Time jumps, Gentlemen, 3 Body Problems, and more from this week in TV
A look back at The A.V. Club's top TV reviews and features from the week of March 4
TV’s 10 greatest time-jump sequences
The “time jump” sequence is one of those concepts that could only really ever flourish in television—where the passage of time is so frequently stuck in place, sometimes for years on end, that deciding to suddenly move a show’s timeline forward in the span of a single scene, cut, or montage can feel like a radical and monumental shift. The really great examples of the form, though, don’t just slap a chyron on the screen and call it a day/year/millennia, etc. Instead, they endeavor to say something meaningful about the time that’s passed, the ways the show’s characters have evolved and mutated—or, tellingly, haven’t—in the months and years that have vanished in the span of a single zoom shot or needle drop. Read More
The Gentlemen review: Well, damn, Guy Ritchie’s TV show is a really fun time
If there’s one thing Guy Ritchie has zeroed in on—besides churning out a new project almost every year, that is—it’s helming a fun British caper. From Snatch to The Man From U.N.C.L.E. to Operation Fortune, his films aren’t qualitatively equal, but he’s weaved a signature style into them all. No matter what, there will be breezy dialogue, multiple heists, suave yet kooky gangsters, and amusing visuals. This well-established format is the driving force of his Netflix drama, The Gentlemen, which premieres March 7. Read More
3 Body Problem looks as grand as Game Of Thrones in final trailer
Say what you want about Game Of Thrones (we certainly have), but it’s hard to deny that the series was huge and literally epic in a way few television shows are today. Sure, we still have Television Events—the online response to Logan’s death on Succession was almost comparable to the Red Wedding, for example—but on GOT, at least in its early seasons, characters simply walking from one place to another felt weighty and important. While we don’t know if besmirched GOT creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss will be able to replicate that level of quality in 3 Body Problem, their first project since leaving Westeros, it’s abundantly clear that they’re trying. Read More
Curb Your Enthusiasm recap: The fish is a metaphor, you see
Well, this episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm begins just as it should, considering the circumstances: with a dedication to Richard Lewis, longtime actor on the show and real life friend to Larry David, who passed away earlier this week. It’s a sad thing, and oddly, a couple of weeks ago on Curb, the TV versions of David and Lewis were bickering about who was going to die first and leave the other behind to collect whatever sum was left to them in their departed friend’s will—Lewis was the one to introduce the subject. (They bring the will thing back in this latest episode, too.) Now that Lewis is really gone, it makes that bit hit differently and casts a sort of pall over things, one that will likely linger throughout the rest of season 12. Still, there were funnies to be had here; let’s give them their due as well. Read More