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The best Netflix originals to watch now

Photo credit: Netflix
Photo credit: Netflix

From Good Housekeeping

New TV series are hitting channels and streaming services all the time, and with so much choice available it can be hard to make up our minds about what to watch next.

If you’re someone who spends more time thinking about what could be watched rather than actually getting stuck into a season, it might be worth browsing Netflix’s popular original series.

Netflix originals span a range of genres from witty teen dramas to pacy thrillers and fantasy that transports you to other worlds.

Some of the best Netflix originals have leaped out from the crowd and stood the test of time, earning repeat seasons and loads of praise (see The Crown; Stranger Things; GLOW).

Here, we run through some of the best for your viewing consideration.

Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt

Photo credit: Netflix
Photo credit: Netflix

Kimmy Schmidt (Ellie Kemper) is rescued from a doomsday cult after 15 years of being held captive in an underground bunker and naturally, when she sees the light of day she wants to catch up on everything she’s been missing. She moves to New York and quickly gets reacquainted with modern life, warts and all, with hilarious consequences. She also finds an incredible best friend in the form of Titus (Tituss Burgess) and begins working for the oddly loveable Jane (Jacqueline Voorhes). The series will have you laughing out loud with its eccentricity and tug at your heartstrings as well.

Stranger Things

Photo credit: Netflix
Photo credit: Netflix

Lovers of good old fashion ‘80s sci-fi will be suckers for this show, which is an homage to the genre. Set in the small town of Hawkins, Indiana, it centres on a group of inquisitive teenagers who discover some very strange goings on, connecting their own world with a truly terrifying parallel one. With a nostalgic soundtrack, thrilling moments and a star cast led by the likes of Winona Ryder, David Harbour and Millie Bobby Brown, it’s a must-watch.

Orange Is The New Black

Photo credit: Netflix
Photo credit: Netflix

OITNB caught everyone’s attention when it burst onto the Netflix scene with its depiction of life in a US women’s prison. It might sound hard-going, and at times it can be as we see the women deal with people in power abusing their positions as well as threats from other inmates, but at its core it’s all heart, with characters that really leave their mark.

The Crown

Photo credit: Netflix
Photo credit: Netflix

Possibly the pinnacle of high-budget and glamorous Netflix originals, The Crown follows Queen Elizabeth II as she ascends the British throne and learns how to be a monarch on the job. The fictional series gives a fascinating insight into what it might be like to be in the royal family and packs some incredible performances from the rotating cast featuring the likes of Claire Foy, Vanessa Kirby and Olivia Colman.

GLOW

Photo credit: Erica Parise/Netflix
Photo credit: Erica Parise/Netflix

Down-and-out actress Ruth (Alison Brie) is struggling to get her career going in 1980s Los Angeles, and when she stumbles into recording a TV show call The Gorgeous Ladies Of Wrestling, she gets more than she bargained for. As a group of brilliant women get to grips with the wrestling world, they also become a kind of dysfunctional family, and the result is must-watch viewing – even if you’ve never fancied yourself a wrestling fan before.

Russian Doll

Photo credit: Netflix
Photo credit: Netflix

This comedy-drama is a fresh take on a Groundhog Day-style dilemma, as games developer Nadia (Natasha Lyonne) repeatedly relives her 36th birthday and ultimately keeps dying in bizarre ways. Trapped in a time loop, the feisty but actually pretty vulnerable Nadia attempts to understand why it’s happening.

Sex Education

Photo credit: Sam Taylor/Netflix
Photo credit: Sam Taylor/Netflix

This High School-set drama has set the world on fire with its refreshingly honest depiction of sex and sexuality, giving us amazing characters like Maeve (Emma Mackey), Eric (Ncuti Gatwa) and Jean (Gillian Anderson). Jean’s a sex therapist, which means her son Otis (Asa Butterfield) knows a thing or two about the subject. When his classmates start coming to him with their own sex dilemmas, he becomes a reluctant coach and confidant while dealing with his own complicated personal life.

Grace and Frankie

Photo credit: Netflix
Photo credit: Netflix

Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin star as Grace and Frankie, two women who’ve never really liked each other but are forced to get along when they move in together following their husbands’ announcement that they’re in love and plan to get married. Fans of Fonda and Tomlin, or those who simply love a series with warmth and heart, will enjoy this one.

Ozark

Photo credit: Netflix
Photo credit: Netflix

This gripping crime drama follows Marty (Jason Bateman) a man whose money laundering scheme goes wrong, forcing him to relocate his wife Wendy (Laura Linney) and kids, as well as make amends to a drug cartel by setting up an even bigger laundering operation in the Ozarks, a mountain range in Missouri. You might be watching from behind your fingers at moments, but for those with a penchant for thrills, it’s a winning series.


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Photo credit: Hearst Owned
Photo credit: Hearst Owned

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