What to Watch on TV: Greenleaf, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., An American Pickle
Welcome to a new week and another round of What to Watch on TV for the week of August 2nd! We’ll be sharing our picks for what to watch this week, from marathons to big guest spots, and significant episodes of TV to look forward to while stuck inside.
This week’s picks include penultimate episodes for Greenleaf and Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D, Seth Rogen is in An American Pickle, and more.
Here are our recommendations for what to watch on TV this week:
Taskmaster — Sunday, August 2
It’s the summer of British imports, and the latest one involves a competition set up to put the contestants through their paces for the golden bust of host, Greg Davies. Taskmaster debuts Sunday, August 2 at 9/8c on The CW.
Episode Description: Greg Davies stars as the fearsome Taskmaster, in this hysterical British import that bears his title. Together with his miniature sidekick Alex Horne they will be putting five contestants through their paces. Iain Stirling, Joe Thomas, Lou Sanders, Paul Sinha and Sian Gibson take on the hilarious challenges in the hopes of procuring the glorious Golden Head of the Taskmaster (Davies) statue. This week’s tasks include; baby monitors, powerful smells and seductive dummies.
Immigration Nation — Monday, August 3
Take a look at the difficult, fraught, and horrifying process that has become immigration in America with the 6-part documentary. Immigration Nation drops Monday, August 3 on Netflix.
Description: In the groundbreaking six-part documentary series Immigration Nation, acclaimed filmmaking team Shaul Schwarz and Christina Clusiau (2017’s Trophy) offer an unprecedented look at the processes, pitfalls and pain of immigration in America. Shot over the course of three years, Schwarz and Clusiau capture the daily workings of Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, activists, lawmakers, attorneys and a wide swath of undocumented immigrants, from desperate recent arrivals to longtime residents to deported U.S. military combat veterans. With an unrelenting flow of migrant workers continuing across the U.S. border, the pressure on ICE to enforce the administration’s zero-tolerance policies puts immigrants in the crosshairs. But how do we fix a system that seems beyond repair? How do we apply common sense to something that’s evolved from one of humanitarian concern to an us-versus-them political flashpoint? Has the story of America – the one that inspired our own immigrant relatives to risk death for a better life – been rewritten so broadly that the “land of the free” is a luxury afforded now only to a few? As ineffective deterrence and militarized tactics continue, Immigration Nation provides an urgent, unbiased portrait of a country in crisis; one that demands unflinching attention and action.
Greenleaf — Tuesday, August 4
It’s the penultimate episode of Greenleaf’s final season and things escalate as the Greenleafs face off against Harmony and Hope. When no one’s willing to go down without a fight, ho will come out on top? Greenleaf airs Tuesday, August 4 at 9/8c on OWN.
Episode Description: It’s the Greenleafs versus Harmony and Hope, and neither will go down without a fight; Grace fights to stop the demolition; Lady Mae tries to negotiate for the mansion, but a reveal about the original owner prompts Bishop to a revelation of his own.
Coroner — Wednesday, August 5
The CW’s latest Canadian acquisition tells the story of Jenny Cooper as her career shifts in the face of a devastating loss while adjusting to the new realities she’s living with. Coroner debuts Wednesday, August 5 at 9/8c on The CW.
Episode Description: When Dr. Jenny Cooper’s (Serinda Swan) life is upended by the untimely death of her husband, she changes her professional focus, becoming the newly appointed coroner in Toronto. As she learns to navigate raising a teenage son on her own, Jenny’s first case affects her personally when she is called to investigate the death of a teen in a youth detention center.
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. — Wednesday, August 5
MING-NA WEN
With Jemma and Deke on the Zephyr with Malick and Garrett, the rest of the team dealing with Kora in the Lighthouse, and time running out, will they be able to pull it together in time to save the world from what Sibyl has planned? Will the Chronicoms get to Fitz? Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. airs Wednesday, August 5 at 10/9c on ABC.
Episode Description: With the help of Kora on the inside, Sibyl and Nathanial continue their fight to shape a dark new future for S.H.I.E.L.D., managing to stay one step ahead of the agents along the way. If the team is going to turn this one around, they’ll have to get creative, and maybe even a little out of this world.
Star Trek: Lower Decks — Thursday, August 6
CBS is taking a look at the support crew on another Starfleet ship and getting animated. Star Trek: Lower Decks debuts Thursday, August 6 on CBS All Access.
Series Description: The animated comedy series STAR TREK: LOWER DECKS follows the support crew on one of Starfleet’s least important ships, the U.S.S. Cerritos, in 2380. Ensigns Mariner (Tawny Newsome), Boimler (Jack Quaid), Rutherford (Eugene Cordero) and Tendi (Noël Wells) have to keep up with their duties and their social lives, often while the ship is being rocked by a multitude of sci-fi anomalies.
An American Pickle — Thursday, August 6
Seth Rogen pulls double duty as he plays a man, Herschel, gets brined for 100 years and comes face to face with his great-grandson, Ben, and the pair begin to learn more about each other and their shared family history. An American Pickle debuts Thursday, August 6 on HBO Max.
Series Description: An American Pickle, directed by Brandon Trost, is based on Simon Rich’s New Yorker novella and stars Seth Rogen as Herschel Greenbaum, a struggling laborer who immigrates to America in 1919 with dreams of building a better life for his beloved family. One day, while working at his factory job, he falls into a vat of pickles and is brined for 100 years. The brine preserves him perfectly and when he emerges in present day Brooklyn, he finds that he hasn’t aged a day. But when he seeks out his family, he is troubled to learn that his only surviving relative is his great grandson, Ben Greenbaum (also played by Rogen), a mild-mannered computer coder whom Herschel can’t even begin to understand.
Howard — Friday, August 7
Disney+ is bringing the life and times of an iconic lyricist and one of the people responsible for the lyrics behind Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, and more. Howard debuts Friday, August 7 on Disney+.
Description: Directed by Don Hahn (“Beauty and the Beast”), “Howard” is the untold story of Howard Ashman, the brilliant lyricist behind Disney classics like “Aladdin,” “Beauty and the Beast,” “The Little Mermaid” and creator of musicals including “Little Shop of Horrors.” Featuring never-before-seen archival footage, personal films and photographs, as well as interviews with Howard’s friends and family, the film is an intimate look at the Disney Legend’s life, his creative drive, and the process behind the music. Spanning his childhood in Baltimore, to his formative years in New York, and his untimely death due to AIDS, “Howard” goes in-depth to explore his journey to become the lyricist behind some of the most beloved and well-known classic family films in the world.
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Those are our picks for the week! What are you planning to watch? Share in the comments below!
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Brianna Martinez
Brianna spends her time away from briefs, legal research, and pleadings, watching TV and writing about it. She generally has a lot of feelings about TV, which you can read about here and on Twitter.