Okay, so we’re all pretty stuck inside and I’m a film major, so I felt like this would be a fun thing to make so we can all kind of be in an “at home together” movie marathon. I also tried to range them a bit in case you don’t have a certain streaming service, so I hope that helps!
- “Anne With An E”
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Where you can find me: Netflix
Number of Seasons to Binge: 3
This show is absolutely gorgeous and so massively slept on! I started watching it in 2017, which was when the first season debuted. I loved movies before I came to college and I swear this show made my little film-loving heart appreciate cinematography on a whole new level. Not only is it absolutely stunning to just watch, but the characters truly make you feel how beautiful life is. It’s based off of the deeply beloved book, “Anne of Green Gables” and in my (very professional) opinion, it holds up to the hype in all the right ways. It’s different, but it was also written to be different, and I think that’s so important to include, especially because Anne is meant to represent a strong, feminist role who is aspiring for equality. It’s a show that isn’t quite as popular as a lot of others, but, over time, it will grow with its audience. It, unfortunately, got canceled (although there is a petition in place in hopes that it gets picked back up, so fingers crossed) but if you watch it now, the writers ended the latest season in a way that can either be interpreted as an ending or a new beginning.
- “Superstore”
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Where you can find me: Hulu
Number of Seasons to Binge: 5 with more to come
I started this show a couple of weeks ago, and honestly, it does not get the kind of credit it deserves considering how long it’s been on. I have never watched a show so accurately depict what working retail is like. I started working at a grocery store when I was seventeen and you meet people there that are unlike people you have ever met before. You go through a different kind of boredom and honestly ignorance when people are asking for things you have no idea about in a place that you’re just making minimum wage at. That being said, I truly believe everyone should work some kind of retail or minimum wage job in their lifetime because it does teach you so much more than you could ever expect to learn. It also has characters that make the program all the more entertaining, so please do yourself a favor and laugh at NBC’s Superstore.
- “Modern Love”
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Where you can find me: Amazon Prime
Number of Seasons to Binge: 1 with more to come
This show made me cry seven times, and I wish I was exaggerating. I am a true hopeless romantic, and I’ll be the first to admit I am the type of person that sobs during rom-coms while eating some Ben and Jerry’s Chunky Monkey, however, this show will put you in my boat. It’s not a bad cry either! It’s a show made to show you how good people actually are and honestly gives an accurate depiction of all forms of love. It also has some bigger names in it if you’re an actor/actress-association type of person. Anne Hathaway, Dev Patel (who actually melted my heart in his episode), Tina Fey and so many more star in the show. I feel like I’m pitching for this story to get made, but I promise you that’s just how good it is. Mind you, I watched all eight episodes in two days, so it was definitely something I found enjoyable, but I will also say I can understand it is an acquired taste. I personally think you should still give it at least a shot, because not only does it talk about love (because obviously) but it also so heavily touches on mental health in a truly accurate way, hence part of the reason I cried so much. I feel like all of us have been affected by mental health, whether it be direct or not. And if you’ve ever wondered what depression, bi-polar disorder, anxiety or anything resembling such looked like, or felt like because my goodness did I feel a relationship with these characters, I cannot more highly recommend watching even just one episode. They made a clear point to make the show diverse in every aspect, and I respect the heck out of that. They also had every episode be directed by someone different, which I wanted to include because half of them were women and the equality is just so beautiful!
- “Lost’
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Where you can find me: Hulu
Number of Seasons to Binge: 6
I’m very aware that I am the latest person in the world to this party, but I couldn’t not include my latest obsession. If nothing else, allow this to be a reminder to finally start it after procrastinating for the past 16 years or rewatch a possible personal favorite. If you’re in the mood to have your mind completely twisted and see all the ways people could possibly be tested after a tragedy, I present to you Lost: a.k.a. the show that has consumed all my free time for the past week and a half. I also think it’s just a great show to binge, purely because it never ends. It’s constantly keeping you on your toes, and in my opinion, that just feels like wonderful writing on their end. It’s not the kind of show you could go on your phone for, just because of how invested you have to be while watching, but again, gorgeous writing and production. I will preface that I am now vaguely scared to fly on a plane, so if you’re a person that flies frequently, maybe stick to some of the other titles I’ve shared.
- “One Day at a Time”
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Where you can find me: Netflix (seasons 1-3) and Pop (seasons 1-4)
Number of Seasons to Binge: 3 with one currently being made
This show has such a sweet sense of nostalgia for me because when I first started it I was about to start college and it was my sister’s favorite show, so we watched it together. I imagine it holds so many other senses of nostalgia for so many others, especially those that were able to see themselves in the characters on screen. It was also made as a spinoff from the 1975 version and even still has the actress, Rita Moreno, who all theater kids know from West Side Story and is an absolutely wonderful performer in every sense. It’s so difficult to address modern issues in an accurate way, and they managed to do in three seasons what I’ve seen others try to do in seven or eight. Again, I cannot exaggerate how well-written and how truly throughout these characters and the situations they go through are. You can tell it was a show made with just all the heart in the world, and it shows so immensely. If you need a good show that you can cry, laugh and just relate to, One Day at a Time is a true piece of nostalgia in every sense and deserves all the credit in the world.
- “Twin Peaks”
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Where you can find me: Netflix, Hulu and Amazon Prime
Number of Seasons to Binge: 2 seasons, with an additional “return” season and movie
Okay, I have never personally seen this show all the way through, but it’s still one of the most creative and absolutely bonkers pieces of art I’ve ever seen. My sister is again the inspiration behind this section, because she became fully in love with it a few years ago, and it’s still a favorite! It was made in the ‘90s, so it contains all the vintage vibes to fit into today if that’s your vibe. It also was directed by David Lynch, who has this insanely bizarre mind that can only create the best original art. Unfortunately, the show was canceled before it was able to have its grand ending. It does address the killer for the series that it revolves around, which although is vital, isn’t the actual ending. Season three, which was released three years ago, in 2017, does, however, give more inside to the “ending.” The entire show is a true one of it’s kind and deserves all the credit for originality, suspense and truly keeping you on the edge of your seat.
- “The Middle”
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Where you can find me: Amazon Prime
Number of Seasons to Binge: 9 seasons
I wanted to finish on a high note because The Middle is one of those shows that is such an oldie but a goodie! I started watching this glorious sitcom when I was around thirteen, and my twenty-year-old self is just as in love. It’s a silly show, but in my opinion, it’s like the Modern Family that never got as much recognition, which quite honestly it deserved! Rant aside, it’s one of those shows that will make you laugh as much as you will cry. It’s a sentimental show, not just because you will relate to it, but because you feel it. You will feel every emotion and situation that the Heck family goes through because they were made to resemble regular people. Also, side-note, the daughter Sue is probably the most accurate recreation of teenagers in real life, and the dad, Mike, had so many similarities to my dad that my dad literally would agree with him while passing through the hallway while the rest of my family watched the show. What I’m saying is it will make you emotional and overjoyed and burst out laughing because it’s real. I’ve loved it for seven years, and it’s still something I get excited to watch after all these years, and I guarantee you, you will too!
These are just a few shows that I feel like deserve a bit more credit and hopefully, you haven’t seen before. I feel like it’s always a struggle to find a show you haven’t heard of before as you flip through over the same shows over and over again, so please enjoy and stream to your heart’s desire!