TAGGED AS: AMC, Comedy, Drama, Epix, HBO, Netflix, OWN
Late-summer TV is underway, and we’ve got a nearly equal number of years-running returning series and sophomore season entries. From corrupt lawyers and Hollywood producers to megachurch pastors and struggling millennials, there’s plenty to choose from to get you through this last leg of the hot months, so curl up, cool off, and get ready to binge.
Why you should watch it: The series takes a character we think we know — the Saul Goodman who Breaking Bad’s Walter White eventually meets in that Albuquerque, New Mexico, strip mall — and breaks him down to his nuts and bolts, starting at Jimmy McGill. Played wonderfully by Bob Odenkirk in what could become his career-defining (certainly career-changing) role, Saul/Jimmy and his uneasy partnership with Jonathan Banks’ Mike Ehrmantraut make for must-watch hours for any lover of prestige TV, Breaking Bad die-hard or not. Season 4 premieres August 6 on AMC.
Where to watch: Amazon, FandangoNOW, Google Play, Microsoft, Netflix, Vudu
Commitment: Approx. 23 hours
Why you should watch it: Yes, Johnson ranks among the world’s highest paid and biggest movie stars (and that’s not just in terms of his 6′4″, 260 lb. build), but Ballers is definitive proof that he’s got the acting chops to back up his paycheck and larger-than-life appeal. Plus — like Entourage before it — watching high-rolling men butting heads and behaving badly often makes for entertaining TV. Ballers season 4 premieres August 12 on HBO.
Where to watch it: Amazon, FandangoNOW, Google Play, HBO NOW, Microsoft, Vudu
Commitment: Approx. 15 hours
Why you should watch it: There’s something inherently funny about a murderous mobster finding his inner artist and sensitively grappling with those two divisions of his character. We saw it play out to great success earlier this year with Barry on HBO, but Get Shorty really mastered the formula nearly 30 years ago with Elmore Leonard’s 1990 novel and its 1995 film adaptation starring John Travolta, Gene Hackman, and Danny DeVito. That film, however, Get Shorty the series is not. Darker and more character-driven than its feature counterpart, Get Shorty also boasts a welcome return to form for Ray Romano, whose B-movie producer Rick Moreweather is his juiciest role in years. Season 2 premieres August 12 on Epix.
Where to watch: Amazon, Epix, FandangoNOW, Google Play, Microsoft, Vudu
Commitment: Approx. 8 hours
Why you should watch it: Issa Rae is utterly fearless, and Insecure is all the better for it. The freshly minted Emmy nominee weaves hot-button issues like gentrification, race, gender, and poverty into solid storytelling and character development. If you want to see what tough love and hard truths look like both in friendship and romance, Insecure serves those down-deep, human universals in spades — and it’s among the best series on television to do so. Season 3 premieres August 12 on HBO.
Where to watch it: Amazon, FandangoNOW, Google Play, HBO NOW, Microsoft, Vudu
Commitment: Approx. 8 hours
Why you should watch it: Gleeson is the kind of actor who offers a natural gravitas to any situation, but Detective Hodges especially gives him a lot to chew on. Met mark-for-mark in this twisted game of cat and mouse by an impressive Treadaway (previously of Penny Dreadful) and a reliably pitch-perfect supporting turn from Holland Taylor as Hodges’ neighbor Ida, Gleeson’s latest isn’t just one of his strongest projects in recent memory — it’s one of TV’s finest hidden gems. Seek it out. Season 2 premieres August 22 on the Audience Network.
Where to watch: Audience
Commitment: Approx. 8 hours
Why you should watch it: Greenleaf packs an emotional punch, thanks largely due to its trio of lead performances and a hearty supporting turn from Ms. Winfrey herself. To little surprise, the drama in this Tennessee family runs thicker than their shared blood, and it makes for a savory and soapy hour of must-watch TV. Season 3 premieres August 28 on OWN.
Where to watch: Amazon, FandangoNOW, Google Play, Microsoft, Netflix, Vudu
Commitment: Approx. 20 hours
Why you should watch it: Ozark isn’t the first series of its kind to portray good people doing bad things, but it’s about as good as those series come. Now sitting pretty with three Emmy nominations going into September’s ceremony (including both Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series and Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series nods for star and director Jason Bateman), the series conjures an all-encompassing bleakness situated snug in the apparent beauty of the Ozarks, and it establishes Bateman as so much more than the comedic actor most know him as today. Even more than just a vehicle for Bateman, however, it’s an ensemble drama (with an equally stellar Laura Linney, no less) that tackles the power of wealth and greed, human nature, and the ties that bind within family and beyond. Season 2 premieres August 31 on Netflix.
Where to watch it: Netflix
Commitment: Approx. 10.5 hours
