I read an article over the weekend about two men in Canada who were switched at birth, and I've been thinking about it ever since. If you're in the market for a long read today, this is it. |
 | | Hilary Duff, left, and Sutton Foster in the final season of "Younger."Nicole Rivelli/2021 ViacomCBS |
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"Younger," an easygoing comedy set in the book publishing world, is one of my favorite good-bad shows; so much of it is light and poppy and pure pleasure, and then a sliver of it is always sort of embarrassing, either out of touch or just plain dumb. That blend endures here in the seventh and final season, in which the relationship between Liza and her boss and B.F.F., Kelsey (Sutton Foster and Hilary Duff), remains a bright spot. Everything else is a little wobbly. |
On the bummer side, Miriam Shor's thrilling antagonist, Diana, appears only once, and briefly, so the show winds up searching for its conflict rather than revealing it through a deepening understanding of its characters. The show seems convinced it has to keep Liza and Charles (Peter Hermann) apart, now in ways that are less "this creates giddy anticipation!" and more "here are some contrived and arbitrary obstacles." |
Sometimes I wonder if "Younger" knows what it's actually good at. Because it is good at its zingers, its bubbly spoofs, its happy over-the-top parties, and the show's sunny horniness has not dimmed. But the product placements are garish, several characters have long overstayed their welcomes, and the stories back away from big emotions, which can make the show feel a little shallow. |
The first four episodes drop on Paramount+ and Hulu Thursday, and then the rest of the season will be doled out weekly. The show has always worked better as a binge than week-to-week, so I would save up a bunch to watch in a sitting. If you're new to "Younger," don't start here. Long-term fans will be glad they saw everything through to the end, though. |
 | | A scene from the fourth and final season of "Infinity Train."HBO Max |
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When to watch: Book 4 arrives Thursday, on HBO Max. |
"You know how in life, you make, like, choices?" asks a flying call bell named Kez. "But there are other choices you could have made, too, that would have been, like, different? It's basically that." That's the new season of "Infinity Train," as summed up by one of its new main characters: dreamy, challenging, lovely and perceptive, and also filled with talking bells and cat bartenders and glowing numbers on your palm that point to your path of redemption. |
"Infinity Train" is an anthology series, and each of its books follows different characters on the same strange train, each experiencing its bizarre and special worlds and seeking what we're all seeking — hope, safety, companionship, confidence. This season, our heroes are Min-Gi and Ryan, two best friends who grew apart after one hit the road to pursue dreams of music stardom while the other stayed home and stewed. |
The series has the kind of whimsy you find mostly in shows made for young viewers. But its understanding of emotional baggage is nuanced and wise, not as boiled-down as you might expect from a cartoon. If you like imaginative adventure sagas, watch this. |
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