My favorite Apple TV+ shows
Some gems on Apple's streaming TV service, in case you're thinking of trying it out.
I want more people to give Apple TV+ a chance. I was a latecomer myself, I was skeptical, but it has turned out to be one of the streaming services I turn to most often. The wider streaming industry seems to be leaning towards churning out slop, but so far Apple TV+ seems to be investing in quality over quantity. I want that to be rewarded!
You're surely aware of shows like Ted Lasso and Severance, and they're great, I'll talk about those, but I want to tell you about some shows that may not be on your radar. You can tell that some talented, creative folks poured their best selves into some of these shows, and their efforts deserve to be enjoyed and appreciated.
Apple is running a discount deal right now, $2.99 a month for three months, I think. Even without the deal, I think Apple TV+ is worth a subscription.
Slow Horses
- Spy thriller, drama, black comedy
- 4 seasons, 24 episodes total, renewed for 2 more seasons
- Typical episode length: ~45 minutes
Slow Horses follows the folks within Britain's MI5 spy service who have goofed up too much to be trusted, but also know too much to be let go. These incompetents get assigned to Slough House, a shoddy flophouse of an office space in a grubby corner of London. But darn if they don't keep saving the day!
The leader of the rejects at Slough House is Gary Oldman, doing tip-top Gary Oldman-ing. He's gross, he's farty, and I adore him, especially when he's going toe-to-toe with MI5 Deputy Director Kristin Scott Thomas. Spy thrillers aren't typically a big draw for me, but I love this show.
Schmiggadoon!
- Musical comedy
- 2 seasons, 12 episodes total
- Typical episode length: ~30 minutes
Schmigadoon! follows a couple who are at a crossroads in their relationship, who stumble into a magical land that is all Broadway musical, all the time. It's skewering musicals, but it was written, directed, and performed by musical obsessives. Obscenely talented musical obsessives!
The first season is a deep tribute to the Golden Age of musicals in the '40s & '50s: Brigadoon, obviously, and Oklahoma!, Carousel, The Music Man, and The Sound of Music. The second season turns to the psychedelia of '60s musicals like Hair, Godspell, and Sweet Charity, and the grittier '70s world of Chicago, Cabaret, and Sweeney Todd. Season three was going to dive into the '80s musicals, lots of Andrew Lloyd Webber, I'm sure... but tragically the series was cancelled. They wrote the third season, and even all of the songs! I'm heartbroken about that, and it's part of the reason I want more people to subscribe to Apple TV+. (But don't worry, season two ends perfectly, you aren't left with an unresolved cliffhanger.)
You don't have to like musicals at all to find Schmigadoon! hilarious. Laughing at the absurdity is the point. I am bursting with examples to give you, there are so many sublimely silly moments in this show, but I don't want to spoil anything. Please give it a shot, even if you think you hate musicals. Everything about this show is masterfully done; a mountain of talent and effort went into this hidden gem of a show.
If you want to level up your enjoyment, I highly recommend digging into the YouTube channel Broadway by Ghostlight, which did breakdowns of the references in every Schmigadoon! episode.
Central Park
- Animated sitcom, musical
- 3 seasons, 39 episodes total
- Typical episode length: ~25 minutes
Central Park is an animated show from some of the folks behind Bob's Burgers. It's about a family that lives inside Central Park in Manhattan—the dad is the manager of the park. Like Schmigadoon! it's a musical, and Apple paid for quality talent. Sadly, it also got cancelled too early, and you can feel the final season sort of skidding to an awkward close. But while it may end with a whimper, it's still so strong that I heartily recommend it. Our family makes regular Central Park references, it's a part of us now. It holds up to a lot of rewatches. And the songs are fantastic! We listen to the soundtrack often, and there is one song/episode in season two that makes me cry every time.
It's got a stacked cast: Leslie Odom, Jr., Kathryn Hahn, Tituss Burgess, Kristen Bell, Josh Gad, Stanley Tucci, and Daveed Diggs. Ordinarily I don't like it when famous names are cast in animation over professional voice actors. It takes a different skill set, and big names may be a draw but too often they're mediocre voice actors—but this cast is perfect. Especially Stanley Tucci and Daveed Diggs.
Mythic Quest
- Workplace comedy
- 4 seasons, 40 episodes total, plus a spinoff 4-episode miniseries
- Typical episode length: ~30 minutes
Mythic Quest is a workplace comedy set at the game development studio of a wildly popular MMORPG—like World of Warcraft, I guess? I dunno, I haven't played that kind of game. But it's not about the game, it's about the office where they make the game and the goofballs who work there. The show stars and was created by Rob McElhenney, with a bunch of other folks from It's Always Sunny, too. It's a loveable, silly crew, and a reliably fun watch.
After watching the four seasons of Mythic Quest, be sure to catch the four-episode side series, Side Quest. It's uneven, the first two episodes are great and work better than the last two, but it's inventive and worth checking out.
Ted Lasso
- Sports workplace feelgood comedy drama
- 3 seasons, 34 episodes total, they're working on a 4th season
- Typical episode length: ~35 minutes
You don't need me to tell you about Ted Lasso, it was inescapable there for a while in popular culture. The hype wasn't wrong, it's a fantastic show, and it holds up even better after a re-watch. The third season loses its way a bit—the writing for the women was off, and it got a bit overstuffed with characters and plot—but it's not enough to ruin the show at all. It's still charming as heck, and the third season has some outstanding moments.
Years have passed since the series seemed to end, but they've announced that they've approved a fourth season; Jason Sudeikis is on board, and now they're working on contracts to get a bunch of the ol' gang back together.
Severance
- Dystopian psychological sci-fi thriller, but also a little bit of a workplace comedy?
- 2 seasons, 19 episodes total, renewed for a 3rd season
- Typical episode length: ~45 minutes
I often like to go in cold on shows, so I won't tell you too much about Severance. It's dystopian, about people who have undergone a li'l bit o' brain surgery to mentally sever their work selves from their personal lives. This raises all kinds of questions about how that works, and much of the show is about answering: not well!
Severance is the opposite of a gentle TV show. It is a hostile TV show. It is not brown, it is gray, gray, gray. But the hostility is of a slow-burn type that lets tension build in a way that feels interesting, rather than assaulting.
The Studio
- Workplace cringe comedy, showbiz satire
- 1 season, 10 episodes total (4 available at this writing)
- Typical episode length: ~35 minutes
The Studio is brand new, but I like what I've seen so far so I'm taking a leap and recommending it. Hollywood will never tire of satirical love letters to itself, but honestly, I don't tire of it either.
The Studio stars Seth Rogen as the just-promoted head of a big Hollywood movie studio who loves movies too much to be good at his new job. The supporting cast includes two top-tier [CK]ath[e]r[iy]n[e]s: Catherine O'Hara and Kathryn Hahn. Every episode is stacked with "as themselves" star cameos. It's gorgeous to look at, from the studio headquarters being a faux Frank Lloyd Wright Mayan Revival building, to the gorgeous mid-century homes, and sweeping Los Angeles views, and oh my goodness this show is so brown. But it is not gentle! Not quite, it's too cringey to be gentle. But it was made with love, which makes the cringe much more tolerable.
Again, I haven't seen all the episodes yet, but what I've seen has been beautifully executed.
Shrinking
- Comedy drama
- 2 seasons, 22 episodes total, renewed for a 3rd season
- Typical episode length: ~35 minutes
Shrinking stars Jason Segel as Jimmy, a cognitive behavioral therapist whose life is falling apart in the aftermath of his wife's death, but it's really about all the people around him: his coworkers, his patients, his neighbors.
Shrinking is a sweet little show, but it's ridiculous. I swear the writers room is like kids playing dolls with the cast of characters. Jimmy's circle of people gets put into the most random combinations in scenes, to the point that it strains credulity on a regular basis. This universe has about 20 people in it, and every possible scene combo has to be tried out.
That mild gripe aside, it's a charming little show—it's got some behind-the-scenes overlap with the folks who made Ted Lasso, and it has that same lightness.
I particularly have enjoyed getting to see Harrison Ford here, as Jimmy's boss. In occupying a role that keeps on going on the timescale of television, rather than a contained movie, he gets to show us some depth and gentle vulnerability under the cranky surface. And Ted McGinley is a revelation! He's been wasted all these years!
El Deafo
- Children's animation
- 3-part miniseries, each part is about 25 minutes
El Deafo is based on the award-winning graphic novel by the same name, and is the real-life memoir of artist Cece Bell. In real life, Bell is not a bunny, but the other details are true: she lost her hearing at a very young age, and uses hearing aids. Her experiences as a child with a disability, and the way the world does a frankly shit job of understanding and accommodating... well, it resonated in our household. The book is worth picking up, and the show is good, too.
Peanuts specials, old and new
I've mentioned here on the site before, there's a lot of love for the old Peanuts specials in our family. Most of the classic Peanuts television specials now call Apple TV+ home. Apple TV+ has sorta replicated the old holiday broadcast experience by allowing the specials to be seen for free for limited times around holiday seasons, so kudos for that.
Apple is now producing all-new Peanuts specials, and they're actually pretty good. They look different, they sound different, but they have a good heart. Wanda is very particular about how the Peanuts characters are portrayed, and she has seen every single bit of Peanuts animation that's been produced (including a rather odd French-produced TV series). She gives her stamp of approval on the new shows, with only minor reservations.
STEVE! (martin)
- Documentary
- 2 parts, each part is a little over 90 minutes
This two-part documentary on the life of Steve Martin isn't likely to tell you anything you don't already know about the guy, but it's great to hear his rear-view mirror perspective on his younger self.
Spirited
- Christmas comedy movie
- 2 hours, 7 minutes
The world did not need another take on Dickens' A Christmas Carol, but I'm so glad we got one anyway. Spirited has swiftly become one of my favorite Christmas movies, and ranks highly among the Dickens takes, in my estimation. (Nothing will ever overtake The Muppet Christmas Carol.)
You already know the base tale, I'll encourage you to go into this one cold.
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