Reservation Dogs Prepares to Say Goodbye After 3 Seasons of Heartfelt Comedy

Looking for your next binge-watch, or just need to fill an hour? Welcome to Your Weekly Watch List, our curated collection of the best shows on television. Here’s what to watch from Sunday, July 30 through Saturday, August 5.

This week marks the beginning of the end for FX's critically-acclaimed comedy Reservation Dogs, which returns for its final season of laugh-out-loud jokes and heartwarming (and heartbreaking) moments. Plus: Sigourney Weaver and Alycia Debnam-Carey bring The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart to the screen, Big Brother kicks off Season 25, and Heartstopper delivers queer YA romance.

Dark Winds Season 2 Premiere

Sunday, 9:00 PM ET on AMC

It's a big week for Zahn McClarnon, who pulls double duty in Reservation Dogs and Dark Winds. Though Reservation Dogs leans into McClarnon's comedic sensibility, Dark Winds requires him to put on a straight face as Lieutenant Joe Leaphorn, a veteran officer in the Navajo County town of Kayenta. After parting ways with his deputy Jim Chee (Kiowa Gordon) at the end of Season 1, Leaphorn turns to his old partner, now a private detective, for help when a spree killer begins targeting the community. Along with Sgt. Manuelito (Jessica Matten), Chee and Leaphorn set out to thwart the assassin (played with maximum creepiness by Colton Wolf), but in order to win this latest battle of good versus evil, Leaphorn must face his demons and recalibrate his moral and professional code. That challenge brings even more of an edge to the Western crime drama, which continues to blend the thrills of police procedurals with intimate stories about life on the reservation.

Reservation Dogs Season 3 Premiere

Wednesday, Hulu
*Our must-watch pick of the week*

No disrespect to Dark Winds, but when it comes to Indigenous storytelling, no show does it better than Reservation Dogs. The celebrated comedy — which topped our list of the Best TV Shows of 2022 — maintains its elite status in its third season, which serves as a bittersweet swan song for this group of rebellious teens. Now that they've fulfilled the dream of their late friend Daniel (Dalton Cramer) and made it to California, Elora (Devery Jacobs), Bear (D'Pharaoh Woon-a-Tai), Cheese (Lane Factor), and Willie Jack (Paulina Alexis) struggle to find their way back home. In Bear's case, that voyage is literal, as he's separated from the group and left to rely on wisdom from his Spirit (Dallas Goldtooth, who steals the show in the premiere) and a conspiracy-minded stranger (guest star Graham Greene); back in Okern, his friends embark on metaphorical journeys as they consider what comes next for each of them.

Season 3 also spends more time with the aunties and uncles in the community, who guide the teens while exploring old wounds of their own. But even as co-creators Sterlin Harjo and Taika Waititi give the elders new depth, their stories prompt some of the funniest moments of the season, and as always, the talented cast strikes an easy balance between sincerity and comedy. The careful work of these Indigenous performers and creatives ensures Reservation Dogs will go down as one of the all-time greats of the 21st century — not to mention, its legacy will live on as the show that brought the term "sh*tass" to the masses.

Big Brother Season 25 Premiere

Wednesday, 8:00 PM ET on CBS

After a strike-related delay, Big Brother returns for its landmark 25th season, featuring longtime host Julie Chen Moonves and an entirely new group of players. CBS has largely avoided revealing details about the silver anniversary season, but a teaser video suggests the theme will involve a "time laser" that fan favorites Danielle Reyes, Frankie Grande, and Britney Haynes smuggled into the house in an attempt to "rewrite history and take back the victories [they] so deserve." Whatever happens, fans can check in on the houseguests 24/7 via Paramount+'s live feeds or tune into new episodes Sunday, Wednesday, and Thursday nights through September, at which point the schedule will shift to accommodate other CBS programming. Live evictions take place every Thursday night, so mark your calendar accordingly.

Heartstopper Season 2

Thursday, Netflix (Full Season)

New relationships, unexpected obstacles, and a class trip to Paris await in the second season of Netflix's YA juggernaut Heartstopper. Nick (Kit Connor) and Charlie (Joe Locke) ended Season 1 snuggled together on a beach towel, but now that they're officially boyfriends, Nick must navigate the difficult process of coming out.

While Nick and Charlie's romance makes up the bulk of Season 2 — which continues to nod to its webtoon roots by employing animated flourishes to emphasize the characters' chemistry — creator Alice Oseman gives the supporting players more to do as Tao (William Gao) and Elle (Yasmin Finney) explore being more than friends, and Tara (Corinna Brown) and Darcy (Kizzy Edgell) stress over those three big words. Even Isaac (Tobie Donovan), the introvert of the group, gets his due as he puts down his book and steps outside his comfort zone. Whether in England or France, love is in the air, and watching these teens wrestle with those feelings remains an uplifting experience.

The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart

Friday, Prime Video

2023 has been a disappointing year for book-to-TV adaptations (the less said about City on Fire, the better), but The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart stands out thanks to sublime performances from Sigourney Weaver and Alycia Debnam-Carey. When Alice's (Alyla Browne as a child, and Debnam-Carey as an adult) parents die in a fire, she's taken in by her grandmother June (Weaver), the owner and matriarch of Thornfield flower farm, which doubles as a safe haven for abused women. There, Alice learns the hidden language of plants — known as floriography — and embraces her power as a woman, but over time, she discovers that June has kept unspeakable secrets from her and the rest of their chosen family.

Adapted from Holly Ringland's novel by Sarah Lambert, The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart flirts with surrealism, but it always comes back down to earth, particularly in later episodes, as Alice finds herself in an unfortunate (and unfortunately familiar) situation with a man (Sebastián Zurita) who is not as he seems. A strong supporting cast only sweetens the deal, with Asher Keddie, Leah Purcell, and Frankie Adams bringing their A-game across seven episodes. The first three drop Friday, followed by one episode every week through September 1 — a rollout schedule that's for the best, considering the show's heavy themes of domestic violence and emotional abuse.

If You Have...

An Hour

Naked and Afraid Castaways: Sunday, 8:00 PM ET on Discovery Channel and Max
The Righteous Gemstones Season 3 Finale: Sunday, 10:00 PM ET on HBO
Breeders Season 4 Premiere: Monday, 10:00 PM ET on FX

An Evening

American Nightmare: Becoming Cody Rhodes: Monday, Peacock
Untold Volume 3: Tuesday, Netflix *One new episode every week
Physical Season 3 Premiere: Wednesday, Apple TV+
Demons and Saviors: Thursday, Hulu

A Full Day

The Lincoln Lawyer Season 2, Part 2: Thursday, Netflix
Lollapalooza 2023 Live: Thursday through Sunday, Hulu
The Big Nailed It Baking Challenge: Friday, Netflix

Up Next

Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty Season 2: Sunday, August 6 on HBO
Only Murders in the Building Season 3: Tuesday, August 8 on Hulu
Painkiller: Thursday, August 10 on Netflix

Claire Spellberg Lustig is the Senior Editor at Primetimer and a scholar of The View. Follow her on Twitter at @c_spellberg.