Holidays are the perfect time for streaming good shows
It’s a lousy week if you’re looking for new TV shows — the holidays will do that — but it doesn’t matter like it might have mattered 20 years ago. There are too many good shows waiting for you on streaming, and a glance at critics’ top 10 lists will probably give you some good ideas.
The streaming world continues to grow and change. The research firm Parks Associates released its annual ranking of streaming outlets in the United States, and there is a significant new development this year. Netflix, usually the No. 1 service, has moved to No. 2. Now, Amazon Prime is the reigning champ, at least in the States; Netflix continues to dominate globally (with more than 223 million subscribers).
1. Amazon Prime
2. Netflix
3. Hulu
4. Disney+
5. HBO Max
6. ESPN+
7. Paramount+
8. Apple TV+
9. Peacock
10. Starz
I don’t have a beef with Netflix, which just came out with an ad-supported tier of service that costs $6.99 per month. The company certainly has a lot of stuff, enough to keep you poking around looking for a show for hours. But I haven’t found Netflix’s original series very exciting for a while. I think viewers sometimes forget that Netflix isn’t a utility that merits automatic renewals. Like most streamers, it’s worth getting for a month or two before jumping to another service to watch their shows.
The holidays might be a good time for you to switch up a bit, let one service go and try another. I tend to find more compelling shows on Apple TV+ and HBO Max, but cycle through all of them over the course of a year.