Your 2016 Summer Binge-Watch List (PHOTOS)
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HULU; Bill Records/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank; Netflix
When it gets too hot for the beach and too torrid for the pool, it's time to buckle down inside and binge-watch your favorite shows until Netflix asks if you're still watching. (Yes, Netflix, sadly I am). Which are the best summer TV shows to beat the heat with? Climb aboard the Summer Breeze with Seth Cohen in The OC, cool down with a milkshake at the Peach Pit in Beverly Hills 90210, or try to tackle the Texas heat with Riggins before the Friday Night Lights turn on. With our gallery of summer binge-watch shows, it'll be September in no time.
NBCU Photo Bank
Saved by the Bell – Netflix, Hulu, Amazon
Break the fourth wall and spend your summer at the Malibu Sands Beach Club with the original power couple, Zack Morris and Kelly Kapowski (Mark-Paul Gosselaar and Tiffani-Amber Theissen). Together with their friends Slater (Mario Lopez), Jessie (Elizabeth Berkley), Lisa (Lark Voorhies), and Screech (Dustin Diamond), they take on high school, crushes, and rocky romances.
- Watch for the original Girl Next Door Kelly, more ridiculous ‘90’s fashion, and Jessie’s epic “I’m so excited!” scene.
Netflix
Orange is the New Black – Netflix
Lock yourself up at Litchfield Prison for the new season of Orange is the New Black. When Piper Chapman (Taylor Schilling) is sentenced to prison for a crime she committed years ago, drama ensues when she is reunited with her ex-girlfriend Alex (Laura Prepon). The strong ensemble cast includes Uzo Aduba, Natasha Lyonne, and Taryn Manning, whose backstories are further explored as the series progresses. Good luck choosing a favorite inmate!
- Watch for Samira Wiley's moving performance as Poussey Washington and Blair Brown's turn as a Paula Deen / Martha Stewart-like lifestyle guru.
NBC/Everett Collections
Friday Night Lights – Netflix, Amazon
Join the Dillon Panthers in the Texas heat for two-a-days. Coach Taylor (Kyle Chandler), his wife Tami (Connie Britton), and their daughter Julie (Aimee Teegarden) live in a town that revolves around football, but after a tragedy in the very first episode, it’s clear the show is about more than sports. Quarterback Jason Street (Scott Porter), his cheerleader girlfriend Lyla (Minka Kelly), and womanizing best friend Tim Riggins (Taylor Kitsch) provide just some of the off-screen drama in a show that will make you laugh and cry at the same time. Clear eyes, full hearts, can’t lose.
- Watch for Coach and Mrs. Coach’s fun banter, the high school loves, and mostly, the hilarity of Riggins.
HULU
The OC – Hulu
A brooding blonde (Benjamin Mackenzie, pre-Gotham) with a penchant for tank tops and trouble leaves his life of poverty in Chino behind to move into the glamorous Orange County home of his attorney (Peter Gallagher, recently seen on New Girl). There, he befriends his comic-book loving, sarcastic social-outcast son Seth (Adam Brody, the original nerdy heartthrob), their troubled but beautiful neighbor Marissa (Mischa Barton), and her bubbly best friend Summer (Rachel Bilson).
- Watch for the beautiful scenery, the teenage drama, and the incredible Indie music soundtrack (the show is credited with bringing Death Cab for Cutie to the mainstream) – plus catch plenty of big-actors in their first roles (Chris Pratt, Vampire Diaries Paul Wesley, Nikki Reed, Arrow’s Willa Holland)
MTV
Teen Wolf – Amazon
The cast of Teen Wolf constantly tops the most-tagged lists on Tumblr, and by binge-watching the supernatural drama you’ll see why. Scott McCall (Tyler Posey, the son in Maid in Manhattan all grown up), gets bit by a werewolf, just as he’s falling in love with a werewolf hunter’s daughter, Alison (Crystal Reed). His sarcastic best friend Stiles (Dylan O’Brien) tries to help him keep his secret. As the show progresses, it introduces kitsunes, kanimas, and banshees – but it’s the relationship between Stiles and his longtime crush Lydia (Holland Roden) that keeps viewers hanging on.
- Watch for the supernatural creatures, Stiles’s hilarious one-liners, and the empowered female characters (Alison is a menace with a bow and arrow).
Courtesy of Pop Network
Beverly Hills, 90210 – Hulu
Watch the show that started the teen soap genre, and inspired a generation of girls to wear high-waist jeans and cropped tops. Newcomers Brandon (Jason Priestley) and Brenda (Shannon Doherty) take on Beverly Hills, navigating high school, friendships, and love triangles at West Beverly High School and the Peach Pit. Plus, Donna Martin graduates!
- Watch for the constant teenage drama, the fun beach locations, and the absolutely nostalgic ‘90’s fashion.
Freeform
Pretty Little Liars - Netflix, Amazon
A mysterious person known only as “A” blackmails four former BFFs, all of whom are dealing with the disappearance of their best friend. But just when you think that "A" is revealed and the girls are safe, there are more secrets to be exposed. Throw in forbidden romances, questions of sexual identity, and plenty of sibling drama and you have the perfect summer binge show.
- Watch for the killer wardrobes, the hot guys, and the edge-of-your-seat mysteries.
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