The top three best shows to binge this fall

A still from one of the more violent episodes of anthology series “Two Sentence Horror Stories.”

Margaret Troup

The fall season marks the start of cooler weather and changing leaves. The change in scenery may bring about the desire to watch something new during fall. These are the top three shows that are perfect to binge watch this fall.

“Two Sentence Horror Stories”

This CW original show is a more condensed version of Netlfix’s “Black Mirror.” This anthology series begins each episode with the text of the first half of a two sentence horror story appearing on screen. Afterward, the entirety of the 20-minute episode plays. Once each episode comes to its own unique, horrifying conclusion, the second half of the two sentence horror story is revealed, usually connecting to the overall message of the episode. Each episode varies in its degree of horror, marking some like “Squirm” to be especially spooky in the body-horror genre while others like “Scion” tend to incorporate social commentary in with supernatural happenings.

The first season of “Two Sentence Horror Stories” is available on Netflix.

“Firefly”

This tragically short-lived sci-fi show aired for one season back in 2002-2003. The uniqueness of its genre, being a mix of space exploration, Western and drama gives “Firefly” a rare spin that’s perfect to enjoy in the fall. The steampunk elements of the show personify the overall humorous yet action-packed tone of it. Don’t let the short life of this series cause any second-guessing of its quality. 

The reason for its cancellation was due to multiple programming errors, such as the original episodes being aired out of order, a lack of marketing and its unfortunate airing time in the “death slot” for television, Friday night, when viewers are usually outside of their homes instead of watching TV. The genuine chemistry that actors Nathan Fillion, known for playing John Nolan in “The Rookie,” and Alan Tudyk, who holds over 120 acting credits, have makes for nonstop entertainment. The overall story of “Firefly” luckily got wrapped up in the post-show movie, “Serenity,” which also make for perfect fall TV watching.

“Firefly” and “Serenity” are available to watch on Hulu.

“Over the Garden Wall”

“Over the Garden Wall” is an animated mini series produced by Cartoon Network back in 2014. This series is the epitome of fall. The show follows two brothers, Wirt, voiced by Elijah Wood, and Greg, voiced by Collin Dean, who has since done voice acting in other animated productions such as “Hotel Transylvania.” The two brothers must make their way through a mysterious and dangerous forest in order to find their way back home, encountering both friends and foes throughout their journey.

The simple yet beautiful character and set designs in this animated series gives a distinct comforting feeling to the viewers. Even the antagonists are intriguing, and a little frightening, but not so much so that they come off as too intense. The fact that this is a nine episode series from Cartoon Network does not mean this show is meant just for kids. The surprisingly deep storylines evolve throughout the series and show genuine emotional connections made between the characters. Scenes of peril are also present in “Over the Garden Wall,” making it stand out from the more childish shows that have come from Cartoon Network. As far as cute yet spooky TV shows for the fall go, there is none better than “Over the Garden Wall.”