Poll: Favorite Netflix Original Series

After years of resisting, I’ve finally broken down and subscribed to Netflix. This leaves me with a lot of original programming to catch up on. Where should I start? What are your favorite Netflix original series?

Yes, I realize that I’m very late to the game with this. Everybody and their grandmother has been watching Netflix for years. I held out mostly because I didn’t want to add another subscription to my list of monthly bills, and I felt like I already had more than enough TV shows to follow on regular cable. However, Mrs. Z asked for Netflix for Christmas this past year – specifically so that she’ll be able to watch the upcoming revival of ‘Gilmore Girls’. So I set her up with a Roku and now we have a huge selection of original series to sort through.

Mrs. Z has done most of the binge-watching so far, though I’ve sat with her through quite a lot. In just a couple of weeks, she’s already torn through all of ‘Arrested Development’, ‘Master of None’, ‘Grace and Frankie’ and ‘Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt’, as well as big chunks of ‘House of Cards’, ‘Orange Is the New Black’ and ‘Bloodline’.

As soon as I have time to dedicate to it, I plan to dive into ‘Daredevil’ and ‘Jessica Jones’.

The following list should contain all of Netflix’s original series (with the exception of children’s shows, which I have no interest in), plus foreign programming that Netflix has exclusive distribution to in the United States (like ‘The Fall’ or ‘Peaky Blinders’). I’ve excluded one-off movies and specials.

What do you watch and enjoy?

What Are Your Favorite Netflix Original Series?

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8 comments

  1. Csm101

    I loved the first two seasons of Orange Is the New Black, but I’ve yet to see the third season. Daredevil was really good and look forward to the next season which will be bringing the Punisher into the mix. The Making if a Murderer was also fascinating and addictiive. Jessica Hones is on my radar. I’ve heard alot if good things about Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt as well.

  2. NJScorpio

    Daredevil was, by far, my favorite. They got the most important thing about a comic book movie/show correct. You must have an awesome bad guy, making you eagerly anticipate his appearances.

    I appreciated that The Killing found a new home on Netflix, but the new season did nothing for me. Same thing with Arrested Development. I loved the show when it first came out on Fox/DVD, etc., but I couldn’t even finish the Netflix season. The formula changed, time passed, it just didn’t work. But again, giving Netflix credit.

    I’d say the best of the bunch might be Sense8, because it was so different from any other show out there right now, and a great example of how Netflix original series’ allows for some very unique offerings. I liked it so much, I might actually watch ‘Jupiter Ascending’.

    • Elizabeth

      Just going to say, Sense8 was way better than Jupiter Ascending. I enjoy most everything from the Wachowski’s (except maybe Speed Racer) but Jupiter was beautiful but messy. I wish they would have gotten the chance to make it the trilogy they originally intended because it would have worked much better.

      But I loved Sense8. It took 3 or 4 episodes but once it started rolling, man was it good. I just loved watching all of the diffferent storylines. And the orgy scene and the birth scenes were incredible. Those could have gone horribly wrong but they were just beautiful to watch. I hope Netflix lets them finish out the 5 seasons they have planned.

      • NJScorpio

        5? Wow, that would be very interesting, though I’d be afraid that’d be over stretching the concept. Like what happened with Heroes.

        Maybe if each season there is another wave of births, with a new group of people (guided by the ones from the prior seasons, like mentors) it could keep it interesting.

        I’ve been wanting to catch Jupiter Ascending on cable, record it on my DVR, but it is only air on the non-HD channels (Cinemax or Showtime, I don’t recall). Eventually, when it is shown in HD, I’ll watch it…because it sounds like in SD isn’t the best idea.

        • Elizabeth

          I’d be more concerned if they didn’t have a plan for the 5 seasons already, but they do. J. Michael Straczynski is also involved and he was responsible for Babylon 5 which also had a preplanned 5 years. I’m pretty sure they won’t be switching generations which I don’t think would make sense with the pace they followed the first season.

  3. cardpetree

    I didn’t think Longmire was a Netflix show. Maybe I’m thinking of another show? Anyway, I haven’t watched too many series on Netflix in their entirety. The ones I have watched, I enjoyed and would recommend them. Daredevil and Narcos were both very good and I would recommend both. Just finished Jessica Jones and felt that it died way down throughout the season. I started to get a little bored with it and felt that it got kind of ridiculous. There are worse shows though. Watched all of Sense8 and it was just one big pity party. Seemed like the same thing over and over and I’m not sure I’d recommend it at all. House of Cards, I only watched Season 1 and it was terrific. I need to catch up. Watched 3 episodes of Bloodline and was very intrigued, the show looked like it had potential. I just need to find some time to start watching it again.

  4. “With the exception of children’s shows, which I have no interest in”

    That seems awfully absolute 🙂 Who knows, a true gem may be lurking in the selection. (P.S. I don’t have Netflix, so I’m just hypothetically speaking. Or speaking hypothetically.)

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