)

The documentary feature, which premiered at Tribeca Festival in June, is the definitive story of late, great rapper Biz Markie, who is best known for his mega hit Just a Friend.
~~~

As #HipHop50 celebrations roll on across New York City it’s fitting to have a moment of silence for Biz Markie.

Biz passed away on July 16, 2021. Like…look who is in this doc: Nick Cannon, Tracy Morgan, Big Daddy Kane, Fat Joe, Daryl McDaniels (DMC!), Doug E Fresh, Dapper Dan, Prince Paul, Rakim, Marley Marl and more!

And check out this line from the description…there’s one word…a key phrase that stands out; see it? “Director Sacha Jenkins weaves together a collage of dynamic celebrity interviews, rare archival footage, reenactments with puppets, and playful animation to share the personal and professional story of Biz Markie and the mark he left on hip-hop history and the music industry around the world.”

Yup! Reenactments with puppets. When was the last time you saw a documentary that featured reenactments with puppets? Or is the better question to ask why aren’t there more puppet laced docs? If you know Biz Markie you know reenactments with puppets is the best way to go. Programming Note: Check out Mixtape also streaming on Paramount+ as of August 1st. As for Canadians this’ll be on our Paramount+ on September 29.

📺 SAMMY SUGGESTION: HARLAN COBEN'S SHELTER (ANYTIME / PRIME VIDEO)

Twisted tales that span eras - and terrors - deliver a myriad of surprises in this game-changing anthology series’ most unpredictable season yet.Harlan Coben’s Shelter follows the story of Mickey Bolitar, after the sudden death of his father leads him to start a new life in Kasselton, New Jersey.
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Shelter is the first Mickey Bolitar novel of the young adult series by crime writer Harlan Coben. It was published in 2011, the third book came out in 2014. So that gives you a sense of how long this TV show can go. (Well, if TV shows actually lasted more than a season these days.)

Mickey finds himself in New Jersey following the death of his father. As if losing his dad wasn’t enough suffering. Like most quiet suburban communities it’s all a façade. The mysterious disappearance of a cute girl at his school (Ashley Kent) sparks an investigation that naturally leads to a dark underground. In the mood to reveal some secrets? Disturb the long buried past? Sit down in your Shelter and press play!

📺 SAMMY SUGGESTION: ONLY MURDERS IN THE BUILDING: SEASON 3 (ANYTIME / HULU & DISNEY+ CANADA)

Season three finds Charles, Oliver & Mabel (played by Steve Martin, Martin Short & Selena Gomez) investigating a murder behind the scenes of a Broadway show.
~~~

Scooby-Doo with sarcasm returns for a third fun season!

This time they added Paul Rudd and Meryl Streep to the cast, which is pitch perfect. Season 1 investigated the murder of Arconian resident Tim Kono as well as launching their podcast.

Season 2 the gang is publicly implicated in Arconia Board President Bunny Folger’s homicide and still recording their podcast. Now…Season 3 they’re investigating a murder behind the scenes of a Broadway show. And still recording their podcast.

For old dudes who only wanted to…you know solve Only Murders in the Building their investigative radius is slowly increasing. (Kinda.) Good thing too, you know old people need to stay active.

📺 SAMMY SUGGESTION: REINVENTING ELVIS: THE '68 COMEBACK (ANYTIME / PARAMOUNT+)

This documentary tells the riveting story of Elvis Presley, legendary director Steve Binder and the creation of the 1968 Comeback Special.
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I saw the ‘68 Comeback Special on TV as a kid. (Obviously not in 68. I’m not that old.) It was stunning. Raw magnetism. Raw talent. Raw Elvis. All if it was unleashed and came through the TV set. It was like touching an electric current.

At the time I didn’t understand the comeback part or have the context for where Elvis was at in his career. I did understand the ‘68 Comeback Special was like a manifesto. That’s such a powerful artistic statement. Of the many, many gifts Elvis left us is TCB: Taking Care of Business (the lightning bolt in the logo means in a flash). Exactly what he did with this one hour of TV. This is the story behind the special that aired on December 3, 1968. (The ‘68 Comeback Special is what inspired MTV Unplugged in 1989; a slew of acoustic performances that truly lived up to the TV name of Specials. Nothing in pop culture is past tense…it’s all connected.)

Thank you for reading My Pal Sammy. This post is public so feel free to share it with anybody who watches TV.

Looking ahead to September? Enjoy these 5 #SetTheVCR highlights.

Thursday, September 7
📺 The Killing Kind: Season 1 (Anytime / Paramount+)
As a top-shelf barrister, Ingrid Lewis is used to dealing with tricky clients, but no-one rivals John Webster. She wins his case and then wins his heart. But when she decides to collect her legal briefs and exit the relationship; Webster reminds her she didn’t read the fine print. In an ironic twist she defended him in court against harassment; the exact same thing he was doing to her. That’s all past tense when the first of the 6 episodes opens…only John Webster is now back. Is Ingrid Lewis’ life really in danger? Like from somebody other than John Webster? Who can she trust? Paranoia is always fashionable.

Tuesday, September 12
📺 The Swarm: Season 1 (9 p.m. / The CW)
This eight-part series about an unknown enemy that lives deep below the sea launched in Germany earlier this year (it premiered on ZDF! German TBS?) A group of scientists have identified an intelligent life force, dwelling in the deep—capable of manipulating the ocean. So Namor? When the Ocean fights back…can humans survive? Programming Note: Swarm (no The) is a Prime Video TV series co-created by Donald Glover. It premiered on March 17. THE Swarm is based on Frank Schätzing’s bestselling novel and airs on The CW. It’s a Swarm of stupidity and laziness with these TV show names. We're still in the golden era of TV?!

Friday, September 15
📺 Wilderness: Season 1 (Anytime / Prime Video)
Jenna Coleman’s always fun but just don’t treat her like a companion and leave her alone in the Wilderness. She’s half of a happily ever after married couple. Or rather she was...now she’s learned about her husband’s affair. Well nothing repairs a broken marriage like a Grand Canyon road trip! For the husband it’s a chance to make amends. For Jenna...it’s a chance to make revenge. Your classic accidents happen all the time.

Friday, September 22
📺 & 🎥 The Continental: From the World of John Wick (Anytime / Peacock & Prime Video Canada)
John Wick’s dark and delightful world comes to TV in a 3 night burst of action: Night 1 is September 22nd, Night 2 airs on September 29 and Night 3 is October 6. All 3 nights are Winston Scott’s Wonder Years (sans Jets jacket) in 1970s NYC. Together all 3 TV movies serve as a prequel for the John Wick movies. I will for sure be checking into The Continental for a 3 night stay. Programming Note: John Wick: Chapter 4 will be on Crave on September 29; same day as Night 2. That movie has a nunchucks vs AR-15 fight! (Nunchucks are my love language…)

Wednesday, September 27
🎥 Encounters (Anytime / Netflix)
A four-part docuseries that travels the globe to explore four extraordinary true stories of encounters with otherworldly phenomena. This is interesting because most of our UFO discourse is filtered through a North American lens. How do other people in the world view UFOs? What does their culture tell them about UFOs? Each episode tells a single story: strange lights in the sky over small-town Texas; submersible space crafts haunting a coastal Welsh village; an alien encounter with schoolchildren in Zimbabwe and non-human intelligence reportedly interfering with a nuclear power plant in Japan. Yo…let’s do this. The Truth Is Out There…is that what they would say in Zimbabwe?

On September 15 Peacock will added a mad scientist’s pile of Universal Monsters and Hammer Films and so much more. They kindly offered this horror bounty last year; I hope this becomes a scary tradition.
The Universal Studios Monsters from the 1930s to the 1950s form a seminal foundation to our modern horror movies (with dubious sci-fi contributions.).
While Hammer Films are known for Gothic horror and fantasy films made from the mid-1950s until the 1970s.
(Indeed their Frankenstein has a terrifying face and is more brutal than the iconic Boris Karloff performance which injected the monster with humanity.)
Over 15 movies will be added so I suggest checking out 1933’s The Invisible Man…that’s Batman’s Joker 100%!
Anything with Peter Cushing or Vincent Price. It Came From Outer Space from 1953 is like a long creepy Twilight Zone episode. The alien reveal scene is fantastic and brimming with terror.
So if you’re in the mood for classic Gothic screaming, evil lairs and labs and of course loud frightening thunder and full moons Peacock is getting you ready for Halloween season. Check it all out starting on September 15. #SetTheVCR

Pants Off / TV ON!
Sammy Younan
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Sammy Younan is the affable host of My Summer Lair podcast: think NPR’s Fresh Air meets Kevin Smith: interviews & impressions on Pop Culture.

My Pal Sammy