Credit: Lucas Gouveia/How-To GeekAugust has so far been a pretty solid month for Netflix in the U.S., and not necessarily because of any one massive hit—although I admit to getting reluctantly sucked in by more than a few episodes of Let’s Marry Harry (I blame my wife), and now I’m obsessed with the new docuseries about Charles Manson.
The good news is, Netflix has just restocked the shelves with a few new items, and while they’re not all new-new shows, they’re new to Netflix and worth a watch this weekend. First up is a new season of Shane Gillis’ scrappy garage sitcom, followed by a fresh new adaptation of one of Australia’s classic novels. The dessert this weekend is my top pick, a new stand-up special from an actor-comedian who leans on the absurd.
3
Tires (season 3)
Comedian Shane Gillis’ grease-monkey comedy returns
Some of my favorite SNL sketches of the last couple of seasons have been from the episodes with polarizing comedian Shane Gillis as host (the “CouplaBeers” medication commercial parody is pure gold). Aside from his SNL turns and his massive sold-out stand-up performances (he holds the Guinness World Record for Largest Audience for a Comedian, at 73,946 people, don’t ya know), Gillis’ side hustle, of sorts, is the hilarious Netflix sitcom Tires, now in its third season, which started streaming August 13.
Co-created by Gillis, his real-life best friend Steve Gerben, and director John McKeever, Tires is a single-camera workplace sitcom about the ridiculous goings-on of West Chester, Pennsylvania’s branch of Valley Forge Automotive Center. It’s the family business of Will (Gerben), the inept and high-strung heir to the whole dynasty, who runs the West Chester shop with his cousin Shane (Gillis), a general slacker whose life mission is to torment and undermine Will.
Season three sees the crew take part ownership of the shop, but throwing another, er, wrench in the works is the arrival of Shane’s dad (played by the fantastic Thomas Haden Church), who may be even more immature than Shane. While the critics don’t care much for Tires (RT has it at just 58%), audiences do (the Popcornmeter is a strong 89%).
Network
Netflix
Cast
Shane Gillis, Steve Gerben, Chris O’Connor, Kilah Fox, Stavros Halkias, Andrew Schulz, Tommy Pope, Charles Blyznick, Bob Senkewicz, Diana Cherkas, Ellen McAlpine, Victoria Harrington, Francis Ellis, Haining Luan, McKeever, Anthony Moore, Rachel Keefe, Emely Cartagena, Kerryn Feehan, Mike Rainey, Matt McCusker, Peter Reeves
Directors
McKeever
Main Genre
Comedy
Creator(s)
Shane Gillis, Steve Gerben
Producers
Molly McMillen
IMDb ID
tt31491435
Seasons
3
TMDB User Rating
6
.75
Streaming Service(s)
Executive Producer(s)
Becky Astphan, Brandon James, Brian Stern, Shane Gillis, Steve Gerben, McKeever, Ken Slotnick
2
My Brilliant Career
It’s Enola Holmes meets Bridgerton, in the Outback
My Brilliant Career is a cornerstone of Australian literature, and a classic feminist novel that’s already been immortalized on film and stage. Stella Maria Sarah Miles Franklin wrote it as a teenager and published it in 1901, at 21, under the male pen name Miles Franklin, so it would be taken seriously at the time. Why is this all relevant? Because the semi-autobiographical novel, and now this six-episode Netflix series it’s based on, borrows heavily from the author’s real life.
Quiz
Emmy-nominated Netflix shows in 2026
Trivia challenge
From rom-coms to serial killers — how well do you know Netflix’s biggest
Emmy contenders of 2026?
DramaComedyTrue CrimeRomanceCast & Crew
Romance
In Nobody Wants This, what is the occupation of Adam Brody’s character Noah, which
creates tension with Kristen Bell’s podcast-hosting protagonist Joanne?
and cultural conflict of the series. The show drew from creator Erin Foster’s own real-life relationship
with her now-husband, who is also a rabbi.
religious and cultural divide between him and Joanne’s secular world is the heart of the show’s romantic
tension, and it’s inspired by creator Erin Foster’s real life.
Drama
Black Rabbit, the thriller series starring Jude Law, is set primarily in which city?
man drawn into the dangerous criminal world of his troubled brother. The urban setting adds a gritty,
noir atmosphere to the story.
entangled in his brother’s dangerous underworld dealings, and the New York backdrop gives the thriller
its tense, noir-soaked energy.
Cast & Crew
The Diplomat stars Keri Russell as U.S. Ambassador Kate Wyler. Which acclaimed
creator developed the series?
Homeland, created The Diplomat. Her political drama background gave the show its sharp, witty dialogue
and credible insider-Washington atmosphere.
known for her work on The West Wing and Homeland, and she brought that same political intelligence and
sharp wit to The Diplomat.
True Crime
Monster: The Ed Gein Story is part of Ryan Murphy’s Monster anthology franchise. Ed
Gein’s crimes took place primarily in which U.S. state?
Wisconsin, in the 1950s. His case shocked the nation and inspired fictional killers like Hannibal
Lecter, Buffalo Bill in Silence of the Lambs, and Norman Bates in Psycho.
and his disturbing crimes in the 1950s became the real-life inspiration for iconic fictional villains
like Norman Bates and Buffalo Bill.
Comedy
The Four Seasons, a limited series adapted from a classic 1981 film, stars which
actress as one of the lead characters navigating a friendship group’s summer getaways?
co-created and co-wrote. The series reimagines the 1981 Alan Alda film of the same name and follows
three couples whose longtime friendship is tested over a series of vacations.
co-created and co-wrote the series. The show is a modern reimagining of the beloved 1981 Alan Alda film
about three couples navigating friendship and change.
Documentary
Love on the Spectrum, the Emmy-nominated Netflix series, originally premiered in
which country before becoming an international hit?
ABC network before Netflix produced a U.S. version. The show follows autistic adults navigating the
world of dating and relationships with warmth and authenticity.
network there before Netflix brought it to global audiences and later produced a U.S. version. Its
compassionate portrayal of autistic adults dating made it a worldwide sensation.
Drama
Death by Lightning is a drama series about which U.S. president’s life and political
rise?
Garfield, reluctant 20th president of the United States, and his greatest admirer Charles Guiteau — the
man who would come to kill him.
presidency, and how Charles Guiteau, a deluded admirer, who ended up shooting him, leading to Garfield’s
death.
Comedy
Beef Season 2, the follow-up to the acclaimed Emmy-winning first season, was created
by which showrunner who also helmed the original?
2. The first season won multiple Emmys including Outstanding Limited Series, making the sophomore outing
one of the most anticipated returns of the year.
first season to extraordinary acclaim — it won multiple Emmys including Outstanding Limited Series — and
returned to helm the second season as well.
Your Score
Thanks for playing!
Philippa Northeast (The Newsreader) plays Sybylla Melvyn, a fiercely willed young woman in 1900 rural Australia, whose family is driven into poverty during a drought. Sybylla yearns to be a writer, but she’s sent off to her grandmother’s to be groomed into a lady so she can be married off in hopes of solving her family’s financial woes. But Sybylla isn’t having it, instead fighting for her independence, although also finding herself smitten by not one, but two young men—Frank Hawden (What It Feels Like for a Girl’s Jake Dunn) and local rancher Harry Beecham (Christopher Chung, who played Roddy Ho in Slow Horses).
My Brilliant Career is a clever and dramatic coming-of-age series that feels like Enola Holmes meets Bridgerton, but in the Aussie Outback.
My Brilliant Career
Network
Netflix
WHERE TO WATCH
Cast
Christopher Chung, Philippa Northeast, Anna Chancellor, Genevieve O’Reilly, Kate Mulvany, Jake Dunn, Alexander England, Sherry-Lee Watson, Miah Madden, Ella Oliphant
Directors
Alyssa McClelland, Anne Renton
Main Genre
Drama
Creator(s)
Liz Doran
Producers
Paul Ranford
Seasons
1
Executive Producer(s)
Alyssa McClelland, Chloe Rickard, Liz Doran
1
Rory Scovel: Show Must Go On
The absurdist comic’s most personal hour yet
Credit: NetflixIf you’re up for a tight 68 minutes of off-beat, honest, and loose-feeling comedy from a guy so likable you’ll want to be his friend, then you can’t really go wrong with actor-comedian Rory Scovel’s second Netflix stand-up special, Show Must Go On, which landed August 11.
If you’re not so familiar with Scovel the comic, you might recognize him from some of his excellent acting roles, such as Rose Byrne’s flaky husband in Apple TV’s Physical and more recently in HBO Max’s Rooster. But Scovel’s equally comfortable on the mic, telling jokes. Filmed at Seattle’s Neptune Theatre, Show Must Go On does have some of Scovel’s twisting absurdist rants on things like fatherhood and what would happen if an intruder came into his house. But it also gets personal, with the comedian finally being able to share some of the humor and pain from losing his father in 2020, and not having an outlet to share it. He goes there with the hour’s closer, hilariously diving into his father-son relationship and a joke about his dad’s dying wish being that he sell more merch.
Rory Scovel: Show Must Go On is a solid hour of jokes with great pacing that doesn’t drag. A good recommendation for a Sunday evening or a quick watch before going out Saturday night.
Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K
Operating System
Fire OS
Resolution
4K
Some drama and lots of laughs this weekend
Lead with the new season sitcom, follow with the Scovel stand-up, and save the period drama for Sunday—it’s your call. Either way, How-To Geek’s streaming section does this every week (we also parse out recommendations for documentaries, thrillers, and more), so check often.
Subscription with ads
Yes, $8/month
Simultaneous streams
Two or four
Live TV
No
Price
Starting at $8/month
