TAGGED AS: Amazon, Amazon Prime, CBS All Access, Comedy, Drama, Fantasy, HBO, Netflix, Reality, Showtime, Starz, Syfy, The CW
These 10 series are just the thing to bring you from winter to spring this March, whether you are craving wars between gods, unlikely romantic comedies, badly behaved rich folk, or the corrupt getting their due. Catch our monthly binge guide below.
What it is: The gods are out to play — and out for blood — in this cult favorite series on Starz. Based on the fantasy novel of the same name by Neil Gaiman, American Gods follows recently released convict Shadow Moon (Ricky Whittle), who’s employed by the mysterious Mr. Wednesday (Ian McShane) as a bodyguard. Diving into a world of dark magic and gods new and old, it is soon revealed that Mr. Wednesday is on a mission to unite the Old Gods against the rise of the New.
Why you should watch it: Few series are quite as engrossingly strange and ambitious as American Gods, and that’s what has us hooked. It’s a timely commentary on the world we live in today but set against the backdrop of a dark and lurid fantasy epic. Season 2 premieres March 10.
Where to watch it: Amazon, FandangoNow, Google Play, Hulu, Microsoft, Vudu
Commitment: Approx. 8 hours
What it is: Here’s a romantic comedy squarely for adults. Amazon’s very funny London-set Catastrophe shows what happens when a no-strings-attached week of sex between a visiting American businessman (Rob Delaney) and an Irish schoolteacher (Sharon Horgan) turns into an unexpected pregnancy, a move overseas, and a proposal. And that’s just in the first episode.
Why you should watch it: Co-creators and stars Horgan and Delaney perfectly blend comedy and heart in their utterly original spin on the classic sitcom. Plus, their airtight scripts full of rat-a-tat-tat dialogue are about as joyously quippy and naturalistic as they come. (Judging from the pair’s famous Twitter accounts, that comes as little surprise.) And did we mention the late, great Carrie Fisher co-stars? The fourth and final season premieres March 15.
Where to watch it: Amazon
Commitment: About 8.5 hours
What it is: Diane Lockhart (Christine Baranski) gets the leading lady treatment with CBS All Access’ hit spin-off of The Good Wife. Set one year after the events of that acclaimed series’ finale (and picking up on the morning of President Donald Trump’s inauguration), The Good Fight follows Lockhart after she’s forced out of her own firm and teams up with goddaughter Maia Rindell (Game of Thrones’ Rose Leslie) and The Good Wife‘s Lucca Quinn (Cush Jumbo).
Why you should watch it: Sure, if you loved The Good Wife, you’ll love The Good Fight — but believe it or not, Baranski is even more astounding here and finds exciting new shades to the beloved Diane Lockhart. Season 3 premieres March 14.
Where to watch it: Amazon, CBS All Access, FandangoNow, Google Play, Microsoft, Vudu
Commitment: Approx. 19.5 hours
What it is: The early aughts’ hit, boundary-pushing reality series Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, gets a makeover of its own with this charming, three-time Emmy-winning reboot on Netflix.
Why you should watch it: If any other series captured the world’s collective heart over the last year like Queer Eye did, we haven’t heard of it. Yes, its main hook lies in the fashionable, fabulous, and heartwarming makeovers the Queer Eye guys give Georgia men (and the occasional woman), but you’ll stick around for the playful banter and true, deep friendship between the main cast of industry experts. It all packs a surprisingly emotional punch, so stock up on tissues! Season 3 premieres March 15.
Where to watch it: Netflix
Commitment: Approx. 12 hours
What it is: Showtime’s Billions dramatizes the high-stakes world of Wall Street when Chuck Rhoades (Paul Giamatti), a U.S. attorney, sets his sights on bringing down hedge fund manager Bobby Axelrod (Homeland‘s Damian Lewis) for insider trading and other illegal proclivities. Talk about one-percenters.
Why you should watch it: Giamatti has built a career on playing the everyman, and here, he’s fighting for him. The actor’s turn as the hard-hitting U.S. attorney would be reason alone to watch (scenes of surprise BDSM and all), but Billions also boasts a timely, engrossing premise and firecracker performances from Lewis, Maggie Siff, Condola Rashad, and a bevy of other supporters that meet Giamatti mark for mark. Season 4 premieres March 17.
Where to watch it: Amazon, FandangoNow, Google Play, Hulu, Vudu
Commitment: Approx. 36 hours
What it is: It comes as no surprise that a series as sprawling and ambitious as Jane the Virgin has taken on many forms over the last four seasons, but the family-driven hourlong series begins when Jane, the titular character, is accidentally artificially inseminated.
Why you should watch it: More than just a star-making vehicle for the incomparable Gina Rodriguez, Jane the Virgin is a dramedy like no other, rolling out bits of magical realism, vital cultural representation, female empowerment, and plenty of charm. It’s a series that wears its heart on its sleeve, and we can’t wait to see what its final installment has in store. Season 5 premieres March 27.
Where to watch it: Amazon, FandangoNow, Google Play, Microsoft, Netflix, Vudu
Commitment: Approx. 57 hours
What it is: A small-screen adaptation of Grant Morrison and Darick Robertson’s graphic novel of the same name, Happy! follows a crooked, alcoholic cop-turned-hitman Nick Sax (Christopher Meloni) who inexplicably begins seeing his kidnapped daughter’s imaginary friend: a blue winged horse named Happy (voiced by Patton Oswalt). Together, they set out on a mission to find a Santa-dressed kidnapper on-the-loose.
Why you should watch it: “Happy” is one word for it, another is “weird.” Other words for it are “transporting,” or “hallucinogenic,” or “wild” — all meant in the best way. Unlike just about anything else on TV, Happy! demands your attention and promises a crazy ride. Season 2 premieres March 27.
Where to watch it: Amazon, FandangoNow, Google Play, Microsoft, Netflix, Vudu
Commitment: Approx. 6 hours
What it is: We’ve seen the modern-day American layperson satirized to no end on the small screen, but we’ve never seen them with zombies. That’s where Santa Clarita Diet comes in. Sheila (Drew Barrymore) and Joel Hammond (Timothy Olyphant) are happily married real-estate agents living in the titular Californian town when Sheila unexpectedly becomes a bloodthirsty, flesh-craving, card-carrying member of the living dead.
Why you should watch it: Any excuse to watch Barrymore is A-OK in our book, but it’s even better when it’s a series as unique, fun, and — pardon the pun — biting as Santa Clarita Diet. Driven by its central mystery as much as it is its core cast of characters, it’s a suburban satire for all, not just fans of The Walking Dead. Season 3 premieres March 29.
Where to watch it: Netflix
Commitment: Approx. 10 hours
What it is: Bill Hader stars as Barry Berman, a Midwestern hitman who, when traveling to Los Angeles for a job, unexpectedly takes an acting class and considers a career change.
Why you should watch it: Henry Winkler is gifted the kind of late-career role that the Happy Days TV veteran has long deserved in washed-up acting coach Gene Cousineau. (And he’s got the Emmy to prove it!) That in itself is reason enough to tune into Barry, but then there’s the title character himself. Hader has never been better as the hitman-turned-aspiring actor: circumstantially funny as a fish out of water, boasting leading-man gravitas as a morally torn hero, and even exuding an unexpected sex appeal as a kickass former Marine. Season 2 premieres March 31.
Where to watch it: Amazon, FandangoNow, Google Play, HBO Now, Vudu
Commitment: Approx. 4 hours
What it is: Selina Meyer is an anti-heroine for the ages as a former senator and now Vice President of the United States who curses like a sailor and handles the things her predecessor never bothered to attend to.
Why you should watch it: There are few comedic performances as decorated as Julia Louis-Dreyfus’ turn in HBO and creator Armando Iannucci’s Veep (a record-tying five Emmy wins for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series for the same role, to be exact). But still, she and the series seem to get better year after year. While Veep started out as a hilarious satire of the goings-on in our country’s capitol, it’s proven over the last few seasons to be more of a premonitory look at what’s to come in the West Wing — making it as relevant and darkly funny as ever. The seventh and final season premieres March 31.
Where to watch it: Amazon, FandangoNow, Google Play, HBO Now, Microsoft, Vudu
Commitment: About 29 hours
Thumbnail photo courtesy Patrick Ecclesine/CBS; Isabella Vosmikova/HBO; Jan Thijs/Starz/Fremantle
