August is already here, and with it come some very interesting shows—featuring pirates, warlords, detectives, and many, many Australian flowers. Here are the new shows Jenna Guillaume is excited about on streaming services this month…
The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart
Based on the bestselling Australian novel by Holly Ringland, The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart has an incredible cast including Sigourney Weaver, Asher Keddie, Leah Purcell, and Alycia Debnam Carey. The latter stars as Alice, who, as a young girl, is sent to live with her grandmother on her flower farm after her parents die in a mysterious fire. Spanning decades and exploring grief, trauma, abuse, love, and found family, The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart is both luscious and emotional viewing.
Painkiller
A six-episode, fictionalised limited series centring around America’s opioid epidemic with a focus on Purdue Pharma and their creation and distribution of OxyContin, Painkiller stars a stellar cast led by Uzo Aduba and Matthew Broderick. Unpacking the perspectives of both the perpetrators and the victims of the crisis, as well as an investigator, it promises to be compelling and chilling viewing.
The Winter King
Fans of shows like Vikings and The Last Kingdom will want to tune into The Winter King. Based on Bernard Cornwell’s The Warlord Chronicles, The Winter King is a retelling of the Arthurian legend grounded in a realistic Dark Ages Britain. Arthur, Merlin, Guinevere, Lancelot, Mordred—all the characters we know and love (and hate) are here, although not necessarily as we’re used to seeing them. Ian De Caestecker, Jordan Alexandra, Eddie Marsan, Daniel Ings, Andrew Gower, Ken Nwosu, and Valena Kane star.
Ahsoka
Star Wars fans will already be looking forward to this one: Ahsoka follows the titular character Ahsoka Tano, a popular figure known primarily from the animated Star Wars: The Clone Wars and also from The Mandalorian, in which she’s played by Rosario Dawson, who reprises the role for this spin-off series. The show follows Ahsoka as she investigates an “emerging threat to the galaxy”. There are a lot of things to be excited about in the show—the strong female lead, the expanded storytelling, and, of course, the return of Hayden Christensen as Anakin Skywalker.
A Murder At The End of the World
A group of nine guests are invited to a remote “retreat” by an eccentric billionaire and, of course, it’s not long before one of them ends up dead, while another is set on investigating what happened and preventing another killing. Emma Corrin stars as Darby Hart, the amateur detective at the centre of the story, while Clive Owen plays billionaire Andy. The premise isn’t exactly original, but that’s not what we’re here for—who doesn’t love a locked room mystery, after all?
One Piece
One Piece by Eiichiro Oda is Japan’s highest-selling manga series of all time, and it’s already spawned a popular anime series. Now Netflix is offering up a live action adaptation, telling the story of Monkey D. Luffy, an aspiring pirate king looking for a legendary treasure alongside his rag-tag crew. Fans of the original manga and anime have high hopes for the live action, but you don’t need any prior knowledge to enjoy it—it’s a classic adventure tale full of whimsy, weirdness, and fun.
