Belt it to the rafters: Aggretsuko is back

By Allison Shoemaker | August 27, 2020 | 5:00am

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Belt it to the rafters: Aggretsuko is back

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Here’s what’s happening in the world of television for Thursday, August 27. All times are Eastern.

Top pick

Aggretsuko (Netflix, 3:01 a.m., complete third season): Is this a good time to return to the story of a sweet red panda who unleashes her rage by surrendering to the thrilling embrace of death-metal karaoke, or is it the best time?

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We’re going to go with “the best time.” And luckily for us all, Netflix seems to feel the same way. Here’s what our own Sam Barsanti had to say about Sanrio’s adorably bleak series when it premiered back in 2018:

Japanese company Sanrio is best known for creating the iconically adorable Hello Kitty and her similarly adorable friends like Badtz-Maru and My Melody, all of which have been merchandised into oblivion with little dolls, toys, and games that are primarily targeted to kids who like cute animals. Aggretsuko, Sanrio’s latest adorable animal character, takes a slightly different approach. She’s still very cute, certainly, but she also has a tendency to get so frustrated by the world around her that her only release is getting drunk and screaming death-metal songs at karaoke. She is, in another words, the perfect mascot for the stupid world we’ve found ourselves in, and her new Netflix series takes that concept admirably far.

Let it all out, Retsuko. Do it for us all.

Can you binge it? Absolutely. All three seasons (plus a Christmas special) await you on Netflix.

Regular coverage

Lucifer (Netflix, binge coverage continues)

Election stuff

PBS Newshour: Republican National Convention (PBS, 8 p.m.; also lots of other networks): You might have heard it’s an election year.

The Daily Show With Trevor Noah, “The Republican National Convention—Celebrating February’s Record Economy” (Comedy Central, 11 p.m.): And The Daily Show team is doing their thing, straight from Trevor Noah’s apartment.

Wild cards

Time for another wild card lightning round.

Pure (HBO Max, 3:01 a.m, complete first season, U.S. premiere): HBO Max’s latest U.K. import is this thoughtful comedy about a young woman struggling to live with constant intrusive sexual thoughts.

Class Action Park (HBO Max, 3:01 a.m., premiere): “Tucked away in the rolling greens of Vernon, New Jersey sits the Mountain Creek Water Park, a clean and responsibly run day-trip destination catering to families in the Tri-State area. But in its ’80s heyday—and for two brief years in the 2010s, as part of an ill-fated nostalgia ploy—this facility was known as Action Park, revered far and wide as a teenager’s haven with no rules or safety regulations to get in the way of fun.” Read the rest of Charles Bramesco’s film review.

Infinity Train (HBO Max, 3:01 a.m., season-three finale): “Book 3 is Infinity Train’s best season to date, and the show’s engine show no signs of slowing down just yet.” Read the rest of William Hughes’ pre-air review.

Ravi Patel’s Pursuit Of Happiness (HBO Max, 3:01 a.m., complete first season): The actor, documentarian, and endlessly watchable human Ravi Patel travels the world in this four-part “buddy comedy docuseries.”