25 shows to watch if you like Riverdale
By Sundi Rose
The Handmaid’s Tale
A relentlessly dystopian vision of an American future, Handmaid’s Tale is what Riverdale could be if it was ran by an oppressive, fundamental regime hell bent on instituting female slavery.
The premise: Based on the 1982 novel by Margaret Atwood, it imagines a near future in which the America we know has been transformed into Gilead — a horrific, corrupted place in which women still capable of bearing children are kept as slaves.
The handmaids, women still capable of becoming pregnant despite the widespread pollution-induced infertility are “assigned” to high-ranking officials. They are ceremoniously raped once a month, and any resulting babies are kept by the commanders and their wives.
Why you’ll like it: I can’t promise you’ll absolutely love it at first. It’s really hard to watch, and it’s disturbing on 100 different levels. However, it’s so well written, directed, and scored that it’s truly an amazing experience.
In addition to its sheer visual beauty, it’s a really important watch. It’s topical without being too specifically political, but familiar enough to unsettle you terribly.
Where to find it: It’s a Hulu original, so every episode of the first season is available now. It closely follows the novel of the same name, but the second season is completely off-book. It’s a hard binge, but you need to do it anyway.