What’s On: March 11 to 17—Upload, Minx, The Last Days Of Ptolemy Grey
Our picks also include The Snoopy Show, season finales for Mrs. Maisel and HIMYF, the Critics' Choice Awards, and Netflix true-crime docuseries Bad Vegan
TV Features Minx
Welcome to What’s On, our weekly picks of must-watch shows for the next seven days. Here’s what’s you need to watch from Friday, March 11 to Thursday, March 17. All times are Eastern. Happy viewing.
The biggies
Upload (Prime Video, Friday, March 11 at 12:01 a.m.): Greg Daniels’ sci-fi comedy returns in all its AI glory for a seven-episode second season. Robbie Amell and Andy Allo steal the show with their chemistry. Check out The A.V. Club’s review.
The Last Days Of Ptolemy Grey (Apple TV+, Friday, March 11 at 12:01 a.m., series premiere): Samuel L. Jackson leads this new miniseries, based on Walter Mosley’s novel of the same name. He plays—take a wild guess—Ptolemy Grey, a 93-year old man who uses his fading memories to investigate the death of his beloved nephew. Dominique Fishback, Walton Goggins, Damon Gupton, and Marsha Stephanie Blake also star. Here’s the full review of the show. Season one consists of six episodes, with two premiering on March 11.
Minx (HBO Max, Thursday, March 17 at 3:01 a.m., series premiere): What’s better than Jake Johnson starring in a TV show? Jake Johnson starring in a TV show about a women’s erotic magazine. Set in the 1970s, Minx is about a young feminist from Los Angeles, Joyce (Ophelia Lovibond), who joins forces with low-rent publisher Doug (Johnson) to create the magazine. Keep an eye out for Gwen Ihnat’s review on the site next week.
Hidden gems
Formula 1: Drive To Survive (Netflix, Friday, March 11 at 3:01 a.m., season four): This docufiction series transports into the fast-paced lives of Formula 1 drivers, managers, and team owners. It’s a behind-the-scenes look at how the high-octane sport actually takes place. Here’s an excerpt from Sam Barsanti’s story on the show:
Even during one of the most ridiculous and dramatic F1 seasons ever, Drive To Survive is more concerned with the smaller teams and less-accomplished drivers, the ones who are eager for the PR boost of having their “storyline” get a showcase. And with the benefit of knowing how races end, the show can structure episodes around those storylines to create satisfying arcs.
The Snoopy Show (Apple TV+, Friday, March 11 at 12:01 a.m.): The world’s most iconic dog goes on new adventures in this Apple TV+ revival of the Peanuts gang. All six episodes drop at the same time.
More good stuff
The Critics’ Choice Awards (The CW/TBS, Sunday, March 13 at 7 p.m.): Moira Rose’s favorite season continues with the annual Critics Choice Awards. Nicole Byer and Taye Diggs host this year’s ceremony. Here’s everything you need to know about it.
Bad Vegan (Netflix, Wednesday, March 16 at 3:01 a.m.): Your next favorite true-crime docuseries is here. Executive produced by Tiger King’s Chris Smith, this one tells the story of celebrity restaurateur Sarma Melngailis, who began draining funds to funnel money for Shane Fox, a man she met on Twitter. The two stole nearly $2 million and then made a run for it.
DMZ (HBO Max, Thursday, March 17 at 3:01 a.m., series premiere): Rosario Dawson leads this four-episode dystopian drama as Alma Ortega, a medic who becomes a symbol of hope in a demilitarized Manhattan while trying to find her lost son during yet another Civil War. DMZ is based on a comic book series of the same name.
Can’t-miss recaps
Saturday Night Live (NBC, 11:29 p.m.): Zoë Kravitz, the newly minted Catwoman (courtesy of The Batman), graces Studio 8H for the first time with musical guest Rosalía.
The Walking Dead (AMC, Sunday, 9 p.m.)
Killing Eve (BBC America, Sunday, 8 p.m.)
South Park (Comedy Central, Wednesday, 8 p.m., season 25 finale)
Ending soon
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (Prime Video, Friday, March 11 at 3:01 a.m., season four finale)
The Cleaning Lady (Fox, Monday, March 14 at 9 p.m., season one finale)
How I Met Your Father (Hulu, Tuesday, March 15 at 12:01 a.m., season one finale)
Resident Alien (Syfy, Wednesday, March 16 at 9 p.m., season two midseason finale)
Make it a movie night
Turning Red (Disney+, Friday, March 11 at 3:01 a.m.): Pixar’s newest offering is a coming-of-age story of 13-year-old Meilin “Mei” Lee (Rosalie Chiang). The voice lineup includes Sandra Oh, Never Have I Ever’s Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, and Wai Ching Ho. In praising the movie, The A.V. Club’s Todd Gilchrist writes:
“Turning Red is by far Pixar’s most sophisticated character portrait to date, and one of its most challenging, albeit not necessarily for reasons tied to the film’s skilled and joyful cultural and geographic specificity.”
The Adam Project (Netflix, Friday, March 11 at 3:01 a.m.): Let’s face it, everyone’s excited about the movie because it reunites 13 Going On 30's Jennifer Garner and Mark Ruffalo, right? The sci-fi film from Shawn Levy also stars Ryan Reynolds, Zoe Saldana, and Catherine Keener. Here’s Brent Simon’s full review.
12 Comments
Was the first season of The Snoopy Show really that good?
It was cute, which is all it really had to be.
Finally a mention of Resident Alien! I love that show!!
Really doesn’t get enough love around here. It gets mentioned a bit on i09, but not as much as it should. Thankfully it seems to be SyFy’s highest rated original programming, so hopefully it’s not headed for the chopping block. Plus I can’t imagine it’s terribly costly to produce, like the Expanse likely was.
Hey, What’s On Tonight is back, in weekly form! I’ve missed the column this past week, but as far removed from the golden age of peak tv as we are, a weekly rundown really seems preferable.
I liked the daily version. Who plans their TV watching a week in advance?
I agree, but it is probably reflective of how much I’ve been beaten down by these web sites that I am mostly just thankful this is not a slide show.
I know, right? I need daily reminders as to what’s on when. Gonna have to breakdown and resort to making up my own schedule to remind me daily. Like some kind of goober.
What’s really over is the golden era of The AV Club paying writers to review a decent array of the television that is on.
That ship sailed long ago.
I guess we’re no longer getting these Sunday morning, so TUAYPCW goes here now:
“Impulsive Xcessive Disorder” was a fun breather. The Flash tends to be at its best in breezy
self-contained episodes. When they go for epic story arcs, it makes me
wonder why a show starring a speedster drags its feet.Too bad it’s yet another series this site stopped recapping.https://mattthecatania.wordpress.com/2022/03/10/the-xs-ively-verbose-seventh-blogiversary/
The Uncanny maxed out on feline thespians!
Sweet Angel Mine is the Canucksploitation edition of Psycho wherein a Brit briefly fights Viking reenactors in Nova Scotia.
If you are thinking of eating Yankee Trader frozen shrimp scampi ravioli … DON’T.If I should expire from this, AVENGE ME!
Ophelia Lovibond was in Austin Powers, surely?