8 Shows Worth Binge-Watching During a Winter Storm
What do you you when winter is coming? If you answered, “Hope Game of Thrones‘ Jon Snow and Sansa Stark save the day,” then you’d be half right. Winter storms are the perfect time to binge-watch shows you’ve always wanted to check out, but never have. There are hundreds of shows to choose from, so TV Insider’s writers have narrowed your options down based on their TV-watching expertise.
Let us know in the comments what’s next on your binge-watch list.
Damian Holbrook, Senior Writer
Happy Endings (Hulu)
Easily one of the most re-watchable sitcoms of the last decade, the three-season gem goes down so easily, you won’t even notice the Michael Bay-directed weather catastrophe happening outside.
From the pilot, where we meet the post-Friends gang of gay Max (Adam Pally), lovelorn Penny (Casey Wilson), corporate Brad (Damon Wayans Jr.), his type-A wifey Jane (Eliza Coupe), her flighty sister Alex (Elisha Cuthbert) and Dave (Zach Knighton), the food-trucker she ditched at the altar—to the series-finale wedding that left us wanting so much more, the quotable-line quotient is matched only by the number times you will wish this was your own squad. Especially when the entire ensemble is together, trading pile-on insults and wickedly clever wordplay (which actually inspired a blazing take-down from Stephen Guarino’s breakout recurring character Derrick). It’s more tired than Max and Penny on their illegal med NocheTussin to say Endings is ah-mah-zing, so instead we’ll just steal Max’s line about Nashville and say “get on it.”
Matt Roush, Senior Critic
This Is Us (Hulu and NBC.com)
With the first-season finale airing Tuesday night, what better excuse to curl up with a box of tissues and relive the tear-jerking triumphs and tragedies of the Pearson family: sibs Kevin, Kate and Randall and parents Rebecca and Jack—the latter (Milo Ventimiglia in the performance of his career) seen only in flashback as “TV’s Best Dad Ever.” We’ll miss this one, but can take comfort amid the sniffles that NBC has already picked it up for two more seasons.
Lori Acken, Senior Writer
Santa Clarita Diet (Netflix)
The outfits and the weather are SoCal perfect, even if everything else is entertainingly off in this Netflix laugher that stars Drew Barrymore as a real estate agent who suddenly develops a taste for Neighbor Tartare. Justified’s Timothy Olyphant shows off, er, killer comic chops as her protective husband who tries to figure out what exactly’s going on as feeding his newly ballsy missus grows more and more complex. Liv Hewson as the pair’s deadpan daughter and Skyler Gisondo as the boy next door who loves her are icing on the cake of this goofy, gross-out comedy that can be devoured in one satisfyingly cathartic sitting.
Kellie Freeze, Staff Writer
Top of the Lake (Netflix)
I am a big fan of SundanceTV’s 2013 series, Top of the Lake. The seven-episode first season should be on any mystery buff’s blizzard-binge list. Elisabeth Moss stars as detective Robin Griffin, who tries to uncover the truth behind the pregnancy and disappearance of 12 year-old Tui Mitcham. The series cast is excellent and includes David Wenham, Peter Mullan, Tom Wright, Jay Ryan and Holly Hunter, but the series’ biggest scene-stealers are the gorgeous visuals of New Zealand, where the series is set and was filmed.
A second season of Top of the Lake, will be released in 2017 and star Moss and Nicole Kidman. Game of Thrones’ Gwendoline Christie will also appear in the new mystery, which takes place near Sydney’s Bondi Beach four years after the events of Season 1.
Emily Aslanian, Assistant Editor
The Mick (Fox.com and Hulu)
Before it returns on March 21, catch up on the hilarious antics of the irresponsible Aunt Mickey (played by It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia‘s Kaitlin Olson), who has been tasked with babysitting the spoiled Pemberton kids after her sister flees the country. During this quick, 11-episode binge, you’ll instantly fall for housekeeper Alba (Carla Jimenez) and accident-prone youngest child Ben (Jack Stanton). Highlights include: Episode 2, “The Grandparents,” and Episode 7, “The Country Club.”
Jim Halterman, West Coast Bureau Chief
Grace and Frankie (Netflix)
Before the new season starts on March 24, binge Grace and Frankie on Netflix. How did Lily Tomlin and Jane Fonda get to the point where their on-screen personas are selling vibrators for older women? Find out by watching the first two seasons of the truly enjoyable Netflix comedy.
John Russell, Staff Writer
Absolutely Fabulous (Hulu)
What would Patsy and Edina do? It’s basically the guiding principal of my life—for better or worse. So while everyone else is stocking up on milk, eggs and bread, I suggest splurging on a bottle of Bollinger—or five—and some cheesy nibbles for a day of binge watching Ab Fab. Hulu has almost the entire series: all three seasons from the original early 90s run, the early 2000s revival seasons, and the three 20th anniversary specials. A few specials are conspicuously missing: “The Last Shout,” “Gay,” and “White Box.” But it’s not like you need to have seen them to enjoy the rest of the series; Ab Fab is pretty light on continuity. As the snow turn the world into a minimalist nightmare, crack open the Bolly and indulge in some fabulous excesses. Cheers, sweetie!
Marisa Roffman, Staff Writer
Person of Interest (Netflix)
The Jim Caviezel and Michael Emerson-led series only popped up on Netflix before its fifth and final season, but the former CBS drama is as timely as ever. Person of Interest follows Harold Finch (Emerson), a mysterious billionaire hacker, and his colleague, John Reese (Caviezel), a former CIA agent, as they attempt to prevent crimes before they occurr, thanks to assistance from an artificial intelligence system dubbed “The Machine.” Team Machine also includs Kevin Chapman, Amy Acker, Sarah Shahi and a pre-Empire Taraji P. Henson. The series was at its strongest when it embraced the show’s core mythology, and also produced a number of standout episodes that bent the rules of how episodic hours were formatted (notably Season 4’s “If-Then-Else” and Season 5’s “6,741”).
Absolutely Fabulous where to stream
