5 Amazing Netflix Originals to Watch Right Now

This post was written by guest writer Cassie from CultureCoverage.com

There is no need to watch television on television anymore because of the advent of Netflix. On top of that, standard shows aren’t the only option for viewers anymore because Netflix has so many outstanding originals to watch. Today, I would like to highlight five of the best that you hopefully haven’t missed.

1) Sense8

Created By: Lilly Wachowski

WHY YOU SHOULD WATCH: One of the best science fiction shows you will find on Netflix is Sense8. There is only one season out right now, but it’s well worth your time. This show features an ensemble cast and it follows eight different characters of different cultures. All of these characters are complete strangers to one another, but they eventually realize that they are not strangers at all. After they have a vision of the violent death of a woman, they come to the realization that they are “sensates.” Basically, they are all mentally and emotionally connected to each other. Sense8 probably knows some of the events are completely illogical. However, the beauty of this Netflix original is watching the all of the character arcs intersect. A new season is on the horizon, so now is a great time to catch up.  

10 "Quick" Reactions to the 2016 Emmy Nominations

1)  I completely understand that in Peak TV, the Emmy voters are going to leave off some obvious choices just because there’s not enough hours in the day to see everything that’s great. But at the same time, now is the perfect time to jump ship on the old shows floundering and let the new ones roll over you like a calm, sunny day. Shows like Homeland, House of Cards, and Downton Abbey are well past their prime, yet are beloved by the Emmy voters. Every year Emmy voters vote on what they did before and not necessarily on the quality of the individual season in front of them, and every year we get upset. I don’t know why we do this to ourselves.

2) Unfortunately, little room for newcomers meant a shut out for an incredible show like The Leftovers. Justin Theroux was always a dark horse to get a Best Lead Actor nomination, which was always a shame, but there was also no love for Carrie Coon, Regina King, or Kevin Carrol. And even though the show was clearly one of the 7 best dramas according to all TV critics, the show couldn’t beat out other shows about old British people and a CIA agent with a mental disorder.

Orange Is The New Black Has A Flashback Problem

Flashbacks are essential and integral to Orange Is The New Black. They are part of the make-up and fiber of the show. They’re useful to not only provide three dimensional shading to a character, but they help prop up the show’s themes and point of view. Orange is about showing us the inequalities of race and class within our country, and about how prison is the great equalizer. The prisoners are a purposeful melting pot, and by bringing to light the backstories of multiple individuals, the show is able to bring taste and color and richness into the dish. Outside of the Piper and Vause backstories- which the story has rightfully steered away from as it chugs along- getting to know where different characters and where they came from and how they existed outside of the Litchfield prison walls helped shape them when you saw them inside the walls. Unfortunately, as the cast of Orange gets bigger and bigger, and the need for side detours gets smaller and smaller, the flashbacks have become a distraction. Further, the writing for the flashbacks have become weaker as the show has progressed.

Within the show’s first two seasons, we got flashbacks of prisoners like Watson, the runner who just wanted to fit in, Red, the would be crime boss trying to rise through the ranks, and Morello, the woman who wants to be loved by Christopher. These flashbacks were well fleshed out which in turn gave the audience a deeper understanding of who they were watching. For the most part, these flashbacks were also mini-vignettes with their own arc and storylines that just happened to be spread out over the course of a single episode. Therefore, when the flashbacks ended, they provided their own emotional weight and punch. Unfortunately, that’s just not the case anymore.

If I Had An Emmy Ballot: Dramas (2016 Edition)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

- Jon Bernthal (Daredevil)
- Kevin Carroll (The Leftovers)
- Michael McKean (Better Call Saul)
- Pedro Pascal (Narcos)
- Nick Sandow (Orange is the New Black)
- Christian Slater (Mr. Robot)

JUST MISSED: Peter Dinklage (Game of Thrones)

Pedro Pascal has that charm and that energy that fills up your television screen with joy, and then he’s gone and you anxiously await his return. He was like that as The Viper in Season 4 of Game of Thrones and he’s like that as DEA agent Javier Pena in the Netflix guilty pleasure hit Narcos… Kevin Carroll’s John Murphy’s presence at the very beginning of Season 2 of The Leftovers was initially jarring, but Carroll’s performance sucked you in to this brave new world which made The Leftovers one of the very best shows of 2015… I can understand why Jonathan Banks gets all of the Emmy love for Better Call Saul, but like last year, I throw my hat in the ring for Michael McKean. McKean’s Chuck’s holier-than-thou smugness contrasted with Bob Odenkirk’s lovable rule-bender Jimmy is the key to what makes Better Call Saul work as well as it does without feeling like a true Breaking Bad prequel like the world Banks’ Mike Erhmantrout inhabits… Jon Bernthal’s performance as The Punisher in Season 2 of Netflix’s Daredevil definitely does not scream prestige, award-worthy television, but Berenthal and his incredible screen presence are so good that I found it difficult to leave him off of my list… There are so many great performances, mainly by females, in Netflix’s Orange Is The New Black, but Nick Sandow as Joe “Beercan” Caputo struggling to keep the prison afloat and then dealing with his Corporate Overlords was excellent in this past season… Even though you saw the twist coming regarding Christian Slater’s Mr. Robot, it didn’t diminish that wonderful feeling you got knowing that Slater is back and in a project worthy of his talents. 

Does Orange Is The New Black Have A Piper Problem?

Jenji Kohan’s show Orange Is The New Black is based off of Piper Kerman’s book of the same name. The show centers around Taylor Schilling’s Piper Chapman, who is obviously based upon Kerman herself. After three seasons, the first name to appear in the opening credits is Taylor Schilling and the first name to appear in the closing credits is “Executive Consultant Piper Kerman”. The entire first season is centered around Piper Chapman’s life, how she got into prison, the instances in her life that made her who she is today, and balancing life in prison with her old, outside life. While the show is truly an ensemble cast, Schilling’s Chapman is clearly the lead. Yet for as much as people love Orange Is The New Black, they can’t stop themselves from demanding a show without Piper Chapman.

The Silver Age of Television and The Shows That Defined It

TV critic Alan Sepinwall wrote elegantly about The Golden Age of Television in his book The Revolution Was Televised. It’s a phenomenal read for any television junkie, and while it doesn’t explicitly detail The Golden Age (the book purposefully leaves out comedies), it’s a great overview of the era.

I would recommend reading the nuances and specifics about the era in Mr. Sepinwall’s book, but the basic tenants of the revolution were an increase in prestige programming (which in turn led to more serialized series) which also led to an increase in networks. At the very beginning you had the three basics, ABC, CBS, and NBC. Over time the number of networks grew. The Golden Age saw an expansion of networks and having those networks get into the original programming game. HBO started to produce great original television content which led other networks like FX, AMC, and Showtime to do the same. That in turn led to great dramas such as The Shield, Dexter, and the aforementioned Mad Men and Breaking Bad.

I know many people would argue that we are still in The Golden Era of Television. We still have amazing television programming and television has become more serialized over the procedural nature that it used to be for decades. The Golden Era has changed things in television and that change is moving at a rapid pace. Further, what we used to know as television has almost disappeared.

How Orange Is The New Black Became The Best Show On Television

Last year I posted an article about the four contenders to replace Breaking Bad as the unequivocal best show on television. There were four main contenders: Parks and Recreation, Game of Thrones, Mad Men, and Orange Is The New Black. Since Vince Gilligan’s epic went off the air in the fall of 2013, three of those shows have made strong cases to be the champ. Mad Men ended up being the weakest out of the four, but it has helped define the standard for prestige television and is part of the reason any great non-super hero story isn't shown in movie theaters but rather on the small screen. Game of Thrones is the most watched show out of these four (most likely, since Netflix doesn’t release its viewing numbers) and has transcended the fantasy genre into something incredible, but it’s uneven-ness in storytelling and reliance on its source material ultimately forces the show to play second fiddle. Parks and Recreation is brilliant in every way, but the fact that it’s a sitcom first and foremost lowered its ceiling.

On the other hand, Orange Is The New Black managed to take the best parts of these shows and rise above them to become the best show out there. Orange has the storytelling skills of Mad Men, the grandeur of scope a la Game of Thrones, and the heart of Parks and Recreation while still telling its own stories. There are most certainly faults with the Netflix dramedy, and truthfully it probably has more faults than any of its competitors, but the fact that it’s still so damn good proves why it deserves to be the champion.

The Wonderful Dominance of Netflix Over Television

The very first television program produced and originally distributed by Netflix was a David Fincher produced series starring two-time Academy Award winning actor Kevin Spacey called House of Cards. The show first aired in 2013, and when I wrote about the show then, the title of my article was "Series Review of House of Cards and The Start of a New Era of Television." I absolutely loved the first season of the TV show which is why I couldn't stop fawning over it. Now, after three season my personal feelings on the show itself have waffled, but as I reflect upon it more, the more I realize that House of Cards is the most important show of this generation. Whether you enjoy the show or not, there is no denying the importance it has had on our culture thanks to this new and improved ability to consume television programs.

I refuse to believe that the era of traditional television is over. I believe it is dying, but the TV industry is constantly finding medication for itself. The early part of 2015 saw massive hits like FOX's Empire and minor hits like CW's Jane The Virgin and ABC's Fresh Off The Boat. These shows have proven that network and traditional television is very much alive and well. Furthermore, as someone who has became a cord-cutter for a brief period of time, I cannot imagine living out the rest of my days without the ability to flip through channels I don't like in the hopes of landing on something I do.

But maybe I'm too old, naive, and insulated to be making these sorts of claims. Hitfix's Donna Dickens wrote an excellent article examining how her young children watch TV nowadays and the potential negative effect it will have for cable companies. She wrote about how her kids can't even watch commercials without being impatient and bored. One of them even said, "Live TV is awful" and they would just wait for the show to come to Netflix. They couldn't comprehend the concept that if they didn't watch live TV then there would not be a show for Netflix to even air.

The 14 Best TV Shows of 2014

Television programs and programming is in a weird place right now. The Golden Age of Television is long gone (although its official death came when Breaking Bad ended last year) and in its wake we're seeing a huge crop of quality TV shows from a variety of different sources. Yet despite the gross number of quality programming, there isn't a show like The Sopranos or Breaking Bad anymore. Hell, there isn't even a Lost anymore. You'd think with more traditional and non-traditional service providers cropping up that at least one of them would give us The Next Big Thing, but it hasn't happened yet. Instead, what we're left with is a shit ton of really-good-but-not-Holy-Shit-amazing shows. While the "Top 14 of 14" sounds like a gimmick, it's sort of not. There's just that much good television shows to talk about that I need to expand my list beyond a Top 10, but I had a difficult time going past 14. So without further ado, here is my list of The 14 Best TV Shows of 2014:

Final Predictions for the 2014 Emmy Winners

DRAMA

OUTSTANDING WRITING: Vince Gilligan for "Felina" (Breaking Bad) 

OUTSTANDING DIRECTION: Cary Joji Fukunaga for "Who Goes There" (True Detective)

OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Anna Gunn (Breaking Bad)

OUTSTANDING SUPPORTING ACTOR: Peter Dinklage (Game of Thrones)

OUTSTANDING LEAD ACTRESS: Julianna Marguiles (The Good Wife)

OUTSTANDING LEAD ACTOR: Matthew McConaughey (True Detective)

OUTSTANDING SERIES: Breaking Bad (AMC)

Predicting the 2014 Emmy Winners: Best Television Show

DRAMA

THE NOMINEES:

* Breaking Bad (AMC)
* Downton Abbey (PBS)
* Game of Thrones (HBO)
* House of Cards (Netflix)
* Mad Men (AMC)
* True Detective (HBO)

SURPRISED IT'S NOT NOMINATED: Masters of Sex (Showtime)

SHOULD BE NOMINATED: The Good Wife (CBS)

MY THOUGHTS ON THE ACTUAL NOMINEES:

5 Emmy Battles We're Looking Forward To Watching

True Detective vs. Breaking Bad

Easily, the most compelling battle of the Emmy ceremonies will be the final season of AMC's Breaking Bad vs. the rookie season of the HBO mini-series True Detective. In my humble opinion, Breaking Bad is the greatest television show that has ever existed, and it took Emmy voters (as well as actual fans of the show) a little while to get on board. After four great seasons of Emmy failure, Breaking Bad finally won Outstanding Drama Series in its fifth attempt. After AMC aired the final 8 episodes of the show, it seemed inevitable that Breaking Bad would repeat at the 2014 Emmy's. But then True Detective came along and declared itself eligible in the drama categories as opposed to the mini-series categories. I think the two shows will legitimately go head-to-head in four major categories: Outstanding Writing ("The Secret Fate of All Life" vs. "Felina"), Outstanding Direction ("Who Goes There" vs. "Felina"), Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series (Matthew McConaughey vs. Bryan Cranston), and Outstanding Drama Series. History tells us that True Detective is going to come out on top because great rookie shows have had great success in the past, but there's just no precedence for Breaking Bad finally winning its fifth eligible season either. I think we live in an age will voters will honestly vote based upon which one they legitimately liked more. But that's a coin flip. 

Taylor Schilling vs. Julia Louis-Dreyfus

Rookie Taylor Schilling from Orange Is The New Black is competing against the heavyweight Julia Louis-Dreyfus from Veep in the Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series category, and I think Schilling is going to come out on top. There is a lot of precedent at the Emmy's for a great rookie show to dominate the main categories. Most recently, Homeland did it when it beat out incumbent Mad Men for Outstanding Drama Series and Damien Lewis beat out Bryan Cranston and Jon Hamm for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series back in 2012. Further, it's also extremely difficult to win an acting Emmy three times in a row. Both Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Claire Danes from Homeland are eligible to do that in 2014, and the odds of BOTH of them doing it are very slim. It's possible that Danes loses and Louis-Dreyfus wins, but my gut instinct tells me otherwise. On the other side, Taylor Schilling did incredible work for Orange Is The New Black. While her character Piper Chapman may not always be likable, that doesn't mean Schilling is doing bad work. On the contrary, that means she's doing an excellent job. I think 2014 is the year of Orange Is The New Black, and I believe that Emmy voters are just as big of OITNB fans as the rest of us are.

10 "Quick" Reactions to the 2014 Primetime Emmy Nominations

1) Modern Family

Holy cow, I don't think anyone saw this coming as Modern Family took a huge blow this year (or at least a huge blow according to its expectations). Again, two-time winner Eric Stonestreet fails to earn a nomination, but Sophia Vergara and Ed O'Neill join him. Only Ty Burrell, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, and Julie Bowen earn a main acting nomination for their work on the show. The show also only earned one Outstanding Direction nomination (see, high standards, it normally gets at least two), and failed to earn any writing nominations. While the show itself was still nominated for Outstanding Comedy Series, it lost a lot of nominations in 2014, and I suspect Modern Family is going to come up lame come award time.

2) Game of Thrones

While Modern Family is trending downwards, Game of Thrones is trending upwards. For those who said the Emmy's hate Game of Thrones is just absurd, considering the show had three Outstanding Drama Series nominations and Peter Dinklage is a former winner from the show. Not only does the show itself and Peter Dinklage earn another nomination this year, but this time they're joined by Lena Headly. Last year, Emilia Clarke earned a nomination in the Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series category, and this time it's Headley. It's nice to see other actors other than Dinklage get rewarded for their work on the show. Game of Thrones also earned an Outstanding Direction nomination for Neil Marshall for his work on the penultimate episode "The Watchers on the Wall" (although I would have preferred if it went to Alex Graves) and creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss earned a writing nomination for their work on the finale "The Children" (although I suspect it's for their work on the show as a whole).

Grading The Best TV Shows of the Year (So Far)

2014 is only halfway over, yet there have been a litany of great television shows that have aired. Many of them I've seen, a good a majority I have not. We live in an era of television that is classified by quantity over anything else, and seeing as I am just one man, I can only watch so much. But I have watched a buttload of shows, and here are my thoughts on every television show I've seen this year.


Community (NBC)
Season: 5
Created By: Dan Harmon
Original Start Date: January 2, 2014
Grade: A

Brief Description: While I was in the minority feeling that Dan Harmon deserved to get kicked off of his own show after the atrocious Season 3, I'm glad he was brought back for Season 5. Season 4 show runners Moses Port & David Guarascio did their best Dan Harmon impression, but easily came up short creating a soulless monster. Harmon dialed back the insane extremes he took his characters to in Season 3 (mainly Abed) in this new season, and in turn created one of the smartest and funniest sitcoms around. #RIPCommunity.

Brooklyn Nine-Nine (FOX)
Season: 1b
Created By: Dan Goor & Michael Schur
Original Start Date: January 7, 2014
Grade: A

Brief Description: Brooklyn Nine-Nine was one of the smartest and funniest sitcoms of 2014 and is competing against Community for the best comedy of the year. Like most sitcoms, it took a little bit to get its bearings and its voice straightened out, but those stumbling blocks came in 2013. What the FOX sitcom aired in 2014 was a well-defined and hilarious work of art filled with three-dimensional characters. Based upon how strong Season 1 was, I have no qualms with the rookie comedy wining the Golden Globe last year for Best Comedy Show, and I hope it gets a handful of Emmy nominations in a few weeks.

"Jungle" Is The Next Greatest Song For Your Commercial

"Jungle" by Jamie N Commons and X Ambassadors is the greatest song of 2014 that you've never heard of. Or to put it more fairly, it's the greatest song you have heard of yet you have no idea how you heard of it. You can listen to the full song below. It's being used in everything nowadays; it's the commercial version of The Rolling Stones' "Gimmie Shelter" for Scorsese films. It's just in everything, and it's always used perfectly.

2014 TV Weekly Recap (June 22 - June 28)

CURRENT SHOWS AIRING

Sunday June 22

Halt and Catch Fire (AMC), Episode 4 "Close To The Metal"

GRADE: B-

Brief Description: Halt and Catch Fire tries to take a slight step back from the building of the portable computer and focus on its main three characters, Joe, Gordon, and Cameron, while adding heavy focus and depth to Donna who seemed to be there solely as a cliche nagging wife. H&CF does its best to try and give these characters the most compelling story line possible, but it's just not clicking. The stakes aren't there and the characters aren't that well defined or developed. It does its best by making Joe out to be a villain and he gets beat up by some cops this episode, but I just don't care. This show hasn't done anything to make me truly care about these characters, and it's just not doing anything to suck me in to make me want to continue watching. 

Tuesday June 24

Tyrant (FX), Episode 1 "Pilot"

GRADE: B

Brief Description: Truthfully, I have no idea how I feel about Tyrant. I didn't hate it and it passed the iPhone Test where I was more focused on the show than my iPhone, but it also didn't do anything to make me want to stay either. I will continue watching it, but I may give up with it soon along with Halt and Catch Fire. The pilot to Tyrant plays out exactly like the plot of The Godfather. Adam Raynor plays Bassam "Barry" Al-Fayeed and he is the Michael Corrleone character. His father is the Don Vito Corrleone character and the dictator of a fictional Iran/Iraq-esque country. Barry is self-exiled and living in L.A. because he doesn't want to be in the violent business that his father is in. However, and just like in The Godfather, a wedding brings Barry back to his home land, and wouldn't you know it, he gets sucked in and stays a while longer. Barry has an older brother, Jamal, who is a hybrid of Sonny and Fredo. Jamal is the "bad son" who stays and loves to rape and take advantage of his power. A character like Jamal should be a character we all love to hate, but he's so one-dimensional that I never had any feelings for him whatsoever. How I felt about Jamal is how I felt about the pilot to Tyrant as a whole. It's cliche, one-dimensional, under-written, and not that well-acted, but there's also a clear capability to become better and more engaging. Despite all my negativity towards it, I'll continue watching a few more episodes, and I will give this FX show a chance.

Orange Is The New Black Review: We Have Manners, We're Polite

Orange Is The New Black (Netflix), Episode 13 of Season 2
"We Have Manners, We're Polite"
Written By: Jenji Kohan
Directed By: Constantine Marks
Flashback Of: N/A

GRADE: A+

Brief Description: My general take on season finales is that one episode can't change a season. A great finale to a terrible season (a la Season 2 of House of Cards) is still a terrible season and a terrible finale to a great season (a la Season 1 of Homeland) is still a great season. The season finale of Orange Is The New Black is the exception to the rule so to speak. The first half of this season was incredible, while the second half stumbled a bit, the 90 minute season finale tied up almost every loose end. "We Have Manners, We're Polite" was the reason we saw the previous 12 episodes and it capped an excellent end to an excellent season.

Orange Is The New Black Review: It Was The Change

Orange Is The New Black (Netflix), Episode 12 of Season 2
"It Was The Change"
Written By: Sara Hess
Directed By: Phil Abraham
Flashback Of: Vee

GRADE: A

Brief Description: A storm is coming to Litchfield! Not only do we get a literal storm, but the war between Vee and Red is finally here. I've been complaining for a few episodes about how the war between Vee vs. Red was not nearly at the level it should be. We finally got the episode I've been waiting for and that we all should have gotten a few episodes back. Even without the last two scenes between Vee and Red, this episode was still an "A". We spent a fair amount of time focusing on some minor characters, mainly Ruiz, but for the most part, this episode was filled with the characters and story lines this entire season had been building towards. Even in scenes without Vee or Red in them, the threat of a fight breaking out lingered over everything.

2014 Emmy Predictions and Hopefuls: Outstanding Comedy Series

Recently, the Emmy's released every person and show eligible in all of their categories for the 2014 Primetime Emmy's for their nomination ballot. This post is dedicated to everything related to Outstanding Comedy Series category. It will be both who I think will actually earn a nomination as well as who I think deserves to earn a nomination. However, there is one main ground rule- I have to go off of the actual Emmy nomination ballot. Which means that if the series isn't actually eligible to earn a nomination in real life, then it's not eligible to be mentioned in this post. Makes sense, doesn't it? Let's begin!

COMEDY

WHO I THINK WILL GET A NOMINATION:

- Girls (HBO)
- Louie (FX)
- Modern Family (ABC)
- Orange Is The New Black (Netflix)
- The Big Bang Theory (CBS)
- Veep (HBO)

Orange Is The New Black Review: Take A Break From Your Values

Orange Is The New Black (Netflix), Episode 11 of Season 2
"Take A Break From Your Values"
Written By: Nick Jones
Directed By: Constantine Makris
Flashback Of: Sister Ingalls

GRADE: C+

Brief Description: I have no idea how a show as great as Orange Is The New Black has been can come so far off of the rails as it has become. But truthfully, I don't think we should be surprised. While Jenji Kohan created Orange after coming off of a long running, slightly successful, slightly critically revered show, it's not like Weeds was ever considered the Mad Men of Breaking Bad, or even Dexter, of its time. To it's credit, it does have a handful of major Primetime Emmy awards, but nowhere in its eight year run was it ever considered as great of a show has Orange Is The New Black has been. And now that we're almost done with Season 2, you can see the seems start to tear and the thread start to unravel, just like Weeds did. To be fair, "Take A Break From Your Values" as a stand alone episode is not a C+. It's better than a lot of shows out there. However, the gap for where Season 2 should be this late in its run versus where it is now is just staggering.