Are these short-lived streaming series worth watching? Round 2

July 3, 2023 7:46 AM

Thanks to all who responded to my question about whether some prematurely cancelled shows have a decently satisfying resolution or leave the viewer hanging. I’m now curious about a new set of shows:

Lovecraft Country (HBO, 1 season)
Perpetual Grace, LTD (Epix, 1 season)
Penny Dreadful (Showtime, 2 seasons)
The Mosquito Coast (Apple, 2 seasons)
The Knick (HBO, 2 seasons) [1]
Travelers (Netflix, 3 seasons)
Harlots (Hulu, 3 seasons)
American Gods (Starz, 3 seasons) [2]
Pennyworth (HBO, 3 seasons) [3]

[1] Came across a spoiler for Season 2 so I believe this one is at least conclusive, but would like to hear any opinions.
[2] Suspect I know the answer here based on this quote from Gaiman: "If we don't get a season 4, we've ended on the single most frustrating, upsetting and maddening place that any season could possibly end.”
[3] Bonus points for insight into whether this can be enjoyed without having watched any other DC universe shows?

(Thus far from the first list, I loved Pushing Daisies and Three Pines and am currently riveted by The Deuce; couldn’t get into Sense8 but may try again.)

posted by staggernation to Media & Arts (21 answers total)

travelers is absolutely worth watching.
posted by noloveforned at 7:56 AM on July 3, 2023 [4 favorites]

Perpetual Grace definitely leaves you hanging, though in a way that kinda works, maybe? It’s a really weird show that, if it’s your vibe, is just amazing. I’d recommend starting with Patriot (by the same creator and available on Prime Video), which was also cancelled but resolves well enough. If you like Patriot, then Perpetual Grace is worth a shot despite the sudden ending.
posted by griseus at 7:57 AM on July 3, 2023 [2 favorites]

Seconding travelers. It’s very very good.

I’ve seen the first season of Mosquito Coast. It was fine? Never got around to the second season
posted by Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drug at 7:58 AM on July 3, 2023 [1 favorite]

I loved American Gods but the quote from Gaiman is spot on. It ends on a cliffhanger for the main character, and at least one other major character's story arc I cared about was left unresolved as well.

That said, I did really love the show, so you might find it worthwhile if you understand going in that you're going to be left hanging. You could always read the book after and get a sense of how the show was meant to resolve. While the show deviated significantly I believe the plan for season 4 was to get back to the source material to a greater extent.
posted by Serene Empress Dork at 8:32 AM on July 3, 2023 [1 favorite]

Lovecraft Country ends exactly where it needs to.
posted by SPrintF at 8:33 AM on July 3, 2023 [14 favorites]

Harlots is stunningly good, featuring Samantha Morton and Lesley Manville. Great script. Also the first season had my jaw on the floor with the sheer gorgeousness of the photography and sets. Highly recommended.
posted by Grunyon at 9:01 AM on July 3, 2023 [2 favorites]

And honestly, American Gods is almost worth it just for 3 seasons of Ian McShane.

Not asked about, but the recent Resident Evil series on Netflix was pretty much insta-cancelled, and feels like it was panned because "ew, girls", but was also better than it had any reason to be, and was a good Lance Reddick vessel, and also ended at a reasonable break point.
posted by Kyol at 9:04 AM on July 3, 2023 [2 favorites]

Penny Dreadful was good -- it's goofy pulpy horror, but done well.

Note that there was a Penny Dreadful: City of Angels which tried to capitalize on the name penny dreadful but wasn't related, and was OK but not great and ended when it barely got its worldbuilding done.

Harlots is excellent; I felt the 3rd season lost some of its charm but it was still entertaining.

American Gods: hadn't read the book; Season 1 is good, season 2's beginning was a slog and we stopped watching it for a while until we ran out of stuff to watch, but then it picked up again and we were disappointed by the cliffhanger.
posted by AzraelBrown at 9:16 AM on July 3, 2023 [1 favorite]

Nthing Harlots. I don't even remember how things were left at the end of season 3, but it was worth having watched it anyway.
posted by mullacc at 9:43 AM on July 3, 2023 [1 favorite]

Lovecraft Country had a satisfying resolution. Highly recommend.
posted by mrgoldenbrown at 9:56 AM on July 3, 2023 [2 favorites]

The Knick is extremely good, but very very graphic. You'll know if you can handle it in the first 10-15 minutes or so. As far as I know I believe it is worth watching all the way through.
posted by BlackLeotardFront at 9:59 AM on July 3, 2023 [2 favorites]

The novel Lovecraft Country (which the show was based on) got a sequel, The Destroyer of Worlds, which I enjoyed a lot. It tells a new set of interlocking stories with the same main characters. The original story stands well on its own, but this is worthy follow-up if you want to spend more time in that world.

(I haven’t seen the show yet, so I don’t know how much it diverged from the novel.)
posted by mbrubeck at 10:17 AM on July 3, 2023

I enjoyed watching American Gods, particularly for the performances by Orlando Jones as Anansi (seasons 1-2) and Yetide Badaki as Bilquis (seasons 1-3). They made it worthwhile for me despite the cliffhanger.
posted by zebra at 10:28 AM on July 3, 2023

I recall the ending of Penny Dreadful being confusingly bad. Sort of like "Poochie died on the way back to his home planet,"
posted by paper chromatographologist at 11:44 AM on July 3, 2023 [1 favorite]

Jumping in to show some more love for The Knick. I never actually finished the second season, but I recall season 1 being (relatively) satisfying just on its own. BlackLeotardFront mentioned that it can be very gory, which is true - consider your appetite for vintage surgery procedures.

I think it suffers a little in the writing, which sometimes veered too much into prestige TV convention. However, the cinematography and editing are excellent, and most of the acting is as well - all strengths of (my favorite director) Stephen Soderbergh, who directed all the episodes. The utterly not-period appropriate synth-driven score by Cliff Martinez is a masterpiece, and lends a dreamlike/uncanny vibe to the show in a completely unexpected way, making a good period medical procedural (more) great.
posted by lousywiththespirit at 11:53 AM on July 3, 2023 [1 favorite]

The Mosquito Coast is good overall but unevenly paced. There are some really good episodes in the first season, and in the second season the character arc for The Best Hitman Ever (introduced in the first season) gets into some good black humor. I found it distracting when Melissa George's accent got a bit wobbly, but that might just be me (once I hear it, I can't stop hearing it).

NB I read the book like 30 years ago so I couldn't tell you how much, exactly, it departs from the source, but I do remember that in the book the character conflict seems to come primarily from the palpable sense that Allie (the dad) was paranoid and maybe a bit deranged. In the show they're just on the run from the man. They hold off an explanation for why they're on the run until the second season, so the first season can seem a bit vague and unfocused due to the fact the primary exterior threat just sort of … is. The better episodes in the first season are the ones where the immediate threat is clear and all the action derives from it.

There's some good character detail that comes out after the second season reveal, which I guess is down to the actors actually having a more specific idea of what motivates them and how that forces their actions. In the first season, things happen to them and they respond; in the second season their actions are informed by the information that was withheld (or perhaps not even written) in the first season.

I enjoyed it, but I wouldn't pay for Apple TV+ just to watch it.
posted by fedward at 2:00 PM on July 3, 2023 [1 favorite]

Penny Dreadful ran for three seasons (not two) and its last episode ended with the words "The End" on the screen, so I wouldn't say that it was prematurely cancelled. At the very least, it didn't end on any particular cliffhanger, though I also remember the ending not being particularly satisfying.

I remember enjoying the show, but much more during Season 1 than during Seasons 2 or 3; it was hard for me to keep track of all the threads by the end.
posted by Johnny Assay at 3:24 PM on July 3, 2023 [1 favorite]

Travelers is decent. Kind of hitting a nice compromise spot between formulaic (but interesting) episodes, Character Stuff, and compelling overarching plot. Very watchable. I think the ending was reasonable and a natural conclusion of the show's ruminations on time travel.

Penny Dreadful is... messy. I dropped out by the second season and I've always heard the ending of the final season was terrible. The casting is, for at least a few roles, absolutedly inspired, and there are episodes where the good actors make the show shine -- supposedly one of the actors scared everybody on set with their performance. If you watch the episode, you will know who and when. It may all be worth it for that kind of thing, especially if you like to see all the fictional characters from that era of storytelling show up.
posted by automatic cabinet at 11:33 PM on July 3, 2023 [1 favorite]

I very much enjoyed Lovecraft Country, The Knick, and Harlots, and don't regret watching any of them despite their cancellation. IIRC they all come to relatively satisfying conclusions.
posted by confluency at 1:56 AM on July 4, 2023 [1 favorite]

Really enjoyed The Knick. As with most shows, I have no memory of how it ended though.
posted by fabius at 6:07 AM on July 4, 2023

As a lifelong SFF fan, the thing I loved about Travelers is our heroes aren't insulated from the culture shock inevitable in a several-century trip backwards. The Travelers leap into bodies on the cusp of death. To maintain their mission, they must realistically simulate the personalities of the new people they've become -- including people I've rarely seen in shows: an intellectually disabled woman and her support person, a stay-at-home-mom with an abusive partner, a heroin addict, as well as a teenage football star and an FBI agent.
posted by Jesse the K at 9:06 AM on July 4, 2023