The Hidden Gems And Old Favourites That Are Getting Us Through Isolation
So, you’re getting to that point in lockdown where it feels like you’ve exhausted the entire Netflix catalogue, and there’s nothing good left to watch. You finished Tiger King in a weekend, you’re almost done with Normal People and Never Have I Ever.
Well, never fear. We asked the AWOL crew to let us know what shows they’re watching that are slightly off the beaten track. Not those shows that everyone is talking about right now, but the hidden gems on Netflix and Stan that are just waiting to be uncovered, or the old favourites that can make you feel like you’re wrapping yourself up in a warm blanket.
So, these are the shows that are helping us get through isolation.
Money Heist
If you’ve always been a bit scared to watch non-English speaking movies and films, now’s your chance. Every non-English speaking on Netflix offers subtitles and dubbed versions, and there are some really excellent shows. Start with Money Heist, the Spanish show about about an incredibly intricate attempt to rob the Spanish mint. There are four seasons on Netflix, and it even managed to sneak its way into the Australian top 10 recently, which suggests that plenty of Aussies have already found it and are loving it. It’s fun, tense, and compelling — and a bonus, it you’re watching a subtitled show, you won’t look at your phone every three minutes.
Watch it on: Netflix.
If you enjoyed this, you’ll also like… Elité (also Spanish) or Dark (German).
– Rob Stott
Revenge
Instead of starting anything new in iso, I’ve turned to the comfort of rewatching things I remember were good. One of those shows is ‘Revenge’ — the drama about Emily Thorne aka Amanda Clarke and her journey to avenge her father’s death by terrorising rich people in the Hamptons. Like anything good, the last two seasons getting pretty far-fetched but those first two seasons? Top tier television, honestly.Fake deaths, sham marriages and pregnancies, too much money for any one human to own, and four 40-minute, 20+ episode seasons? It’s really is the perfect self-iso series to get stuck into.
Watch it on: Stan.
If you enjoyed this, you’ll also like… Scandal, How To Get Away With Murder And Pretty Little Lies.
– Michelle Rennex
Hollowmen
For some reason that I can’t remember now, I decided to rewatch Hollowmen, the 2008 ABC comedy show about the federal government’s hapless central policy unit. Written by the same folks behind The Panel and Frontline, it’s excellent iso-watching: rib-crackingly funny, clever, and conveniently far removed from our current day hell. In the same vein, I’ve recently moved onto Utopia, a newer ABC comedy series also by Working Dog Productions — it’s delightfully infuriation, and according to a couple of friends that work in the public service, disturbingly accurate.
Watch it on: Stan.
If you enjoyed this, you’ll also like… Frontline and Utopia.
– Jules LeFevre
RuPaul’s Drag Race
As Junkee Editor Patrick Lenton wrote in this piece earlier this week, the lockdown has finally given him an excuse to watch RuPaul’s Drag Race — something he’s been avoiding for years — and he hasn’t regretted it.
As Patrick says: “The thing about Drag Race is that everything I crave about the world while stuck in my tiny room is condensed into one episode of high-camp, furiously silly, gloriously wholesome, and brilliantly colourful television.
Watch it on: Stan.
If you enjoyed this, you’ll also like… There’s a whole universe of Drag Race content available right now on Stan. Go and watch it.
Channel Zero
I have been rewatching all three seasons of Channel Zero, an excellent horror series based on ‘creepypasta’ stories, those unnerving urban myths that do the rounds on internet message boards. The first season is probably my favourite. At first glance, it seems like a regular mystery, as a man returns home to the sleepy and gray town in which he was raised to discover some murderous shenanigans going on. And then, at the end of the second episode, out of nowhere, a man made of teeth emerges from a garden. Human teeth! What more could anybody want from television?
Watch it on: YouTube.
If you enjoyed this, you’ll also like… Twilight Zone and Supernatural.
– Joe Earp
The West Wing
Ok, this may be a controversial choice for some, who (correctly) say The West Wing’s vision of politics hasn’t aged particularly well in the age of Trump. So I wouldn’t necessarily recommend using the show as a blueprint for a career in politics. But if you want to watch a show that can just gently wash over you, then The West Wing is for you. It’s a show about good people trying to do good things, you’ll fall in love with the characters, and you won’t have to think too hard while you’re watching it. And that’s what we all need right now.
Watch it on: Stan.
If you enjoyed this, you’ll also like… Commander In Chief, House Of Cards (the British Version)
Sporting Docos
During isolation my sharehouse has become obsessed with sporting documentaries. Our favourite of which has been Sunderland ‘Til I Die, which is about a beloved, but not very good, football team in the North East of England. This show is all about the passion of the working class fans in Sunderland. For better or worse, everything that happens to the team has a profound impact on the lives of the people that live there – even the local pastor’s sermons are about football. Plus the accents are incredible.
Watch it on: Netflix.
If you enjoyed this, you’ll also like… The Last Dance on Netflix.
– Chloe Gillespie
The Mandalorian
I signed up to Disney+ months ago purely to watch The Mandalorian (yes, I’m a giant Star Wars nerd), then got so distracted by all the films I forgot were Disney (plus every Pixar film ever) that it wasn’t until last weekend that I remembered my whole purpose there.
I have now binged the entire series and yes, it’s as good as they say, and Baby Yoda is still a boss.
– Kassia
Find it on: Disney+
Fast & The Furious
I wish I could say I’ve been watching something intellectual, but the truth is I’ve been watching Vin Diesel’s worst movies (just kidding, they’re all bad) with my friends over Zoom.
They’re awful, but truly escapist. Want to forget about a global pandemic? Watch all eight Fast & Furious movies plus that one spinoff with The Rock and Jason Statham.
Watch Vin Diesel as a robot soldier in a movie called Bloodshot that has roughly three plot points that the writers obviously forgot about halfway through.
In my experience, it’s impossible to be stressed about literally anything when you’re vibing to Vin Diesel.
– Alana
Find it on: Netflix
(Lead Image: Pexels / Vlada Karpovich)
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PS: If you’re looking for something to cook this weekend, here are the recipes that are getting us through isolation.
