The Best TV Series to Stream This Week

We may earn a commission from links on this page.

If you're looking for a new show to watch this week, I got your back. I've scoured the schedules of Netflix, Prime, Max, Hulu, and other streaming platforms to bring you the best and most notable shows streaming this week.

The biggest show premiering this week is the much-anticipated second season of Apple TV+'s Severance. But there's also Goosebumps: The Vanishing, a Goosebumps-branded horror-for-kids series starring David Schwimmer; and An Update on our Family, a documentary series about trashy "family influencers."

Severance, season 2

I'm a little nervous for the new season of Severance. The first season's mix of pitch-black social commentary, ice-cold production design, and acting talent was so good, I'm afraid season two is going to disappoint, especially since I've been waiting for three years. So far, it looks promising: Rotten Tomatoes' critics are nearly universal in their praise, and the trailer looks phenomenal. Season 2 takes us deeper into the mysteries surrounding Lumon Industries, and deeper into the psyches of the people who work there, and the people who don't work there, who are the same people.

Where to stream: Apple TV+

Goosebumps: The Vanishing

This horror series stars Friends' David Schwimmer as Anthony, a divorced dad hosting his twin teenage children Devin and Cece for the summer at his Brooklyn home. Anthony only has one rule: Stay out of the basement—like that's going to happen. The mystery under their feet leads the twins and their friends to dark secrets connected to the disappearance of four teenagers in the 1990s and a supernatural entity of immense power.

Where to stream: Max

Harley Quinn, season 5

The fifth season of adult cartoon Harley Quinn sees the titular character, voiced by Kaley Cuoco, moving to Metropolis with her friend Poison Ivy, voiced by Lake Bell. The pair soon find that something serious is going down in Superman-town, and Quinn will meet up with Lex Luthor, his sister, Lena Luthor, Brainiac, and other comic book favorites in this irreverent take on the DC Universe. Harley Quinn has a 97% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes, so it's definitely worth your time.

Where to stream: Max

An Update On Our Family

All "family YouTubers" seem pretty weird, but the Stauffer family was next-level reprehensible. This three-part documentary series examines how Myka and James Stauffer built a small vlogging empire by presenting themselves and their children as a perfect family, but took it a step too far when they adopted a baby from China with severe neurological problems. They tried to turn two year-old Huxley into the centerpiece of their content, but he soon disappeared from the family channel and the family.

Where to stream: Max

Last week's picks

Sons of Ecstasy

This documentary examines the rivalry between English stockbroker Shaun Attwood and Gerard Gravano, son of notorious New York mobster Salvatore “Sammy the Bull'' Gravano. The conflict played out in the 1990s against the backdrop of the ecstasy boom in Arizona, with both men fighting for control of a desert drug empire built on the rave scene's insatiable appetite for Molly. That's what I call a good subject for a documentary series!

Where to stream: Max

The Pitt

HBO Originals medical series The Pitt was created by ER producer R. Scott Gemmill. The tense, realistic drama takes viewers into the charged emergency room of the Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Hospital. Each of The Pitt's 15 episodes is presented in real time: One episode is one hour of the same shift at the E.R. Noah Wyle stars as Dr. Michael “Robby” Robinavitch, chief attending physician, who's having trouble dealing with the stress and trauma of his position. He's not alone: The Pitt delves into its characters' personal lives as well as the life-or-death decisions and day-to-day drama of the emergency room.

Where to stream: Max

Shifting Gears

Tim Allen returns to TV with Shifting Gears, a throwback sitcom that's rife with snappy wisecracks and a laugh track from a live studio audience. I didn't think they made shows like this anymore. Allen plays Matt, the wisecracking owner of a classic car restoration shop. Kat Dennings plays his wisecracking, estranged daughter who moves back to Matt's home with her wisecracking children in tow.

Where to stream: Hulu

On Call

Police procedural series have been a staple of television since Dragnet premiered in 1951 for good reason: What's more dramatic than good guys chasing bad guys? On Call makes a classic cop show set-up (a veteran Long Beach, Calif. police officer teams up with an idealistic, wet-behind-the-ears rookie) more visceral and immediate by presenting the action through footage shot on dashcams, bodycams, smartphones, and security cameras. Joe Friday probably wouldn't approve of On Call's vérité style, but it's an interesting new wrinkle in the genre.

Where to stream: Prime

Doc

The "doc" at the center of this medical series is Dr. Amy Larsen. Played by Molly Parker, Larsen is the chief of internal medicine at Minneapolis's Westside Hospital. The twist that separates Doc from other doctor shows is that Larsen was in a traumatic car accident that wiped her memory of the last eight years. She's still a good doctor, though, and continues treating patients while trying to piece her lost years back together. It's an intriguing concept, and medical shows are TV staples for a reason, so this one deserves a watch.

Where to stream: Hulu

American Primeval

This limited series takes viewers back to an 1857, and explores the explosive collision of culture, religion, and community that gave birth the American West. American Primeval doesn't shy away from the darkness and despair of history as its characters fight for survival and control in a lawless, brutal frontier. The cast includes Taylor Kitsch as Isaac Reed, a broken man intent on self-destruction, and Kim Coates as Mormon leader Brigham Young, who uses his personal army, the Nauvoo Legion, to keep his followers alive at any cost.

Where to stream: Netflix