September marks the start of Halloween season, which means spooky vibes and dressing up as someone other than yourself. This month's new releases will give you plenty of costume inspiration, as not one but two new prestige shows centered around comic book villains are debuting.
'English Teacher' (Sept. 2)
September has arrived, which means it is time to purchase school supplies (like "bouquets of newly sharpened pencils," to quote Nora Ephron) and switch on back-to-school programming. FX's new series "English Teacher" stars — and was created by — Brian Jordan Alvarez, who plays a gay educator named Evan Marquez working at a Texas public school. The comedy series is a "drier, snarkier, world-wearier older brother to Quinta Brunson's 'Abbott Elementary,'" said Angie Han at The Hollywood Reporter. Working at a high school is anything but easy, as Evan must contend with problems of a personal, professional and political nature. (Hulu)
'Emily in Paris' (Sept. 12)
The second half of this Netflix series' fourth season drops this month, and many critics are rejoicing, despite having no profound love for the show. "Emily in Paris" is "absurdly, adorably idiotic," said The Daily Beast; a "whirlwind of nonsense," said The Guardian; "insipid yet strangely alluring" said David Mack at Slate. The series follows the Parisian adventures of the titular Emily (played with vacant grace by Lily Collins), who apparently works in marketing. The show's creators are "determined to keep things as pretty, lighthearted and smooth-brained as Emily herself," Mack added. "This is television that wants you to have fun." (Netflix)
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
'Child Star' (Sept. 17)
Child stars get a bad rap for growing into troubled adults. But coming of age in the spotlight usually means growing up way too fast. A new documentary features interviews with — and archival footage of — a host of former Disney Channel actors and other Hollywood stars who found on-screen success at a young age, including Drew Barrymore, Kenan Thompson, JoJo Siwa and Christina Ricci. The project also marks the directorial debut of Demi Lovato, a child-actor-turned-pop-star whose own career trajectory led her down a path of drugs and mental health struggles. (Hulu)
'Agatha All Along' (Sept. 18)
This alliterative new Marvel series is a spinoff of 2021's "WandaVision," only this time its sorceress Agatha Harkness' time to shine. Kathryn Hahn reprises her role as the titular witch, still trapped in Westview under a spell Elisabeth Olsen's Wanda Maximoff placed on her in the previous show's finale. Agatha is "forced to live out a true-crime drama as a detective investigating the murder of a young Jane Doe," said EW. The show gets its title from Hahn's "chart-topping song" — performed with campy aplomb in the first series — in which Agatha reveals herself to be Wanda's sneaky nemesis. (Disney+)
'The Penguin' (Sept. 19)
As the days get shorter and the nights grow colder, the light-hearted snark of Marvel gives way to the hardened grit of DC Comics. "The Penguin" won't feature any characters singing songs, but it does star an unrecognizable Colin Farrell as Gotham gangster Oswald "Oz" Cobblepot, aka The Penguin, in what looks to be a "Sopranos" meets "Dark Knight" new chapter of the Batman saga. (Just do not expect Batman himself to show up.) "With Oz, you're in the city streets, you're in the grit and the muck and the grime," said showrunner Lauren LeFranc to SFX Magazine. "He's looking up, wanting to claw his way to the top." (HBO)
-
The 5 best zombie movies of all timeThe Week Recommends Ghouls feasting on flesh have been a staple of cinema for more than 50 years
-
7 travel fragrances that let you smell good on the goThe Week Recommends Spritz away!
-
A guide to Budapest's healing thermal bathsThe Week Recommends There's a reason why it's called the City of Spas
-
Every MCU movie since 'Avengers: Endgame,' rankedThe Week Recommends How did the recent 'Fantastic Four: First Steps' stack up?
-
Confessions of a Brain Surgeon: an 'exceptional' documentaryThe Week Recommends Retired neurosurgeon Henry Marsh reflects on his pioneering work with exquisitely 'raw honesty'
-
5 fun cycling tours that let you vacation on two wheelsThe Week Recommends Gain a new perspective while pedaling
-
The best singers turned actors of all timeIn Depth It's not often that someone is born with both of these rare skill sets
-
A descent into academic Hell, a ferocious feminist fable and the adult debut of a beloved children's authorThe Week Recommends August books include R.F. Kuang's 'Katabasis,' Xenobe Purvis' 'The Hounding' and Louis Sachar's 'The Magician of Tiger Castle'
