Is everybody still rocking a Thanksgiving leftover belly? Hopefully you and yours had a wonderful holiday and were reminded in part of the many men and women that suffered in those early days of America. Speaking of the olden days - because nothing says writing skills like a dull segue - let's jump right into this week's first historical lesson.
Love watching muscular dudes dealing with family drama and dangerous and violent situations, but you want to see it all happening around the year 800 rather than in the present? That's what History's surprisingly solid period drama Vikings is for, and you can now catch up with Season 2 if you haven't already. This season sees Ragnar (Travis Fimmel) crossing paths with Donal Logue's King Horik and Thorbjørn Harr's Jarl Borg (sometimes for good and sometimes not)l as favors are asked and bridges are burned. It's only a 10-episode season, so there's no point in going into details. It's a solid and well-produced series that's better than the Game of Thrones comparisons that some have laid on it just because it takes place longer ago than the Victorian Age. History renewed Vikings for a third season when Season 2 was only midway through, so we can definitely expect to follow Ragnar's reign for at least another year.
Watch both seasons of Vikings on Amazon Prime and Hulu Plus.
As seen here in the U.S. on PBS, the ITV-produced Mr. Selfridge stars Jeremy Piven as the proud and effective department store retailer Harry Gordon Selfridge, who founded the luxurious (and now century-old) Selfridge & Co. in London. Season 2 starts out five years into the store's run, with the titular character worried about the effects of the impending war, which he manages to get caught up in. And fans should have no fear, as Season 3 is coming in 2015, and it'll take place during the year 1919.
Watch both seasons of Mr. Selfridge on Amazon Prime.
The Ren & Stimpy Show - Season 1-3
Inarguably one of the greatest cartoons of all time to non-eediots, The Ren & Stimpy Show mixed toilet humor, crude situations and hyper-detailed animated gross-outs to tell the surreal escapades of strained chihuahua Ren and goofus cat Stimpy. The show was especially memorable for premiering alongside the clever-but-babified Rugrats and the tamely imaginative Doug as part of the Nicktoons launch. Ren & Stimpy's creator and initial director John Kricfalusi ran into trouble with Nickelodeon several times over certain episodes, sometimes involving the content. (See: "Man's Best Friend.") So he ended up leaving the show after two seasons, which is when it started to go downhill, although still more interesting and disgusting than many of the Nicktoons that followed. So while not all of the seasons are here for streaming, it's got all the best stuff.
The first three seasons of The Ren & Stimpy Show are now available on Hulu Plus.
And when you’re done with all of these, hit the next page to find more new-to-streaming shows that might be up your alley.
Adam Devine’s House Party – Season 1
