What am I watching? This summer's thunderstorms and smoldering weather are keeping me inside and on the couch.
What happened to the days kids only came home during the summer for supper — oh well, I guess I'm not a kid anymore either. But here are my summer streams, from Love Island USA to We Were Liars.
Summer months traditionally bring ideas of long days by the pool, childhood adventures on bikes and free days for whatever you can think of doing. And while these can all still be true, I’ve found myself inside and marathon streaming more than ever.
Maybe it’s because I’m doing a 9-5 fellowship and working as a server some nights, but the weather has also kept me inside and on the couch watching new and exciting series. If you’re looking for a new show to stream this summer or just want to read some of my takes, check out what my 2025 summer streaming lineup has been so far.
And in case you care (or pay attention) to award nominations, this year’s Emmy nominations were just released on Tuesday, July 15. I’ll mention a few nominees throughout the article, but I just had to let everyone know that “Severance” is getting the recognition it deserves and received 27 nominations. I hope you enjoyed all of those nominations equally.
Love Island USA
Let me just start by saying, obviously I was watching the new season of “Love Island USA” this summer with all of America. And while I do think I preferred season 7, this season did not skimp on drama. The problem with this season was that it rewarded drama and somehow penalized connections — as we saw with Hannah and Jeremiah getting voted off by their fellow islanders for having real or solid romantic connections. I was so captivated and invested in this show during the peak of all the drama — I’m talking crying when Nic and Olandria were sent home after Casa Amor, fuming when Chelley, Cierra and Olandria ganged up on Huda, and seething at grown men yelling at Amaya for “being too much.” And we cannot forget the added drama of this season of not one, but two, islanders getting sent home for past racial slur usage on social media. I mean, this season was just a lot.
However, the “love” and relationship aspect of this season was severely lacking. I do think Amaya and Bryan had great chemistry, but they only coupled up a week before the finale. Of course there was the Huda and Jeremiah romance at the beginning of the season, but that didn’t work out and Jeremiah was sent home for pursuing another connection seriously. And I know Chelley and Ace were pursuing each other the whole season, but I just couldn’t root for them after watching Ace be such a rude ringleader and the conspiracy theories they had more of a serious background than just meeting once outside of a club. Even with all those takes, I did watch the entire show and engage in a lot of discourse about the happenings. It kept me entertained and I streamed it all, so I guess the show did its job. Those producers just really know what they’re doing.
And while I hate to admit it, I do keep up with a few more reality TV shows because Bravo does reality TV right. The new seasons of “Real Housewives of Miami” and “Below Deck” are streaming this summer and while I’m still in the thick of the plot, things are starting to get steamy.
We Were Liars
A plot twist I genuinely never saw coming. This was the streaming choice of my household last week and we were all itching every day to watch the next episode at night. Every plot and interaction was so captivating and confusing, we never wanted to stop watching. The Sinclairs are a family who value appearances and inheritance over everything, including their relationships with one another. As the “liars” share lasting memories of personal discovery, tempting adventure and new romances, Beechwood Island and their family have a lot more waiting for them than a summer of fun.
This Amazon Prime series was originally a novel by E. Lockhart and I do remember all of my friends devouring this book — looking back I wish I had as well. Since I hadn’t read the novel myself, I can’t give my thoughts on the adaptation but I really enjoyed the series. I also just picked up the prequel to this story, “Family of Liars,” all about the moms’ summer that changed everything.
The Better Sister
It’s a show of clashing personalities, a troubled family from every angle, and murder trial — nothing quite like it. This Amazon Prime new series starred Jessica Biel and Elizabeth Banks as two sisters from a troubled family and some very blurred familial lines. When Chloe Taylor’s (played by Biel) husband is found dead and her son is arrested for the murder, Nicky (played by Elizabeth Banks) is called in and viewers discover the son is actually Adam and Nicky’s child. With more twists and turns of secret pasts, addiction and abuse, this show has a lot to talk about. My only critique: this show did feel like it had a slower pace and took us a minute to get through, but still a good watch this summer.
Squid Games
The third season of “Squid Games” was just released, only six months after season two came out on Netflix. Let me start by just thanking these producers for not playing the normal series release games, making us wait over a year for the next season after an abrupt cliff hanger.
Now, this show is definitely not for everyone even though it does receive excellent reviews — the series has an overall 85% score on Rotten Tomatoes and 66% on popcorn meter, meaning 66% of users gave the TV show a star rating of 3.5. This season definitely tapped into the dark, grim realities of this game that disturbed me so much it took me a few sittings to finally finish the show. I recognize the gruesomeness of the show is to remind viewers this is not a fun, little game but it definitely left me unsettled. As seen with the prior seasons, this is a very well thought out show of plot twists and secret motivations, with the harsh reality of financial hardship at the cold center. And there are some whisperings of a U.S. version adaptation, which I personally don’t think we need.
Sirens
While “Sirens” was released a couple of months ago, it was the first show of my summer that I streamed in completion extremely quickly. It was also the first show of the many I have discussed in depth with my mom and dad during my stay at home daughter era.
If you’re a little captivated by the name, here’s a quick description. Meghann Fahy (my queen) plays the disgruntled, goth sister who unexpectedly arrives at her sister’s (played by Milly Alcock) place of work, which just so happens to be a Lilly Pulitzer-infested, Nantucket-like paradise run by Julianne Moore. Full of secrets, budding romances and family hardships, this show kept me on my toes and captivated my attention entirely. As we begin to see the resurgence of Lilly Pulitzer, Vera Bradley and Jack Rogers, I place the blame on Sirens completely. And of the Emmy nominations just released, “Sirens” received four. The notable nominations in my book are Fahy for Best Limited/Movie Actress and the show for Best Limited/Movie Contemporary Costumes (yeah…).
Parks and Recreation
OK so I know this 2009-pick doesn’t really match the other shows I am watching, but I am watching “Parks and Rec” for the first time EVER. I know this is a lot of people’s comfort show, but I have always leaned towards The Office, New Girl and Modern Family instead. However, I saw a clip from Amy Poehler’s new podcast, Good Hang with Amy Poehler, of the cast and their energy and jokes just made me want to be a part of their community.
The skits in this show actually make me laugh out loud, which is a little embarrassing when you’re sitting alone in the living room. However, it is definitely one of those lighthearted and wholesome shows to pop on when you have a moment between to-dos or even to keep on in the background as you clean up. My favorite characters are Audrey Plaza (duh) and Chris Pratt. I love Chris Pratt’s character in “Guardians of the Galaxy,” so it was interesting to watch him play a more helpless character but of course still a bit of a romantic. Audrey Plaza’s character is just hilarious because I don’t know how she maintains her composure through all the ridiculous things she says — in the background you can see her sometimes smile and “break” a little which I think is cute to see.