New Year’s Eve typically conjures images of colorful party hats and confetti, champagne bottles popping, and drunken revelers crowded in tight places like Times Square or a suburban living room. But the festive holiday can be more than just that; it can also be enjoyed in the comfort of your home, apartment, or dorm room.
Thanks toNetflix, New Year’s Eve can be celebrated in many ways via its voluminous library that features movies, games (you can playGrand Theft Auto 3!), or TV series. It’s the latter we’re focusing on, and this list will highlight three exceptional TV shows that are worth checking out as you countdown to midnight on December 31.
Need more suggestions? Then check out thebest shows on Netflix, thebest movies on Netflix, thebest shows on Hulu, thebest shows on Amazon Prime, and thebest shows on Disney+because we take our streaming seriously. Watching while traveling abroad? Use aNetflix VPNto access your country’s catalog from anywhere in the world.
The Fall of the House of Usher (2023)
I’m recommendingThe Fall of the House of Usher, but really, this could be any Mike Flanagan Netflix show. FromThe Haunting of Hill HousetoThe Midnight Club, Flanagan has rightly earned a reputation as a modern master of horror, and his latest, a brilliant remaking of an old Edgar Allen Poe, is right up there with his best work.
The show chronicles the gradual decline of the Ushers, a rich and powerful family who made their millions by producing, distributing, and marketing addictive drugs to an unsuspecting public. In the middle of a high-profile trial, a mysterious stranger appears and begins to pick them off one by one. Who is she? And why does she appear to have supernatural powers?The Fall of the House of Usheranswers all these questions but does so with a satirical bite and visual flourish that makes it ideal for binging in 2024. Also, there’s some salty language, nudity, and gore throughout the show’s eight episodes, so considered yourself warned!
Seinfeld (1990-1998)
I’m a bit biased in recommendingSeinfeldsince I think it’s the best sitcom ever made. But there’s a reason why it’s a classic — its humor has defined modern comedy as we know it, and it’s shaped the way we think, act, and talk about all aspects of life, from masturbation (“Are you the master of your domain?”) to bad dates (“He took it out.”) to sexuality (“Not that there’s anything wrong with it!”).
Besides, who wouldn’t want to spend New Year’s Eve with Jerry, Elaine, George, and Kramer? They are terrible people who secretly say and do what we think and desire on a daily basis. If you’re looking for some episodes to binge, try season 3’sThe Library, season 4’sThe MovieandThe Implant, season 5’sThe StallandThe Dinner Party, season 6’sThe Kiss Hello, and season 7’sThe Wink. As long as you avoid season 1 entirely and skip through the back half of season 9, you really can’t go wrong withanySeinfeldepisode.
Bodies (2023)
Bodiesis worth watching just for the premise alone. In 2023, a detective finds a dead body, completely nude, in dirty Whitechapel street right in the heart of London. What makes this particular murder unusual is that this body has been discovered before … in 1890 … and in 1941 … and will be discovered again in 2053. What the heck is going on?
I wouldn’t dream of spoiling it for you, but suffice it to say,Bodiesunfolds methodically and beautifully, never once making a false step. Even though it garnered asizable viewership when it premiered last October,Bodiesstill isn’t talked about as much as it deserves to be. It’s an engrossing thriller, and it’s the rare mystery series that sticks the ending.
For more New Year’s Eve selections, check out3 great action movies to watch on New Year’s Eve,3 great rom-coms to watch on New Year’s Eve,10 best Netflix movies to watch on New Year’s Eve,3 great Netflix thrillers you need to watch on New Year’s Eve, and3 great sci-fi movies you need to watch on New Year’s Eve.
For New Year’s Day suggestions, try3 great Hulu shows you need to watch on New Year’s Dayand3 great Prime Video movies to watch on New Year’s Day.
