Staying at home isn’t much fun when there’s nothing to do but spend five hours online doing school work. You can only do the same routine a couple of times before it gets tiring. Being stuck inside is only as bad as one makes it. The internet provides us with thousands of entertaining possibilities and binge-watching shows is one of the most relaxing and amusing of those options. With this list, I have you covered for at least a year with different shows to indulge and get caught up in.
10.“The Office” on Netflix. This show is about a branch of a paper company called Dunder Mifflin, with an unconventional manager named Michael Scott. Although this is a very popular show and some might even call it overrated, the 201 episodes can be watched over and over again and it never gets boring. TV-14.
9. “Mrs. America” on Hulu. This mini-series is based on the real life events of the women’s rights movement and the fight for the E.R.A., the Equal Rights Amendment, which took place around the 1970’s. With actors that resemble the people they’re portraying and scenes that are based on historical events, this show, even though only nine episodes long, is something that hooks you in with a mixture of emotions and details of an era that hasn’t been much recognized. TV-14
8. “Prodigal Son” on Hulu. This show is definitely very accurate regarding more serious mental illnesses. Malcolm Bright, formerly Malcolm Whitley, is an ex-FBI agent whose father was one of the most popular serial killers. Because of that, and years of studying at Quantico, as well as discussing crimes with his father at the mental institute he’s held in, he has an extraordinary talent for profiling killers, and it seems to be the only thing that keeps him sane. TV-14.
7. “The Mentalist” on Amazon Prime. This show follows a team in California’s Bureau of Investigation, but more specifically consultant Patrick Jane, a former “psychic” who, after going on national TV to profile serial killer at large, Red John, finds his wife and young daughter murdered. With the guilt of his passed family on his conscience and his remarkable abilities to observe human behavior which was previously what gained his title as psychic, he joins the CBI to catch killers. With seven seasons that contain character and plot development, one can be binge-watch the show dozens of times and still be captivating.TV-14.
6. “The Magicians” on Netflix. Based on the book series “The Magicians” by Lev Grossman, this show is filled with science fiction. The show centers mostly around Quentin Coldwater, a graduate student wanting to enroll in Yale with his best friend from high school, Julia Wicker. Strange events unfold when Quentin goes to his interview at Yale. This show is witty, funny, at times relatable and enthralling. TV-14.
5. “October Faction” on Netflix. This supernatural show, though containing only 10 episodes, is packed with some of the most mesmerizing metaphysical scenes. The plot revolves around a monster-hunting couple and their twins, Geoff and Vivian, who are completely oblivious to their parents’ side-hustle. They travel around the world constantly, but when the father’s dad passes away, the family comes back to the parents’ hometown, a place they left abruptly and with a lot of loose ends. TV-MA (for gore)
4. “YOU” on Netflix. Based on a book series by Caroline Kepnes. Though one of the more mature shows on this list, “YOU” keeps the audience on the edge of their seats. The way the events in this story unfold and are displayed allows the watcher to really have a sense of understanding and even sympathize with the main character, who is quite the antihero. Joe Goldburg, an unhinged bookstore manager in New York, is the main character of this show. He finds a love interest when a woman by the name of Guinevere Beck walks into his store and gets a book he finds an intriguing pick. Joe, infatuated with Beck, follows her and people close to her around, trying to find a way into her life. TV-MA.
3. “Travelers” on Netflix. Another show heavily influenced by science fiction, “Travelers” is about a post-apocalyptic future in which the human race is dying out because of the lack of resources and space. Because of this predicament, and with highly advanced technology, people create something called the “Director”, an A.I. that transmits consciousness into humans in the past to figure out a way to save the future. This is done in teams with a historian, medic, engineer, tactician, and team leader. The team this show focuses on has team leader, whose host is an FBI agent, Grant MacClaren (3468), tactician, whose host is a mom, Carly Shannon (3465), medic, whose host is a mentally challenged librarian under the care of a social worker, Marcy Warton (3569), historian, whose host is a heroin addict, Phillip Pearson (3326), engineer, whose host is a popular high schooler who plays football, Trevor Holden (0115). TV-MA.
2. “Gotham” on Netflix. This series is categorized as an action crime drama that takes place in the pre-Batman city of Gotham. This show contains ample amounts of character development and twists at every turn within its five season long run. Each character gets enough screen time to understand their motivation and what they’re made of, though the show focuses most on Jim Gordon, a detective at the corrupt GCPD, who’s trying his best to get the city back on its feet and keep chaos to a minimum, and Bruce Wayne, a young boy whose parents were recently murdered before his eyes and has a passion to help save Gotham, as well. TV-MA (For gore).
1. “The Good Place, on Netflix. Based on a play called “No Exit” by Sarte, binge-watching this show will intrigue you enough to not focus on the world’s many many issues. Categorized as a comedy, philosophical fiction, and dystopian fantasy, “The Good Place” takes place in the afterlife. On Earth, humans are scored based on how many “good” or “bad” things they do and how it affects others, then when they die, they are either placed in the “good place” where they will be rewarded forever or the “bad place” where they’ll be tortured for the rest of eternity. Focusing on Eleanor Shellstrop, a self proclaimed “Arizona Trash Bag,” who gets to the “good place,” but soon finds something is out of place. TV-14.
