Let's face it: Binge-watching TV is the norm now. We no longer question whether we should binge a show all in one sitting. We just wonder what show we should tear through next.
To answer that question, we've compiled a list of the 10 best shows on Netflix that you can binge-watch right now. Ranging from multi-season comedies to miniseries you can sink your teeth into, these shows are sure to be your next binge-worthy obsessions.
Here, in no particular order, are the 10 best shows to binge-watch on Netflix.
1. Russian Doll
Russian Doll gets as close to a perfect Netflix binge watch as possible.
It’s short, with eight 30-minute episodes forming its first season. It’s bold, covering themes of mortality, trauma, and human connection against the backdrop of New York’s East Village. And it’s flat-out hilarious to boot. Natasha Lyonne co-created and starred as Nadia, a woman who becomes trapped in a time loop after dying on her 36th birthday. Nadia’s Groundhog Day–esque adventure becomes increasingly complex as the series progresses and she races against the loop to discover why she can’t stop dying — and what her loop has to do with Alan, an alleged stranger who’s experiencing the exact same cycle. — Alexis Nedd, Senior Entertainment Reporter (*)
How to watch: Russian Doll is now streaming on Netflix.
2. The Great British Baking Show
Few cooking competitions are as comforting - or as compulsively watchable - as The Great British Baking Show, which is full of challenging bakes, lovable contestants, and so, so many innuendos. What really makes The Great British Baking Show special are the contestants, who are all gifted amateur bakers. Once you see the kinds of elaborate concoctions they’re able to whip up, you'll be tearing through season after season, rooting for everyone you see and marveling at their scrumptious works. It won't be long before you're jumping to put on an apron and get baking yourself. Just be sure to avoid the dreaded soggy bottoms. — Belen Edwards, Entertainment Fellow (*)
How to watch: The Great British Baking Show is now streaming on Netflix.
3. Bridgerton
In need of a swoon-worthy binge? Bridgerton is it.
Based on the series of Regency-era romance novels by Julia Quinn, each season of Bridgerton tackles the love story of a different Bridgerton sibling. Season 1's protagonist is ingénue Daphne (Phoebe Dynevor), while Season 2 focuses on her rakish brother Anthony (Jonathan Bailey). Get ready for romance, sexual tension, gossip, and some truly gorgeous gowns — what more could you need? — B.E.
How to watch: Bridgerton is now streaming on Netflix.
4. Avatar: The Last Airbender
Haven't seen Avatar: The Last Airbender yet? Consider this a sign to binge it immediately. Avatar is an absolute banger of a series, with enough jaw-dropping fight scenes, memorable characters, and meme-able moments to satisfy all your TV needs. I dare you not to fall in love with Aang and his friends, or sympathize with Zuko, or recite the show's iconic opening every time you watch a new episode.
On top of all its awesomeness, Avatar is full of solid life lessons and sage advice, mostly coming from World's Best TV Father Figure Uncle Iroh. You'll feel just as comforted watching this show as you'll feel floored by its epic storyline. And once you're done bingeing Avatar, check out its sequel series The Legend of Korra (another absolute banger), also streaming on Netflix. — B.E.
How to watch: Avatar: The Last Airbender is now streaming on Netflix.
5. Squid Game
Thanks to a nail-biting premise and life-or-death stakes, it's almost impossible not to binge the record-breaking phenomenon Squid Game in one or two sittings.
The 456 participants in the titular Squid Game are all in financial trouble and have agreed to play children's games in exchange for money. The catch? If they lose, they die. Squid Game leans fully into the brutality of its premise, contrasting pastel playground aesthetics with tragedy and gore. However, the show also makes time for plenty of substance by fleshing out the relationships between its leads and interrogating the royally messed-up circumstances that led to each player ending up in this position. — B.E.
How to watch: Squid Game is now streaming on Netflix.
6. The Chair
The Chair isn’t without its flaws, but you do get a lot for a little with this smart dramedy from creators Amanda Peet and Annie Julia Wyman. Set on the campus of the fictional Pembroke University, Season 1 of The Chair follows English department head Dr. Ji-Yoon Kim (Sandra Oh) as she grapples with a scandal involving her fellow professor and love interest (Jay Duplass). Choppy pacing and some muddled messaging around cancel culture make this an imperfect, yet worthy binge, clocking in at six episodes in just three hours. —Alison Foreman, Entertainment Reporter (*)
How to Watch: The Chair is now streaming on Netflix.
7. Never Have I Ever
Coming-of-age comedies are a dime a dozen, but we’ve never seen one quite like Never Have I Ever. For starters, it’s the rare high school show with an Indian-American girl as its protagonist (Devi, played by Maitreyi Ramakrishnan). For another, it’s narrated by tennis legend John McEnroe, of all freaking people. For yet another, underneath all the uproariously teen hijinks, it turns out to be a sensitive exploration of guilt and grief. We laughed, we cried, we came around on poor little rich boy Ben, we wondered if Devi was kind of a terrible person (she is!), and we loved her all the more for it. — Angie Han, Former Deputy Entertainment Editor (*)
How to watch: Never Have I Ever is now streaming on Netflix.
8. You
You puts you inside the mind of the dangerous stalker Joe Goldberg (Penn Badgley). He may seem outwardly charming, but his internal monologue reveals the truth: This guy is scary. Throughout You's first three seasons, Joe obsesses over women, becomes a serial killer, and even begins to get a taste of his own medicine. The show is endlessly entertaining, darkly funny, and full of more than enough twists that will have you pressing "watch next episode" over and over again. — B.E.
How to watch: You is now streaming on Netflix.
9. Arcane
It would have been so easy for Netflix's League of Legends TV show Arcane to be just "okay." Nobody expects great things from video game adaptations in the first place, and coasting on the worldwide appeal of LoL was always going to be an option for the show's creators. This is all to say that Arcane didn't have to go anywhere near as hard as it does, but it does. The results are spectacular.
Arcane takes the premise and lore of League of Legends and makes it merely the backdrop of a wholly engrossing tale of family, betrayal, inequality, and the generational cycle of violence. Its animation is also beyond top-tier, with a one-of-a-kind combination of 3D and 2D that is as impressive during action sequences as it is simply setting the scene for the show's quieter moments. So thanks for slapping so dang hard, Arcane. Season 2 is going to be a blast. — A.N. (*)
How to watch: Arcane is now streaming on Netflix.
10. The Good Place
If you haven't seen Mike Schur's captivating tale of life after death, then you're in for a mother forking good time. Starring Kristen Bell, Ted Danson, Jameela Jamil, D'Arcy Carden, Manny Jacinto, and William Jackson Harper, the series takes a hard look at what it means to be a good person through the best comedic lens since The Office.
As any true Good Place fan knows, you can't detail the events of this series without risking giving something away. So, you're gonna have to trust us. Get through the first episode, and we promise you'll be hooked. — A.F. (*)
How to watch: The Good Place is now streaming on Netflix.
Asterisks (*) indicate the entry has been modified from another Mashable streaming list.
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