Because no one wants to sift through the bad!
Another year, another batch of Netflix Original Series. We’re going to be listing our favorite Netflix TV Shows of 2018 that aren’t Stranger Things, House of Cards or Orange is the New Black. Keep in mind that these are in no particular order! Have a show you’d like to recommend? Feel free to leave us a comment at the end of this post!
A Series of Unfortunate Events
If you were a fan of the book series of the same name by Lemony Snicket, then you will love Netflix’s take on the Baudelaire Orphans’ sad story. The series revolves around three orphans who lost the parents in a tragic fire. The siblings travel from home to home while being pursued by that evil Count Olaf, who is after the enormous fortune that their parents left to them.
Neil Patrick Harris stars as Count Olaf in various disguises along other cast members that include Patrick Warburton, who plays fictional author Lemony Snicket.
A Series of Unfortunate Events has two seasons currently streaming on Netflix and is supposed to be wrapping up with the third as the story is coming to a close.
Lost in Space
Lost in Space premiered in April 2018 and is a reimagining of the 1960’s TV Series. Following the Robinson Family as they flee a dying Earth in search of a suitable planet to settle down on.
Tragedy strikes when the Robinsons’s spaceship crash lands on an unknown planet due to an attack on the mothership by an evil alien race.
Netflix’s Lost in Space is a fun, dark take on an old classic that will hook you after the first episode.
LOVE
Netflix’s LOVE wrapped up the series with their recently released third season. The show follows two unlucky in love individuals, Gus and Mickey, who are having a hard time starting a romantic relationship due to their own personal struggles.
Created by Judd Apatow, LOVE is a funny, quirky and heartfelt look at what it’s like to date and be in love in the year 2018. Mickey and Gus find themselves in awkward situations that we can all relate to and you can’t help but continue to watch their relationship unfold in a chaotic manner.
Aggretsuko (Aggressive Retsuko)
Aggretsuko is an animated Japanese cartoon that follows a red panda named Retsuko as she navigates her way through adulthood in Japan. Retsuko is just like us- she works in a crazy office, has crazy coworkers, a crazy boss, and she just so happens to unleash her frustrations by singing hardcore metal at her local karaoke spot.
You read that right. Retsuko screams curse-filled lyrics in order to vent to an empty room. You won’t believe how relatable your life is to an animated animal until you watch Retsuko deal with finding love and questioning her career goals in a ten-episode season.
Abstract
This Netflix Documentary Series follows various artists as they take you with them through their process. You will not find a series as aesthetically pleasing as Abstract.
From graphic design to architectural design, Abstract opens your eyes to all the aspects of art that you may not know even exist. Design exists all around us, and it all comes from a person who put it there.
The graphic design episode and the illustration one pictured above are my favorite episodes from the season.
Arrested Development
Okay, this isn’t exactly a Netflix Original Series, but it was saved from cancellation by them after ten years! Arrested Development is a smart, quirky series that follows the Bluth Family, a well-known and wealthy family from Orange County, California.
After the patriarch of the family is arrested on treason charges, Michael, the most responsible Bluth son, has no choice but to try to keep them all together.
Arrested Development paved the way for comedies like The Office, Parks and Recreation and many more through its style of storytelling and comedy. It also features a very fresh-faced Michael Cera!
Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee
Again, another not-so-original Netflix Series is Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee. What is it about? Well, each episode has comedians in cars, well… getting coffee!
Originally created and streamed on Crackle, Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee which is hosted by Jerry Seinfeld features a different classic car in which Seinfeld hand picks himself to pick up his guests in. From there, they travel to a random local coffee spot and talk about life, career, and their successes as well as their failures.
You’d be surprised at how interesting a small conversation between two professional comedians (and Obama for some reason) can be until you see them sit together in a cafe and just…talk.
Everything Sucks!
Everything Sucks! was Netflix’s answer to cult classic Freaks & Geeks. Sadly, the series has already been canceled after one season but it’s still worth a watch.
Taking place in the 1990’s, Everything Sucks! follows a group of 9th graders as they get acclimated to life in High School. If you’re a 90’s die-hard, then you’ll love all of the references and aesthetic that this show has to offer.
It’s also one of the most realistic portrayals of high school I’ve ever seen, as the characters actually look and act their age.
Master of None
Netflix’s Master of None is the ultimate depiction of what it’s like to be a young working minority adult in America. Created by Aziz Ansari, Master of None follows Dev, played by Ansari as a fictional version of himself, a working actor living in Brooklyn, New York.
Dev faces the struggles of being typecast as a stereotypical Indian man for commercials and small TV roles. You’ll see how he navigates adulthood in the modern age dealing with things like dating, working, and friendship.
Master of None is a comedy, but it is so much more than that. It’s an insightful look at what it’s like growing up as a minority, whether it be race or sexual orientation. Many episodes stand out in this series, which has two seasons currently streaming on Netflix. This is probably my favorite show on this list.
Mindhunter
Mindhunter is a show that flew under the radar last year, but those who did find it loved it. The series, which has one season currently streaming on Netflix, follows two FBI Agents in the 1960’s who are on a mission to prove that a person’s upbringing directly relates to their crimes.
Mindhunter is based on a true story of the term Serial Killer become mainstream. You’ll see unsettling depictions of real-life serial killers as Agent Holden Ford interviews and dissects their psyche.
You’ll find yourself watching episode after episode as Ford goes deeper down the rabbit hole that may just get him into trouble, or even killed.
