The best Netflix TV shows as of September 2017

Overwhelmed by the sheer number of TV shows available on Netflix? Here are our top 10 to get you started.

If you still haven't check out what Netflix has to offer in Australia, you've already waited too long. While early criticisms of Netflix's content line-up were fair, the state of Netflix's library of television shows in September 2017 is a much different story. Some of the best shows on television at the moment, such as Stranger Things and House of Cards, are Netflix Originals.

From political drama to 80s inspired sci-fi to the best superhero TV shows around, Netflix has been consistently knocking it out of the park since launching globally.

Here are our top 10 picks from Netflix's current line-up:

• Stranger Things
• House of Cards
• Master of None
• Black Mirror
• Rick and Morty
• Orange is the New Black
• Bojack Horsemen
• The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
• Marvel's Daredevil
• Sense8

1. Stranger Things

It's rare to see a show so lovingly dedicated to the 80s. Often TV shows, movies and books lean on nostalgia without weaving them into the narrative in any meaningful way. That's far from the case in Stranger Things. The Duffer Brothers' sci-fi/thriller/horror isn't just a love letter, it stands alone as one of the greatest television shows today, thanks to its talented and diverse cast and its gripping season arc. When a young D&D nerd Will Byers vanishes from a quiet, rural town, his family, friends and community band together to bring him back from a mysterious and terrifying world. Each character has a hand to play in finding Will, but they're individual journeys are just as important and entertaining to watch.

Season two is coming this October and if the trailer below is anything to go by, it's going to live up to the first and then some.

2. House of Cards

All the hype you've heard about House of Cards is true. The Primetime Emmy Award winning Netflix-produced show about the devious machinations of US politics is television at its best. It's conniving, it's clever and it will change the way you watch the news. Oh, and Frank Underwood (Kevin Spacey) is the anti-hero you've been waiting for since Walter White left our screens. With five seasons under its belt, House of Cards is no doubt one of the most bingeable shows on Netflix.

3. Master of None

Master of None is the kind of show that might turn people off in its first few episodes. In place of a traditional, run-of-the-mill season arc, Aziz Ansari's comedy/drama often runs off in tangents focused on minor characters (and sometimes characters that aren't even part of the recurring cast). While this might seem a little off-track to begin with, some of these episodes are Master of None's best. Ansari's Dev runs the gamut of work and relationship troubles many have experienced firsthand with hilarious and sometimes devastating accuracy. But where Master of None truly shines is during the episodes that are less about the characters and more about an issue, place or celebration.

If you haven't checked it out yet (or tried and put it down) we wholeheartedly recommend sticking it out. Ansari's musings on love, work and life in the city are hilarious, poetic and brimming with heart.

4. Black Mirror

The fact that a third season of Charlie Brooker's Black Mirror series wasn't picked up sooner is criminal. Thankfully, Netflix is in the business of righting the entertainment industry's wrongs and worked with Brooker to create season three of Black Mirror. Brooker's clever writing and biting satire are complemented by Netflix's fat stacks of cash, which has helped bring on some huge talent, like Bryce Dallas Howard and Jerome Flynn in leading roles as well as big-name directors like Joe Wright and Dan Trachtenberg.

Season three isn't just a revival. It brought us some of the best episodes the show has ever seen (San Junipero is some of the best television out there, hands down).

5. Rick and Morty

While it's not a Netflix Original, Rick and Morty more or less calls Netflix home in Australia. It is without a doubt the most popular animation on television at the moment (and for good reason). Dan Harmon and Justin Roiland's Rick and Morty is an absurd, offbeat comedy that follows the misadventures of the shy youngster Morty and his diabolical and perpetually drunk grandfather, Rick Sanchez.

Rick and Morty rockets between risky and gut-busting hilarity to some surprisingly meaningful and touching life lessons (though Rick has a habit of shooting down anything hopeful).

Rick and Morty is now up to its hugely successful and highly anticipated third season, which you can catch on Netflix the week after it airs in the US.

6. Orange is the New Black

OITNB, as it's affectionately called, is loosely based on the real-life prison experiences of Piper Kerman. Basically, the show can be summarized as follows: WASP goes to prison, thinks it will be fine because she's white and middle class, turns out she was very much mistaken. The exceptional ensemble cast is what really drives this show, and it's attracted praise for telling the stories of African-American and Hispanic women, while at the same time criticism for needing a white woman leading the show to do it.

You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll vaguely wonder about committing a minor crime so you too can go to prison and write about it.

Orange is the New Black is up to its fifth season and if insane popularity is anything to go off, it's not stopping anytime soon.

7. Bojack Horseman

Imagine every live-action character Will Arnett has ever played blended together in one anthropomorphic horse and you have Bojack Horseman. This story of a washed up equine actor seemed at first to be Netflix's Family Guy or American Dad. However, it's so much more than that. Bojack is eternally chauvinistic and narcissistic, but unlike most sitcoms or cartoons, Bojack's character actually goes through a lot of growth and characterisation over its three seasons, thanks to a strong cast of supporting characters like Alison Brie's Diane, Lisa Kudrow's Wanda and Paul F. Tompkins's Mr. Peanutbutter.

It's not exactly what you would expect from a bizarre comedy about talking animals, but that's what you get with Bojack.

8. The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt

Tina Fey's new show follows the tale of titular character Kimmy (Ellie Kemper), who spent 15 years in an underground bunker thanks to a doomsday cult and is now living in New York City. Her mission? To pursue a normal life. Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt might have its hits and misses in the name of making controversial jokes for the sake of it, but its two leads, Ellie Kemper and Tituss Burgess make the watch worth it.

9. Marvel's Daredevil

While Marvel's Jessica Jones and Luke Cage come in at a close second, Marvel's Daredevil is still the strongest of all Netflix's superhero shows. That's thanks firstly to an incredibly strong origin story in its first season and an explosive second season that introduces two of the most interesting characters in the small-screen universe, Punisher and Elektra.

Sure, Jessica Jones is the stronger character here and deserves a good mention on this list, but Daredevil's perfectly choreographed fight scenes and high-stakes story arcs make it the most engaging out of The Defenders' respective shows.

10. Sense8

Vale Sense8. One of Netflix's first victims (we're not really counting Marco Polo here), Sense8's compelling story of eight mentally connected individuals from across the globe was cancelled after its second season, despite growing a large cult following.

It seems as popular as it was, Netflix just couldn't keep up with globetrotting sensates and cancelled the series in 2017. Regardless, the Wachowksis have promised the Sense8 story will wrap up with a once-off movie-length episode, so you've got time to catch up with season one and two before it officially wraps up.

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