Melissa Moseley
(clockwise from top) Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin in Grace and Frankie, Esther Povitsky and Benji Aflalo in Alone Together, Jason Mitchell and Kristina Emerson in The Chi, and David Bowie in The Last Five Years.
Though not its fault, January is often a dreary month. Holiday cheer has largely faded, and the cold and snow have muted our productivity and energy. But it’s also a time to think about the past, and start fresh by aspiring to new goals. January television does the same, reaching for the stars with shows like Lena Waithe’s (Master of None) Showtime drama The Chi, and reflecting on the past with the new HBO David Bowie documentary, David Bowie: The Last Five Years. Hopefully some of the following shows will brighten your 2018.
The Chi (Showtime, premiering January 7)
The Chi is a new drama on Showtime from actress and writer Lena Waithe (Master of None) about a young boy growing up on the South Side of Chicago. Violence on the South and West sides of Chicago is often discussed in the news, and this show gets right to the heart of that. However, it also talks about other elements of the South Side that the media doesn’t talk about, like camaraderie, faith, love, friendship, family, music and more. The show also comes from and features Chicago rapper and actor Common, plus music from Chicago’s favorite son, Chance the Rapper. I’m excited to see this series, both as a Chicagoan and also as a huge fan of Lena Waithe’s work. I think there is so much to be explored — both with the setting, as well as the characters in the story who come from different circumstances. There is so more to these communities than what is portrayed on TV, and Waithe is looking to give viewers the whole picture, not just one piece of it. You can watch the first full episode on YouTube for free here.
David Bowie: The Last Five Years (HBO, premiering January 8)
What more can we learn about David Bowie? He put so much of himself into his art and performance, yet remained enigmatic til the end. When Bowie died January 10, 2016, people around the world were shocked and devastated. While only he and a few close friends knew he was terminally ill with liver cancer, Bowie went and made a mind-blowingly great farewell album, “Blackstar.” This documentary covers the making of that record, as well as Bowie’s last few years among mere mortals. Few people sprint to the finish of their careers later in life, but this film explores how Bowie was a rebel until the end and fought hard. As a big David Bowie fan, I can’t wait to watch this film. As a music fan, the prospect of seeing the creative process of one of the greatest musical geniuses of all time is riveting.
Alone Together (Freeform, premiering January 10)
Actress, comedian and writer Esther Povitsky first came to my attention in 2015 when she was a contestant on Last Comic Standing. While she didn’t advance to the end, I remember really enjoying her sarcastic, pop-culture-and-millennial-focused material. Finally, after a great supporting turn on the fantastic CW comedy Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, Povitsky has her own show on Freeform, produced by the gentlemen of the comedy and music group The Lonely Island. Alone Together stars Povitsky and comedy writer Benji Aflalo as two millennials living in Los Angeles who become good friends (but are NOT in a romantic relationship). They bond over their dislike for Los Angeles and the obnoxious people who inhabit it. The show features lots of back-and-forth bantering and snarky commentating. If you’re a fan of shows like You’re the Worst or Difficult People (R.I.P. — gone too soon), then you might enjoy the fast-paced, sarcastic humor of Alone Together.
Grace and Frankie (Netflix, returning January 19)
I would recommend the show Grace and Frankie to anyone ages 14 to 114 who loves to laugh and watch great art. This series is both a comedy and a drama about two septuagenarians who spent many years as enemies, but become best friends after an unusual and emotionally painful event. One of very few programs where the main characters are senior citizens, this show is brilliantly written and is a master class in acting with Jane Fonda playing type-A Grace Hanson and Lily Tomlin playing the free spirit Frankie Bergstein. The show is entering its fourth season on Netflix, and last season the two women embarked on creating a vibrator that’s targeted towards senior citizens (hey, they like to have fun too!) The show is kooky and funny, but also deals with actual obstacles seniors face, from dating to ageism, health problems and more. Bonus: this season features Lisa Kudrow, a comedy goddess I can’t wait to see interact with the legendary Fonda and Tomlin.
