US Senator Challenges Defense Industry on Right-to-Repair Opposition

Democratic U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren is escalating pressure on the defense industry to stop opposing military right-to-repair legislation, as House and Senate negotiators work to finalize the fiscal 2026 National Defense Authorization Act. From a report: In a sharply-worded November 5 letter to the National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA) obtained by Reuters, Warren accused the industry group of attempting to undermine bipartisan efforts to give the Pentagon greater ability to repair weapons and equipment it owns.

She called the group’s opposition “a dangerous and misguided attempt to protect an unacceptable status quo of giant contractor profiteering.” Currently, the government is often required to pay contractors like NDIA members Lockheed Martin, Boeing and RTX to use expensive original equipment and installers to service broken parts, versus having trained military maintainers 3D print spares in the field and install them faster and more cheaply.


Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Sony says Destiny 2 has not met expectations

Sony is not happy with the performance of Destiny 2, the company confirmed in its latest Q2 earnings announcement. “Regarding Destiny 2, partially due to changes in the competitive environment, the level of sales and user engagement have not reached the expectations we had at the time of the acquisition of Bungie, Inc.” Sony Chief Financial Officer Tao Lin said. In response, the company is recording around a $204 million impairment on the developer’s intangible assets.

The impairment isn’t equivalent to money lost, but rather a representation of Destiny 2 not meeting the sales and engagement models Sony made when it acquired Bungie. The “intangible assets” Bungie brought to the deal, like the Destiny IP and the developer’s existing customer relationships, are worth less right now than expected. However, that doesn’t extend to the “goodwill” created when both companies agreed to the acquisition, Sonys says, because it’s “supported by the whole game segment.”

When it completed its acquisition of Bungie for $3.6 billion in 2022, Sony believed the developer could use its expertise in running online games to help expand PlayStation’s live service offerings. While the strategy has led to successes, like Helldivers 2, which has proven to be a popular multiplayer game on PC, PlayStation and Xbox, it’s also created catastrophic failures like Concord, which was pulled from digital stores less than two weeks after it launched.

Sony’s announcement doesn’t suggest the company believes it was wrong to purchase Bungie, but it does put even more pressure on the developer to perform, and justifies Sony taking firmer control of what happens at the studio. Renegades, a planned Star Wars-themed expansion, could bring the mass appeal Bungie is hoping for, but the developer has a whole other game to contend with, too.

Bungie delayed its take on an extraction shooter, Marathon, in June, after it was revealed that a significant portion of the game used stolen assets. The developer hasn’t announced a new release date since then, but assuming interest in Destiny 2 never fully returns, a lot could ride on Bungie’s next game.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/playstation/sony-says-destiny-2-has-not-met-expectations-200000610.html?src=rss

Google is clamping down on Android apps that cause excessive battery drain

It can be tough to know when a phone is on its deathbed or when an app is just being an overt battery hog. Google is going to help users get to the bottom of things, according to a recent Android Developers Blog.

The company just announced the launch of a new metric for app developers that keeps an eye on battery usage. If a developer consistently runs afoul of Google’s battery usage guidelines, a warning will pop up in the Play Store to alert end users.

A Play Store warning.
Google

This metric will keep a particular eye on so-called wake locks, which is when smartphones are prevented from entering sleep mode by battery-hungry apps that want to run background processes when the screen is off. Google says wake locks are a “heavy contributor to battery drain” and has developed a threshold for what is deemed acceptable for apps running in the background.

This threshold “considers a user session excessive if it holds more than two cumulative hours of non-exempt wake locks in a 24 hour period.” There are exemptions if the background process offers “clear user benefits” with examples given of audio playback and user-initiated data transfers.

If a developer doesn’t fix the underlying wake lock issue, they get slapped with a visible warning. The Play Store label says that “this app may use more battery than expected due to high background activity.” That will likely turn off potential downloaders. I certainly wouldn’t pop one of those apps on my phone.

Google will go a step further in some cases, making the offending apps ineligible for certain discovery sections within the Play Store. These rules go into effect on March 1, so we only have a few more months to experience just how quickly an Android phone can go from a full battery to completely dead.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apps/google-is-clamping-down-on-android-apps-that-cause-excessive-battery-drain-194008031.html?src=rss

Elder Scrolls 6 Playtest Confirmed But Don’t Expect It To Beat GTA 6 To Retail

 Elder Scrolls 6 Playtest Confirmed But Don't Expect It To Beat GTA 6 To Retail
Speaking in an interview, Bethesda Softworks head Todd Howard confirmed that The Elder Scrolls VI is now in playtesting, but also that the full release of the game is still far off in the distance.

Since the original Elder Scrolls VI trailer dropped in June of 2018 (nearly seven years after Skyrim’s November 2011 release), it’s been another

China’s New Scientist Visa is a ‘Serious Bid’ For the World’s Top Talent

China has introduced a visa that will allow young foreign researchers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics to move there without having to secure a job first. From a report: Before the introduction of the K visa, most foreign STEM researchers hoping to move to China had to find a job in advance and then apply for a work visa. The Chinese government is making “a serious bid” to attract the world’s brightest minds in STEM, says Jeremy Neufeld, the director of immigration policy at the Institute for Progress, a think tank in Washington DC. South Korea, Singapore and several other countries have also launched STEM-oriented visa programmes.

The K visa was officially rolled out on 1 October, but Nature understands that applications are yet to open. Few details about eligibility have been released, except that restrictions will apply on the basis of an applicant’s age, education and work experience. Foreign researchers who have graduated from ‘famous’ universities or institutes in China or abroad with a bachelor-or-higher degree in STEM will be eligible to apply. That also includes people who teach or research STEM topics in such organizations.


Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Reddit mod jailed for sharing movie sex scenes in rare “moral rights” verdict

A Reddit moderator known as “KlammereFyr” was recently convicted by a Danish court after clipping and posting hundreds of nude scenes that actresses filmed for movies and TV shows but apparently never expected to be shared out of context.

As TorrentFreak reported, dozens of actresses had complained about the mod’s sub-reddit, “SeDetForPlottet” (WatchItForthePlot), with some feeling “molested or abused.”

Demanding Danish police put an end to the forum, the Rights Alliance—representing the Danish Actors’ Association, two broadcasters, and other rightsholders—pushed for a criminal probe.

Read full article

Comments

You Can Get This Lenovo Wired Desktop Speaker Set on Sale for Just $17 Right Now

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication.

If you’re tired of your laptop speakers sounding like they’re inside a tin can, this Lenovo M0520 2.0 Wired Desktop Speaker Set might be an easy fix that doesn’t break the bank, and it’s on sale for $16.99 on StackSocial right now. It’s about as simple as audio upgrades get: You plug it in through USB, no power adapter or extra cords required, and it’s ready to go. For anyone who just wants clearer sound for work calls, YouTube videos, or background music, this tiny setup does the job. The pair delivers 1+1 watts of output, not booming by any stretch, but enough to make voices sound fuller and music less flat compared to standard built-in speakers.

Each speaker is about 3.5 inches tall, so they don’t occupy much space on your desk. They’re lightweight, too, which means you can easily pack them with your laptop if you move between home and the office. The build is plastic but not flimsy, and the matte black finish keeps things looking clean and understated. Volume controls are built into the speaker itself, so you don’t have to fumble with software settings every time you want to turn the sound up or down. The frequency range spans from 20 Hz to 20 kHz, which covers most everyday audio frequencies well enough for general use, although bass lovers may find it lacking in punch.

But for quick setup and steady output, it’s about convenience over performance. At this price, it’s hard to expect surround-sound quality or deep lows, but the Lenovo M0520 makes a clear case for itself as a practical companion for basic setups. It’s plug-and-play, compact, and doesn’t demand extra outlets or bulky cables.

Our Best Editor-Vetted Tech Deals Right Now


Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Plus


—
$24.99

(List Price $49.99)


Amazon Fire HD 10 (2023)


—
$69.99

(List Price $139.99)


Sony WH-1000XM5


—
$328.00

(List Price $399.99)


Fitbit Versa 4 Fitness Smartwatch (Black)


—
$160.99

(List Price $199.95)

Deals are selected by our commerce team

Lumines Arise is out today and I can’t wait to play it

Lumines Arise, the latest chapter in the popular puzzle game franchise, is out today. It’s available for PlayStation 5, including on PlayStation VR2, and on Steam, with support for both VR and Steam Deck.

I’m a bit of a Tetris fiend. If there’s any game with falling and spinning geometric pieces, be they tetrominoes or pills or puyos, I am here for it. My personal favorite iteration of the formula is Tetris Effect, because good golly is that ever a beautiful game. Normally if I saw reviews bestowing adjectives like “ecstatic,” “euphoric” and “breath-taking” on a video game, I’d roll my eyes and snark, but Tetris Effect merits all the grandiloquent accolades. So when I saw during Sony’s summer State of Play that the same studio was back to give its mesmerizing treatment to yet another puzzle game in Lumines Arise, my hype level was pretty dang high. 

Since the reveal, we had some time with the Lumines Arise demo and the main takeaway was “if you loved Tetris Effect, you’ll adore Lumines Arise.” I’m delighted, but unsurprised, by that reaction. Because I watched that trailer and the tunes, the visuals, the vibes, all of it is exactly what I want to see in another Enhance project. So I am now eagerly counting down the hours until I can settle into a dark room, crank the speakers to max and get lost in yet another gorgeous puzzle flow state.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/lumines-arise-is-out-today-and-i-cant-wait-to-play-it-190936581.html?src=rss

Top 5 Zwift Videos: Zwift Camp. First Races, and New Setups

Indoor cycling season is the perfect time for you to sharpen your fitness for next year. In this week’s top video, learn about the Zwift Camp training series and watch as one rider tackles the first of the series: “Zwift Camp: Baseline.”

Other topics in this week’s picks include converting a garage into a home gym, beginners’ experiences on Zwift, and bike fitting on the Zwift Ride.

How Much Faster in 3 Months of Cycling? – Zwift Camp: Baseline

Benji Naesen tackles four benchmark workouts to get a baseline for his next 3 months of training with the Zwift Camp training series.

I Got Dropped in My First Zwift Race

After recently getting his Zwift set up, Luke Goldstone decided it was time to put himself to the test with his first Zwift race. Watch as he pushes himself to the limit on the virtual roads of Crit City.

Converting My Garage Into a Home Gym

Considering upgrading your home gym setup? Ryan Condon breaks down the logistics of turning his garage into a home gym.

I Started Indoor Cycling For 30 Days, And This Is What Happened

GCN guides two beginner cyclists through their first 30 days on Zwift. Watch as they tackle workouts, FTP tests, and races.

Zwift Bike Set up with Velo Tom – Bike Fit Advice

Struggling to stay comfortable on the Zwift Ride? Bike fitter Dougie Shaw shares tips for improving fit and comfort on the Zwift Ride.

Got a Great Zwift Video?

Share the link below and we may feature it in an upcoming post!

iPhone Air Sales Reportedly Dismal Despite Slick Design, Will Apple Make An Air 2?

iPhone Air Sales Reportedly Dismal Despite Slick Design, Will Apple Make An Air 2?
The iPhone Air is one of Apple’s most impressive designs, with the impossibly thin phone capable of going toe-to-toe with other slim phones on the market. However, indications are the new form factor has been unable to spur sales the way the company was hoping for. This has led to Apple rethinking its plans for what it wants to do with the

November Pixel Update Expands Scam Detection, Improves Battery Life & More

November Pixel Update Expands Scam Detection, Improves Battery Life & More
Google is bringing some holiday gifting cheer via the November Pixel Drop, which focuses heavily on infusing Gemini AI capabilities directly into Google Messages and Google Photos, along with expanding critical safety (such as Scam Detection for messages) and productivity features to a wider global audience. Update roll out begins this week

Remix in Google Messages brings AI photo editing to even more phones

Google’s November 2025 Pixel Drop is available today, and it includes some new features that should benefit more than just the Pixel phones and tablets Google typically targets. A new messaging feature called Remix in Google Messages expands access to Gemini-powered photo editing, and Google’s improving its Scam Detection and Pixel VIP features, too.

Remix in Google Messages is essentially Google’s Nano Banana photo editing tool, but available directly in Google Messages. The feature uses the same image model as Gemini and Google Photos, and lets Messages users tweak photos directly in a chat. Importantly, the edited photos are viewable by anyone in the chat, even if they’re not on Android. The feature is available in English in the US, UK, Australia, Canada, India, Ireland and New Zealand with RCS enabled. Google says remixed images can also be sent over MMS.

In the Google Photos app, those photo editing skills will now also be even more personalized. Google says eligible Android users with Ask Photos and Face Groups enabled, can refer to people in their photos by name while they edit. The Photos app can use past photos of your labelled friends to make tweaks like adding a smile or opening someone’s eyes without having to be provided a previous reference.

The new Power Saving Mode in Google Maps from the November 2025 Pixel Drop
Power Saving Mode in action.
Google

For anyone who owns one of the latest Pixel 10 phones, the Pixel Drop includes a new Power Saving Mode in Google Maps that blacks out the screen and only shows essential information and directions. Google claims the feature and extend battery life for up to four hours. The company hasn’t announced any plans, but the feature seems like it could be an equally good fit on Android Auto.

Scam Detection is Android’s built-in feature for identifying scam calls and warning you with a notification. As part of the Pixel Drop, Scam Detection will now also work with messages, warning you in your notifications on Pixel 6 devices and up if you could be dealing with fraud. As part of the update, Scam Detection is also now available in the UK, Ireland, India, Australia and Canada. The update also includes support for Notification Summaries on the Pixel 9 and up, which summarize frequent group chat notifications as a recap in your notification shade. If you’ve marked anyone as a Pixel VIP (a feature added back in June), Android will now also prioritize their messages so you don’t miss them.

Alongside those more practical features, Google is also introducing a new seasonal Wicked: For Good theme pack on Pixel 6 and newer devices. The theme pack is accessible via a new Theme Packs app that was released earlier in November. While it uses existing options like your wallpaper and icon settings to set “Glinda” and “Elphaba” themes, the convenience of Theme Packs is the ability to change all those settings at once. It’s unfortunate Google’s introducing the tool with an ad, but it could prove useful down the line.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/remix-in-google-messages-brings-ai-photo-editing-to-even-more-phones-190000445.html?src=rss

UK Unveils Plan To Cut Animal Testing Through Greater Use of AI

Animal testing in science would be phased out faster under a new plan to increase the use of artificial intelligence and 3D bioprinted human tissues, a UK minister has said. The Guardian: The roadmap unveiled by the science minister, Patrick Vallance, backs replacing certain animal tests that are still used where necessary to determine the safety of products such as life-saving vaccines and the impact pesticides have on living beings and the environment. The strategy says phasing out the use of animals in science can only happen when reliable and effective alternative methods with the same level of safety for human exposure can replace them.

The government said new funding for researchers and streamlined regulation would help develop methods such as organ-on-a-chip systems — tiny devices that mimic how human organs work using real human cells. Greater use of AI to analyse vast amounts of data about molecules and predict whether new medicines will be safe and work well on humans would be deployed, while 3D bioprinted tissues could create realistic human tissue samples, from skin to liver, for testing.

Other plans under the strategy include an end to regulatory testing on animals to assess the potential for skin and eye irritation and skin sensitisation by the end of 2026. By 2027, researchers are expected under the strategy to end tests of the strength of botox on mice, while by 2030 pharmacokinetic studies — which track how a drug moves through the body over time — on dogs and non-human primates will be reduced.


Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Four Tools You Can Use to Find Any Leak in Your Home

We may earn a commission from links on this page.

Your home is under constant threat from the elements—but especially from water. From roof leaks to burst pipes—water damage is the second-most claimed loss on home insurance policies, just below “wind and hail.” In fact, there are way more losses due to water damage than fire.

And the most troubling aspect of water damage is how silent it can be. You can have a leak for a long time before the damage becomes bad enough to notice. And even if you know you have a water leak somewhere, locating it can often be difficult because water can travel a long way from the source before making its presence known. That’s why you need these five kinds of leak detectors on hand, so you’ll know when a damaging water leak erupts, and be able to find it quickly to minimize the damage.

Moisture alarms

Step one is to have water detectors with alarms set up around the house in places where leaks are probable. These alarms are typically wifi-connected and simply detect moisture beyond a normal level, ringing out an audible alarm and sending a message to your devices warning you of a leak. Having them placed in bathrooms, kitchens, laundry rooms, basements, attics, and anywhere else where the home comes into contact with water means leaks will be noticed right away instead of slowly destroying your property over weeks, months, or even years.

These alarms can often be combined with networked shutoff valves that will automatically turn off the water supply when a leak is detected. That way, even if you’re not home, the damage from a leak will be minimized.

Moisture meter

As useful as leak alarms are, they can only help if present where a water leak occurs—and they only tell you that there’s water, not where the water is coming from. Sometimes the source will be obvious, of course—if the alarm placed near your toilet goes off, chances are good that it’s your toilet doing the leaking. But if the leak begins with a pipe in your wall, one tiny spot on a large roof system, or underground, you’ll need some help locating it.

A moisture meter is a must-have for finding leaks. It’s a simple device that measures the amount of moisture trapped in a material, like drywall or flooring. By taking multiple readings throughout an area, you can pinpoint where the water is concentrated before you start tearing things open to effect a repair, saving you time and money.

Endoscopes

Sometimes you need to see inside the spaces and voids of your home to find a water leak. If you suspect a pipe is leaking in the walls, for example, and you’re getting some confusing moisture meter readings, it might be time to reach for one of the most useful tools you’ll ever own: an endoscopic camera (aka, a borescope). This is a small, flexible camera that can be inserted into a small space and fished around, allowing you to see what’s behind a wall, under a floor, or inside a soffit in your home without ripping everything open. If there’s no obvious way to insert the camera, you can usually drill a small access hole that can be easily repaired later, and the video feed will let you inspect all those pipes to see where the water’s coming from.

Pipe locator

A pipe locator is exactly what it sounds like: It locates the hidden pipes feeding water into and taking water out of your house, which are often inside walls, under floors, or buried underground. If you’re trying to figure out where a leaking pipe might be located, this tool can be invaluable, especially if other options haven’t worked.

They’re not cheap—this one from Rigid is one of the more affordable options, and it’s about $1,800 at the time of this writing. But you can easily spend $1,000 or more if a plumber comes out to locate and fix your leaking pipe, so if you’re comfortable fixing the leak yourself, a tool like this will pay for itself eventually because you’ll be able to isolate the leak, turn off water to just that area, and effect the repair.

Steam Store Gets A Redesign With Wider Pages, Higher Res Images & More

Steam Store Gets A Redesign With Wider Pages, Higher Res Images & More
Steam might be the near default choice for finding and buying games on PC, but Valve isn’t resting on its laurels, as it’s implementing improvements to the user experience. Thanks to the insight the company gets from its user surveys, it knows that gamers have screens with plenty of pixels to spare, and this update takes advantage of that

Firefox 145 Drops Support For 32-bit Linux

BrianFagioli writes: Mozilla has released Firefox 145.0, and the standout change in this version is the official end of support for 32-bit Linux systems. Users on 32-bit distributions will no longer receive updates and are being encouraged to switch to the 64-bit build to continue getting security patches and new features. While most major Linux distributions have already moved past 32-bit support, this shift will still impact older hardware users and lightweight community projects that have held on to 32-bit for the sake of performance or preservation.

The rest of the update introduces features such as built-in PDF comments, improved fingerprinting resistance for private browsing, tab group previews, password management in the sidebar, and minor UI refinements. Firefox also now compresses local translation models with Zstandard to reduce storage needs. But the end of 32-bit Linux support is the change that will leave the biggest mark, signaling another step toward a web ecosystem firmly centered on 64-bit computing.


Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Linux Proposal Aims To Overcome Kernel Limitation Affecting Various Gaming Peripherals

The Linux kernel’s Human Interface Devices (HID) subsystem has an existing architectural limitation that there is just up to one battery per HID device. But with modern devices — especially among various gaming peripherals — there can be more than one battery when considering earbuds with a battery for each earbud, multi-device wireless receivers, etc. A proposal was raised today to address this limitation…

AI’s $5 Trillion Cost Needs Every Debt Market, JPMorgan Says

The furious push by AI hyperscalers to build out data centers will need about $1.5 trillion of investment-grade bonds over the next five years and extensive funding from every other corner of the market, according to an analysis by JPMorgan. From a report: “The question is not ‘which market will finance the AI-boom?’ Rather, the question is ‘how will financings be structured to access every capital market?'” according to strategists led by Tarek Hamid.

Leveraged finance is primed to provide around $150 billion over the next half decade, they said. Even with funding from the investment-grade and high-yield bond markets, as well as up to $40 billion per year in data-center securitizations, it will still be insufficient to meet demand, the strategists added. Private credit and governments could help cover a remaining $1.4 trillion funding gap, the report estimates. The bank calculates an at least $5 trillion tab that could climb as high as $7 trillion, singlehandedly driving a reacceleration in growth in the bond and syndicated loan markets, the strategists wrote in a report Monday. The analysts project $300 billion in high-grade bonds going toward AI data centers next year. That could account for nearly one fifth of total issuance in that market, which a report from Barclays estimates will grow to $1.6 trillion.


Read more of this story at Slashdot.

12 Shows Like ‘The Lowdown’ You Should Watch Next

We may earn a commission from links on this page.

Sterlin Harjo, of Reservation Dogs fame, is back with another unique and critically acclaimed series, this one starring Ethan Hawke as a folksy citizen journalist (or “truthstorian,” as he prefers), based loosely on the real-life activist best known for uncovering new details about the 1921 Black Wall Street massacre in Tulsa. Joined by Keith David’s Marty (and a genuinely impressive supporting cast), Hawke’s Lee Raybon has a relentless need to explore the dark corners of his community and its history, and unfailing ability to find trouble in the process. There are crime drama and neo-noir elements, but blended with a loose, sometimes quirky tone and an interest in the histories of Tulsa’s various and interconnected communities. It’s one other streaming’s buzziest, best-reviewed shows which is, of course, not necessarily enough to warrant a renewal these days. We’re still waiting on word of a second season.

You can stream The Lowdown on Hulu or buy episodes from Prime Video and Apple TV.


Sharp Objects (2018)

Based on the Gillian Flynn novel, Amy Adams stars here as Camille Preaker, a troubled reporter with substance abuse issues who’s only recently been released from a psychiatric hospital. I’m not sure what step of recovery this is, but Camille returns to her hometown of Wind Gap, Missouri in order to investigate the murder of one girl and the apparently related disappearance of another—all under the watchful, extremely critical eye of her socialite mother, Adora (Patricia Clarkson). The tone here is quite a bit darker than that of The Lowdown, but there’s still the sense of buried secrets and lies in a small, southern (-esque) town. Stream Sharp Objects on HBO Max or buy episodes from Prime Video and Apple TV.


Bodkin (2024)

A slightly better tonal match for Lowdown—at least in that it allows for a bit of humor to penetrate its world—Bodkin takes us to the title’s rather quirky Irish coastal town. Will Forte plays Gilbert Power, an American podcaster who arrives to investigate the cold case of three people who went missing during a Samhain celebration three decades prior. He’s soon joined by Dove Maloney (Siobhán Cullen), a Dublin-born journalist who’d been living in London, and aspiring journalist Emmy Sizergh (Robyn Cara). It’s very nearly a satire of the genre, with an engaging mystery at its heart nonetheless. Stream Bodkin on Netflix.


When They See Us (2019)

Where The Lowdown includes peaks at real history, Ava DuVerney’s docudrama puts a laser-focus on the 1989 Central Park jogger case—Trisha Meili was assaulted and raped in the park, leading to the convictions of five Black teenagers based largely on circumstantial evidence and coerced confessions. The show follows Kevin Richardson (Asante Blackk), Antron McCray (Caleel Harris), Yusef Salaam (Ethan Herisse), Korey Wise (Jharrel Jerome), and Raymond Santana (Marquis Rodriguez) from conviction into adulthood, and to the five ultimately being exonerated by DNA evidence and the real attacker’s confession. It’s a more serious story of the importance of uncovering buried truths, all the more relevant given that the President has continued to call for the death penalty for the five exonerated men, raising the issue as recently as 2024. Stream When They See Us on Netflix.


Fargo (2014 – 2024)

This season-by-season anthology crime drama finds us in the Midwest, mostly, blending crime drama, small town secrets, and healthy heaps of dark humor. The quirky characters in the shifting cast are sometimes lovable, sometimes reprehensible, but they’re consistently compelling in the style of the (fictional, at least) residents of Tulsa. Stream Fargo on Hulu or buy episodes from Prime Video.


Sons of Anarchy (2008 – 2014)

Charlie Hunnam leads an impressive ensemble cast here (including Katey Sagal and Ron Perlman) in the story of an outlaw motorcycle club in the fictional Charming, California. Hunnam’s Jax Teller leads the club, coming to question himself and his beliefs even as he tries to hold the club together and protect his Central Valley community. Though the drama is frequently Shakespearean, and the Cali setting is far removed from Tulsa, there’s still the sense of a tight-knit community that’s alternately strengthened and threatened by internal conflict. Stream Sons of Anarchy on Hulu or buy episodes from Prime Video and Apple TV.


Reservation Dogs (2021 – 2023)

I couldn’t go another moment without recommending Lowdown creator Sterlin Harjo’s previous masterpiece, the unjustly short-lived Reservation Dogs (co-created with Taika Waititi). This one gets a ton of credit for its North American Indigenous representation (characters and cast, as well as behind the scenes), and it’s a great show for it—a true dramedy that manages to bring both solid laughs and moments of heartbreak. It deals with issues and emotions common to rural teenagers who dream of going elsewhere, yet specific to these Oklahoma Rez teenagers. Each of the show’s three seasons is better than the one prior. Stream Reservation Dogs on Hulu.


Mare of Easttown (2021)

Kate Winslet picked up an Emmy for her performance as thoroughly troubled Mare Sheehan, a local hero in her days as a high school basketball champ, but with a reputation that’s rapidly losing its luster. As a police detective, she’s been unable to solve the case of a missing girl even as she’s confronted with a recently murdered teenage mother. Stream Mare of Easttown on HBO Max or buy episodes from Prime Video and Apple TV.


Watchmen (2019)

This criminally underrated adaptation/continuation of the graphic novel is perhaps a bit of a stretch here, but bear with me: There are key connections. Set in an alternate Tulsa, Oklahoma, in a world where super-powered vigilantes exist and have been outlawed, the series starts, dramatically, with the massacre of Tulsa’s Black Wall Street by white residents in 1921. Regina King plays Angela Abar, a modern cop whose grandparents were killed during the 1921 attacks, an event that echoes through both our own history and that of the characters in the series. Not only is the setting appropriate to that of The Lowdown, as is the theme of history impacting the present, there’s also a link to the events of 1921: The Lowdown‘s Lee Raybon is based, loosely, on the life of folk historian Lee Roy Chapman, most famous for uncovering the direct organizing role of Tulsa’s founder in the massacre. Stream Watchmen on HBO Max or buy episodes from Prime Video and Apple TV.


Echo (2024)

While the Tulsa of The Lowdown has a nearly small-town vibe, Echo takes us to Tamaha—a couple of hours south, but home to only a couple of hundred people and built on Choctaw land (the show was actually filmed in Georgia, so do with that what you will). Alaqua Cox plays Maya Lopez in this Marvel miniseries, a deaf former criminal and Chahta returning to her hometown and trying, with mixed results, to escape her past as an enforcer for Wilson Fisk (Vincent D’Onofrio). A drama of crime and redemption, Echo finds Maya reconnecting with her current family as well as her ancestral past, each episode beginning with a flashback that takes us from the pre-historic origins of the Nation through centuries of growth and conflict, ultimately linking that history to Maya’s own childhood. Stream Echo on Disney+.


Rutherford Falls (2020 – 2022)

Writer and producer Sierra Teller Ornelas joins Ed Helms and Michael Schur here, with Helms playing Nathan Rutherford, a descendent of a guy whose statue has a prominent spot in the title town. His best friend is Reagan Wells (Jana Schmieding), who runs the local cultural center for the (fictional) Minishonka tribe. The two are on completely different sides of the big issues that arise when the mayor wants to take down the old statue (mostly because it’s in a bad spot and cars keep running into it), but work to maintain their friendship anyway. it’s a sitcom, but, like The Lowdown, isn’t afraid to have complicated conversations about American Indigenous history, buoyed here by the record number of Indigenous writers on staff, including Ornelas herself. Stream Rutherford Falls on Peacock or buy episodes from Prime Video and Apple TV.


Only Murders in the Building (2021 – )

At first blush, Only Murders looks like a tonal mismatch, but it and Lowdown have enough in common to warrant a mention here. In Murders, three (initially) amateur podcasters come together in order to solve a murder in their Upper West Side apartment building. Each subsequent seasons sees a new murder (or murders), but in each instance our citizen journalists (Selena Gomez, Martin Short, and Steve Martin) are forced to dig deep into the histories of the individuals whom they’re investigating, either as victims or suspects, uncovering hidden stories and secrets that span decades. It’s often quite a bit sillier than our subject, but, as with Lowdown, the show’s quirky characters are aways a solid hang. Stream Only Murders in the Building on Hulu.


Dark Winds (2022 – )

Heading a bit west of Lowdown‘s Oklahoma setting, Dark Winds, adapted from a series of books by Tony Hillerman, takes up back to the 1970s and the Four Corners region of the American Southwest (where Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona meet). Zahn McClarnon, Kiowa Gordon, and Jessica Matten lead the largely Native American cast as three Navajo Tribal Police officers brought together when a bank robbery on the border of the Navajo nation becomes entangled with the deaths of two Native residents. The show blends hardboiled crime and police procedural elements, but stands out for its exploration of the fraught history and relationships between these neighboring, interwoven communities. Stream Dark Winds on Netflix or buy episodes from Prime Video and Apple TV.