21 Shows To Watch While You’re Recovering From A Food Coma

Stranger Things promotional image, via Netflix

16. Stranger Things

Seriously, you haven’t seen Stranger Things yet? No shame, of course, but there’s a reason this Netflix original became something of a juggernaut.

Now, this show definitely needs to be watched from beginning to end. You can’t get away with jumping in and out of the series like you might with The Joy of Painting or Star Trek: The Next Generation. However, the first run is only eight episodes long, so you can easily watch the whole thing over a weekend. It’s certainly easy to start consuming Stranger Things once you’ve planted yourself into a soft couch somewhere. You almost certainly won’t want to walk away, I promise.

Stranger Things combines many of the 1980s film and TV tropes that are likely floating around in your brain. Thanks to some good writing and great performances (from a bevy of child actors, no less), this show rises above the tropes and creates something really fun and engaging.

Young Will Byers mysteriously vanishes after an encounter with a terrifying, shadowy creature. Soon after, a near-mute young girl (eventually called “Eleven” or “El”) appears in the small town of Hawkins, Indiana. While Will’s friends are dealing with the confusion and grief of his disappearance, they soon befriend El and become drawn into the mystery of the creature and a realm they call the “Upside Down”.

Oh, also, Winona Ryder stars as Joyce Byers, the beleaguered yet ultimately tough as hell Joyce Byers. Her performance as a terrified, determined mom is one of the many highlights of the series.

Where to watch: Netflix.