This summer’s new shows sound a lot like shows we already like, mashed together in surprising ways.
“The Astronaut Wives Club”: Premieres June 18 on ABC
Looks like: “Mad Men” + “Extant”
What it’s about: Sure, the first U.S. astronauts got to explore a new frontier and drink Tang, but their wives knew how to have fun, too. That’s the premise of this new drama, based on the nonfiction book by Lily Koppel. Thrust into the spotlight as their husbands compete to be the first men to orbit the Earth, the wives find themselves bonding, competing with one another and finding other Betty Draper-ish pastimes.
“The Brink”: Premieres June 21 on HBO
Looks like: “Veep” + “Homeland”
What it’s about: HBO’s newest politically minded show stars Jack Black as a foreign service officer tasked with making sure a Pakistani military coup doesn’t turn into World War III. Sounds pretty heavy, right? Add in Tim Robbins as a U.S. secretary of state with a hooker habit and Pablo Schreiber as a casually drug-dealing Navy pilot, and you’ve got yourself a comedy more along the dark, sardonic lines of “The Thick of It.”
“Ballers”: Premieres June 21 on HBO
Looks like: “Entourage” + “Monday Night Football”
What it’s about: Just when you think football is only about calling the right plays, along comes this comedy to prove that players have big decisions to make off the field, too. Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, making a rare onscreen appearance where he’s not driving a car very fast or catching bad guys, stars as Spencer Strasmore, a former NFL hotshot who spends his retirement helping current players figure out what to do with their money and fame.
“Another Period”: Premieres June 23 on Comedy Central
Looks like: “Keeping Up With the Kardashians” + “Downton Abbey”
What it’s about: For anyone who has ever wished Lady Edith would stop whining and get a blog already, there’s “Another Period,” which stars Natasha Leggero and Riki Lindhome as turn-of-the-20th-century socialites Lillian and Beatrice Bellacourt. The sisters tweet with notes attached to pigeons’ legs, flirt with lords and self-promote in a way that would make Lady Kris Jenner proud.
“Zoo”: Premieres June 30 on CBS
Looks like: “The Strain” + “Extreme Animal Attacks”
What it’s about: When the animals of the world decide they’ve had enough of being treated like animals, they arrange a series of deadly, and surprisingly organized, attacks on mankind. In this drama, based on a James Patterson novel, fantastically named zoologist Jackson Oz (James Wolk, aka “Mad Men’s” Bob Benson) is called in to investigate.
Lori McCue, The Washington Post
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