📺 Watching: 3 Body Problem, Apples Never Fall, Palm Royale...

plus 'The Girls on the Bus', 4 upcoming shows and 3 new movies

Welcome to Spring! Farmers’ markets are buzzing, allergies are in full swing, and new TV series are popping up like daisies. The Bear is currently in production for Seasons 3 and 4 simultaneously(!) and teaser scenes from the new season of Bridgerton are on the web…it’s an exciting time.

In today’s edition:
Weekly Watchlist
The Girls on the Bus (Max)
3 Body Problem (Netflix)
Apples Never Fall (Peacock)
Palm Royale (Apple TV+)

— Jess Spoll and Jenni Cullen

First time reading? Subscribe to receive Double Take weekly.

---

We keep an eye on all of the new streaming content that is set to premiere. Here’s a list of new shows and movies to stream this week.

• 3 Body Problem (Season 1) — From the creators of Game of Thrones comes a sci-fi epic, adapted from the bestselling novel, about a group of scientists who must join forces with a detective to same humanity.
  Watch on Netflix: March 21 (all 8 episodes)

• Road House (Movie) — In this reimagining of the 1989 film, a former UFC fighter (Jake Gyllenhaal) ends up working as a bouncer at a rowdy bar in the Florida Keys.
  Watch on Prime: March 21

• Shirley (Movie) — Regina King stars in this biopic about Shirley Chisholm, America’s first Black congresswoman.
  Watch on Netflix: March 22

• Anatomy of a Fall (Movie) — Sandra Hüller is a writer trying to prove her innocence in her husband’s death in this 2024 Best Picture nominee.
  Watch on Hulu: March 22

• Davey and Jonesie’s Locker (Season 1) — Two best friends and high school outsiders set off on new adventures when they discover that their locker is a portal to a multiverse.
  Watch on Hulu: March 22 (all 10 episodes)

• We Were the Lucky Ones (Limited Series) — Logan Lerman and Joey King star in the limited series inspired by the true story of one Jewish Family separated at the start of World War II.
  Watch on Hulu: March 28 (3 of 8 episodes, then weekly)

• The Baxters (Season 1) — In this faith-based journey, Elizabeth and John Baxter and their 5 adult children must work through some challenging family drama.
  Watch on Prime: March 28 (all 10 episodes)

---

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

The Girls on the Bus

Photo: Max

Keywords: political drama, soapy, romcom
Watch if you like: The Morning Show, Grey’s Anatomy, The Newsroom
Jenni’s Rating: D+

This new series created by Amy Chozick and Julie Plec (The Vampire Diaries) is a strange cocktail made from essences of Sex and the City, The Newsroom, and any Lifetime movie. Inspired by Chozick's 2018 memoir, Chasing Hillary, The Girls on the Bus chronicles four female journalists on the campaign trail as they cover a slew of imperfect presidential candidates and find romance, friendship, and scandal along the way.

I could see this potentially being a fun watch if you enjoy soapy dramas and go in with low expectations. However, there is something inherently strange about mindless TV set against the high-stakes backdrop of a presidential campaign based on all-too-recent history. In many ways, The Girls on the Bus reads like an escapist romp of a series with a writer’s room full of Hallmark alums (“We may have started as competitors, but we would end as a family” is an honest-to-god real quote from the first episode). But, paradoxically, the show takes place in a past we viewers can’t escape from. Throughout the first two episodes alone, there is a consistent tug-of-war between silliness and earnest grandstanding that contributes even further to the show’s confusing tone.

Weirdly, the characters and their unfolding dynamics are intriguing enough — despite some seriously questionable writing, heavy stereotypes and hokey production choices — that I may stick through a few more episodes to see how it pans out. I’ve been known to like a poorly-written, corny romcom from time to time, and that’s exactly what this purported “political drama” is giving.

— Jenni

Length: 45-min runtime, 1 season / 3 of 10 episodes out, new on Thursdays
Watch on: Max

---

3 Body Problem

Photo: Netflix

Keywords: sci-fi, mystery, epic
Watch if you like: Interstellar, Arrival, Foundation