By: Lily Sperber
With a socially distanced spring break on the horizon, many students are looking for ways to enjoy their time off despite having limited options. Here are 10 binge-worthy shows to keep you busy and captivated at home over the next week.
1. On My Block (Netflix)
Four best friends living in a gang-dominated, sporadically violent South-Central Los Angeles start their freshman year of high school with high expectations. Whether encountering violence, romance or family troubles, these teens quickly realize there is more in store for them than the normal high school experience they hoped for. This coming-of-age comedy will keep you watching episode after episode, whether to see more of the friends’ dramatic and laughable moments or the more intense, emotional ones that will leave you wondering if they will be forever changed.
2. Schitt’s Creek (Netflix)
After the obnoxiously rich Rose family go broke, they are left with only one asset: a small town called Schitt’s Creek. The family of four, including the couple’s two adult children, are left with no choice but to move into the town’s motel and adapt, hesitantly, to a life far different from the luxurious one they once had. The show follows the hilarious yet profound journey of these characters as they get to know the town, it’s eccentric inhabitants, and the situations they will face as they try to rebuild their lives.
3. The Handmaid’s Tale (Hulu)
After the government is taken over by those set on changing the way of things, a large part of the U.S. is renamed Gilead, a republic where men alone hold political power and women have little to no rights. This dystopian series, based on a novel of the same name, focuses on a woman called Offred, who is one of many handmaids forced to have children in a society where the birth rate is extremely low. As Offred encounters her new world, she is faced with impossible challenges, hard decisions, and the knowledge that by breaking the rules in any way, she is risking her life, even if it means saving others.
4. The 100 (Netflix)
97 years after a nuclear apocalypse makes the Earth uninhabitable, 100 teen delinquents are sent from the Ark, their dying home in space, to see if the Earth is survivable. From the moment they set foot on the foreign planet, they are faced with the unknown at every turn and are forced to grow up fast to survive their new world, no matter what it takes.
5. Breaking Bad (Netflix)
After high school chemistry teacher Walter White gets diagnosed with terminal cancer, he and former student Jesse Pinkman start a meth lab to make money. Despite the best of intentions to help financially support his family in the time he has left, his efforts lead to drama and risks, both for those in his life and from those he encounters. This series takes viewers through Walter’s uncertain journey and shows how one’s choices can evolve from being well-intentioned to being corrupted by power and sin.
6. The Rain (Netflix)
If you think what’s happening in our world is bad, watching this will both distract and comfort you. This Danish post-apocalyptic series is set six years after a deadly virus, transmitted by rainwater, kills off most of Scandinavia’s population and permanently changes society. After living in a bunker all that time, two siblings make the choice to leave, only to encounter a tough yet sympathetic group of survivors who help them understand and survive their new world. They quickly realize that the biggest dangers to them are not from their environment, but rather the people they will face and the choices they will be forced to make.
7. The Circle (Netflix)
In this reality show competition, contestants are part of a social media experiment where they must rate each other based only on their profiles and communication through an app. The contestants with the lowest ratings will be eliminated or blocked, with the last person standing to win $100,000 dollars. Based almost entirely on feigned identities and drama, reality show lovers will enjoy the show and be riveted by the peculiar personalities in it.
8. The Stranger (Netflix)
When a husband is told a secret about his wife by a woman he’d never met, his life changes in ways he never expected. The mystery of this stranger and the aftermath of the secrets she reveals become the focus of this British thriller series, as detectives, and the husband, work to uncover the truth. If you enjoy shows with mysteries and lies, you may find yourself absorbed by this series and its many plot twists and revelations.
9. Lost in Space (Netflix)
Based on a 1965 series of the same name, this remake follows the Robinson family after they are selected to be part of a colony to inhabit the Alpha Centauri star system. After their ship goes off course, they find themselves on an unknown planet where they make unexpected alliances and enemies. Family bonds are tested, and impossible challenges are faced as these characters try to survive by working together in hopes of ultimately reaching their new home.
10. I Am Not Okay with This (Netflix)
This coming-of-age drama series has a little bit of everything: comedy, sci-fi, romance, and much more, making it a good choice no matter what your favorite genre is. Sydney, a quirky 17-year-old high school student struggling after the loss of her father begins to realize she may have superpowers. From the diverse, lovable characters to emotive and meaningful moments, this show will keep you wanting more from start to finish.
Editor's Mention: Tiger King
While you might expect to see some wild sights in a show dedicated to the ownership of big cats, it is hard to believe that for the most part, the wildness comes from the people involved rather than the animals. One of Netflix's newest docu-series, Tiger King follows the lives of the men and women that dedicate their lives to the raising, conservation, and exploitation of some of nature's largest and most effective predators. Tiger King packs each moment of its seven-episode run with so many twists and turns that those trapped indoors will have no problem finishing it in a day.