Multiple times per week, our TV and film experts will list the most important ten streaming selections for you to pop into your queues. We’re not strictly operating upon reviews or accrued streaming clicks (although yes, we’ve scoured the streaming site charts and ratings) but, instead, upon those selections that are really worth noticing amid the churning sea of content. There’s a lot out there, after all, and your time is valuable.
TIE: 10. Top Gun (Paramount movie streaming on Paramount+)
Tom Cruise can’t stop feeling the need for speed or the danger zone, and this O.G. flick soared in popularity when Top Gun: Maverick (finally) headed into theaters. The sequel was fully worth the wait, but if you still haven’t caught up (or even if you have), then the 1980s-set volleyball game is definitely something that you’ll wanna relive. Iceman was always the coolest, and his rivalry with Maverick was one for the ages. No singular star does blockbusters (or crazy stunts) like Tom Cruise these days, so don’t resist: let him take your breath away.
TIE: 10. Ms. Marvel (HBO Max series)
Before The Marvels collectively arrive in 2023 (that would also include Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Paris) and Carol Danvers (Brie Larson), you’ll want to get to know the youngest member of the group, Iman Vallani’s Kamala Khan. She’s a fan girl of Captain Marvel and not-at-all shy about this status, and even more than that, she wants to be a hero because she inherently wants to help people. The show also revamps the origin story of Kamala’s powers, and that’s slightly controversial but very updated for 2022, not to mention cosmic.
9. Dark Winds (AMC+ series)
Native American writers are finally telling the stories that they want to tell, and that not only includes FX’s Reservation Dogs but also this AMC+ series that George R.R. Martin happens to produce. The show’s mostly scripted by indigenous writers and is based upon Tony Hillerman’s Leaphorn & Chee book series, which showcases 1970s Navajo law enforcement who watch over a remote outpost close to Monument Valley. There’s a double murder and some other apparently unrelated wrongdoings, and everything begins to make them question their formerly steadfast spiritual beliefs. Gotta love those personal demons that rear up at the worst (and also best) possible times.
8. Obi-Wan Kenobi (Disney+ series)
He might be Princess Leia’s only hope, but back in the day, an adorable surprise awaits fans of the Star Wars universe. The throwback show takes place a decade following the events of Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith, and Anakin Skywalker is (of course) fully into his bad self and entrenched in the ways of the dark side. Hayden Christiansen and Ewan McGregor are back together again, both together and separately, and a completist simply must soak in the entire season.
7. Peaky Blinders (BBC One/Netflix series)
A mere half-dozen episodes stand between you and the end of this series proper, but the good news is that there might be movies or spinoffs on the way. Before that good news arrives, go watch Cillian Murphy swaggering while kicking butt and preparing to head to America. The untimely death of Helen McRory weighs heavily upon the events of this season, but at least we’ve still got Tommy Shelby (as he prepares for a new life) and the rest of the gang, so whip out that Cockney rhyming slang.
6. Everything Everywhere All at Once (A24 film streaming on Amazon)
A24 can’t seem to miss, so dig into this chaotic whirl of a story where Michelle Yeoh’s protagonist and she just really needs to finish those freaking taxes. Jamie Lee Curtis shows up, as does Jenny Slate, in this story that will make you forget all about your multiverse fatigue because this story (about an exhausted, frazzled Chinese-American woman with unexpected powers) will not fail to charm you as she confronts the most absurd obstacles while aiming to complete mundane life tasks.
5. The Bear (FX series streaming on Hulu)
A fine dining chef leaves his swanking surroundings and heads back home to Chicago, where he takes on his family’s sandwich shop to chaotic effect after a tragedy. This show’s all about finding one’s own family, and also, Jeremy Allen White can’t seem to quit the Windy City after a decade of Shameless. This new jaunt is a very different ride, though, and White’s supported by a shouty character portrayed by Ebon Moss-Bachrach and a whipsmart sous chef played by Ayo Edebir. The story (and title) are also a puzzle, so dig in and drool over the food, too.
4. Hustle (Netflix Movie)
Forget all about Hubie Halloween and the problematic Adam Sandler movies on Netflix. This movie is all kinds of earnest and a story that reflects the life of NBA scouts in the same way that Top Gun takes on the U.S. Navy. Sandler portrays one of those scouts, who’s always in search of the next phenomenal player while personal demons must also be vanquished. There are shades of The Blind Side, but the charm of this story is thoroughly due to The Sandman.
3. Stranger Things (Netflix series)
The second half of this season arrives on July 1, but before that happens, the Upside Down has some horrors for you. Oh, and also Robert Englund and Kate Bush, which is a combination that no one ever expected. Millie Bobbie Brown’s still leading the way for all of the young actors, even though she really hopes that some Game of Thrones-style deaths are in store for everyone. And speaking of Thrones, expect for some Emmy records to soon be challenged as the Duffer brothers prepare to close in on their final season production.
2. The Boys (Amazon Prime series)
A franchise now exists for this satiric spin on superherodom, and this past week saw the incredible “Herogasm” episode that jizzed all over the place in more ways than one. I’ll keep on arguing that weekly drops are the most optical strategy for a show that generates so much conversation, Jensen Ackles‘ Soldier Boy is fully in view now, much to Homelander’s non-delight. Maybe he’ll be distracted enough to ease up on The Deep because that guy maybe deserves a little bit of redemption at this point. That octopus stuff is still whack, man.
1. The Umbrella Academy (Netflix series)
The Hargreeves siblings make an awe-inspiring return to confront the frosty and high-powered Sparrow Academy, all while a new time paradox threatens to crumble the very fabric of this timeline. Will these apocalypses ever ease up? There’s no indication of that ever happening, but do enjoy the simple pleasures of watching Robert Sheehan’s Klaus and the sublime introduction of Elliot Page’s Victor while all of the batsh*t happenings swirl like a tornado. This show strikes the perfect combination of dramatic, quirky, and action-filled, and it’s still going full steam ahead.