From 'Bridgerton' to 'Hacks' to 'Wrexham,' -2-

What's in the library? A lighter-than-usual movie lineup this month includes "The Iron Claw," "All About My Mother," "Mad Max" and "Silver Linings Playbook." The TV library remains stacked, with, among many others, "True Detective: Night Country," "Succession," "Chuck," "Friends" and "House of the Dragon" (its second season is coming in June).

Play, pause or stop? Play. "Hacks" is outstanding, and between "The Sympathizer," "Last Week Tonight" and some library classics, it's worth the price.

Apple TV+ ($9.99 a month)

Apple's got a lot of plates spinning at once this month, including the sci-fi drama series "Dark Matter" (May 8), starring Joel Edgerton as a man abducted into an alternate version of his life; "The Big Cigar" (May 17), a drama series based on the wild real-life story of how Black Panther founder Huey Newton (André Holland) escaped from the FBI and fled to Cuba with the aid of a movie producer (Alessandro Nivola); the true-crime documentary "Hollywood Con Queen" (May 8); and new seasons of the comedies "Acapulco" (May 1) and "Trying" (May 22).

There are also new episodes of the Colin Farrell mystery series "Sugar" (season finale May 17); the Michael Douglas historical miniseries "Franklin" (finale May 17); Season 2 of the Maya Rudolph comedy "Loot" (season finale May 29); the Kristen Wiig dramedy "Palm Royale" (season finale May 8); and the Chris O'Dowd existential comedy "The Big Door Prize."

What's in the library? Apple's got a solid selection of sci-fi series, including "Severance," "The Silo," "Foundation" and "For All Mankind" (which, aside from getting a fifth season, will get a spinoff series, "Star City," focused on an alt-history of the Soviet space program.)

Play, pause or stop? Pause and think it over. There's a lot going on at Apple (AAPL). While none of the above scream "must-watch," that's not to say there aren't a few interesting series among them.

Disney+ ($7.99 a month with ads, $13.99 with no ads)

Disney's (DIS) appealing more to the grown-ups this month, with a pair of music documentaries. "Let It Be" (May 8) is Peter Jackson and Michael Lindsay-Hogg's restored version of the long-lost 1970 Beatles doc, which has not been available to watch in 50 years. It details the Fab Four recording their last album and features their final performances together, and should be a must-see for Beatles fans.

But wait, boomer, there's more: "The Beach Boys" (May 24), from acclaimed music-documentary directors Frank Marshall and Thom Zimny, celebrates the pop-music icons and features never-before-seen footage and new interviews with surviving band members Brian Wilson, Mike Love, Al Jardine, David Marks and Bruce Johnston.

There's also the highly anticipated new season of the British sci-fi classic "Doctor Who" (May 10), starring Ncuti Gatwa ("Sex Education") as the 15th Doctor, with Russell T Davies returning as showrunner, writer and executive producer. Three episodes drop on the 10th, with new ones every week.

Disney will also be celebrating May the Fourth with the new animated series "Star Wars: Tales of the Empire" (May 4), coming on the heels of the series finale of "Star Wars: The Bad Batch" (May 1). There's also Season 2 of the Pixar spinoff "Monsters at Work" (May 5), and the documentary "Jim Henson: Idea Man" (May 31), directed by Ron Howard. Meanwhile, the impressive "X-Men '97" wraps up its season May 15.

Catch up: If you somehow missed it, there were two "Bluey" special episodes in April, the supersized "The Sign" and the flash-forward episode "Surprise," which may or may not be the final one ever. It's the biggest show in the world for good reason, as it resonates just as deeply with adults as it does kids.

What's in the library? There's a lot of Marvel and "Star Wars," but also classics such as "The Simpsons," "The Muppet Show" and "The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones," along with favorites such as "Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour," "Black-ish" and "Gravity Falls."

Play, pause or stop? Pause. After a soft few months, there's suddenly a pretty decent selection of shows for adults.

Peacock ($5.99 a month with ads, or $11.99 with no ads)

"We Are Lady Parts" was perhaps the most pleasant surprise of 2021, but after a three-year layoff and given the way Peacock has been ditching its original comedies, the chances of seeing a second season seemed grim not too long ago. But in another pleasant surprise, Season 2 is coming May 30. Set in London and telling the story of a group of young Muslim women who start a punk band, "Lady Parts" is a joy to watch, smart, heartwarming and hilarious, with legitimately catchy songs. Can't recommend this one enough.

Comcast's (CMCSA) Peacock also has "The Tattooist of Auschwitz" (May 2), a drama series inspired by the real-life love affair between two Holocaust survivors, starring Melanie Lynskey and Harvey Keitel; "Love Undercover" (May 9), a reality dating show starring international soccer "stars" who keep their true identities secret; and "The American Society of Magical Negroes" (May 3), a comedy movie from Kobi Libii.

More: Peacock raising prices by $2 a month ahead of Summer Olympics

There's also the 2024 Eurovision Song Contest (May 7), the 150th running of the Kentucky Derby (May 4), the Preakness (May 17), the Indianapolis 500 (May 26), the final matches of the English Premier League season, as well as golf, motorsports and track & field.

That's along with the Season 11 finale of "Vanderpump Rules" (May 8), new episodes every week of "Top Chef: Season 21," a new season of "The Real Housewives of New Jersey" (May 6) and NBC series like "Chicago Fire" and "Law & Order."

What's in the library? New movies this month include "The 40-Year-Old Virgin," "Jurassic Park," "The Mummy," "Step Brothers" and "Uncle Buck," to go along with shows like "30 Rock," "Brooklyn Nine-Nine," "Downton Abbey," "Scrubs" and "Poker Face."

Play, pause or stop? Stop. "Top Chef" is still watchable even though it appears to have lost a step this season, and while "We Are Lady Parts" is outstanding, it's not worth a subscription on its own. The best bet is probably to wait until the Summer Olympics to subscribe for a month and catch up with shows then.

Amazon's Prime Video ($14.99 a month with ads, $8.99 without Prime membership, both +$2.99 to avoid ads)

Amazon (AMZN) has Season 2 of "Outer Range" (May 16), as the mystery deepens after a rancher (Josh Brolin) discovers a mysterious black void on his ranch, and as he and his wife (Lili Taylor) try to keep their family together after the disappearance of their granddaughter.

There's also a new season of Jeremy Clarkson's reality show "Clarkson's Farm" (May 3), the all-star reality competition "The GOAT" (May 9), and Season 3 of Stephen Merchant's community-service comedy/thriller "The Outlaws" (May 31), along with NWSL soccer every Friday night.

But the most watchable thing may be "Fallout," which dropped all eight of its episodes in April. Though testing viewers' capacity for bleak, post-apocalyptic dramas, this is a rare videogame adaptation that actually works (mostly), thanks largely to the ever-excellent Walton Goggins as a noseless bounty hunter and a stellar performance from Ella Purnell, who gives surprising depth to the main character, Lucy. Though overly gory at times, it's sharp and witty, with rich and detailed world-building.

What's in the library? New movies this month include "12 Angry Men," "Beautiful Girls," "Bottle Rocket," "Everybody Wants Some," "Once Upon a Time in the West," "Rear Window" and "Run Lola Run." That's on top of series such as "The Boys," "Bosch," "Patriot," "Mr. & Mrs. Smith" and "I'm a Virgo."

Play, pause or stop? Stop. There are good shows, but the high price and the fact that you need to pay extra to avoid annoying ads tips the scale.

Paramount+ ($5.99 a month with ads, $11.99 a month with Showtime and no ads)

"Evil" (May 23) is back for its fourth and final season. The supernatural drama from Robert and Michelle King ("The Good Wife," "The Good Fight") is one of Paramount's (PARA) best shows, and it'll be missed. Katja Herbers, Mike Colter and Aasif Mandvi return as a trio of intrepid investigators trying to verify or debunk hauntings, demonic possessions and potential miracles, and the final season has a cute li'l baby Antichrist to worry about as well. It's a twist on the tried-and-true "X-Files" format, and it works spectacularly more often than not, with legitimate creepiness as it explores the concept of evil in the modern world.

There's also the second half of Season 6 of the Showtime drama "The Chi" (May 10), a new season of "Behind the Music" (May 1), Season 9 of "RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars" (May 17) and the '90s music documentary "LOLLA: The Story of Lollapalooza" (May 21).

On the sports front, there's the UEFA Champions League semifinals (May 1, 7 and 8); golf, including the PGA Championship (May 18-19); and a slate of WNBA and and NWSL games.

What's in the library? New movies this month include "Bob Marley: One Love," "Big Night," "Boogie Nights," "Days of Heaven," "No Country for Old Men," "Point Break," "Stand By Me" and "The Joy Luck Club," to go along with shows like "Young Sheldon," "NCIS," "Survivor" and "Yellowjackets."

Play, pause or stop? Stop. Put "Evil" in your mental queue, but subscribe another month, there's just not enough to justify it right now.

Need more? Catch up on previous months' picks at What's Worth Streaming.

-Mike Murphy

This content was created by MarketWatch, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. MarketWatch is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

05-03-24 1130ET

Copyright (c) 2024 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.