It’s the first full week of professional football, guys, and I realize that some of you may not be in the same “let’s build a potato chip effigy to Drew Brees” frame of mind that I am. So maybe you want some new streaming material to replace all things (not really) made out of pigskin, and you’d be in luck, as Netflix became a one-stop shop for cult comedy, ice cold James Spader and David Duchovny getting some poon.
And if our choices here aren’t totally in your wheelhouse, other new streaming releases this week include The League’s Season 5, The Good Wife’s Season 5, Last Tango in Halifax’s Season 2, as well as seasons of Doomsday Preppers, Zero Hour and Weird or What?, if you’re into those sorts of thing. But for now, be sure and book yourself a room at the fuck-off hotel Lahey for everyone’s favorite mobile home community lads.
First, a moment of silence for show creator Mike Clattenberg, who sold the show’s rights to its stars in 2013, and has moved on to Adult Swim’s hilarious Black Jesus. It’s been roughly six years since audiences have had the chance to live with Julian (John Paul Tremblay), Ricky (Robb Wells) and Bubbles (Mike Smith) on an episodic basis, and though the time between Seasons 7 and 8 was filled with movies and specials, nothing gives these characters their comedic dues quite like a TV series. This is just one of two Trailer Park Boys seasons (and more) that Netflix acquired, wisely recognizing the binge-factor that comes with cult comedy series like this. And this season has just about everything you’d expect from these entrepreneurial gents, from strip club openings to dead goldfish to Bubbles attempting to use his sheds to become a honey oil manufacturer. Look out for a couple of special guests and returning characters, and above all else, remember to pick me up a bag of jalapeño chips before you watch.
NBC has waited for years for a drama that is both as compelling and as universally acclaimed as The Blacklist, and the show’s rabid fans are eagerly anticipating its sophomore season starting up later this month. But for those out there who haven’t yet been able to dive into the mysterious world of Raymond “Red” Reddington (James Spader), Netflix is here to help you out. (And they spent a bazillion dollars doing it.) Red is a former government agent who flipped his life around to the lawbreaking side and found himself on an FBI Most Wanted list. He suddenly gives himself up, with a plan to work with the FBI and new profiler Elizabeth Keen (Megan Boone) in locating and capturing dangerous criminals, some of whom the FBI isn’t even aware of yet. Come for the exciting thrills and stay for another standout Spader performance.
Californication – Seasons 1 – 7
The days of novelist Hank Moody’s too-cool womanizing are over, at least on television. (The idea of David Duchovny’s Hank Moody will never go away.) The Emmy Award-winning Showtime series’ seventh and final season came to its conclusion at the end of June, pulling the plugs on Hank’s relationships with sex, getting trashed, sometimes-girlfriend Karen (Natascha McElhone), and a problematic relationship with daughter Becca (Madeleine Martin). Guest stars for Season 7 include the always excellent Mary Lynn Rajskub and Michael Imperioli. Even if you haven’t caught up with the show before now, the entire series is available on both Netflix and here on Amazon Prime. But if you don’t want to go through all of this L.A. debauchery, don’t forget that The Good Wife’s latest season is out there.
