While everyone’s still debating whether streaming peaked in 2019 or if we’re living in some golden age of content overflow, Netflix just quietly dropped a mountain of new shows in August that’ll keep you glued to your couch well into September.
But the thing about having infinite choice is that it can be paralyzing. Who has time to wade through the streaming platform’s entire August catalog to figure out what’s actually worth your precious binge hours? That’s where we come in.
We’ve done the heavy lifting, scrolled through the endless lists, and emerged with 12 shows that are actually worth your time. Here’s what made the cut:
Aema (Korean Drama)
Available since August 22
This is not your typical K-drama tearjerker. Set in 1980s Korea, Aema dives into the seedy underbelly of the film industry during military dictatorship — specifically, the making of the controversial film Madame Aema. Think The Deuce meets Reply 1988, but with more political tension and fewer warm fuzzy feelings.
The six-episode series follows two women navigating a male-dominated industry while dealing with corruption, censorship, and the kind of backstabbing that makes Hollywood look like Sunday school. It’s grittier than most K-dramas dare to be, which makes it exactly the type of adult storytelling that proves Korean television isn’t just romance and chaebol families.
Long Story Short
Available since August 22
From the creator of BoJack Horseman comes this animated family dramedy that proves Raphael Bob-Waksberg hasn’t lost his touch for making cartoons devastatingly real.
Long Story Short follows the Schwooper family across multiple decades, exploring how shared history, inside jokes, and old wounds shape relationships. It’s funny until it’s heartbreaking, then funny again — the sort of show that makes you want to call your family immediately after watching (or avoid them entirely, depending on your relationship status).
Rivers of Fate (Brazilian Thriller)
Available since August 20
Brazil’s answer to prestige crime television comes in the form of Rivers of Fate, a four-part miniseries that’s as gorgeous as it is disturbing. Set in the Amazon region, it follows three interconnected storylines involving human trafficking, a kidnapped teenager, and the type of corruption that runs deeper than the river systems themselves.
Shot in Belém, the series elevates its Amazon location beyond mere scenery, making the rivers themselves central to the story as pathways for both escape and doom — leaving you with a feeling that sticks with you long after the credits roll.
Wednesday Season 2, Part 1
Available since August 6
Jenna Ortega returns to Nevermore Academy for four more episodes of gothic teen drama that somehow manages to be both darker and more colorful than its predecessor. Wednesday leans further into the supernatural elements while maintaining that signature Addams Family wit.
It’s the rare sequel that doesn’t feel like a cash grab — instead, it expands the mythology while keeping Wednesday’s character development front and center. Part 2 drops September 3, so pacing yourself might be wise (but who are we kidding?).
America’s Team: The Gambler and His Cowboys
Available since August 19
Jerry Jones and the 1990s Dallas Cowboys get the full Netflix documentary treatment in this eight-part series that’s equal parts sports history and corporate drama. From three Super Bowl wins to endless controversies, it chronicles how America’s most polarizing football team became exactly that.
Whether you love or hate the Cowboys, watching their dynasty rise and implode makes for compelling television — especially when you remember this was all happening while the world was trying to figure out the internet.
Hostage
Available since August 21
Hostage is a British political thriller starring Suranne Jones as a Prime Minister whose husband gets kidnapped while she’s dealing with international threats. The show is taut, well-acted television that explores how personal and political crises intersect when you’re running a country. It’s the kind of limited series that makes you grateful democracy is usually (the operating word being usually) more boring than this.
Bon Appétit, Your Majesty (Korean Time-Travel Fantasy)
Available since August 23
Time-travel cooking shows are apparently having a moment, and we’re here for it. Bon Appétit, Your Majesty stars YoonA as a French-trained chef who gets zapped back to the Joseon Dynasty, where she has to impress a tyrannical king with fusion cuisine. Yes, it’s as bonkers as it sounds.
But before you write this off as fluffy fantasy nonsense, remember that Korean shows have a knack for making the ridiculous feel emotionally resonant. Plus, watching someone try to explain molecular gastronomy to 16th-century royalty is peak time-travel comedy gold. Already climbing Netflix’s global charts, so clearly the algorithm knows what it’s doing.
Love Is Blind: UK Season 2
Available since August 13
The pods are back, and this time they’re filled with British singles who somehow make falling in love sight unseen feel equal parts pragmatic and ridiculous.
Emma and Matt Willis return as hosts for this social experiment that continues to prove humans will literally do anything for love and/or television fame. The season’s already spoiled at least one wedding in its own trailer (because subtlety is dead), but watching people navigate emotional connections through glorified confession booths remains weirdly compelling television.
Final Draft (Japanese Competition)
Available since August 12
Twenty-five former elite athletes compete for 30 million yen and a chance to fund their second careers in this physical and psychological battle royale. Final Draft is Netflix’s first Japanese-produced physical survival series, but it focuses on redemption rather than elimination. Watching former Olympians and professional athletes push themselves through challenges while dealing with the reality of life after sports creates genuinely emotional television.
Beyond the Bar (Korean Legal Drama)
Available since August 2
Another legal procedural? In 2025? And yet, defying viewer fatigue, it works. Beyond the Bar follows a rookie lawyer with an inflated sense of justice (classic protagonist setup) paired with a cold, experienced mentor who’s seen too much. Think Suits but with actual legal accuracy and less swagger-walking through office hallways.
The show tackles fertility clinic break-ins, corporate corruption, and tangled legal battles that make you grateful for small claims court. Lee Jin-wook and Jung Chae-yeon have solid chemistry, even if the premise feels familiar enough to induce déjà vu.
In the Mud (Argentine Prison Drama)
Available since August 14
In the Mud is a spin-off from El Marginal that focuses on a women’s prison instead of the men’s facility. Five female inmates bond after a deadly accident, only to find themselves caught between corruption and turf wars that make their outside problems look trivial.
It’s brutal, unflinching television that doesn’t glamorize prison life or sisterhood — instead, it shows how survival often requires compromising everything you thought you believed in. Already renewed for a second season, so Netflix clearly sees potential in this particular brand of darkness.
Fisk Season 3
Available since August 20
Australian workplace comedy at its finest returns with Helen Fisk now as a partner in her wills and probate firm, but still dealing with the same absurd estate cases that make you grateful for your boring job. Fisk is the anti-The Office — dry, understated, and genuinely clever without trying too hard to be quotable. Kitty Flanagan’s writing remains sharp as ever, proving that sometimes the best comedy comes from the most mundane settings.