I love bingeing shows, whether it’s a dramatic period romance like Bridgerton or an engaging crime show like Law & Order: SVU. They help me wind down after a long school day and immerse myself in a different world. However, all the show recommendations I see today are constantly the same popular shows over and over again. And while there are no clear criteria to define a show as binge-worthy, it does not matter how long or short it is, as long as it grabs your attention and offers entertainment you enjoy.
I decided to spice up this fall with shows that are perfect to add to your watchlist. Here’s a list of my top five binge-worthy shows to watch this fall, spanning different genres to ensure there is something for everyone. They are ordered from most popular to least known, in my opinion. This fall, sit down with your favorite hot drink and turn on a new show that might become one of your favorites!
1. Bones
Bones is a 12-season classic crime comedy with a hint of romance. It follows two lead characters, the classic nerd-and-jock duo: Dr. Temperance Brennan, an anthropologist at the Jeffersonian who occasionally works with the FBI, and her partner, Seeley Booth, an FBI agent, former U.S. Army Ranger, and proud Catholic. Their team of squints joins them at the Jeffersonian and helps them solve cases: Zack Addy, Angela Montenegro, and Jack Hodgins. Squints are the nickname that Booth gave to the forensic specialists at the Jeffersonian. As Booth and Brennan grow closer while working on cases, we see life outside the Jeffersonian for the squints, including their love lives.
This show is a must-watch for people who want to get invested in a long-running series that features an opposites-attract duo. This show is full of twists that will shock you and moments that will have you crying tears of joy and sadness. It’s a wonderful source of entertainment for the fall season. With the cold weather coming in, you can curl up and enjoy a cast of characters that come together in a comedic way amid stories of death. It is a show that has stood the test of time and still draws in new viewers to this day.
If you’re looking for something to watch after Bones, head over to Netflix to watch Rizzoli & Isles.The series follows Boston detective Jane Rizzoli and medical examiner Maura Isles, two best friends who solve cases together. Afterward, come back to Hulu for High Potential, a show about slow-burn lovers Morgan Gillory, a single mom and cleaner-turned-consultant with an IQ of 160, and Adam Karadec, a strait-laced LAPD detective.
2. The Fall of the House of Usher
In sharp contrast to Bones, The Fall of the House of Usher is an eight-episode supernatural horror miniseries that adapts and recreates several works by Edgar Allen Poe. The main story follows twins Madeline and Roderick Usher, the billionaire owners of Fortunato Pharmaceuticals, alongside Roderick’s six illegitimate children, who are brought into the Usher family once he learns they exist. The story is nonlinear, jumping from the future where all of Roderick’s children are dead and they are no longer owners of Fortunato, back to the secrets of how they acquired Fortunato in the first place. As the story progresses, you start to learn the horrifying truth behind the children’s death and the eventual ending of Roderick and Madeline’s story.
As someone who is not the biggest horror fan, I can say it was less scary than suspenseful, with mild gore in the deaths. One detail that really built the unease for me was the episode titles, which reference Poe’s poems and give you insight into what may happen to the characters. This show took me one night to watch. I was captivated by the story, completely mind-boggled, and heartbroken throughout. This is definitely a show you will binge because it keeps you focused the whole way through. I promise it will meet and exceed your expectations if you have never seen a Mike Flanagan work.
If you enjoy this show, I highly recommend checking out Flanagan’s other shows on Netflix, like The Haunting of Hill House and Midnight Mass. And if you’re a thrill-seeker looking for something gorier, check out FROM on MGM+, which follows a group of people stuck in a town filled with monsters and secrets about why they cannot leave.
3. Business Proposal
Switching to a completely different genre, Business Proposal is a 12-episode story following main couple Shin Ha-ri and Kang Tae-moo, alongside a secondary couple, Jin Young-seo and Cha Sung-hoon. Shin Ha-ri is a food researcher at GO Food, the company that her love interest, Kang Tae-moo, is the CEO of. She unknowingly goes on a date with him because her wealthy best friendhas Ha-ri go on blind dates for her so she can scare men off and avoid marrying. Instead of scaring Tae-moo away, Ha-ri entertains him enough that he decides to fake date her, so his grandfather will stop bothering him about marriage.
Business Proposal is the perfect introductory show for Korean dramas if you are not used to subtitles, since it is dubbed in English. It provides the perfect blend of the secret-identity romance trope and a hint of spice. There are no on-screen sexual encounters, but rather the illusion of them. The constant shenanigans and misunderstandings will keep you on your toes, begging for the characters to figure out the truth. As a K-drama lover, I constantly rewatch this show and love recommending it to people interested in getting into Korean dramas.
If you are ready to dive into K-dramas, check out Netflix for Clean with Passion for Now, which follows a germaphobic CEO and the cleaning lady who works for him, and A Love So Beautiful, a high school-to-adulthood romance that follows an overeager young girl and her annoyed neighbor-turned-crush.
4. First Kill
First Kill is an eight-episode Monster Hunter x Vampire lesbian romance following two high school girls who fall into a forbidden romance with a dash of bloodthirsty vampires. Juliette is a teenage lesbian who happens to be a vampire and is trying to stave off drinking human blood for the first time. Her crush, Calliope, is a new student at the school. Her family is part of a society called the Guild Guardians that wards off and hunts monsters, and she is trying to prove herself by getting her first kill. Both of them are left questioning the feud between monster hunters and vampires while battling their feelings for one another. This mounting pressure and uncontrolled feelings bring their families together in the worst way possible, creating the potential for death or a forbidden relationship.
First Kill is similar to Twilight, but it twists the genre, featuring an interracial lesbian romance between a vampire and a monster hunter. While it targets a teen audience, the suspense, romance, music, and scene design keep you highly entertained. This series is a highlight on this list because it is rare to see queer and BIPOC main characters in a romance-focused, rather than sex-based, relationship, and I consider it a truly worthy hidden gem. It also includes fight scenes against other monsters, which is a plus for me in a supernatural show.
Shows that match this vibe while also including queer main and side characters are Shadowhunters on Hulu, which follows Clary Fray and her journey in discovering how to be a Shadowhunter, and True Blood, which follows a telepathic waitress realizing that her town is mixed with humans and vampires.
5. Daybreak
Similar to the high school setting of First Kill, Daybreak is a 10-episode zombie apocalypse high school story where bombs are dropped, killing or infecting everyone over 18 and leaving only kids to fend for themselves. The story follows a high school loner named Josh Wheeler, who breaks the fourth wall and narrates his journey through the events leading up to the apocalypse, while also showing how he survives it to find the girl he loves, Sam. Josh feels the best thing that ever happened to him is becoming the hero of his own story, but that changes as the show goes on. We meet new characters who narrate their own episodes, and we start to see that Josh is only a pawn in a larger story.
Daybreak is probably the most unknown show on this list, as it was canceled after its first season. It does not take itself too seriously, which lets it be cringey in an entertaining way while still having a storyline that slowly draws you into its twist ending. Like the movie Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Josh constantly breaks the fourth wall, letting viewers in for a good laugh and a chance to relax and enjoy the idea of teenagers running wild in an adult-free apocalypse. This show was a personal hit of mine during COVID, as it gave me a way to kill time during lockdown and kept me in high spirits.
If you enjoyed Daybreak, then you would be interested in the movie trilogy Fear Street on Netflix (we do not speak of Fear Street: Prom Queen), which focuses on a town curse and a group of teenagers coming together to discover the town’s secret origins. Another show I’d recommend is The Society, a similar teen-focused show with missing adults and children taking over their town.