5 Cozy Autumn Shows You Should Binge Immediately

Sabrina and Salem

Autumn is officially upon us, and as temperatures drop, the desire to snuggle up and the couch and watch something delightful spikes. While there’s no shortage of spooky, thrilling, and chilling content out there in the fall around Halloween, we also understand the need for counter-programming. Autumn can’t be all jump scares and horror, which is why’ve put together a list of binge-worthy series that boast both critical and popular acclaim for your viewing pleasure. These five shows deliver on the autumnal vibes for cozy nights in, but also won’t send you to bed with nightmares either.

5) Gilmore Girls

Set in the fictional New England town of Star Hollow, Connecticut, Gilmore Girls follows Lorelai and Rory Gilmore, an exceptionally close mother-daughter as they navigate the ups and downs of love, life, and family. The pair’s bond stems from the fact that Lorelai was a teen mom who left home and had Rory when she was just sixteen. Yet, when the gifted Rory gets accepted into a prestigious prep school, Lorelai has to turn to her estranged blue-blood parents to be able to afford its tuition.

With its whip-smart, mile-a-minute dialogue, Gilmore Girls is a heartwarming, hilarious, but wholly honest exploration of both blood and chosen family. Come for the autumnal England setting and relatable intergenerational relationships, stay for the aspirational mother-daughter dynamic and fantastic supporting cast that populates Star Hollow, like the DCU’s new Maxwell Lord, Sean Gunn, and Supernatural’s Jared Padalecki. All eight seasons of the show and its controversial follow-up series A Year in the Life are available to stream on Netflix.

4) Over the Garden Wall

over-the-garden-well-wirt-and-greg.jpg
Wirt and Greg in Over the Garden Wall

If the eight twenty-plus episode seasons of Gilmore Girls seem daunting, try Over the Garden Wall for a more bite-sized streaming experience. The animated series follows a pair of brothers, Wirt and Greg, who find themselves lost in the magical land of The Unknown. The brothers meet a slew of memorable characters, such as a mysterious Woodsmen and an irascible bluebird Beatrice, as they search for a way home. The series consists of ten episodes, which clock in at eleven minutes each, making it entirely possible to binge in one sitting. Over the Garden Wall’s vintage-inspired artwork and tender storytelling evoke those cozy autumnal vibes, plus the series won two Emmys. Currently streaming on Hulu, the series is a perfect watch for the whole family.

3) Sabrina the Teenage Witch

Sabrina the Teenage Witch

If you’re looking for something that can give you magic and spookiness without scares, the sitcom Sabrina the Teenage Witch brilliantly fits the bill. Half-witch, half-mortal Sabrina moves in with her kooky aunts Hilda and Zelda and struggles to balance the regular tribulations of high school with learning to master her magic to great comedic effect. Though Sabrina was a TGIF staple back when it aired on ABC in the nineties and aughts, it’s sitcom format makes it easy to drop in on any episode, while boasting a seven season run perfect for binging. Not only does Sabrina deliver on the autumnal magic and millennial nostalgia, most of its humor holds up, and the roster of cameos that stopped by the show over the course of the series like Britney Spears, Raquel Welch, and Penn & Teller makes for a slew of pleasant surprises. Sabrina is streaming on Hulu, but if you’re looking for something a touch darker however, there’s also The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina over on Netflix.

2) What We Do In the Shadows

In the comedy sphere, What We Do in the Shadows is raunchier fare than Sabrina that offers a bit more bite… literally. The series follows a quartet of vampires and their long-suffering familiar (read: indentured servant) on Staten Island. The genius of the show comes in juxtaposing the eccentric with the mundane, creating incredible situational comedy out of a group of out-of-touch, centuries-old vampires trying to believably participate in activities like working in an office or going to a town hall meeting. There’s a decent amount of sex and gore in What We Do in the Shadows, but it’s all played for laughs, and the writing and performances rarely miss. The series just ended a six-season run, which makes the show a spooky but still side-splitting viewing option on Hulu.

1) Buffy, the Vampire Slayer

There are few better coming-of-age stories than Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Sarah Michelle Gellar plays the titular role, and the series follows her adventures as she devotes her life to fighting all sorts of evil as the chosen slayer of her generation. The supernatural in the show is counterbalanced by compelling human storylines chronicling Buffy’s relationships with friends, family, and lovers. The show definitely has its share of drama and scares, but given that Buffy was network television, it never goes too far. Its high school then college setting gives the series a back-to-school vibe, and with a reboot/sequel series in the works, the autumn feels like the perfect time for a Buffy binge.

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