The weekend is here, and we want to make sure you enjoy it to the fullest. You have some time to spare, but not that much time with everything, so what Netflix miniseries can you watch that will keep you entertained without forcing you to spend too much time on the couch? These three series will occupy your day, but won’t take up too much time, and will also show you a great time.

Baby Reindeer

The best comedy-drama-thriller around

Baby Reindeer Is the lightest offering on this list, which says something about the rest of the entries because it’s not that light. Baby Reindeer The vaguely true story is based on the life of creator and star Richard Gade, who plays a bartender named Donnie who one day comforts a crying patron named Martha (Jessica Gunning) with a free cup. He regrets this decision after becoming obsessively attached to Martha.

At first hearing this, you might think that Baby Reindeer There’s a kind of cringe comedy that wrings humor out of awkward situations, and it’s … partially. But Baby Reindeer Very deep diver. Marta’s stalking forces Donnie to examine every part of his life, including his sexuality and some trauma from his past. Martha is not purely painted as a loony weirdo and Donnie is not painted as an innocent victim. Everyone gets a lot of shading, which helps explain why the show became Netflix’s biggest breakout hit of 2024.

And in seven episodes of about 30 minutes each, Baby Reindeer Respects your time. You can wrap up the whole thing in about four hours, which is the sweet spot for many of these miniseries.

Release date

2024-2024-00-00

Directors

Veronika Tifliska, Josephine Bornbsch

The authors

Richard Gade

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  Jessica Gunning

  Martha Scott

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Death by lightning

History lives on, but in a reasonable time frame

If you’re winding down after a busy week and finally have some time to yourself, there’s nothing better than a sweet historical series to help you unwind, and Netflix just came up with a juicy one. Death by lightning Today is about President James A. Garfield (Michael Shannon), one of the lesser-known presidents in the country today. One of the reasons he didn’t leave a greater legacy was that he didn’t serve long as president. He was killed by a man named Charles G. Guteau (Matthew Macfadyen). Death by lightning Follows them both until that fateful day.

And when it gets there, we learn all about the political climate of post-Civil War America, a period not touched upon in much popular history, so there’s a good chance you, like me, will learn a lot. How many times has President Chester A. Arthur (Nick Offerman) appeared in a movie or TV show? It doesn’t happen often.

Death by lightning Takes himself seriously, but he wants to capture the full breadth of life in this era, which means there are still moments of levity. And Charles J. Guteau has a “fictionalist” side to him that’s hard to forget.

Death by lightning Only runs for four episodes. Even every hour, it ends up being about that time to watch Baby Reindeer.

Release date

2025-2025-00-00

Network

Netflix

Directors

Matt Ross

The authors

Mike Makowski

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  Michael Shannon

  James Garfield

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  Matthew Macfadyen

  Charles Guteau

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  Nick Offerman

  Chester A. Arthur

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  Betty Gilpin

  Crete Garfield

youth

Catch the biggest breakout hits of 2025

If Baby Reindeer Next, was Netflix’s breakout hit 2024 youth Filled the same role in 2025. If you haven’t seen it yet, this weekend is the perfect time to catch up.

He said, I will not call youth A particularly pleasant show to sit through, though, is timely and gripping. It’s about a 13-year-old boy named Jamie (Owen Cooper) who is accused of stabbing a classmate named Katie (Emelia Holdai). The authoritative part of the show isn’t so much figuring out that Jamie did it, but why. We learn that in addition to struggling with identity like many people his age, Jamie has been radicalized online, causing him to develop some militant, terrifying visions. We also see how Jamie’s situation affects his family, as his parents come to learn how little they really know about their son and his world. The show explores these issues in a subtle way that doesn’t feel preachy or superficial, which can be hard to do when you’re pulling story ideas straight from today’s headlines.

Another thing worth mentioning youth He has technical skills. Like Death by lightningeach of the four episodes runs for an hour. But in the case of youtheach episode is presented in one long continuous shot, giving you the actors giving you plenty of time to appreciate the brilliant performances.

Release date

March 13, 2025

Network

Netflix

Directors

Philip Barantini

The authors

Stephen Graham, Jack Thorne

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  Stephen Graham

  Eddie Miller

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Related

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Other shows and movies to enjoy this weekend, short and long, on Netflix and elsewhere

There are obviously other popular Netflix miniseries you can check out, though most of them are a bit more of a time commitment. Haven’t seen the chess drama yet Queen’s Gambit? It’s a great watch, but at seven episodes that are sometimes more than an hour long, you’ll probably have to spread it out over a couple of days. Ditto for the fantastic western miniseries Anxious And American Basic. Even a light show Beef Runs for 10 episodes at 30 minutes each. You may find more miniseries you enjoy than we’ve recommended, but you’re unlikely to find much less.

If you’ve got a long weekend to kill, of course, you can always take a nap and binge. Why not stream a show the same way? Mind Hunterwhich is so good it might ruin all other detective series for you? Everyone is trying to figure out how Stranger things is about to expire; Why not check it out and see what all the fuss is about? And if you still want to keep things short, there are plenty of fleet-footed sci-fi movies out there for you to sample.