‘Grease’ gets a prequel in Paramount’s ‘Rise of the Pink Ladies’ and Steven Yeun is back in Netflix’s ‘Beef’

With so many different streaming platforms and cable offerings to navigate, choosing what to watch has never been harder. To make things easier, here are our best tune-in tips for the week ahead.

WEDNESDAY

The Crossover

This new Disney Plus series begins as a story about teen brothers Josh (Jalyn Hall) and Jordan (Amir O’Neil), a pair of gifted teen basketball players. Now an adult, Josh goes on to tell the story of his and his brother’s lives on and off the court through lyrical poetry. The narration also touches upon how their father (also a former pro basketball player) adjusts to life outside of the league and how their mother finally decides to pursue the dreams she never got the chance to before.

Disney Plus

The Pope: Answers

This Spanish special focuses on last year’s meeting between Pope Francis, the current head of the Catholic Church, and 10 young adults of different ages and backgrounds. The topics covered in the discussion include feminism, the role of women in the Church, reproductive rights, migration crises and abuses within the institution.

Disney Plus

THURSDAY

Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies

It doesn’t matter if you are old enough to remember John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John in the 1978 movie or young enough to have never missed an episode of “Glee.” I am here to tell you more, tell you more, about why the pick of the week is ageless. “Rise of the Pink Ladies” is a prequel series to the classic, taking place in 1954, four years before the introduction of Danny (Travolta) and Sandy (Newton-John). It follows four misfit students who get together to bring change to Rydell High. While the series promises to pay homage to its predecessor, it stands on its own with notable differences. While “Grease” was filmed in the ’70s and offered a social commentary on the ’50s, “Rise of the Pink Ladies” will comment on the ’70s and the ’50s from the perspective of the 2020s. As a result, it’s bound to be more inclusive and tackle social justice topics that the original wasn’t able to. Also, expect the soundtrack to be killer. The musical comedy features 31 new songs by Justin Tranter who has written music for Lady Gaga and Justin Bieber. It stars Marisa Davila, Cheyenne Isabel Wells, Ari Notartomaso and Tricia Fukuhara.

Paramount Plus

Beef

If you were a fan of “The Walking Dead” and still have lingering feelings that Glenn never got the send-off he deserved, this one is for you. This new revenge series stars Steven Yeun alongside Ali Wong as a pair of strangers entangled in a road-rage incident that stretches beyond just anger on a highway. The feud promises to bring out the darkest impulses from its two lead characters. It’s a very off-colour comedy, but both lead performances are quite good.

Netflix

FRIDAY

Tiny Beautiful Things

Based on the bestselling book by Cheryl Strayed, this series follows Clare (Kathryn Hahn), who offers advice to others despite the problems she is facing in her own life. Clare’s marriage is on the rocks, her daughter continues to push her away and her writing career is on the fast track to nowhere. When an old friend asks her to take over as an advice columnist, it results in a deep examination of her own life as she takes her audience along for the ride.

Disney Plus

On a Wing and a Prayer

After a pilot mysteriously dies during a flight, one of the passengers is forced to land the plane to save his entire family. The film is based on the true story of Doug White who, in 2009, took over the controls of a private plane en route from Florida to Louisiana after the pilot suffered a fatal heart attack. This features a pretty great cast that includes Dennis Quaid, Heather Graham and Jesse Metcalfe.

Prime Video

Gangs of Lagos

Prime Video also launches its first African original movie, promoted as a “gritty and hard-hitting action crime-thriller” that tells the story of childhood friends who navigate life in Isale Eko, Lagos. Nigeria has recently become a hotbed in the streaming wars as Netflix also has a slew of originals on tap from “Nollywood,” including “The King’s Horseman.”

Prime Video

Catching Lightning

“Lightening” Lee Murray is profiled in this four-part doc series that focuses on his role in one of the largest cash heists in history. In 2006, when his MMA career was on the decline, Murray and some friends posed as policemen to steal £53 million. Despite the slick nature of the crime, the bumbling bandits left behind a lot of evidence. The series is directed by two-time Emmy winner Pat Kondelis and tells Murray’s story in his own words.

Paramount Plus

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