NETFLIX
Netflix has added the ABC comedy series Fisk to their library. The show, from comedian Kitty Flanagan (a regular on Channel 10’s Have You Been Paying Attention? and a cast member of the long-running ABC series Utopia) and Penny Flanagan. The series revolves around Helen Tudor-Fisk, a lawyer escaping Sydney after a messy divorce and returning to Melbourne. Helen finds work at Gruber & Associates, a small law firm and is assigned to wills and probate law.
Flanagan offers an exasperated character – Helen is surrounded by ridiculous clients, and an oddball staff – including radio personality Marty Sheargold as her boss and comedian Aaron Chen as the office receptionist George. The show makes good use of Flanagan’s comedic style, with plenty of stammering and misunderstanding. An assortment of Australia’s favourite comedians also make appearances on the show, including Ed Kavalee, Glenn Robbins and Sam Pang.
Six episodes are available on Netflix, while the show’s second season is viewable on ABC iView.
PRIME VIDEO
Prime Video has returned to the world of Good Omens. The show, originally an adaptation of the novel by Neil Gaiman (also responsible for Coraline, The Sandman and American Gods) and Terry Pratchett (the author behind the Discworld series) – this second season, written by original co-author Gaiman and John Finnemore moves away from the original novel and becomes a sequel to the original story.
Gaiman has mentioned in interviews he and Pratchett had always intended to develop a sequel to their novel and had brainstormed several plotlines they never got around to releasing. This season is based on that intention. Good Omens returns us to the angel Aziraphale – Michael Sheen (Staged, Frost/Nixon, The Good Fight) – and demon Crowley – David Tennant (Doctor Who, Broadchurch, Staged, DuckTales) – who after their ordeal last season are continuing to exist without contact with their various sides.
When an odd occurrence draws them in, it pits them, once again, against the wishes of both heaven and hell as they try to unravel the mystery. Good Omens also features a stellar supporting cast including Jon Hamm (Madmen, Top Gun: Maverick), Nina Sosanya (His Dark Materials, Brave New World), Miranda Richardson (Blackadder, Churchill), Reece Shearsmith (The League of Gentlemen, Inside No. 9) and Shelley Conn (Bridgerton, Liar).
Good Omens returns to its charming wit, with another twisting plot built upon the chemistry of its two leads. All episodes are available.
BINGE
Another returning series is Harley Quinn. With new episodes added every Thursday, this adult animated series returns – with a few new twists on its formula. Batman is gone and Harley Quinn is trying to be a hero herself, with her girlfriend Poison Ivy now running the supervillain organisation the Legion of Doom. The show has added plenty of complications to its core cast, including a new enemy.
Harley Quinn has balanced its comedy with its over-the-top violence and character arcs well over its previous three seasons, managing to take some familiar characters and plenty of unfamiliar and imbue them with something new and different. It features some brilliant character design work – taking inspiration from the artwork of Amanda Conner – and some fantastic performances. The show shares similar sensibilities to Archer and The Venture Bros., with a similar tone –adult humour, action and adventure rolled together.
Harley Quinn stars Kaley Cuoco (The Big Bang Theory, Based on a True Story), Lake Bell (Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp/Ten Years Later, Medical Police), Alan Tudyk (Wreck-It Ralph, Resident Alien), Ron Funches (Jexi, Loot), Tony Hale (Arrested Development, Veep), J. B. Smoove (Curb Your Enthusiasm, Blockbuster) with plenty of supporting players, including Diedrich Bader, Andy Daly, Harvey Guillén, Jason Alexander, Rachel Dratch, Giancarlo Esposito, Natalie Morales, Jim Rash, Christopher Meloni, Sanaa Lathan and Aline Elasmar.
DISNEY+
As part of their 100th anniversary year, Disney has tried to add plenty of its history to its streaming platform – with several classic shorts finally making their way to Disney+. As part of this celebration of history, Disney has produced the final short of The Wonderful World of Mickey Mouse series. The Wonderful World of Mickey Mouse: Steamboat Silly is a homage to Mickey Mouse’s debut Steamboat Willie – and features the modern Mickey – as envisioned by Paul Rudish and his team since 2013 – against the Mickey Mouse of 1928.
The short has a simple premise, after finding a box of old memories, Mickey and his friends begin to watch his “home movies” with Steamboat Willie, before the film breaks and unleashes a myriad of Mickeys onto the world – Mickeys who aren’t the simple ray of sunshine, but wild mischief makers who run rampant.
The short is a clever endpoint for Rudish’s Mickey Mouse series, which has managed a 10-year run of new shorts featuring Disney’s famous mascot. Disney fans will be rewarded with plenty of references to obscure Mickey Mouse history, wrapped in a clever and funny nine minutes.
