New to View: August 15 – 21

A weekly guide to what’s new of note on air and online

Sunday

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➢ One Lane Bridge TVNZ 1, 8.30

“Introduced during lockdown, One Lane Bridge was an engrossing, evocative supernatural-tinged detective drama, a Central Otago-set Kiwi answer to Scandi-Noir complete with terrific performances … Quickly establishing new tensions, dramatic incident and personality clashes, One Lane Bridge looks set to deliver another season of twists and turns to rival its setting’s roadways.” — Stuff.

➢ The Panthers TVNZ 1, 9.30 / TVNZ OnDemand

Six-part series about the rise of the Polynesian Panthers 50 years ago. “Dramatised events in New Zealand history have had mixed results in the past decade, with some potted made-for-TV Sunday night features that have at best treated their subject lightly, and at worst succeeding in creating a glib distance from the event itself. Not so for this story that keeps a steady pace and bold style, some of the best locally-made viewing of the year.” — The Spinoff.

➢ Agatha and the Midnight Murders Vibe, 9.30

“Seemingly out there to mark the 100th anniversary of Agatha Christie’s first novel … it was a mess: ill-plotted, playing bits for laughs or for horror without ever achieving either. One has to feel for poor Helen Baxendale, who tried gamely enough as Christie, but too often the blinked horror of having wandered into the entirely wrong show could be seen in her eyes … Not even the worst iteration of a Poirot – Peter Ustinov, say – came near this woeful dreck.” — The Observer.

➢ Deceit Neon

Controversial four-part Channel 4 dramatisation of an undercover honeytrap to catch the killer of a woman in broad daylight on Wimbledon Common in 1992. “The genuinely startling subject matter would always make Deceit stand out from the usual true crime fare, but so does the well-judged handling of its many moral quandaries. There aren’t many easy judgements about right and wrong here, just a sense of muddiness that sometimes leaves you feeling queasy.” — Evening Standard.

Monday

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➢ The Queen Unseen Vibe, 8.30

“There is nothing wrong with a little nostalgia, particularly when viewed in glorious colour as it was here. This delve into the archives showed the Queen at her happiest. We saw her playing with her children on the beach, helping out at a family barbecue, and relaxing in the garden of the New Zealand governor-general while the Duke of Edinburgh tried and failed to clamber onto a lilo.” — The Daily Telegraph.

➢ Emergency Call USA Three, 9.30

“This absurd unscripted series allows viewers to watch first responders take calls from people dialing 911. It’s unclear whether these individuals are actors or actual emergency staff, and if the calls are edited or recreated. Meanwhile, viewers aren’t given the opportunity to see the emergency event, or the rescue.” — Common Sense Media.

Tuesday

➢ Animal Kingdom SoHo, 9.30

“Almost two years (!) after the Season 4 finale of Animal Kingdom (refresh your memory here), the criminally addictive TNT drama came back with a vengeance, teeing up a Season 5 premiere that left three characters dead and ushered in what might just be a whole new Pope. Or at least a somewhat different Pope.” — TVLine.

Wednesday

➢ Memories of a Murderer: The Nilsen Tapes Netflix

Culled from 250 hours of audio tapes in which Dennis Nilsen reveals how he got away with his five-year killing spree. “Alongside the tapes, the film involves journalists who covered the case at the time, as well those who managed to survive Nilsen’s horrific attacks. It also speaks to detectives involved in solving the case, who found themselves identifying his victims after finding the hidden bodies.” — The Sun.

➢ The Defeated Netflix

“For his latest role … [Taylor]  Kitsch has again gone deep and dark. The period crime drama, from the creators of Nordic noir series The Bridge, sees Kitsch playing a Brooklyn cop assigned to set up a police force in the chaos of post-World War II Berlin and to take down the Capone of post-war Berlin.” — The Hollywood Reporter.

Friday

➢ Nine Perfect Strangers Amazon Prime Video

“Set at a wellness resort, David E. Kelley’s latest Liane Moriarty adaptation boasts a star-studded cast … too good for the limited series to ever be unwatchable. But after seeing six of eight hour-long episodes, I’m pretty sure the biggest mystery has nothing to do with any of the damaged characters; it’s whether anybody involved realised that, by virtue of sheer bad timing, the thematically anaemic show would inevitably be reduced to White Lotus for Dummies.” — The Hollywood Reporter.

➢ The Chair Netflix

“The Chair moves at a sharp comedic clip even as it hinges on a topic that’s become a favourite for Fox News and concerned centrists alike: the omnipresent spectre of ‘political correctness’ supposedly running amok on college campuses, and the generational clash it tends to represent.” — Variety.

➢ Everything Will Be Fine Netflix

Satirical dramedy about a separated Mexican couple who live together for their child’s sake.