Berlin (2023 – ) Season 1
Back to his golden age before the events of “Money Heist,” Berlin and a masterful gang gather in Paris to plan one of his most ambitious robberies ever.
My thoughts: The prequel to Money Heist is a fun romp but, after a while, the escapes become so contrived and nonsensical that they diminish the stakes and undermine the drama.
3.5/5
Florida Man (2023 – ) Season 1
When an ex-cop returns to his home state of Florida to find a mobster’s runaway girlfriend, what should’ve been a quick gig turns into a wild odyssey.
My thoughts: Fun premise but the show’s flip attitude really begins to grate after a while.
3/5
The Brothers Sun (2024 – ) Season 1
Charles Sun, a Taipei gangster who’s settled into his life as a ruthless killer, must go to L.A. to protect his mother and younger brother after his father is shot by a mysterious assassin.
My thoughts: Annoyingly overly-stylized, just another in a long line of recent highly polished but ultimately empty kooky crime shows.
3/5
Reacher (2022 – ) Season 1
Itinerant former military policeman Jack Reacher solves crimes and metes out his own brand of street justice. Based on the novels by Lee Child.
My thoughts: Perfectly average actioner that delivers as no more or less as expected. Dialogue and direction are the entertainment equivalent of fast-food.
3.5/5
Mr. and Mrs. Smith (2024 – ) Season 1
Two strangers land jobs with a spy agency that offers them a life of espionage, wealth, and travel. The catch: new identities in an arranged marriage.
My thoughts: 25% fun and 75% annoyingly pointless banter and insufferable bickering. Also, spoiler alert, they kill the cat.
3.5/5
Alas, I can only recommend shows with a 4/5 score or higher and none of today’s selection make the cut. Better luck next time!
Thanks for the cat killing warning! I’ll be sure to avoid that show.
We liked Reacher’s first season. A fun bit of junk food fiction.
On yesterday’s blog: I’m not sure how you juggle all of that. The insecurity would be so stressful for me. You manage very well and made great friends. Not to mention having fun along the way. This life seems to suit you.
Happy Sharky Sunday and I look forward to seeing his DNA results.
Strictly not a crime drama per se, have you tried the Lazarus Project??
Alas, no. Avoiding cross-genre shows at present, but thanks.
On a recent trip to the UK I binged “The Lazarus Project” on the flights. It’s so stupid. I think it would infuriate you. I like the concept of being able to reset time back to the same day each year but the second season goes very “wibbly wobbly timey wimey”.
I have to admit, Reacher was absolutely a guilty pleasure for me. Silly and cheesy with literally laugh out loud moments, as you say it’s like fast food – great in the moment but afterward you wonder if it was really that good for you. Still, you go back to it every time.
I tried “Mr & Mrs Smith” but dropped it after the first episode. I was hoping for something similar in spirit to “Chuck” but I found it unfunny and slow paced.
Apparently the lead actress was allergic to the cat so I suppose that’s why they killed it off in the show. But they could have found a more humane way to write it out. Kill as many humans as you want but don’t touch the cat!