Month: February 2022

At this point in the winter, we are all getting a wee bit restless with cabin fever. The days are getting longer but the temperatures are not quite edging towards spring yet. And there are far too many days that have us zipping up our coats and bracing ourselves against the roar of the winter wind.

The days that require us to hunker down and stay in doors need not be boring or lonely. Not when we have such friends and such entertaining shows within our reach. Here are five of my favourite comfort binges.

#1 – Grey’s Anatomy is hands down the most juicy guilty pleasure on Netflix. While watching Meredith Grey from her very first cringy bar encounter through her entire gut-wrenching love affair with Derek Shepard is truly divine, this winter I picked up the binge in the post-Derek years. I am thoroughly enjoying watching a more mature, a more settled Meredith move through her life and career in a much more deliberate manner. Seasons 1 – 17 are available now on Netflix.

#2 – The Crown is a great choice for a more dignified, yet still full of soapy goodness. The Crown’s fictionalized portrayal of the royal family as they move through the most compelling moments in their recent history is divine. The cast is splendid and the writing is beyond compare. The emotional rollercoaster of loving and hating the major players of the House of Windsor is deeply satisfying. Catch the first four seasons on Netflix now and stay tuned for season five coming later this year.

#3 – Outlander is the most delicious adventure into the past that ever a graced the small screen. The raw beauty of the Scottish Highlands, the intrigue of a budding rebellion and the mystery of fairy legends conspire to weave together the most captivating tale of love and mystery. There is nothing so soothing as settling into the world of Claire and Jamie with a cuppa on a chilly winter night. Tune into netflix to binge the first five seasons now.

#4 – Derry Girls is the perfect antidote to the dreary winter blahs. If you were a teen in the 1990s this Irish comedy will have you in stitches in no time. It plays out the angsty reality of the ’90s teen against the backdrop of an international crisis. Despite the contentious troubles unfolding in their town, the girls (and one lone guy) of Our Lady Immaculate College trip their way through teen rites of passage all while trying to avoid the ire of Sister Michael and the rest of the adults who populate their world. Savour the first two seasons on Netflix.

#5 – Gilmore Girls strikes an excellent blend of comedy, teen angst and family drama. All of these elements, along with the quick-talking, witty banter, come together to make it the ultimate comfort food of the binge-watchers menu. The quirky cast of small-town folks juxtaposed against the upper-class, snobbish Gilmore family is delightful. The thoughtful construction of relationships and gags that run through the entire series is pure gold. The whole thing is happiness on screen. Be sure to make time to marinate in the goodness of the entire series on Netflix now.

I could keep going. There are so many binge-worthy shows on Netflix – dramas, crime shows, comedies, docuseries, fantasy – the list goes on and on. Scroll through TV series to find your favourite binge now!

Spies. Intrigue. Mystery. Tension. Action. And an ice skating competition. This series has it all.

In From the Cold is a new Netflix original series that sees a single mom’s world unraveled in the press of a button. An elevator button, but we’ll get to that later. The first thing you need to know is this series is the brain child of Adam Glass. If that name doesn’t ring any bells think Criminal Minds, Supernatural and Deadpool. He’s hand his hand in all of those and this new series is an excellent blend of his previous work but with a whole new twist.

The show opens with a series of mysterious crimes throughout Madrid. The mystery is not in who the victim was, or who the perpetrator was but what triggered regular people to suddenly act out in such uncharacteristic ways. At the same time this crime spree erupts, a mother and daughter land in Madrid as part of an girls’ ice skating team.

When the mother steps out to run to the store, shortly after landing in Madrid, she is suddenly pulled into the crime spree. As she pushes the elevator button a strange man throws a smoke capsule into the elevator with her and the next thing she remembers is waking up in a strange room full of CIA agents. Before long she is a central character in solving the mystery of the crimes that have struck fear into the citizens of Madrid.

Margarita Levieva, a Russian-American actress, plays the lead role of Jenny opposite Cillian O’Sullivan as Chauncy the CIA operative. The chemistry between the two is raging as they battle, both physically and mentally, with each other. The third member of this stellar team is Charles Brice who is Chris the IT whiz. This trio develops a quick and entertaining rapport with each other that brings humour and humanity to their roles.

Through a series of flashbacks, Jenny’s back story unfolds which adds an important layer to her motivation as a character. Stasya Miloslavskaya plays the young Jenny. Miloslavskaya is an accomplished Russian film and stage actress and her years of experience bring a beautiful depth of character and maturity to the younger Jenny.

In From the Cold is an excellent action thriller in a series format. It is fast paced, full of drama and there is no shortage of twists. There’s even a few jump scares in there too. This series definitely has the mark of Adam Glass on it. And thank goodness for that!

Check out season one now on Netflix!