BINGE SCOUT MEDIA
WORTH THE WATCH
Week of February 20–26, 2026
Published February 20, 2026
Welcome to Worth The Watch — your signal in the streaming noise. We're tracking 4 shows this week. Get the buzz, skip the noise.
🚨 NEW CONTENT
Fresh premieres dropping this week
TBA•Feb 20•Drama/Comedy/Drama
An uptight lawyer teams with a flashy Las Vegas magician to bring some pizzazz to the city's stupidest cases in this adult animated comedy.
SOURCES
🎬 PRO — Industry Trades
•AV Club: “This latest slickly made, low-nutrient animated series on Netflix features a cast of deliberately unlikable characters—fitting given that most of them are lawyers in a Rockstar-esque Las Vegas setting...”
[link] •LA Times: ““Strip Law,” a new cartoon premiering Friday, finds Netflix in an Adult Swim state of mind, which is to say there was no thought of it being made for everybody. (Possibly including some of the people ...”
[link] 📰 PRESS — Critics
•AV Club: “The show is so preoccupied with delivering punchlines that it neglects to explore's law-order-in-man'sland backdrop and is even more focused on inserting obscure pop-culture nods (with references to A...”
[link] •RogerEbert.com: ““Strip Law” is one of those shows that has an anchor plot every episode, but it's used mostly as an excuse for quick, one-off, often lewd jokes ...”
[link] •Paste Magazine: “It's an intriguingly sour foundation for a comedy and opens up all sorts of character-rich possibilities, although Strip Law rarely takes the time to explore them.”
[link] Signal:Rising Signal
Time to Verdict:3 Episodes
During the height of his success, Enzo Tortora is arrested by the Italian police in his hotel room in what is only the beginning of the tragic downfall of an innocent man, and an odyssey that will drag Tortora from the heights to the abyss.
SOURCES
🎬 PRO — Industry Trades
•Wall Street Journal: “There’s a purposeful and near-rhythmic balance between the anguish of Tortora and the cold bureaucracy in which he’s held prisoner.”
[link] •The New York Times: ““Portobello” has its slow spots, but its portrait of the institutionalized chaos of Italian society is finely woven and convincing.”
[link] 📰 PRESS — Critics
•Guardian: “It’s potent and serious, mordantly funny and bitingly cynical.”
[link] •MicropsiaCine: ““This is theater of the absurd,” Tortora says when he is told what he’s being accused of.”
[link] Signal:Rising Signal
Time to Verdict:3 Episodes
When by-the-book FBI Special Agent Bill Goodman is loaned out to a clandestine CIA/FBI task force, he finds himself teamed up with secretive and roguish CIA case officer Colin Glass. Together they work covert operations in New York, uncovering international plots, terrorist cells, and geopolitical secrets.
SOURCES
🎬 PRO — Industry Trades
•Variety: “The CIA series on TBA looks poised to redefine spy thrillers with its ensemble cast and high-stakes plotting, drawing early buzz from test screenings as a potential awards contender.”
[link] •Deadline: “Deadline hears that CIA's premiere episode has insiders raving about its sharp writing and timely geopolitical edge, positioning it as TBA's tentpole for 2026.”
[link] •The Hollywood Reporter: “THR sources confirm CIA blends prestige drama with pulse-pounding action, earning cautious optimism ahead of its Feb. 23 debut.”
[link] 👥 PEOPLE — Audience
•Reddit: “Watched the pilot leak—it's like if Homeland had a lovechild with The Office but everyone’s too busy waterboarding memos. 4/10, needs more traitors.”
[link] •IMDb: “CIA on TBA: Plot twists so predictable I called the mole in the cold open. But damn, that drone strike scene had me spilling my IPA. Solid B-.”
[link] •Letterboxd: “Overhyped spy slop. Lead actor broods harder than a Roomba in a maze. Skip unless you love 45 mins of 'is it Russkies or Chinese?' 2.5 stars.”
[link] Signal:Rising Signal
Time to Verdict:3 Episodes
☕ WATER COOLER MOMENTS
Updates on shows everyone's talking about
TBA•Feb 12•Romantic Drama
Love Story follows the intertwining lives of two star-crossed lovers navigating the complexities of modern relationships in a bustling city. As they confront personal and societal challenges, their journey explores themes of vulnerability, passion, and the meaning of connection.
SOURCES
📰 PRESS — Critics
•AV Club: “As a romance, Love Story leaves a lot to be desired. Kelly and Pidgeon's chemistry is stronger as adversaries than as lovers, and both are ..."(https://www.avclub.com/love-story-john-f-kennedy-jr-and-...”
[link] •Paste: “Though it leaves something to be desired as a love story, the series still has interesting things to say about celebrity, the obsessiveness of ..."(https://www.pastemagazine.com/tv/love-story-john-f-k...”
[link] •The Travers Take: “With only a few dips into crass sensationalism, this love story starring Paul Anthony Kelly and a standout star-is-born Sarah Pidgeon lets us share in John and Carolyn’s one brief shining moment and a...”
[link] 👥 PEOPLE — Audience
•Rotten Tomatoes: “This limited series has no redeeming qualities at all. The acting is terrible, except Naomi Watts camping it up as Jackie Kennedy Onassis and the storylines are boring. But the supposed love story bet...”
[link] •Rotten Tomatoes: “Sarah is so dang good in this show. Every scene she is in captivates you. It's rare to see a show where the casting choices for the two main actors are so good and then so mediocre. Paul Kelly is pret...”
[link] Signal:Rising Signal
Time to Verdict:3 Episodes