Each week our staff of film and TV experts surveys the entertainment landscape to select the ten best new/newish shows available for you to stream at home. We put a lot of thought into our selections, and our debates on what to include and what not to include can sometimes get a little heated and feelings may get hurt, but so be it, this is an important service for you, our readers. With that said, here are our selections for this week.
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10. (tie) The Resort (Peacock)
What if there was a show from the people who made Mr. Robot and Lodge 49 and it was set at a spooky tropical resort and it starred Cristin Milioti from Palm Springs and William Jackson Harper from The Good Place and the whole thing hinged on a mystery they uncovered because one of them crashed a four-wheeler in the jungle and discovered a mangled old Motorola Razr? Well, guess what: there is. Watch it on Peacock.
10. (tie) Reservation Dogs (FX/Hulu)
The first season of Reservation Dogs was a revelation. Just a group of foul-mouthed Native American teens living on a reservation in Oklahoma and getting into trouble and being little rascals. It was also, sometimes, sweet and, also sometimes, heavy, and sometimes there was a mystical figure who would show up and giggle a lot and kind of just screw with everyone for five minutes. It’s a hard show to describe. But it’s a heck of a ride. Watch it on Hulu.
10. (tie) Little Demon (FX/Hulu)
Aubrey Plaza is in everything these days, and no one is mad at that development. In this animated series (which is so FX that it hurts in a good way), she voices the mom of a teenager who discovers that she’s got demonic powers. Dad happens to be Satan, and not only that, but he’s voiced by Danny DeVito. And you thought your life was surreal, right? Watch it on FX/Hulu.
10. Industry (HBO Max)
Popularly and positively referred to as Euphoria and Succession‘s love child, Industry returns for season two, focussing again on the realm of global finance through the lens of the 20-somethings who are consumed by it and the realities of survival and success in a world post panny where satisfaction seems like a hindrance. Watch it on HBO Max.
9. Harley Quinn (HBO Max)
The good news here is that Harley Quinn is back, finally, after a multi-year break due to, well, everything. The delightfully profane animated series remains one of our finest television programs, between Harley and Ivy being a couple now and chaos descending upon Gotham and this show’s version of Bane continuing to be a hopeless goofball. It really is a blast, a beam of sunshine in a world filled with bleak dramas. You deserve to have fun. Watch it on HBO Max.
8. She-Hulk: Attorney at Law (Disney Plus)
Alison Brie didn’t get to portray this “Allison Brie type” role, but hey, we’re getting Orphan Black‘s Tatiana Maslany, who has so much fun relishing this role. She’s smart and silly and she Hulks out like a pro while also being the MCU’s very green attorney for superheroes. Expect a lot of cameos, and Mark Ruffalo is on hand as Bruce Banner. There’s no word on whether we’ll eventually see the Hulk Butt like we received in Thor: Ragnarok. Admit it, that’s on your wishlist, too. Watch it on Disney Plus.
7. The Sandman (Netflix)
Neil Gaiman’s seminal comic book series finally lands on the small screen (while the successful Audible epic keeps cranking with a different cast). The story picks up with Morpheus (the King of Dreams) angry as hell at those who imprisoned him. Tom Sturridge takes on the lead role and guides us through space and time on a cosmic trip. Let’s hope this show is worth the extensively long wait (the project has the unenviable task of piecing together a tapestry of sometimes free-standing stories), but no matter how it turns out, we’re getting Gwendoline Christie as Lucifer. That ain’t nothing. Watch it on Netflix.
6. See (Apple TV Plus)
Settle in for the final season of Warrior Jason Momoa In Fur Coats, and whose Warrior Good Looks are wasted in a world where no one can see him. Baba Voss is back for one final round of post-apocalyptic fighting while nature is starting to heal itself, and a new generation begins to see again. This ratchets up the intensity with the existing battle for superiority in the kingdom, and yup, the Masturbating Queen is still around. This show is nuts! Watch it on Apple TV Plus.
5. Welcome to Wrexham (FX/Hulu)
Welcome to Wrexham is like Ted Lasso, if Ted Lasso was about Deadpool and Mac from It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia buying a soccer team. Other than that, it’s identical. The documentary series follows Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney as they purchase and help run the Wrexham A.F.C. football club. Welcome to Wrexham looks sweet and sincere, which is a nice change of pace from getting mad at [your favorite sports team here] blowing it AGAIN. Watch it on FX/Hulu.
4. The Patient (FX/Hulu)
Steve Carell is back on television once again, this time not so much to make you laugh as to… well, creep you out. He plays a therapist who is held captive by a serial killer who desperately wants help curing his murderous urges. It does not exactly sound like light/fun viewing but it does sound intriguing. And it’s from the creator of The Americans. And he has a pretty righteous beard going on. While we cannot in good faith support kidnapping Steve Carell and holding him hostage in real life, this all could be worth checking out. Watch it on Hulu.
3. What We Do in the Shadows (FX/Hulu)
The good news here is that the vampires are back. The bad is that… well, there’s not really any bad news. How could there be? This show remains relentlessly fun and silly in a way that almost feels like they’re getting away with something, like someone in charge stopped paying attention and they’re just running wild in their own little sandbox. This is, to be clear, a compliment of the highest order. One of our best shows is back and still humming along in peak form. This is worth celebrating. Watch it on FX/Hulu.
2. House of the Dragon (HBO Max)
On the surface, a prequel to a cultural phenomenon like Game Of Thrones seems like the easiest greenlight in the world. How could a sister project miss even with the mixed reception to the original’s finale? But House Of The Dragon is the second attempt (with one pilot failing to generate a series order) and it starts with one particular question hanging over its head: was it the world or the characters that inhabited it that made the original so widely adored? We’re about to find out as a new creative team tries to walk a line between old and new, creating fresh stories with a ring of familiarity. On their side: dragons, face-smashing combat, and Matt Smith’s good kinda bad energy. Watch it on HBO Max.
1.
Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power
(Amazon Prime)
Jeff Bezos is finally getting his version of Game of Thrones, and this even more enormously expensive franchise looks to be worth the price tag to bring J.R.R. Tolkien’s fabled Second Age to the screen. A young Galadriel will be one of the bigger highlights of this series’ exploration of relative peace that’s shattered when evil reemerges. Expect stunning visuals that leap from the Misty Mountains to an island setting to majestic forests. Between this and House of the Dragon, we’re sure getting our fill of epic fantasy shows these days. Watch it on Amazon Prime.