PlayStation owners, specifically those with a PS4 or PS5, can take advantage of a great TV treat right now: three months of Apple TV Plus for free, which will take you through the holidays and into the New Year if you sign up before December.
You don't have to rush though as the offer is available until January 31, 2024. Apple TV Plus is one of the best streaming services for original shows, and while there are tons of great things to watch, these four shows should be at the very front of your to-watch list.
For All Mankind
Now in its fourth thrilling season, For All Mankind is an alternative history of the US that centers on the space race from the 1950s to the far future. It's full of all the thrills and spills and special effects you'd hope for from a sci-fi show – and is one of very few such shows to feature gunfights on the moon – but it's also a rich drama about the people affected by the space race in the US and USSR. It's also unusually great at representing a wide cast of characters rather than just a bunch of white guys in spacesuits – they're there too but For All Mankind is much more grown-up than gung-ho.
Severance
This is one of the weirdest, most affecting and most enjoyable things we've seen in years, and this is a great time to catch up on the first season in anticipation of next year's second. It's a strange, gripping and disturbing drama about an invention that enables you to sever your personal life from your work life, so work you doesn't know about home you and vice-versa. It's so good that the presence of John Turturro and Christopher Walken doesn't overpower it: this is a true ensemble piece where you'll care about everyone, not just the actors with the biggest stars on their dressing room doors.
Silo
Based on the best-selling Wool trilogy, this claustrophobic sci-fi thriller is an absolute hoot from start to finish. From Common's rather wooden bad-guy acting and a malevolent/benevolent Tim Robbins to an absolutely stellar performance by Rebecca Ferguson in the lead role there's tons here to revel in, and the setup – all of humanity is living in a silo far below the ground in a world so dangerous that if you venture outside, you die – turns out to be a great platform for a twisty turny thriller. It stays just the right side of silly to deliver serious sci-fi fun.
Ted Lasso
It's a little saccharine for your reviewer but Ted Lasso has built an army of devoted fans with its story of a US football coach hired to coach a UK soccer team. It's a feel-good fish out of water comedy and a critical and commercial success, with 90% overall on Rotten Tomatoes including a whopping 98% for season two. As Empire Magazine put it, "Ted Lasso might not be laugh-out-loud funny, and the title character's good ol' boy schtick won't be to everyone's taste, but both he and the show are blessed with an almost preternatural affability that it's near impossible not to love."
