What To Watch This Week: Reviews of American Rust, A Gentleman in Moscow and more

TV premieres were thin last week but American Rust, We Were the Lucky Ones, and A Gentleman in Moscow infused some new content in streaming platforms. Find out if these shows are watchable or passable.

Next week we get the premier of Sugar and Star Trek: Discovery, but this week didn't have an anchor premier. Let's find out if you should be watching any of the new shows from this week.

American Rust (Amazon Prime Video)

Three years after its first season, American Rust is back with its second season. Starring Jeff Daniels (The Looming Tower) and Maura Tierney (The Affair), you don't have to watch the first season to understand the second season.

In the second season, Daniels is back with the Pittsburgh police investigating a series of murders. But his real job is working with the FBI to expose the Brotherhood within the police department. The Brotherhood exacts vigilante justice on cases that they can't prove or have lost. Meanwhile, Tierney, who plays the angriest woman in the world, is trying to rebuild her life after her son is released from jail after taking a horrible beating.

Daniels plays his usual character with deadpan, sarcastic humor while Tierney drops more F-bombs than a Scorsese mob movie. The investigations are mildly interesting, and the suspense of Daniels' undercover activity is decent. In a crowded category of crime dramas, American Rust doesn't really stand out after the first few episodes.

Verdict: Wait and See.

We Were the Lucky Ones (Hulu)

Starring Joey King (Bullet Train) and Logan Lerman (Hunters), Hulu released three episodes for its premier.

We Were the Lucky Ones is the next WWII show to follow All The Light We Cannot See, Masters of the Air, and The New Look. In this series, Nazis are still really bad people. The show chronicles the Nazi invasion of Poland and the detention and subsequent annihilation of the Jewish population. The show follows a family's fight to reunite over many years.

Though billed as a story of hope and a happy ending, getting there will not be hopeful or happy. What isn't typical of a Holocaust show and was very interesting was the detail surrounding the time before the invasion and the mindset of the Jews who didn't flee. If you aren't familiar with the atrocities of the Holocaust, this show will educate you. The show is an accurate representation of the era and is extremely difficult to watch.

Verdict: Watch if you haven't spent much time with the subject matter.

A Gentleman in Moscow (Paramount+)

Starring Ewan McGregor (Obi-Wan Kenobi), you can watch A Gentleman in Moscow on Fridays if you have Paramount+ or on Sundays with Showtime.

A Gentleman in Moscow is the story of Count Alexander Rostov who was arrested, along with all of the aristocracy in Russia during the Bolshevik Revolution in the 1920's. Instead of being put to death like many of the royal family, the Count is imprisoned in the luxury hotel where he used to live. He doesn't get to live in his typical suite and most of his valuables are taken from him, but he keeps several suits and gets free meals, wine, and drinks for the rest of his life. He just can't leave the hotel.

After the premiere, it isn't easy to understand where this show is going to head. The show deals with the sheer boredom of living every day in the hotel, the various people he befriends, and the Red Army's continued punishment of the previous rich and powerful.

Verdict: Wait and See

Recent and Current Releases to Keep Watching

Shows are starting to fall off the list because they have been around for a while. Manhunt has been promoted from Wait and See to Watch. Constellation is also getting promoted. Though the big reveal is easy to guess early on, they did it very differently than other shows of the same genre. It is worth watching.

• The Feud: Capote vs. The Swans (Hulu). All episodes streaming.
• Halo (Paramount+). All Episodes streaming.
• Formula 1: Drive To Survive (Netflix). You don't have to like the sport to like the show.
• Poacher (Amazon Prime Video). All episodes streaming.
• Furies (Netflix). All episodes streaming.
• The Tourist (Netflix). All episodes streaming.
• The Gentlemen (Netflix). All episodes streaming.
• The Regime (MAX).
• Shogun (Hulu).
• Invincible (Amazon Prime Video).
• Girls on the Bus (MAX).
• 3 Body Problem (Netflix). All episodes streaming.
• Ark (Paramount+). All episodes streaming.
• Manhunt (Apple TV+).
• Constellation (Apple TV+). All episodes streaming.