In a world where it increasingly feels as if every good thing is attached to a number of bad strings, you can imagine our surprise when we learned that until July 7th, Microsoft and Apple are teaming up to offer a three-month free trial of Apple TV Plus to Xbox owners.
First spotted by Neowin, the deal was revealed on Microsoft's own Xbox Wire site. The opportunity is for both new or returning Apple TV Plus subscriptions. Users will need to sign up through their Xbox. Microsoft swears, “No strings attached, no hidden fees, just unlimited entertainment at your fingertips.”
Usually the three months free deal is attached to the purchase of an Apple device, assuming the buyer signs up within 90 days of purchase. Apple does offer a one month trial if bundled with other services like Apple Arcade and Apple Music. For everyone else its a 7-day trial and the $9.99 a month subscription. If you're an Xbox owner though, consider this a nice savings of $30 right before summer hits.
Apple TV Plus is one of the smaller streaming services but they have a number of great shows such as the hugely popular and critically acclaimed Severance and Ted Lasso. Microsoft mentions Argylle, but we’d steer you toward Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon, the wonderful CODA, or the beautiful Cartoon Saloon animated film Wolfwalkers instead.
For sports fans, Apple TV Plus does exclusively stream Major League Soccer (MLS), especially if you’re still interested in watching Lionel Messi in his twilight years playing in Miami. They also have Friday Night Baseball for MLB followers.
Here are five more Apple TV Plus originals worth watching:
Slow Horses
Slow Horses is a spy thriller starring Gary Oldman as Jackson Lamb, a disgusting human being who happens to be a washed-up spy running MI5's reject department. Each season is classically British with only 6 episodes per series and delightfully acted by the entire cast. We expect season 4 to drop this fall, but it won't take you long to fly through this one.
Foundation
We're sure there are Isaac Asimov fans who disagree with the changes made to the book story, but Foundation is an impressive show about a crumbling galactic empire and how the decisions made by people in power alter its decline. There are twenty episodes currently across two seasons.
Wolfwalkers
Let us highly recommend the gorgeously animated Cartoon Saloon's Wolfwalkers, the third in a trilogy of "Irish Folklore" including The Secret of Kells and Song of the Sea. This one follows a young wolf hunter, Robyn, who befriends Mebh whose mother disappears. The girls' journey takes them into the enchanted world of the Wolfwalkers. It's an absolute visual delight.
On the Rocks
For more comedic fare, Soffia Coppola's On the Rocks follows Bill Murray and Rashida Jones as a father an daughter convinced that Jones' husband is cheating on her. Bill Murray is still charming as an older playboy and absent father. It's a smooth cocktail of a movie to spend an evening with.
The Afterparty
We don't see this one get talked about as much, especially since Apple declined to move forward with a third season, but the two seasons of The Afterparty that do exist are hilarious. The show is an anthology where each season focuses on different main characters who get caught up in a murder. Each episode takes place from a different guest's perspective. Its a show filled with hilarious actors like Sam Richardson, Tiffany Haddish and Ben Schwartz.
