Amazon Studios

Grab your blanket and a cup of tea for this sweet, cosy viewing. Modern Love is based on real-life personal essays about love from the New York Times column of the same name. These stories are delicately brought to life for the screen by a starry cast, including Anne Hathaway, Dev Patel and, in season 2, Minnie Driver and Kit Harington, among many more. Some stories won’t be tied up with a neat bow, and some will take you to unexpected places. The overall tone is feel good without being overly saccharine, and it might just stir your belief in the magic of true love.

Amazon Prime Video

Sublime filmmaker Barry Jenkins (Moonlight) takes on adapting Colson Whitehead’s novel The Underground Railroad into a powerful 10-episode series. Set in the southern US during the 1800s, the fictional story follows Blacks attempting to escape from slavery via a network of hidden tracks and tunnels. Tapping magical realism and a superb cast including Thuso Mbedu and William Jackson Harper, The Underground Railroad is an emotional and chilling triumph.

Amazon

Amazon’s first original young adult offering is an intriguing combination of Lost and the Breakfast Club — and it works. Crucially, the cast of characters who find themselves stranded on a deserted island are all teenage girls. To them, that makes life even more excruciating. Each has a very different background — from spoiled rich girl to Native American — but they have to put aside their differences to survive, learning a thing or two about themselves on the way. Things get even more dark and thrilling when Rachel Griffiths’ Gretchen Klein comes into the picture as the head of the secretive Dawn of Eve program.

Amazon Studios

This gripping British series is about, yes, an informer and the murky territory involved in coercing someone to take on the dangerous gig. Paddy Considine (who now has a gig on the Game of Thrones prequel) stars as DS Gabe Waters, a counterterrorism officer tasked with infiltrating a far-right movement in West Yorkshire. Partnered with an excellent Bel Powley (The Morning Show, The King of Staten Island) as the young and inquisitive DC Holly Morten, he attempts to bring British Pakistani Raza (Nabhaan Rizwan) on board to uncover information about a possible terrorist attack. A provocative thriller that will keep you on your toes.

Amazon Studios

This TV version of Picnic at Hanging Rock isn’t quite a masterpiece like the 1975 film adaptation of the classic Australian novel. But it’s just as mysterious, unfurling a dreamy yet eerie veil over a fictional disappearance in the isolated Australian bush. When three students and their governess go missing after a picnic at the rock area, hysteria sets into the community and the esteemed Appleyard College, led by Natalie Dormer’s formidable headmistress. Dark secrets emerge, keeping you hanging on until the end.

Amazon Studios

Matt Bomer, Lily Collins and Kelsey Grammer star in this 1930s-set drama about a brilliant Hollywood executive. Self-made prodigy Monroe Stahr (Bomer) faces a constant struggle with studio head Pat Brady (Grammar). The series takes an interesting angle, exploring the influence of the Nazis and the German market on Hollywood politics in a world on the brink of war. The Last Tycoon is based on F. Scott Fitzgerald’s last book, unfinished and posthumously published, with loose inspiration from producer Irving Thalberg, known as The Boy Wonder during the early 1900s. Superbly acted, sumptuous to look at and centered on absorbing characters, The Last Tycoon ended too soon after one season.

Amazon Studios

If you like your fashion and historical drama, The Collection aptly brings the two together. Set in a post World War II Paris, the eight-part series follows two entrepreneurial brothers who clash as they build their fashion empire. Rivalry, betrayal and Nazi occupation are the provocative elements that light a fire under this handsomely shot family drama. Note of warning, once you become hooked on the deftly layered intrigue, you’ll have to face the disappointment of no second season.

Amazon Studios

Con man Marius walks free from jail, only to be hunted by the gangster he once robbed. So, he assumes the identity of his cell mate Pete and walks back into the lives of Pete’s estranged family, who are none the wiser. Bryan Cranston brings all the gravitas to gangster Vince in this part-drama, party-comedy. The twists and dicey situations will carry you through the addictive episodes as quickly as Pete pulls his cons.

Amazon

Not just another show about a small town where strange things happen, Tales from the Loop has a lot more underneath the surface. Drawing from a narrative art book by Swedish artist Simon Stålenhag, the series is stunning to look at, meticulous as can be with symmetrical frames. Light and space are infused with a painterly feel. The interconnected townspeople are similarly nuanced, their stories exploring loneliness, aging, the impact of technology and more through sci-fi ideas.

Amazon Studios

The Black Mirror vibes are strong in this British series about technology gone wrong. The Feed is set in a futuristic London where a family develops an implant that lets people livestream their lives without needing to press a button on a phone. No, absolutely nothing can go wrong with that! Some pretty impressive actors stack out the cast, including David Thewlis and Michelle Fairley. While it’s not as polished or deep-cutting as Black Mirror, it’s still worth a look — just grab your phone during the less gripping parts.

Amazon Studios

Amazon rescued The Expanse from the realm of canceled TV, bringing us a fifth season with a sixth (and final season) to come. Thank goodness it did, because The Expanse is smart sci-fi with realistic characters, high production values and a dash of detective noir. Set in a future where humanity has colonized the Solar System, a conspiracy threatens to start a cold war between the largest powers. A band of antiheroes find themselves at the center. Look forward to more space western themes in the consistently excellent later seasons.