Credit: Lucas Gouveia/How-To GeekWhile Will Ferrell’s golf comedy The Hawk, Josh Duhamel’s ranch drama Ransom Canyon, and WWE’s Raw float around in Netflix‘s top spots as we approach the end of the month this weekend, if you’re a U.S. subscriber looking for something worth adding to your watchlist, I have a few suggestions you might like.
The first is a French action juggernaut that’s a surprise global hit, the second is a month-old live-action fantasy adventure that’s still got all the, er, elements, and my top pick is a little show about nothing that might be gone in a couple of months, so you’d best start binging as it could take a while.
3
Elite Force
France’s elite tactical unit faces its deadliest threat
This French action thriller series became one of the summer’s biggest surprise hits, hitting No. 1 on the Netflix worldwide rankings within a day of its release this month. The country is no stranger to excellent action, thriller, and espionage series, with hits like Lupin and Le Bureau des Légendes, and Elite Force fits well among them.
Originally titled GIGN, Elite Force comes from the team behind another gritty French crime hit on Netflix, Ganglands, and was made with the help of France’s actual elite tactical team, which adds an extra layer of realism to the show. The series follows David (Tomer Sisley, Balthazar), a senior officer who’s done his time and is looking forward to retirement, when a violent attack on his squad’s home base keeps him on the job to find out who’s behind it. Further complicating things is Max (Tristan Zanchi), a hotheaded new recruit who doesn’t like to follow orders and who also happens to be David’s godson—and the son of a fallen colleague whose death David still feels responsible for.
The action is packed, and the explosions and low-flying choppers are plentiful. All six 50-ish-minute episodes of season one are streaming on Netflix.
Quiz
Best Netflix action shows
Trivia challenge
From drug lords to samurai — test how well you know Netflix’s biggest action
and thriller hits.
CharactersPlotOriginsCastingSettings
Origins
Narcos is primarily based on the real-life rise and fall of which infamous drug
lord?
Colombian cocaine kingpin who built the Medellín Cartel into a billion-dollar empire. His story was so
compelling that the show later spawned the spin-off Narcos: Mexico.
El Chapo appear in related Netflix productions, the original Narcos centers squarely on Escobar’s rise
to power in Colombia during the 1970s–90s.
Characters
In Lupin, what is the name of the gentleman thief played by Omar Sy, who is inspired
by the fictional Arsène Lupin?
of Lupin. His obsession with Maurice Leblanc’s fictional thief Arsène Lupin began in childhood when his
father gifted him one of the books, setting him on a path to seek justice.
the classic stories of Arsène Lupin as a playbook, combining charm, disguise, and wit to outmaneuver his
enemies throughout the series.
Plot
In The Night Agent, protagonist Peter Sutherland works for which U.S. government
agency before being drawn into a conspiracy?
desk in the White House when a late-night phone call thrusts him into a deadly conspiracy. The show
became one of Netflix’s most-watched English-language series ever.
White House, his role starts as routine night-shift monitoring before escalating into a high-stakes
thriller involving a mole at the highest levels of the U.S. government.
Settings
In which country is the Netflix thriller series Elite set, following students at an
exclusive private school?
country’s most prestigious private schools. The Spanish-language series blends murder mystery with
social class drama and quickly became a global hit for Netflix.
students who receive scholarships to the elite Las Encinas academy, where clashes with wealthy
classmates quickly turn deadly and scandalous.
Origins
Blue Eye Samurai is set in which historical period of Japanese history?
the country was closed to foreigners under the sakoku policy. The show’s protagonist Mizu, born of a
Japanese mother and a European father, navigates a world that has no place for someone like her.
history, roughly 1603–1868, is notable for its strict isolationist policies, which form a central
tension in Blue Eye Samurai as mixed-heritage protagonist Mizu seeks revenge.
Casting
Which actor plays the lead role of Monkey D. Luffy in Netflix’s live-action
adaptation of One Piece?
D. Luffy in Netflix’s live-action One Piece. His energetic and charming performance was widely praised
by fans of the original manga and anime as a faithful and fun interpretation.
the main cast: Mackenyu plays Zoro, Jacob Romero Gibson plays Usopp, and Taz Skylar plays Sanji, making
up the core Straw Hat crew.
Plot
In Cobra Kai, which classic 1984 film does the series directly continue the story
of?
1984 Karate Kid film, revisiting the rivalry between Daniel LaRusso and Johnny Lawrence. The show
brilliantly recontextualizes the original movie by giving Johnny a more sympathetic perspective.
the All Valley Karate Tournament rivalry between Daniel LaRusso and Johnny Lawrence, exploring what
happened to both characters in the years since their famous final match.
Settings
In The Gentlemen, the protagonist Guy Ritchie’s series follows aristocrats entangled
in a drug empire primarily set in which country?
2019 film, is set across the English countryside and London, following an aristocratic family who
discover their inherited estate is at the center of a vast marijuana empire. The show blends sharp
British wit with stylish crime drama.
aristocratic culture and the English countryside, with the stately home at its heart serving as the
unlikely hub of an underground drug operation worth hundreds of millions of pounds.
Your Score
Thanks for playing!
2
Avatar: The Last Airbender
The live-action epic returns for a sweeping second season
As a fan of the Nickelodeon animated Avatar series (2005-2008) that I watched with my daughter, I was skeptical that a live-action version of the beloved show was necessary. But after checking out the first season of Netflix’s offering, which blew up the charts, drawing a reported 21-plus million viewers in its opening weekend, I was hooked.
Season two of Avatar: The Last Airbender roared back on June 25th, and while it didn’t hit quite the opening numbers as season one, it still made the No. 2 spot on Netflix’s chart. For the uninitiated, the series is set in a world split into four nations where certain people can manipulate the elements—water, earth, fire, and air—but only one, the Avatar, can wield them all to keep the peace. That’s young Aang (Gordon Cormier), whose team of friends managed to defend the Northern Water Tribe at the end of season one. For season two, the second of a confirmed three-chapter arc, Team Avatar must now trek across the Earth Kingdom to take on the Fire Lord as Aang trains to master his next element—earthbending—on his way to becoming the complete Avatar.
All seven episodes of season two and eight episodes of season one are streaming on Netflix.
Network
Netflix
Cast
Gordon Cormier, Kiawentiio, Ian Ousley, Dallas Liu, Ken Leung, Paul Sun-Hyung Lee, Daniel Dae Kim, Elizabeth Yu, Tamlyn Tomita, Amber Midthunder, Derek Kwan, Miya Cech, Justin Chien, Joel Oulette, Lucian-River Chauhan, Dorian Giordano, Linda Minard, Hoa Xuande, Chin Han, Amanda Zhou, Crystal Yu, Lourdes Faberes, Rekha Sharma, Lily Gao, Lim Kay Siu, Casey Camp-Horinek
Showrunner
Albert Kim
Directors
Jet Wilkinson
Writers
Joshua Hale Fialkov, Christine Boylan
Franchise(s)
Avatar: The Last Airbender
Main Genre
Adventure
Creator(s)
Albert Kim, Michael Dante DiMartino, Bryan Konietzko
Producers
Ubah Mohamed, Bonnie Benwick
Seasons
2
Story By
Michael Dante DiMartino, Bryan Konietzko
Where To Watch
Executive Producer(s)
Michael Goi, Dan Lin, Lindsey Liberatore, Jabbar Raisani, Brendan Ferguson, Albert Kim
1
Seinfeld
Catch the show about nothing before it’s gone
I’ve taken for granted that all nine seasons and 180 episodes of Seinfeld, arguably the greatest TV sitcom of all time, have been sitting there in my Netflix watchlist for years, untouched. But when I heard recently that the Emmy-winning “show about nothing” was leaving the service at the end of September, like Elaine in line for a bowl of the Soup Nazi’s delicious Mulligatawny, I became terrified there would be no soup for me if I didn’t get watching.
Co-created by Jerry Seinfeld and Larry David, Seinfeld, of course, follows a fictionalized version of comedian Jerry and his three obsessively self-absorbed friends who turn every tiny frustration of New York life into comedic gold. Perpetually flailing George Costanza (Jason Alexander), sharp-tongued Elaine Benes (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), and enigmatic neighbor Cosmo Kramer (Michael Richards) are at the core, with a laundry list of scene-stealing support from legendary characters like George’s parents Frank and Estelle, Jerry’s nemesis Newman, Puddy, Peterman, and too many more to mention.
Built on Larry David’s famous “no hugging, no learning” rule, which kept the group hilariously selfish, petty, and emotionally stagnant, Seinfeld made mountains out of molehills like man hands, double-dipping, parking spaces, muffin tops, restaurant waits, and dating quirks for some of TV’s most quoted moments.
Network
NBC
Cast
Jerry Seinfeld, Jason Alexander, Michael Richards, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Ruth Cohen, Wayne Knight, Larry David, Heidi Swedberg, Christopher Darga, Don Perry, Fern Fitzgerald, William Jackson, John Apicella, LaRita Shelby, Lou DiMaggio, Michele Maika, Mike “Boogie” Malin, Paul O’Neill, Amit Itelman, George Adams, Sergio Kato, Blaire Baron, Pete G. Papanickolas, Jack Esformes, Layne Beamer, Barbara Stock, Mariska Hargitay, Carol Kane, Judge Reinhold
Showrunner
Larry David
Directors
David Steinberg, David Owen Trainor, Art Wolff, Jason Alexander
Writers
Darin Henry, Bruce Eric Kaplan, Bill Masters, Bruce Kirschbaum, Steve O’Donnell, Tom Leopold, Don McEnery, Greg Daniels, Jon Hayman, Kit Boss, Lawrence H. Levy, Matt Goldman, Matt Selman, Billy Kimball, Fred Stoller, Charlie Rubin, Steve Lookner, Steve Skrovan
Main Genre
Comedy
Creator(s)
Larry David, Jerry Seinfeld
Producers
Andy Ackerman, Andy Robin, Carol Leifer, David Mandel, Elaine Pope, Gregg Kavet, Jennifer Crittenden, Joan Van Horn, Larry Charles, Marjorie Gross, Max Pross, Nancy Sprow, Peter Mehlman, Spike Feresten, Steve Koren, Suzy Mamann Greenberg
Franchise
Seinfeld
Seasons
9
Story By
Jerry Seinfeld
Streaming Service(s)
Executive Producer(s)
Alec Berg, Fred Barron, George Shapiro, Howard West, Jeff Schaffer, Jerry Seinfeld, Larry David
A diverse weekend’s watching
Whichever of these Netflix shows you fire up first, you’re set for the next few nights, or at least until the wave of August titles arrives. And when you’re ready for more, our streaming section keeps the recommendations coming.
Subscription with ads
Yes, $8/month
Simultaneous streams
Two or four
Live TV
No
Price
Starting at $8/month
