If there was a competition of being late to anything popular, I wouldn't show up because I wouldn't even know it existed. I am, by far, the slowest person to jump on any popular movie/show/music train. So, tired of hearing the repeated recommendations from those with a firmer grasp on popular culture than I, here's a list of 10 shows my friends and I think you should watch.
1. Banshee
Banshee was first recommended to me by my best friend and then again by my step-mom. Executive producers Jonathan Tropper (one of my favorite novelists) and Alan Ball (of True Blood fame) have created a show with multiple storylines all centered on several main characters. If you’re into stolen identities, jewel heists rivaling Ocean’s Eleven, and
Available on Amazon Prime
2. Stranger Things
With only 8 episodes in its first season, even I was able to binge Stranger Things in a night. The ‘straight out of the 80’s’ vibe is incredible; ST channels many of the films of that era including Stand By Me, E.T., and Alien. Viewers are hooked from the very beginning with the first episode entitled ‘The Vanishing of Will Byers’ – who took him, what took him, and, hey! is that Winona Ryder?
Available on Netflix.
3. The X Files
I started watching The X Files in the winter of 2015 and didn’t finish until the summer. Granted, part of the issue was my inability to commit to anything, but the show is absolutely enormous. 9 original seasons with 24 episodes each makes The X Files one of the best binge-worthy shows of all time. Ingrained in our popular culture collective, The X Files follows two FBI agents as they seek to discover the abnormal and, possibly, the existence of alien life. It’s a fun show to watch with a few jump scares to liven things up but don’t ask me when I’ll be done watching the new reboot season. Probably next year.
Available on Netflix.
4. Breaking Bad
Alright, confession time, I haven’t actually seen past season 1 of BB. I got super into it and then life got in the way and I found myself picking up another show. Regardless of my crappy TV watching habits, BB was regarded at the third greatest TV show of all time by Rolling Stone. Critics (and every single person on my Facebook) agree that BB is a show with a plot that doesn’t waiver or sputter out. Like the colloquial title suggests, Breaking Bad is a show that raises hell with Bryan Cranston as the infamous Walter White at the wheel.
5. Hannibal
I could talk about Hannibal until the day I die and it still wouldn’t be enough. It is, by far, one of the best shows I’ve ever seen on television (and OF COURSE it got canceled after three seasons). Director Bryan Fuller has reimagined the book series by Thomas Harris into something both dark and beautiful: gorgeous art direction, musical accompaniments, and breathtaking performances by both Hugh Dancy and Mads Mikkelsen are unparalleled by anything on TV today. Don’t be fooled by the beauty though, there’s still enough violence to push at the TV-14 rating it received on NBC. Oh, and y’know, he’s a cannibal so don’t get too close around dinner time.
Available on Amazon Prime
6. Luke Cage
Luke Cage earned a spot on my list and for good reason: it’s receiving crazy critical acclaim and has been so popular, Netflix actually crashed because of it. Adapted for TV from the comics, Luke Cage follows in a series of Marvel Netflix shows like Daredevil and Jessica Jones. Mike Colter stars as the reluctant superhero: a bullet-proof black man in a hoodie. A direct nod to the turbulent social upheaval we find ourselves in, Luke Cage is the superhero we all want and need.
Available on Netflix
7. Preacher
I can proudly say Preacher was another show I watched almost in time when episodes were aired. Following closely to the storyline from the comics, Dominic Cooper plays Jesse Custer, a (sort of) reformed criminal coming back to his hometown to take over his father’s church. Throw in a couple vampires and fallen angels, Preacher doesn’t let up and the season one finale is assured to blow your socks off.
Available on AMC.com
8. Peaky Blinders
If you’ve ever watched the Sopranos, imagine the dynamic of that crime-mob family and throw them in post-WWI England. Cillian Murphy is at his best, playing the dynamic and cunning mob boss Tommy Shelby (not to mention his cheekbones are incredible, those things could cut glass). If you’ve ever watched Downtown Abbey and thought “I like the feel of a period piece but I want organized crime and gun-running”, this is your show. Oh, and did I mention Tom Hardy was in it? Because, y’know, he is. No big.
Available on Netflix.
9. The Fall
Okay, fine, you caught me. Two shows on the list with Gillian Anderson kicking ass. I’m not sorry though, because she’s incredible, especially in The Fall. Anderson plays Stella Gibson, a detective in Northern Ireland tasked with catching serial killer Paul Spector (played by Jamie Dornan). I’m not going to give anything else way other than this show has a 100% on Rotten Tomatoes. So, if you don’t take my advice to watch it, listen to the critics.
Available on Netflix.
10. Mr. Robot
If you don’t live under a rock, you should’ve seen that Rami Malek won an Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series, with Mr. Robot garnering a slew of other awards. Malek plays Elliot Alderson a cyber security engineer turned hacktivist. Alderson is the kind of main character viewers probably haven’t seen before. Suffering from a slew of mental illnesses, Alderson is constantly working to keep his thoughts clear through his paranoid and delusion. If you like mind games, hacking, and social anarchy, binge the first two seasons and get ready for the third in 2017.
Available on Amazon Prime
Alright guys, this should be more than enough to keep you busy through the New Year. Get binging!
