Never Have I Ever

The series has been praised for defying South Asian stereotypes and has been considered as a watershed event for South Asian portrayal in Hollywood. Netflix renewed the sitcom for a second season on July 1, 2020, which was released on July 15, 2021. Netflix renewed the series for a third season on August 19, 2021. Never Have I Ever isn’t your normal teen drama. It’s a narrative about growing up as much as it is about pain and loss. Devi (Maitreyi Ramakrishnan) is balancing her boiling teenage hormones and unbreakable crushes while dealing with the trauma of losing her father. Devi begins to come into her own in the second season, exuding an incredible amount of self-assurance. However, the tug of war between being yourself and fitting in is still present. Without depending on schmaltz, Never Have I Ever strikes a perfect combination of honesty and over-the-top hilarity. It poses the question, “What exactly is normal?”

The Grand Army

Grand Army High School, located in Brooklyn, New York, has a long and illustrious history. This teen drama describes the stories of five of those students. Joey (a dance team junior), Sid (a gay Indian-American still in the closet), Jayson (an African-American from Spanish Harlem), Dom (a basketball team Haitian-American), and Leila (an African-American from Spanish Harlem) (a Chinese-American from the Upper West Side). The series was staged by Katie Cappiello and is based in part on her play Slut.

Sex Education

Sex Education cemented its spot in the pantheon of teen series in its third season. On the surface, it appears to be a show about teenagers in a rural British village managing s*x and sexuality, as well as character and identity. But it is the tenderness of this sex-positive series that makes it so magical. Sex Education is never didactic, despite its name. It recognizes that adolescence is both painful and exhilarating and that each setback is an opportunity for self-improvement.

Squid Game

The program of 2021 was Squid Game. In reality, we’re still in the Squid Game period on the internet. You’ve probably heard of it if you’re a living, breathing entity. (If not, take a look at your pulse.) The nihilistic, record-breaking South Korean series has apparently been seen by 142 million people, making it Netflix’s biggest hit to date. Squid Game’s stark critique of capitalism and how it erodes humanity resonated with audiences all across the globe, thanks to its profound roots in Korean history. Its worldwide success has launched its actors, the veteran Lee Jung-Jae and acting rookie Hoyeon Jung, into the international spotlight. It accomplished something that few shows in the streaming era can: it’s kept our attention.

Money Heist

Money Heist, or La Casa de Papel, a Spanish-language drama, has become one of Netflix’s most popular foreign-language programs. The show follows a group of criminal masterminds as they pull out a series of daring heists throughout Madrid, beginning with the Royal Mint of Spain, in a high-octane drama that progresses at a breakneck pace. (Short version: they loot banks.) The Professor (Alvaro Morte) leads this rowdy family of con artists, and while this is an action-packed thriller that will raise your blood pressure, the series achieves an emotional climax in its fifth and final season.