Your TV GPS, a look at the week ahead in television, appears every Monday morning on BostonGlobe.com. Today’s column covers June 22-28.
You have abundant opportunities for documentaries about the country as the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence approaches. Netflix joins the fray with “The American Experiment,” out Wednesday. If you’ve been hoping to see Al Gore, Kamala Harris, Ted Cruz, Mike Pence, Hillary Clinton, and Rand Paul discuss what democracy means to them, this is the film for you.
The great Brenda Blethyn stars in “A Woman of Substance,” out Wednesday on BritBox. The series is an adaptation of Barbara Taylor Bradford’s 1979 novel of the same name, about an ambitious woman who rises from being a maid to being one of the world’s wealthiest women. She then uses her stature to get revenge on the family she used to work for. Jessica Reynolds plays the younger version of Blethyn’s character, Emma Harte.
Boston’s own Ayo Edebiri returns in the final season of “The Bear,” which drops its full season on Hulu on Thursday (the series will also debut at 9 p.m. on FX). Can the show add to its tally of 21 Emmys? Only time will tell, but do check back later in the week for TV critic Chris Vognar’s look back at one of the show’s best episodes. And yes, you should definitely try to guess which one he’s writing about.
Larry David’s got a new show coming out with some help from the well-known TV producer Barack Obama. You may be familiar with him from some of his other work in politics. David’s turning his gimlet eye on the history of the United States in “Life, Larry, and the Pursuit of Unhappiness,” out Friday at 9 p.m. on HBO. The tone may be just slightly different from that Netflix documentary: In a preview clip that was released, David plays a man who witnesses the famous “kiss” moment at the end of World War II (you’ve surely seen the photo), and tries to get a kiss of his own. In typical Larry David fashion, it doesn’t go well.
Lisa Weidenfeld can be reached at lisa.weidenfeld@globe.com. Follow her on X @LisaWeidenfeld and Instagram @lisaweidenfeld.