8 Best Original Netflix Series You Must Watch

Netflix is home to some of the highest quality series around. Whether you're in the mood for a prestige drama, stunning animation, or must-watch miniseries, there's something for everyone.

Here's a list of the 8 best Netflix original series you can watch in 2023.

Love, Death & Robots

An anthology series with mesmerizing visuals and animation, each short episode in Love, Death & Robots is helmed by a different team, resulting in unique bite-sized tales. Standout episodes include Bad Travelling, in which a sailing ship is invaded by a ravenous sea monster, and Jibaro, where a gold-draped siren enraptures a group of conquistadors.

Ozark

The best drug-centered drama since Breaking Bad, this twisted tale of an accountant who, threatened by the mob, flees with his family to the Ozarks, piles on the tension. Marty Byrde, played skilfully by Jason Bateman, sinks deeper into crime as a course of survival, giving his journey a real sense of moral ambiguity as he soon becomes the twisted puppet-master.

Mindhunter

One of Netflix’s greatest tragedies is withholding a third season of this extraordinary psychological crime thriller. It takes place at the dawn of criminal profiling and follows two FBI agents (played by Jonathan Groff and Holt McCallany) who interview historical serial killers to better understand them. The scenes involving Charles Manson, David Berkowitz, and Wayne Williams are chilling.

The Crown

Prestige dramas don’t get more prestigious than this. Starting by chronicling the reign of Queen Elizabeth in her earliest years as head monarch in the 1950s, each season gives us a different interpretation of the queen, portrayed by Claire Foy, Olivia Colman and Imelda Staunton respectively. Five seasons on, we’re now in the ‘90s, with season 6 shifting focus to Diana’s final year before her tragic death.

Dark

This German sci-fi series is Netflix’s best foreign-language offering. It starts as a simple missing child mystery before spinning out into a grand, complex time travel story that manages to stay grounded and convincing despite its growing absurdity. Three seasons give you plenty to get stuck into without the show outstaying its welcome.

Stranger Things

Netflix’s flagship show follows a group of kids in a small American town who experience supernatural threats that bond them together for life. Set in the ‘80s, it’s a true nostalgia trip that references Stephen King, Kate Bush, and Metallica. The eagerly awaited fifth and final season launches next year. More news on that dropped in Netflix Geeked Week 2023: here’s everything worth watching.

The Queen’s Gambit

A coming-of-age chess drama based on the 1983 novel of the same name, Anya Taylor Joy won a Golden Globe for her portrayal of Beth Harmon, the chess prodigy who beats her demons to become queen of the chess world. It was Netflix’s most-watched shows in 2020 for good reason.

Related: Netflix and Amazon Go Head to Head for Crime 101

Squid Game

Widely regarded as the greatest of all Netflix’s originals, Squid Game launched in 2021 to huge acclaim. Its tale of players risking their lives in deadly games to win a life-changing sum of money won Emmys and Golden Globes galore, spawned big-budget YouTube recreations, and even inspired a real life reality game show, which launches on Netflix next year.