This week on our streaming radar, we have a fourth season, which feels increasingly hard to come by in today’s streaming world; the resurrection of one of the most captivating television shows ever produced; and a documentary about the greatest show you’ve never heard of. Let’s kick things off with the guy who just won’t stay dead.
Dexter: Resurrection — Season 2
Michael C. Hall, Uma Thurman, Jack Alcott, Brian Cox and more feature in this season of Dexter: Resurrection. Dexter, of course, is a serial killer who targets other killers. Think of him as a less-than-caped crusader who would rather send the bad guys to the morgue than Arkham Asylum. Forgive my mixed metaphors.
The original run of Dexter was one of those watercooler shows everyone talked about. You might have questioned his methods, but you wanted to know what he was going to do next. In an age of streaming revivals and familiar faces returning to our screens, another chapter seemed inevitable. Now, following the first season of Resurrection, Paramount+ is bringing us back for more.
This season finds Dexter facing two dangerous killers in New York City while confronting an unexpected adversary of his own: a midlife crisis. Meanwhile, his son Harrison, played by Jack Alcott, is pursuing his own form of justice.
That sounds like enough intrigue to return to—or, in other words, resurrect—this story. Just in time for the Halloween feels, Dexter: Resurrection Season 2 premieres Friday, October 30, on Paramount+ Premium.
The Gilded Age — Season 4
Up next, The Gilded Age is back for its fourth season, with Carrie Coon, Christine Baranski, Cynthia Nixon, Morgan Spector and more returning to a world where social ambitions can have consequences for the entire family.
Created by Downton Abbey’s Julian Fellowes, the drama follows the clash between established wealth and newly minted fortunes in 1880s New York. The Russell family has the money to make an entrance, but getting accepted by the people already running the room is another matter. Marriages, reputations and even dinner invitations become part of the competition for status.
This season, Bertha Russell is dealing with the consequences of her social climb, while Agnes van Rhijn sees an opportunity to reclaim her standing. Marian Brook is forging a new path, and Peggy Scott is working to win acceptance from her future in-laws. There is plenty happening beneath all those beautiful clothes.
The Gilded Age feels like one of those shows that brings more people into the conversation with every season. If you’ve been meaning to catch up, consider this your nudge. Once spooky season concludes, you can trade the costumes for period attire when Season 4 premieres Sunday, November 1, on HBO Max.
SCTV: The Greatest Show You’ve Never Heard Of
Finally, a documentary about a scrappy Canadian sketch show, a comedic cousin to Saturday Night Live, that became an institution in its own right.
SCTV helped launch the careers of Catherine O’Hara, Martin Short, Rick Moranis, Eugene Levy, Joe Flaherty, John Candy, Andrea Martin and Dave Thomas. Just look at that list. We know what those performers went on to do, and this is an opportunity to revisit where so much of it began.
It might be your favorite comedian’s favorite sketch show. For people deep in the comedy community, or those who caught its original run, SCTV has long been held in the highest esteem. For everyone else, there is a considerable amount of comedy history waiting to be discovered.
Directed by Jason Hehir, the documentary brings together cast interviews, a Toronto reunion and rare archival footage to explore the show’s rise and lasting influence. Following O’Hara’s death in January of this year, revisiting this part of her career carries an added poignancy.
The film continues Netflix’s recent run of comedy documentaries, including Judd Apatow’s Norm: The Tale of Norm Macdonald and Who Is Martin Mull?, directed by Bob Saget and Neil Berkeley. There is a lot of comedy history available on the streamer right now, and SCTV belongs near the top of that watchlist.
SCTV: The Greatest Show You’ve Never Heard Of streams Friday, October 30, on Netflix.
