There are so many TV shows and movies that I’m excited and terrified by coming this August. There’s a reality series about “The Biggest Loser” coming to Netflix, a Netflix movie in which Adam Devine voices a dog about to be neutered (I wish I was kidding, please wake me from this nightmare) and a dating show about virgins trying to lose their v-card coming to Hulu titled “Are You My First?” (No word yet on whether any of the contestants are Jewish, but I am scared regardless.)
Jewish TV this month also has some exciting and terrifying movies and series to look forward to. Let’s get into it.
August 1: “Marc Maron: Panicked“ (HBO Max comedy special)
I’m really sad about having to say goodbye to Marc Maron’s 16-year-old podcast. He is such a masterful interviewer and always manages to get colorful tidbits of Jewish life from his Jewish guests. I am really grateful that we’ll hopefully always have his great acting and comedy — and this special looks like it’s going to be just as good as his previous, “From Bleak to Dark.” The trailer includes a Hitler joke, so you know it’s going to be…
Judaism rating: 4/4 couch potato latkes, a Marc Maron-helmed project’s automatic rating
August 6: “Platonic” Season 2 (Apple TV+)
Yes, there’s another, pretty great, Apple TV+ show starring Seth Rogen as a Jewish character! In this Francesca Delbanco and Nicholas Stoller comedy, he’s Will. While in “The Studio” Rogen plays a successful and neurotic Jewish film exec, here he plays a recently divorced part-owner of a bar. When Will leaves his wife of five years, he rekindles his purely platonic relationship with his longtime best friend Sylvia (Rose Byrne), a stay-at-home mom who was not a fan of his former wife. In the first season, Will confronted his ex’s new Scandinavian boyfriend and told him not to “pretend that your family likes Jews.” In this new season, Sylvia and Will’s friendship seems to threaten his new relationship.
Judaism rating: 2/4 couch potato latkes
August 11: “Irish Blood” (Acorn TV)
Listen, I know the title of this show doesn’t sound Jewish but it stars bat mitzvah girl Alicia Silverstone as Fiona Fox. Could she be an Irish Jew? I find that believable — there are quite a few Irish Jews out there — but also unlikely. Still, a show helmed by the Jewish “Clueless” star sounds like fun, at least while we wait for the promised “Clueless” TV reboot.
Judaism rating: 0.5/4 couch potato latkes
August 13: “Sausage Party: Foodtopia” Season 2 (Prime Video)
I still haven’t been able to stomach (get the pun!) this sausage-themed Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg series, based on the movie by same name. Yes, I am personally obsessed with hot dogs, and the fact that Edward Norton stars as Sammy Bagel Jr. — a neurotic Jewish bagel — should be irresistible, but somehow, I really can’t get into it. But a second season of it is coming whether we want it or not. Please let me know if you love this show in the comments.
Judaism rating: 1/4 couch potato latkes
August 22: “Long Story Short” (Netflix)
This is, by a long shot, my most anticipated Jewish show of the month. Created by Raphael Bob-Waksberg and based on his experience growing up Jewish, it stars Paul Reiser, Lisa Edelstein, Ben Feldman, Abbi Jacobson and Max Greenfield as members of a Schwooper (Schwartz-Cooper) family. It just looks spectacular.
Judaism rating: 4/4 couch potato latkes
August 22: “The Truth About Jussie Smollett?” (Netflix)
I really loved Jewish actor Jussie Smollett (yes, he’s the brother of “Smoke” star Jurnee Smollett) in the show “Empire,” and was really shaken by the allegations that he staged a hate crime against himself. This new documentary, from the producers of “The Tinder Swindler” and “Don’t F** with Cats: Hunting an Internet Killer,” tries to get the facts straight and lets Smollett share his perspective on the story. I’ll be watching with one eye shut, probably?
Judaism rating: 0.5/4 couch potato latkes
August 25: “Love Island: USA” Season 7 Reunion (Peacock special)
Ariana Madix and Andy Cohen host this reunion special and I’m really hoping we get to hear from adorably mensch-y contestant Elan Bibas.
Judaism rating: 0.5/4 couch potato latkes
August 27: “Ruby Red Handed: Stealing America’s Most Famous Pair of Shoes” (Hulu)
A documentary about the 2005 theft of the red ruby slippers from “The Wizard of Oz” sounds like a really fun ride. I am hoping it also delves into the story of their Jewish designer, Adrian, born Adrian Adolph Greenburg (he went by just one name because he was such a badass).
Judaism rating: 0.25/4 couch potato latkes
This piece originally ran in our Jewish TV Club Substack.
