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Week of September 13 – 20

Another fully stocked week is upon us, with one of the very best shows of the year debuting (“Black Rabbit” on Netflix) and “The Morning Show” and “Futurama” returning (on Apple TV+ and Hulu, respectively). There’s also a movie about the formation of Bumble (“Swiped” on Hulu), a crazy new documentary from the “Tiger King” folks (“Rebel Royals” on Netflix) and a spooky funny new adult animated series (“Haunted Hotel” on Netflix). Plus – the Emmys! Hosted by Nate Bargatze! What a week!

On with the television! 

Black Rabbit

Thursday, September 18, Netflix

Source: Netflix

One of the year’s very best new shows is here. “Black Rabbit,” created by Zach Baylin and Kate Susman, follows two brothers – Jake (Jude Law) is a divorced dad who is running a hip bar and restaurant in New York (the titular Black Rabbit), while Vince (Jason Bateman) is a perpetual screw-up who crashes back into Jake’s life and threatens everything that Jake worked so hard for.

The limited series opens with a darling jewel heist at the restaurant and then flashes back to the beginning – how Jake and Vince reconnected and all the trouble that followed. This is a suspenseful (at times almost unbearably so), thoughtful and emotional story about the bonds of brotherhood and how past trauma informs how we live our lives today.

The supporting cast, which includes Cleopatra Coleman as Jake’s old flame, Abbey Lee as a hostess at the Black Rabbit, Troy Kotsur as a local crime boss and Dagmara Domińczyk as Jake’s ex-wife (to name a few), is absolutely peerless – everyone adds such dimensionality and spirit to the series. It never feels like just a crime show or your everyday thriller, there’s something more nuanced and textured to “Black Rabbit.”

Just be warned: it is highly, compulsively binge-able. Before you know it, your whole weekend could be spent at the Black Rabbit. Not that it would be a bad thing. [TRAILER]

Ancient Aliens

Friday, September 19 at 9 p.m., History Channel

Source: History Channel

“Ancient Aliens,” the History Channel’s pseudo-scientific look at the possibility that extraterrestrial intelligences have intersected with human development over the years, has been on the air since 2009.

And while critics have claimed that the series is misguided and somewhat harmful, if you have the right attitude – that these are fun flights of fancy that wouldn’t be out of place airing after the “X-Files” on Friday night — it's a blast. It’s also been fascinating to watch the show shift as the study of UFOs (or UAP – unidentified aerial phenomena) have become more mainstream and accepted.

Tonight’s 21st season finale, “The Abduction Files,” looks at the government response to supposed alien kidnappings. The truth is out there. [CLIP]

Swiped

Friday, September 19, Hulu

Source: Hulu

“Swiped” is about the creation of online dating app Bumble, with Lily James starring as Whitney Wolfe Herd, the founder, executive chair and CEO of the app. (Before that she co-founded Tinder.) Dan Stevens, Myha'la, Clea Duvall and Jackson White also star. “Swiped,” which had its premiere as part of the Gala Presentation program at the Toronto International Film Festival, was written and directed by Rachel Lee Goldenberg.

Goldenberg has had a fascinating career, having made direct-to-video cheapies for notorious company Asylum, before being discovered by Will Ferrell, who put her in charge of his Lifetime original movie “A Deadly Adoption,” which co-starred Kristin Wiig and was written by Harper Steel. Since then, Goldenberg made the musical version of “Valley Girl” and “Unpregnant” for HBO Max. “Swiped” could be her biggest movie yet. [TRAILER]

Rebel Royals: An Unlikely Love Story

Tuesday, September 16, Netflix

Source: Netflix

From the creators of “Tiger King” comes another unlikely, wholly wild true story. Netflix describes “Rebel Royals: An Unlikely Love Story” as “an intimate look at the controversial love story between Norway's king’s eldest child, Märtha Louise, and Hollywood’s self-proclaimed spiritual guru, Durek Verrett.

The film follows the couple as they prepare for their wedding, seek spiritual guidance, and navigate a media storm.” “Tiger King” director Rebecca Chaiklin was inspired by a Vanity Fair article about their courtship, who described her subjects as “two completely unexpected, wild, and charismatic characters from totally different worlds, navigating a swirl of controversy and fighting for love.”

Another “Tiger King” vet Chris Smith, whose excellent “DEVO” just debuted on Netflix, also produced “Rebel Royals.” Sounds divine. [TRAILER]

The Outsider

HBO Max

Source: HBO

Want another great, darkly tinged drama starring and directed by Jason Bateman? Look no further than “The Outsider.” Based on Stephen King’s 2018 novel of the same name and adapted by the great Richard Price (another one of the most celebrated novelists of his time).

The set-up is creepy and deceptively simple – a beloved member of a small New England community (played by Bateman) is convicted of a murder, even though he was nowhere near the crime. But who – or what? – is this devious doppelgänger and where will they strike next?

The cast of “The Outsider” is genuinely insane, with Bateman flanked by Ben Mendelsohn, Bill Camp, Julianne Nicholson, Cynthia Erivo, Mare Winningham and Paddy Considine. It’s