Welcome to Screen Gab, the newsletter for anyone who wants class to be part of the diversity they see on television.

That’s one of the factors that led James Graham’s “Sherwood,” set in a mining community in England’s East Midlands, to receive wide acclaim in its first season. Now that Season 2 is coming to BritBox, the playwright and screenwriter sits down for this week’s Guest Spot to describe his approach to the area where he grew up.

Also in Screen Gab #157, we catch up with “The Penguin” and offer streaming recommendations for your weekend.

ICYMI

Must-see stories you may have missed

TV producer Mike Schur, right, reunites with Ted Danson for the new Netflix comedy “A Man on the Inside.”

(Ethan Benavidez / For Time)

Ted Danson and Mike Schur Celebrate ‘Living a Bigger Life’ as They Age in ‘A Man on the Inside’: With their new Netflix comedy, the duo came together for a tender and humorous meditation on loneliness and finding purpose at the end of life.

‘Say Nothing’ explores the ‘human wreckage’ caused by young radicals during the Troubles: FX’s adaptation of Patrick Radden Keefe’s bestselling book focuses on the Price sisters and raises questions about how a deeply divided country can move on from the past.

Netflix gets into live sports with Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson fight: The platform is hosting its first major live boxing match on Friday, part of its efforts to expand into live content, which also includes hosting NFL Christmas games.

In phone call discovered in prison, Charles Manson admits involvement in pre-1969 murders: A new documentary series about the cult leader features audio in which he admits to participating in several murders in Mexico before the infamous Manson Family murders.

To light up

Recommendations from Times film and TV experts

A scene from season 2 of “Arcane”.

(Netflix)

“Esoteric” (Netflix)

As someone who has never played “League of Legends”, I was a little late by checking “Arcane”. The only positive side is that I didn’t have to endure the three year wait between the cliffhanger conclusion of the first season and the launch of season 2. Steampunk fantasy action set in the world of Riot’s video game , the animated series mainly follows sisters Vi and Bad luck. The couple grew up on the wrong side of the railway tracks, in the neglected and seedy underground city of a prosperous utopia called Piltover. Without giving too much away, certain events from their childhood place them on opposite sides of a conflict. The show tackles important topics like class division, privilege and the ethics of progress as well as trauma and the cyclical nature of violence. But it’s the exchanges between Vi and Jinx and those in their orbit that drive the show. The great animation and fun needle drops are a bonus. — Tracy Brown

Suranne Jones, left, and Rose Leslie in “Vigil.”

(Jamie Simpson / Peacock / World Productions)

“Vigil” (Peacock)

For fans of Scottish crime dramas – “Sheltand,” “Annika,” “Dalgliesh” – with a touch of international tension, check out “Vigil.” The first season involves a submarine, the second, a Middle Eastern military base, but there’s plenty of the Scottish countryside on display (not to mention accents). And the casting is top-notch: Suranne Jones (“Gentleman Jack”) and Rose Leslie (“Game of Thrones”) play detective and romantic partners, and their Season 1 co-stars include Shaun Evans (“Endeavour”) , Connor. Swindells (“Sex Education”), Gary Lewis (“Outlander”) and Adam James (“I May Destroy You”). With twists and turns and loads of the formidable Jones, this “Vigil” goes by quickly. —Mary McNamara

Catch up

Everything You Need to Know About the Movie or TV Series Everyone’s Talking About

Cristin Milioti and Colin Farrell in “The Penguin”.

(Macall Polay/HBO)

I’m not ready to proclaim “The Penguin” (Max) The Greatest Superhero TV Show of All — “Wanda Vision” and its fallout “Agathe always” remain the clubhouse leaders on this front – but Lauren LeFranc’s Oz Cobb origin story, starring an unrecognizable Colin Farrell as the titular mob lieutenant and a fascinating Cristin Milioti as of her ally/adversary Sofia Falcone, doesn’t need her Gotham City gloss to shine.

After all, if the series’ pastel sunsets over ruined streets suggest comic book panels, its tone and sprawling construction owe far more to prestige drama. As Sofia, fresh from an eye-opening stay in Arkham Asylum and the deaths of her father and brother, takes over the family business, and Oz, grappling with a mother at sunset Sun and a stuttering sidekick, tries to wrest control of the city’s underworld from him. understand, the couple racks up a body count that would make Tony Soprano wince. Yet it’s the more delicate touches — mixed-flavor slushies drunk to the tune of “9 to 5,” for example, or the sight of a killer in an evening gown and gas mask — that speak to LeFranc’s seriousness in creating a compelling television show. , and an entry in the DC Comics universe second.

Of course, the comparison goes both ways; “The Penguin,” like many of its “prestigious” brethren, is as prone to bloat as Oz’s double-chinned face, and not every flashback or sudden death evokes an emotional weight equal to that of the narrative. And yet, driven by the remarkable chemistry between Farrell and Milioti, the series manages to explore themes reminiscent of more traditional superhero stories without straying from its gangland inspiration. In its story of two overlooked and underappreciated eccentrics who fight to rise to the top, “The Penguin” is a reminder that Gotham’s main characters are all outcasts, whether they wear club feet, cat’s eyes or capes . — Matt Brennan

LEARN MORE: In the finale of ‘The Penguin,’ Cristin Milioti finds a glimmer of hope for Sofia

Guest place

A weekly chat with actors, writers, directors and more about what they’re working on and watching

Lesley Manville in season 2 of “Sherwood”.

(Jack Merriman / BBC / Home Productions)

The playwright and screenwriter James Graham made a career chronicling British historywarts and all, in projects such as “The Crown,” “Brexit: Uncivil War” and “Quiz.” Which makes this his first continuing series, “Sherwood” the next logical evolution: the acclaimed crime drama, which returned to BritBox on Thursday for its second season, is fiction, but it is inspired by two real-life murders that shocked the Nottinghamshire mining community where Graham grew up, as well as the long-standing political and economic tensions that have shaped the region. Graham recently stopped by Screen Gab to talk about how he carefully depicts working-class people, what he watches and more. — Matt Brennan

What have you watched recently that you recommend to everyone you know?

I’m a big fan of “Limit your enthusiasm” (Max), so I’m very sad that it’s over, but it’s a good excuse to go back to the beginning and start all over again. I thought this final season was very strong.

I also always recommend British dramas released in recent years. Show as “Happy Valley” (AMC+) and “Blue Lights” (BritBox). And “Black Mirror” (Netflix) is always inventive, invigorating and unsettling (even if it beat me at the Emmys a few years ago, grr).

And I always think “Easttown Mare” (Max) is one of the dramas of the decade.

What is your favorite “comfort watch,” the movie or TV show you watch over and over again?

“The Great British Baking Show” (Netflix) is the definition of the comfort watch (and eat comfortably). A stark contrast to competing shows that attempt to humiliate and torture.

Great comedies too, that we watch so often we can start reciting, like “Veep” (Max). And sweet, uplifting travel shows like “The Reluctant Traveler” (Apple TV+) with Eugène Levy.

Your previous work as a television creator consisted of stand-alone stories – TV movies and mini-series. Did you always intend for “Sherwood” to continue? What was the biggest challenge in launching a second season?

“Sherwood” is my very first “return” to an existing world and existing stories. The joy for me of the format, however, is that it also has an anthology element – brand new standalone stories or crimes that begin and end each season, with new characters coming and going. I hope this keeps it fresh and the reason why a show like this can come back.

You grew up in the Nottinghamshire coalfield, where the series is set. What do you hope to convey about this part of the country that has traditionally been neglected or misrepresented?

There is hope, but that hope comes from the people who live there. It won’t come from outside (or, at least, not yet). There is a dark humor that is used as a survival mechanism and a way to unite around the injustice imposed when their industries and jobs were taken away. And also, in these working-class towns, these working-class people – often called ignorant or less worldly by the media – have a lot of wit, intelligence and a way of articulating the world. And I love trying to capture that in “Sherwood.”