Pumpkin spice, pie and Pretty Little Liars; The top five shows to binge watch this fall season


(Nora Miller | Daily Trojan)

Summer’s over and school is in session – this can only mean one thing; the coziest time of the year is in full swing. The air smells of pumpkin spice, leaves are turning orange and brown, and grocery store aisles are filled to the brim with ghouls and ghosts. It’s time to hang up the denim shorts and pull out the oversized sweaters as we round up the top five shows to kick off the autumn season.

“The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina” – Netflix

Nothing says fall like witches and warlocks. Based on Archie comics, “The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina” follows fifteen-year-old Sabrina Spellman, who lies between a world of magic and the mundane as a half-witch, half-mortal. With her father a complete warlock and her mother a mere human, “Chilling Adventures” follows Sabrina on the path toward her sixteenth birthday, where she must choose the life she wants to live. Sabrina battles between leaving her mortal friends and ordinary life behind and choosing to embrace her dark side. This dark coming-of-age story is perfect for October, with plot twists to send chills down your spine. 

“Pretty Little Liars” – HBO Max

Got a secret? In this bone-chilling mystery series, five girls, Allison, Spencer, Aria, Emily, and Hannah, rule the upper-class suburb of Rosewood, Pennsylvania. One night, during the summer before eighth grade, the friend group turns dark when Allison, the group leader, goes missing. A year after her disappearance, the rest of the girls are like strangers to one another — that is, until they begin receiving messages from the mysterious “A.” This anonymous entity somehow knows the girl’s darkest secrets. No one around them can be trusted, and everyone — even them — are suspects in Allison’s disappearance. Nothing brings people closer together thana secret, and these liars have tons of them. This cult classic series has all the suspense and horror to make every day seem like Halloween night.

“Over the Garden Wall” – HBO Max

This unusual miniseries follows half-brothers, Wirt and Gregory, who have found themselves lost in a mysterious and magical forest called The Unknown. Wirt and Gregory must navigate The Unknown while avoiding The Beast, a creature on the hunt for lost children. As the adventure continues, the stakes climb higher, introducing a number of characters and creatures that aid the brothers in their trek home. “Over the Garden Wall’s” impressive artwork and animation immerses the watcher in a mysterious forest journey. This series encompasses that whimsical and fantastical feeling the season brings to every autumn-lover out there. 

“Agatha Raisin” – Amazon Prime

Murder, mystery, and mischief! This comedic mystery follows Agatha Raisin, a middle-aged PR genius, as she abandons the daily London grind for the cozy Cotswolds village of Carsely. The frustrated primadonna has sold her successful public-relations firm in Mayfair with hopes of early retirement. Agatha wants nothing more than to kick up her feet and enjoy the village life, that is, until her once friendly neighbors turn murderous. Agatha Raisin goes from PR to PI in this British series. With four 90-minute episodes in the series, Agatha Raisin is the perfect show to snuggle up in bed and enjoy the contrast of quaint village life with the suspense-filled mystery. 

“Gilmore Girls” – Netflix

This list wouldn’t be complete without well-known autumn classic “Gilmore Girls.” The show focuses on the dynamic mom-and-daughter duo Lorelai and Rory Gilmore. Lorelai, cut off from her well-off family after having Rory as a teenager, planted her roots in the small town of Stars Hollow, Connecticut, where she balances working as a hotel manager while also trying to raise Rory on her own. When Rory gets accepted into a prestigious high school in Hartford, the Gilmore Girls have to seek financial help from two people Lorelai never wanted to come crawling back to. Her parents. Because the series takes place in autumn and winter, it has seven seasons of freshly fallen leaves, countless scenes of endlessly filled coffee pots, and pumpkins on every surface, making “Gilmore Girls” the perfect show to binge-watch in the fall.