AppleTV+ | ★★★★✩
Calling your show Schmigadoon! pretty much makes it review proof for a Jewish newspaper. What am I going to do if I want to mock it, add another schm, Schmschmigadoon? The schm is our greatest weapon, even towering TV shows like Ozark and Succession tremble at the thought of being judged Schmozark and Schmuccession.
Fortunately the sword can stay in its sheath, for this clever post-modern take on the golden age of musicals, parodying the likes of Brigadoon, Oklahoma!, and Carousel, delivers enough good-intentioned snarkiness to go around.
The action swiftly kicks off as two doctors in an ailing long-term relationship take a bonding hike that gets them lost and trapped in a magical land of plywood sets, idealised 1910s Americana, and songs that break out at the drop of a hat. And then putting the hat back on. And then begging the cast to stop singing. From there it’s a witty six-episode romp through the tropes of 40s Broadway as they try and figure out a way to escape and fulfil the leprechaun’s (you’ll see) remit to find ‘true love.’ Which is exactly why I never go hiking.
