The first weekend of November is here at last. Halloween is behind us and the wintry part of autumn means colder days and nights perfect for curling up with a good TV show or movie.
That’s where I come in. Every week I scour the internet and the many streaming services we all subscribe to these days in order to find the best new content to watch. There’s always something new out there, and especially at the start of a new month.
November is filled with exciting new releases. Let’s dive right in.
Check out last week’s streaming guide right here.
Alright, let’s dive right in!
What’s New This Weekend
The Diplomat Season 2 (Netflix)
Somehow, despite really liking Keri Russell in The Americans and enjoying political thrillers quite a lot, I still never got around to Season 1 of The Diplomat. The fact that the series just dropped its second season on Halloween is a good reminder to remedy that. Russell plays Kate Wylder, a U.S. diplomat in England, caught up in dire events involving a terrorist plot. The full second season is out now.
Music By John Williams (Disney+)
A documentary about one of the best and most-acclaimed film composers of all time. We get commentary from many of the filmmakers Williams has worked with over the years like Steven Spielberg and George Lucas. Williams composed so many iconic scores for films like Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Schindler’s List and countless others. Any film and music lover should check this out.
Despicable Me 4 (Peacock)
I really do love the Despicable Me movies and I missed this in theaters, so I’m happy it’s finally out on Peacock. Steve Carrell stars as Gru alongside Kristen Wiig and Will Ferrell. This would be a good family flick this weekend for those of you with kids, or just the young-at-heart.
The Whale (Netflix)
Brendan Fraser went from long-forgotten action-star to serious actor with the release of The Whale, winning numerous Best Actor awards for his role as Charlie, a morbidly obese teacher trying to reconnect with is estranged daughter (played by Sadie Sink). If you’re up for a tearjerker, the movie just landed on Netflix Friday.
As always, a ton of movies are released on every streaming service on the fist of the month. Prime Video gets the first two Godfather films, the excellent Spanish horror film Pan’s Labyrinth, and the award-winning The Theory Of Everything along with dozens of others. Netflix subscribers get Oblivion, Mr. Peabody & Sherman and Superbad to name a few. On Hulu, check out Elf and the classic Western, Unforgiven.
Streaming Weekly
A couple of the following shows actually aired their season finales this week, but I’m including them nonetheless just in case you haven’t gotten to them yet.
Shrinking Season 2 (Apple TV)
I’m finally almost caught up with Apple’s excellent Shrinking, a story about a therapist named Jimmy (Jason Segal) coping with the grief of losing his wife in a tragic car accident, and all the people in his life who challenge and support him. It’s a tremendously funny, deeply moving show that I find both hilarious and sometimes a little close to home.
Agatha All Along (Disney+)
Agatha All Along was Marvel series I had very little interest in at first, but have come to rank as among my favorites. The story of Agatha Harkness is a twisty-turny one, with some great surprises and lots of laughs. The two-part season finale was absolutely wonderful. I’m sad it’s over, but excited to see where they take the series from here. I’m hoping one character in particular gets his own show from creator Jac Schaeffer.
Only Murders In The Building (Hulu)
Only Murders In The Building’s fourth season ended this past week and I genuinely loved it, even though there wasn’t a big twist in the finale like we all expected. As with all the other seasons, the Season 4 finale sets up Season 5’s murder and a possible mafia connection. You can read my finale review here.
The Penguin (HBO / Max)
I haven’t written about the latest Penguin episode, but the show continues to be an absolute banger and one of the best DC Comics offerings in years. The latest episode ended on an ominous cliffhanger, and I’m anticipating a crazy new episode this Sunday. Colin Farrell is fantastic as Oz Cobb, but it’s Cristin Milioti’s sublime performance as Sofia Falcone that really steals the show. New episodes land Sundays on HBO and Max.
FROM (MGM)
I’m really enjoying FROM in its third season, but we’re past halfway through—Episode 7 comes out Sunday—and we’ve covered a lot less ground than I’d hoped. As much as I’ve enjoyed a lot of the revelations and scary moments this season, the MGM horror drama often feels like it’s treading water when it gets lost in constant bickering between its somewhat bloated cast. That being said, I still love this show and I’m really excited to see where it goes over the next three weeks. Read my review of episode 6 here.
Sweetpea (Starz)
Ella Purnell continues to knock it out of the park in this murderous British thriller about a young woman angry at the world who decides to get revenge on her entire kill list, one-by-one, and keeps adding to the list as she goes. Things took a clumsily violent turn in last week’s episode. I haven’t watched this week’s yet. You can read my review of the first episode here. New episodes land on Starz every Friday.
Teacup (Peacock)
Teacup is one of those shows where I’m always annoyed by the characters’ choices—why are you splitting up!?—but still find the whole thing gripping and tense and really good overall. It’s basically a new take on The Thing but instead of being set in the arctic, it’s on an isolated patch of farmland and a few scattered houses and barns. And instead of just one evil alien, it’s an evil alien trying to track down a good alien. Lots of mystery, suspense, character drama. I definitely recommend it!
Daryl Dixon: The Book Of Carol (AMC)
The most recent episode of The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon — The Book Of Carol (what a mouthful) was probably the best of the season, but it’s still so poorly written that I think I’m just grading on a curve at this point. I’m really not sure why AMC continues to put out Walking Dead content that’s so lackluster. Is it that hard to hire better writers and showrunners? Or maybe they’re just banking on diehard fans sticking with it through thick and thin. I just think there’s so much potential for something better. One final episode comes out this Sunday. My review should drop Monday evening.
Disclaimer (Apple TV)
I still haven’t started the Cate Blanchett / Kevin Kline drama Disclaimer on Apple TV yet because I’ve been so busy with my video game coverage lately. I might just binge it when the whole thing is out at this point! Those of you who have watched it, what do you think?
What did I miss? Are you watching anything good these days? Let me know on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook. Also be sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel and follow me here on this blog. Sign up for my newsletter for more reviews and commentary on entertainment and culture.
From Yours Truly
Have a great weekend! Happy November!
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