Perpetual Grace LTD

American Princess
US TV

What have you been watching? Including Catch-22 and American Princess

12 June 2019 Rob Buckley 6 Comments

It’s “What have you been watching?”, your chance to recommend to fellow TMINE readers anything you’ve been watching this week

Good Omens
Good Omens

This week’s reviews

With summer season ending a whole bunch of regular shows and with TMINE’s workload (and social life) being quite high at the moment, the reviews list hasn’t been so big this week, unfortunately. I’ve watched a whole bunch of shows, but so far, I’ve only had time to review the first season of Amazon’s Good Omens.

Meanwhile, this week’s Orange Thursday featured Always Be My Maybe (2019) and First Man (2018)

But coming up after the jump, I’ll (finally) be looking at the first episodes of Catch-22 (US: Hulu; UK: Channel 4) and American Princess (US: Lifetime).

Carla Gugino in Cinemax's Jett
Carla Gugino in Cinemax’s Jett

What’s coming this week

Coming up at some point this week will be the usual Orange Thursday, which will definitely feature Apollo 13 (1995) at the very least, as well as a review of the first episode and perhaps more of NOS4A2, as well as a preview of Showtime’s forthcoming City on A Hill.

I have a full and confident expectation of being able to watch the third and final season of Marvel’s Jessica Jones (Netflix) this weekend that undoubtedly will be proved false, unless I have an awful lot of ironing to do. Cinemax’s Jett will also be starting this Friday, as will HBO’s Los Espookys, so I’ll try to watch them both at some point, too.

New shows that I’ll probably be skipping: Grand Hotel will be starting on Monday in the US, which is an updated, soapy version of Spain’s period epic Gran Hotel, which seems like a terrible idea to me. I’m also just not young enough to watch HBO’s Euphoria, which starts on Tuesday and is full of oodles of teen sex and drug-taking apparently.

Shudders.

Amazon’s Too Old to Die Young will be available from Friday, but in a clash between it and Jessica Jones, I’m afraid it’s going to lose this week. But maybe next week. Or the next.

YMMV.

Ben Kingsley in Perpetual Grace LTD

The regulars

After the jump, I’ll be looking at the latest episodes of Harrow, The InBetween, Mr Black and Perpetual Grace LTD, as well as the season finale of Warrior. And even though it’s already been cancelled, I thought I’d watch the second episode of Swamp Thing.

The observant will notice that for, I think, the first time in WHYBW history, the ‘recommended list’ is empty. Shock, horror! Will there be any promotions soon? Maybe. We’ll see.

See you in a mo.

Continue reading “What have you been watching? Including Catch-22 and American Princess”
Perpetual Grace
US TV

Review: Perpetual Grace LTD 1×1 (US: Epix)

4 June 2019 Rob Buckley 1 Comment

In the US: Sundays, 10/9c, Epix
In the UK: Not yet acquired

There’s a strange overlap between theatre, independent cinema and small TV networks trying to make a name for themselves. Certainly, when you watch “a neo-noir thriller” with long two-handed scenes of deliberately unnaturalistic dialogue delivered by “actors’ actors”, in long-shot and black and white, you know you’re not watching NBC – this is going to be Epix, Starz, IFC or SundanceTV, AMC at a push.

Epix is an odd addition to that list, since so far, it’s been content with more accessible programming, such as Berlin Station, Get Shorty and Graves. Actually, that’s basically been it as far as it goes in the three years since the network decided to give scripted a whirl, so Perpetual Grace LTD feels like a distinct change of direction and attempt to reframe the network.

Jimmi Simpson and Damon Herriman in Perpetual Grace LTD
Jimmi Simpson and Damon Herriman in Perpetual Grace LTD

Perpetual grace and favour

Written and usually directed by Steven Conrad (Patriot, Wonder, The Pursuit of Happyness), Perpetual Grace sees Jimmi Simpson (Breakout Kings, Westworld) playing a former firefighter. Former because he quit the fire brigade after a rookie firefighter was killed through his negligence.

One day, he’s approached by Damon Herriman (Secret City, Quarry, Squinters, Mr InBetween) who’s looking for someone to help him get some money out of his estranged god-bothering parents. All Simpson has to do is get into their good books and send them looking for him down south where a friendly policeman (Code Black‘s Luis Guzmán) will lock them up for a fortnight. During that time, Simpson can assume Herriman’s identity, declare them dead and then take over their assets.

Simple, right?

Oh yes, one more thing – he’s got to get addicted to methadone so that they’ll take him in.

Trouble is, Herriman’s holding back on a couple of secrets and Simpson’s really not the ruthless criminal type.

Worse still, Herriman’s parents are Ben Kingsley and Jacki Weaver.

Oh dear.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5VYvE0mcByM
Continue reading “Review: Perpetual Grace LTD 1×1 (US: Epix)”