3 best new Netflix shows to binge-watch this weekend (October 16-18)

Published Oct 16, 2026, 6:00 PM EDT Derek Malcolm has been covering the worlds of tech and entertainment for more than two decades. Before coming to How-To Geek in 2025, Derek was a contributing editor and writer for the A/V and Home Theater section at Digital Trends, where he wrangled and wrote everything from what to watch on Netflix to reviews, explainers, and guides on the latest Bluetooth speakers, turntables, projectors, and other A/V gear. Based in Toronto, Derek graduated from Humber College's Journalism program in 1999, after which he started covering the worlds of music, movies, TV, and celebrity for publications such as TV Guide, Hello! magazine, and Inside Entertainment. He then got the bug for covering tech and gadgets in 2006, when he served as editor-in-chief of Canadian tech magazine Connected for more than a decade. An avid skier, when all the snow's gone Derek can be found at home spinning vinyl with his daughter or cheering on his favorite F1 team, McLaren. Sign in to your How-To Geek account With Halloween just two weeks out, Netflix is stocking its shelves with scream-inducing things to watch. Josh Hartnett's and his Newfie accent are making waves with the sea-creature thriller Below, and the Filipino horror series Balaraw: Blood Island is set to arrive on October 29. But not everyone wants to sleep with the lights on, though, so Netflix has also added some scare-free new seasons to its U.S. lineup this week as well, including an animated sitcom with aliens in suburbia, a reality dating show that thrives behind closed doors, and my top pick, a new season of the best political thriller on TV, which just nabbed an Emmy. 3 Solar Opposites season 6 The animated alien family’s last hurrah lands on Netflix From Rick and Morty veterans Justin Roiland and Mike McMahan, this adult animated sci-fi sitcom from Hulu has logged a reported 110 million viewing hours since it landed on Netflix last fall. If you haven't been watching Solar Opposites, you should be, because it's one of the weirdest and most entertaining shows on streaming, and you're going to want to watch all six seasons. The half-hour show follows four aliens stranded in suburbia after their home planet was destroyed. Their mission, though, is to eventually terraform Earth and remake it in their home world's image, but the power to do it lies with the Pupa, a baby-like creature destined to destroy the planet and everyone on it, including them. The Pupa, however, grows fond of them and Earth and decides to wait. In the sixth and final season, which premiered on Hulu last year, a broken diamond-making machine forces Korvo (Dan Stevens), Terry (Thomas Middleditch), Yumyulack (Sean Giambrone), and Jesse (Mary Mack) to pinch pennies and (gasp!) get jobs. Additionally, the Solars must protect the Pupa from an outside threat while Yumyulack's shrunken human society, The Wall (an entire show within the show), reaches its endgame. Solar Opposites Release Date 2020 - 2025-00-00 Network Hulu Cast Thomas MIddleditch, Sean Giambrone, Mary Mack, Sagan McMahan, Dan Stevens, Justin Roiland, Tiffany Haddish, Kari Wahlgren, Spencer Grammer, Khary Payton, Tim Robinson, Nolan North, Charlotte Nicdao, Mikey Day, June Squibb, Christina Hendricks, Alfred Molina, Andrew Matarazzo, Miguel Sandoval, Andy Daly, Nat Faxon, Neil Flynn, Karan Brar, Jacob Vargas, Chris Cox, Vargus Mason Showrunner Justin Roiland Directors Bob Suarez, Kim Arndt, Lucas Gray Writers Josh Bycel, Danielle Uhlarik, Dominic Dierkes, Joe Saunders, Jen McCartney, Ariel Ladensohn, Matthew Libman, Aliki Theofilopoulos, Matt McKenna, daniel libman, Scott Gallopo, Sean O'Connor, Garrick Bernard Main Genre Animation Producers Mike McMahan, Anthony Chun, Justin Roiland, Rick Mischel, Richard Grieve Seasons 6 Story By Justin Roiland, Mike McMahan Streaming Service(s) Hulu 2 Love Is Blind season 11 The pod-dwellers get a Boston accent Netflix's Emmy-nominated dating experiment reality show became a lockdown-era phenomenon in 2020 and has since inspired versions all over the world—from Brazil, the Netherlands, and Japan to France, the UK, and Poland. Season 11 of Love Is Blind gets "wicked smaht" and takes the pods to Boston, the show's first-ever New England stop, where 30 singles get to know each other through a wall, get engaged without ever having laid eyes on one another, and then find out whether the spark survives meeting face-to-face before moving in together to plan their wedding. If that sounds like a lot, it really is—and it's all for our entertainment. Hosts Nick Lachey (yep, the 98 Degrees Nick Lachey) and wife Vanessa Lachey (NCIS: Hawaii) are back to referee all the chaos. Five episodes are streaming now, an easy weekend catch-up before new batches arrive on October 21 and 28, ahead of the November 4 finale. Love Is Blind Release Date February 13, 2020 Network Netflix Cast Nick Lachey, Vanessa Lachey, Zack Goytowski, Giannina Gibelli, Damian Powers, Matthew Barnett, Lauren Speed Hamilton, Cameron Hamilton, Jessica Batten, Amber Pike, Mark Cuevas, Kelly Chase, Kenny Barnes, Carlton Morton, Diamond Jack, Deepti Vempati, Danielle Ruhl, Mallory Zapata, Natalie Lee, Jarrette Jones, Iyanna McNeely, Nick Thompson, Salvador Pérez, Shayne Jansen, Abhishek Chatterjee, Kyle Abrams Showrunner Chris Coelen Directors Chris Coelen Writers Chris Coelen Main Genre Reality Creator(s) Chris Coelen Producers Eric Detwiler, Chris Coelen, Brian Smith, Ally Simpson, Heather Crowe Seasons 11 Story By Chris Coelen Streaming Service(s) Netflix Executive Producer(s) Eric Detwiler, Chris Coelen, Brian Smith, Ally Simpson, Heather Crowe 1 The Diplomat season 4 It's Kate versus the U.S. President, and worse, her own husband Netflix's The Diplomat is the hottest political drama/thriller on TV right now, and it just earned the right to say so after picking up a huge Emmy win last month—Best Supporting Actress for Allison Janney (her eighth win overall), who plays the volatile U.S. President Grace Penn. Season 3 ended on a potentially nuclear (literally) note with U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom Kate Wyler (Keri Russell) figuring out that her newly minted vice president's husband, Hal (the excellent Rufus Sewell), and the president had just masterminded the theft of a Russian doomsday weapon called the Poseidon, right from under the nose of its British ally. Season 4 doesn't miss a beat as the fallout begins and Kate finds herself trying to manage the potentially catastrophic "chemistry" between Hal and Grace. She even forms an uneasy pact with the First Gentleman, Todd Penn (Janney's former West Wing costar Bradley Whitford), to rein in their power-hungry spouses. Eight hour-long episodes are up, making for a tidy two-night binge. The Diplomat Release Date 2023 - 2023-00-00 Network Netflix Cast Keri Russell, Rufus Sewell, David Gyasi, Ali Ahn, Rory Kinnear, Ato Essandoh, Pearl Mackie, Tim Delap, Georgie Henley, T'Nia Miller, Greg McKenzie, James Ashton, Celia Imrie, Michael McKean, Nana Mensah, Miguel Sandoval, Jess Chanliau, Penny Downie, Adam Silver, Christine Kavanagh, Tegan Farrelly, Simon Ludders, Anna Francolini, Amy Manson, Marc James Beauchamp Showrunner Debora Cahn Directors Alex Graves, Andrew Bernstein, Simon Cellan Jones, Tucker Gates Writers Debora Cahn, Anna Hagen, Julianna Meagher, Mia Chung, Peter Noah, Eli Attie Main Genre Drama Creator(s) Debora Cahn Producers Daniel Toland, Russ Hammonds, Brad Carpenter, Chris Arruda, Amanda Johnson-Zetterström Seasons 4 Studio Netflix Studios Website https://www.netflix.com/title/81288983 Streaming Service(s) Netflix Executive Producer(s) Janice Williams, Keri Russell, Debora Cahn, Peter Noah, Alex Graves, Simon Cellan Jones More shows to watch this weekend If you're a fan of Marvel Television, VisionQuest on Disney+ is one of our new shows to watch this weekend. If you head to Paramount+, you can check out some of its best sci-fi shows, including the majority of Star Trek. Subscription with ads Yes, $8/month Simultaneous streams Two or four Live TV No Price Starting at $8/month