The Why Watch That Talk: Goodbye & Hello to TV: The Americans, Claws & More
Season Premieres:
Claws (TNT)
At the Nail Artisan of Manatee County salon in Central Florida, five diverse, hardworking manicurists try to make ends meet in a staid economy while managing perilous personal lives awash in drama. Amidst all the silk wraps, pedicures and polish treatments, salon owner Desna, who lives with and cares for her mentally ill twin brother, leads a staff that includes best friend Jennifer, now sober and raising two kids from a previous relationship; enigmatic Ann, who provides security for the salon; mild-mannered preppy and ex-convict Polly; and Virginia, who becomes easily bored and impatient with her job. Also hanging around the salon are shady redneck Roller; ambulance coach Bryce, Jennifer’s husband who is also newly sober; and Uncle Daddy, a dangerous, deeply Catholic and actively bisexual crime boss.
C.B. Strike (Cinemax)
Based on the bestselling novels written by J.K. Rowling under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith, miniseries C.B.Strike follows a war veteran turned private detective, who operates out of a tiny office in London’s Denmark Street. Although wounded both physically and psychologically, his unique insight and background as a military police investigator prove crucial in solving complex crimes that have baffled the police.
Reverie (NBC)
Former hostage negotiator and human behavior expert Mara Kint becomes a college professor after experiencing an unimaginable personal tragedy. When an old friend hires her to work at his new cutting-edge company, she is given the opportunity to save ordinary people who have lost themselves in a highly advanced virtual reality program — in which people can literally live their dreams. After a lot of hard work, Mara finds that, in saving others, she may actually have discovered a way to save herself.
Season Finale:
Killing Eve (BBC America)
Eve’s life as a spy is not adding up to what she had hoped it would be when she started. She is a bored, very smart, MI5 security officer who is very desk-bound. Villanelle is a very talented killer, mercurial in mood, who clings to the luxuries of her job. Eve and Villanelle go head to head in a fierce game of cat and mouse, each woman equally obsessed with the other as Eve is tasked with hunting down the psychopathic assassin. Sarah Barnett, BBCA president, says, ” `Killing Eve’ stands out in a sea of scripted stories as refreshingly entertaining and great fun.”
Series Finale:
The Americans (FX)
Philip and Elizabeth Jennings are two KGB spies in an arranged marriage who are posing as Americans in suburban Washington, D.C., shortly after Ronald Reagan is elected president. The couple have two children, teenager Paige and preteen Henry, who are unaware of their parents’ true identities. The complex marriage becomes more passionate and genuine each day but is continually tested as the Cold War escalates. As Philip begins to warm up to America’s values and way of life, his relationship with Elizabeth becomes more complicated. Further complicating things is the arrival of the Jennings’ new neighbour, FBI agent Stan Beeman, who is part of a new division of the agency tasked with fighting foreign agents on U.S. soil. The drama series was created by former CIA agent-turned-author Joe Weisberg.