From The Bear to The Curse, 2023 has been a remarkable year for television. Netflix, in particular, saw plenty of good stories.
Most of 2023 went by with Hollywood on a standstill due to two of the biggest strikes, from writers and actors, it has seen in decades. But that doesn’t mean we had a dry year. On the contrary, we saw some of the best in television pour out of the corridors of studios, thanks to the creators who had put in the work prior to the strikes.
We had some major series concluding their run on Netflix—Top Boy, The Crown, Sex Education, Never Have I Ever. Several interesting new shows made their debut on the streaming platform this year as well, from One Piece to The Diplomat. The sixth and final season of Better Call Saul arrived on Netflix in April, even though the series concluded in 2022.
We had the deeply philosophical road rage insanity, BEEF, from the house of A24. Even international shows turned things up a notch with a fantastic season two from Delhi Crime and near-perfect storytelling from The Law According to Lidia Poët.
There were, of course, a few duds like All The Light We Cannot See and the lacklustre season six of Black Mirror, which still turned up with a rather well-made Red Mirror episode, “Disco 79”. But overall, the year was a stellar one for Netflix in 2023 with the promise of even better shows to come in 2024—from Sofía Vergara’s Griselda to Andrew Scott’s Ripley. But before a New Year comes knocking, take a look at our list of Netflix’s top ten best series of 2023.
The best Netflix shows of 2023:
10. Blue Eye Samurai
The latest adult animated series to land on Netflix, Blue Eye Samurai is created by the husband-wife duo, Michael Green and Amber Noizumi. Set during Japan’s Edo period, the story follows Mizu (voiced by Maya Erskine), a half-white and half-Japanese swordmaster, on a quest for vengeance.
The series is visually dazzling. The fight scenes are choreographed with as much beauty as the sex scenes are crafted deftly and beautifully. The series has been picked up for a second season.
9. Class
This Hindi crime drama is based on another hit series on Netflix, the Spanish show Elite. Class is adapted by Ashim Ahluwalia, one of the most meticulous filmmakers currently working in India.
Despite following a similar story to Elite’s first season, Ahluwalia manages to infuse elements that root it firmly in a country where the class divide is stark and has offshoots into casteism, religious bigotry, and gender issues wrapped into each other.
8. Heartstopper
The second season of the British coming-of-age drama hit Netflix this year. And Charlie and Nick’s story has continued to be as cute as ever. This time around, the show expands its coterie of characters, who are as diverse as the world we live in.
Here queer folks get to live their happily ever-afters far from the violence of the real world, which makes Alice Oseman’s Heartstopper that much more important. We need more teen shows that are fuzzy around the corners because we have enough edginess with all the Euphoria-esque shows out there.
7. Scoop
Created and directed by Hansal Mehta and Mrunmayee Lagoo Waikul, Scoop is gripping television at its best. It refuses to let you leave your brain switched off before tuning in. Scoop is based on journalist Jigna Vora’s memoir, Behind Bars in Byculla: My Days in Prison. Vora was an investigative reporter who got embroiled in the murder of fellow journalist Jyotirmoy Dey.
The series follows the reporter’s days spent in jail, wrongfully accused of a crime she did not commit.
6. Trial By Fire
Another series based on harrowing true events, Prashant Nair, Kevin Luperchio’s Trial by Fire is another gripping drama we got from Netflix this year. The limited series is based on Neelam and Shekhar Krishnamoorthy’s book Trial by Fire: The Tragic Tale of the Uphaar Fire Tragedy. The Krishnamoorthys lost both their children in a horrific fire that engulfed the Uphaar movie theatre in Delhi in 1997.
The series follows a non-linear narrative to show how negligence led to the disaster, the authorities who went out of their way to cover everything up, and the parents who fought a long and hard battle to change the laws that protected the perpetrators.
5. Top Boy
The British crime drama created by Ronan Bennett had a fascinating resurrection on Netflix after Channel 4 dropped it and American rapper Drake took an interest in it. The series finally had its concluding season this year to much fanfare.
Ashley Walters’s Dushane and Kane Robinson’s Sully delivered raw and gripping performances in a finale that was arguably more shocking than anyone could have expected.
4. I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson
Season three of I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson arrived on Netflix this year with more skits, laughs, and abject absurdity. This show will keep you on your toes, guessing for what is coming next—will it be a surreal, existentialist dilemma or toilet humour right out of the door? You will keep guessing and watching on, often in stunned amazement.
This time, the list of guest stars ranges from Ayo Edebiri to Jason Schwartzman and even Aron Stevens!
3. One Piece
Developed by Matt Owens and Steven Maeda, the beloved manga series by Eiichiro Oda came to life on Netflix. One Piece had a dazzling debut, bolstered by the legions of fans of the manga and anime series. The Straw Hat Pirates, led by Monkey D. Luffy, had their minor tiffs and major battles this season to come together.
The show is visually vibrant, written wonderfully, and stays true to its source material. A second season is already on the way. The hunt for the One Piece treasure will see the Straw Hats set sail once again.
2. BEEF
BEEF is one of those limited series stories that is so good that audiences demand more of it (while being fully aware that the story ended perfectly). Directed by Lee Sung Jin, BEEF revolves around Danny Cho (Steven Yeun) and Amy Lau (Ali Wong), strangers whose road rage incident spirals into a protracted and absurd feud.
The ten-episode series stands out as a deeply philosophical exploration of human behaviour, racial dynamics, and the comedic potential that exists in the most tense situations.
1. The Fall of The House of Usher
The best series on Netflix this year has to be Mike Flanagan’s The Fall of the House of Usher. This gothic horror drama is in-your-face and sublime at the same time. It loosely adapts Edgar Allan Poe’s works into a shimmery saga spanning from 1953 to 2023. The plot revolves around Roderick Usher, CEO of a corrupt pharmaceutical company, and his COO sister Madeline.
The story unveils their rise to power and the tragic events leading to the Usher family’s gruesome downfall. A scathing commentary on late-stage capitalism and unabashed greed, The Fall of the House of Usher ultimately eats the rich in total poetic justice.
