Overview of The Watch
Chris Ryan and Andy Greenwald cover a grab bag of TV and entertainment news, but the episode’s biggest throughline is a larger conversation about how television is changing: the return of weekly releases, shorter seasons, and whether the industry has overcomplicated what used to be a pretty durable model. They also review a teaser for The Pitt season 3, preview Adults season 2, unpack a bizarre marketing twist for Paul Greengrass’s Uprising, and close with late-summer recommendations across film, books, and music.
Major TV and Film News
Is Uprising secretly a Robin Hood movie?
- The hosts spend a lot of time on the strange marketing of Paul Greengrass’s new film Uprising.
- The movie was initially presented as a historical drama about the Peasants’ Revolt in 14th-century England.
- Recent marketing materials suddenly reframed it as a Robin Hood story, seemingly as a way to juice audience interest.
- The hosts find the pivot hilarious and very “Hollywood,” especially since it’s unclear whether the film’s team even wants to fully acknowledge the change.
- They joke that Robin Hood is in the public domain, so studios can just slap the character onto anything.
The Pitt season 3 teaser
- A short teaser reveals that Robbie is back on day one of the new season.
- The hosts note that the exact timing of his return is still unclear and speculate that the season may begin before he shows up.
- They expect the season to kick off with a period of chaos before Robbie enters the picture.
- Other returning characters include Dr. Alshimi, Dr. Santos, and Dr. Whitaker.
- The overall read: more emotional trauma, more emergency-room chaos, and likely the same intense tone the show has made its brand.
Kate Winslet joins Unheard
- Kate Winslet is attached to a new Netflix series called Unheard.
- It comes from the Adolescence creative team and is written by Jack Thorne.
- The show follows two sisters on the run after committing an act of vengeance.
- The hosts also note a broader “Adolescence cinematic universe” effect, with cast members from that show landing other prominent projects.
TV Industry and Release-Model Debate
Weekly release vs. binge drop
- The hosts dig into new data suggesting that weekly release strategies are gaining ground again.
- They argue that binge-release TV was always more about streamers’ business needs than about what best serves viewers.
- Their key points:
- Weekly drops build anticipation and conversation.
- They help shows feel like events rather than disposable content.
- They may support stronger long-tail audience engagement.
- They also point out that the streaming era has created a messy in-between world:
- Some shows are released all at once.
- Some drop a few episodes and then go weekly.
- Prestige TV, visual effects-heavy shows, and streaming economics have all muddied the old model.
- They lament the loss of the “middle-class” TV production schedule, where shows had enough episodes to breathe without becoming bloated.
Why TV feels more compressed now
- They discuss how the industry has squeezed production timelines and episode counts.
- Their argument is that the old system gave creators, writers, and actors more stability.
- They mention that some shows, like Abbott Elementary and The Pitt, still preserve something closer to the old rhythm.
- They’re broadly in favor of:
- More episodes when the story supports it.
- Smaller, tighter seasons when that’s the better fit.
- A return to formats that match the material rather than corporate defaults.
Spotlight on Adults Season 2
What the show is
- Adults is FX’s ensemble comedy about five young adults trying to make it in New York.
- The second season begins with two episodes airing tonight.
- It’s an eight-episode season.
What the hosts think
- Chris is more enthusiastic than Andy, and says season 2 is a noticeable step up.
- Andy was not taken with the first season’s special/prequel episode, but Chris thinks the creative team found its rhythm in season 2.
- They appreciate the show’s ensemble setup and its screwball-comedy energy.
- They also discuss FX’s unusual decision to retool the show’s opening and place the “Marathon Day” episode at the start of the series menu as a kind of canonized prequel.
- Takeaway: Chris recommends it; Andy remains skeptical.
Late-Summer Recommendations
Film: Tony
- Both hosts strongly recommend Tony, the Anthony Bourdain biopic.
- They say it feels tactile, alive, and emotionally honest.
- Key praise:
- Dominic Sessa is excellent as young Tony.
- Antonio Banderas, Amelia Jones, and Leo Woodall all stand out.
- The film avoids hagiography and lets Bourdain be complicated, self-destructive, and charismatic.
- They admire that the movie focuses on a specific time and place rather than over-explaining Bourdain’s whole life.
- Their view: it’s one of the best films of the summer.
Books
- George Pelecanos, The Blue Flame
- A return to Derek Strange, one of Pelecanos’s recurring protagonists.
- Set in Washington, D.C., with Pelecanos’s usual attention to the city’s real texture and working people.
- Tim Powers, Declare
- A spy/thriller novel with historical and supernatural elements.
- The hosts liken it to espionage fiction crossed with something mythic and occult.
- Lucius Shepard, Life During Wartime
- Early reading, but Andy likes the blend of war fiction, psychological tension, and strange imagery.
- Patrick Radden Keefe, London Falling
- A strong recommendation for readers interested in London, class, and the case that inspired the book.
- Chris also gives a brief nod to his ongoing Saul Bellow reading, though he hasn’t finished Humboldt’s Gift.
Music
- They Are Getting Away with a Body of Water / God of War EP
- A glitchy, dreamy, short release that Chris and Andy both like a lot.
- The Tubs, Hard Life
- A new record they describe as energetic and sharp, with a feel somewhere between punk and melodic indie.
- Lauren Laverne’s BBC 6 Music “Rave Forever 90s” playlist
- A drum-and-bass nostalgia trip that Chris loved revisiting.
- The Afghan Whigs, Soft Control
- A reflective, mature-sounding record that still has strong melodies.
- Idle County, Long Gone Saviors
- A country-rock record they praise warmly, especially for fans of Uncle Tupelo, Sunvolt, Jason Isbell, and MJ Lenderman.
- West Side Cowboy
- A debut album they describe as interesting, algorithm-served indie rock with big, modern-band energy.
Main Takeaways
- Hollywood loves a last-minute marketing pivot, as shown by Uprising suddenly becoming a Robin Hood movie.
- The Pitt season 3 looks like it will lean right back into chaos and emotional intensity.
- FX’s Adults is still finding itself, but season 2 seems to be a genuine improvement.
- The hosts are firmly in favor of a more flexible, creator-friendly TV ecosystem:
- weekly releases when they work,
- shorter seasons when appropriate,
- and more room for shows to breathe.
- Their strongest recommendation of the episode is Tony, which they both consider one of the summer’s best movies.