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Sometimes you want a show that you can binge in a day and sometimes you need a series that has at least 10 years of episodes for you to comfort watch every night. But finding those shows can keep you wide awake, scrolling through choices, long after Netflix would have asked you if you were still watching. That’s why we’ve put together this list of some of our favorite shows that are on Netflix right now. With a lot of the guesswork removed, you can just find one (or two or ten) shows and hit play right now.The Great British Baking Show
What better way to spend an afternoon (or an entire day) than under the tents of The Great British Baking Show, judging bakes and listening to Brits talk about their hobbies and families? Did we mention that there are always a few very calming shots of sheep and flowers?Russian Doll
In the first season, Nadia Vulvokov is having a hard time in the present day where she has been killed many times over on her birthday. In the second season, she is having entirely different but even more disturbing issues with the past where she inhabits the bodies of her foremothers and inherits generational trauma firsthand. But through it all, Nadia is funny and fun to be around—likely because she’s played by Natasha Lyonne. The Umbrella Academy
Seven children—all born on the same day at the same time, but not related—are adopted by a billionaire named Sir Reginald Hargreeves. Instead of raising them with love, he raises them to fight crime with the weird powers they all possess. It’s not much of a family, but when he dies, they have to come together to solve the mystery of his death and their lives. The last season of the show will stream in August. Ugly Betty
Before America Ferrera gave a monologue on the weight of expectations on women in Barbie, she wrestled with those expectations through four seasons of Ugly Betty. As Betty Ferrera, a Mexican-American woman from Queens, she fights for acceptance at the fashion magazine where she works. Bridgerton
Bridgerton is known for its slow-burn sex scenes and for bringing modern twists to the intrigues of Regency-era England. Thanks to its popularity with viewers, it’s already been approved for a third season—so if you haven’t already made it through the first two, you’d better start binging now.Derry Girls
Northern Ireland during The Troubles was not a laugh-a-minute place, and yet Derry Girls makes it seem that way—at least for the tribe of teens that the series follows.Seinfeld
This show about nothing was everything when it came to being a blueprint for comedies that followed. Forget Friends, Seinfeld is the sitcom that you should watch, particularly if you want to fill the space in your funny bone that the end of Curb Your Enthusiasm will bring. Brooklyn Nine-Nine
There are so many police procedurals out there. Too many. But there’s only one Brooklyn Nine-Nine, which plays the goings-on of the fictional 99th Precinct of the New York City Police Department for laughs. It stars Andy Samberg, Andre Braugher, and Stephanie Beatriz. Wednesday
They’re creepy, they’re kooky, they’re all together ooky. And yet even in the Addams family, Wednesday stands out. The creepiest but most interesting member of the clan gets her own series in this lighthearted and mystery-laden tale of Wednesday’s first year at Nevermore Academy. Heartstopper
Though it has a plot that could be fraught, Hearstopper goes for the warm fuzzies instead. Charlie is a teen going through some inner turmoil when he falls in love with his presumed straight best friend Nick. We won’t spoil things here, but you don’t have to hold your breath worrying that things don’t turn out for pretty much everyone in this series that, so far, has two seasons (and is based on a graphic novel series). Suits
Ever since it landed on Netflix, Suits has shot up in popularity. Is it because the legal drama starred the Duchess of Sussex Meghan Markle before she got involved with the Royal Family? Probably not. It’s more likely that nine seasons of 134 entertaining episodes make it perfect for steady background streaming. Insecure
Though she is supposed to live up to the title in the series, Issa Rae created, wrote, produced, and starred in it, so chances are she’s pretty secure in who she is. The heart of the show is the friendship between Issa (who plays someone named Issa) and Molly. The two women contend with not-always-easy lives in Los Angeles, mostly because of the men they date. Sex and the City
Sex and the City has been set free from HBO and all six seasons are now on Netflix. How will Gen Z, which does not want to see sex on the screen, handle it? Chilling Adventures of Sabrina
Whatever horrors Riverdale wrought on Archie comics can maybe be forgiven because of what the same showrunner did to Sabrina comics with Chilling Adventures of Sabrina. The show works magic with comedy, horror, and drama—and also has a stellar cast. The Good Place
What if this is the bad place? That’s the premise of this fantasy/comedy that centers around four newly deceased people who believe they’ve made it to heaven…except they haven’t. Luckily hell is run by Ted Danson. Stranger Things
One of the stranger things about Stranger Things is that when it wraps up next year, it will have been on for nearly 10 years—but there will be only five seasons of it. The show was an immediate hit for the 1980s Spielbergian nostalgia it created. It takes place in both Hawkins, Indiana, and a place called the Upside Down. Strange indeed. Arrested Development
Even if you haven’t seen the show, you’ve undoubtedly seen the memes. At the start of this series, the Bluth family patriarch is jailed for some white-collar crime and maybe a little light treason and still it is not remotely the most dysfunctional or even criminal thing that happens during its five seasons. From the filming style to the recurring stars (Liza Minelli!), everything about this show felt like a first. Crazy Ex-Girlfriend
What if a sitcom but also a musical? Crazy Ex-Girlfriend doesn’t stop to ask if something should be done, only if it can, much like its protagonist, Rebecca Brunch, who gives up her top-flight law job in New York to chase the possibility of rekindling what was barely a romance in her tiny hometown. Underscoring all the comedy (and the singing) are very real issues of depression and anxiety dealt with in destigmatizing ways. Breaking Bad
Walter White undergoes a gripping transformation over the course of this award-winning show when he ditches his career as a high school chemistry teacher and starts cooking high-quality meth. it’s arguably one of the best shows of the past few decades (and if you can’t get enough, we highly recommend watching the follow-up show Better Call Saul, which is also streaming on Netflix).
Recommended by Our Editors
Girlfriends
Four friends scour a city for love while they try to get ahead in their careers and maintain their friend group. No, Sex and the City is not on this list for a second time—this is Girlfriends, which did not receive its full due at the time it aired because of that other show. It’s nevertheless beloved and not just because it stars the fabulous Tracee Ellis Ross in her first lead role. Orange is the New Black
One of the first Netflix shows to become a mainstream hit, Orange is the New Black is worth a rewatch (or a first watch for some) for the incredible performances of its actresses, including this year’s Oscar nominee Danielle Brooks. Master of None
Aziz Ansari put his life on the screen with Master of None and audiences loved it. Despite how hard it sometimes is to watch his character Dev struggle against his own worst enemy, himself, the show is largely a joy to watch, though the third season stumbles a bit because it was filmed in the awkward pandemic yearsGentefied
Like many other excellent shows, Gentefied was canceled far before its time by Netflix. There are two seasons to watch of this fabulous comedy/drama about three Mexican-American cousins trying to keep their family and their taco shop going. Dead to Me
Christina Applegate plays a woman determined to solve the hit-and-run death of her husband while Linda Cardellini plays her new best friend—who just so happens to be the woman responsible for it. In the end, the pair goes through horrible things, but they do it together, which makes it all worth it to them. Bodies
The same body shows up at four different time periods in the exact same spot in London, leaving the lives of four detectives, as well as all of society, drastically changed because of it. This sci-fi show will leave you thinking about time loops for maybe forever. Bonus RoundThese shows belong on this list but also appear on our list of the best foreign-language shows on Netflix. You can go there to read more of what we think about them, but we recommend:Money Heist
Call My Agent
Lupin
Squid Game
Giri/Haji
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