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Big trouble’s brewing on The Mosquito Coast [Apple TV+ recap] ★★★★☆

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The Mosquito Coast recap Apple TV+: The sudden appearance of old nemesis Richard (played by Ariyon Bakare) means trouble on The Mosquito Coast.★★★★☆
The sudden appearance of old nemesis Richard (played by Ariyon Bakare) means trouble on The Mosquito Coast.
Photo: Apple TV+

TV+ ReviewApple TV+ thriller The Mosquito Coast picks up its cliffhanger and heads into ever darker territory this week. Allie is caught between a rock and a harder place than usual. Dina takes her anger out on Margot, but Charlie would rather take it out on Richard.

Margot’s stuck between trying to win back her family’s approval and not caring enough to get it back. The Foxes may still be in hot water with the U.S. government after all, which means there’s a clock ticking faster than they imagined.

It all adds up to a white-knuckle episode of the drama about a family of terrorists on the lam in Central America.

Ian and Poppy try to un-scrooge Christmas on Mythic Quest [Apple TV+ recap] ★★★★

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Mythic Quest recap Apple TV+: Would you trust Christmas to this guy?★★★★
Would you entrust Christmas to this guy? Nope.
Photo: Apple TV+

TV+ ReviewApple TV+ comedy Mythic Quest rings in the holiday season with a very special Christmas episode this week. The Mythic Quest offices are full of misery as David makes everyone stay and work through Christmas Eve. His attempts to cheer them up come to naught. And when Poppy and Ian try to salvage things at their old company, they go too far.

Meanwhile, Poppy and Rachel must learn what Jo’s definition of friendship is, and Rachel has her first brush with success. All in all, “The 12 Hours of Christmas” stands tall as a stellar episode of Apple TV+’s funniest show.

In Little America season 2, hard luck always yields happy endings [Apple TV+ review] ★★★

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Little America review Apple TV+ season two: First you struggle, then everything works out. Right?★★★
First you struggle, then everything works out. Right?
Photo: Apple TV+

TV+ ReviewLittle America, the easygoing Apple TV+ series about the immigrant experience in America, returns this week for a second season of predictably uplifting storytelling.

This parade of hard-luck stories features happy endings that range from gentle to ecstatic. Just like last season, the show is largely successful — if frequently too well-behaved for its own good.

Puppy Place teaches kids all the right lessons [Apple TV+ review] ★★★☆☆

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Puppy Place season 2 review: Puppy Place can't stop being adorable.★★★☆☆
Puppy Place can't stop being adorable.
Photo: Apple TV+

TV+ ReviewPuppy Place returns to Apple TV+ this week with a second batch of adorable, low-stress hijinks centered on a family that fosters cute pooches.

The Petersons and their four-legged charges once again set out to teach us to love dogs — and ourselves in the process. The puppies are cute and plentiful, the lessons come hard and fast, and no problem is so difficult that it might stress out a child.

The show remains a pretty good afternoon time-waster for kids under 10.

Emancipation looks the horrors of slavery dead in the eye [Apple TV+ review] ★★★★☆

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Emancipation review: This action-packed look at the brutality of slavery should make you forget The Slap.★★★★☆
Emancipation is an action-packed look at the brutality of slavery that should make you forget The Slap.
Photo: Apple TV+

TV+ ReviewBased on a true story about a slave’s quest for freedom during the Civil War, Apple TV+’s oddly positioned Oscar contender Emancipation pairs action with an unflinching look at slavery’s brutality.

It stars Will Smith, whose bizarre post-Slap apology tour makes for strange bedfellows with Emancipation’s stark subject matter and the film’s action-oriented director, Antoine Fuqua. But this cautiously made movie is probably the best possible film this team could have produced. And indeed, it’s quite a bit better than an Oscar-ready slavery drama made in today’s Hollywood has any right to be.

New Carpool Karaoke episodes won’t make you reach for a hose and duct tape [Apple TV+ review] ★★☆☆

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Carpool Karaoke review season 5, part 2: It's all about the stars, like Duran Duran and Sandra Oh.★★☆☆
New episodes of Carpool Karaoke are all about the stars, like Duran Duran and Sandra Oh.
Photo: Apple TV+

TV+ ReviewNew episodes of Carpool Karaoke: The Series just popped up on Apple TV+, with zero fanfare or build-up or warning, because, well, who’s going to stop them? You? I didn’t think so.

Still, the showrunners did the one thing possible to entice me to review this new batch: They snagged some interesting guest stars. And you know what? A few actually charming moments emerge, despite the cringe-inducing artifice and sheer laziness of Carpool Karaoke’s premise and production.

First look at Truth Be Told season 3 introduces new cast member

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Octavia Spencer, left, and new cast member Gabrielle Union star in
Octavia Spencer, left, and new cast member Gabrielle Union star in Truth Be Told season 3.
Photo: Apple TV+

Apple TV+ offered a first look at season 3 of its award-winning drama Truth Be Told Thursday, introducing a new cast member in the process.

Actress Gabrielle Union joins Oscar-winner Octavia Spencer on the NAACP Image Award-winning show. Season 3 kicks off on January 20.

Apple TV+ nabs 10 Critics Choice Award nominations

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Severance nabbed nominations for Best Drama Series and for Adam Scott's acting.
Photo: Apple TV+

The Critics Choice Association showered Apple TV+ Tuesday with 10 nominations for the upcoming 28th Annual Critics Choice Awards. They include Best Drama Series nods for workplace psycho-drama Severance and dark comedy-drama Bad Sisters, plus Best Foreign Language Series noms for Pachinko and Tehran.

Nominations honored six series in total. The other two nominations covered acting in prison suspense thriller Black Bird and family drama The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey. See more specifics below.

A stunning revelation and an unexpected alliance shake up The Mosquito Coast [Apple TV+ recap] ★★★★☆

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The Mosquito Coast recap Apple TV+: Dina (played by Logan Polish, right) finally discovers the awful truth about her mom Margot (Melissa George).★★★★☆
Dina (played by Logan Polish, right) finally discovers the awful truth about her mom Margot (Melissa George).
Photo: Apple TV+

TV+ ReviewAllie Fox finds himself in a tight corner this week on The Mosquito Coast, the absorbing Apple TV+ series about a family on the run from the U.S. government. His son Charlie’s been compromised, so Allie must do a local criminal kingpin a favor. And that puts him in a car with William Lee, the man who tried to kill him.

Also, daughter Dina learns something about her mom Margot that changes everything about their relationship. It’s a magnificently tense and very strong episode all around.

New Apple TV+ video showcases 2023 coming attractions

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Did you like
Did you like "Band of Brothers," about the 101st Airborne at Normandy and beyond? You might like "Masters of the Air," which follows the exploits of the Eighth Army Air Force during WWII.
Photo: Apple

“In a world like this, you can have it all,” says actor Billy Crudup, from The Morning Show, at the top of a new Apple TV+ trailer. It’s called “Apple TV+ Winter 2022 & Beyond | Official Preview,” and it’s all about year-end fare on the streaming service and what you can look forward to in 2023.

It short YouTube video may not give you all, as the Crudup clip implies, but it shows a lot of quality entertainment on tap now and upcoming.

A VIP and the Virgin Mary teach life lessons this week on Acapulco [Apple TV+ recap] ★★★☆☆

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Acapulco recap Apple TV+: A very special visitor arrives at the resort this week.★★★☆☆
A very special visitor arrives at the resort this week.
Photo: Apple TV+

TV+ ReviewApple TV+ comedy Acapulco heads as far into crowded crossroads as possible this week as people learn to be human again. The show about the hopeful staff of an exclusive Mexican resort finds Maximo faced with an important guest who will teach him there’s more to life than success.

Meanwhile, Nora misses Sara and has to stop fighting her heart. Diane has meddled with Chad for the last time. Memo tries to help Hector live for a day, and Julia needs to do some serious reconsidering. The episode, entitled “Money Changes Everything,” finds everyone in transition — and it’s better than we’ve gotten lately from this show.

Poppy tries to figure out the meaning of fun this week on Mythic Quest [Apple TV+ recap] ★★★★

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Mythic Quest recap Apple TV+: Poppy (played by Charlotte Nicdao, right) and Ian (Rob McElhenney) make a strange discovery at Grim Pop.★★★★
Poppy (played by Charlotte Nicdao, right) and Ian (Rob McElhenney) make a strange discovery at Grim Pop.
Photo: Apple TV+

TV+ ReviewEveryone’s confidence is shaken on this week’s episode of Mythic Quest, the Apple TV+ office comedy about a popular computer game.

Poppy realizes she has no idea what fun is, and that revelation is unraveling her world. Ian feels left out of the development of the Mythic Quest movie, and David is his only way in. To top it off, Carol thinks she’s getting fired for mismanagement of company funds, energy, and time.

It’s a strong episode of the funniest show Apple TV+ has to offer.

Echo 3 takes its weird sexual vibe to a whole new level [Apple TV+ recap] ★★☆☆

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Echo 3 recap Apple TV+: Things go from bad to worse for Amber (played by Jessica Ann Collins). First she's kidnapped, then she disappears!★★☆☆
Things go from bad to worse for Amber (played by Jessica Ann Collins). First she's kidnapped, then she disappears!
Photo: Apple TV+

TV+ ReviewNew Apple TV+ military thriller Echo 3 finds its heroes in desperate times this week, anxious and ready to take desperate measures. The kidnapped Amber has been put in a hellish South American prison camp, her brother Bambi is abandoned by his cohorts, her husband Prince is back in America recovering from multiple gunshot wounds — and nobody has a clue how to make this situation any better. But the writers sure know how to make it weirder.

The show, about what happens when an American with clandestine government ties stumbles into a private war, gets good mileage out of mechanics over message in this week’s episode, entitled “Upriver.” The bizarro sexual subtext of intervention gets quite the workout in this show.

Shantaram seethes with double-crosses and lust for revenge [Apple TV+ recap] ★★★

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Shantaram recap: Everything's coming to a boil, including our hero's temper, as Shantaram heads for its final curtain.★★★
Everything's coming to a boil, including our hero's temper, as Shantaram heads for its final curtain.
Photo: Apple TV+

TV+ Review This week on Shantaram, Lin is ready to flee except for one big thing: He wants revenge. The Apple TV+ limited series about a benevolent fugitive on the run from his past is coming to a bloody head as Lin tries to square accounts, Karla runs around town preparing the double-cross of a lifetime, the grim specter of death arrives in Bombay, and everyone else is caught in the middle.

Though this episode is well-played, it focuses on Shantaram’s least-interesting characters.

Slow Horses’ second season cuts to the chase [Apple TV+ recap] ★★★★☆

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Slow Horses season two on Apple TV+: Jackson Lamb (played by Gary Oldman, right) has a new mystery to solve.★★★★☆
Jackson Lamb (played by Gary Oldman, right) and his slow horses have a new mystery to solve.
Photo: Apple TV+

TV+ ReviewApple TV+ spy thriller Slow Horses returns this week for a slick second season of low-brow high tension.

Grotesque super spy Jackson Lamb (played by Gary Oldman) is on a personal crusade in the wake of a friend’s death. And the rest of his “slow horses” are desperately looking for work — even the ones who are still behind their desks at Slough House, the London HQ for MI5’s misfit spies.

Season two of Slow Horses starts at a good clip and just keeps galloping. The show, based on the Slough House series by British crime novelist Mick Herron, remains one of the most consistent secret pleasures of the Apple TV+ lineup.

Take a first look at Harrison Ford in Apple TV+ comedy Shrinking

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Take a first look at Harrison Ford in Apple TV+ comedy 'Shrinking'
Jason Segel and Harrison Ford in “Shrinking,” premiering globally on January 27, 2023 on Apple TV+.
Photo: Apple TV+

What if a therapist told his clients what he really thinks they should do? That’s the premise for Shrinking, a comedy starring Jason Segel and Harrison Ford premiering in January on Apple TV+.

The series was written by the a co-creator of the mega-hit Ted Lasso. A teaser trailer released Wednesday gives an early taste of the fun.

Will Smith hopes Emancipation won’t be snubbed despite his ‘horrific decision’

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Will Smith hopes 'Emancipation' won't be snubbed despite his 'horrific decision'
Will Smith told Trevor Noah on The Daily Show "I lost it."
Photo: Matt Wilson/Comedy Central

Emancipation has a problem: the upcoming Apple TV+ docudrama stars Will Smith who was at the center of one of the year’s biggest Hollywood scandals, “The Slap.”

In an interview on The Daily Show, Smith said he regrets that his action at the 2022 Oscar ceremony is distracting from the work that others put into the film, especially director Antoine Fuqua.

iPhone 15 rumors will get you thinking about the future [The CultCast]

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The CultCast Apple podcast: iPhone 15 rumors: Coming soon to an iPhone near you?
Coming soon to an iPhone near you?
Image: Cult of Mac

This week on Cult of Mac’s podcast: The latest iPhone 15 rumors make it sound like we’re getting some major changes on the design front. And, while the switch from Lightning to USB-C sounds like a winner, Apple might pull one of its irritating tricks by making a handy feature exclusive to the iPhone Pro models next year.

Also on The CultCast:

  • Black Friday/Cyber Monday deals on your favorite Apple gear.
  • COVID-19 chaos in the Chinese factory complex known as “iPhone City” points to further supply-chain disruptions for Cupertino.
  • Find My miracles!
  • Mondo’s Severance collectibles look like a really cool way to dig deeper into the most creative show on Apple TV+.

Listen to this week’s episode of The CultCast in the Podcasts app or your favorite podcast app. (Be sure to subscribe and leave us a review if you like it!) Or watch the video live stream, embedded below.

Our sponsor: CultCloth

This is absolutely your last chance to get forgetful Eron’s ridiculous CultCloth deal! These are the only cleaning cloths you need!

On Shantaram, our hero needs to escape from Bombay [Apple TV+ recap] ★★★☆☆

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Shantaram recap Apple TV+: Lindsay Ford (played by Charlie Hunnam) realizes it's go time.★★★☆☆
Lindsay Ford (played by Charlie Hunnam) realizes it's go time.
Photo: Apple TV+

TV+ ReviewThis week on Shantaram, the Apple TV+ limited series about a fugitive trying and failing to lie low in ’80s Bombay, our hero sees that his days in his new home are numbered. The only question is, will he leave before a trap is sprung on him or meet his destiny head-on?

Lin and Karla aren’t sure they want to say goodbye, Modena makes a risky move (and Lisa’s caught up in his wake), and Pandey must put his money where his mouth is or risk everything.

Everybody’s escape plans are falling apart in a reasonably gripping outing of this reasonably gripping show.

Everyone’s looking for a way out on The Mosquito Coast [Apple TV+ recap] ★★★★☆

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The Mosquito Coast recap Apple TV+: The members of the Fox family face troubles old and new this week.★★★★☆
The members of the Fox family face troubles old and new this week.
Photo: Apple TV+

TV+ ReviewThe Mosquito Coast hits a dead end this week, and the only one happy about it is Allie Fox. His wife Margot and daughter Dina get desperate looking for a way out of their situation, even as their hosts start to have major second thoughts about their new guests.

Charlie puts himself at risk, Dina goes on a fateful date, Margot throws a Hail Mary — and Allie’s one step ahead of everybody. As we’ve come to expect from Mosquito Coast, this is one tense hour of television.

What’s on the menu in Acapulco? Sitcom leftovers. [Apple TV+ recap] ★★☆☆

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Acapulco recap Apple TV+: It's another week of seduction, jealousy and hackneyed jokes.★★☆☆
We get heaping helpings of seduction, jealousy and hackneyed jokes this week on Acapulco.
Photo: Apple TV+

TV+ ReviewIt’s dueling dinner parties on this week’s episode of Apple TV+ culture clash comedy Acapulco. Memo is under investigation, Chad is under suspicion, Julia’s jealous, Esteban’s nervous, Sara’s drunk, Hector’s in lust, and — as usual — Maximo’s in the middle.

It’s an agreeably hectic week on the show, which doesn’t seem sure how to proceed with its more- serious ideas. As a result, Acapulco relies on an old-hat sitcom formula instead.

Spirited with Will Ferrell and Ryan Reynolds becomes holiday hit for Apple TV+

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Ryan Reynold share a new enthusiasm for tap dancing in the teaser for the Apple TV+ musical
Ryan Reynolds and Will Ferrell share a new enthusiasm for tap dancing in the Apple TV+ musical "Spirited."
Photo: Apple TV+

Spirited, with Will Ferrell and Ryan Reynolds starring in a comedy musical version of A Christmas Carol, is pulling in a sizable audience. It was one of the top five most-watched streaming shows last week, despite premiering halfway through the week.

The Christmas special is available now on Apple TV+.

Two Joes walk into a bar this week on Mythic Quest [Apple TV+ recap] ★★★★☆

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Mythic Quest recap Apple TV+: Well, this is awkward.★★★★☆
Well, this is awkward.
Photo: Apple TV+

TV+ ReviewMythic Quest goes Hollywood this week as Jo sits down with actor Joe Manganiello to discuss a role in the upcoming Mythic Quest movie.

Also, Dana and Ian go on an accidentally soul-searching trip, while Poppy looks for support around the office. And when Carol takes a personal day, that leaves Brad free to do as he pleases (and once more potentially ruin the game).

It’s a decent episode of Apple TV+’s gamer comedy — with one showstopper of a scene.

Echo 3 is a deeply strange military thriller [Apple TV+ recap] ★★☆☆

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Echo 3 recap Apple TV+: New series Echo 3 takes Apple TV+ to a weird new battlefront.★★☆☆
Echo 3 takes Apple TV+ to a weird new battlefront.
Photo: Apple TV+

TV+ ReviewNew Apple TV+ series Echo 3 follows two very different military men who venture to South America to rescue a mutual loved one during a clandestine war.

Written and produced by Mark Boal, the mind behind Zero Dark Thirty and The Hurt Locker, the series is deeply strange, if certainly memorable. And it shows Apple TV+ heading in a new, possibly suspect, direction.