July is going to be a good month for TV, I can just feel it. We have some interesting new shows starting up, along with the return of some old(ish) favourites. So for heaven’s sake, get out of that beautiful summer weather and plant yourself down on the couch.
If you know me at all, you know I’m a huge Friday Night Lights fan (Texas forever), so I’m excited to tell y’all that the creator of that show, Peter Berg, is back with a new series on HBO called The Leftovers.
Now this doesn’t exactly look like the heartwarming, down-to-earth dose of moral values I need (desperately) in my life; but it does look pretty intriguing. The plot centres around the people left behind after a rapture of some sort makes a percentage of the world’s population simply disappear.
Cue creepy looking cults and intense human interaction. I’m in.
If you like your shows raunchy, then the CBS-made Reckless, premiering June 29 on Global, may be right for you, so long as yet another depiction of women as sexual victims doesn’t make you cringe.
I’m trying not to judge a book by its cover, but I’m not sure CBS has what it takes to tackle contemporary sexual political issues in any sort of meaningful way, especially with this show about a sex abuse scandal in a police department. Its producers have been selling the “sex” part of “sexual abuse” pretty heavily, but we’ll see if the show can be something other than tawdry.
A couple of returning shows are also piquing my interest:
Rectify, one of the best shows on TV last year, is returning for its second season, premiering on the Sundance Channel June 19. The show is about a man recently released from prison after spending 19 years on death row. The first season was subtle, sparse and intensely fascinating, with great performances, so the show’s return is more than welcome. Check out the first season on Netflix.
Masters of Sex is also back in the sack starting on The Movie Network on July 13. The first season, about the sex research of Masters and Johnson in the 1950s, tapped nicely into the Mad Men-ish period vibe while providing an interesting look at sexuality and social mores through its complicated characters. Looking forward to more of that, please.
TV on DVD:
The Bridge, Season 1 – June 24
Orphan Black, Season 2 – July 15
Follow Wells at @CineFileBlog.
