Five series from 2026 that have gone unnoticed by you (and are worth it)

BarcelonaPast the halfway point of 2026 and when it's still too early to make lists of the best series of the year, we review some of the titles that have premiered during the first semester and are worthwhile. It's a selection that represents a mix of genres and various degrees of intensity: some aspire to be among the most outstanding fictions of 2026, while others seek to fill the space of light entertainment.

Empathy is a quality not everyone possesses. The protagonist of this Quebecois series is part of the group of lucky ones who have the ability to connect with others. Suzanne Bien-Aimé is a criminologist who, after two years of leave due to a family tragedy, joins the Mont-Royal Psychiatric Hospital as a psychiatrist. There, she is in charge of long-term patients with very complex cases, situations she will have to deal with in parallel to managing her own grieving process. Empatía, created by and starring Florence Longpré, navigates the delicate balance of dramedy: the cases the doctor deals with are truly striking, but the series manages to bring a smile to the viewer and reaffirm that connection with others is the only way to have a minimally healthy society. Available in VOSC.

The Curse of Widow's Bay is a strong candidate to be one of the series of the year, or at least one of the most original. AppleTV's fiction is a strange hybrid of horror and humor without becoming a parody of the genre as the saga was Scary movie. To understand it quickly, it's as if sitcoms as The Office or Parks and recreation took a sinister turn. The comparison is apt: the series' creator, Katie Dippold, was a writer for Parks and recreation and wrote a script that never materialized which turned the town of Pawnee into a horror setting. From that idea, he developed the story of Widow's Bay, an island in New England where strange things happen, even if its mayor, played by Matthew Rhys, doesn't want to admit it. In each episode, we find great horror genre tropes, such as the killer clown, mixed with delirious moments thanks to the island's inhabitants, eccentric characters who endear themselves, such as Patricia, the mayor's assistant. With the Emmy nominations just days away from being announced, specialized media indicate that the fiction could carve out a niche among the candidates to win awards.

If The Curse of Widow's Bay is difficult to define, DTF St Louis is not far behind. Its tone is singular and its story too: at the beginning of the series we discover that a man who worked as a sign language interpreter has been found dead in the residential area where he lived. The scene suggests it was a murder. The police investigation will draw the viewer into the complex triangle formed by the deceased, Floyd Smermitch (David Harbour), his wife, Carol (Linda Cardellini), and a friend of the couple, Clark (Jason Bateman). A series that speaks of kindness, but also of the unease of middle age when life and economic goals seem very difficult to achieve.

Of series about groups of friends in their twenties trying to make a living, we have many throughout television history. Thus, Not Suitable for Work is not precisely original in its approach. Some compare it to Friends because the protagonists are friends and neighbors and live in New York. In reality, however, it is easier to find resemblances to New Girl, the comedy starring Zooey Deschanel that tried to follow in the footsteps of the sitcom starring Jennifer Aniston. The driving force behind this Disney+ proposal is Mindy Kaling, who has made a name for herself as a producer of lighthearted series with a touch of romantic comedy, such as Never Have I Ever (Netflix) and The Sex Lives of College Girls (HBO Max). As she has explained, the new series is very loosely inspired by the years she began her professional career as a comedian and screenwriter in New York. Although Not Suitable for Work has a not very brilliant first episode, it eventually finds its tone and fulfills its function of light entertainment.

Dan Levy made a fortune with 'Schitt's Creek', which swept the 2020 Emmys. After such a success, making a new series was a real challenge. Epic mistakes, which already has a second season commissioned, shares many things with Schitt's Creek, like a dysfunctional family that very often ends in shouting. Nicky and Morgan are two siblings who get involved in a criminal organization after stealing accidentally a necklace for his grandmother, who is on her deathbed. Prone to chaos and in no way prepared to deal with professional criminals, the two brothers will experience a roller coaster of emotions. And they will scream, they will scream a lot.