Jonathan Campbell - Fauda
Assuming you don’t speak Hebrew or Arabic, watching this drama series with English subtitles is one sure-fire way to force you to set your phone down and pay full attention to the action on screen. And there is plenty of action. It’s a little like a Middle East version of 24, so much so that you might feel uneasy about it as a source of entertainment.
The story is weighted towards the Israeli side of the conflict but the Palestinian characters are far from two-dimensional, and lines of right and wrong are often blurred, as the programme title Fauda (meaning ‘chaos’) suggests.
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Sophie Clarke - Nobody Wants This
This odd couple comedy will make you laugh, cringe and cry… though thankfully not all at once. The story follows outspoken podcaster Joanne and ‘hot rabbi’ Noah as they try and navigate their new and unique relationship. Starring Kristen Bell and Adam Brody what’s so refreshing about this lastest offering from Netflix is that both singletons are in their early 40′s instead of the usual 20 somethings that dominate the romcom genre. Instead of a series rife with betrayal, heartache and confusion there’s honesty, compassion and best of all communication! The 30 minute episodes are fun and easy to watch - perfect for a spot of weekend binging.
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Conor Coyle - Mr McMahon
Childhood professional wrestling fans will be hooked on this in-depth look at the history of the WWE and the scandals and successes that have surrounded it.
Featuring interviews with almost all of the big hitters of the organisation’s golden ‘Attitude’ generation, the story centres around the leadership of the controversial Vince McMahon - the owner of the business who over time morphed into a villainous character enveloped in the scripted sports drama himself.
Having been a keen fan in my primary school days, I was oblivious to the allegations of steroid abuse and sexual exploitation which continue to be investigated to this day. The nostalgic docuseries has it all - and that’s the bottom line.
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David Roy - The Diplomat
As a big fan of Kerri Russell thanks to her top turn in Cold War drama series The Americans (now streaming via Channel4.com), I was really looking forward to The Diplomat. Thankfully, the first series didn’t disappoint. It’s a slick, well-written tale centred on the newly installed US ambassador to the UK, Kate Wyler (Russell), who’s barely unpacked in London before finding herself in the midst of an escalating international crisis which could lead to war between the US and Iran. Also starring the excellent Rufus Sewell, it’s an entertainingly gripping watch.
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Rohit Balaji - Beef
Beef serves up a feast of road rage gone nuclear. Steven Yeun and Ali Wong play strangers whose fender-bender ignites a feud that consumes their lives. The series peels back layers of Asian-American identity and class struggle. Creator Lee Sung Jin steers this collision course with the precision of a stunt driver, keeping viewers rubbernecking at the wreckage. Fair warning: you might find yourself hesitating at your next green light, wondering if that Honda behind you harbors a grudge.
Michael McWilliams - The Lincoln Lawyer
With the dark nights closing in, the last thing anyone needs is to be going to bed looking over their shoulder after watching yet another true crime documentary.
The Lincoln Lawyer, based on Michael Connolly’s series of novels featuring Mickey Haller, still features plenty of criminal elements but is light-hearted enough to feast on without worrying about sleep patterns.
Mexican-American actor Manuel Garcia-Rulfo plays fast-talking defence lawyer Haller with a fair deal of swagger, while a support cast of oddball characters that includes Neve Campbell provide a big wedge of humour.
The third series dropped on Netflix in October, and with smatterings of Los Angeles sunshine and surf, The Lincoln Lawyer is ideal escapism as winters approaches.
Liam Grimley – Supacell
This sci-fi series is a phenomenal answer to the question ‘What if Top Boy was a Marvel series?’
The storyline has you hooked from the opening scene, and it is full of suspense from start to end. The show also explores the reality of how powers could and would be used in the present day for different purposes brilliantly. Tosin Cole’s performance as Michael Lasaki is a credit to his ability and the other main ensemble of superheroes’ stories all made the series more gripping.
The way the show incorporates sickle cell disease into it also raises awareness of a disease that doesn’t usually have the spotlight on it and allows people to see the effects it has on those who suffer with it and their loved ones.
Ryan Smith – This is the Zodiac Speaking
The horrific serial killings of the Zodiac Killer in the San Francisco Bay Area have long been the subject of morbid fascination and endless theories. And it’s very hard not to get absorbed by it all.
The is the Zodiac Speaking focuses on one theory – and makes a compelling case – that the killer was Arthur Leigh Allen. With new interviews, including siblings who knew him and one of whom claims Allen confessed, it is perhaps the closest we have got to unmasking the killer.
It’s a fascinating watch that keeps you gripped from the get-go, and will have you theorising and researching long after you’ve finished.
Allan Preston - 3 Body Problem
On Netflix this year, 3 Body Problem stood out for me as the most entertaining.
It’s the difficult follow up for David Benioff and D.B Weiss, with something to prove after their universally panned finale for Game of Thrones.
Based on a popular Chinese novel of the same name, the show starts with a female scientist in post-revolution China working on a secret military project to contact alien life. Eventually receiving a reply, her harsh upbringing leads her to make a devastating choice on behalf of humanity.
As you might expect, the bad kind of aliens are soon on the way but with the twist that it will take them 400 years to arrive.
With a brilliant cast including Jonathan Pryce and Dublin actor Liam Cunningham, the ensuing panic is where the real entertainment begins.
