Sunday Service

Mystery, she wrote

CBS officially set off their fall TV season with a week of releases. In addition to the behemoth of crime procedurals, Thursday evenings are saved for two female sleuths. The 9 p.m. hour is reserved for Kathy Bates in Matlock, which premiered the pilot episode earlier this year. Right after the legal drama is the highly-anticipated second season of Elsbeth, following Carrie Preston’s consent decreeing turned detective.

I thoroughly enjoyed the first season of Robert and Michelle King’s dramedy, a throwback to the detective capers of the 1970s and 80s. Each episode features a murder with a guest star suspect, and viewers witness Elsbeth find them out. The season premiere features Nathan Lane as a posh opera enthusiast whose disdain for the art illiterate drives him to kill. The episode was hilarious, highlighting the King’s witty writing.

I also enjoy Matlock, mostly for Kathy Bates. Some characters can feel trope-y, which should expire once we learn more about their backstories. Knowing the truth behind Maddie’s employment keeps me coming back and witnessing her tactics.

Tommy boy

After episode five revealed what everyone figured, this week’s Agatha All Along gave us William Kaplan’s journey to becoming Billy Maximoff. The origin story was done excellently, becoming my favorite episode of the season. I haven’t watched Heartstopper, so it was nice seeing Joe Locke able to hold his own as an episode’s lead. The episode also delivered the return of Evan Peter’s Ralph Bonher, who’s become a Reddit-bombing recluse since WandaVision. With three episodes left, it appears Agatha’s Black Heart was Billy all along. It will be interesting to witness what they find at the end of the road.

Women are simply at war

This week’s The Penguin was an alley-oop for Cristin Milioti’s Emmy nomination and deserved win. The truth of how Sofia became “The Hangman” is revealed in a tragic flashback, depicting a much different Sofia and Oz Cobb. Milioti’s performance and Helen Shaver’s masterful direction make viewers witness a visceral, involuntary transformation. One rooted in sheer survival. Although Arkham isn’t a real place, the abhorrent practices portrayed come from a history of actual harm enacted upon those society labeled as mentally ill. While these practices are publically frowned upon today, stigma remains around the care of those living with mental illness.

While experiencing the episode, two ideas popped into my head. First, Oz Cobb, the disabled gangster who mentors a colored orphan, is the villain. The word antihero no longer exists in my vocabulary regarding him. And Sofia has to get her revenge - PERIODT. And second, Sofia’s plight reminded me of my favorite female character of the year: Toda Mariko. The young Japanese Christian translator whose dutiful vow cost her life, also found her world turned upside down by the meddling mishandling of men at war.

Much like Sofia, Mariko was the apple of her father’s eye. And because of his transgressions, the life she thought she would live was stolen. For more than a decade, she suffered in a personal asylum, yearning for a time when she would be free of a morbid existence. I hope Sofia doesn’t meet the same fate.

The Miseducation of English Teacher

Brian Jordan Alvarez’s school comedy is Mean Girls from the teacher’s perspective. As a grown millennial adult, Evan’s life as a high school English teacher isn’t that much different from his students. He finds himself awkwardly maneuvering social hierarchy with colleagues, battling mean-girl parents, and fumblingly potential suitors in the jungle that is gay dating. Underneath the sniggling adult humor is a lot of heart and kind reminder that we’re all just trying to figure it out. It’s best articulated through The New Radicals “You Only Get What You Give.”

Trailers

In-vin-ci-ble! or whatever Alicia sang

Prime Video released a teaser trailer for the third season of its critically acclaimed adult-animated, Invincible. The show follows teenager Mark Grayson (Steven Yeun) who is prepared to follow his father, Omniman’s (J.K. Simmons), footsteps to becoming a superhero. But when Omniman reveals why he rooted life on Earth from his planet Viltrum, Mark’s world and identity shatter.

Season three is set for a three-episode premiere on Thursday, Feb 6 (with no midseason breaks) only on Prime Video.

NYCC

New York Comic Con kicked off today with a litany of announcements. While the festival celebrates all things nerd across the board, we here at Sunday Service studied our focus on the three trailers below.

I wasn’t the biggest fan of Denis Villeneuve’s epic Dune reimagining. They are spectacular feats of filmmaking with stellar performances, but in the grand scheme of things I found them exceptionally boring. And yet, I find myself interested in the upcoming spinoff series centering on the women of the Dune universe. Much like Reeves’ Batman,  Dune: Prophecy arrives to expand the IP to tell how the prophecy came to be, centering on the women who eventually become the Bene Gesserit. The prequel show arrives on Max on November 17.

Speaking of Matt Reeves, HBO also delivered the mid-season trailer of The Penguin along with a panel featuring cast and other creatives. The clip previews what to expect in the coming weeks. With the truth of Alberto’s death revealed Oz and Sofia find themselves on opposite sides of Gotham, rallying their troops for a battle to own the city.

And for something completely different, AMC Networks announced the second season of Mayfair Witches will arrive in January. The show is part of Anne Rice’s Immortal Universe, the second series after Interview With the Vampire. While I devoured the latter’s first two seasons, I couldn’t stomach the first episode of Mayfair. Being a TV addict and imperfect completist, I promised myself I’d revisit the full season to ensure my first impression wasn’t wrong.

And in a total surprise move from Marvel, Daredevil: Born Again’s Charlie Cox and Vincent D’Onofrio appeared at a “Marvel Fanfare” panel with an announcement about the upcoming Disney+ series. The long-awaited reimagining of the Netflix show arrives March 4, 2025. The season will consist of nine episodes and will see the rise of a new threat.

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