If We Controlled Your Remote… 11/10/19

Have you ever been at a loss as to what to watch? Too many shows to pick from? We’re here to give you our opinions on what we feel is worth watching. Check it out and then let us know in the comments below what you’re choosing for tonight!

Kyle’s Choice

Tonight, Showtime premieres the new 6-episode British comedy-drama Back to Life. Miri Matteson (Daisy Haggard, Episodes) has spent the last 18 years in prison, ever since some mysterious horrible incident when she was 18. She has just been released and returns home to her small coastal hometown, moving back into her old bedroom at her parents’ home, which looks like it has been frozen in time for nearly 2 decades. As Miri tries to move forward with her life, she discovers that there is so much that she’s missed – from her old relationships, to changing technology, and pop culture. She’s like a stranger living in a strange new world. And on top of that, there are people in town who will never let her forget the incident that sent her to prison and make it known that they are not happy about her return.

The series is this odd mix of dark and melancholy humor, romantic comedy, and family drama, mixed with a bit of mystery. Series creator/star Daisy Haggard does an excellent job of finding the humor even in some dark circumstances – the series is filled with lots of genuine laughs. The banter between Miri and her parents leads to some of my favorite moments. It’s not until the second episode that we really start to get some details about why Miri was in prison, and even then, specifics are doled out slowly. But despite her past, you find yourself really rooting for Miri, wondering how such a seemingly sweet and charming person could have done what it appears that she did, hoping that things will turn around for her, and that the town can forgive and forget.

The series also stars Geraldine James (The Five) and Richard Durden (Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell) as Miri’s oddball parents who have some secrets of their own; Liam Williams (Pls Like) as Nathan, who’s new to town and opening a fish and chips shop; Adeel Akhtar (Ghosted) as next-door neighbor Billy, who takes a liking to Miri but doesn’t know of her past; Christine Bottomley (The End of the F***ing World) as Miri’s former best friend Mandy, who made no contact the whole time she was in prison; Jamie Michie (Borderline) as Miri’s ex Dom, who is now married with kids but also in a shocking side relationship; and Frank Feys as Samuel, a mysterious man who is intent on investigating Miri’s past.

Showtime will be airing two episodes each week on the cable channel but is making all 6 episodes available today on its streaming and On Demand platforms. The series makes a great binge and is definitely worth checking out.

On tonight’s premiere, “Episode 1,” after 18 years in prison, Miri Matteson returns to her hometown, to a place she no longer recognizes, in the dysfunctional family home she involuntarily vacated as a teen, living with parents she can no longer hold a conversation with. Then, in “Episode 2,” Miri is excited about her first day working at Nathan’s fish and chip shop, but the community is making it very clear she is not welcome; Miri’s childhood best friend, Mandy, is eager to rebuild their old friendship.

Meet Miri and see how she handles being home again tonight on Showtime starting at 10/9c.

I’ll also be watching/recording The Rookie, The Simpsons, Bless the Harts, Bob’s Burgers, Family Guy, Supergirl, The Walking Dead, Worst Cooks in America, Mr. Robot, Watchmen, Silicon Valley, and The Dublin Murders.
 
Jump with us to see else we think you should watch.
 

Phoebe’s Choice

Tonight, one of the biggest cartoons of the last decade finally returns when we get the season premiere of Rick and Morty on Adult Swim. Don’t blink tho – this season is an absurdly short 5 episodes. I hope that means season five will be out in 2020, because this is getting ridiculous. I have read that this episode will start right after the end of last season. If you recall, Rick & Morty had been called to Washington DC to help track down a monster in the Kennedy Sex Tunnels, but they grew bored of the task and felt underappreciated by POTUS. What are they? The president’s errand boys? Of course not. For all the times they’ve saved the universe, POTUS wouldn’t even take a selfie with Morty.

They blew off the mission to play Minecraft, and the president spied on them, knowing they’d shirked on him. Their argument led to the start of a fierce rivalry, reminiscent of when Rick took aim at the devil in season one. R & M went to Brazil to make a treaty with a miniature alien species before POTUS could, and then while he was wasting time in South America, they solved the Palestinian conflict just to troll him. A titanic battle erupted in the oval office, POTUS vs. Rick. The epic brawl contained Rick’s hilarious declaration: “I’m Dr. Who in this muthafucker!!” Morty however got bored with it and left to go find his mom and dad.

Because Beth had been spiraling out all episode with the fear that maybe she was a clone and the real Beth was dead and she needed some support. That paranoia drove her back into Gerry’s arms, and we had a nuclear family again, sorta. After his huge fight, Rick tracked down Morty and Beth, asking Beth to again abandon Gerry. But she wouldn’t this time, so he was forced to live under her terms. I didn’t love this end of season three, as it once again seemed to humanize Rick, and the thing that keeps us coming back is that he is not human at all, not in any emotional sense. He is a sick, demented old narcissist who abuses his grandson and manipulates everyone around him. He’s evil scientist Costanza with Lex Luthor smarts and George Carlin’s snarky sense of humor. If seeing Rick’s weakness wasn’t bad enough, the show took a departure in the last scene by having Beth break the 4th wall for the first time in 31 episodes. It cheapened the bit, as so far only Rick & Mr. Poopybutthole seemed to acknowledge that they are on a cartoon.

I hope they are just trolling us. That these five episodes will quickly be followed by another 10 next year, but I am not counting on it. With the lower episode count, the least they can do is five solid installments of the caliber of the “Pickle Rick” & “Tiny Rick” episodes. We’ll take what we can get though, as this show is still one of the greatest sci-fi comedies of all time.

On tonight’s episode, “Edge of Tomorty: Rick Die Rickpeat,” Morty goes nuts; Rick does stuff.

I’ll also be tuning in to the season premiere of Shameless, Get Shorty, Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, Bob’s Burgers, Supergirl, Batwoman, Declassified: Untold Stories of American Spies, Mr. Robot, and Watchmen. Wow, okay… I’ll be busy through Monday with these shows.