I don't know about you, but I like to mix my hot summer weekends with equal parts cold drinks on a patio and evenings settled inside with the A/C cranked and a show I can binge. If that sounds like you too, then I've got three great suggestions.
3 Shōgun
|
Release Year |
2024 - present |
|---|---|
|
Seasons |
1 |
|
Episodes |
10 |
|
Overall Running Time |
9 hours 35 minutes |
|
Status |
Ongoing |
Whether it's fantasy worlds like Westeros or real-life settings like 1600s feudal Japan, I'm a sucker for shows that transport me to other realms and give me a break from modern-day reality. FX/Hulu's Emmy- and Golden Globe-winning Shōgun does exactly that, with its gorgeous settings, rich world-building, and emotionally resonant characters—you'll keep clicking "next episode" until it's done.
This isn't the first time James Clavell's classic 1975 novel has been committed to film, and it likely won't be the last. This big-budget adaptation begins when English navigator John Blackthorne (Cosmo Jarvis) is marooned on the shores of Japan, right in the middle of a bloody power struggle between two factions of Japanese elites. On one side is the ruling Council of Regents; on the other is the measured and calculating Lord Toshi Toranaga (Hiroyuki Sanada), a banished leader fighting to reclaim power.
Torn between these factions is Lady Mariko (Anna Sawai), an English-speaking Catholic convert whose job it is to teach Blackthorne the ways of her culture in hopes of mining his strategic information and secrets that can help Toranga win his war. Of course, her deep sense of duty and honor are tested as her feelings for Blackthorne (and marriage) complicate things and threaten the fate of the nation.
Shōgun is a must-watch if you love deep emotional drama, political intrigue, brutal and visceral samurai combat scenes, and beautifully delicate cinematography. A second season is already in the works, so sharpen your katana and catch up this weekend.
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2 Shoresy
|
Release Year |
2022 - present |
|---|---|
|
Seasons |
4 |
|
Episodes |
25 |
|
Overall Running Time |
10 hours |
|
Status |
Ongoing |
I'm a guy from Ontario, the Canadian province that Letterkenny and Shoresy creator and star Jared Keeso is from. And while the tragically-Canuck blood running through my veins perhaps heightens my enjoyment of Keeso and Co.'s brand of raunchy, pun-filled, and rural Canadian comedy, the popularity of both of these Hulu hits south of the border is proof that a hoser pedigree is not required for one to laugh their head off.
It's also not required that you watch all 12 seasons of Letterkenny before lacing up the skates for its spinoff. Letterkenny's undefeated chirp king, the front-tooth-missing, titular badass character, Shoresy, relocates from Letterkenny to the northern Ontario town of Sudbury to bring a failing senior AAA hockey team back from the brink of ruin. Promising the tough-as-nails team owner, Nat (Tasya Teles), that the team will "never lose again" or fold, Shoresy and his team of beat-up misfits leave it all on the ice.
It's supremely satisfying to see the Shore character go beyond the faceless quip artist audiences grew to love from Letterkenny, a genius move by Keeso (who also plays him). As with Letterkenny, each episode of Shoresy is a fast-paced, quick watch, making the seasons easily bingeable. But don't be fooled by its bro-heavy, locker-room, Canadian hockey-culture comedy. Shoresy is clever, full of heart, and after a while its seemingly vulgar dialog starts sounding almost Shakespearean.
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1 A Thousand Blows
|
Release Year |
2025 - present |
|---|---|
|
Seasons |
1 |
|
Episodes |
10 |
|
Overall Running Time |
5 hours 11 minutes |
|
Status |
Ongoing |
Gritty underground boxing, a rebellious female crime syndicate, a terrifying kingpin, and an even grittier 1880s East London setting—all put together by the creator of Peaky Blinders? Sign me up. Stephen Knight's A Thousand Blows is just six episodes, but the Hulu series doesn't waste any time laying the groundwork, revealing the table stakes, and binding viewers to the fate of its characters.
Paramount among them is Hezekiah (Malachi Kirby), who flees British-colonized Jamaica and arrives in London with his best friend Alec (Francis Lovehall), with ambitions of a new life. Penniless, their dreams are dashed when they realize that London society can be even more brutal, and Hezekiah resorts to bare-knuckle prize fighting to scrape by.
Hezekiah's talents with his fists attracts the attention of London's elite, but enrages Henry "Sugar" Goodson (the excellent Stephen Graham), the king of the ring (and ruler of London's underground fighting world), who wants him dead. But someone else wants a piece of Hezekiah, too—Mary Carr (Erin Doherty), the leader of the Forty Elephants, a notorious gang of thieves, who wants to use Hezekiah's newfound connections.
Knight's storytelling is superb, with his characters based on real-life historical facts and figures. Combined with beautiful cinematography that, as with Blinders, captures all the haze and gutter mud of the period, as well as downright chilling performances from Graham and Doherty (who have both been on a tear lately, co-starring in Netflix's breakout hit Adolescence), and you could do much worse than this weekend binge.
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Hulu may not be as in-your-face as Netflix, but the Disney-owned streaming service offers an excellent range of blockbuster movies and series that, whether bingeable in a weekend or not, are well worth settling in for. I've watched all of the shows I've recommended here, and hope you do too.
- Subscription with ads
- Yes, $10/month
- Live TV
- Yes, various plans available
These great shows are all waiting for you on Hulu, along with many more series and movies.
