Steve Baltin
Norah Jones’ Streaming Watchlist
After three long years, Grammy-winning star Norah Jones is going back on tour. She tells the Watercooler’s Steve Baltin what she’s been listening to and watching — and what she’s up to on her podcast.
Meet The Real Beatles: Get Back and the Human Side of the Mythical Band
Veteran music journalist Steve Baltin analyzes the Beatles doc ‘Get Back’ and sees their human side, their joy — and the truth behind their split.
Community
At its best, this show is high art, mixing creativity, believability, thoughtfulness, and heart into some of the finest individual episodes of TV you can find.
Steve Baltin
The Sympathizer
Told through the perspective of a conflicted hero with contradicting loyalties, The Sympathizer is an ambitious examination of a spy who can’t help but sympathize — hence, the title of the series — with the enemy. It might make you rethink everything you were taught about the Vietnam War too.
What Franklin Can Teach Us About Diplomacy
As conflicts rage on across the world and the need for diplomacy rises, the new Apple TV+ series Franklin — about America’s first diplomat — offers lessons for our times, as a former speechwriter for the US Ambassador to the UN explains.
Rising Star: Our Interview with Dune & The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare‘s Babs Olusanmokun
He is best known for his recent breakout sci-fi roles – from the fierce fighter Doctor M’Benga in Star Trek: Strange New Worlds to Jamis – the Freman and best friend to the protagonist Paul – in Dune Parts One and Two. But Babs Olusanmokun has been acting for two decades. A Nigerian-American who speaks
From Aristocrat to Waiter in a Grand Hotel: A Gentleman in Moscow
It’s 1920s Moscow, four years after the start of the Russian Revolution. The aristocracy has been put on trial, staring down their inevitable doom. Count Alexander Rostov, a Russian aristocrat, is sentenced by a Bolshevik tribunal for “social parasitism” — the crime of living off of the efforts of others. His fate is surely death,
The Big Door Prize
A fresh, lighthearted comedy that doubles as a philosophical sci-fi mystery, The Big Door Prize’s biggest question is that regardless of how much we have, are we ever truly satisfied? And that’s a poignant query in our consumer-driven, must-document-every-moment-on-social-media world.
The Classic Film Education in Colin Farrell’s Sugar
If you solely go by the trailer, Colin Farrell’s new Apple TV series might seem like a familiar L.A. noir: A private detective named John Sugar gets hired by a legendary Hollywood producer to investigate the disappearance of his granddaughter, and soon finds himself unraveling a wicked web of family secrets. Apple TV+ A genre
You’re the Worst
Through the eyes of two cynics who seem doomed to be alone, You’re the Worst embraces the complexity of modern relationships and the many emotional layers they surface. It’s also an accurate and empathetic portrait of what it’s like to live with clinical depression.
The stars of Manhunt on the history we did not learn
It’s a story that none of us learned in history classes, and it unfolds as a taut, complex conspiracy thriller — one that raises all new questions. Set in 1865, Manhunt focuses on the aftermath of one of America’s most tragic events: the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. With all of the biopics, TV shows, and
Mary & George
A clever, dark and salacious historical drama that brings a much overlooked chapter of European history to vivid life. Mary & George is a richly drawn, rough and raunchy story about the quest for power – and survival – in 16th century England.
Operation Mincemeat
This isn’t a high-octane spy thriller or a war film in the style of Saving Private Ryan. It’s a quiet piece whose entertainment value is found in the incredulous fact that this really did happen, but that doesn’t make it any less enjoyable.
Why We’re Still Obsessed with The Golden Girls 30 Years Later
It is impossible to overstate the lasting success of The Golden Girls, which enjoys a level of popularity and staying power few shows have ever reached.
What’s So Funny about Hacks?
Hacks is one of the best comedies on TV right now. And if you don’t believe us, we’ve got the receipts to prove it.
Pachinko
Pachinko is a beautiful, sweeping, historic epic spanning generations as one family faces wars, strife, peace, and its own complex legacy.
Watercooler Guide: What You Need to Know about The Staircase
Our Watercooler guide to The Staircase will help you jump right into the conversation about HBO Max’s new true-crime series.
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds
If you love the idea of an old-fashioned Star Trek that lives up to today’s standards of inclusion and diversity (so, minus the ‘60s sexism), this is going to be right up your alley.
Heartstopper
Heartstopper is, without a doubt, the best film or TV show about gay teenagers I have ever seen. Innocent, romantic, and tenderly wrought, it is the story and the representation that the LGBTQ community has been craving for decades.
Why Does Paddington 2 Keep Coming Up?
What’s with all they hype about Paddington 2 lately? One of our writers watches it for the first time to see if it’s really as good as everyone says.
More LGBTQ+ Period Movies and Series to Watch After Gentleman Jack
If you’re all caught up with HBO’s new season of Gentleman Jack and craving more period LGBTQ+ dramas, you might want to give these a try.