0:11
11 Underrated Shows You Can Actually Finish In A Weekend
There should be a special name for the kind of decision paralysis that hits when you finally actually have time to yourself and total dominion over the TV. Windows like this don’t come around often when you’re a mom, so you want to make the most of it… but with so many streaming options, it’s very easy to wind up scrolling so long you lose your will to watch anything. The fix? A curated list of shows short enough to binge in one weekend.
If you take your troubles to social media, friends and family will inevitably recommend series that are seven seasons deep, and that requires more emotional commitment than you have to offer. You cannot promise the woman you are next weekend will want to tap back in and finish what you started.
So, every pick on this list clocks in somewhere between “one ambitious Saturday” and a tidy full-weekend watch. And since they’re also genuinely (and in some cases, criminally) underrated, the algo probably hasn’t force-fed them to you yet. Start on a Friday, finish on a Sunday, bing bang boom.
This Australian rom-com follows two strangers whose lives are thrown together after an incident involving a flashed boob and hitting a stray dog. Yep. It’s wacky, but it’s wonderful. If you love Aussie humor, you’ll adore this. Plus, it was created by and stars real-life husband-and-wife Patrick Brammall and Harriet Dyer, so their on-screen chemistry is fantastic.
The commitment: 2 seasons (with a third dropping July 27), 8 episodes each, ~3.5 hours per season
Bridget Everett is SO good in this dramedy about a cynical woman who returns to her Kansas hometown following the death of her sister. She’s always felt like an outsider there, but she ultimately finds community when she least expects it. It’s honestly such a heartfelt journey, so it’s criminal that the show — which holds a 100% score on Rotten Tomatoes — got canceled after its third season.
The commitment: 3 seasons, 7 episodes each, ~3.5 hours per season
It took me a minute to get into this Aussie crime comedy series, but it wasn’t long until I was totally hooked. Set in a small Tasmanian town, it sees two wildly mismatched female detectives investigating murders. You wouldn’t think a crime show would be this funny, and yet it is. You’ll fall in love with Kate Box and Madeleine Sami as odd-pair Dulcie and Eddie. Oh, and Season 2 has “the other Hemsworth brother,” Luke!
The commitment: 2 seasons (so far), 8 episodes + 6 episodes, ~13 hours total
I don’t even know how I stumbled upon this, because you hardly ever hear anyone talk about it. A total shame! It’s such a sharp series. In the comedy, a geeky Gen Z biochemical engineering Ph.D. student named Amina becomes the reluctant lead guitarist of an all-women Muslim punk band in London. It’s riotous and joyful, and the songs alone (case in point: “Voldemore Under My Headscarf”) are worth the watch.
The commitment: 2 seasons, 6 episodes each, ~25 min
Chalk another win up for crime comedies! Here, two pampered Pakistani-American brothers discover — upon their father’s death — that the convenience store patriarch had been using his empire as a huge drug smuggling ring. Hilarity ensues as they try to figure out their place in the seedy criminal-front underworld. I’m personally obsessed with Poorna Jagannathan as the family’s terrifying auntie-consigliere. The show has been called Schitt’s Creek meets Breaking Bad, and that’s pretty accurate.
The commitment: 2 seasons, 10 episodes + 6 episodes, ~8 hours total
Listen, I’m going to start this with a disclaimer: This series ends with a massive cliffhanger because it was canceled (prematurely!). So, if you can’t handle that going in, skip to the next one on the list. I hope you don’t, though, since Extraordinary deserves all the fanfare it can get. In a world where everyone gets a superpower at 18, Jen is 25 and still waiting on hers. In fact, she’s the only person on earth who doesn’t have one. It’s such a clever twist on the typical superhero tropes, and genuinely just a fun, raunchy, surprisingly poignant comedy.
The commitment: 2 seasons, 8 episodes each, ~3.5 hours per season
You’ll never catch me turning down anything starring Merritt Wever, who plays one of the leads in this neo-Western miniseries. Set in an 1880s New Mexico mining town run almost entirely by women after a disaster kills most of the men, it also sees Michelle Dockery as a badass frontier mom and Jeff Daniels in the most unlikable role you’ll probably ever see from him.
The commitment: 1 season, 7 episodes, ~7.5 hours total
I feel like Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie’s ties to the movie version of this show may have kept some people from tuning in to this excellent series so far. If you’re one of those people, here’s your sign to change that now. Donald Glover and Maya Erskine step into the title roles as two lonely strangers assigned to pose as a married couple for spy missions. They’re both incredible; the action is jaw-dropping...
6:06
Why I’m opening my home instead of my wallet this summer
Between summer camp registrations, family vacations, and the endless loop of “Can we go somewhere?” requests from my kids, summer has a way of putting my budget on life support. This year, with sky-high gas prices, inflation-gobbling grocery bills, and a desperate desire to avoid the credit card hangover I’ve experienced in summers past, I’ve been more intentional about where our discretionary dollars go.
The problem? Saving money during the summer often feels like it comes at the expense of my own social life. With less room in the budget for brunch catch-ups, girls’ trips, concerts, and spontaneous weekend plans, I felt an initial flash of panic as I envisioned a lonely-mom summer spent mostly at home, juggling work, kids, and the occasional stolen moment of peace.
Then, during a round of venting in my mom group chats, I realized I wasn’t the only one trying to strike this balance. Nearly every mom I know is looking for ways to keep summer fun without overspending. That’s when it hit me: maybe the answer wasn’t finding more money for social plans—it was rethinking what socializing looks like in the first place.
Opening up my home as a low-key social hub has allowed me to fill my own cup, stay connected with friends, and create summer memories without constantly reaching for my wallet.
Instead of treating my house as the place I retreat to between activities, I’ve started treating it as the destination. Opening up my home as a low-key social hub has allowed me to fill my own cup, stay connected with friends, and create summer memories without constantly reaching for my wallet.
My Achilles heel is resisting the urge to turn every gathering into a Pinterest-worthy production. In the past, I’ve avoided hosting by convincing myself I need new patio furniture, elaborate menus, or professionally planned activities before I could invite people over. Once I let go of the idea that hosting had to be performative, it became much easier—and a lot more affordable—to say, “Come over.” Here’s how I’m prioritizing connection over perfection this year.
No one is expecting a Michelin-worthy meal with their invite. My proof? Find me a mom who hasn’t counted leftover nuggets and baby carrots as dinner without giving it a second thought. By all means, go a step beyond frozen food for your guests, but don’t discount the crowd-pleasing power and affordability of a couple of Costco pizzas or carved up four-dollar rotisserie chickens and a simple salad. I’d wager that your guests are also more than willing to chip in a baked good, a bottle of wine, chips and salsa, or anything else they can contribute to the bounty. If they ask what they can bring, do yourself a favor and tell them.
When the weather is nice, people tend to congregate around whatever yard space you have. When we invited a handful of friends and their kids over for a summer BBQ, our outdoor seating consisted of two Adirondack chairs and an Ikea dining table and bench set. Instead of panic shopping for patio furniture, I spread blankets on top of our lawn for a picnic-style set up that both the kids and adults flocked to. The result? Everyone wanted a spot on the blankets and our Adirondack chairs and Ikea dining set remained empty.
I’m passionate about creating art but have struggled to carve out more time for it since becoming a mom. Instead of shelling out for a paint and sip party, I’m hosting an intimate watercolors workshop at my place—no drink tickets required. Emily Lex Studio has a stunning collection of Watercolor Workbooks ($24) that are beginner friendly. Instead of having to paint a random paint and sip design that might not match our aesthetics, these workbooks offer 19 different themes to choose from, ranging from flowers to animals. We’re all ordering a workbook that speaks to us and I’m sharing watercolor paints and brushes I’ve collected over the years. In return, one of my friends is hosting a series of Qigong workshops—an ancient Chinese wellness practice that combines mindful movements and breath work—at her place.
I used to feel pressured to invest in entertainment options when hosting playdates. After purchasing a pricey corn hole set for my kids and their friends to play with, I noticed that they spent more time rummaging through a bin of old Halloween costumes and creating their own make-believe world in our back yard. Turns out, other kids’ stuff always feels novel compared to your own, and your own stuff is infinitely more captivating when you have someone else to engage with it. You’d also be surprised by how simple and cheap activities like building cardboard box creations, creating sidewalk chalk obstacle courses, or tossing water balloons on a hot day can lead to hours of entertainment.
I look at hosting as an opportunity for connection during a season that can otherwise feel surprisingly isolating for moms. No one remembers whether you served artisanal appetizers or whether your outdoor furniture matched.
12:01
Free hobbies to lift your spirits
How good is a free hobby! Something to give you a little bit of purpose and a feeling of accomplishment. Something to get excited about and to share about the next time you’re at a dinner party or waiting in the queue at the post office. Something to do that doesn’t cost you anything and which hopefully brings a bit of joy to your life.
A hobby is a wonderful thing for kids to take part in as well. It gives them something to care about and often helps them connect to nature, people and the changing seasons. Our new book, At Home in Every Season, is filled with dozens of activities that can essentially be turned into regular hobbies. Things like nature walks and journaling, planting seedlings, observing bugs, going pond dipping or picking and pressing flowers — these can all become regular hobbies to do with your kids throughout the year.
Below, I thought I’d share some of the totally free hobbies we enjoy in our family in case you’re looking for some inspiration. It’s winter school holidays here in Australia and summer holidays in the northern hemisphere, so now is a great time to start.
Bird watching
You don’t have to do it competitively (like the people in the Listers documentary) to be a birder. You don’t even have to record what you see; you can simply just observe the birds around you. Take a minute to sit and watch them. Or, while lying in your bed before waking up in the morning, you can tune your ear to hear the different birds outside your window. You can use an app like the Merlin app to help you identify the birds you see and hear (we recently downloaded this, and while it isn’t as good as recognising birds here in Australia, we’re still having so much fun with it), or you can be more old-fashioned and buy a bird book (I’ve picked up several field guides and bird books at the op shops).
Get your children involved too — encourage them to notice the birds’ colours, their habits, their song. Yesterday, Wilkie and I were having so much fun observing the way the Willie wagtail wags its tail every time in lands! You can encourage your kids to keep a journal or even draw or paint the birds they see. We have a few framed bird paintings in our house and I love them so much.
14:43
Everything Happening in the Mommy Shorts Universe this Summer
Yesterday, I was in the car with Mazzy and she said, “I can’t believe it’s almost the end of June.” I was like, “Almost the end? It’s July 1st tomorrow!” Then she said, “Nooooo, I’m not ready to go back to school!” Easy Mazzy, we’ve still got over two months left before school starts. But I get her point— school just ended and yet summer already seems like it’s passing too quickly. So, what have we been doing since the kids have been off and what are our future plans now that summer is in full swing?
The last day of school was on June 7th, but all Mazzy and Harlow’s friends were still in the city, so they wanted to stay in the city too. Plus, June was Leah’s last month as my assistant, so I wanted to spend as much time with her as possible. Both so I could get as much work out of her before she left me and because she’s become a dear friend and I just genuinely like spending time with her. Who’s gonna listen to all the things I wish I could say online without getting canceled??? I’m kidding. I’m pretty noncontroversial in real life too.
My new assistant Eva started on June 21st so that Leah could train her for during her last week, and then we said our official goodbye. Our last event was the Love Shack Fancy X Target event (more on that in a second) which was a fitting and very frilly send-off.
Harlow spent June being pretty independent in the city. She’d meet her friends in Soho, go on trips to Rockaway Beach (with a parent) and even navigated to Brooklyn by herself. We also went to a bunch of Broadway shows together. We made sure to see Death Becomes Her before it closed (highly recommend catching it on tour if it comes to your city), we saw Two Strangers (which is an adorable love letter to NYC) and went to a special performance from the cast of Maybe Happy Ending, where Harlow got to interview the new cast members. Darren Criss and Helen Chen are moving on, but Zachary Noah Piser and Hannah Kevitt are going to make excellent replacements. We actually saw Hannah when she was an understudy, so I can say that with complete confidence.
Mazzy spent the first half of June studying for her ACT, which I would say was no fun, except she took the test on the 13th and got her goal score, so I don’t think there is anything that could have helped set her up for a good summer better than that! She’s going away for a few weeks to do a college program for credit in mid July, but she’ll be at home getting some quality family time until then. She’s working for me behind the scenes (as usual), working on her college essay and doing her summer reading. In August, when she gets back from the college program, she’ll be working as a counselor at a day camp in the Hamptons like she did last year. At the moment, we are watching lots of Love Island together (it’s my first time and I had no idea it was so many nights a week!) and debating starting Girls. Can we watch that together??? I’m not sure!
Harlow left for sleepaway camp this past weekend and will be gone for 6 weeks. Photos so far indicate that she is surrounded by close friends (this is her 5th summer at the same camp) and having a great time. She has once again requested pop culture updates in her letters, so I’ll be bringing that back to my content too! Taylor Swift possibly getting married at MSG, Will Ferrell starring in a SKIMS campaign, all the people from around the world coming to America for the World Cup and loving our ice and AC, etc. I’m keeping a list.
As for Mike and I, we are going back and forth from our house to the city, sometimes together and sometimes separately, because I need to be in-person for work events sometimes. Also, ultimately, I’m a city person and I get really bored if I spend too much time at the house! I think the Knicks game watch parties really showed me how much I love being around my fellow New Yorkers for milestone moments, so I’m planning to spend July 4th in the city this year. It’s going to be an especially huge fireworks display for the 250th, and I don’t want to miss it. My mom and Sam, who have been staying at our house this week, are coming into the city for it too. Mike can work from anywhere and really loves taking the full summer to be out at the house to golf and work on his garden. He’s growing tomatoes, more mint than we know what to do with and some huge zucchinis this summer!
As for any current partnerships? I’ve got some good ones happening!
We’re working with Tate’s Bake Shop, which makes my favorite chocolate chip cookies for as long as I can remember. Tate’s actually started in Southampton so I did a video about our first weekend at our summer house and included a stop at the Tate’s Bake Shop. You can watch it here.
And, as I mentioned earlier… before Harlow left for camp, I took the girls to the launch party for the Love Shack Fancy x Target collab.
20:29
My Kids and I Found Jewish Joy at a Picnic
Antisemitism is having a moment, and I have no idea what to do about it, so I took my children to a food festival called The Great Nosh.
My daughter is 7 and my son is 4. They know they are Jewish the way they know they are New Yorkers: It’s just a fact, unremarkable and obvious. I want to keep it that way for as long as I can, as they are blissfully unaware of the rise in casual antisemitism. I’d love for their Judaism to mean something to them. When I told them about The Great Nosh I sold them on the ferry ride and Governors Island’s infamous Slide Hill —– but I also told them that we’d celebrate and learn about being Jewish. I want them to know that matters.
We’re told in popular culture that Jews love to complain and whine. I can hum the Mourner’s Kaddish like my friends can hum the new Harry Styles. But Judaism is about joy, too, and I want to teach my children that. I hoped a Jewish food festival would help.
On the surface, at least, The Great Nosh promised to be a very good Instagrammable afternoon. A summer picnic party on Governor’s Island packed with exciting food collaborations like Kabawa x Gertie and Katz’s Deli x Santo Taco, full of food, natural wine and gingham picnic blankets. Beyond the food tents were activity stations such as flower crown crafting, cardboard urban city-making and a beading workshop led by Susan Alexandra. Gail Simmons and Jake Cohen walked around noshing, and when DJ Max Kulchinsky turned up the tunes, we all danced together while children used blow-up pickles like swords.
Since October 7, I want to scream with pride about my Judaism and I want to hide it, sometimes in the same hour, sometimes in the same breath. But like so many, one constant is I feel a deep pull to Jewish community, one that was not as strong before.
I’ve participated in Jewish community before. When I was a teenager, I joined a youth group, NFTY PAR, mostly to widen my social circle and find boys to kiss. What I didn’t expect, but definitely found, was a connection to my Judaism that felt different from sitting in synagogue during High Holiday services. This connection was less religious and more like just another facet of my life. I remember spending weekends at Camp Harlem with kids from the tri-state area, roasting marshmallows over fires and playing games. On Saturday night, the sun would go down, and the Havdalah services would start. My friends played music and it was beautiful. Our voices came together and we almost didn’t even know that we were doing something Jewish. We were just doing something Jew-ish. We belonged. (And we definitely kissed!)
This is the kind of Jewish community I want to offer my children. I grew up with a multicultural extended family who never felt very at home in a conservative synagogue and moved to a welcoming reform congregation. Now, I am married to a non-religious Chinese man; he is Jewish by marriage and matzah ball soup consumption. We celebrate Jewish holidays and light Shabbat candles as a family. We’re thinking about starting Hebrew school for my children next year. But as I stood in a 40-minute line to get tacos at The Great Nosh, I realized that the door I’m hoping to offer my children to their Jewish identities might be less about organized Jewish study and more about joyous Jewish communal experiences. A picnic won’t stop a hate crime, obviously. But defiance doesn’t have to be confrontational.
My children are proud to say that they are Chinese and Jewish but they do not exactly know what the latter means. Neither did I, once. When I joined NFTY PAR, I found solidarity in a community bonded through generations of tikkun olam and asking questions, and even if I couldn’t understand it at the time, I found connection.
I can’t guarantee that my children will find this same connection in their Judaism, but I think it’s worth offering up. Communal events like The Great Nosh hold this power.
When we finally made it to the NATOORA x Alimentari flâneur tent, they were out of kasha, so we ate berries and stone fruit. My son spotted fried chicken on challah from Naro x Theo and started chanting the word challah — a bread he loves because his bubbe brings him some almost every week — like he was cheering for the Knicks. We got to the front just as the last one went to someone else. He kept asking about it the whole walk back. He didn’t get to try that sandwich, but he did dance to the music of DJ Max Kulchinsky like he could feel the beat in his bones. Hips swinging, no self-consciousness yet, no idea that anyone could ever resent him simply for who he is. We grabbed paletas on the way out from La Newyorkina, where it took my daughter one bite of the tahini cookie dough flavor to become a tahini devotee.
As we were leaving, I started crying behind my sunglasses and couldn’t say exactly why. Or maybe I could.
I don’t want being Jewish to feel fraught for my children. I want it to feel fun, beautiful, Jew-ish, like my experience in youth group.
26:24
All the Jewish TV Coming in July 2026
It’s shaping up to be a pretty, pretty hot July — which means staying home in front of the TV may be just what the doctor ordered. Luckily, there are a lot of fun Jewish stars and shows to watch and schvitz to, from “Love Island USA,” which this season features a Jewish Gal, to Larry David’s “Life, Larry and the Pursuit of Unhappiness,” where every sketch is full of kvetchy Jewish energy.
Plus, there’s a whole lot of new shows and specials premiering this month featuring Jewish celebs and stories. Here’s the Jewish TV coming this July 2026.
Retired WNBA Jewish star Sue Bird both stars in and produced this documentary about the women in sports you need to know.
Judaism rating: 0.5/4 couch potato latkes
For those longing for the Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen (platonic! Andy has a new boyfriend!!) chemistry the we witnessed with their delightful drunk New Year’s broadcasts, we’re happy to report these two pals will be hosting a special Independence Day broadcast to celebrate the USA’s 250th birthday (mazel!). We’re sure Andy will find a way to add some Jewish flavor to the televised event.
Judaism rating: 2/4 couch potato latkes (Andy gets 2 latkes, Anderson zero, sorry)
As I’ve previously stated, I love hot dogs, but nowhere near enough to watch people eat them competitively. But for those of you who do love this yearly food sporting event, you can watch contestants eat Coney Island’s (arguably) most Jewish hot dogs while escaping the heat this Independence Day on ESPN.
Judaism rating: 2/4 couch potato latkes for hot dog screentime
The biggest drama for Heather Dubrow on this season of “Real Housewives”? Her Jewish mom is making the move from New York and California! According to Bravo, “Heather Dubrow’s family life gets a big shakeup when her mother Carole moves from New York to LA, challenging their already-complex relationship.” We can’t wait.
Judaism rating: 1/4 couch potato latkes
For those who can’t get enough of Jewish dads BBQ-ing this summer, how about watching one of the culinary world’s most famous Jewish dads judge a BBQ show?! James Beard Award-winning Andrew Zimmern is co-hosting and judging this new BBQ pitmaster competition (fun fact, one of the contestants, Jeremy Yoder, inspired the founding of a kosher BBQ catering company called Holy Smokes Kosher BBQ!)
Judaism rating: 0.5/4 couch potato latkes
Yes, Jordan Belfort, the real person on whom the movie “The Wolf of Wall Street” is based, was Jewish. Honestly, we’re kind of glad that part of his identity wasn’t featured in the movie (although other characters, like Jonah Hill’s Donnie, were obviously Jewish), but it’ll be interesting to see how this new documentary about Belfort’s Jewish Long Island childhood and the way he was viewed on Wall Street.
Judaism rating: 2/4 couch potato latkes
ChaiFlicks is premiering one of Israel’s most popular rom-com series with two of the nation’s most beloved actresses, Naomi Levov (“On the Spectrum”) and Rotem Sela (“A Body That Works”) who star as roommates Murray, a film professor, and Dana, an OBGYN, respectively, caught in a love triangle with a man that Murray was involved in a hit and run with. The series is the ode to classic rom-coms your summer needs.
Judaism rating: 3/4 couch potato latkes.
Extra! Extra! A new time-traveling “Big Bang Theory” spinoff is coming! We don’t know if the explicitly (and stereotypically?) Jewish Howard, or his mother, are coming back for this trippy sequel, or if Mayim Bialik has any upcoming cameos, but the series does star Jewish Kevin Sussman, who plays comic book store owner Stuart Bloom and who has always felt pretty Jewish to me. It will also feature Jewish actors Josh Brenner and Joshua Malina.
Judaism rating: 1/4 couch potato latkes
Jewish screenwriter Julien Nitzberg is the writer behind this new show about… bears making meth? Jewish actors Josh Gad and Sarah Michelle Gellar star as bears Alistair and Blair, respectively. Um. I just thought you should know.
Judaism rating: 1/4 couch potato latkes
Jewish “Spaceballs” sequel director Josh Greenbaum is directing this Ben Stiller-produced pickleball comedy for Apple, and well, I’m thrilled. Stiller plays a (I assume, Jewish!) doctor who prescribes star Jake Johnson, former tennis star Dusty Boyd, to play pickleball, a sport he calls the dorky but “fastest road back to tennis.”
Judaism rating: 2/4 couch potato latkes (because of pickleball)
It’s always thrilling to have Emmy Rossum back on TV, but this show is particularly thrilling because the Jewish star plays the show’s leading role, FBI Agent Alice Black who “delves into a female killer’s history while partnering with a seasoned investigator to track her down,” according to Hulu. Sounds like the perfect summer thriller.
Judaism rating: 1/4 couch potato latkes
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