As a sweaty, sunny summer approaches, TV gears up for plenty of promising debuts and intriguing returns. You can expect some big-budget tentpole shows from Marvel and DC, among other franchise fare. But the next few months also boast a new comedy from Lena Dunham, Jason Momoa’s Hawaii-set passion project, Raphael Bob-Waksberg’s latest animated series, and a true-crime drama about John Wayne Gacy. Here is The A.V. Club’s guide to summer TV.
Stick (Apple TV+, June 4)
In this sports comedy, a former big-deal golfer (played by Owen Wilson), who had a Richie Tenenbaum-style meltdown that ended his career, gets back in the game in order to mentor a young talent (portrayed by Peter Dager). Ford V Ferrari co-scribe Jason Keller created the series (which, at least in its trailer, does look a tad like a movie idea stretched out into an Apple TV+ show), and Marc Maron, Mariana Treviño, and Judy Greer round out the cast. [Tim Lowery]
We Were Liars (Netflix, June 18)
Nothing promises scandalous drama like a wealthy family spending the summer on a luxurious island, where everything obviously goes wrong. In the YA thriller We Were Liars, based on E. Lockhart’s novel and adapted by The Vampire Diaries‘ Julie Plec and Carina Mackenzie, the seemingly perfect Sinclair clan vacations off the coast of Massachusetts every year. But when 18-year-old Cadence (Emily Alyn Lind) starts recollecting a horrible incident from her past, family secrets emerge that could damage their reputation. [Saloni Gajjar]
The Gilded Age season three (HBO, June 22)
Carrie Coon‘s reign over HBO this year continues with the return of The Gilded Age, Julian Fellowes’ juicy period drama set in late-1800s New York City. In season three, Bertha Russell aims to win a coveted prize that could elevate the family’s social status. At the same time, her husband, George (Morgan Spector), attempts to revolutionize the railroad industry. Sadly, everyone’s favorite couple might be in trouble over disagreements about their kids’ wedding plans. Christina Baranski, Cynthia Nixon, Denée Benton, and Louisa Jacobson are back, with Merrit Wever and Andrea Martin joining the cast this time around. [Saloni Gajjar]
Ironheart (Disney+, June 24)
More than four years after Kevin Feige’s announcement about Ironheart, the Riri Williams (Dominique Thorne) origin story is here. Over six episodes that take place following the events of Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Riri returns to Chicago armed with a new outlook on her life as a superhero (and a suit made out of vibranium) and joins forces with Parker Robbins (Anthony Ramos), a.k.a. The Hood, who possesses magical abilities thanks to his cloak. Ironheart brings a host of new actors into the MCU, including Alden Ehrenreich and Sacha Baron Cohen. And in a fun bit of news, Jim Rash reprises his role from Captain America: Civil War. [Saloni Gajjar]
The Bear season four(FX, June 25)
The reviews are in on the Bear (that is, the restaurant) in the fourth and potentially final season of Christopher Storer’s often fantastic and always big-hearted series and, at least from the trailer, they seem to be…positive to mixed? Carmy (Jeremy Allen White) & co. will surely deal with all of that—and the threat of Uncle Jimmy (Oliver Platt) pulling funding for the Chicago fine-dining spot—over these next 10 highly-anticipated episodes. [Tim Lowery]
Squid Game season three (Netflix, June 27)
The twisted contests of Squid Gameare coming to an end. The third and final season of the South Korean dystopian drama finds Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae) in his toughest battle yet, if you can believe it. He’s lost his best friend and has been captured by someone he thought he could trust, the Front Man (Lee Byung-hun). Now, Gi-hun is forced to enter the competition again to fight for his life and for the entertainment of the rich people who fund the whole evil event. The showalso introduces some wild new games as well as a male robot counterpart to the terrifying killing machine Young–hee. [Saloni Gajjar]
Smoke (Apple TV+, June 27)
Black Bird‘s Dennis Lehane (celebrated author and writer for The Wire) and Taron Egerton join up for another Apple TV+ miniseries with Smoke, in which Egerton’s arson investigator and a detective (played by Lovecraft Country‘s Jurnee Smollett) dig into a series of fires in the Pacific Northwest. The nine-episode project also includes turns by John Leguizamo, Greg Kinnear, Ntare Mwine, and Veep‘s Anna Chlumsky. [Tim Lowery]
It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia season 17 (FXX, July 9)
The Gang gets back together again for Sunny‘s seventeenth(!) season this summer, a run that kicks off with another crossover episode with the fellow Philadelphians at Abbott Elementary. “I know it sounds crazy,” notes Gregory (Tyler James Williams) in a tease of that installment after he busts in on Charlie and Frank (Charlie Day and Danny DeVito) questioning a student. “These people were trying to start a boy band.” (Actually, that doesn’t sound far-fetched at all.) [Tim Lowery]
Too Much (Netflix, July 10)
Lena Dunham and her husband Luis Felber cooked up this rom-com series for Netflix, in which a woman from NYC (portrayed by Hacks‘ Megan Stalter) heads to London after a breakup and hits it off with a local (played by The White Lotus‘ Will Sharpe). The show also features Emily Ratajkowski, Adwoa Aboah, and Rita Wilson, as well as Girls vets Andrew Rannells and the always welcome Richard E. Grant. [Tim Lowery]
Dexter: Resurrection (Paramount+, July 11)
You can’t keep a good (fictional) serial killer down. And so, Dexter Morgan (Michael C. Hall) makes a bloody return in another Dexter continuation after 2022’s New Blood. In Resurrection, which takes place weeks after his son shot him, our antagonist wakes up from his coma to realize his child, Harrison (Jack Alcott), has vanished without a trace. Having finally understood how his murderous actions have affected those around him, Dexter takes off for New York City to right his wrongs. But he faces an obstacle when a Miami detective (played by David Zayas) catches up to him. [Saloni Gajjar]
Untamed (Netflix, July 17)
Co-created by American Primeval‘s Mark L. Smith and his daughter, Elle Smith, this drama centers on a National Parks Service special agent (played by Eric Bana) who investigates a string of brutal killings in Yosemite that, yes, tie into his past. Helping him with the case are his loyal friend and boss, a rookie agent, and a former army ranger, who are portrayed by Sam Neill, Lily Santiago, and Wilson Bethel, respectively. [Saloni Gajjar]
Washington Black (Hulu, July 23)
Sterling K. Brown, whose Hulu drama Paradisewas a hit this earlier year, returns to the streamer in Washington Black. Taking place in the 19th century, the series charts the life of the eponymous, intelligent 11-year-old boy (played by Ernest Kingsley Jr.) who was born on a Barbados sugar plantation. He’s forced to flee after a troubling incident and goes on a globe-trotting adventure that gives him the courage to stand up for himself and fight for what he believes in. [Saloni Gajjar]
Chief Of War (Apple TV+, August 1)
After the three-season run of See, Jason Momoa is back on Apple TV+ with Chief Of War, a historical drama he created with Aquaman And The Lost Kingdom‘s Thomas Pa’a Sabbett. Based on true events, the showis set at the turn of the 18th century, with the Game Of Thrones vet starring as a warrior named Ka’iana, who tries to unify the Hawaiian islands before Western colonization takes over. Momoa co-wrote all nine episodes and directed the finale. [Saloni Gajjar]
Wednesday (Netflix, August 6 and September 3)
Wednesday, which feels like an ideal Halloween binge, is one of Netflix’s big summer releases. And the streamer wants to drag out the fun, splitting season two into just as many parts. In the new batch of episodes, Wednesday Addams (Jenna Ortega) faces an unexpected intrusion at Nevermore when her whole family descends on the school after her younger sibling enrolls. The expanded ensemble this time features Lady Gaga, Steve Buscemi, Thandiwe Newton, Haley Joel Osment, and Billie Piper. [Saloni Gajjar]
Eyes Of Wakanda (Disney+, August 6)
The latest project from Marvel Animation dives deep into Wakandan history and warriors. Told through the lens of fighters who travel across the globe to acquire Vibranium artifacts by carrying out dangerous missions, this Black Panther offshoot features a voice cast that’s led by Winnie Harlow, Cress Williams, and House Of The Dragon‘s Steve Toussaint. [Saloni Gajjar]
Outlander: Blood Of My Blood (Starz, August 8)
If you thought Claire and Jamie’s swoonworthy romance in Outlanderwas epic, well, here’s a prequel that promises two parallel love stories. Blood Of My Blood reveals how Jamie’s mother and father (played by Harriet Slater and Jamie Roy) became a couple in 18th-century Scotland. At the same time, the show also unpacks the saga of how Claire’s parents (portrayed by Hermione Corfield and Jeremy Irvine) met and fell for each other during World War I in England. Expect to see younger versions of familiar Outlander characters, including Murtagh Fraser (Rory Alexander), Jocasta Cameron (Sadhbh Malin), and Dougal Mackenzie (Sam Retford). [Saloni Gajjar]
Alien: Earth (FX, August 12)
After putting his spin on the works of the Coen brothers (Fargo) and the X-Men comics (Legion), Noah Hawley tackles a massive movie franchise, bringing the Xenomorphs (among other otherworldly creatures) to our planet in Alien: Earth. Kicking off two years before Ridley Scott’s Alien, the series introduces Wendy (Sydney Chandler), a synthetic robot with human consciousness who teams up with a ragtag crew when a spaceship carrying dangerous alien specimens crash-lands. The cast of the FX showalso includes Timothy Olyphant, Alex Lawther, Essie Davis, and David Rysdahl. [Saloni Gajjar]
Peacemaker season two (Max, August 21)
Superhero summer continues with the much-anticipated return of James Gunn’s Peacemaker. If the fun trailer is any indication, Chris Smith (John Cena) is still being underestimated as the titular vigilante (by the likes of Isabela Merced’s Hawkgirl, Nathan Fillion’s Guy Gardner, and Sean Gunn’s Maxwell Lord). But that’s okay because he’s got his trusted and equally messed-up friends accompanying him for his latest adventures. In season two, Peacemaker attempts to help the good guys overcome a hurdle in the form of Rick Flag Sr. (Frank Grillo), who arrives to avenge his son’s death. [Saloni Gajjar]
Long Story Short (Netflix, August 22)
In some promising end-of-summer news, Raphael Bob-Waksberg, the mind behind Netflix’s brilliant Bojack Horseman, is returning to the streamer with another animated show. Long Story Short follows the Schwooper family and hops between several years (and, presumably, touches on some real sadness and emotional ground between all the jokes), with a voice cast that includes Lisa Edelstein, Paul Reiser, Abbi Jacobson, and Max Greenfield. [Tim Lowery]
Devil In Disguise (Peacock, Date TBA)
The story of John Wayne Gacy (a.k.a. the Killer Clown), who murdered at least 33 young men and boys in the ’70s before he was caught, has been told many times over. Now Peacock gives the tale yet another spin in a limited series inspired by its own (pretty good) 2021 docuseries. Devil In Disguise looks at the intricacies of Gacy’s (Michael Chernus) crimes, explores the lives of some of his victims, and unpacks how systemic failures allowed him to get away for as long as he did. Gabriel Luna, James Badge Dale, and Michael Angarano co-star. [Saloni Gajjar]
More summer premieres
June 6 Resident Alien season three (Syfy)
June 9 Art Detectives (Acorn TV)
June 12 Revival (Syfy) FUBAR season two (Netflix)
June 17 Hell Motel (AMC+)
June 18 The Buccaneers season two (Apple TV+) Outrageous (Britbox)
June 19 The Waterfront (Netflix)
June 25 Countdown (Prime Video)
June 29 Nautilus (AMC)
July 3 Sandman season two, part one(Netflix) Dan Da Dan season two (Netflix)
July 11 Foundation season three (Apple TV+)
July 16 The Summer I Turned Pretty season three (Prime Video)
July 17 Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season three (Paramount+)
July 23 Acapulco season four (Apple TV+)
July 24 The Sandman season two, part two (Netflix)
July 31 Twisted Metal season two (Peacock) Leanne (Netflix)