What to watch: ‘Lucky’ series turns Marissa Stapley’s novel into addictive TV

This week, we review an addictive crime-thriller series and another brilliant anime release from Netflix.

Here’s our roundup.

“Lucky”: Apple TV’s thoroughly enjoyable adaptation of author Marissa Stapley’s noirish thriller hews to a predictable but reliable plot schematic. Consider. After pulling off their biggest heist yet, a gorgeous con artist Lucky (Anya Taylor-Joy, a true joy in the role) and her equally gorgeous con-artist hubby Cary (Drew Starkey) down a bunch of shots, look adoringly at each other and party hard. A big problem — besides the ensuing hangover — happens the day after when Lucky rolls over in a bed that’s bigger than a Winnebago and makes the startling discovery that cutie Cary has taken the loot and skedaddled, leaving her to play dodgeball with a fierce, committed FBI agent (Aunjanue Ellis Taylor) who is hot on her trail.

Sounds sort of familiar, right? Where the film diverts from the norm lies in the unique, complicated characters and their weird, tortured even touching relationships. The family trees here have a lot of branches and some of them are a bit rotten. Oh, yes, there is action galore and a lot of violence. But what makes the seven-part series a cut above derives from the on-target performances, especially Annette Bening as Priscilla, Cary’s cunning, grifter momma bear who has an axe to grind with Lucky and Lucky’s dad, also a con artist. Clifton Collins Jr. lends strong support as Priscilla’s thuggish enforcer, as does William Fichtner as a candidate for worst dad of the year. Of course, Taylor-Joy is a force to reckon with and an anti-hero worth rooting. And it’s an unabashed pleasure to watch Bening tap into her “The Grifters” role. Creator, co-showrunner, writer/executive producer Jonathan Trooper never allows the series to go slack. Try it, you’ll be hooked. Details: 3 stars, first two episodes drop this week with a new episode every Wednesday through Aug. 19.

“Sparks of Tomorrow”: Netflix recently revealed its upcoming anime lineup and it’s quite the promising slate. And if this high-quality series based on a same-titled manga from Hiro Yuki is any barometer, anime fans are in for a treat. The three episodes of this outstanding series that were made available cements the claim that some of the most creative animated storytelling is being generated from anime. “Sparks” reimagines a 20th-century Kyoto that is reliant solely on steam engines, a problem in that it leads to a smoky atmosphere. But two science-wired brothers — Seiroku and Kihachi Sakamoto, both outside-of-the-box thinkers and dreamers — collaborate on creating electric inventions that they then add to their 20th Century Electrical Catalog. When Seiroku goes off to war, the coveted book goes with him. And then it is found, resulting in a tug-of-war to retain and use it for very different reasons and purposes. Add in the grief-stricken daughter of a sake brewer who has a keen sense for science and a steam-business owner who is sort of steamed about that book himself, and you have an ambitious series that works its magic in its first scene. The novel plot is intricately structured and gratifying while the animation — which dips into various styles including impressionism — invites you into an awe-inspiring alternative world. Details: 3½ stars; three of 13 episodes now available on Netflix.

Contact Randy Myers at [email protected].