In my circle of friends, I am the well-known Netflix show binge watcher. I spend less than one week watching the pilot season of a series before deciding if it’s worth keeping up with. Through this, I have stumbled upon some of the worst TV shows possibly ever made by Netflix and some of the best. I feel like it’s my civic duty to let everyone know what shows are actually worth the hype and the shows that you should avoid. Here’s a list of the best and the worst on Netflix.
- The Order
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What attracted me to this show was the supernatural themes it possessed. There are werewolves and magic practitioners and so much more. From the beginning, the storyline of the show was cliche but I decided to give it a chance before judging it. After a few episodes in, I noticed that the filmography of the show resembled much of C-list films and that the storyline of the show kept splintering off as if the writers were trying desperately to keep the audience’s attention. The try-hard nature of the show made me want it to end it early but I decided to watch it through. Not to mention, the diversity in characters (in terms of race, ethnicity, religion and sexuality) was seriously lacking and whatever characters they had seemed forced in the sense that they created them because they required some kind of diversity in the show for it to be produced. In conclusion, I would not recommend this show to anyone. There is currently only one season on Netflix.
- The Umbrella Academy
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When I first heard of “The Umbrella Academy”, I was vaguely interested, added it into my queue and told myself I’d watch it whenever I had free time. And then, I heard that the show was originally a comic book series written by Gerard Way, the lead singer of the broken up band My Chemical Romance that I was a giant fan of in middle school. This prompted me to start the show as soon as I finished The Order. The plot is well written, complex and it unravels itself as you go through the series, which helps to keep your attention. I’m relatively good at predicting things that happen in a show but I surprisingly couldn’t do it with this show. The cinematography is really good, the soundtrack is amazing and the actors know how to deliver their lines. There is currently only one season on Netflix.
- Chilling Adventures of Sabrina
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If you watched Sabrina the Teenage Witch growing up like I did, I think it’s important to warn you that this show is nothing like the early 00’s sitcom. That doesn’t mean that it’s bad. This version of the show is more dark and suspenseful, with the stereotypical connotations that follow with being a witch. For example, in this version of the show, they actually do worship Satan and participate in human sacrifices. But don’t let the Marilyn Manson vibes turn you off. This show has one main plotline that branches off for the different episodes to keep the audience’s’ attention but you never completely lose that main plotline. Chilling Adventures of Sabrina also looks like it was filmed with an Instagram filter but in this context, I love it because it really adds character. The outfits of all the characters are perfect- they’re all fashionable and fit the personalities of the characters. The cast is also very diverse. Another thing I enjoy about the show is that it’s in the same universe as Riverdale so a crossover episode could be coming to us soon! There are currently two seasons on Netflix.
- A Series of Unfortunate Events
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If you read the books growing up and enjoyed them, you’ll love the show. Even if you didn’t read the books growing up, you’ll still probably end up enjoying the show. I must warn you though, just as the title foreshadows, the show is mostly composed of sad things happening to a trio of orphans. But it is worth watching! The costumes, the dialogue, the sets and acting are all really good. The actors are on point with their characters in relation to the books. There’s also diversity in the show which is very refreshing to see on a Netflix show. There are currently three seasons on Netflix.
- One Day at a Time
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I’m not the biggest fan of sitcoms as I actually end up getting bored of them relatively fast but this show kept me hooked. Most sitcoms revolve around a stereotypical white family or group of friends, and it’s a fairly overdone concept. However, this show follows a Cuban multi-generational family where the mother is ex-military and single, the grandmother is only a green card holder and one of the kids is gay. Therefore, it’s fair to say that they cover a lot of nuanced topics and talk about complex issues like racism, homophobia, consent and depression. I honestly fell in love with this show for the diversity it showcasted that I rarely ever get to see on screen. It’s also incredibly funny. The humor in the show doesn’t take away from its meaningfulness, which I feel like is what happens with a lot of sitcoms nowadays. I hope that Netflix changes its mind about not producing another season. There are currently three seasons on Netflix.
I hope that my suggestions and warnings help you when you are seriously craving a good Netflix original binge session. I did my best to cover a variety of shows that crossed different genres so that I could be more useful. I also did my best to cover things like diversity in the shows since I feel like it’s something that is really looked at as a plus and not a factor of quality, even though we live in 2019 and we deserve shows that reflect what we look like. #RepresentationMatters.
Happy Netflix binging!