Well, well, well. The internet peanut gallery called it. Apple’s grand teaser did indeed turn out to be Theory #1: this weekend, from January 4-5, everyone will get the chance to watch Apple TV+ for free. There are no restrictions. It’s all-access, baby.
Is it just a semi-desperate grab for eyeballs in a very crowded, competitive market in which Apple TV+ has blown through a bunch of money, and it’s sick of playing second fiddle to the leading streamers? Could be. But the more important question is, what are you going to watch? Here are the three best shows streaming on Apple TV+ right now. You should check ’em out.
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Slow Horses
History favors the winner, but cinema loves an underdog. The characters of this British spy thriller are fuck-ups who, for one reason or another, haven’t been fired from their jobs at the U.K.’s MI5 intelligence service. Instead they spend their days in eternal detention at Slough House, headed by Gary Oldman’s character, Jackson Lamb.
He’s a cantankerous sort who’s long since wilted under the drudgery of Slough House. Yet despite MI5’s best efforts to sideline them, these “slow horses” end up investigating cases that threaten national security. Watch along as they attempt to navigate their way back into the good graces of MI5, and for some people, simply find out what it was that they did that got them into Slough House in the first place.
Masters of the Air
Executive producers Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg reunite for a third mini-series set on the front lines of World War Two. Compared to The Pacific, the storyline is much less sweeping and ambitious. It took me a few re-watches to appreciate the scope of The Pacific’s story that ran three independent storylines across three years. (Not everybody came around, and the series ultimately drew less favorable reviews than its more popular predecessor, Band of Brothers.)
And compared to Band of Brothers, Masters of the Air is less tightly focused. The former zoomed in on a few comrades in a single Army company and took place largely over the span of roughly a year, except for the first of the 10 episodes. It told a very personal story within the much larger context of the war, and so it left a lot out.
Masters of the Air splits the difference between The Pacific and Band of Brothers. Its main characters interact more than those in The Pacific, and yet it takes place over the course of two years. The action is thrilling, but some of the CGI is all too apparent.
Ultimately, though, is it worth your time to watch all nine episodes? Absolutely. Masters of the Air is its own beast. You could watch it for the action scenes alone, which may contain the best air combat I’ve ever seen. Plenty of it. But then you’d be under-appreciating some spectacularly emotional performances from its actors.
Severance
It’d be a tempting offer, right? “Sever” your workday consciousness from your personal self so that checking into the slog of work every day wouldn’t seep into your awareness when you were home at night or out on the weekends.
Yet as the unlucky characters who sign themselves up find out, their split consciousnesses end up trapped in a never-ending workplace hell. Severance took a long break from its first season, which debuted in February 2022. Yet it remains Apple TV+’s most well-known show, the one that garnered all the best press that alerted people to the fact that yep, Apple TV commissions original TV shows, and some of them are even quite good.
There are nine episodes out so far. The second season debuts on January 17, so you get to test the waters with season one before you make the chance to commit to paying for Apple TV+ to see the second season. At least, unlike the characters, you’re not locked into your decision for all eternity.
