Have you just finished watching a great series and need a new show to fill the void? Are you too tired to sift through the thousands of series located on popular streaming services? If so, you’ve stumbled across the right person! Keep up with the themed articles I write for new and exciting streaming series to expand your horizon and watch shows you’ve never heard of before!
The five featured series follow women protagonists who demonstrate strength, loyalty, grace and selflessness all the while setting out to do what they hope to accomplish in their life. These women are the embodiment of feminism and show viewers the vital role women have played in the past and will continue to play far into the future.
Anne with an e
Rotten Tomatoes score: 63 percent critic rating, 91 percent audience rating
Number of episodes and seasons: 27 episodes, three seasons
Renewed: Season three—released in 2019—was the season finale.
For anyone who loves coming-of-age, historical-based shows set in the nineteenth century, Anne With An E is the show for you! Based on the book Anne of Green Gables—written by author Lucy Maud Montgomery in 1908—Anne With An E follows Anne Shirley (Amybeth McNulty), a 13-year-old, as she hopes to embark on her newfound freedom outside of the orphanage where she spent most of her life living in. Matthew (R.H. Thomson) and Marilla Cuthbert (Geraldine James)—two siblings who chose to live together in their old age as they were never married—planned to adopt an orphan boy who could help them with work on the farm. However, to his surprise, when Matthew arrived to pick up the orphan that was meant to be dropped off at the train station, Anne was the only one there. With her creativity and fiery personality, will Anne be able to convince the Cuthberts to allow her to stay with them? Find out by streaming Anne With An E on Netflix!
Big Little Lies
Rotten Tomatoes score: 89 percent critic and audience rating
Number of episodes and seasons: 14 episodes, two seasons
Renewed: Ended with season two
Taking place in Monterey, California, Big Little Lies is sure to keep you captivated and coming back for more! The series follows a group of wealthy women navigating the complex relationships that they have formed with each other. After a new woman, Jane Chapman (Shailene Woodley), moves into the area, a murder rocks the quaint town and brings the women closer as they lean upon one another for support. While the first season demonstrates how the original women, Madeline Martha (Reese Witherspoon), Celeste Wright (Nicole Kidman), Bonnie Howard Carlson (Zoë Kravitz) and Renata Klein (Laura Dern), refuse to come together, they end up putting their differences aside to work collectively to deal with the aftermath of the murder in the second season. Will you be able to solve this murder mystery? Stream Big Little Lies on HBO Max to find out!
The Handmaid’s Tale
Rotten Tomatoes score: 83 percent critic rating, 66 percent audience rating
Number of episodes and seasons: 56 episodes, five seasons
Renewed: Season six is expected to be released towards the end of 2023 or the beginning of 2024.
Based on Margaret Atwood’s 1985 critically acclaimed book of the same name, The Handmaid’s Tale is the perfect watch for anyone who loves dystopian societies! The series follows June Osborne (Elisabeth Moss) as she tries to find solace in the new world that she’s a part of. Once a career woman, Osborne is kidnapped and forced to partake in what is referred to as the Republic of Gilead, a fundamentalist theocratic regime that values patriarchal ideals and subjugates women to carry the children of commanders whose wives are infertile. While serving as a handmaid to Commander Fred (Joseph Fiennes) and Serena Joy Waterford (Yvonne Strahovski), Osborne has to do her best to survive the brutal lifestyle she must adopt. Will she be able to endure the pain and suffering? Find out by streaming The Handmaid’s Tale on Hulu!
the Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Rotten Tomatoes score: 89 percent critic rating, 84 percent audience rating
Number of episodes and seasons: 34 episodes, four seasons
Renewed: The fifth and final season will be released on April 14.
For anyone looking for something more lighthearted, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel is a show that you will instantly fall in love with! Taking place in Manhattan in the 1950s and 1960s, the series begins with Miriam “Midge” Maisel (Rachel Brosnahan), a Jewish-American housekeeper and mother, supporting her husband Joel Maisel (Michael Zegen) and his failed attempts to become a professional comic. After Joel leaves his wife for his secretary, Miriam is left picking up the pieces. Although she tries her best to pull herself together, she gets arrested for obscenity after venting to a crowd of people at Gaslight Café, the place where her ex-husband performs his stand-up. However, the manager at Gaslight (Alex Borstein) sees potential in Miriam and believes she can coach her to be a successful comedian. Will the manager’s risk pay off? Stream The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel on Amazon Prime to find out!
The Queen’s Gambit
Rotten Tomatoes score: 96 percent critic rating, 94 percent audience rating
Number of episodes and seasons: 7 episodes, one season
Renewed: The show was a one-season limited series.
The Queen’s Gambit, based on Walter Tevis’s 1983 novel of the same name, is a great miniseries to watch if you’re looking for something more dramatic! The show follows a chess prodigy, Beth Harmon (Anya Taylor-Joy), as she battles alcoholism, drug addiction and the issues that stem from being orphaned. Beth excels as a chess player from a young age and begins to gain recognition for her skills, leading her to enter numerous chess competitions around the world. Helping and supporting her along the way are the friends who she ends up meeting at competitions—such as United States National Champion Benny Watts (Thomas Brodie-Sangster). Will Beth be able to overcome the problems that plague her and rise to the top of the chess world? Find out by streaming The Queen’s Gambit on Netflix!
Each of these series showcases powerful women who are ready to fight for their rights, demand change, work through tough problems together, challenge societal norms and overcome their breaking points all the while acting in an eloquent manner. These fictional women exemplify how resilient women are and why Women’s History Month is so important to celebrate!
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