Prepare for an epic month of new and returning must-sees—and we do mean epic. You’ve got Jason Momoa re-enacting his ancestral badassery, the Xenomorph landing on planet Earth, Wednesday Addams scowling her way through another woeful season—and the long-awaited return of animated sitcom King of the Hill. As Hank, Dale, Bill and Boomhauer would put it: “yep.”
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Alien: Earth: Season 1
It’s probably a bit rich for this episodic spin-off to claim that “we were safer in space.” We all saw what happened to John Hurt that one time, right? And what happened to poor Sigourney Weaver four or so times? With Fargo showrunner Noah Hawley taking us on a more grounded Xenomorph trip of terror than ever before, the series has rich franchise roots and plenty of iconic imagery to plumb.
Timothy Olyphant is blond and bionic as the newest android character, but even our lead heroine Wendy (Sydney Chandler) is something more than human, being a developing human consciousness implanted into a synthetic body. Actually a prequel taking place a few years before that first Ridley Scott trailblazer, Alien: Earth has huge space-boots to fill. Let’s give it a big facehug for good luck before the premiere.
Butterfly: Season 1
When a butterfly flaps its insignificant wings, some very significant stuff can follow—like one wrong move blowing up your new life, and exposing terrible decisions from your dark past. The swoon-worthy Daniel Dae Kim finds himself in such a situation in this new spy thriller, cast as a US intelligence agent in South Korea. Dogged by his shadowy history, he winds up in the sights of a ruthless young agent (Reina Hardesty) who has been sent to kill him by mysterious organisation Caddis.
Dae Kim’s hunted, haunted lead is an unpredictable sort of spy, but it’ll take more than smooth moves and gun-fu to come to terms with the choices he’s had to make along the way. Expect treachery, global alliances being forged and broken, and plenty of long, loving shots of our hero’s chiselled mug.
Chief of War: Miniseries
He’s been Aquaman and Khal Drogo, but Jason Momoa says he’s “never had the opportunity to play anything like an ancestor.” That’ll change, with this epic Apple TV+ historical series, in which Momoa acts as creator, co-writer, executive producer and star—playing the vengeful and change-making Hawaiian king Ka’iana.
“It’s written by Hawaiians, directed by Hawaiians, acted by Hawaiians,” the star has proudly pointed out, with one notable exception being his Aquaman co-star and revered Aotearoa talent Temuera Morrison as Chief Kahekili. It’s the gnarliest, most exciting history lesson possible on the tumultuous reunification of Hawai’i around the turn of the 19th century.
Eyes of Wakanda: Season 1
Wakanda spin-off is this? Animated and taking great leaps and bounds across the MCU’s fictional, African utopia and her history, this sprawling prequel looks at Wakandan warriors that brought justice long before Black Panther ever had a crack at it.
Called the Hatut Zaraze, this elite league of heroes is after Vibranium, stolen from their homeland of Wakanda by enemy forces. Ryan Coogler, who directed the blockbuster Chadwick Boseman films, is thankfully an executive producer, ensuring that there’s a through-line even as quirkier new characters step into the spotlight.
King of the Hill: Season 14
Arlen, Texas has always had its own stagnant, silly pace of daily life. That’s why the characters in this animated sitcom have only somewhat changed in the 15 years since leaving the airwaves. Bobby, once an adorably wimpy lil boy, is now slacker chef running a German-Japanese fusion restaurant—but the hilarious Pamela Adlon still voices him all this time later.
Hank and Peggy have both retired and both gone through a pandemic, same as all of us. But some of their pals have sadly passed on (RIP to Johnny Hardwick/Dale, Brittany Murphy/Luanne, and Jonathan Joss/John Redcorn), or will take on new voices, like Australia’s Ronny Chieng taking over as cranky neighbour Kahn. A fresh coat of paint for a town that, loveably, never changes much.
Long Story Short: Season 1
The fact that Bojack Horseman creator Raphael Bob-Waksberg is behind this new animated dramedy should be enough of a signal for countless superfans to tune in. But for everyone else who didn’t see that doggedly tragic show about a famous horse, how about this: the show captures the trials and triumphs of one family across time, depicting hilarious and dark chapters in loveably shabby comic-strip-esque designs?
Ben Feldman, Abbie Jacobson and Dave Franco are amongst the voice cast, too. I wasn’t an immediate fan of Bojack, finding its first season a little sweaty and insincere, so hopefully Bob-Waksberg’s next effort finds its groove quickly and has us loving this dysfunctional, decade-hopping fam in no time.
Outlander: Blood of my Blood
What to do when your bodice-ripping period romance series wraps up? The solution’s simple: turn back the clock and watch the parents of your original characters each getting it on.
Some space-time shenanigans are already part of Outlander‘s canon, and so perhaps it’s not such a stretch that this prequel follows the parents of Jamie (in the 18th century Scottish Highlands) and Claire (in WWI-era England) with parallel focus. That’s double the amount of sexy costumed folks from the first show! More kilts! More kisses! And perhaps more time-travel—do we dare hope for a twisted parental foursome?
Peacemaker: Season 2
Did you spot John Cena for a brief second there, in James Gunn’s flash new Superman movie? The wrestler’s misguided, patriotic superhero is back for another season of kicking evil-doer ass, and I can only pray that they don’t change the ingenious, choreographed opening credits. New episodes of Peacemaker are dropping on the same day as the US, and the eight new episode promise “a newfound sense of purpose” for the helmeted kinda-hero.
The Terminal List: Dark Wolf: Season 1
Spies, spies and more spies! Taylor Kitsch is strapping on the gun and earpiece this time, in a prequel “origin story” to this show’s Chris Pratt-led first season (although Pratt is notably still in the cast list, as returning character James Reece). Kitsch has, of course, never met a military man character he didn’t like, actually getting awarded by the US Army for “excellence in entertainment.” For real.
Co-created by author Jack Carr, who penned the titular novel, Dark Wolf sees a Navy SEAL moving through the ranks and into CIA Special Operations, examining the morally grey decisions and embattled psychology he must harness on his way up. Aussie Luke Hemsworth also appears, seemingly not too busy from his work on Netflix’s The Witcher.
Wednesday: Season 2
Talk about a match made in heaven. Prince of Whimsical Gloom Tim Burton found his newest muse Jenna Ortega in the first season of this emo spin-off, and together they’ve promised a spookier, kookier, altogether ookier follow-up. We’re also apparently getting more of the Addams clan (Catherine Zeta-Jones and Luis Guzman as Morticia and Gomez respectively), after they played a relatively marginal role in season one.
After reluctantly saving her school Nevermore Academy, Ortega’s Wednesday is now in agony with all the positive attention she’s getting. But don’t worry, new foes and woes should crop up just in time for this next semester. So will new cast members Steve Buscemi, Billie Piper and more. Click click!
