Too Much TV: Your TV Talking Points For Friday, February 28th, 2025

Here's everything you need to know about the world of television for Friday, February 28th, 2025:

PRODUCTION NOTES
My apologies for not getting this out earlier Friday night. In full disclosure, I decided to lay down for a bit before dinner and finishing the newsletter and ended up waking up hours later.

I've been doing this more than three years and while I will take a day off here and there, I've never taken a vacation that wasn't holiday-related. And I think I am beginning to feel the effects of working endless 12+ hour days. I haven't decided what to do about it, but my body is definitely telling me I need to somehow dial back or at the very least, take an extra planned day off here and there.

ON THAT NOTE, HERE IS SOMETHING EXTRA I AM THINKING ABOUT
I am looking for recommendations on audio software I can use to create what would essentially be a pre-recorded radio show. An opportunity has come up and I am trying to figure out if it makes sense for me logistically.

I'm looking for software that is easy to use, would allow me to pull audio from pre-recorded Zoom call or other audio interviews and add wrap-around audio segments. In other words, if I am creating a 52-minute show, using two or three ten minute interviews along with my commentary.

I need to see if I can do this weekly without spending ten extra hours I don't have putting it together. It's a cool opportunity and I miss doing talk radio. But as I mentioned before, my bandwidth is challenging right now.

DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS
This isn't so much a correction as it is an additional piece of information about something I posted in yesterday's newsletter.

I complained that the trades wrote about a story first broken by Jeff Sneider's newsletter The InSneider that Oscar Nuñez will reprise his role in The Office follow-up series on Peacock. I mentioned a Deadline piece that entirely ignored the source of the story. Although a reader pointed out that a piece in Variety did mention The InSneider, although didn't link to the piece. So they did marginally better with their attribution?

WHAT YOU SHOULD BE WATCHING THIS WEEKEND
Like a lot of people ask me what shows I think they should be watching, and that's always a tough question to answer in the abstract. But here are some shows I'm recommending right now, and all of them are worth sampling.

I want to watch some global TV shows that sort of remind me of American procedurals
Berlin ER (Apple TV+)
This German-produced series was co-created by former emergency room physician turned screenwriter Samuel Jefferson with Viktor Jakovleski and the format will be instantly familiar to anyone who's watched a fast-fasted American series set in a hospital. While there are some distinctly German references, the show is gripping and distinctive and it's easy to get lost in the chaos.

The Trauma Code: Heroes On Call (Netflix)
This South Korean show centers around a struggling trauma center and the havoc created when a new brash and self-absorbed doctor is brought in to turn things around.

The show does have a sprinkling of that Asian style of drama that involved weirdly comedic and over-the-top acting performances in the midst of otherwise gripping scenes. But it's also quite entertaining, part House and part Chicago Hope, all set in modern day Seoul. I can't guarantee you'll love it, but it's worth checking out.

I want to watch something that allows me to just turn off my brain
Everyone has a different type of programming that is their mental comfort food. For me, it's cooking shows. Which is a problem, because other than few morning shows on the weekend, the Food Network is now little more than endless variations of the same competitive cooking show.

I don't regularly watch a lot of FAST channels, but my recent go-to choice has been The Jamie Oliver Channel, which is available on most of the major free ad-supported platforms. Oliver has created a staggering number of shows over the years, but most of them haven't been widely available in the U.S. This 24/7 channel includes some of his best, including Oliver's Twist, Jamie's Easy Meals For Every Day, Jamie's Comfort Food, the awkward COVID-era Jamie: Keep Cooking And Carry On, and Jamie's 15-Minute Meals.

There are a couple of less interesting shows in the mix and like all single-theme FAST channels, after watching regularly for awhile you'll realize you've seen all the episodes before. But it's my current favorite. If you're a not a Jamie Oliver fan, I'd suggest checking out BBC Food (which REALLY needs to refresh its schedule).

I want to watch a music documentary is more than just a concert film or branding exercise:
Selena Gomez: My Mind & Me (Apple TV+)
I don't think that I've ever watched a documentary in which a celebrity was this willing to show themselves emotionally vulnerable and uncertain about stardom and their place in the world. I reviewed this when it premiered in 2022, and here is a bit of what I wrote back then:

In fact, that image is one of the reasons why she is so good in Hulu's "Only Murders In The Building." In the series, she plays someone who seems cool and detached from the world. But as the show plays out, you begin to see all of the things she hides from others and from herself. It's a character that fits the world's image of Gomez, whether or not it's truly accurate.

That dichotomy plays out on a larger scale in "Selena Gomez: My Mind & Me." She wants to connect in ways that are difficult for her to manage. Especially someone who is a star of her stature. She sees herself through other people's eyes and as they see her  - this strong, talented, together woman  - and that doesn't match the way she often feels inside. There are scenes where you see her yearning for peace and happiness in a visceral way that almost physically hurts to watch. And yet, for whatever reason she decided to bare herself for the world. And it feels like the process of making the film helped solidify some things in her life.

What smaller streaming service should I try out next?
While a lot of people can't imagine needing something new to watch, I receive this question quite regularly and right now, my answer would be the Amazon-owned MGM+.

Thanks to a couple of movie output deals, the service has a decent number of new film (right now they include Gladiator II, A Quiet Place: Day One, September 5, Challengers, If & The Bee Keeper). But where the service really shines is with its lineup of original TV series. From, Rogue Heroes, Earth Abides, The Godfather of Harlem and Billy The Kid are just a few of the highlights. The new Nine Bodies In A Mexican Morgue premieres this Sunday and it is another stellar effort. Here is the official logline for that one:

A light aircraft with nine passengers crashes in the Mexican jungle and everyone survives. But then, one after another, they begin to die in strange and violent ways. The survivors soon realize that, for some inexplicable reason, somebody wants them dead. As the story unfolds in flashbacks, we meet the survivors as they fight against the heat, a shortage of supplies, the many dangers of the jungle – and each other. The setting becomes increasingly tense and claustrophobic until finally the identity of the killer and the truth are revealed.

WHAT'S NEW TONIGHT AND TOMORROW

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 28TH:
Aitana: Metamorphosis (Netflix) 
Counterstrike (Netflix)
Dabba Cartel Series Premiere (Netflix) 
Roosters Series Premiere (Netflix)
Squad 36 (Netflix) 
The Perfect Killer (LMN)
Tuiskoms Series Premiere (Netflix)

SATURDAY, MARCH 1ST:
I Am Luke Perry (The CW)
Killing The Competition (Lifetime)
The Potato Lab Series Premiere (Netflix)
The Royal We (Hallmark)

SUNDAY, MARCH 2ND:
Abducted In The Everglades (Lifetime)
Nine Bodies In A Mexican Morgue (MGM+)
Tournament Of Champions Season Premiere (Food)
97th Annual Academy Awards (ABC)

MONDAY, MARCH 3RD:
Celtics City (HBO)
Hot Wheels Let's Race Season Premiere (Netflix)
Recipes For Love And Murder (Acorn TV)
Skillsville Series Premiere (PBS Kids)

SEE YOU ON MONDAY!