We’ve all done it. Maybe it’s that book you stayed up until 1 a.m. reading, even though it was a school night. Or perhaps the show you were going to watch “just one more episode of”—six episodes ago. At that point, you may as well just finish the season. Or the podcast that you couldn’t turn off because you just had to know how the scammer pulled it off. (These are excellent for housecleaning and long drives.)
For Binge Day on Sept. 25, we asked Lumberjacks what they just can’t put down or turn off. Read on for new binge-worthy content or see whether your favorite made the list.
Megan Smith, sophomore, psychological sciences
- Heartstopper (Netflix)
- The show is a high school story about romance and friendships and how to navigate through that. I like it because it’s a wholesome show that also deals with important topics and has good representation. When the second season came out, I spent all afternoon watching it with my friend.
Heather Brassil, Center for Service and Volunteerism
- Virgin River (Netflix)
- I love how older adults are part of the main cast. It’s about community and relationships. Plus, the scenery is my favorite. This is my third time binging this series. Plus, a new season just started!
Gracelynne Brown, freshman, social work
- Supernatural and Outlander (Netflix)
- Supernatural is pretty obvious—two brothers fighting supernatural beings together, with a few funerals and resurrections along the way. Outlander is about a woman who time travels to 1743 Scotland and how she adjusts to this new world. (Serious trigger warning for this one though!) I hate to admit it, but I have spent at least three hours watching either show simply because I have gotten sucked in. Both have a good story and are action-packed. I just finished Supernatural and was absolutely wrecked, I have been watching that for about six years now.
Natalie Cirzan, senior, journalism
- The live-action ONE PIECE and Gilmore Girls (Netflix)
- The new ONE PIECE is good for people like me who have wanted to watch the anime but can’t wrap their head around the 1,000+ episodes. It isn’t cheesy either, which I was worried about—the production value is amazing! I watched the first season in two days. Now that it is transitioning to fall, I have been rewatching Gilmore Girls, because what screams fall more than Stars Hollow and Rory with her cup of coffee! I put the show on whenever I am doing homework, doing my nails, reading, cleaning or literally anything! It is comforting background noise for me.
Carson Bonn, sophomore, civil engineering
- Only Murders in the Building (Hulu)
- I’ve spent so many hours its not even funny.
Jessie K. Finch, chair, Department of Sociology
- Crazy Ex-Girlfriend (Netflix)
- Four seasons, 62 episodes/hours! Musical, sociological, snarky!
Carly Banks, Class of 2010, NAU Communications
- Scamanda (podcast) and Schitt’s Creek (Hulu)
- Scamanda is a 13-episode true crime podcast that tells the story of Amanda C. Riley—a 30-something woman and mother living in California with terminal cancer, who has a secret that slowly unravels. The host does a great job with the storytelling, and there was more than one time that I was glad to be the only one in the car from over-exaggerated gasps of disbelief. I’m pretty sure I binged the whole thing in a day or two driving from Phoenix and back (I may have sat in the drive-way for a while unable to turn it off). Schitt’s Creek is right up there with Ted Lasso (Apple TV) for favorite shows of all time. It’s a comedy about a wealthy family who suddenly finds themselves broke and living in the podunk town of Schitt’s Creek. After the characters develop throughout the first season, it turns into a hilarious, heartwarming show that, if you’re me, will have you in tears almost every episodes even though you’ve binged it three times. (Seriously, comedies should not make you cry that much.)
Olivia, senior, English TESL/AL
- Peaky Blinders (Netflix) and New Girl (Hulu)
- New Girl is my No. 1 comfort show for laughter, jokes and sarcasm. Jessica Day and her loftmates navigate relationships, friendships and all the hilarious drama and consequences that ensue among them. Peaky Blinders is about the tough Shelby family gangsters, and it has something for everybody to enjoy—romance, heartbreak, drama, war, family, sarcasm, gory action, triumph and fear. New Girl I have watched 4-5 times over, and I am bingeing Peaky Blinders for the third time!
Darvin Descheny, coordinator, NAU Social
- Superstore (Hulu)
- Superstore follows a group of employees working at a big box store, where they tackle common and uncommon retail situations. I love the show because of its satire and critique of American consumerism. The show also captures the zeitgeist of post-2008, reflecting the working class struggle, the realities of corporate America and the quest for a better standard of living amongst political and economic turmoil.
John, Class of 2003
- Firefly (Hulu)
- It is pure immersive and escapist gold and was cancelled out of turn; we binge all 14 hours at least six times a year, and it always leaves us wanting more. The writing and acting are superb, the dialog is crisp and there is no time wasted getting their “sea legs” (i.e. the actors understand and inhabit their characters well from the start). Ask anyone who’s seen it. Firefly will live on in you, too.
Breena Hassenbusch, first-year student, environmental science
- Heartstopper (Netflix)
- Heartstopper is a British coming-of-age romantic comedy series on Netflix. Two seasons have been released so far and it is based on a comic. It features multiple LGBTQ relationships. I watched the entire second season through, (eight 35-minute episodes) with my best friend and my sister. Highly recommend!
Heidi Toth, assistant director, NAU Communications
- Outlander (the book series)
- I picked up the first of this series by Diana Gabaldon (an NAU alum!) not sure I would like it; it’s not exactly my style. It’s not even three weeks later and I cannot stop. I’m halfway through book three and am wildly invested in the life and love of time-traveling, unpredictable Claire Beauchamp and the many lives of her once-and-future husband, Jamie Fraser. (Though I must echo the trigger warning of above—there is a lot of violence of all kinds.) I stayed up hours past my bedtime on Sunday night finishing the second one—I kept telling myself I’d put it down at the next good stopping point and there were no good stopping points. Even when I got to the end, I debated immediately downloading the third book because I had to know what happened. I just keep being surprised with what comes next. Lucky for me, this is a nine-part series and each book is longer than the last, so I have a lot more binge-reading to do.