April is showering us with TV, with more new shows premiering this week on Netflix, Prime Video and other streaming services, as well as broadcast and cable TV.
This week’s new TV lineup is led by the highly anticipated video game adaptation “Fallout.” Time to leave the Vault and head out to the Wasteland! Also making their debuts are the historical drama “Franklin” and spy caper “The Sympathizer,” the latter featuring Robert Downey Jr. in multiple roles. Here are our picks for the top new shows to watch this week.
‘Unlocked: A Jail Experiment’ (Netflix)
What would prison be like with no locks and no guards? It’s a radical idea that Arkansas sheriff Eric Higgins decided to explore for six weeks in a Pulaski County detention facility. Higgins believed that the program could improve living conditions in the jail and lower incarceration rates. During the experiment, the inmates were given greater autonomy — they could move around the facility as they pleased and decide how certain things should be run. Good behavior would result in more freedom. Some inmates use the chance to build their lives, but others continue to challenge authority and each other. By the end of the six weeks, Higgins will find out if his idea is sustainable.
Premieres Wednesday, April 10 at 3 a.m. ET on Netflix
‘Fallout’ (Prime Video)
“Westworld” creators Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy take on a series adaptation of one of the most popular video game franchises of all time. When a nuclear apocalypse strikes Earth, survivors shelter in fallout bunkers known as Vaults. Over 200 years later, Lucy (Ella Purnell) is an optimistic Vault dweller who leaves her peaceful residence to rescue her father. She must venture out into the irradiated Wasteland, which has become a hostile and savage place. Chief among the many dangers are other people. Maximus (Aaron Moten) is a soldier the Brotherhood of Steel, a militaristic faction that is determined to bring law and order to the Wasteland. Then there’s the Ghoul, a morally ambiguous bounty hunter who holds within him the history of the post-nuclear war.
Premieres Thursday, April 11 at 12 a.m. ET on Prime Video
‘Franklin’ (Apple TV Plus)
Michael Douglas stars as Benjamin Franklin in this limited series based on Pulitzer Prize winner Stacy Schiff’s book, “A Great Improvisation: Franklin, France, and the Birth of America.” In 1776, Franklin is already world-famous for his electrical experiments when he embarks on a secret mission to France — with American independence at stake. At the age of 70, with no diplomatic training, he must convince a monarchy to support America’s desire to overthrow their own to pursue democracy. Along the way, he has to outmaneuver British spies, French informers and hostile colleagues to broker an alliance. Spoiler alert: Franklin succeeded.
Premieres Friday, April 12 at 12 a.m. ET on Apple TV Plus
‘Good Times’ (Netflix)
Another week, another reboot nobody asked for. Fifty years after Norman Lear’s gound-breaking comedy premiered, Netflix serves up this animated sequel about the fourth generation of the Evans family living in apartment 17C of a Chicago housing project. The voice cast includes J.B. Smoove, Yvette Nicole Brown, Jay Pharoah and Marsai Martin. Lear himself contributed behind the scenes of the new show and has a cameo in the eighth episode — his final role before passing away at age 101 in December.
Premieres Friday, April 12 at 3 a.m. ET on Netflix
‘The Sympathizer’ (HBO)
Fresh off an Oscar win, Robert Downey Jr. is tackling multiple roles in this satirical espionage thriller based on Viet Thanh Nguyen’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same name. A young man called the Captain (Hoa Xuande) is a North Vietnam plant in the South Vietnam army. Near the end of the war, he’s forced to flee to the United States with his general. Now living with other South Vietnamese refugees in Los Angeles, he continues his spying activities and sends reports back to the Viet Cong., but the Captain soon finds his loyalties wavering. Downey plays several different antagonists, often wearing makeup that renders him nearly unrecognizable.
Premieres Sunday, April 13 at 9 p.m. ET on HBO and Max
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