January is officially upon us, people. You might be freezing your butt off, but a bright side exists in this scenario: the reigning streaming services know that you need something to watch while stuck inside, and they’ve delivered accordingly. The newest show starring Natasha Lyonne has arrived (with Rian Johnson behind the scenes, what a concept), and Bryan Cranston simply refuses to stop playing characters who break bad, yet the TV landscape is better for it.
In other words, if you’ve already finished binging December shows (and there’s a good chance that you got sucked into Emily In Paris and 1923 like the best of us), then you have plenty of options coming your way. At least, that’s the case if you like shows with detectives, therapists, witches, vikings, non-threatening basements, and Jason Momoa. Here are the must-see shows for January 2023.
Anne Rice’s Mayfair Witches (AMC/AMC+ series streaming 1/8)
Anne Rice fans must be enjoying the undead resurrection of her novels on TV, and that includes the mesmerizing Interview With The Vampire reboot series. Now, audiences will see the darkness continue with Alexandra Daddario and her wide-eyed presence starring as the head of a witchy dynasty. She plays Rowan Fielding, a neurosurgeon who ends up finding out that she’s the so-called Thirteenth Witch. Hey, it happens. The series co-stars Jack Huston, Harry Hamlin, and Annabeth Gish and looks atmospheric as hell, so let’s hope that it delivers heft atop those visuals.
Vikings: Valhalla: Season 2 (Netflix series streaming 1/12)
After the O.G. series dominated for six full seasons, this spinoff gave the franchise new life in the streaming realm. This part of the story still takes place around a century ahead of its predecessor with a different generation of history-famous Vikings, including Leif Ericsson, Freydis Eriksdotter, and Nordic prince Harald Sigurdsson. They’ve all embarked upon different parts of the world to pursue power and new realms while igniting rivalries and simply attempting to survive with honor.
The Climb (HBO Max series streaming 1/12)
A smart man named Brian Grubb once declared that Jason Momoa should be in everything. I’m on board with this concept, and the See star and upcoming Fast and Furious villain has been pounding movies like crazy but still had time to get hands-on for an HBO Max series. The Climb features Momoa bounding off the side of mountains and shouting, “Yeah!” If you wanted to know more (sure, let’s go there), this series pairs him with buddy and the rock-climbing legend himself, Chris Sharma, to ascend as far as possible into the sky. They also guide a group of amateur climbers throughout a competition that’s fraught with danger and dauntlessness. There’s are prizes involved, of course, but also, they got to go adventuring with Momoa.
Mayor of Kingstown: Season 2 (HBO Max series streaming 1/15)
Taylor Sheridan is pretty much ruling the Paramount Network/Paramount+ content game right now with the Yellowstone universe and Tulsa King, and he also co-created (along with Hugh Dillon) this crime drama starring Jeremy Renner. The story follows Dillon’s own observations from his formative years near Ontario’s Kingston Penitentiary, and Renner plays the figurative Mayor who spins wheels and deals between law enforcement and inmates. In other words, there’s not much in the way of fair justice in this game, and audiences clearly love to see Renner in crime drama mode.
Your Honor: Season 2 (Showtime series premiering 1/15)
I’ve said it already, but no one does Panic Faces quite like Bryan Cranston does. His judge is still breaking bad in Season 2 because he apparently hasn’t suffered enough already. The show’s an intense, stressful one filled with plenty of local sights and sounds (along with mob stuff) after being shot on location in New Orleans, but Cranston seems to relish doing genuinely hard work because he’s (and I’m riffing here) bound and determined not to go back to Malcolm In The Middle wholesomeness. As a special bonus, this season also stars Rosie Perez fresh off her trip with The Flight Attendant.
MILF Manor (TLC series premiering 1/15)
This isn’t exactly the classiest show, but don’t be a snob. Shades of a 30 Rock bit may be in the back of your head for this show where so-called “MILFs” are looking for… something with 20-something dudes. These guys may or may not be able to deliver the goods because we’re talking about ladies who own a fitness studio, for example, and have found plenty of success otherwise in life. There’s a “twist,” apparently, so hopefully, this show will run longer than FBoy Island.
Miracle Workers: Season 4 (TBS series streaming 1/16)
There’s no word yet on whether Daniel Radcliffe will be shaking his butt (while in drag) on this season of this wild and wooly anthology series, but one can hope. This season formally follows up on Oregon Trail with an End Times subtitle, so one can expect some killer robots and (even worse) the lure of suburbia. Radcliffe picks up as a wasteland warrior married to a warlord, played by Geraldine Viswanathan, and thank god Steve Buscemi is back and might know what’s up in Boomtown. Guest stars include Quinta Brunson, Garcelle Beauvais, Kyle Mooney, and Paul F. Tompkins.
That ’90s Show (Netflix series streaming 1/19)
Jackie and Kelso got married, meaning that real-life spouses Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher will be on hand as guests in this series that takes place (as the title suggests) in 1995. The show revolves around Kitty and Red somehow looking much like they did back in the ’70s, and the actual story involves Leia, whose parents happen to be Eric and Donna. Leia is looking for adventure and thinks that the Forman place is the place to be for achieving that goal, especially since a rebel named Gwen lives next door. That basement is a real party once more, even if we can’t figure out how Jackie and Kelso worked out after all these years.
Poker Face (Peacock series streaming 1/26)
Natasha Lyonne said goodbye to Nicky Nichols in Orange Is The New Black and moved right onto the twisted, Groundhog Day-esque existential dilemmas of Russian Doll, but her commanding, self-deprecating presence isn’t taking a breather yet. She and Rian Johnson decided to make a totally not-Columbo series, in which she’s not exactly a detective, but her Charlie character (another “scrappy protagonist,” thank god) does have a “gift” of sorts. Soon enough, she’s solving crimes while tooling around in a Plymouth Barracuda. Natasha reteams with Chloë Sevigny and Dascha Polanco, and expect appearances from Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Ellen Barkin, Tim Meadows, Tim Blake Nelson, and Benjamin Bratt, too.
Shrinking (Apple TV+ series streaming 1/27)
This series feels like a surefire hit, given that Ted Lasso co-creator Bill Lawrence is writing alongside Brett Goldstein, who also produces. Jason Segel stars as a therapist who takes an unorthodox turn while undergoing his own grieving process. He basically decides, “F*ck those rules” and heads into transforming his own life, and those of his patients, inside out. Harrison Ford takes a breather from cowboying-it in his current 1923 role to move further into his TV phase. The streaming world is a wonderful place.