Significant Others (Sunday on ABC) is a real winner because it is so damn relatable. Everyone should be able to recognise the fractured family at its centre, with siblings already squabbling about an inheritance and now have to face a new mystery.
When a woman (Jacqueline McKenzie) disappears on an ocean swim, her two teenage children (Zoe Steiner and Gulliver McGrath) need to be cared for by their aunties (Rachael Blake and Alison Bell) and gay uncle (Kenneth Moraleda) and his partner (Todd McKenney).
Also starring Rarriwuy Hick, Maggie Dence and Alan Dukes, this family drama from writer Tommy Murphy gets deliciously messier with every new revelation. Where it’s heading to is anyone’s guess, so that’s a huge thumbs up from me on why it’s such a must-see.
Significant Others is not another murder mystery in a small town and while the ABC deserves some criticism for making the same Aussie drama over and over again, it seems unfair that Fran Kelly has been copping it for being too old to do Frankly (Fridays on ABC).
Ita Buttrose is right in saying that an interview show needs someone experienced at the helm. That doesn’t mean that the ABC shouldn’t try harder to put some new young hosts into less demanding formats. Mining Triple J for talent is a good start, as has been the case with Zan Rowe whose Take 5 (Tuesday on ABC) has been lots of fun.
Shantaram (Apple TV+) is finally here after years and years of production delays and it’s been worth the wait. Charlie Hunnam is soulful as the Aussie fugitive who escapes from Pentridge and hides out in a Bombay slum. Production-wise, this vast set alone is with the price of admission.
Shantaram on AppleTV+
This is an epic story with a fascinating cast of shady characters played by David Field, Vincent Perez and Fayssal Bazzi (who also stars in Significant Others). And it’s good they turned this into a 10-part TV series, rather than trying to cram that giant book into one movie.
Reboot (Disney+) is the funniest new comedy of the year, although you need to love TV to get all the in-jokes. An old family sitcom is being rebooted for a streaming service and it’s got a knockout cast that includes Keegan-Michael Key, Rachel Bloom, Johnny Knoxville, Judy Greer and Paul Reiser.
Reboot on Disney+
In the first episode, there is a hilarious roll call of all the TV series that have been rebooted in recent years. But stick around for the writers room, where a bunch of diverse millennials have to find a way to work with old and frequently inappropriate Jewish comedians. Brilliant stuff.
Read more Mercado on TV columns here.
Mercado & Manning weekly TV podcast
Listen now on your favourite podcast platform for 30 minutes of TV reviews and recommendations every week from Andrew Mercado and James Manning. In the new episode to be published on Friday Andrew and James discuss Significant Others, Reboot, Ridley, Frankly, This Is Your Life and more.
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