TV picks: ‘Stranger Things,’ ‘The Loudest Voice,’ ‘The Rook’ and more
What's new or noteworthy on television the week of June 30.
The Rook. A woman (Emma Greenwell) who can’t remember her own name wakes up surrounded by dead bodies in this sci-fi-meets-spy-drama series and eventually discovers she’s a member of a secret government organization for people with paranormal abilities. Other stars include Olivia Munn, Joely Richardson, and James D’Arcy (Agent Carter). 8 p.m. Sunday, June 30, Starz.
What Just Happened??! A broadcast network pokes fun at a largely cable phenomenon — the “after-show” — with this spoof hosted by Fred Savage of a talk show aimed at fans of The Flare, a sci-fi show that (spoiler alert) doesn’t actually exist. 9:30 p.m. Sunday, June 30, Fox.
The Loudest Voice. An almost unrecognizable Russell Crowe stars as Roger Ailes, the late co-founder of Fox News, and Naomi Watts as Gretchen Carlson, the former Fox & Friends anchor whose sexual-harassment suit against Ailes helped lead to his professional downfall. The first episode of the seven-part limited series was written by Oscar-winner Tom McCarthy (Spotlight) and Gabriel Sherman, the reporter on whose book The Loudest Voice in the Room the show is based. Crowe’s performance is, unsurprisingly, impressive, and some of the details of Fox News’ founding and Ailes’ strategies are interesting — but not interesting enough to outweigh the creepiness in the depictions of his less-professional activities. As things that make my skin crawl go, it’s a bit of a slog. 10 p.m. Sunday, June 30, Showtime.
Veronica Mars. Don’t get too excited — the new episodes don’t premiere until July 26. But the streaming service is getting ready by adding the first three seasons of the noir-ish drama, which star Kristen Bell as a teenage detective in a very screwed-up California beach town called Neptune. Monday, July 1, Hulu.
Wawa Welcome America Concert. Meghan Trainor and Jennifer Hudson headline the concert on the Benjamin Franklin Parkway, with the Philadelphia fireworks beginning at 9:30. At 10, or whenever those end, the station will air New York’s Macy’s-sponsored pyrotechnics. 7 p.m. Thursday, July 4, NBC10.
Stranger Things. The third season of the Duffer brothers’ streaming hit is set in the summer of 1985, and includes some laughably obvious mentions of the marketing disaster known as New Coke (which Coca-Cola has actually brought back as a tie-in). Beyond that, I can tell you nothing about the eight new episodes, lest Netflix feed me to the Demogorgon. Thursday, July 4, Netflix.