Winter be Bingeing 26' - The Five-Star Weekend - Season One

The Five-Star Weekend concluded on Binge this afternoon, following its binge drop on Peacock last month.

Based on the 2023 novel by Elin Hilderbrand, the series stars Jennifer Garner, Gemma Chan, D’Arcy Carden, Regina Hall, & Chloë Sevigny. 

The eight episode first season received positive reviews from critics. Earlier this month, the series was renewed for a second season. I was surprised the season was renewed, given the series is based on a book, there is no cliffhanger to tidy up. Also this series was really much ado about nothing.

The Five-Star Weekend is centered on a food blogger, Hollis (Garner) tries to combat the loss of her husband, Matthew (Josh Hamilton) by recreating a five-star weekend getaway at her house on Nantucket with four friends from different stages in her life: her childhood friend, Tatum (Sevigny), her college friend, Dru-Ann (Hall), her motherhood friend, Brooke (Carden), as well as a woman, Gigi (Chan), whom she recently met online. 

As the five friends spend the weekend together, they mature in ways they could never imagine as boundaries are pushed and secrets are exposed.

Garner, unable to move forward, the death starts to expose the cracks in Hollis’s picture-perfect life—her strained marriage, her complicated relationship with her daughter, and her growing pursuit of validation from her fans. 

Set against a luxurious and coastal backdrop, the stars will mature in ways they could never imagine as boundaries are pushed and secrets are exposed.

It gives a poor mans Big Little Lies, just less murder.

This is not Peacock's best work, but it appears to have done well. In better Binge news, High Country returns for its second season on September 14. Bring it on! High Country: What Lies Beneath, is lead by Leah Purcell (The Drover’s Wife: The Legend of Molly Johnson, Wentworth) Ian McElhinney (Game of Thrones, Derry Girls), Sara Wiseman (Watching You, Territory), and Aaron Pedersen (Jack Irish, Mystery Road).

So if you need a reason to keep Binge a few more months, maybe High Country will impress me more. Although similar to The Five-Star Weekend, this series did conclude it's first season over two years ago.

For now, after waiting over a month from the US binge drop, all episodes of The Five-Star Weekend now stream.

I kinda expected better from Regina Hall, who I've always liked. As a side note.