Your TV GPS, Globe TV critic Matthew Gilbert’s look at the week ahead in television, appears every Monday morning on BostonGlobe.com. Today’s column covers Aug. 31-Sept. 6.
FULL STREAM AHEAD
It’s not a surprise, but, as pay TV subscriptions (cable, satellite) continue to fall in the United States, streaming subscriptions are growing by leaps and bounds.
The numbers are impressive. More than half of US households are now subscribing to more than one streaming service, according to a recent study by the media analysis organization Leichtman Research Group.
‘It found that 55 percent of households now pay for more than one service, up from 43 percent in 2018 and 20 percent in 2015. The numbers suggest that viewers are learning to start and stop subscriptions, rather than feeling trapped by them, and they’re willing to take advantage of the new streamers that have been coming to the market. HBO Max, Disney+, Apple TV+, and Peacock are not facing a losing battle for over-saturated audiences, as some predicted.
Overall, 82 percent of all households have at least one service.
Advertisement
Use of these streamers has also significantly increased in recent years. Daily, 40 percent of all adults stream — up from 30 percent in 2018, and 16 percent in 2015.
Naturally, social distancing is playing a role. “The adoption and use of these established [streaming] services along with newer direct-to-consumer streaming video options have increased over the past year,” LRG president Bruce Leichtman said in a statement, “spurred more recently by the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.”
WHAT I’M WATCHING THIS WEEK
1. This one could catch on. “Away” is a science fiction drama about the first international space voyage to Mars. Two-time Oscar winner Hilary Swank stars as the commander, who, with four other astronauts, agrees to spend three years away from her family — her husband, played by Josh Charles, and her teen daughter, played by Talitha Bateman. The action toggles between the psychological intensity and action sequences on the spaceship and the lives of those waiting here on Earth. The producers include Jason Katims (“Friday Night Lights”), Edward Zwick (“Thirtysomething”), and Matt Reeves (“Felicity”), so sensitivity to character will probably be foremost. The 10-episode season is available Friday on Netflix.
Advertisement
2. As the content cabinet begins to run low, what’s a network to do? Import, baby, import. NBC is bringing in a hit Canadian medical drama called “Transplant” on Tuesday 10 p.m. Set in Toronto, it’s about a Syrian doctor with battle-tested skills in emergency medicine who fled his country to build a new life and career with his sister. Hamza Haq stars, with Laurence Leboeuf, Ayisha Issa, and John Hannah.
3. Based on the work of Henning Mankell, “Young Wallander” gives us the formative years of the famous Swedish police inspector played by Kenneth Branagh in the British series that aired here on PBS. The six-episode prequel stars Adam Pålsson as Kurt Wallander in his 20s, having only recently become an officer. It will be available on Netflix on Thursday.
4. In “Raised by Wolves,” as in so many apocalyptic dramas, Earth has been destroyed after a war. Two androids are then tasked with raising human children on a mysterious planet. Surprise! The burgeoning colony of humans threatens to be torn apart by religious differences. The first two episodes of the 10-episode HBO Max series, due Thursday, are directed by executive producer Ridley Scott, and the cast features Travis Fimmel from “Vikings.”
Advertisement
5. “Planet Earth: A Celebration” is a . . . wait. A “celebration”? What is that? What year is this? BBC America, AMC, IFC, and Sundance are going to remind us of the meaning of the word on Monday at 8 p.m. with an ode to beauty constructed of eight sequences from “Planet Earth II” and “Blue Planet II.” Sir David Attenborough will provide new narration, and the score will include work by Hans Zimmer.
CHANNEL SURFING
“Bookmarks: Celebrating Black Voices” Lupita Nyong’o, Tiffany Haddish, and Misty Copeland are among the stars reading children’s books by authors of color. Netflix, Tuesday
“Chef’s Table: BBQ” A new series visiting pitmasters in the United States, Australia, and Mexico. Netflix, Wednesday
“Tyler Perry’s Assisted Living” An unemployed family man gets a job helping his granddad run an old folks’ home in backwoods Georgia. BET, Wednesday, 10 p.m.
“A.P. Bio” Glenn Howerton’s sitcom returns for season three, with Patton Oswalt and Paula Pell. Peacock, Thursday
“The Boys” The satirical superhero action series returns for a second season. Amazon, Friday
“I’m Thinking of Ending Things” Jesse Plemons and Jessie Buckley play a couple on a time-jumping metaphysical road trip in Charlie Kaufman’s psychological film, also featuring Toni Collette and David Thewlis. Netflix, Friday
RECENTLY REVIEWED
Step right up: winners and losers from summer 2020.
Advertisement
“Love in the Time of Corona” A kind of “Love Actually” for this moment, as it moves among four or five stories about love at various stages during quarantine. Freeform
“Ted Lasso” A feel-good sports comedy starring Jason Sudeikis as an American coach in England. Apple TV+
“In My Skin” The heartbreaking and funny five-episode story of a teen girl who hides her grim home life from her friends. Hulu
“Frayed” A warm, funny six-part British-Australian import about a woman who loses her husband and their fortune at the same time. HBO Max
“Lovecraft Country” An exuberant supernatural series about Black characters trying to survive monsters and 1950s Jim Crow America. HBO
“The Capture” A provocative six-episode British crime thriller about the world of deep fakes. Peacock
“We Hunt Together” A “Killing Eve”-like British import series about a pair of oddball detectives trying to track down a pair of oddball murderers. Showtime
Matthew Gilbert can be reached at matthew.gilbert@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @MatthewGilbert.
"TV" - Google News
August 31, 2020 at 06:40PM
https://ift.tt/3gJJ7VJ
This week’s TV: Big streaming numbers, a Swank space drama, and a ‘Wallander’ prequel - The Boston Globe
"TV" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2T73uUP
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "This week’s TV: Big streaming numbers, a Swank space drama, and a ‘Wallander’ prequel - The Boston Globe"
Post a Comment