The 5 New TV Shows You Can’t Miss in March
Photo Courtesy of Ian Routledge/Two Brothers Pictures TV Lists list
As the snow begins to melt, the days grow longer, and the temperature rises, you may be thinking to yourself, “I can be outside more! Time to watch less TV.” Well, my friends, you are officially wrong. There is a nearly insurmountable amount of TV coming your way this month. Netflix’s romantic drama Bridgerton returns for a second season on March 25, while Star Trek: Picard beams in for its own sophomore outing on Paramount+ on March 3. Elsewhere, HBO tackles the rise of the LA Lakers in the 1980s in Winning Time, premiering March 6. And true crime and scandal continue to provide fodder for new series: Hulu’s The Girl from Plainville debuts March 29, while Apple TV+ takes a look at the collapse of WeWork in WeCrashed, premiering March 18.
But now more than ever it would be easy for some TV gems to slip through the cracks of your remote. Here are the five under-the-radar new shows you can’t miss this March.
1. The Tourist
Executive Producers: Harry Willaims, Jack Williams, Christopher Aird, Tommy Bulfin, and Chris Sweeney
Stars: Jamie Dornan, Danielle Macdonald, Shalom Brune-Franklin, Damon Herriman, Alex Dimitriades, Ólafur Darri Ólafsson, and Kamil Ellis
Premiere Date: All six episodes premiere March 3 on HBO Max
Jamie Dornan stars in this six-episode thriller about a British man who has amnesia after a car accident in Australia. The series opens with a tense car chase as the Man (as Dornan’s character is known) is followed by a tank truck that forces him off the road before violently crashing into him. When the Man wakes up in the hospital, he has no idea who he is, why he’s in the Australian outback, or why someone is after him. As he meets people—including the seemingly charming Luci (Shalom Brune-Franklin)—he must figure out if they are friend or foe.
2. Life & Beth
Executive Producers: Amy Schumer, Kevin Kane, Daniel Powell, and Ryan McFaul
Stars: Amy Schumer, Michael Cera, Susannah Flood, Violet Young, Kevin Kane, Yamaneika Saunders, Laura Benanti, Larry Owens, Michael Rapaport, Rosebud Walker, and LaVar Walker
Premiere Date: All 10 episodes premiere March 18 on Hulu
Amy Schumer stars as the titular Beth in this poignant comedy. She lives in New York, works for a wine company, has a long-term boyfriend (Kevin Kane), and a somewhat fraught relationship with her mom (Laura Benanti) and younger sister (Susannah Flood). But after a tragic event in the series premiere, Beth moves back home to Long Island to evaluate her life, reckon with her past, and find a way to move forward and toward a happier life. That all sounds serious, and it is, but with Schumer at the helm, Life & Beth is full of hilariously honest and relatable moments as well.
3. Is It Cake?
Executive Producers: Dan Cutforth, Jane Lipsitz, Nan Strait, Dan Volpe, and Andrew Wallace
Stars: Mikey Day
Premiere Date: All eight episodes premiere March 18 on Netflix
Perhaps it’s overstating things to say that Is It Cake? is the greatest show in the history of television. But what I can tell you is that there’s probably never been a time we needed a show this silly and enjoyable more. Saturday Night Live’s Mikey Day hosts while expert bakers compete to create cakes that look like everyday objects—think a telephone, a beach ball, or a cheeseburger. A panel of judges must then try to guess what is cake and what is the real deal. The artistry will astound you (especially if you are like me and all your cakes come from a boxed mix), and Day’s good-natured wackiness keeps the show delightfully moving along. The judges mostly come from inside the house (Chris Witaske from Chicago Party Aunt and Lyric Lewis from The American Barbecue Showdown both appear) as Netflix cross-promotion remains strong. But Is It Cake? is a positively delightful hoot.
4. Pachinko
Executive Producers: Soo Hugh, Theresa Kang-Lowe, Michael Ellenberg, Justin Chon, and Kogonada
Stars: Soji Arai, Inji Jeong, Yuh-Jung Youn, Minha Kim, Anna Sawai, and Jin Ha
Premiere Date: The first three episodes premiere March 25 on Apple TV+. Episodes debut weekly thereafter until April 29.
Based on the novel of the same name by Min Jin Lee, this eight-episode series—told in Korean, Japanese, and English—begins in Korea with a forbidden love story. The series then moves to Japan and ultimately to the United states as Pachinko follows Sunja (played by three different actresses) from the time she was born through her turbulent teenage years and to when she becomes a parent herself. Written, created, and executive produced by Soo Hugh (The Terror, The Killing), this epic series spans four generations.
5. How We Roll
Executive Producers: Mark Gross, David Hollander, and Brian d’Arcy James
Stars: Pete Holmes, Katie Lowes, Chi McBride, Julie White ,and Mason Wells
Premiere Date: Thursday March 31 at 9:30 pm
Pete Holmes stars in this show as Tom, a man who’s worked his entire life in a car factory until one day he’s unceremoniously laid off. So, what’s a man to do? Try to make a career out of being a professional bowler, naturally. Inspired by the experiences of real-life bowler Tom Smallwood, the comedy also stars Katie Lowes (last seen as the ever teary Rachel in Inventing Anna) as Tom’s wife Jen; Chi McBride as the owner of the bowling alley; and Julie White as Tom’s skeptical mom. Between Abbott Elementary and Ghosts, network comedies are on a roll this season (pun intended!), so we have high hopes for this comedy.
Amy Amatangelo, the TV Gal®, is a Boston-based freelance writer and a member of the Television Critics Association. She wasn’t allowed to watch much TV as a child and now her parents have to live with this as her career. You can follow her on Twitter (@AmyTVGal).
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