As 2018 draws to a close, let us look back over the various TV series that were offered up by our favourite online streaming platform over the course of the year. Netflix has become a cornerstone of our society and has helped many of us combat the boredom of long, cold winter evenings when no-one wants to hang out. Since Netflix started dishing up its own films and series, we have seen a mixed bag of results. There have been some series that have blow us away and others that you could barely even class as entertainment.
It’s time to have a recap of some of the best TV series that Netflix has released this year.
Safe
The art of the mini-series was truly perfected in this excellent Netflix offering. The premise is familiar – a teenager, Jenny, goes missing and her distressed father, Tom, does everything he can to find here. But, nothing about the series is obvious or boring. Throughout the episodes the viewer encounters plot twist after plot twist as Tom uncovers dark secrets about the people he thought he knew. The series takes place within a highly affluent gated community and it is utterly binge-worthy.
La Forêt
While not created by Netflix, this series made its international debut on the platform in July 2018. This is another thrilling mini-series that has just six episodes in which a lot happens. When the daughter of a local police officer goes missing, the small village in which they live gets turned upside down. There is a big creepy forest that gives you constant chills and plenty of sex, drama, and deceit. The only catch is that, unless you speak French, you will have to watch it with subtitles.
A Series of Unfortunate Events – Season 2
If you read these books as a kid, you are going to love the TV series. Neil Patrick Harris brilliantly portrays the evil Count Olaf, who is willing to do whatever it takes to strip the Baudelaire orphans of their fortune. While the series might seem like a kid’s show, it is far from it. This series is as dark as it gets and is clearly targeted at the 20-somethings who grew up reading the books. There are vicious deaths, cunning plots, and, of course, a lot of unfortunate events.
The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina
If you ever watched the original Sabrina, the Teenage Witch series with Melissa Joan Hart then you are going to love Netflix’s reboot of it. Kiernan Shipka (you might remember her as Don Draper’s daughter in Mad Men) plays Sabrina, a half-witch, half-mortal who is just trying to live a normal teenage life. As she navigates the complexities of high school, she simultaneously learns witchcraft and the mysteries of the occult. It’s borderline trash but also absolutely amazing and I promise once you start you won’t be able to stop.
Maniac
Jonah Hill and Emma Stone – could you think of a better pair of actors for a weird pseudo-science, semi-futuristic, psych series? I didn’t think so. Stone and Hill portray two disturbed youngsters who each have their own set of problems. They meet at a clinical trial for a drug that neither of them knows much about. Unfortunately, things don’t quite go to plan when the depressed super computer that runs the trial takes matters into its own hands.
