30 Best Shows Of 2023 On Amazon Prime

Knowing better than to dwell on its title character’s early life in bondage, Lawmen: Bass Reeves grants him his freedom early on and establishes him as a man of inherent dignity and complex emotion. Even in the first two episodes watched for this review, Reeves (thanks to a stellar performance by David Oyelowo) is defined by a wide range of relationships and skills—all of which is unified in the character’s realization that emancipation has not automatically led to peace, and that America remains a relatively lawless land. It’s all handsomely mounted, with high production values and a willingness to breathe through quiet moments that give its somewhat obligatory western action the gravity it needs.

Who would’ve thought that the supremely suave Cary Grant came from humble beginnings? Grant, played marvelously by Jason Isaacs, is given the docuseries treatment in Archie, which tracks his journey from his downtrodden childhood in Bristol and his vaudeville days in New York up to his busy, blinding career in LA as a Hollywood star and his twilight years as a stand-up comedian. Grant’s eventful and surprisingly traumatic life already makes Archie a compelling watch, but Isaacs’s performance elevates the show into something unmissable. Isaacs disappears into Grant; his version isn’t a mere impression (though he gets the voice and tics to a tee) but a sympathetic understanding of a highly misunderstood man. The other actors playing Grant aren’t as good, so the show can feel uneven at times. The graphics and backdrops are also hit-or-miss, alternating between comically bad to believably okay. But Isaacs saves the show, capably carrying it on his Grant-broad shoulders.

Domestic abuse is a delicate matter, and onscreen depictions always run the risk of being either too sensational or mopey. The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart, thankfully, is neither. It sensitively and creatively tells the story of Alice and all the other survivors who June shelters on her flower farm. More than just decor, these flowers serve as a lifeline to the girls: not only do they grow and sell them to earn a living, but they’ve also made a special secret language out of them. Different blooms mean different things, and when you live in a world where your pain is systematically ignored, it makes sense to communicate in hiding. Granted, the Lost Flowers of Alice Hart can get overly dramatic at times. Some plotlines include hiding who the child’s real father is and fighting to get custody of said child. But it’s unfair to dismiss the series as mere melodrama. It’s doing important work by shedding light on the manifold ways women are mistreated, and it does so in a commendably original and artful way.

Amazon Prime’s Harlan Coben’s Shelter is the latest addition to the slew of supernatural teen-led mysteries that have come out in recent years. Like Netflix’s Lockwood & Co., Paramount’s School Spirits, and even Showtime’s Yellowjackets, Shelter is genuinely intriguing and surprisingly mature, making it watchable regardless of how old you are. The show’s TV-14 rating lets the teens in the series act their age (that is, both crude and childlike), which adds to the show’s authentic feel. It verges on being self-serious at times, which is funny when you hear them say things like “Octo Face got her” with a straight face, but those slips are forgivable. It doesn’t detract from the show’s compelling mystery and enjoyable performances.

There is no shortage of TV shows that dive deep into the weird wired world of social media, but F#Ck1Ng Social Media deserves credit for doing it effortlessly. You can tell the writers have an intimate knowledge of internet fame by how it contrasts has-been influencer Amanda with rising content star Vicky (Azul Guaita). Amanda’s realm is YouTube (a millennial staple) while Vicky’s is TikTok (a Gen Z haven). Amanda rose to fame because of her sincerity, while it was Vicky’s sleekness that first caught people’s eyes. Through their rivalry, the series shows us how swiftly social media evolves and how contradictory it can be—online, we’re both vulnerable and artificial, progressive and regressive. It’s a hefty message, but the show delivers it with an impressively light touch. Intense rivalry and fame commentary aside, F#Ck1Ng Social Media is also a quirky comedy and a touching family drama. There’s just as much to like here as there is to learn.

A murder mystery on one hand and a supernatural dramedy on the other, School Spirits is an engaging teen series that recalls plenty of past movies and shows before it. Like Ghost and The Lovely Bones, the protagonist is a murder victim attempting to solve the mystery of her death, and like the BBC/CBS show Ghosts, it gathers an eclectic group of spirts from different eras and plays off their obvious differences. 

It’s spirited and spunky, and though it sometimes edges on soapy territory, it’s mostly saved by the confident performances of its young actors. Watch this if you’re looking for to binge a good whodunnit or an unconventional high school drama (or both)—it’s both those things, and little more.

It’s easy to see With Love and mistake it for a Hallmark special; both are filled with pretty people who spend the holidays looking for love. But where Hallmark tends to be simple and sappy, With Love is refreshingly complex and earnest. The characters, mostly Latino and queer, rarely sugarcoat their problems and desires, even though each episode ends on a relatively sweet note. 

In a joyous move, every one of them takes place during a different holiday too—Christmas, New Year, Valentine’s, Día de los Muertos. And every time, we delve deeper into the lives of our leads and witness the ways they take on universal problems with modern and diverse approaches. It’s breezy and at times raunchy, making it a fun companion for any holiday.

Misfortune (Mala fortuna) is a telenovela that doesn’t shy away from the genre’s goofy qualities. It’s predictable and a little bit ridiculous, but like most enjoyable soap operas, it knows how to draw you in and keep you invested in all the drama. Our protagonists are two peas in a pod: Julio and Victoria, ordinary people who seduce their way into scamming the ultra-rich family known as the Urquizas. Of course, their feelings (both for the family and for each other) get in the way of their schemes, but the resulting entanglement makes for a sexy and hilarious watch. 

A murder mystery with an absurdist comedic bent, Killer Coaster initially comes off as too much. It struggles to juggle different genres and poses many questions it doesn’t immediately answer. There are also too many elements—including warring families, star-crossed lovers, secret identities, and complicated pasts—that make the mystery of the Ghost Train Killer seem incidental, even though it is the show’s throughline, the main event that kickstarts the entire thing. But it’s easy to forgive all this whenever Alexandra Lamy does her magic onscreen. As the well-meaning but clumsy police officer Sandrine, Lamy is likable and hilarious, a clown with just enough heart to pull you into her antics. She soars even more when paired with real-life sister Audrey Lamy, who plays the carnival owner Yvanne—also good-hearted but even slower (and at times funnier) than Sandrine. Together, their amusing weirdness saves the show from loose ends and uneven tones. 

 As the drama’s dysfunctionally in-love leads, Coleman and Jackson-Cohen are compelling. Whether the scene demands rage or romance, they’re able to effectively dial it from a subtle one to an all-out ten. Sadly, the material they’re working with fails to match their energy. Lackluster direction makes their arguments more of a weak tug than an intense push and pull, while scant introspection and backstory fail to justify the murderous urges that Liv all of a sudden has. In fact, it’s this aspect of Wilderness that remains the weakest. It’s watchable as an infidelity drama, but not nearly as believable as a crime thriller. The violent scenes come out corny, if not unintentionally funny. There is a version of Wilderness that could’ve made it a spiritual successor to the much wilder and brasher Doctor Foster, but this, unfortunately, isn’t it.