The Weekend Binge: Apple's New 'Murderbot' Comedy, Matteo Lane is Hularious, New Season of 'The Chi', NBC's Tribute To Joan Rivers, and Unveiled: Max's New Logo
This is your sign to relax, open a bottle, and start streaming...
Happy Weekend!
Temps are rising and so are the pre-summer streams. This weekend is coming in hot with Alexander Skarsgard in Apple TV+’s new sci-fi comedy series Murderbot. Confession: I’m not really into sci-fi, but I plan to check this out just for the eye-candy.
Another newbie on the list is Matteo Lane’s new stand-up special on Hulu. If you don’t already follow him on Instagram, then you are not living your best life. His comedy is so adorably funny and so relatable.
Have You Heard?
We saw it coming, but Max has reverted its branding back to HBO Max. And the memes are almost (almost) as good as the Pope memes. Don’t worry, I’m on it! The graphics have already been updated for this newsletter.
Murderbot (Apple TV+)
Matteo Lane: The Al Dente Special (Hulu)
Garbo: Where Did You Go? (Netflix)
New Episodes of - The Last of Us (HBO Max) Hacks (HBOMax), The Handmaid’s Tale (Hulu), Long Way Down (Apple TV+)
Here’s Everything New Streaming This Weekend
Secrets We Keep
When her neighbor’s au pair goes missing, Cecilie is compelled to personally investigate, but as she uncovers the truth, her perfect world falls apart. Danish, English, and Filipino language-film. Streaming Time: 6 episodes.
🍷Pair With: Amici Sauvignon Blanc, 2023
Also New On Netflix - Football Parents, The Quilters, Paddington in Peru, Rotten Legacy, Dear Hongrang, Vini Jr, Thank You Next: Season 2, Bet, Love Death & Robots: Volume 4, Franklin, Pernille: Season 5, American Manhunt: Osama bin Laden, Fred and Rose West: A British Horror Story, Married at First Sight: Season 17, Snakes and Ladders, Rhythm + Flow: Poland, All American: Season 7, Bad Thoughts, Abba: Against the Odds, Untold: The Liver King, Tastefully Yours, Garbo: Where Did You Go?
Netflix’s Top 5 Weekend Streams (TV/Movies)
American Manhunt: Osama Bin Laden / Nonnas
Forever / A Deadly American Marriage
Fred and Rose West: A British Horror Story / Paddington in Peru
Bad Thoughts / Untold: The Liver King
Secrets We Keep / Home
Matteo Lane: The Al Dente Special
Lane is one of my favorite new comedians to go mainstream. His stand-up is so relatable and I love his personality. In this special, Lane shares stories from his life, travels, and family. Film at the Broad Stage in Santa Monica. Streaming Time: 57 minutes.
🍷Pair with: Conte Di Castignano Torre Del Sasso Chianti
Also New On Hulu - TMZ Investigates: What Happened to Justin Bieber?, The Last Breath, Welcome To Wrexham: Season 4 (FX), The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives: Season 2
Overcompensating
A comedy series that follows Benny, a college football player as he struggles to accept his sexuality, finding himself overcompensating as he tries to mask his true self. Streaming Time: 8 episodes.
🍷Pair with: Truth & Valor, Cabernet Sauvignon Paso Robles, 2021
Also New Prime Video - Lee Soo Man: King of K-Pop, Murder Drones
Prime’s Top 5 Weekend Streams
Another Simple Favor
Reacher
HomeFront
Twisters
The Bondsman
The Chi: Season 7
This series has been going strong since 2018, and now in its seventh season, Alicia is on a mission to find her son’s killer and goes on a rampage. Fatima gives Victor an ultimatum, and Bakari makes a costly deal. Streaming Time: 12 episodes. New episodes every Friday.
🍷Pair with: Latimer Ranch Pinot Noir Russian River Valley, 2022
Also New On Paramount+ - Novocaine, Hard Truths, Sky Med: Season 3
Paramount+’s Top 5 Weekend Streams (TV/Movies)
Criminal Minds: Evolution / Novocaine
Georgie & Mandy’s First Marriage / Paw Patrol: Aqua Pups
NCIS / Top Gun: Maverick
The Chi / Paw Patrol: Super Charged
Spongebob Squarepants / Sonic the Hedgehog 3
Joan Rivers: A Dead Funny All-Star Tribute
A decade after the passing of Joan Rivers, the comedy community, which includes Nikki Glaser, Chelsea Handler, Aubrey Plaza, and her daughter Melissa Rivers, revisits her legendary cabinet of jokes and adds their spin to reflect today’s social and cultural landscape, along with a dose of their original material. Streaming Time: 1 hour, 1 minute.
🍷Pair with: Tesoro Della Regina Pinot Grigio, Italy
Also New On Peacock - Eurovision Song Contest: Basel 2025, SNL: with Host Scarlet Johansson and Musical Guest Bad Bunny
Peacock’s Top 5 Weekend Streams (TV/Movies)
Poker Face / Love Hurts
Law & Order: SVU / John Wick 4
Chicago P.D. / Trolls: Band Together
Summer House / Southern Fried Lies
Chicago Fire / Last Breath
Murderbot
Alexander Skarsgard (Big Little Lies, Succession) stars in this sci-fi comedy series about a security android that struggles with emotions and free will while balancing dangerous missions and desire for isolation, evading detection of its self-hacking as it finds its place. Co-stars John Cho, Jack McBrayer, and DeWanda Wise. Streaming Time: 10 episodes. First two episodes now streaming. New episodes every Friday.
🍷Pair with: Felicette Space Cats, Red Blend
Also New On Apple TV+- Deaf President Now!
Apple TV+’s Top 5 Weekend Stream (TV/Movies/Documentary)
Your Friends & Neighbors / The Gorge / Long Way Home
The Studio / Wolfs / Deaf President Now!
Severance / Greyhound / Long Way Round
Murderbot / Ghosted / Number One on the Call Sheet
Ted Lasso / The Instigators / The Secret Lives of Animals
Duster
Josh Holloway (Lost) stars in this crime drama set in the 1970s Southwest about the life of a risk-taking getaway driver for a growing crime syndicate. Things go from awful to wildly dangerous real quick in this action-packed series from creator J.J. Abrams. Streaming time: 8 episodes. First episode now streaming. New episodes every Thursday.
🍷Pair with: Josh Cellars Bourbon Barrel Cabernet Sauvignon Family Reserve
Also New On HBO Max - The Brutalist (A24), Mermicorno: Starfall Season 2, United States of Scandal with Jake Tapper: Season 2 (CNN), Cutthroat Kitchen: Knives Out (Food Network), Mini Rini: Season 1 (Magnolia), Betting on Paradise: Season 1 (HGTV), Contraband: Seized at the Border: Season 6 (Discovery), Dream Destination: A Surprise Trip (Discovery)
HBO Max’s Top 5 Weekend Streams (TV/Movies)
The Last of Us / Babygirl
Hacks / Ready Player One
Conan O’Brien Must Go / Madagascar
1000-lb Sisters / The Goonies
The Rightgeous Gemstones / Final Destination
Armand (Sundance)
Armand is a six-year-old boy accused of crossing boundaries with his best friend at elementary school. This psychological drama was the official submission from Norway for the Best International Feature Film category of last year’s Academy Awards and the winner of the Golden Camera Award at the Cannes Film Festival. Streaming Time: 1 hour, 57 minutes.
🍷Pair with: Wagner Vidal Blanc Ice Wine
Paddington in Peru (Netflix)
Super Wheels (Paramount+)
Carta da FITAPRETA, Portugal
I recently did a Portugal wine tasting with my fellow wineauxs and tasted this divine wine from the Alentejo region. The grapes are harvested manually from a sustainable farm with twelve to 50-year-old vines. The wine is aged in 50% stainless steel tanks and 50% conditioned French oak barrels for 10 months. There’s a lot of vibrancy in this wine. On the nose, you’ll get floral and fruit aromas of violets and black raspberries, with notes of toast and spice. On the palate, lush and ripe, with abundant fresh black currant berries and brambleberry. A little aftertaste of minerality and smokiness gives it length after the first sip.
🍷FitaPreta Vinhos Carta da FitaPreta, 2020 - retails for around $20. You can buy online or from specialty wine shops like Hidden Tracks Bottle Shop in Phoenix, Arizona.