There are a lot of great dramas on television, many available to stream. The most high-profile ones are on everyone’s radar, with fans usually counting down the days until the release of a new season. But many great ones don’t get as much attention, either.
Some of them are very highly rated on review aggregator sites like Rotten Tomatoes, while others got decent reviews but never quite broke through to become especially memorable. They are all great series to binge-watch during those in-between times when favorite new shows haven’t come out yet, or there’s a lazy day at home with nothing to watch.
10
‘Black Sails’ (2014–2017)
Running for four seasons, Black Sails is executive-produced in part by Michael Bay and Brad Fuller, boasting serious Hollywood power behind the scenes. But because it aired on Starz, the historical action adventure series didn’t receive the same fanfare as similar shows on bigger networks or streamers. Written as a prequel to Treasure Island, the show combines fictional versions of real historical events with depictions of real-life pirates from history. Set in the early 18thcentury during the Golden Age of Piracy, the central character is Captain Flint (Toby Stephens), who navigates New Providence Island with his crew.
You have to be into the genre to like the show, but Black Sails is still worth a watch, even more than eight years after it ended. Collider’s Collier Jennings praises the show’s “swashbuckling thrills,” and calls it one of the most underrated pirate stories. He loves that the show wasn’t afraid to dive into darker territory and explore not only the basic plot, but the emotional toll the events took on Flint, too.
9
‘Giri/Haji’ (2019)
Foreign-language series are typically hit-or-miss, some of them usurping English-language shows in popularity to become mainstream successes, like Money Heist and Squid Game, while others only attract a niche audience. Giri/Haji falls into the latter category, a British crime drama offered in Japanese. The story centers around Kenzo (Takehiro Hira), who travels to London in search of his brother Yuto (Yōsuke Kubozuka) and finds himself in the middle of a gang war.
A miniseries that’s worthy of getting a second season, Giri/Haji hails from the same creator of the Netflix series Black Doves, and it has similar themes to that series, which stars Keira Knightley. “Giri” translates to “duty” and “haji” translates to “shame,” and this beautifully reflects the tone and theme of the show. Family, moral duty, and honor are central to the plot, notes Collider’s Joanna Orland. The show is filled with action, but a deeper meaning and moral questions are bubbling beneath its surface.
8
‘Fauda’ (2015–)
Another foreign language series, offered in Hebrew and Arabic, Fauda is actually still going with a fifth season reportedly in production. In this Israeli series, Doron (Lior Raz) is a commander pursuing a Hamas terrorist with his group. Set during the 2014 Gaza War, the series combines action with political and spy thriller undertones.
What makes Fauda so compelling is that it was developed by two men who draw from their own experiences having worked with the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). So, you can expect a sense of realism, even though it’s a fictional story. In fact, co-creator Lior Raz stars as the main character. The story has shifted through the four seasons to date, and with Season 5 coming, it’s a great time to catch up before it’s out.
7
‘American Gods’ (2017–2021)
American Gods was somewhat popular among those who watched. But the vast majority may have just heard the title, seen some promos, and didn’t know much else about it. The fantasy drama aired on Starz, and it centers around Shadow Moon (Ricky Whittle), who, upon being released from prison, meets the mysterious Mr. Wednesday (Ian McShane) and finds himself stuck in a battle between Old Gods and New Gods.
In his review, Collider’s Chris Cabin gave the first season a five-star rating, calling it a “tremendous work of self-reflexive art” that remains “outrageously entertaining.” The series began to wane in its second season, with Collider’s Vinnie Mancuso finding the season’s first episodes somewhat boring. But American Gods received universal praise for its acting and visual styling throughout, even earning two Emmy Award nominations.
6
‘Into the Badlands’ (2015–2019)
If you love action drama combined with martial arts, Into the Badlands is a show you might regret having missed. Originally airing on AMC, it also serves as a post-apocalyptic drama about a warrior and a young boy who go on a journey together through dangerous lands in search of enlightenment. Set in the future, the show received mixed reviews, which might be why some opted not to watch.
But Alison Keene of Collider says it’s worth pursuing, despite the flaws. While she admits it’s a slow burn, the payoff is worth it once the violence does unfold. Into the Badlands isn’t one of the best martial arts shows of all time. But it is an ideal watch if you’re more concerned with high action and intense violence and less invested in character-driven stories.
5
‘Ray Donovan’ (2013–2020)
Live Schreiber is the powerful, violent, but also deeply troubled “fixer” Ray Donovan in the series of the same name. Ray Donovan follows his exploits across Los Angeles as he helps his wealthy, sometimes criminal clients, get out of jams. And yes, this often involves getting up to criminal behavior himself. But it’s the family drama among the Donovans that makes this crime drama so compelling. Ray can’t quite seem to get it together, plagued by trauma from his childhood that permeates through every bad decision he, his brothers, or his father makes.
Jon Voight is wonderfully awful as Ray’s sometimes estranged father, Mickey, who has a criminal and neglectful background. Ray’s relationship with his two brothers (later a third half-brother as well), each of whom has their own personal issues, bleeds into his work and life as well. The show even spawned a feature-length movie, Ray Donovan: The Movie, to wrap up the plot following seven successful seasons. Hilariously, Ray Donovan is the series that Frankie (Lily Tomlin) was obsessed with in the Netflix series Grace and Frankie, getting some unexpected promotion through that hilarious comedy.
4
‘The Tourist’ (2022–2024)
We’re so used to seeing Jamie Dornan in movies that this drama thriller black comedy he starred in a few years ago might have slipped right by. In The Tourist, he’s an initially unnamed man who awakens in the hospital after a car crash with no recollection of who he is or how he got there. Struggling with amnesia, he connects with a local woman who remembers seeing him and agrees to help him trace his steps and figure out his identity.
Of the second season, Collider’s Tania Hussain praises the “captivating storytelling in Ireland” along with the sharp dialogue, bold visuals, and world that “evokes a deeply spirited, edge, and pointed rhythm.” Dornan is, of course, fantastic in the lead role, leaving fans wanting more from the series that ended after two seasons.
3
‘Russian Doll’ (2019–2022)
Natasha Lyonne is brilliant in the sci-fi comedy drama Russian Doll about a young woman named Nadia (Lyonne) who keeps waking up again and again on her 36th birthday in a time loop reminiscent of Groundhog Day. Despite her every effort, Nadia couldn’t seem to shake the repetition. Making it worse, she dies at the end of every day before the loop restarts, often horrifically and surprisingly.
Executive produced and created by Lyonne alongside Amy Poehler and others, Russian Doll is dark and menacing, but also balances this with comedy and fun, a trademark of Lyonne’s style. As the story progresses, Nadia learns more about her life and begins to travel to other moments in time, introducing more exciting characters. Wonderfully acted and beautifully presented, the 15 episodes over two seasons make the show ripe for binge-watching. It will be worth your time.
2
‘Sneaky Pete’ (2015–2019)
Airing for three seasons on Amazon Prime Video, Sneaky Pete has a clever and almost unbelievable plot. Marius (Giovanni Ribisi) is a talented con man who manages to manipulate his cellmate Pete (Ethan Embry) by digging into his childhood so that he can escape and know enough to impersonate him. Marius arrives at Pete’s childhood home, and somehow, his estranged family simply believes this is the loved one they haven’t seen since he was a kid.
With a tremendous performance from Ribisi, he’s joined by Marin Ireland as his cousin Julia, Shane McRae as cousin Taylor, and Peter Gerety and Margo Martindale as his uncle and aunt Otto and Audrey, respectively. The storyline shifts from hilarious to dangerous as Marius gets up to his old antics and works towards his ultimate goal: stealing from this unsuspecting family. That is, until he actually starts to care about them. Bryan Cranston has a memorable Walter White-like recurring role in the show as well, and also serves as a co-creator. Sneaky Pete is a Prime Video show where every episode is a 10 out of 10.
1
‘Safe’ (2018)
Fans know Michael C. Hall as the title character Dexter Morgan from Dexter, or maybe from Six Feet Under. But a little-known show he did long after Dexter ended and before the character was resurrected for sequels is called Safe. A Harlan Coben British drama thriller miniseries, Hall even fakes a British accent for the role. He plays Tom Delaney, a pediatric surgeon and widowed father whose grief over his wife who passed comes to a screeching halt when his teenage daughter goes missing.
Collider’s Becky Bowden calls Safe the best Coben adaptation, despite being the first of many that have come since. She loves how there’s a massive bombshell in the end, resulting in a huge payoff that makes watching satisfying from start to finish. And of course, who can resist Hall? He’s one of the most underrated actors of this generation, captivating every time he’s on-screen.
Safe
- Release Date
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2018 – 2018-00-00
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Amanda Abbington
Sophie Mason
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Marc Warren
Pete Mayfield
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Hannah Arterton
Emma Castle
