Each week our staff of film and television experts surveys the entertainment landscape to select the ten best new/newish shows available for you to stream at home. We put a lot of thought into our selections, and our debates on what to include and what not to include can sometimes get a little heated and feelings may get hurt, but so be it, this is an important service for you, our readers. With that said, here are our selections for this week.
15. Laid (Peacock)
Stephanie Hsu, who really should have won the Oscar over her Everything Everywhere All at Once co-star, is joined by Zosia Mamet in the new series Laid. The “f*cked up rom-com” is about a woman who finds out that her former lovers are dying in unusual ways, and must go back through her “sex timeline” to figure out what the heck is going on.
14. Squid Game (Netflix)
Netflix’s most-watched show ever is back. Squid Game season 2 sees the return of Gi-hun (played by Lee Jung-jae), a.k.a. Player 456, who has only one goal: to end the horrifying competition for good. This time, Gi-hun finds himself “locked in a tense battle” with the Front Man (Lee Byung-hun), as well as trying to survive against the other competitors. Squid Game is the rare water-cooler show in the “death of the monoculture” era. Keep up if you want to know what your co-workers are talking about.
13. Asura (Netflix)
Written and directed by Hirokazu Kore-eda (Shoplifters), Asura is a family drama set in 1979 about about four sisters — Tsunako (Rie Miyazawa), Makiko (Machiko Ono), Takiko (Yu Aoi), and Sakiko (Suzu Hirose) — who discover that their dad is having an affair. It’s being called 2025’s “first great new TV show.”
12. The Pitt (Max)
Noah Wyle? As a doctor? It’s crazy enough to work. This time, the ER star works in a hospital in Pittsburgh, and the show is “a realistic examination of the challenges facing healthcare workers in today’s America as seen through the lens of the frontline heroes.” The entire 15-episode first season takes place over the course of one 15-hour emergency room shift, not unlike 24.
11. Harley Quinn (Max)
Now in its fifth season, Harley Quinn shakes things up by moving the action from Gotham to Metropolis, which means the introductions of characters like Lena Luthor, Brainiac, and Red X. But one thing that hasn’t changed is the excellent voice cast, including Kaley Cuoco as Harley Quinn, Lake Bell as Poison Ivy, Alan Tudyk as Joker and Clayface, Ron Funches as King Shark, J.B. Smoove as Frank, and James Adomian as scene stealer Bane.
10. A Different Man (Max)
Sebastian Stan received career-best reviews for his performance in A Different Man, in which he plays Edward, an inspiring actor who undergoes a radical medical procedure to transform his appearance. But his dream turns into a nightmare when he loses out on the role he was born to play to the uber-confident Oswald (Adam Pearson), who has the same genetic condition he once had. A Different Man is a surreal, thought provoking, and inventive film.
9. A Real Pain (Hulu)
A Real Pain — which appeared on numerous Best Movies of 2024 lists — finds cousins David (played by Jesse Eisenberg) and Benji (Oscar nominee Kieran Culkin) reuniting for a tour through Poland to honor their beloved grandmother. But the journey takes a turn when old tensions resurface.
8. Severance (Apple TV Plus)
After a long, long break, one of the best shows on TV is back. Severance picks up where season 1 left off, with Mark (Adam Scott), Helly (Helly Riggs), Dylan (Dylan), and Irving (Irving Bailiff) trifling with the severance barrier, “leading them further down a path of woe,” according to the cryptic Apple TV Plus synopsis. There are so many mysteries left to answer: what’s the deal with Ms. Casey (Dichen Lachman)? What’s the deal with Seth Milchick (series MVP Tramell Tillman)? And seriously, what’s the deal with the freaking goats?
7. The Wild Robot (Peacock)
Best Animated Feature at the 2025 Oscars is unusually stacked. Inside Out 2 is the frontrunner considering how much money it made, but honestly, it’s probably the weakest of the nominees. Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl is a delight, obviously, while the beautiful and heartbreaking Flow is my personal favorite. But don’t sleep on The Wild Robot, a charming critical and commercial hit from Lilo & Stitch co-director Chris Sanders about a robot learning to adapt to their surroundings in the great outdoors. It’s very good.
6. The Night Agent (Netflix)
The Night Agent season 1 premiered in 2023 and quickly became one of Netflix’s biggest shows ever. Now it’s back for season 2, which picks up with Peter Sutherland (played by Gabriel Basso) as a certified Night Agent. Per Netflix: “But working in the secretive organization [will] propel Peter into a world where danger is everywhere and trust is in short supply.” You can check out the exciting trailer here.
5. Common Side Effects (Max)
Mike Judge and Greg Daniels have been attached to some of the best TV comedies of the last 30 years, including Parks and Recreation, The Simpsons, and The Office for Daniels and Beavis and Butt-Head and Silicon Valley for Judge. They also co-created King of the Hill. Their latest collaboration is producing Common Side Effects, a surreal Adult Swim animated series about the “world’s greatest medicine” from creators Joseph Bennett (Scavengers Reign) and Steve Hely (30 Rock). Episodes will stream the next day on Max.
4. You’re Cordially Invited (Prime Video)
Will Ferrell and Reese Witherspoon star in You’re Cordially Invited, a big-hearted romantic-comedy about two weddings being booked on the same day at the same venue. The father (Ferrell) of one bride and the sister (Witherspoon) of the other go “head-to-head as they stop at nothing to uphold an unforgettable celebration for their loved ones.” Beyond Witherspoon, You’re Cordially Invited has a strong rom-com pedigree with writer and director Nicholas Stoller, who previously made Forgetting Sarah Marshall.
3. Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man (Disney Plus)
Spider-Man: you know him, you love him (unless you’re J. Jonah Jameson, then you want more pictures of him). Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man is an animated throwback to a time when the web-slinging superhero was as concerned with his high school studies as he was saving the citizens of New York. Hopefully there are fewer galaxy-threatening portals than in the MCU movies.
2. Mo (Netflix)
Mo is a special series. The Netflix comedy-drama follows Mo Najjar (played by creator Mo Amer), a Palestinian refugee living in Houston, Texas, as he attempts to secure asylum. In season 2, Mo is stranded across the border in Mexico, and he’ll need “all the hustle and charm he can muster” to return to the States. Mo is timely, hilarious, and heartbreaking.
1. Mythic Quest (Apple TV Plus)
A new season of It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia is coming later this year, but don’t forget about Rob McElhenney’s other excellent comedy series. Mythic Quest season 4 (also the show’s final season) brings everyone — including McElhenney’s Ian, Charlotte Nicdao’s Poppy, and Danny Pudi’s Brad — back together at Mythic Quest HQ, where they’ll confront “new challenges amongst a changing video game landscape as stars rise, egos clash, relationships bloom and everyone tries to have a little more work life balance.” I’ll miss Ian and Poppy’s Don and Peggy-like fraught yet platonic relationship the most.