Some of pop music’s biggest superstars, including Drake, Miley Cyrus and the Jonas Brothers, are landing in the world of streaming TV this June.
Summer once used to be a seasonal dead zone for buzzworthy TV series, but this year it’s packed with bingeable programs that are certain to spark a few conversations.
Here’s a look at five things to add to your must-see lists:
DRIZZY’S DROP: Drake doesn’t star in HBO’s “Euphoria” but his credit as executive producer put a spotlight on the series before it was even off the ground. “Euphoria” is led by former Disney star Zendaya who plays a recovering teenage addict struggling to escape personal tumult. She’s surrounded by friends running against their own coming-of-age crises in the digital age. The series veers into the same territory as controversial U.K. show “Skins,” but goes even farther in portraying the graphic side of webcam sex, relentless violence and hard drugs. (Crave/HBO Canada weekly, June 16)
iMILEY: Three new episodes of “Black Mirror” almost shouldn’t count as a new season, but considering each one clocks in at feature length, few people are likely to complain. Check out Miley Cyrus in the twisted “Rachel, Jack and Ashley Too,” where she plays a heightened version of a Top 40 celebrity who ends up replicated in a mass-produced artificial intelligence version of herself by her power-hungry relative. (Netflix, June 5)
BONUS JONAS: After a stunning comeback on the music charts earlier this year, the Jonas Brothers are looking to conquer the streaming world with their deeply reflective documentary “Chasing Happiness.” The film opens as the brothers reunite in Australia to recount their sudden breakup in 2013 after pressures and politics of the music industry became too much to bear. Using home movies and concert footage, they talk about what convinced them to relaunch with a new album set for release in June. (Amazon Prime Video, June 4)
SPOTLIGHT INDIGENOUS: With National Indigenous History Month in June, CBC Gem is putting its focus on the cultures and heritage of various communities across Canada. “Skindigenous,” a 13-part series on tattooing traditions around the world, examines the tools, techniques and symbols behind some of the most awe-inspiring skin art. The feature film “Rhymes for Young Ghouls,” is a visually inventive story set at the Red Crow Mi’g Maq reservation, in 1976, where one teenage girl has escaped residential schools with a bribe to a local official. And “Sober House” is a 20-minute documentary short following a group of Cree youth in Northern Saskatchewan hoping to break the cycle of damage caused by alcohol in their community. (CBC Gem, starting June 3)
PRIDE MONTH: Streaming giants are marking LGBTQ Pride Month with films and TV series that cover many colours of the rainbow. At Netflix, the revival of Armistead Maupin’s “Tales of the City” miniseries, due June 7, adds new chapters to the saga set in San Francisco. Past entries in the “Tales” storyline _ the original series, “More Tales of the City” and “Further Tales of the City” _ are available on OutTVGo. Meanwhile, Amazon Prime Video will stock an extensive collection of LGBTQ-themed titles, including “A Single Man,” “Transamerica,” and Harvey Milk biopic “Milk,” starting on June 1.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT (titles already streaming):
“Minding the Gap” _ In a crowded documentary season at this year’s Oscars, filmmaker Bing Liu’s intensely personal rumination on growing up in an American Rust Belt town was somewhat overlooked. Set in the skate parks and living rooms where a teenage Liu and his friends hang out, the former camera assistant to Spike Lee uses footage he captured in the mid-aughts to weave a tale of emotional survival amid broken families, fractured friendships and the creeping sense of responsibility that comes with adulthood. (CBC Gem)
“Support the Girls” _ Regina Hall steals nearly every scene as the warm-hearted manager of Double Whammies, a Hooters-esque sports bar falling on hard times. When a corporate restaurant chain with a similar business hook announces plans to open across the street, the servers band together to win over with their loyal customers. The witty workplace comedy embraces its indie charm that’ll strike a chord with anyone who’s worked in retail or food services.