Binge-r #194: The Best New Shows of 2020 (so far)
Red Alert: Daisy Edgar-Jones (Marianne) and Paul Mescal (Connell) in Normal People
A note from your fellow binger: I checked – 2020 has only been going for 24 weeks, not a decade. It’s been a long year to date, and obviously it’s been a very different and, for some, a very difficult one. Some things haven’t changed, which in my case means watching many new shows on Australia’s growing list of streaming services. To help you catch up on what you understandably might have missed, here’s my scorecard on the top debuts for the first half of 2020. As ever, thanks for reading, and may your next six months be an excellent season, CM.
20 – WHITE LINES
Highs and woes via a Brits-in-Spain club culture murder mystery (Netflix)
19 – ZEROZEROZERO
A cocaine shipment brings conflict and chaos to various criminal clans (SBS on Demand)
18 – TALES FROM THE LOOP
A sombre lost tech what-if unfolding in sci-fi’s shadow (Amazon)
17 – WORK IN PROGRESS
The mordant and the marvellous circle each other in this queer American comedy (Stan)
16 – BLACK AF
Come for Kenya Barris’ Hollywood self-satire; stay for Rashida Jones killing it (Netflix)
15 – EVERYTHING’S GONNA BE OKAY
Josh Thomas relocates to Hollywood and makes a U.S sitcom his way (Stan)
14 – TIGER KING
A bonkers true crime documentary about American excess and wild animals (Netflix)
13 – UPLOAD
The digital afterlife provides a sharp setting for this blithe sitcom (Amazon)
12 – HUNTERS
Al Pacino comes to streaming with a 1970s B-movie Nazi payback fantasia (Amazon)
11 – I AM NOT OKAY WITH THIS
The teenage realm where John Hughes meets Stephen King (Netflix)
Test Pressing: Zoe Kravitz (Rob) in High Fidelity
10 – MYTHIC QUEST: RAVEN’S BANQUET
A zippy workplace comedy backed by a terrific social isolation bonus episode (Apple TV+)
9 – FEEL GOOD
Stand-up comedy, sit down trauma in this idiosyncratic lesbian love affair (Netflix)
8 – THE GREAT
Elle Fanning rules in this absurdist royal court period drama (Stan)
7 – LITTLE AMERICA
A bittersweet and enlightening anthology about immigrants in America (Apple TV+)
6 – HIGH FIDELITY
A reboot that gets it right with Zoe Kravitz covering John Cusack (ABC iView)
5 – LITTLE FIRES EVERYWHERE
Reese Witherspoon and Kerry Washington elevate this juicy but uneasy drama (Amazon)
4 – GIRI/HAJI
A Japanese crime tale exported to London, with grace notes and black humour (Netflix)
3 – THE LAST DANCE
Michael Jordan’s final basketball peak is a barbed and furiously entertaining doc (Netflix)
2 – UNORTHODOX
A young wife fleeing her constrained life makes for a compelling song of freedom (Netflix)
1 – NORMAL PEOPLE
The connection between two Irish teens reveals life-altering forces that define them (Stan)
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>> Check the complete BINGE-R archive: 242 series reviewed here, 143 movies reviewed here, and 33 lists compiled here.
