What To Watch This Week: Homecoming, House of Cards, Ray Donovan and more

Last Updated on July 30, 2021

Welcome to What To Watch, your weekly guide to recommendations for television viewing. There is so much broadcast on the small screen these days, it can sometimes be daunting to figure out how to spend your hard-earned time. Well, worry no more! We at JoBlo.com are TV fanatics and have prepped a handy guide for you to follow over the next seven days. Each week, we will bring you picks catered to your viewing mood. If you have recommendations you think we missed, let us know in the comments below or email your selections to [email protected].

OUR PICKS FOR October 28th – November 3rd

Wanna watch something….with gruff guys kicking ass?

RAY DONOVAN (Premieres October 28th on Showtime) – The sixth season of Showtime's popular crime drama shifts locations to New York City but still seems to be all about Liev Schrieber growling and beating people up. Yeah, the series features Jon Voight in one of his best roles in years, but I cannot help but feel this series is repeating itself season after season. Fans of the show can correct me if I am wrong, but it doesn't look like we will be saying goodbye to this series for a while yet.

Wanna watch something….for fans of Ash vs Evil Dead?

STAN AGAINST EVIL (Premieres October 31st on IFC) – There are a lot of horror stories airing on television these days, but few blend gore and humor effectively. With Bruce Campbell's Starz series done, this leaves IFC's comedy horror the only game in town. Entering it's third season, the series still rests on the performance of John C. McGinley whose comedic timing is as good as his tenure on Scrubs. If you haven't checked this show out, the short eight episode seasons are easy binging and great Halloween viewing.

Wanna watch something….with fairy tales reimagined as a dark thriller?

TELL ME A STORY (Premieres October 31st on CBS All Access) – While I had high hopes for ABC's Once Upon A Time, it turned into a Disney-fied romantic comedy with awful special effects. CBS has recruited SCREAM and Dawson's Creek writer Kevin Williamson for their new thriller series based on a Mexican series. Taking Hansel and Gretel, Little Red Riding Hood, and The Three Little Pigs and turning them into gritty psychological thrillers is a difficutl task but the trailers make it seem like it just might work.

Wanna watch something….for fans of Mr Robot and Julia Roberts?

HOMECOMING (Premieres November 2nd on Amazon Prime) – I absolutely loved Homecoming which is going to be the next buzzed about series. Sam Esmail, creator of Mr. Robot, brings the podcast of the same name to your screens in a paranoid and anxiety-inducing thriller that will have you questioning reality right along the characters in the show. Julia Roberts is as good as she has ever been in her first starring role on the small screen. Check out our full review here.

Wanna watch something….with politics, murder, sex (but no more Kevin Spacey)?

HOUSE OF CARDS (Premieres November 2nd on Netflix) – The end has finally come for the Underwood Presidency, but it will be a different Underwood than we expected. In the absence of Kevin Spacey, thanks to horrible allegations against the actor, Netflix opted to shift the focus to Robin Wright's character. The finished results are not what anyone really expected, but fans of the series are likely anticipating the final episodes to see if our favorite villains get what they deserve. Check out our full review here.

Wanna watch something….you have never heard of (but should have)?

STARTUP (Premieres November 1st on Crackle) – The fact that there is a series starring Martin Freeman and Ron Perlman that I have never heard of is embarassing. The fact that the series is entering it's third season is downright appalling. I can blame the fact that I don't usually stream anything via Crackle, but that is all changing now. This drama, about a digital currency and those vying for control of it is a timely topic and one that has a killer cast. Mira Sorvino joins the latest season which means I only have a few days to catch up on the first two.

Wanna watch something….48 years in the making?

THE OTHER SIDE OF THE WIND (Premieres November 2nd on Netflix) – One of the holy grails of lost films, Orson Welles' THE OTHER SIDE OF THE WIND has sat unfinished for five decades. Amidst legal troubles that arose before and after Welles' death, the film will finally see the light of day after it debuted at the Venice Film Festival earlier this year. With acclaim coming from those who have seen it, including Rian Johnson and Quentin Tarantino, this is a must watch for film buffs.

Wanna watch something….about the production of that movie 48 years in the making?

THEY'LL LOVE ME WHEN I'M DEAD (Premieres November 2nd on Netflix) – When you have a film that takes almost fifty years to hit the big screen, you have just as much story to tell about the creative journey than what the finished product can reveal. Directed by Morgan Neville, director of the Mr. Rogers documentary WON'T YOU BE MY NEIGHBOR?, this is the perfect companion to THE OTHER SIDE OF THE WIND. I expect that the experience of these two films will differ based on which you watch first, but both are mandatory viewing for everyone who cares about the history of cinema.

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