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There’s no such thing as a slow month in the TV-release calendar anymore, but December does still often feel like an afterthought. The annual best-of lists are already out, sweeps month (to the extent that it still matters) is over before Thanksgiving and, traditionally, we’re all too busy shopping and holiday-partying and visiting family to spend too much time in front a screen. But December 2021 has brought more than just end-of-year dregs and Yuletide treacle to TV—and I’m not talking about that dire Sex and the City sequel.
Which is probably a good thing, as yet another COVID spike has thrown yet another wrench into many Omicron-fearing would-be revelers’ festivities. It’s cold comfort, I know, but the best I can offer is this list of worthy distractions. From a Harlem-set sitcom to a holiday romance by the creator who updated One Day at a Time, to a beautifully acted pair of UK imports and a pandemic drama that might well leave you feeling hopeful, here are five new shows to help you survive a second Christmas on the couch.
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Anne Boleyn (AMC+)
Sometimes a stunning performance is enough to reinvigorate an old story. The tumultuous reign of Henry VIII is one such tale, memorably retold on TV in the BBC adaptation of Hilary Mantel’s Wolf Hall as well as in Showtime’s frothy The Tudors. On screens big and small, such celebrated actors as Vanessa Redgrave, Claire Foy, Helena Bonham Carter, Natalie Portman and Natalie Dormer have portrayed the tragic figure of Anne Boleyn. Yet I’ve never seen an Anne quite as haunting as the one Queen & Slim star Jodie Turner-Smith embodies here.
A three-part series imported from Britain’s Channel 5, Anne Boleyn chronicles the queen’s downfall in the style of a psychological thriller. As a weak Henry (Mark Stanley from Game of Thrones) wavers and crafty Thomas Cromwell (Barry Ward) plots, Anne schemes to save herself and her young daughter in the aftermath of a miscarriage that turns the court…
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Source : time
