Critics Pick! I hope when I’m finally done with this season, to post a longer review of my thoughts, but Peacock’s sword and sandals epic Those About To Die is filling a void we needed on TV. While I can find similarities in other shows, currently there is no equal on television. It is a sprawling epic, with a broad ensemble, strong performances, and the feeling that something deadly is just around the volcano bay. I’m 5 episodes in total now, and if you are looking to add a new show to your list, I will recommend this without even finishing it.

I also started The Lady In The Lake (Apple Plus), which by todays standards is a period drama, which makes me feel old, but it does take place several decades ago and dives into a young Jewish girl that goes missing, and what results from that. Though, the series itself starts with this narration from a character named Cleo, who is really the #2 character right now, indicating that she is the Lady in The Lake. So, while the first episode is dominated by this missing girl, and this feeling that things will not work out well, there’s a bigger question of what will happen to Cleo. Natalie Portman is technically the lead here, playing a Jewish housewife who has had enough on Thanksgiving, leaves her husband (who is a bit of a dick) and moves out on Thanksgiving, also heading out to search for the missing girl. This show plays a lot with what women can and can’t do, and are expected to do, as well as prominently featuring Jewish leads and Black leads. Two episodes dropped, I watched the first, and sometimes shows like this become a data dump of characters. we met a lot of people, and it will be hard to give them all personalities as the show goes forward, depending on how many of these characters are in the run of the show. It isn’t just Natalie Portman and some folk. She just has slightly more screentime than the rest.

And, I watched the second episode of Kite Man: Hell Yeah! (MAX), which needs to develop its own cast and voice. I love Bane, and I could watch him any day, but he is primarily a Harley Quinn character. This spinoff needs to be like Frazier, and find its Crane family. Golden glider is a bit underdeveloped, and even Kite man feels one note as a character, with kindness and earnestness being his main descriptors. Janelle James is a standout in the voice cast as the Queen Of Fables. Episode 2 is very much a great expansion of her character. Malice also has potential to be a big new character for the show, but I havent’ seen more than the first two. Who knows how she’ll be used in future episodes.