New to View: November 22 – 28

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

Sunday

➢ Being the Queen National Geographic, 7.30

Could this be the factual counterpoint to the historical liberties of Netflix’s The Crown? Moreover, in an age of endless Royal documentaries, what more is there to learn? Executive producer Tom Jennings (Diana: In Her Own Words) told Stuff he’s used “all kinds of tricks to try to make familiar stories seem brand new” while a US critic complained only of it being too short, “condensing six decades of leadership into a single hour”.

Monday

➢ The Real Des: The Dennis Nilsen Story TVNZ 1, 8.30

Ahead of next month’s TVNZ 1 premiere of Des comes this companion documentary about the serial killer of at least 15 young men. In the UK it sensibly screened after the three-part dramatisation starring David Tennant, so you might be best to stream it first at TVNZ OnDemand. “As grimly compelling as the story is, it felt unnecessary and provided the sort of attention a narcissist like Nilsen would have loved.” — Daily Mail.

➢ The Eruption: Stories of Survival Three, 8.30

First-hand accounts of what it was like to survive the White Island eruption and to rescue the victims. Producer Irene Chapple told The TV Guide the documentary doesn’t try to apportion blame. “This film was never going to be an exploration into the investigation and, if it had been, I don’t think we’d have ultimately been talking to the same people because they wouldn’t have wanted to participate because it’s so sensitive … I would say the film critiques certain aspects of the structure that ultimately led to what happened, but it is not a driving force for our film.”

➢ Boomerang Neon

Seasons one and two of a romantic comedy spun off the 1982 Eddie Murphy movie. “A thoughtful look at life, work and love for black millennials …. The vibe here is much more laid-back than the film’s but the world feels instantly realised and immersive.” — Rolling Stone.

➢ Seachange: Paradise Reclaimed Acorn TV

“If art is ultimately a sort of distorted reflection of the world in which it is created, the original series was in some respects a reaction to the fast-spinning engine of city life, in which Pearl Bay offered an opportunity to step off the metaphorical treadmill. Seachange 2.0 lands in a more complex space, in a world fractured by politics and cultural change, but one where the ‘seachange’ fantasy offers a similar escape route.” — Sydney Morning Herald.

Wednesday

➢ Extreme Love Stories Prime, 9.30

Reads the blurb for a behind-closed-doors taboo-breaking concept that’s spawned two seasons: “From feeders to fetishists, polyamorists to pregnant men, sister wives to sugar babies; prepare to leave your preconceptions of what makes a happy home at the door. Could you share your man, or loan out your girl? Would you let your other half sleep with a sex robot? How big an age gap is just too much? Outrageous, funny and touching, this series exposes previously underground subcultures and scenes, as well as featuring those individuals who dare to be different.”

Thursday

➢ The Sounds Prime, 8.30

Free-to-air premiere of a Marlborough Sounds-set mystery series that’s been streaming here on Neon and internationally on Acorn. “Beautiful people doing stupid things in breathtaking locations is the stuff TV dreams are made of. The Sounds checks all the boxes while also dealing in anguished wives, philandering husbands, grieving mothers, 15-year-old murder cases, sabotaged business deals and, as a bonus, a couple of villains so cold and soulless they provide comic relief.” — Wall Street Journal.

➢ Evil Prime, 9.30

Superior network TV procedural from the creators of The Good Wife about a sceptical psychologist and a trainee priest who investigate possessions. “Evil’s pilot episode gives viewers a show whose classically elegant construction and sharp sense of itself augur great things ahead.” — Variety.

➢ The Late Cut Cricket Show Duke, 9.30/TVNZ 1, 11.00

As the curtain-raiser to Friday’s live coverage of the first T20 International (TVNZ 1, 6.50), this irreverent newcomer promises to take a “lusty swing” at the game Spark Sport is betting heavily on to score summer subscriptions.