Think you don’t need to monitor your kids’ social media usage? Watch this

A horror show without the jump scares, this Netflix sensation hammers home the dangers of our connected world’s dark corners.

Owen Cooper stars as Jamie Miller in Adolescence. Picture: Netflix

Another week, another sterling television lineup. See what’s new on the small screen below.

Adolescence

Netflix

The latest Netflix sensation starts heavy, with a 13-year-old (played by Owen Cooper) accused of killing his classmate, and only gets heavier as the questions raised as a result of his arrest bring up the dangers – online, mental and physical – faced by today’s youth. Co-written by veteran actor Stephen Graham (who also stars), each part of Adolescence is filmed as one continuous shot, more than a decade after Birdman took advantage of this technique. It’s hard to believe Adolescence is Cooper’s first outing; his ability to play all the notes of a scared and aggressive modern child is exemplary. If you don’t think you need to closely monitor your child’s internet and social media usage, Adolescence might well change that. A horror show without the jump scares, this series hammers home the dangers of our connected world’s dark corners.

The Studio

Apple TV+

The powerhouse producing team of Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg return with Hollywood send-up The Studio, in which Rogen stars as a new studio head stuck on the old battleground located at the intersection of art and commerce. Promising equal parts Babylon, Tropic Thunder and everything in between, The Studio hosts plenty of recognisable faces with a stacked cameo list stretching from Martin Scorsese to Greta Lee to Zac Efron to … you get the gist. Other regular players include the ever-reliable Ike Barinholtz, Kathryn Hahn and Bryan Cranston as other component parts of the modern Hollywood system. While the show may not appeal to viewers who don’t really care how the sausage gets made, for those in the hive, The Studio has been on the watchlist for a while now. The 10-episode series is the latest from Rogen and Goldberg, who have been on a television hot streak ever since Preacher debuted in 2016, with hits such as The Boys, Pam & Tommy and Invincible to their names.

Invincible

Prime Video

It’s no wonder Rogen and Goldberg went with the one-two punchnot long after dropping season 3 of Invincible, because the latest season is really good. The adventures of young superhero Mark Grayson rode some bumps with an up-and-down second season after the undeniable success of Invincible’s first episode drop in 2021, but this latest batch of episodes were a true return to form. After defeating the second season’s villain in a bloody, time-travelling battle, Mark’s latest adventures return to the home front. His relationships again are in focus: from the next steps with will-they/won’t-they partner Eve; his mother, busy raising Mark’s younger half-alien, half-brother; as well as his superhero compatriots and the people behind the scenes in the government. For those unacquainted, the show, adapted from comics by The Walking Dead creator Robert Kirkman, opens with a terrifying premise: “What if Superman decided to break bad?” It follows the exploits of this Superman-like figure’s teenage son — whose closest analogue is Spider-Man — at school, in love and at work.

Alone Australia

SBS/SBS On Demand

The hit survival show is back for its third season, with 10 contestants set to be dropped into the wilderness of Tasmania’s West Coast Ranges to see how long they can survive with limited tools, handmade shelter and no contact with the outside world. Returning to Tasmania after the second season was filmed in New Zealand’s South Island (and won by Krzysztof Wojtkowski, a man who simply looks like he was built to win such a competition), the contestants, who range from school teachers to fur trappers, will see who can outlast the others for the $250,000 prize. If this latest season is anything like the first two, viewers will be treated to day one burnouts, foraging high- and lowlights and the splendour of our great land. Alone Australia will start its third season on Wednesday and runs for 12 episodes.