Without a Trace

Baby Reindeer (2024) is Richard Gadd's devastating autobiographical series about a struggling comedian stalked by an obsessive woman, exploring trauma and complicity in seven electrifying episodes. Stream it on Netflix.

Gomorrah is a television crime drama series based on the book of the same name by Roberto Saviano. The show focuses on the criminal underworld of Naples, Italy, and the Camorra, a powerful and dangerous criminal organization. It depicts the inner workings of the Camorra, including its involvement in drug trafficking, extortion, and money laundering.

Mae Martin and Toni Collette star in a small-town thriller about a sinister academy for troubled teens. The chart-topping Netflix limited series is streaming now.

Elsbeth follows the brilliantly scatterbrained attorney Elsbeth Tascioni overseeing the NYPD — a Columbo-style whodunit with Carrie Preston stealing every scene on Paramount+.

The Penguin (2024) follows Oz Cobblepot's ruthless rise to criminal power in a rain-soaked Gotham after the Falcone family's collapse, starring Colin Farrell under transformative prosthetics. Stream it on Max.

Like fine red wines, pate de foie gras, and escargot, Criminal Minds probably is an acquired taste: The crime drama psychoanalyzes the psychoanalysts, definitely building tense drama, but ironically downplaying the crimes. The New York Times has described Criminal Minds as "cerebral," a euphemism for "nerds with guns." Brilliant writing and compelling characters, however, make it work. The stories represent an elite team of specialists"”the FBI's "Behavioral Analysis Unit" "” who, in just forty-four minutes, can deconstruct a crime, profile a criminal, and bring everything to a profound resolution complete with quotation from literature. Naturally, the feds encounter resistance from local enforcers eager to protect their turf. Just as naturally, many of the stories spark viewers' recognition, because they are "ripped from the headlines." Two features sustain viewers' interest in this sometimes too-heady-for-primetime series: First, every audience loves a good hunt for a psychotic serial killer; and, second, in Criminal Minds, many of the good guys are almost as twisted as the bad guys.