Nobody can predict for sure what reality will being next year (especially considering current events), but there will be one certainty: plenty of new TV will be coming along with accompanying reasons to sit down and escape into another world. The streaming services will be running hot while the temps are frigid, so here are the must-see shows for January:
The Night Agent: Season 2 (Netflix series 1/23)
Is Peter outta the basement for good? Presumably so, but he still has to earn his stripes in the Night Action program, which will take him abroad to Thailand. This season, he and Rose will find themselves dodging an intelligence broker, although Netflix hasn’t revealed whether they’ll mostly do so from different continents. Still, there should be enough goodwill from Peter helping save the president’s life to let him hang with Rose in person for more than one scene. You know, so nobody gets upset at a lack of Gabriel Basso shirtlessness.
The Couple Next Door: Season 1 (Starz series debuting 1/17)
Immediately after the latest Outlander season concludes, Starz will launch the next series starring Sam Heughan, and no kilts will be involved unless they’re hiding them from previews. He will portray a hot cop who lives in suburbia where neighbors get a little too personal. After curtains flutter aplenty, infidelity starts floating around in heads, and of course, a thriller series cannot let that stone go unturned. Before long, lives become sexually entangled in a way that will change two couples’ lives forever [cue dramatic music].
Severance: Season 2 (Apple TV+ series debuting 1/17)
The “work-life balance” satire will return after three years away, so hopefully, that wait will have been worth the sci-fi that will unfold. Creator Dan Erickson and director Ben Stiller will bring back the core four (Mark, Helly, Irving, and Dylan) so that Milchick can continue to terrorize them while the mystery of Mark’s wife continues to unfold. These whistleblowers are now “The Face of Severance Reform,” although the ominous environment will give way to a snowy retreat and more goats. Ms. Cobel still seems sinister as hell, and Gwendoline Christie portrays a truly frightening looking character. It’s enough to make everybody want to call in sick, whether Innie or Outie.
American Primeval (Netflix limited series 1/9)
Creative minds behind Friday Night Lights, Narcos, and The Revenant have come together for this Neo-Western limited series in which Taylor Kitsch and Betty Gilpin go through hell on earth. The year is 1857, and they’re fighting through frigid elements amid the Mountain Meadows Massacre, during which Mormon soldiers killed hundreds of pioneers at the behest of Brigham Young. This clash involves Indigenous nationals also rising up to fight for their own survival within the same contested territory, and this ain’t Yellowstone, but there’s no question that Netflix wants to capture a piece of that pie with this series and the upcoming The Abandons.
Anne Rice’s Mayfair Witches: Season 2 (AMC series debuting 1/5)
AMC’s other Anne Rice series will return with Alexandra Daddario’s Rowan Mayfair having given birth to a demon, and now, she’s got to sort out the supernatural mess. He might be a monster or a healer, but ultimately, Rowan must do what’s possible to keep her family safe. This isn’t as free-wheeling of a series as Interview with the Vampire, which should return later in the year.
On Call: Season 1 (Prime Video/Amazon series debuting 1/9)
The cinema verité effect meets police drama in this series starring Troian Bellisario and Brandon Larracuente along with Eriq La Salle, Lori Loughlin, and Rich Ting. The show, according to Deadline, “explores the morality of protecting and serving a community” with veteran officers and rookies coming together in a half hour series that mixes challenges facing contemporary law enforcement with a variety of footage sources, including body cams. The tone will be a serious one, and this ain’t 9-1-1, y’all.
The Pitt: Season 1 (Max series debuting 1/9)
More first responder-types will light primetime up while putting former ER star Noah Wyle back in scrubs for a dramatized series that will attempt to tackle a real-time hour in each episode. The end result aims for realism surrounding what healthcare workers must face on a daily basis as Wyle’s Dr. Robby helms the Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Hospital’s emergency department. This looks stressful as hell but also like undeniably captivating viewing material.
Prime Target: Season 1 (Apple TV+ series debuting 1/22)
The White Lotus bad boy and One Day lover dude dives into conspiracy-thriller land as a mathematical genius who might have cracked the code that can control every computer on Earth. This does not sound malignant at all, and he will soon find himself under the observation of an NSA agent portrayed by Quintella Swindell. Will they hook up, too? Hollywood usually goes there in thriller mode between two attractive leads, but this is a Ridley Scott production, so do not expect the most straightforward storytelling path.
The Recruit: Season 2 (Netflix series 1/30)
Not to be content with releasing The Night Agent‘s second spy season this month, Netflix is also dropping the show in which Noah Centineo has the worst time as a fledgling CIA lawyer. This year, he’ll be embroiled in a South Korean espionage scandal, and as a series description reveals, “the bigger threat just might be coming from inside the Agency.” This might come only as a surprise to Noah Centineo’s CIA lawyer himself, and ideally, the show will include followup on whether Max will live or die after her daughter pulled the trigger.