HD Heads-Up: September 21 – 27

➢➢ Call it divine intervention but TVNZ 2 has had second thoughts about its programming of God Friended Me (9.35 Wednesdays from September 25) after rejigging its mid-week line-up. This week it dropped Gordon Ramsay 24 Hours to Hell and Back for re-runs of Travel Guides Australia (season one, 8.30 Thursdays). God Friended Me was meant to air 8.30 Wednesdays but for the next two weeks TVNZ 2 will test 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown in this slot. That means September 18’s season finales of Michael McIntyre’s Big Show and Station 19 now will air at 9.35 and 10.50 respectively, pre-empting re-runs of Wellington Paranormal and Cougar Town …

➢➢ God Friended Me is a comedy/drama series about an outspoken atheist podcaster whose life is turned upside down when he receives a friend request from “God” on social media and unwittingly becomes an agent of change in the lives and destinies of others around him. It’s about to start a second season on CBS a year after debuting to mixed reviews that ranged from “an ungodly mess” (The Hollywood Reporter) to “the sweetest show with the worst title” (USA Today) …

➢➢ Making New Zealand (Prime, 8.30 Sundays from September 22) returns for a new season with a look back at how New Zealand tourism came to be …

➢➢ The Clinton Affair (Prime, 9.30 Sundays from September 22) was dubbed “tawdry tedium” by The Hollywood Reporter: “A&E’s six-part docuseries recounts the Clinton-Lewinsky scandal, focusing on the sordid he said/she said details, but largely ignoring the long-lasting implications of the event.” Echoed Variety: “While the documentary gives Lewinsky a meaningful say, it’s missing the sort of editorial eye one might expect from a film produced at a moment in which our culture finally seems ready to evaluate Clinton without falling for his charisma” …

➢➢ Other premieres for the week starting September 21 will include:

• House of Champions (Three, 8.30 Wednesday), a NZ documentary about three small-town flatmates are striving for Special Olympics glory
• Drug Wars: Cocaine (Duke, 8.30 Wednesdays), which uncovers a world where cocaine is part of the everyday routine
• First Time Call Girl (TVNZ 2, 9.35 Tuesday), an intimate and revealing documentary about the clandestine world of escorting …

➢➢ Ending their runs will be Celebrity Treasure Island, Impossible Builds, The Posh Frock Shop and Driving Test …

➢➢ Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (TVNZ 2, 8.00 Sunday), The Lobster (Maori TV, 8.30 Sunday) and Mavis (Maori TV, 8.30 Monday) are the free-to-air movie premieres for the week starting September 21. Other HD coming attractions will include:

• Megamind (Three, 4.00 Saturday)
• James and the Giant Peach (TVNZ 2, 7.00 Saturday)
• The Reef 2: High Tide (Maori TV, 7.00 Saturday)
• The Shawshank Redemption (TVNZ 2, 8.35 Saturday)
• You, Me and Dupree (Three, 9.30 Saturday)
• Ghosts of Mars (Duke, 9.30 Saturday)
• Jupiter Ascending (TVNZ 2, 11.25 Saturday)
• Mistress America (Three, 11.35 Saturday)
• Homefront (TVNZ 2, 1.35am Sunday)
• Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising (Three, 8.30 Sunday)
• Final Destination (TVNZ 2, 10.25 Sunday)
• I Am Legend (Prime, 8.30 Monday)
• The Patriot (Duke, 8.30 Tuesday)
• The Karate Kid (Three, 7.30 Thursday)
• Ghostbusters (Duke, 8.30 Friday)
• Legends of the Fall (Maori TV, 8.30 Friday).