TV Snide: July 2022

TV Show of the Month: Stranger Things - Season 4.5 (Netflix): Legendary characters. Endlessly thrilling plot lines. So many strings were tied but so many still remain to be tied. Season 5 should have about 20 episodes, with each telling the deeper stories behind each main character. This is in the same league as Spielberg classics like E.T. and Raiders of the Lost Ark. 5 stars out of 5

Schitt's Creek - Season 1 (Netflix): After watching the first few episodes years ago, my 14-year-old son and I powered through this tidy and hilarious season. A rich family is banished to a backwater town that they hate but which they slowly begin to hate less. No wonder this was such a delayed phenominon a while back. 5 out of 5 stars

Movie of the Month: Top Gun: Maverick (Theater): While non-stop adventure chase sequences are not typically my cup of tea, this was only the second movie I've been back to in theaters since the pandemic started and, even at a terrible theater, this one thrills. Way better than the first Top Gun, it's a mission that would be impossible to not love. 5 out of 5 stars

The Pentaverate (Netflix): Mike Myers may never top Austin Powers, but this is about as close as it gets. You've got to admire him for the creative wackiness that brims out of his brain. The Pentaverate is a group (mostly played by Myers) that rules the world, unless a nosy Canadian reporter (also played by Myers) can stop the conspiracy. The short series is a blast throughout, with at least a couple of scenes that had me falling on the floor laughing. 4.5 out of 5 stars

The Love Guru (Showtime): See review of The Pentaverate above. My son and I were on a Mike Myers kick this month, and this is another zany entry into the lots-like-Austin-Powers universe. 4 out of 5 stars

Novel of the Month: Marrying the Ketchups by Jennifer Close: A great story about the life changes the extended Sullivan family goes through as they lose their parents and seemingly their country after the 2016 election but win their first Cubs World Series. The kids, now in their 30s, now need to find themselves as they navigate Oak Park, Illinois and beyond. A must read for anyone who lives in the restaurant world. 4 out of 5 stars

The Mosquito Coast (Apple TV): This passion project from Justin Theroux, based on a novel by his uncle Paul, has the actor playing an inventor who decides to take his family on the run from a U.S. that isn't treating him well through Mexico, all the while hounded by drug lords. A lot of fun in a limited seven-part series. 4 out of 5 stars

The Worst Person in the World (Hulu): Through many trials and errors with different boyfriends and family relationships, the movie’s focus Julie finds herself and what she loves to do. A touching and deeply romantic movie filmed throughout Oslo. 3.5 out of 5 stars