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Monday, May 2, 2022

What's new on streaming in May 2022 (not much)?

The streaming landscape for BONTS-era TV shows is increasingly bleak even as the so-called "streaming wars" get fiercer. Each month, the paid services let us down, while we rely on the free ones to throw us some bones.

According to my research, these streamers have nothing new this month (though a few filled in some missing episodes):

Netflix
Hulu
Disney Plus
Amazon Prime Video
Amazon FreeVee
Peacock
Paramount Plus
Britbox (it does have the modern follow-up to Open All Hours)

The most galling of these is Paramount Plus, which has access to tons of library material and is doing nothing with it.

There's barely any point in checking Showtime and Starz (the latter gets some old Westerns, including a new batch of Wagon Train this month, but has given up on classic TV otherwise).

Roku Channel doesn't like telling people what's new or making it easy to find, and I don't see anything, but I could be missing it.

Shout! Factory TV is touting new versions of The Carol Burnett Show, but it's hard to know if this is new or the same versions it and other services have been showing. The series is one of the most confusing out there. You can see it in edited versions some places, complete original versions with music other places, and for a while Amazon had both.

I could have sworn it was already on demand on Pluto, but the complete Too Close for Comfort is available. However, season 3 and 4 of Facts of Life, just added, are already gone, replaced by some of season 5 and season 6.

Tubi has a slow month, but it did add seasons 3 and 4 of Maude, notable because it dropped 1 and 2, which FreeVee still has. Tubi also seems to be licensing two seasons at a time of Diff'rent Strokes and The Jeffersons, which is annoying but better than nothing.

As usual of late, Crackle comes through with the real gems, most of which it added a little bit ago but officially count for May: 1982 Mickey Rooney/Dana Carvey/Nathan Lane sitcom One of the Boys, Andy Griffith (space) vehicle Salvage One, and half-hour helicopter rescue drama Salvage One. Crackle also added ALF, but it's the same chopped-up syndicated versions everyone else has. What gives with this show?

Maybe things will be be better in June. HBO Max has been way too quiet. Reports say Dallas is being remastered. Candid Camera should be coming to Shout! soon. Other than that, who knows?

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