There are scores of TV shows out there, with dozens of new episodes each week, not to mention everything you can find on Hulu Plus, Netflix streaming, and HBO Go. How’s a viewer to keep up? To help you sort through all that television has to offer, Flavorwire is compiling the five best moments on TV each week. This time, we’re catching up on not just the past seven days in television, but a whole two weeks of programming, including the holidays. Read on for a preview of what awaits on your DVR.
Community Is Back, Plus Dan Harmon
Season 5’s double-episode premiere is recapped in full here, but the triumphant return of both the critically acclaimed comedy and its erstwhile creator kicked off the midseason TV frenzy with a bang. It may have had the lowest ratings of any Community premiere, but it still beat out every other Thursday-night comedy on NBC. #SixSeasonsAndAMovie indeed.
Sherlock Is Out There
Not officially in the US yet, so absolutely no spoilers, but be forewarned: there are GIFs and illicit links aplenty floating around following the New Year’s Day premiere of “The Empty Hearse” in the UK. That’s your cue to turn on your Tumblr Savior and start the countdown for the American premiere date (January 19, on PBS). After two years, it’s finally happening.
Britney Got Her Very Own Documentary
It’s a predictable train wreck, but I Am Britney Jean at least attempted to take the measure of one of the 21st century’s most conflicted (and fascinating) pop stars to date. It’s ultimately more propagandistic than revealing, but the made-for-TV documentary has its moments, providing one skips all the hype for Spears’ current Vegas residency.
SNL Pulled Out the Big Guns
The sketch comedy show pulled a double whammy for its midseason finale, picking crowd favorites Jimmy Fallon as host and Justin Timberlake as musical guest. The result was a feel-good installment of the uneven late-night stalwart, with plenty of Timberlake standby sketches and infamous Fallon breaks to go ’round. Needless to say, the ratings were stellar.
Treme Winds Down
David Simon’s follow-up to The Wire, set in New Orleans, wrapped up both its abbreviated fourth season and its run as a series a few days before the New Year. Treme was never up there with HBO stalwarts like Game of Thrones in terms of either ratings or sheer buzz, but the show quietly garnered critical acclaim as yet another vivid portrait of an American city in crisis from the former journalist. It may not have gone out with a bang, but Treme stands at least a decent shot of becoming a sleeper cult hit in the vein of its predecessor.