Best Streamed Shows

The Haunting of Hill House

The Netflix original premièred on Oct. 12, with fright and terror for the most experienced horror-film fanatics. A family broken by their mother’s suicide in a haunted mansion tries to piece the puzzle together of what happened on that night. 

“The Haunting of Hill House” provides suspense and the occasional jump-scare, but it deserves a standing ovation for psychological plot twists and stellar writing. The show has also recently been nominated for the Writer’s Guild Award. A second season has not been confirmed for Netflix, but with the several different characters and the origins of Hill House still unknown, the plot of a second season could go in any direction.

Season Three of ‘The Last Kingdom’

A favorite show for historical-fiction junkies, “The Last Kingdom” released its third season on Netflix on Nov. 19. The Anglo-Saxon-born but Viking-raised Uhtred Ragneson kicks off the season with heartbreak and bad-*ss sword fighting against King Alfred’s enemies. With the king’s health failing him, Uhtred is faced with having to choose between the Vikings and the Anglo-Saxons.

“The Last Kingdom” deserves applause for its score of 89 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, its historical accuracy, great depth of characters, and action -packed scenes.

Season Two of ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’

Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale was adapted to fit the screen and premièred as a show on April 26, 2017. The dystopian plot follows June Osborne, played by the spectacular Elisabeth Moss, who feels trapped in a frightening post-America world, ruled by strict religion and rife with strict consequences. The second season scored a whopping 91 percent on Rotten Tomatoes and is praised for its frightful storytelling.

Atwood is working on a sequel to her novel in response to fans’ burning questions about the world she built. “The Handmaid’s Tale” has been nominated for two Golden Globes and will find out whether it takes home another Golden Globe on Jan. 6, 2019.