Streamageddon Streamageddon

This week we’re playing hide and seek with the ever-talented Tom Ripley (Andrew Scott) in the new Netflix original series Ripley. He’s a conman traipsing through the black-and-white vistas of the Italian coast (let’s call it shabby chic) in this prestige adaptation of the classic novel.

But first!


Chris plays hide and seek with the Hulu content buried in the new Hulu Hub on Disney+ (it’s like Hulu, but worse!)…
Dianne breaks down the big network TV vibes coming to Max…
And all of us marvel at the $40 million Disney spent fighting off an activist investor (that’s a whole 1.5 episodes of She-Hulk!).

———

📺 Review: Ripley

🧭 Where to Watch: Netflix
🗓️ Release Schedule: All 8 Episodes Available Now
📚 Related Titles: Based on The Talented Mr. Ripley by Patricia Highsmith (Novel)
🤩 Starring: Andrew Scott, Dakota Fanning, Johnny Flynn
🎬 Created By: Steven Zaillian (Writer/Director/Executive Producer)

🫣 Spoiler Warnings:

🤫 Light spoilers for first 2 episodes: Starting at 37:57
🚨 Major spoiler for episode 3: Starting at 51:00
This spoiler is mentioned in most of the show’s reviews.

———

🔗 Links:

Disney D-Day: Bob Iger Celebrates Board Battle Win & End Of “Distracting Proxy Contest”; Nelson Peltz “Disappointed” Then Tries To Spin It Into A Win – Dominic Patten, Deadline
DirecTV, Dish Back Fubo in Disney-Fox-WBD Sports Streaming Fight – Lucas Manfredi, The Wrap
It’s true: people like leaving their TVs on in the background – Emma Roth, The Verge
Streamers Are Rediscovering the TV Procedural – Josef Adalian, Vulture
‘FBI’ Trio Renewed At CBS With Flagship Series Scoring Three-Season Deal – Peter White, Deadline
Ripley review: Mr. Ripley is as talented as ever – Matt Schimkowitz, A.V. Club (Contains Spoilers!)

———

Subscribe and share at streamageddon.com

It’s our Spring Streaming Spectacular featuring our favorite show of the year-so-far: FX’s Shogun (streaming on Hulu!). We’ll share our thoughts before digging into spoilers, plus:


Which streamers should you add, keep, and cancel this spring? We have the answers in a shocking edition of Add / Keep / Cancel!
And looking for even more Spring shows? We’re doing our first-ever Vibe Check to help you triage your watchlist.

———

📺 Review: Shogun
Spoilers:

Overview: Light Spoilers for Episode 1 (starting at 37:35)
🚨 Full Spoilers through Episode 5 (starting at 55:27)

Show Stats:

Where to Watch: FX and Hulu
New Episodes: Tuesdays through April 23

———

🔗 Links:

Shōgun is here for a good time, not for a long time, creators say – William Hughes, A.V. Club
‘Shogun’ Bosses Detail “Painstaking Process” to Recreate Feudal Japan and Likelihood of Season 2 – Patrick Brzeski, The Hollywood Reporter

———

Subscribe and share at streamageddon.com

Netflix rescued the 30 Rock-infused Peacock comedy Girls5Eva and it’s a comeback we can get behind… even if we’re worried no one is watching. The show has more jokes in a single song than an entire season of Emmy-winning comedy The Bear but, like so many Peacock comedies, has struggled to find an audience. We’ll give you plenty of reasons to binge the 22 episodes now streaming on Netflix…

But first!


What’s Peacock’s deal anyway? How did it take 4 years for them to figure out that their brand is… NBC?
Is there any hope for Paramount? (We’re not holding our breath!)
Max goes global! (-ish!)
And we’ve got good news and bad news from Hollywood (where intrepid reporter Dianne is live on the ground!)

All that and a jam-packed edition of America’s Favorite Game Show: Renewed or Canceled?!

———

📺 Review: Girls5Eva
🚨 Light Spoilers (But No Big Ones for Season 3) 🚨


Number of Seasons Overall: 3 (All Episodes Available)
Renewal Status: To Be Announced
Where to Watch Now: Netflix
Where It Started: Peacock

———

🔗 Links:

Strikes Delayed TV’s Top Hits, But Audiences Came Back – Rick Porter, The Hollywood Reporter
Why film and TV production has been slow after strikes - Los Angeles Times – Christi Carras, Marisa Gerber, The L.A. Times
Judd Apatow on Why It’s “Scary” Netflix Can License HBO Shows: “Cheaper Than Making New Ones” – Carly Thomas, The Hollywood Reporter
Max to Launch in European Countries in May Ahead of Olympics – Elsa Keslassy, Variety
All six seasons of Community are coming to Peacock – Matt Schimkowitz, A.V. Club
Sara Bareilles on “Beautiful Collaboration” Writing Songs for ‘Girls5eva’ Soundtrack – Zoe G Phillips, The Hollywood Reporter
Pete Davidson is done with Bupkis – Mary Kate Carr, A.V. Club
Showtime decides to un-save Neil Patrick Harris' Uncoupled – William Hughes, A.V. Club
CNN To Air Repeats Of ‘Real Time With Bill Maher’ On Saturdays – Peter White, Ted Johnson, Deadline
'The Bear' Renewed for Season 4, Filming Back to Back With Season 3 – Ethan Shanfeld, Variety
'Evil' to End With Season 4 at Paramount+ – Joe Otterson, Variety
'Formula 1: Drive to Survive' Renewed for Season 7 at Netflix – Kasey Moore, whats-on-netflix.com
Percy Jackson And The Olympians renewed for season 2 at Disney+ – William Hughes, A.V. Club

———

Subscribe and share at streamageddon.com

TV is back and so are we! After a half-season delay (due to last year’s strikes) CBS and ABC are back with their hit sitcoms Ghosts and Abbott Elementary. Despite the extended hiatus both shows are entering their third seasons with a ton of momentum and a stacked (and growing) ensemble. Whether you’re a longtime fan or a brand new viewer: We’ll tell you what you need to know to dive into two of our favorite comedies.

Plus: Jon Stewart is back on The Daily Show and bringing in the highest ratings the show has seen since… Jon Stewart was on The Daily Show (go figure!). We’ll share some hot takes on the evolution of late night and the show’s precarious future.

But it’s not all laughs in Hollywood: Pilot season has all but vanished, with spring sitcom production down over 90% from a decade ago. Can comedy survive the industry’s historical contraction? We’ll debate the future of funny as we catch up on a lighting round of streaming news! ⚡️

———

📺 Review: Abbott Elementary (Season 3)
🚨 Light Spoilers (starting at 43:22) 🚨


Number of Seasons Overall: 3 (Season In Progress)
Renewal Status: Renewed for Season 4
Where to Watch: ABC, Hulu
Where to Stream Past Seasons: Hulu

Season 1 originally reviewed in Episode #2 (February 11, 2022)
———

📺 Review: Ghosts (Season 3)
🚨 Light Spoilers (starting at 56:20) 🚨


Number of Seasons Overall: 3 (Season in Progress)
Renewal Status: TBA (CBS will almost definitely renew it— it’s just early for the announcement)
Where to Watch: CBS, Paramount+
Where to Stream Past Seasons: Paramount+
Spinoff Of: Ghosts (UK)

Season 1 originally reviewed in Episode #18 (July 29, 2022)
———

🔗 Links:

‘Our Flag Means Death’ Creator Says It’s “The End Of The Road” After Comedy Fails To Find New Home – Denise Petski, Deadline
'Last Week Tonight with John Oliver' on YouTube will now be delayed – Abner Li, 9to5 Google
Old True Detective and new True Detective aren’t getting along – Mary Kate Carr, A.V. Club
Max to Start Cracking Down on Password Sharing, Too – Caitlin Huston, The Hollywood Reporter
'Tacoma FD' Canceled After Four Seasons at TruTV – Joe Otterson, Variety
TruTV Adds Nightly Sports Block With New Programs and Big Games – Brian Steinberg, Variety
Bob Iger Pushes Back on Marvel Fatigue, But Says Disney Quietly Canceled Movies – Alex Weprin, The Hollywood Reporter
Netflix Enters Boxing Ring; Streamer Sets Live Fight Between Mike Tyson & Jake Paul – Peter White, Deadline
A potential season two of Beef is looking at an insanely stacked cast – Emma Keates, A.V. Club
‘Beef’ Season 2 Eyes Charles Melton, Cailee Spaeny, Jake Gyllenhaal & Anne Hathaway: The Dish – Mike Fleming Jr, Deadline
Even more people really wanted to watch Jon Stewart this week – Emma Keates, A.V. Club
NBC declares sitcoms about witches are finally back, baby – William Hughes, A.V. Club
Reba McEntire Is Returning to TV With a New NBC Comedy: Details – Jackie Manno, NBC
Tim Allen Returning to ABC With Comedy ‘Shifting Gears’ – Lesley Goldberg, The Hollywood Reporter
Hollywood Contraction: Actors Struggle To Find Jobs As TV Castings Dry Up – Nellie Andreeva, Deadline
‘Ghosts’ Showrunners Discuss Season 3 Premiere’s Big Reveal & Future Consequences Of That Character’s Departure – Katie Campione, Deadline
Abbott Elementary is a local landmark in an exclusive clip from Sunday's post-Oscars episode – Saloni Gajjar, A.V. Club

———

Subscribe and share at streamageddon.com

Hihi, this week we’re going undercover with Donald Glover and Maya Erskine on their new Amazon Prime Video original Mr. & Mrs. Smith. It’s inspired by the 2005 blockbuster Brangelina action rom-com, but this new darkly comedic martial thriller has more in common with FX’s The Americans than the title suggests…

…and speaking of FX: Peak TV prognosticator (and veteran FX chief) John Landgraf is back with his annual tally of scripted originals and an ominous prediction. With the number of new series in decline, is the era of Peak TV is truly over? (He’s only predicted it twice before, so this time might be for real!)

But first!


Sony once again poses the question: Should you start hoarding physical media in the attic?
Chris explores the wide world of Plex channels…
…and Dianne plays a brand new game called Plex or Not?!

———

📺 Review: Mr. & Mrs. Smith
🚨 Spoiler Alert: First 2 Episodes (starting at 20:35) 🚨


Total Episodes: 8 Episodes (All Episodes Now Streaming)
Where to Watch: Amazon Prime Video
Renewal Status: TBA
Related Titles: Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2005)

———

🔗 Links:

Crunchyroll Adds All Funimation Content, Sony Phasing Out Funimation – Todd Spangler, Variety
Funimation is shutting down — and taking your digital library with it – Emma Roth, The Verge
Streamer Plex launches its long-promised movie rentals store | TechCrunch – Sarah Perez, TechCrunch
Peak TV Is Officially Over: FX Tallies 14 Percent Drop in Scripted Series for 2023 – Lesley Goldberg, The Hollywood Reporter
Amazon’s Mr. & Mrs. Smith series is a clever interpolation of the classic spy fantasy – Charles Pulliam-Moore, The Verge
Donald Glover and Maya Erskine on Real-Life Marriage, Professional Divorce and When to Walk Away – Lacey Rose, The Hollywood Reporter
Donald Glover also compares Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s Mr. & Mrs. Smith exit to divorce – Mary Kate Carr, A.V. Club

———

Subscribe and share at streamageddon.com

We’re closing the case on our Cozy (and/or Spooky) Winter Mysteries Tour with this winter’s buzziest, prestige-iest detective show: HBO’s True Detective: Night Country. Premiering a decade after the original season— with a whole new creator and showrunner— it’s a show that poses the question “So, like, what is a True Detective, man?” [Insert your best McConaughey voice here.]

But first! Will cartoon villain David Zaslav ruthlessly murder Coyote vs. ACME… again?! Can Taylor Swift save Disney+? Can hastily retooling a Moana streaming series as Moana 2 save Disney’s holiday box office? Can anyone explain what Bob Iger is talking about?? And whoops! They made a Sports Hulu!

———

📺 Review: True Detective Night Country
🚨 Spoiler Alert: First 2 Episodes (starting at 36:38) 🚨


Total Episodes: Anthology, 6 Episodes
New Episodes Drop: Sundays at 9 PM ET (through February 18)
Where to Watch: HBO (Streaming simultaneously on Max)
Related Titles: True Detective (2014)

———

🔗 Links:

Coyote Vs. Acme is probably getting scrapped anyway, in appalling movie news – Mary Kate Carr, A.V. Club
The Final Days of ‘Coyote vs. Acme': Offers, Rejections and a Roadrunner Race Against Time | Exclusive – Drew Taylor, The Wrap
Taylor Swift Sells 'Eras Tour' Concert Film to Disney+ for $75 Million – Todd Spangler, Variety
Disney is re-tooling a Moana TV show into Moana 2, shoving it into theaters this November – William Hughes, A.V. Club
Disney Plus will start its password-sharing crackdown this summer – Emma Roth, The Verge
Hulu is cracking down on password sharing, just like Disney Plus and Netflix – Sean Hollister, The Verge
Disney invests $1.5 billion in Epic to create ‘persistent universe’ tied to Fortnite – Andrew Webster, The Verge
Streaming ESPN without cable should launch in 2025. – Richard Lawler, The Verge
ESPN, Fox, and Warner Bros. are putting together a juggernaut sports streaming app – Emma Roth, The Verge

———

Subscribe and share at streamageddon.com