I consider Netflix to be my favorite website and means of entertainment. It’s the one website that has all my favorite movies and shows in one place, and I use it every single day. While there are hundreds of shows and movies from various television channels on the golden site, Netflix has recently started to release its own productions. In honor of the recent release of Thirteen Reasons Why (a dramatic gem), here are five other Netflix original series that will take less than two days to binge-watch!
Image courtesy of Netflix Media
1. Stranger Things
Since watching this show back in July when it first starting streaming, I have been unable to stop loving it and have binged it nine times since. All the main characters have great backstories and the actors are just brilliant, especially when you consider that the main characters are all under 15 years old. For those not in the know yet, Stranger Things is set in November 1983, when a young boy mysteriously disappears around the same time the local government laboratory has a breakdown.
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2. The OA
This show premiered a little bit after Stranger Things, and I think that’s partly why you didn’t hear about it as much. The main character of The OA is Prairie Johnson, who has returned to her family after being gone for seven years. She won’t tell her family anything about her time away, she has scars all over her body, and her blindness has mysteriously been cured. She forms a friend group of boys around her and slowly reveals what she has gone through with them.
3. A Series of Unfortunate Events
This is justice for book fans who were repulsed at the 2004 movie adaptation. The Netflix adaptation of A Series of Unfortunate Events follows three orphaned siblings who move from relative to relative after their parent’s death, all while trying to avoid their first guardian who is determined to gain their inherited fortune. Neil Patrick Harris plays Count Olaf, the first guardian, and it’s safe to say he was meant for this role.
4. The Crown
This historical fiction drama recounts Queen Elizabeth II’s first few years as monarch in the 1950s and 1960s. Everything about this series is beautiful and detailed. Claire Foy won an Emmy Award for her portrayal of the monarch and Matt Smith of Doctor Who fame joins the cast as her husband Prince Philip.
Image courtesy of Netflix
5. Happy Valley
Happy Valley is one of my favorite Netflix original series. It follows a police officer in England who races to find a local businessman’s daughter who’s been kidnapped by a criminal who’s been newly released from prison, the same man who played a role in the officer’s daughter’s death. I know that description sounds intimidating, but believe me when I say it’s easy to follow along.
These are only five of the original series that Netflix must offer, all released within the last year or so. Each has two seasons or less, which means you can easily binge them in one weekend, perfect for the weekend after midterms or for avoiding midterms in bed.