Peacock Sets 2022 Streaming Premiere Dates

Peacock has set premiere dates for eight new and three returning series coming in 2022.

August 25:

• Everything I Know About Love

September 8:

• Last Light

September 15:

• Vampire Academy

September 29:

• Dragons Rescue Riders: Heroes of the Sky (Season 4)

October 6:

• A Friend of the Family (limited series)

October 20:

• One of Us Is Lying (Season 2)

November 3:

• The Capture (Season 2)

November 10:

• The Missing (working title)

November 23:

• Pitch Perfect: Bumper in Berlin

November 30:

• Irreverent

December 22:

• The Best Man: The Final Chapters (limited series)

NEW DRAMAS

LAST LIGHT

LAST LIGHT is based on Alex Scarrow’s international best-selling novel Last Light, which tells the story of a family fighting to survive in a world that has been suddenly thrown into chaos.

Petro-chemist Andy Nielsen knows how dependent the world is on oil; if something were to happen to the world’s oil supply, it would set off a chain reaction: transportation would grind to a halt, supplies would cease to be delivered, law enforcement would be overwhelmed. While on a business trip to the Middle East, Andy realizes that his worst fears are coming true and his family is separated at this crucial moment. His teenage daughter, Laura, is alone at home in London while his wife, Elena, and young son, Sam, are in Paris. Amid this chaos, each family member will sacrifice everything to find one another, despite the distance and the dangers that separate them. Based on Alex Scarrow’s best-selling novel of the same name.

VAMPIRE ACADEMY

From executive producer Julie Plec comes a story of romance, friendship, death, sex, and scandal. VAMPIRE ACADEMY is based on a series of young adult paranormal romance novels by international bestselling author Richelle Mead. In a world of privilege and glamour, two young women’s friendship transcends their strikingly different classes as they prepare to complete their education and enter royal vampire society. This serialized and sexy drama combines the elegance of aristocratic romance and the supernatural thrills of the vampire genre.

Julie Plec will serve as showrunner, writer and executive producer for the series.

THE MISSING

THE MISSING tells the story of NYPD Detective Avraham Avraham, whose belief in mankind is his superpower when it comes to uncovering the truth. Guided by a deep sense of spirituality and religious principles, Avraham is left to question his own humanity when a seemingly routine investigation turns upside down.

PITCH PERFECT: BUMPER IN BERLIN

Adam Devine, who appeared in the first two installments of the film franchise, is set to star and reprise his role as Bumper Allen, the vocal villain whom we love to loathe.

In the new series for Peacock, several years after we last saw him in Pitch Perfect, Adam Devine’s Bumper Allen moves to Germany to revive his music career when one of his songs becomes big in Berlin.

IRREVERENT

IRREVERENT is a fish out of water drama that follows criminal mediator Paulo Keegan as he flees the United States after a mediation gone wrong and assumes the identity of Reverend Mackenzie “Mack” Boyd. “Mack” (Paulo) finds himself trapped in Clump, Australia – a small, eccentric beach town hundreds of miles away from civilization and phone reception. In order to stay alive, “Mack” must keep the wool over the town’s eyes and play the role of devoted Reverend, while desperately searching for an exit strategy before his past catches up to him.

Peacock To Become New Home of WWE Network

Peacock Premium to Stream Fastlane on March 21 and WrestleMania on April 10-11
from Peacock press release

Starting March 18, Peacock will begin rolling out WWE Network content just before Fastlane, the first WWE pay-per-view (PPV) event on the service. The new WWE destination on Peacock will feature fan-favorite content at launch, including all past WrestleManias leading up to WrestleMania 37—streaming exclusively on Peacock.

WWE will have a dedicated page on Peacock where fans can browse and access every PPV event in the last calendar year; current or most recent season episodes of WWE original series Steve Austin’s The Broken Skull Sessions, WWE Chronicle, and WWE Icons; in-ring action with new weekly episodes of NXT the day after air, as well as the 2021 replays of RAW and SmackDown 30 days after air; groundbreaking documentaries, including Undertaker: The Last Ride, WWE 24, and WWE Untold; reality series, including Total Bellas; as well as collections of featured series, topical moments like “Stone Cold” Steve Austin Week, and playlists showcasing current Superstars.

Peacock will continually add WWE Network content to the library, making the entire WWE Network archive—including every WWE, WCW, and ECW PPV event in history—available to stream on demand before SummerSlam.

Peacock Premium will be home to all upcoming PPV events and the current seasons of WWE Original shows. In the free tier, Peacock will offer a new WWE channel; select WWE Original shows; reality shows like Miz and Mrs., Total Bellas, and Total Divas; recent in-ring content; and new weekly episodes of select live shows like RAW Talk and The Bump, both live and on demand.

When WWE sunsets the existing standalone WWE Network app on April 4, Peacock will be the exclusive streaming home to WWE Network in the U.S. To continue streaming WWE Network content, fans will need to sign up for Peacock. As previously announced, WWE Network, including all PPVs, will be available on Peacock Premium for $4.99—a $5.00/month savings. Starting today, Peacock is also offering the WWE Universe deeper savings for a limited time—details available at www.PeacockTV.com/WWE.

Peacock Premium is included at no additional cost for Comcast’s eligible Xfinity X1 and Flex customers and Cox Contour customers. Peacock is currently available on the Roku platform; Apple devices, including iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Apple TV 4K, and Apple TV HD; Google platforms and devices, including Android, Android TV devices, Chromecast, and Chromecast built-in devices; Microsoft’s Xbox One family of devices, including Xbox One S and Xbox One X; Sony PlayStation 4, PlayStation 4 Pro, and PlayStation 5; and VIZIO SmartCast TVs and LG Smart TVs.

Now Streaming: Saved By the Bell

© Peacock

The new ‘Saved by the Bell’ show has no right being this good
by Jeremy Fogelman

Cast: Elizabeth Berkley Lauren, Mario Lopez, John Michael Higgins, Belmont Cameli, Dexter Darden, Mitchell Hoog, Alycia Pascual-Peña, Josie Totah, Haskiri Velazquez

Any kid or teenager who watched TV in the 90s almost certainly watched Saved by the Bell, which aired early in the 90s but was rerun forever. I watched many episodes and again and again when they were re-aired -- it was definitely an influential sort of thing, despite its obvious ridiculousness and stupidity. As kids, we didn’t quite pick up on all of the sociopathic aspects of the characters, but now that we’re all adults, you get multiple “rewatch” podcasts that delve deep into the craziness and even a well known series on YouTube called “Zach Morris is Trash” which itemized all of the lead Zach Morris’ terrible deeds.

The writer of that show ended up as a staff writer on the new Saved by the Bell, which certainly should be telling you something. The reboot/remake/etc/sequel is run by Tracey Wigfield, a talented and experienced comedy writer, who also ran my beloved, short run show Great News. The new show has a lot of that madcap energy, but it fits well with the silliness inherent in a Saved by the Bell world.

© Peacock

The show immediately starts off with a wink and a nod, as we hear the voice of Mark-Paul Gosselaar’s Zach as he explains he conned his way to becoming governor to get out of paying parking tickets. All normal for the character, but the show also shows an image from his show Franklin & Bash to explain that he was also a lawyer -- that’s the sort of super insider nerdy reference I love. But Zach is an incompetent governor, essentially accidentally cutting billions from public education and shutting down multiple high schools in mostly at risk areas.

So there’s immediately some social commentary, but it’s couched in jokes -- soon we hear the big conceit of the show. Due to Zach’s (he only shows up again a few times) incompetence, he decides to get all the displaced high schoolers to go to his alma mater Bayside High. We see that the high school seems much the same, with Zach and Kelly’s son Mac Morris (Mitchel Hogg) a super privileged, arrogant but pretty charismatic blonde kid.

Mac’s friends are Jamie Spano (Belmont Cameli), the son of Jessie Spano from the old show (Elizabeth Berkley Lauren, who is a recurring character in the season) and Lexi (Josie Totah), a transgender fashionista with her own reality show. Jamie is a sweet doofus, a football player who cares more about “how you play the game” than winning, and Lexi is a sabre-mouthed presence that mirrors Mac’s privilege, arrogance, and charisma. These actors are all great in these roles, starting as fairly simplistically written characterizations and becoming full fledged characters with arcs and interesting character turns.

© Peacock

But then we get the new kids, Daisy Jiménez (Haskiri Velazquez), Aisha Garcia (Alycia Pascual-Peña), and Devante Young (Dexter Darden), all with their own tales and backstories. Daisy is a super smart, hyper ambitious girl who wants to move up in the world, and she’s close friends with Aisha, who’s more of a sports gal -- neither really knows Devante, who is immediately pegged in a problematic way to be a potential new football player.

But Devante really is interested in singing and performing, and the show gives us episodes with both “issues” (like Devante being racially profiled) and “fun” (like trying out for a new ridiculous musical).

It turns out that Daisy is the true protagonist of the show, as in the first episode she gives us the classic “time out” that Zach Morris did all the time back in the original show. As such, she’s the center of nearly all of the episode, but the actress Haskiri Velazquez (who is essentially a newcomer) has both a great sense of comic timing and the dramatic range to pull off some of her more complicated storylines. It was probably difficult to find such a great lead, but she is really a great find.

Of course, the rest of the cast is really great too, including the always great John Michael Higgins as the new principal Ronald Toddman (who the show retcons into being friends with Zach in a hilarious joke later on), who is both hapless but also legitimately caring about the kids. No offense to old Belding, who was borderline criminally negligent, but Toddman gives some pretty great advice here.

© Peacock

 

Elizabeth Berkley Lauren and Mario Lopez both reprise their old characters too, with Jessie as a successful author who’s become the school guidance counselor to be near her son, and Slater being kind of a loser -- a friendless high school coach with a team that never does well until Aisha joins. There are some pretty fun storylines with the two of them, and since they work at the school, they’re part of the recurring cast, unlike Mark-Paul and Tiffani Thiessen, who mainly drop in at key dramatic moments.

There’s even a few old school cameos, like Ed Alonzo as the magician Max, Patrick Thomas O'Brien as Mr. Dewey, and even Lark Voorhies as Lisa in one sharp, amusing little scene. Screech is mentioned, along with his robot Kevin (which he built and had artificial intelligence of course), but Dustin Diamond is never seen -- the reasons are disputed and I don’t need to get into them.

The show is a tight ten episodes, consistently amusing and often laugh out loud funny, with an actual story arc that has relevant points to modern social issues without being annoying about it. It’s far sharper and more self-aware than you’d think, but the writers are clearly aware of both the original show, the relevant memes, and the many problems with it. You get the obvious references and jokes, but quite a few that I didn’t expect at all.

And it ends on a dark, highly shocking joke that was pretty audacious. It’s a talented cast and a well-written, fun show -- if you’ve seen the original show, loved or hated or loved to hate it, the new Saved by the Bell is a must watch.

A.P. Bio returns with a third season of its exceptional ensemble of mild cruel comedy

© Peacock TV LLC

 

‘A.P. Bio’ embraces the absurdity in its unintentionally abbreviated third season.
by Jeremy Fogelman


The NBC show A.P. Bio from creator Mike O’Brien never got great ratings when it aired, although it had some pretty fervent cult fans online (including me). Unlike me, most of them tended to watch the show on streaming, so the ratings never reflected the actual way people were watching it. While it may not be the sort of calming presence of The Office or the same level of insane popularity, it was funny, darkly comedic and sometimes sweet, with a cast that only got better as it went.

The third season continues this trend, with eight episodes (more were planned but they had to shut down production) that still covered a lot of fun ground. Although Glenn Howerton as Jack Griffin, super cynical teacher who refused to teach actual biology, was the initial draw, the show really got a great handle on the rest of the cast. Fellow teachers Stef (Lyric Lewis), Mary (Mary Sohn), and Jean (Michelle Jones) had a sort of chaotic energy that bounced off each other, and there was a lot of fun with Patton Oswalt as the too nice Principal Ralph Durbin contrasted against Jack’s cynicism. This also contrasted well with Paula Pell’s Helen, the principal’s secretary who plays the most broadly of anyone.

There are plenty of side characters with funny little running gags and moments, but the actual high schoolers in the AP class really have solidified to a great ensemble: Sarika (Aparna Brielle), the high achiever, and condescending, super annoying and weirdly overconfident Marcus (Nick Peine), laidback artistic with killer line delivery Anthony (Eddie Leavy), nerdy pals Victor (Jacob Houston) and Eduardo (Miguel Chavez), super cool Dan Decker (Spence Moore II), try-hard mousey Marissa (Marisa Baram) and “says super awkward things out loud” Caleb (Jacob Timothy Manown) are all great.

But the funniest of the gang are two: Allisyn Ashley Arm as super bespectacled but oddly supportive Heather Wilmore, who steals every scene she’s in (I still crack up about her line reading about Jesus as a ‘beefcake’), and Sari Arambulo as sociopathic Grace -- yes, there really is something consistently hilarious about a chipper, chirpy young girl cheerfully saying such super dark things. She’s always funny -- and is this perhaps the most diverse comedy on TV? Probably.

In the first episode "Tiny Problems", the show immediately combines comedy with bittersweet feelings as Jack addresses his connection to his beloved late mother by trying to get revenge on the owner of a store of small houses and items. There is a repeatedly hilarious moment in this episode where Jack brings up wanting to hurt the old lady owner -- Grace smiles, excited in anticipation -- Jack then further says they aren’t killing anyone, they get that right? -- Grace’s face falls -- and Victor says it’s good to hear it out loud. I’m laughing just writing that out again.

The second episode “Disgraced” centers around Jack’s attempts to ghostwrite a book for famous horror novelist Robin Shwank (Jon Lovitz, delightful), in a sort of “escapade of the week” style. But the third episode “Gary Meets Dave” goes pretty loopy and fun, with a bunch of cascading “Previously On” moments as many, many things go wrong throughout the school and everything smashes together Snatch style in a comedy of errors. There’s even a drug deal storyline with a very funny sequence of the kids buying things they can’t afford. This episode also does a great job showcasing the other teachers and other side characters, having funny moments throughout, including Gary and Dave, who are having the mildest issues and arguments of them all.

Episode four, “Get Hoppy”, is the first time we see Principal Durbin actually act like a jerk as he gets a touch of local Toledo morning fame. I’m always happy to see Maria Thayer in anything, and she plays the overly pleasant morning anchorlady here to build up Ralph’s version of Jack’s book retitled “Get Hoppy” to include his silly rabbit pictures. This is also the first time we see anything from Yuyao Deng (who also plays a character named Yuyao Deng), as she tries to get money to help her grandmother versus selling a T-Shirt that just says “Gone Tootin’”.

It’s a sort of mild commentary of societal priorities of guilt versus low humor.

© Peacock TV LLC

The fifth episode “Mr. Pistachio” keeps the connections building between Jack and the other teachers as they support him through an embarrassing doctor’s visit, while the kids compete over classic stupid “Best Whatever” in the school newspaper. More fun character building and awkward moments as they compete for pointless mentions and a decently weird side plot of Durbin and Helen competing for the same lady (Kellee Stewart).

The show gets experimental and weird again with episode six, “That That That”, which shows Jack attempting to film a lecture to get a job at the University of Wisconsin and going increasingly crazy, only partially due to his own issues and the rest due to toxic chemicals. Glenn Howerton is always great playing super unhinged, and this episode has him at some of his most unhinged yet.

The penultimate episode of the season is more sweet than funny, although it does utilize Lyric Lewis’ real world pregnancy for a funny storyline about her concern about the biological father. Ultimately the main plot has Anthony as a wrestling sidekick in another piece of pop culture that completely gets professional wrestling wrong, co-starring Ron Funches as a janitor turned local wrestler, and Lilian Garcia as a ring announcer (she’s an actual announcer in real life, including for the WWE in years past).

And the final episode, "Katie Holmes Day", is one of the silliest yet. Finally mousy Marissa gets a chance to shine more than just one-off gags, and the show has one of the weirdest ideas yet -- that Toledo has a holiday to honor Katie Holmes, one of the more famous people to come from there. There’s a great stupid joke about Caleb’s parents only celebrating “Jamie Farr Day”, the M*A*S*H actor who also came from Toledo, which adds to the absurdity of the world.

Admittedly, the Katie Holmes story about how she got the part on Dawson’s Creek is unusual, although the episode doesn’t entirely play it straight, of course -- naturally there’s a pageant that Jack wants to destroy, and naturally there’s a legitimately sweet, silly ending with a conclusion that feels like we get better insight into Marissa’s character.

It leaves Jack in a place where he feels truly connected to Toledo for the first time since he came back, and sets the stage for places unknown. I’m not sure what could even be next for a show like this -- how long can a year of an AP class really last anyway? And these kids are all already in their 20s despite some looking pretty young still. But maybe that all doesn’t really matter. I thoroughly enjoyed this shortened third season of A.P. Bio and I’m happy NBC brought it back, even as a streaming only season on Peacock.

Was it the only thing that ensured I’d get a subscription? Maybe. Would a fourth season be the only reason I’d keep it? Maybe. Time will tell.