Friends, we’re in for a big storm this weekend. What better time to catch up on rest (everyone I talk to this week says they too have been struggling to get good sleep…what’s up?!), relax, and find some good shows to binge if you’re snowed or iced in.
I’m a TV person. I like it. I don’t spend hours watching it every day, but I do usually have a show that I’m watching. It’s great that we can watch entire seasons at a time now! It wasn’t too long ago that we started a series in September, watched it through basically a school year, then were left with spring cliffhangers, and wondered all summer what would happen next. Now, we get to binge TV.
I have some new favorites and some old faithfuls that I will go back and watch over and over. We cut the cable over two years ago and haven’t looked back. The price of cable had climbed and climbed and the bill (without any premium channels even) was rivaling a car payment! Crazy. We have Sling, Prime, Hulu, and Netflix. So here are my 5 faves…
Crime Shows: I don’t have a specific one because we binge many on demand on Sling on the ID channel. It can get scary but it also makes you aware. We tend to binge stalker shows and documentaries where the victims lived to tell their stories. The alternative is too sad. They also have educational value because as you watch, you learn the psychology behind some crimes and ways to potentially protect yourself, as well as see the red flags sometimes overlooked. Obsession: Dark Desires is about stalking. Buckle up.
Virgin River is my newest TV binge obsession. It’s new on Netflix so I believe just one season is out right now, but I read season 2 is in the works. It’s about a nurse practitioner named Mel (excellent name, wink wink) who comes to a tiny mountain town in California to work for a year. She has a dramatic and heartbreaking back story which we see in flashbacks, but a hopeful new story in Virgin River as well. There’s drama, romance, and it’s clean. Veteran actors Tim Matheson and Annette O’Toole are great comedy relief in the series, and Mel is played by Alexandra Breckenridge. This Is Us fans will know her as Sophie, Kevin’s former wife. Good, solid show that leaves a little cliffhanger at the end of each episode.
Dirty John is on Netflix and it is a good show. It’s based on the true story of a successful businesswoman and mother who is wooed by a sociopathic killer, John. This was actually an important series to me as I saw all the red flags with this man from episode one. It’s a riveting drama that you can’t stop watching, but again, gives you insight into the mind of an abuser. It’s definitely a good watch!
Unbelievable is based on a true story and is a 1-season show (like Dirty John). As you’ve detected a pattern, much of what I watch is also the same subject matter of what I write about. In this film, a young girl is brutally raped in her apartment and because she has no support system, is coerced into saying she lied about it. But she was telling the truth. As this unravels we see so much more, about how survivors aren’t often believed, how it’s so important they have an advocate from the moment police arrive or they report, and so on. Merritt Wever and Kaitlyn Dever are excellent in this limited series that also is based on a true story.
My all-time favorite binge-worthy show that I’ve watched many times in its entirety, is quoted daily in my home, and usually on the TV somewhere on any given day is…The Office. The Office is my favorite ever. If you’ve never watched it, give it a try. But settle in and watch a few episodes before making a judgement. It’s top-notch, laugh-out-loud, and the best workplace in the world. The series ended years ago but the laughs live on. It’s a brilliant, iconic show that people are still talking about years and years later. I can’t stop watching. (That’s what she said…”)
What are your favorite binge-worthy shows? What are you watching now?
