12 Short TV Series for Those Who Are Tired of Watching 200 Episodes in a Row

Occasionally, people might get a strong desire to escape from everyday life and dive into the thrilling world of a fictional TV series. However, hardly any of us have enough time to watch a TV series that lasts for several seasons. That’s when fascinating, picturesque stories “squeezed” into a couple of episodes come in to save the day.

Bright Side prepared a fresh batch of short TV shows, most of which can be watched within one evening.

The Miniaturist

 

The action takes place in Amsterdam in the 17th century. Young Nella gets married and moves to her husband’s house. As a present, she gets a dollhouse, which is the exact copy of her family’s house. In order to furnish the first dollhouse, she places an order with a miniaturist. However, the master she has never met starts to send her realistic furniture together with mini-copies of all the house residents. At first, Nella is surprised but the shock slowly turns into anxiety and it seems to her that the dollhouse is taking on its own frightening life.

IMDb rating: 7

The Pacific

  

The series is based on the memories of soldiers who took part in battles on the Pacific Ocean. The plot is centered around 3 marines from different regiments: Robert Leckie, Eugene Sledge, and John Basilone. The miniseries shows the events of the Second World War the way ordinary soldiers, their friends, and loved ones saw it. The events will stay in history forever.

IMDb rating: 8.3

Beau Séjour

 

  

One day, a teenage girl, Kato, wakes up in a Beau Séjour room covered in blood. She doesn’t remember what happened but soon realizes that no one can see or hear her. Kato guesses that she’s been killed and has nothing left to do but find out who did it. But the closer she gets to the truth, the more shocking things get.

IMDb rating: 7.8

Next of Kin

  

Mona Shirani has been happily married for several years and lives in London together with her talented politician husband, Guy Harcourt. But her ideal life crumbles when Mona’s brother suddenly gets killed. Right after the murder, a number of secrets her kin was keeping start to get revealed. Soon it becomes clear that Mona’s happiness is built on lies and betrayal.

IMDb rating: 6.2

Charité

  

The action takes place in Berlin in the 19th century. Doctors who are destined to become luminaries of European medicine are working hard at the famous “Charité” clinic. Not only do they fight for the lives of patients in extremely cramped conditions, but they also make scientific discoveries. Though the main focus of the series is concentrated on medicine, the characters’ personal ambitions and their romantic worries stay in the spotlight as well.

IMDb rating: 7.6

This Close

  

Kate and Michael are best friends and they both are deaf. And as if their lives in Los Angeles weren’t difficult enough, Michael is going through a painful breakup while Kate has recently got engaged and hesitates to tell her friend about it. This drama-comedy combo features characters that could use to speak their mind a little bit more.

IMDb rating: 7.3

The Ballad of Buster Scruggs

  

The Western miniseries combines 6 short stories that are not related to each other by plot. The only thing they have in common is that they all take place in the Wild West. And there’s just one working rule in these remote towns among the prairies and high plains: only the strongest survive.

IMDb rating: 7.4

Fearless

  

Emma Banville is a human rights lawyer. When looking through old papers, she finds a mistake in a case that was sensational some time ago. Having studied the documents, Emma starts to suspect that an innocent person has been sentenced for killing a schoolgirl 14 years ago. The police and intelligence agencies refuse to admit their mistake, and Emma has no choice but to challenge them.

IMDb rating: 7.6

Secret City

  

Journalist Harriet Dunkley gets involved in a political debate between China and the USA. She’s investigating an old, mysterious case about contract killings. During the investigation, she manages to reveal several big conspiracies in Canberra, the capital of Australia. Dunkley is going to tell the whole world about these things.

IMDb rating: 7.4

Angels in America

  

This miniseries combines the destinies of very different people: a relationship threatened by AIDS, a Mormon man who tries to suppress his deviations that contradict his religious beliefs as his wife struggles with a valium addiction, and a successful lawyer who learns he’s going to die soon. Their visions and fantasies are woven into a single story, and in the end, everyone realizes that there are no more angels left in America.

IMDb rating: 8.3

Howards End

  

The action takes place in England at the beginning of the 20th century. The Wilcoxes, a classical British family accidentally meets 2 Schlegel sisters. One sister, Helen Schlegel, brings with her a young but bankrupt clerk. The second one, Margaret Schlegel, starts a strong friendship with the head of the family, an elderly Mrs. Wilcox. When Mrs. Wilcox is about to die, the family members suddenly learn that all the inheritance will go to Margaret. How could this happen? The relatives then decide to find out the truth.

IMDb rating: 7.3

Fleming

  

This miniseries is a biopic about a writer who introduces the world to the famous spy, James Bond. The action takes place in London in the 1940s. Ian Fleming is a charming man and a favorite among all women. Nevertheless, he has to live in the shadow of his strict mother. Ian dreams about becoming the best at everything and is waiting to quit his boring office job. Then, the Second World War starts and the leading man gets a chance to demonstrate his talents in the service of the Office of Naval Intelligence.

IMDb rating: 7.3

   

What interesting TV series have you watched recently? We’d be glad to hear from you in the comments!

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