Are you like me in that when you want to get into a new show, the less seasons it is the less intimidated you are by the sheer time commitment it poses to your life?
Even if you’re not, you can’t deny that short and sweet is sometimes the way to go. Here are some of the shortest and sweetest shows available now on Netflix right now. (Minus The Office (U.K.) since the Internet may have told you about that one ten or ten thousand times already.)
9. ‘Freaks and Geeks’ (1999-2000, 18 episodes, 44 min. each)
Freaks and Geeks is a Judd Apatow, one-season wonder about a group of high-school misfits who just can’t seem to get it right. Starring Seth Rogen, Jason Segel, James Franco and many more, it’s a cult-classic that shouldn’t be missed.
8. ‘Better Off Ted’ (2009-2010, 26 episodes, 21 min. each)
Better Off Ted works not just because it nails zany ideas, but because the characters commit so fully to them. The story revolves around a particularly soulless corporate behemoth, Veridian Dynamics, and its employees. Ridiculousness has never been pulled off with such aplomb.
7. ‘Undeclared’ (2001, 17 episodes, 22 min. each)
Undeclared is another Judd Apatow joint that deserves serious accolades. Though it only lasted one season, (he couldn’t seem to get a break back in the day, could he?) it brings together a stellar cast (Amy Poehler, Jay Baruchel, Charlie Hunnam, Seth Rogen) on a college campus where anything and everything awkward can and will happen.
6. ‘Gavin & Stacey’ (2007-2010, 30 min. each)
Gavin & Stacey is a britcom about a couple of soul mates who fall in love over the phone and decide to meet in person and the way this merges each of their separate world of crazy family and friends together. It’s funny and riddled with debaucheries, but still totally heart-warming.
5. ‘Sons of Tucson’ (2010, 13 episodes, 22 min. each)
Sons of Tucson stars the undervalued Tyler Labine of Hulu’s Deadbeat and 2011’s Dawn of the Planet of the Apes as a clueless, bumbling oaf (his specialty) who ends up posing as a three rich brothers’ father after theirs is sent to prison. Let’s just say the kids (8, 11 and 13) are a handful.
4. ‘Fawlty Towers’ (1975-1979, 12 episodes, 28-36 min. each)
Despite its age, Fawlty Towers is surprisingly timeless. Written by and starring John Cleese as hotelier Basil Fawlty, and with a cast of amazing characters including the dim maid, dimmer waiter, bitchy wife, alcoholic cook and painfully eccentric hotel guests, this is a timeless, influential and riotous sitcom that you can easily polish off in one side-splitting day.
3. ‘Firefly’ (2002, 14 episodes, 44 min. each)
You may have been Netflixing under a rock this whole time if you haven’t yet heard of Firefly. This sci-fi Western imagines a very different world than any sci-fi or Western you’ve ever seen. It features a huge cast, spearheaded by nerd-favorite Nathan Fillion himself as the brash “Mal” Reynolds. Each episode is a different memorable adventure. A must watch for fans of the almighty space opera.
2. ‘Terriers’ (2010, 13 episodes, 45 min. each)
Crime comedy-drama Terriers is awesome because Donal Logue is the fucking man. Watch it. I really could end there but I also feel it’s worth mentioning that it also features an incredible performance by True Blood’s Michael-Raymond James, and some of the most seemingly humdrum but absolutely gripping and enjoyable story lines ever in a show. FX knocks it out of the park again.
1. ‘The Inbetweeners’ (2008-2010, 25 min. each)
Quite simply, The Inbetweeners is a masterpiece of awkward, teenage proportions. There is no other Britcom with as high a public, teenage-years shattering disaster to happy moment ratio and it is all incredibly funny. The show’s unique blend of raunchiness and consistent delivery makes it perfectly addictive for a single weekend.
Netflix image by Sukharevskyy Dmytro (nevodka)/Shutterstock
Sons of Tucson image: YouTube
The Inbetweeners image: YouTube