For our recs, we have a prequel to a zombie film that has zero zombies, a biopic of a controversial activist QB from a time before he knew his future would be made of actual insanity, the 5000th installment in the most famous found footage franchise, and the CW goes behind-the-scenes on those can-do Mystery Van-ers who have been solving mysteries both terrestrial and supernatural since the 1960s.

KATHERINE’S PICK:
Army of Thieves [Netflix]
This Army of the Dead prequel might be more fun than its zombie counterpart. Matthias Schweighöfer directs and stars.

NAVANI’S PICK:
Colin in Black & White [Netflix]
Ugh, high school. You can’t pay me to go back there. But watch someone else’s experience, sign me up. Get an intimate view of Colin Kaepernick’s formative years in the new scripted series that delves into themes of identity and racial dynamics he’s confronted in his family, relationships and life.

BRAD’S PICK:
Paranormal Activity: Next of Kin [Paramount+]
Still a franchise that has some life in it, the newest addition hits Paramount+ today and tells the story for a woman who is seeking her biological parents. She finds that they are Amish… Or are they? I’m guessing no. Happy Halloween!

JASON’S PICK:
Scooby-Doo, Where Are You? [The CW, 8p]
In the spirit of the polarizing “Behind the Laughter” episode of The Simpsons, Fred, Daphne, Velma, Shaggy, and Scooby get a mockumentary examining the gang who fearlessly (or in the case of Shaggy & Scooby, quite fearfully) solve crimes on disused amusement parks and disused factories and… well, you get the idea. They would never have gotten away with it if it weren’t for the meddling kids who have watched them for over 50 years. I hope at least one Harlem Globetrotter is interviewed.

BUT, WAIT, THERE’S MORE:

• Alabama-born comic Roy Wood, Jr., was already one of stand-ups rising stars when he became Trevor Noah’s go-to correspondent on The Daily Show. His latest Comedy Central special Roy Wood, Jr.: Imperfect Messenger highlights the comic’s storytelling skills as he deals with a world that seems to be getting exponentially more insane every day.
• Speaking of Daily Show correspondents, its youngest to date, Jaboukie Young-White, heads the voice cast of Amazon Prime’s Fairfax, an animated series with a definite Animals vibe. This one follows the action on a busy Los Angeles block centering mostly on a group of four teenage friends.
• Then there’s the usual array of Netflix imports. This week we have, in alpha order, the Bollywood-tweaking comedy from (where else) India, Call My Agent: Bollywood, the French comedy of manners Dear Mother, the second season of the French relationship dramedy Mythomaniac, and the first season of the Spanish concept series The Time It Takes where our heartbroken lead vows to spend less time in the past and more in the present, a promise of balance that the show takes very literally and very meta as there is one minute fewer from the past in each episode.

• It’s weirdly a huge day for dramas depicting real-life superstar athlete’s childhood’s–a genre we had barely thought about up until today. Apple TV brings in Ice Cube’s son to play a younger version of NBA superstar and occasional Hollywood actor Kevin Durant in the series Swagger.
• And there’s even a third biopic of a superstar athlete, however, sadly, this one died last November of a heart attack. Maradona: Blessed Dreams features newcomer Juan Palomino as the legendary Argentine footballer as he takes the international soccer world by storm.
• Over in the LHV (Lifetime-Hallmark Vortex), both our main players roll out new full-lengths. Hallmark is not taking a break from rolling out December’s holiday way too early with its latest yuletide romance Christmas in Harmony. Seriously, their “Countdown to Christmas” is getting as convolutedly long as a kid who commits to finishing “99 Bottles of Beer.” Lifetime goes in a totally different direction with Deadly Due Date in which, not to spoil, but a stalker is clearly going to steal that baby.