📺 Before, Doctor Odyssey, Shrinking Season 2...

and From, plus 2 streaming movies & a new series to watch this week

Happy Halloween! Be it Halloweentown or Scream, Hocus Pocus or Trick R Treat, we hope you’ve been enjoying both cozy and spooky fare—whatever you desire during this time of year. And the festivities can continue into the weekend; in honor of it’s 10th anniversary, a new Over the Garden Wall stop-motion short premieres this Sunday! You can watch on Cartoon Network’s YouTube channel or on any of their social media accounts.

In today’s edition:
Weekly Watchlist
Shrinking - Season 2 (Apple TV+)
Doctor Odyssey (ABC/Hulu)
Before (Apple TV+)
From (MGM+)

— Jenni Cullen and Jess Spoll

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Below is an abridged selection of new shows and movies premiering this week. Our full list of October releases, including theatrical releases and streaming debuts, is available here and published monthly for our premium subscribers.

• Despicable Me 4*(Movie) — Another fourth installment in a long-running franchise, Gru and the minions are back in the newest Despicable Me.
  Watch on Peacock: October 31 (*Streaming Premiere)

• The Diplomat (Season 2) — Keri Russell and Rufus Sewell star in this political drama created by Debora Cahn (The West Wing, Homeland).
  Watch on Netflix: October 31 (all 6 episodes)

• Meet Me Next Christmas (Movie) — In pursuit of a fairytale romance with the man of her dreams, a woman (Christina Milian) races through New York City to get her hands on sold out Pentatonix Christmas Eve Concert tickets.
  Watch on Netflix: November 6

Note: If you’re a premium subscriber, you have access to the 5 other movies premiering this week that aren’t listed above via our October or November Preview editions. Our November Preview goes out tomorrow - upgrade to get on the list!

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These popular shows came back with new episodes. Here’s what we thought and where you can watch them.

Shrinking - Season 2

Photo: Apple TV+

Keywords: ensemble comedy-drama, mental health, feel-good
Watch if you like: Ted Lasso, The Big Door Prize, After Life
Jenni’s Rating: A-

If the mantra in the Seinfeld writers room was “no hugging, no learning,” in Shrinking’s, it must be the exact opposite. There’s no shortage of connection and personal growth in this Bill Lawrence and Brett Goldstein series—especially going into its second season. The available four episodes return us to our motley crew of psychologists along with their patients, neighbors, family, and friends, all hugging and learning their way through life in Pasadena.

I wasn’t fully sold on the saccharine and somewhat scattered approach to this series in Season 1, but the show’s sophomore effort has won me over a little bit. One of Shrinking’s greatest strengths has always lay in its powerhouse of an ensemble cast—including Harrison Ford, Jessica Williams, Jason Segel, and Wendie Malick (just to name a few)—and it finally feels like they’re being utilized to their full potential. With better-developed arcs, the main and side stories are now interweaving in a way that feels more cohesive and substantial, and new combinations of characters are adding an unexpected freshness. A guest appearance by Brett Goldstein is an added delight, bringing a touch of gravity to the show’s quirky foundation.

To me, Shrinking doesn’t quite work if you think of it as a realistic comedy. It’s more of an exaggerated, brightly colored universe where trauma, grief, and complex personal issues exist, but where there’s always a light at the end of the tunnel—a happily ever after of some kind waiting in the wings. It’s a show that leans on the charm of a whimsical, hopeful outlook, and insists that even at their worst, people are allowed room to grow, breathe, and heal.

Maybe it’s the show that’s different or maybe it’s me, but this time around, the earnestness is a bit easier to digest. So far, this season is settling nicely into a feel-good comedy that knows its strengths and doesn’t shy away from them.

— Jenni

Length: 30-min runtime, 2 seasons / 22 episodes, (4 of 12 out in S2, new on Wednesdays)
Watch on: Apple TV+

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Our thoughts on brand new streaming content, and where you can watch.

Doctor Odyssey

Photo: ABC

Keywords: medical procedural, melodrama, Ryan Murphy
Watch if you like: 9-1-1, Grey’s Anatomy, Chicago Med
Jess’s Rating: C

There’s something to be said for a show that’s so ridiculous that I know it’s bad, but at the same time, I can’t stop watching. That’s the case with one of Ryan Murphy’s newest procedural drama series, Doctor Odyssey.

Set on a luxury cruise ship, the series follows a doctor (Joshua Jackson) and his nurses (Phillipa Soo, Sean Teale) as they treat a revolving door of oddly-afflicted patients aboard the vessel. The main cast is joined by an impressive list of episodic cameo actors including Rachel Dratch, Chord Overstreet, Shania Twain, Gina Gershon, and more.

In typical Murphy fashion, the series fits the normal procedural formula but vacillates between moments of sincerity and head-scratching absurdity. In the first episode, a vacationing couple deals with a life-threatening poisoning from eating too much shrimp at the buffet, and in the second, a refugee almost dies while fleeing her home country. The tear-jerker moments that can feel cloying in other medical procedurals are lightened by the interspersed — albeit ridiculous — moments of levity.

If I’m being critical, the writing is trite and the messaging heavy handed, they desperately need a medical consultant, and the love triangle between the three main characters is the weakest part of the series. Somehow despite that, I find myself looking forward to the hour each week in which I want bubblegum TV and can put this on.

— Jess

Length: 45-min runtime, 1 Season / 6 of 13 episodes available, new on Thursdays
Watch on: ABC / Hulu the next day

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Before

Photo: Apple TV+

Keywords: thriller, supernatural, mystery
Watch if you like: The Patient, Dark, Dark Matter