It’s catch-up time for some of those series that premiered in late spring, along with some new ones that are just emerging. You may have heard of them and even seen some of them, but for those of you as behind as I am, here goes. This is part two of a two-part series. Part one, a compilation of slightly older premieres, is available online.
“Smoke” is smokin’ hot! There are two, not one, serial arsonists in this big city, and it is the job of crack arson investigator Dave Gudsen and his newly assigned partner, Detective Michelle Calderone, to track them down. Assigned may be a euphemism because this is a Siberia to which the previously upwardly mobile Calderone has been sequestered. Neither is happy with the other but Calderone brings a fresh approach, a critical eye and gnawing suspicions to the evolutions and actions of both arsonists. Gudsen’s ego takes a massive hit, but he hides it behind his piercing eyes and tense but winning smile. Calderone submerges her disenchantment to make some major breakthroughs. There’s plenty of action, but it’s the character depth and development that sets this series apart from almost everything on TV. Written with breathtaking emotional expanse, it’s not so much who did it (you find out early on) but how they will be caught.
Dennis Lehane, a master novelist and exceptional writer of television, was the creator of the award-winning Apple limited series “Black Bird” and has now added “Smoke” to the magic he creates. He is blessed with two fantastic leads in Jurnee Smollett as Calderone and the amazing Taron Egerton as Gudsen. Egerton, whose range is stunning, having played Elton John in “Rocketman” and the petty criminal trying for a better deal in “Black Bird,” is someone Lehane obviously wanted to work with again. He may be the most effective, charming, ice-cold sociopath ever in a lead role. No matter the medium, his presence now makes it a must see. Smollett’s depth of character, a woman whose flaws almost outweigh her grace, shows she is a rare commodity.
Now playing on Apple TV+
“Stick” stars Owen Wilson as Pryce Cahill, an over-the-hill former pro golfer who now works in the local golf club shop. Soon to be divorced, still haunted by his rapid fade from the pro circuit, he spies what could be his comeback. Sneaking onto the driving range at night, teen wastrel Santi Wheeler hits balls out of the park, literally and figuratively. The kid’s an unknown, but maybe with a bit of fine-tuning Cahill can use him as his own steppingstone. Making a deal with Santi’s mother, Cahill will tutor Santi and prepare him for the junior nationals. Santi, however, is a handful. He’s been let down by better men than Cahill, or so he says, and isn’t interested in improving a game he thinks is already perfect. Teen angst and anger meet adult uncertainty and they’re off in a camper, accompanied by Cahill’s friend Mitts and an unusual love/hate partnership with a girl named Zero whose angles are many and sharp.
Wilson excels in this role, able to navigate the soft edges of his character without becoming maudlin. Peter Dager is a marvelous Santi, all dark-eyed anger disguising emotional scars; Marc Maron is Mitts, an amorphous character who somehow brings something to a nothing role, and Lili Kay as Zero adds some surprising mystery and danger. Watch for Timothy Olyphant as the antagonist to Cahill. He made it big, possibly over the back of his rival.
Never a fan of golf, not a big fan of Wilson, “Stick” actually delivers more than expected and makes both the subject and the star worthwhile viewing. It’s that endangered half-hour format that we need so much; no laugh track telling us when to laugh, just something to sit down, relax, watch and enjoy.
Now streaming on Apple TV+
“Nautilus” is true family fare. Remember when you could sit down as a family and watch something that appealed to kids as well as adults? “Nautilus” is just such a show, combining science fiction adventure that is loosely based on a classic novel, “20,000 Leagues Under the Sea” by Jules Verne. There are monsters of both the sea (a giant electric eel) and land (shipwrecked sailors and marauding bandits) with a measure of social justice and history thrown in at the same time.
Captain Nemo is a renegade Indian prince being chased by a government-sanctioned troop of English naval officers and executives of the East India Company (Company). Captain Nemo is a much-valued escapee from the Company’s prison. They have stolen his lands, killed his family and need the secrets he holds. He and a small band of scientists and escaped prisoners have commandeered the Nautilus, a mysterious submarine that can dive deep and evade pursuers. Gustave Benoit designed the vessel for the Company having been assured that it would be used for exploration. To his horror he discovers that they plan on using it as a killing machine. Nemo and his band of outlaw sailors steal the Nautilus and prepare for a journey to far-off lands, all while trying to evade the evil officers of the Dreadnought, the powerful warship that has been sent after them by the Company. Collateral damage are Humility Lucas, an aspiring engineer of great mind and stunning appearance, engaged against her wishes to a shallow aristocrat far below her intellectual standards, and Loti, Humility’s governess and keeper. And there’s an adorable dog.
Humility, with an eye to the Prince and a mind on statistics, is a bit too trite a character but Georgia Flood still makes you root for her. Shazad Llatif is a worthy Nemo, like some of the many who have played him before, James Mason, Michael Caine, Patrick Stewart and more. But true to the book, Nemo was an Indian prince whose fight was against his captors and imperialism.
So sit back with the kids; enjoy the wonders of this imaginary sea; root for the hero against the bad guys and marvel at some of the science and science fiction that make up this tale. Keep your eyes peeled for guest appearances by the hilariously smarmy Richard Grant as the White Rajah and the frightening Noah Taylor, the shipwrecked Captain Mogg.
All episodes now streaming on AMC+
“Ballard” is a welcome addition to the Michael Connelly universe. Renée Ballard, a character spinoff from the Bosch novels, is a disgraced detective who has been relegated to the new cold case division. The vanity project of a city councilman in search of the person who murdered his sister many years ago, the new department, understaffed and underfunded, located in the moldy bowels of a station house, relies on the help of volunteers. Ballard saw her career take a nose dive when she filed sexual harassment charges against her boss. Without corroboration from colleagues afraid for their own positions, she was exiled and he remained as powerful as ever.
The volunteers are an eccentric group that includes Ted Rawls, a skeptic and spy for the councilman; Colleen, a volunteer who insists she has psychic ability and Thomas Laffont, a retired cop putting in the hours to help Renée and also escape his well-meaning, hovering husband. Soon to be added to the group is Parker, a woman who quit the force under mysterious circumstances, who has more in common with Ballard than she’ll admit.
Not as influenced by political pressure as she should be, Ballard is tough and smart and knows how to read a crime scene, even years later. She’s interested in the councilman’s cause but she sees other pressing cases, including one about an illegal who was shot several years previously that may be related to the recent killing of a maid at the same motel. Ballard keeps all the balls in the air and comes up with both good news and bad news in the case of the murdered sister. The good news is some recently retrieved DNA; the bad news, a case with the same murder MO, indicating that this may have been the work of a serial killer.
Slow to start, the series eventually finds its rhythm by the third episode. The cast is what keeps you motivated to continue watching. Leading the crew is Maggie Q, action star, as Ballard. The ever reliable and empathetic John Carroll Lynch is Laffont and Michael Mosley as Ted Rawls grows from smarmily sarcastic to almost sympathetic. The always wonderful Amy Hill plays Tutu, Ballard’s grandmother and source of wisdom and Courtney Taylor plays Parker with a chip on her shoulder to hide her vulnerability.
Now streaming on Amazon Prime
Neely Swanson spent most of her professional career in the television industry, almost all of it working for David E. Kelley. In her last full-time position as Executive Vice President of Development, she reviewed writer submissions and targeted content for adaptation. As she has often said, she did book reports for a living. For several years she was a freelance writer for “Written By,” the magazine of the WGA West, and was adjunct faculty at USC in the writing division of the School of Cinematic Arts. Neely has been writing film and television reviews for the “Easy Reader” for more than 10 years. Her past reviews can be read on Rotten Tomatoes where she is a tomatometer-approved critic.
