AILSA CHANG, HOST:
Today is an important moment, with people waiting in lines, channel surfing on their TVs or even doom scrolling on their phones, wondering who might be running the country the next four years. But for those who might want a break from all of that, NPR TV critic Eric Deggans is here with some ideas for what kind of TV to binge on today to get away from it all. Hello, Eric. Rescue us, please.
ERIC DEGGANS, BYLINE: This is my job.
CHANG: (Laughter).
ERIC DEGGANS: I get paid to watch television.
CHANG: I love it. You do have the best job. OK, let's say someone out there wants to jump in right now on a totally new series. Like, where should they even start? What are you excited about?
ERIC DEGGANS: OK. Apple TV+ this week is dropping the final episode of this amazing drama, "Disclaimer." And it stars Cate Blanchett as a woman whose perfect life comes apart when somebody publishes a book with an awful secret about her.
CHANG: Ooh.
ERIC DEGGANS: Now, it's written and directed by Alfonso Cuaron, who's the director of films like "Roma" and "Gravity." And he's got this story full of character, unexpected turns. It's just wonderful. And we've got a scene between Blanchett's character and her husband, who's played by Sacha Baron Cohen, who just found out she cheated on him many years ago.
(SOUNDBITE OF TV SHOW, "DISCLAIMER")
CATE BLANCHETT: (As Catherine Ravenscroft) It was so long ago.
SACHA BARON COHEN: (As Robert Ravenscroft) I know exactly when it was. I shared that bedroom with you.
BLANCHETT: (As Catherine Ravenscroft) Yes, I know. I should have told you.
BARON COHEN: (As Robert Ravenscroft) As I remember, we were barely making love then anyway. You were bored being a mother. You were bored being married to me.
BLANCHETT: (As Catherine Ravenscroft) No. No, that's not...
BARON COHEN: (As Robert Ravenscroft) You were bored, and you had to get yourself attention.
ERIC DEGGANS: Now, the show's finale airs on Apple TV+ this Friday, where we learn things are not quite as they seem in that moment.
CHANG: I love it - sounds juicy. We love to see the messy lives of perfect people; don't we?
ERIC DEGGANS: Exactly.
CHANG: OK. What about any comfort TV?
ERIC DEGGANS: Well, this is a genre TV I like to call meat-and-potatoes TV, which is genres we know pretty well, like spy shows or mobster series. But I like better versions. Let's say high-end comfort TV. So, here, I would recommend the surprisingly good action series for Paramount+ called "Lioness." Now, Zoe Saldana stars as the leader of this department in the CIA who develops female operatives for undercover work, and she's also balancing being a mom. And Nicole Kidman is her boss. It's awesome.
CHANG: (Laughter).
ERIC DEGGANS: But my biggest guilty pleasure is Sylvester Stallone in Paramount+'s "Tulsa King." Now, Stallone plays this mobster who gets exiled to Oklahoma by his Mafia family, and he decides to build a new family out there. And Sly has always been smarter and funnier than I think people give him credit for. And he gets to show that off here by creating this charismatic, lovable but deadly gangster.
CHANG: I love that. I'm totally going to tune into that one. OK. If I just want a really good laugh, like, I want to laugh so much that I am crying, tell me something hilarious to watch.
ERIC DEGGANS: Well, I'm the kind of critic who likes comedies that might also make you sad cry, so (laughter)...
CHANG: Sad cry (laughter)?
ERIC DEGGANS: Top of my list is this criminally underseen series on HBO, "Somebody Somewhere," with cabaret star Bridget Everett, who plays this woman who moved back to her small hometown. And she's building new connections with friends and family. Now, the show's final season just started, and I hope lots of people show up for this incredible blend of comedy and touching moments. I also have "Shrinking." This is a comedy on Apple TV+ with Jason Segel as a therapist climbing out of a serious depression after the death of his wife in a car accident. Yeah, sounds funny, right?
CHANG: No (laughter).
ERIC DEGGANS: But trust me. It is because Segel's character is surrounded by these wonderful other characters who are working out their own stuff, played by "Daily Show" alum Jessica Williams and Harrison Ford. They're wonderfully funny and poignant. The theme of the second season is forgiveness, which kicks in when "Ted Lasso" alum Brett Goldstein shows up. He's the guy that drove that car that killed Segel's wife, and he wants to talk.
CHANG: Dang, that sounds intense. You sure I'm going to laugh?
ERIC DEGGANS: Trust me. It's super-funny.
CHANG: All right, I trust you. That is NPR TV critic Eric Deggans. Thank you so much, Eric.
ERIC DEGGANS: Thank you.
(SOUNDBITE OF J COLE SONG, "FORBIDDEN FRUIT (FEAT. KENDRICK LAMAR)") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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