Doctor, spin doctors and a bunch of fakes

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This article was published 25/01/2025 (344 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Mystery is the main flavour in this instalment of shows to watch on your nearest screen. What is that perplexing ailment? Are these co-workers friends or foes? Is anything true on social media? Is there a real baby in that bulge? And who will win in the battle of gen z vs. olds? Press play on these five best bets to find out.

Watson

Series premières Sunday, Jan. 26, at 9 p.m. on Global, CBS

TV writer/producer Craig Sweeny, who sat in on the excellent Sherlockian crime drama Elementary (2012-2019, available on Paramount+), is once again partnering with Arthur Conan Doyle for a new TV series, this time in the medical field. Here, the action centres on Dr. John Watson (Morris Chestnut of Best Man), whose clinic specializes in treating rare disorders. Intriguing. But wait, there’s more: Watson is also struggling with grief over the death of his partner, Sherlock Holmes, at the hands of that familiarly named nemesis, Moriarty. That’s a lot of plates to keep spinning, but it deserves at least a few episodes.

 

Paradise

Series premières Tuesday on Disney+

Those missing the beloved Pearson triplets and their tear-soaked but full-hearted lives take note: the tone of the new thriller Paradise could not be more different from that of This Is Us (2016-22, streaming on Netflix), but creator Dan Fogelman and star Sterling K. Brown are together again, hoping to create more ratings magic. Brown’s character, Secret Service Agent Xavier Collins, is caught in an upwardly mobile nightmare after finding the lifeless body of his boss, President Cal Bradford (James Marsden of X-Men). Julianne Nicholson (Mare of Easttown) and Sarah Shahi (The Rookie) are never far, but are they allies or enemies?

 

Scamanda

Documentary series premières Thursday, Jan. 30, at 8 p.m. on CTV, ABC,
Apple Cider Vinegar series premières Thursday, Feb. 6, on Netflix

In the spirit (and no doubt hoping to ride the coattails) of Inventing Anna (Netflix), The Dropout (Disney+) and other documentaries and dramas about ambitious and successful charlatans, come two new series to pique viewers’ outrage. Scamanda is a four-part documentary based on the podcast of the same name that unravels the story of a young California mom and “devout Christian” who captivates thousands — and their money — off an increasingly sketchy claim of Stage 3 blood cancer. Then comes Apple Cider Vinegar, a “true-ish story based on a lie,” from Samantha Strauss (Nine Perfect Strangers). The series is based on the book The Woman Who Fooled the World: The True Story of Fake Wellness Guru Belle Gibson. In the six-episode drama series, Gibson (Kaitlin Dever, Dopesick) sets off a kind of cage match of fake claims on then-nascent Instagram with the assertion that she’s cured terminal brain cancer through health and wellness.

 

Kinda Pregnant

Movie premières Wednesday, Feb. 5, on Netflix

After scoring an Emmy nomination for her real-life pregnancy story, the 2020 three-part HBO series Expecting Amy, comedian Amy Schumer stars in a comedy about a woman so jealous of her friend’s pregnancy that she starts to wear a fake baby bump. And if that weren’t cringey enough, she meets the lover of her life while mid-fake-pregnancy. Co-stars include Jillian Bell (Brittany Runs a Marathon), Will Forte (MacGruber) and Damon Wayans Jr. (Love, Guaranteed).

 

The Z-Suite

Series premières with two episodes Thursday, Feb. 6, on Tubi

The free streaming app Tubi has a new original series starring Lauren Graham (Gilmore Girls) as an advertising exec who falls from the grace of Madison Avenue. Now, alongside her lieutenant (Nico Santos, Superstore), she squares off against her old agency’s “rising gen-z employees,” setting her sights on revenge and a return to power. Co-stars include Mark McKinney (Kids in the Hall), Peter Keleghan (Workin’ Moms), Rhys Darby (Our Flag Means Death) and Dani Kind (Workin’ Moms). Graham, Santos and the Workin’ Moms veterans make this a strong yes.

 

Broadcast dates subject to change. Questions, comments to denise.duguay@winnipegfreepress.com.