What our TV critic is watching this week: 'Shrill,' Michael Vick, 'The Goop Lab With Gwyenth Paltrow,' 'The Good Place'

January 24, 2020 at 2:02PM
Kristen Bell and William Jackson Harper in "The Good Place."
Kristen Bell and William Jackson Harper in “The Good Place.” (NBC/The Minnesota Star Tribune)

Stronger than before

The second season of "Shrill" picks up where we left off, with Annie (Aidy Bryant) scampering away after vandalizing the car of her online troller (Beck Bennett). But Annie isn't running scared in these new episodes, flexing her firmer backbone from one wacky incident to the next. "I'm not off the rails," she says. "I am the rails." Get on board.

Now streaming on Hulu

Exclusive membership

If you believe that the wellness company Goop targets only the rich, "The Goop Lab With Gwyneth Paltrow" will do little to shake your theory. In most episodes, the Oscar-winning actress holds court on her couch while her team embarks on navel-gazing spiritual adventures that are not in most viewers' budgets.

Now streaming on Netflix

Rock of ages

The team behind the wickedly funny "Miracle Workers," which included creator Simon Rich and "Harry Potter" graduate Daniel Radcliffe, returns for "Miracle Workers: Dark Ages," but in completely different roles. Setting the new season in medieval times isn't the most original concept, but the cast is having so much fun, you may temporarily forget that "Monty Python's Life of Brian" ever existed.

9:30 p.m. Tuesday, TBS

Life after death

NBC is sending off "The Good Place" with some fanfare — a 90-minute finale plus a tribute hosted by Seth Meyers — but I suspect this little slice of heaven will best be appreciated in its afterlife, when networks have given up on smart, complex sitcoms and Kristen Bell is serving her second term as U.S. president.

7:30 p.m. Thursday, KARE, Ch. 11

Mad scramble

Stanley Nelson, the director behind films about Emmett Till and Miles Davis, turns his lens to controversial quarterback Michael Vick, who has never fully recovered from being convicted of involvement in a dogfighting ring. "Vick" is part of ESPN's stellar "30 for 30" series.

8 p.m. Thursday, ESPN

Neal Justin

Aidy Bryant in "Shrill."
Aidy Bryant in “Shrill.” (Hulu/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
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