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Streaming TV in March Is a Slam Dunk, But You Can Cancel 3 Services

Some big shows are releasing new seasons — including an anime favorite and Ted Lasso — but here’s a guide on which services to drop to save dough.

With so many shows returning to TV in March, it will be tough to decide which streaming services to keep or cancel. After more than a year of waiting, Ted Lasso and AFC Richmond are back on the Apple TV Plus field. Two years have passed since we’ve seen Baby Yoda, so fans will make The Mandalorian season 3 appointment TV this month. There’s more: Succession returns at the end of the month for a last hurrah, and I have to mention that one of the biggest anime series in the world is hitting the screen on March 4 to wrap up its story in Attack on Titan Final Season part 3.

That means some of you will need to keep at least three streamers in rotation this month — including Crunchyroll — if you want to watch these shows immediately when episodes are available. But you don’t have to.

Each month, you probably weigh whether to cancel a streaming service because of the cost and whatever content is currently available. In these iffy financial times, I’d like to offer one strategy: Churn like ice cream.

What’s that? Simply rotate your services. Subscribe, cancel, stream on a different platform, then resubscribe, keeping your favorites in a rotation. This allows you to save money when Netflix, Disney Plus, HBO Max and so on don’t have the content you want to watch at a given time. Just remember to shut off autorenewal for your monthly subscriptions. Churning may not be an option if you’re sharing your accounts with people outside your household, but if you can work out an arrangement with your streaming peeps, go for it.

To give you a head start this spring, here are my recommendations for which streamers to keep or cancel for March, based on new TV shows and movies (I didn’t consider sports and live TV streaming services) arriving on each platform. Your tastes may be different, but if nothing else, I urge you to at least consider the concept of rotating for savings. It’s easier than you may think.

March streaming service rotation

Keep Cancel
Apple TV Plus X
Hulu X
Netflix X
HBO Max X
Disney Plus X
Starz X
Paramount Plus X
Prime Video X
Peacock X

Keep streaming these services if you’re a fan of their shows

Apple TV Plus: On March 15, it’s Ted Lasso, y’all. That is all.

Netflix: Chris Rock goes live, Shadow and Bone is back and the second half of You drops along with a string of new titles. New releases are listed below, but if you’re mad at Netflix about the upcoming password-sharing fees for the US, do as you will.

  • Sex/Life season 2 (March 2)
  • Chris Rock: Selective Outrage live comedy special (March 4 at 7 p.m. PT/10 p.m. ET)
  • Divorce Attorney Shin K-drama (March 4)
  • MH370: The Plane That Disappeared (March 8)
  • You season 4 part 2 (March 9)
  • Luther: The Fallen Sun (March 10)
  • Nike Training Club releases new workouts, including yoga (March 10)
  • Money Shot: The PornHub Story (March 15)
  • Shadow and Bone (March 16)
  • Agent Elvis (March 17)
  • The Magician’s Elephant (March 17) animated original film based on book
  • Waco: American Apocalypse (March 22)
  • The Night Agent season 1 (March 23)
  • Love is Blind season 4 (March 24)
  • Black Clover: Sword of the Wizard King (March 31) original anime film
  • Murder Mystery 2 (March 31)

Disney Plus: Keep streaming Star Wars: The Bad Batch and welcome The Mandalorian season 3 (March 1). You may also want to check out Chang Can Dunk (March 10). But if you’re not a Star Wars fan or don’t have kids who need to watch Disney Plus this month, then cancel it. 

Starz: BMF wraps its second season on March 17, the same day Tariq St. Patrick debuts with more drama in Power Book II: Ghost season 3. With Zeke and Mecca dead, there will be plenty to answer for in the latest installment. Right now, you can sign up for Starz and pay $5 monthly for three months.

power book II characters Cane, Effie, Tariq and Brayden stand around a table in an old warehousepower book II characters Cane, Effie, Tariq and Brayden stand around a table in an old warehouse

Power Book II: Ghost season 3 comes to Starz on St. Patrick’s Day, March 17.

Starz

Prime Video: Adapted from Taylor Jenkins Reid’s novel, Daisy Jones and The Six is a new series that will be the biggest drop on Prime Video this month. Begin streaming it on March 3.

Peacock: Bel-Air continues to air weekly. The Poker Face finale drops on March 9, so if you’ve been waiting to binge the show, March is a good time to sign up for Peacock — there’s a free seven-day trial available. You can also stream Premier League soccer and new episodes of NBC shows too like Chicago Fire. If you’re not into any Peacock originals or NBC shows, cancel.

Pause or cancel these streaming services in March

Hulu: If you want, you can keep watching network shows like Snowfall, Abbott Elementary and The Masked Singer or Hulu original Wu-Tang: An American Saga. New drops include Unprisoned (March 10) starring Kerry Washington and Boston Strangler (March 17). It’s likely the new installment of Attack on Titan will stream here too. But if you’d rather wait to binge these titles or you’re not into network TV, pause your subscription for now. 

Paramount Plus: Aside from Star Trek: Picard, Ghosts and a few reality shows, there may not be enough to keep you interested in Paramount Plus for March. But here’s what’s new: The Challenge: World Championship (March 6), School Spirits starring Peyton List (March 9) and Rabbit Hole (March 26) featuring Kiefer Sutherland as a spy.

HBO Max: The Last of Us finale airs on March 12, and Succession returns with its final season on March 26. Depending on your preferences, you might want to cancel HBO Max after The Last of Us ends, especially if you’re not a Succession fan. Friendly reminder that HBO Max now costs $16 a month for the ad-free version. 

Succession s4Succession s4

If you really want to save money, hold off on watching Succession’s final season for a few months.

Claudette Barius/HBO

Save more money by waiting to binge

If you’re not someone who routinely gets FOMO, then a smart method is to wait until the bulk or all episodes of your favorite series land on a platform. That way, rather than pay for a service for two or three months to cover the six- to 10-week run of a show, you can catch up on everything by subscribing for one month. And then repeat the cycle again.

For example, there will be 10 episodes of Succession season 4 on HBO Max. The finale drops around late May, so all episodes of the Roy family’s dysfunction will be available to stream at that time. Though it premieres on March 26 and runs through May, why pay for three months when you can wait to stream it in full anytime in June? The same practice can apply to The Mandalorian’s 10-episode run and 12 episodes in season 3 of Ted Lasso.

Note how much you’re paying per month for each streaming service, and do the math. Apple TV Plus is $7. Netflix is $7 to $20 (until account-sharing fees kick in), Disney Plus is anywhere from $2 to $11 depending on bundles, HBO Max costs $10 or $16, Hulu starts at $8 and Starz runs $9. The others have a base rate of $5 per month. Should you decide to churn, set yourself a calendar reminder to alert you when it’s time to resubscribe or cancel. We’ll see you in April for another streaming rundown. 

Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Sunday, May 18

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for May 18.

Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.


Today’s NYT Mini Crossword offers up two golf-computer clues, which sound confusing, but are pretty easy once you give them some thought. Need some help with today’s Mini Crossword? Read on. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.

The Mini Crossword is just one of many games in the Times’ games collection. If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword

Let’s get at those Mini Crossword clues and answers.

Mini across clues and answers

1A clue: Golf shot that’s also a piece of computer hardware
Answer: CHIP

5A clue: Golf shot that’s also a piece of computer hardware
Answer: DRIVE

6A clue: Screenwriter Sorkin
Answer: AARON

7A clue: Nonreactive, chemically
Answer: INERT

8A clue: «Bye-bye!»
Answer: SEEYA

Mini down clues and answers

1D clue: Origami bird
Answer: CRANE

2D clue: Person added to the staff
Answer: HIREE

3D clue: Material used to plate the skin of the Parthenon Athena and the statue of Zeus at Olympia
Answer: IVORY

4D clue: Five: Prefix
Answer: PENTA

5D clue: Speaker’s platform
Answer: DAIS

How to play more Mini Crosswords

The New York Times Games section offers a large number of online games, but only some of them are free for all to play. You can play the current day’s Mini Crossword for free, but you’ll need a subscription to the Times Games section to play older puzzles from the archives.

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Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for May 18, #237

Hints and answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, No. 237, for May 18.

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.


The blue group in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle played on my Gen X heart. If you know your classic video games, you’re golden here. Read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is out of beta now, making its debut on Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 9. That’s a sign that the game has earned enough loyal players that The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by the Times, will continue to publish it. It doesn’t show up in the NYT Games app but now appears in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can continue to play it free online.  

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Not lose.

Green group hint: A baseball out.

Blue group hint: Glass Joe.

Purple group hint:  Think Chicago.

Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Yellow group: Win

Green group: Strike out

Blue group: Classic sports video games

Purple group: Associated with Michael Jordan.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is win. The four answers are dub, triumph, victory and W.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is strike out. The four answers are fan, K, ring up and whiff.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is classic sports video games. The four answers are NBA Jam, NFL Blitz, Punch-Out and Tecmo Bowl.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is associated with Michael Jordan. The four answers are 23, 6 rings, His Airness and Last Dance.

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Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections Hints, Answers and Help for May 18, #707

Hints and answers for Connections for May 18, #707.

Looking for the most recent Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.


Today’s Connections puzzle is a mix of difficult and easy. The purple category does what most purple categories do, and makes you really break down how you think about the words. Read on for clues and today’s Connections answers.

The Times now has a Connections Bot, like the one for Wordle. Go there after you play to receive a numeric score and to have the program analyze your answers. Players who are registered with the Times Games section can now nerd out by following their progress, including number of puzzles completed, win rate, number of times they nabbed a perfect score and their win streak.

Read more: Hints, Tips and Strategies to Help You Win at NYT Connections Every Time

Hints for today’s Connections groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group, to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: School days.

Green group hint: About there!

Blue group hint: Sure, let’s go.

Purple group hint: The Scarlett Letter.

Answers for today’s Connections groups

Yellow group: Tasks for a student.

Green group: Encouraging responses in a guessing game.

Blue group: Up for anything.

Purple group: What «A» might mean.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is tasks for a student. The four answers are assignment, drill, exercise and lesson.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is encouraging responses in a guessing game. The four answers are almost, close, not quite and warm.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is up for anything. The four answers are easy, flexible, game and open.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is what «A» might mean. The four answers are area, athletic, excellent and one.

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