What To Watch On Netflix In January

netflix-january

Ok, I’m calling it. Yes it’s a new year, a new decade even but it’s STILL cold and mostly grey and well, it’s winter. This means most of you have at least two months until you start to feel warm again, and I have approximately 4 months until I can start peeling off all my thermal layers so there really is nothing better to do than hunker down and get a load of Netflix in (or Amazon Prime/Sky boxsets, whatever your poison). This is an update to the post that I wrote two years ago, you can check it out here.

I was a bit of late adopter of Netflix, religiously sticking to my Love Film DVD through the post subscription when everyone else was watching House of Cards. But better later than never Netflix has definitely become my guilty pleasure. We do have an amazon prime subscription too (hello This Is Us and Marvellous Mrs Maisel) but I tend to gravitate more to Netflix, mainly because it’s on my iPad whereas Amazon is currently only on the TV.

Let’s dive in!

You – Season 2

Everyone’s favourite creepy weirdo stalker/killer guy returned for a new season of yep – you guessed it – creepy weirdo stalker behaviour. Played by Penn Badgley of Gossip Girl fame (Dan the writer, my fave even though everyone was crushing on Chuck Bass), Joe (or Will) has now relocated to LA to find a new paramour and well, after a slow burning start it has some pretty killer (ha!) twists. I wasn’t sure I’d get into it since I lap up anything New York based whereas LA always feels a little disjointed, and it felt quite samey in the beginning but it was well worth watching.

Virgin River

New for Netflix , this is my biggest surprise hit since I only typically watch very dark thriller/criminal/gruesome things. I’d seen a few people talking about it on Instagram so thought I’d give it a go. It took me a couple of episodes to get into it since it felt a bit “twee” to begin with. In a nutshell, late 30s LA-er Mel turns up to sleepy teeny town to be the new nurse practitioner and becomes part of a very resistant community. It’s clear she’s running from something – but what? Handily the one bar is owned by rogueishly good-looking mid-40s Jack, himself battling demons, and the romantic that lurks in us all hopes for sparks.

What’s SO refreshing about Virgin River it’s a show not aimed at teens, played by actors in their late 30s/40s (and above), playing age-appropriate characters and with the exception of one, there are no children. Yes there’s a baby-related storyline but it’s wonderful to see more dramas being centered around lives, rather than traditional families. More of this please.

Unbelievable

This actually dropped back in September as a limited series docu-drama and I did watch the first episode then but something must have distracted me from continuing. Based on a real-life story, it follows two female detectives from different districts try to snare a serial rapist after a young girl is accused of making up her own rape story a few years earlier since the attacker leaves so little evidence. It’s obviously a difficult watch but absolutely compelling at the same time. Both detectives are excellent and one of them is played by Toni Collette who honestly could make ANY woman want to take up policing as a career. Oustanding.

Falling Inn Love

Yes, it really IS as cheesy as it sounds and again, not my usual fare but it was cute if you need a bit of ignoring how crappy the world is at the moment. It’s actually a film but as with typical rom-coms/dramas comes in at well less than 2 hours and follows San Fran native Gabriela (Christina Milian) as she wins an inn in rural New Zealand. It turns out to be a renovation project (aren’t they always?!) and of course the only handyman in town happens to be dreamy. And there’s a goat. It’s fun, it’s frothy, and quite frankly, we all need that from time to time.

When They See Us

This is actually an older show which landed last April and I watched it then too, but I really advocate that EVERYONE should watch it. Based again on real life events, following a brutal attack in Central Park in the late 80s, this 4-part multi-award winning series follows the story of the 5 falsely accused young men and what happened next over 25 years. It’s chastening and a stark, horrifying reminder of how privileged many of us are simply because of the colour of our skin.

I could go on and on but that’s a wrap for now – who knows maybe I’ll revisit each month and do a new post as there’s always so much arriving. And thank goodness because I can’t be alone in thinking about 95% of terrestrial TV is shockingly bad, I worked out the other day I think the last thing I watched on ITV was probably Downton Abbey! Anyway if you’re a Netflix/Amazon/boxset fan, leave me a comment and let me know what you love.

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2 Comments

  1. January 9, 2020 / 9:12 am

    We must have the same tastes. I absolutely loved (if that is the right word) When they see us. It made me so sad, angry, shocked and the fact it is true all the more compelling. Same for Unbelievable and totally loved the two police detectives- great casting. Last night we started You. A little behind the times but can tell we are going to be gripped. Happy Thursday

    • Lins
      Author
      February 9, 2020 / 8:32 pm

      Thanks so much Clare for your lovely comment! I hope you ended up enjoying you and yes you’re so right about When They See Us, it’s compelling but so sad and shocking at the same time x

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