Dear law-abiding characters, it’s not a good week for you. This week’s top picks lean heavily into the criminal element, starting off with the return of casual comedy Bookie on Max. No Good Deed takes the humor to a slightly more murderous place, and then Dexter: Original Sin turns up the dial as it revitalizes the franchise with a trip back to Dexter’s early life. And if you feel like getting the blood pumping a little, take a break to watch Carry-On as it attempts to borrow a few notes from Die Hard.
If you’re feeling like action, but want something a little more exploratory, check out Amazon’s Secret Level anthology series that travels through lore and stories based on several video game franchises. Or maybe slow things down with Maria, Angelina Jolie’s biopic about Maria Callas, the world’s greatest opera singer. And finally, if you just want a silly palette cleanser which still has some heartfelt and genuine stories, consider watching The Real Full Monty.
7 Dexter: Original Sin
Paramount+ with Showtime — Season 1 — December 13
We don’t have to pretend Dexter: New Blood wasn’t a disappointment to fans of the original series. It delivered neither a better ending nor a return for the killer with a code; but fortunately for us, it also wasn’t the final chapter. Bring on the origin story!
Dexter: Original Sin takes us back to the early 90s as Dexter moves on from school and begins his career with murderous intent. Patrick Gibson is taking on the role of Dexter, but Michael C. Hall is actually returning to narrate the series, just like he did in the original. Christian Slater steps in to play the role of Harry, Dexter’s adopted father and helpful guide to developing the code that keeps his darkness in check. Slater isn’t the only big name on the cast list either, as Patrick Dempsey and Sarah Michelle Gellar are stepping in as characters from Dexter’s past. And of course, there are plenty of other familiar characters with new faces, including Molly Brown as the foul-mouthed Debra Morgan, Christina Milian as LaGuerta, James Martinez as Angel Batista, and Alex Shimizu as the even fouler Masuka (yay!!!).
The new series starts today with the first of ten episodes, with a new one rolling out each week. You can catch Dexter: Original Sin on Showtime if you like to watch on a schedule, or stream them anytime you like with the Paramount+ with Showtime plan. Oh, and keep your eyes peeled, there’s actually another series planned for next summer, and the details are starting to come out.
6 No Good Deed
Netflix — Season 1 — December 12
House hunting is a nightmare, especially when you’re in competition for the perfect place. No Good Deed taps into the perfect storm when three couples want to buy the same 1920s Spanish-style villa. There are secrets, a murder, and plenty of backstabbing and troubling behavior. Basically everything the nosey neighbor wants to believe is happening in real life, even if it’s not.
It’s a fun dark comedy with a bit of a thriller angle from Liz Feldman, the creator of Dead To Me. Netflix spared no expense on the cast list, picking up Linda Cardellini, Lisa Kudrow, Ray Romano, Luke Wilson, Denis Leary, Abbi Jacobson, Poppy Liu, and O-T Fagbenle. The full first season of No Good Deed is available now on Netflix.
5 Carry-on
Netflix — Movie — December 13
Die Hard proved that you can have action in a Christmas movie — let the arguing begin. It’s time to see if that magic can happen again.
Ethan Kopek (Taron Egerton) is a TSA agent showing up to work on the Christmas Day shift. Things are going normally, right up until he is handed an earpiece, and receives instructions to put it in. Speaking to him is a man insisting a case is about to pass through the scanner, and if it is inspected, Ethan’s girlfriend will be killed. He has to think fast to stop the mystery traveler (Jason Bateman) and prevent whatever malicious plan he has in store.
It’s high action, a few laughs, and a good actor playing the villain. If you need something to wake you up from all of the usual docile holiday cheer, give Carry-on a shot!
4 Bookie
Max — Season 2 — December 12
If you somehow missed Bookie when the first season launched, now is the time to get caught up as the new season is getting started. We’re following long time bookies, Danny (Sebastian Maniscalco) and his partner Ray (Omar J. Dorsey), as they deal with unstable clients and family. It’s a funny and entertaining show without getting overly complicated. And there are plenty of cameos, including the likes of Brad Garrett, DJ Qualls, Charlie Sheen, Ray Romano… and the list goes on.
Season 1 held onto an impressive 90% on Rotten Tomatoes’ Tomatometer and 80% on the Popcornmeter, so season 2 is starting on a high. The first episode of Bookie rolled out yesterday, and new episodes will be airing every Thursday through January 30th.
3 Secret Level
Prime Video — Season 1 — December 10
Amazon’s gaming-themed anthology series is finally out, or at least the first half. Stunning animation brings to life stories based on fifteen major games and franchises from Unreal Tournament to Dungeons & Dragons, and from Warhammer 40K to PAC-MAN. These are mostly shorts, ranging from about ten to twenty minutes each, and either creating new lore or expanding on stories in their respective universe.
Of course, as anybody following gaming news is probably aware, Secret Level is just in time to be too late to save Sony’s overnight catastrophe, Concord. This was a brand new hero shooter (intended to take on Overwatch 2), but it failed to get even meager player counts and was pulled just two weeks after launch. In fact, there’s a good chance most people have heard of Secret Level first because news broke that Amazon had already dedicated an episode to Concord. Amazon is surely hoping the same fate won’t befall its just-launched MMO, New World: Aeternum — and yes, there’s an episode for that one too.
The first eight episodes of Secret Level were released in a batch on Tuesday, and the remaining seven episodes are scheduled to come out next Tuesday, so you can binge it pretty comfortably without waiting several weeks for the whole thing to wrap up.
2 Maria
Netflix — Movie — December 11
It has been three years since Angelina Jolie’s last on-screen appearance in Eternals, but she’s taking on one of the most intense and ambitious roles of her career as Maria Callas, one of the greatest opera singers in history. The film recaptures her struggles as an artist that could no longer perform as well as she once could, and slips into a self-destructive spiral that brings her life to a close.
This is Pablo Larraín’s third film about tragic female figures of the 20th century, following “Jackie” about Jacqueline Kennedy and “Spencer” which follows Princess Diana. Maria is an introspective view into Callas’ life and experience, and explores some of her earlier experiences as an operatic phenom, and the crushing slide that followed.
1 The Real Full Monty
Hulu — Special — December 10
While it’s not a typical movie or series, let’s talk about The Real Full Monty. Fox held a special event to raise awareness for prostate, testicular, and colorectal cancer; and it’s being done in the classiest and most respectful way possible: Six male celebrities are stripping naked on stage. Yes, if you’ve heard of the original movie, The Full Monty, you understand the premise.
Taye Diggs, Tyler Posey, James Van Der Beek, Chris Jones, Bruno Tonioli, and Anthony Anderson will bare it all in front of a theater full of people to raise awareness for early screening and cancer research. Don’t worry, the show is actually suitable for TV — they know how to cover up. But it’s not just a 2-hour strip show, the special dives into their personal stories and how they were affected by cancer, and also has fun with footage from their choreography and rehearsals.
The event aired on December 9th, but you can watch The Real Full Monty on Hulu.