Well, viewing enthusiasts, another weekend is here, and with it arrives some well-deserved time off from your hard week at work. As you settle into and relax on that comfortable couch of yours, don’t forget your popcorn and snacks. This week on Amazon Prime Video, we’re going hunting with Maggie Q, exploring the night sky and its mysteries with JK Simmons, and learning how to hide in plain sight with the lovably mouthy Kristen Bell.
Here are three worthy shows on Prime Video to curl up with this weekend.
1
Ballard
Maggie Q, of Bosch, heads up this police procedural that boasts a 100% critics’ score on Rotten Tomatoes. The audience score isn’t far behind, either.
A spinoff of the hit Prime Video series Bosch, Ballard follows the detective in charge of running the LAPD’s new cold-case division, which is, of course, poorly funded and made up of volunteers. As Det. Ballard (Q) works with her team to tackle the city’s long-forgotten crimes, she also hunts a vicious serial killer and uncovers a police conspiracy that challenges her principles and pursuit of justice. Additionally, you know our hero is battling her own personal demons and past traumas, and she will—no doubt—battle more in her effort to expose the truth.
There’s plenty of mystery to get lost in with the season’s ten, 45-minute episodes, give or take. Plus, it features a solid cast that includes Bosch star Titus Welliver, who reprises his role as a volunteer on Ballard’s team, John Carroll Lynch, of Big Sky, The Calling’s Michael Mosely, Rebecca Field, of All Rise, Victoria Moroles (Never Have I Ever), and Amy Hill, of 2018’s Magnum P.I.
Ballard
Release Date
July 9, 2025
Network
Prime Video
Directors
Jet Wilkinson
2
Night Sky
Night Sky is one of Prime Video’s most underrated and overlooked sci-fi shows, which is unfortunate, because it features a juicy time-travel twist fans of the genre will love.
Starring heavy hitters J.K. Simmons and Sissy Spacek as Franklin and Irene York, our narrative follows the pair as they live out their golden years together, tucked away on their small Illinois farm. For all intents and purposes, they appear as a normal sleepy-town couple, but they’re hiding a secret so magnificent, it has the potential to transform their quiet little world into a dangerous breeding ground for teleporters and time travelers with nefarious intentions. Buried in their backyard is a chamber that miraculously leads to a deserted planet, and when a stranger bearing time-traveling trinkets shows up covered in someone else’s blood, they suspect he could be from “the other side of the glass.”
The eight-episode, one-season show is a bit a of a slow burn, but that’s needed for a narrative of this magnitude. Time and pace should feel deliberate, and it does. Where Night Sky differs from the other sci-fi series on Prime Video is in its lack of visual effects, so don’t expect a ton of planetary landscapes and galactic perspectives here. This is more of a nuanced story full of character depth and multi-generational arcs that will have you caring about the outcomes of these characters’ storylines.
Night Sky
Release Date
2022 – 2021
Network
Amazon Prime Video
Showrunner
Juan Jose Campanella
3
The Good Place
The Good Place stars Kristen Bell as Eleanor Shellstrop, a young saleswoman who, upon dying, is mistakenly sent to the Good Place instead of the Bad Place, which was her intended destination.
She’s relieved and surprised, right up until she learns that a mistake was made, and she should be in the Bad Place. Hoping to change her ways and discover a new path in the afterlife, Eleanor decides to hide in plain sight from the Good Place’s architect, Michael (Ted Danson), who is not yet aware of his mistake, and his all-knowing assistant, Janet (D’Arcy Carden, of Nobody Wants This).
Kristen Bell gives a hilariously relatable performance as a self-absorbed, foul-mouthed, morally corrupt jerk who sees no room for change. One of the parts I love about her character is that she is so foul-mouthed. In the Good Place, you can try to curse, but it won’t come out that way. The F-word is her best friend, but here, every time she uses it, it comes out as “fork.”
It’s witty little moments like this—interspersed with genuine friendship—that make it one of the funniest sitcoms of the century, and I’ll be honest: Kristen Bell carries this hype all the way. The other cast members are fantastic as well, but she is the rock cast into the pond that sends out those affective—or effective, depending on how you look at it—ripples. The Good Place also features performances from The Resort’s William Jackson Harper, Jameela Jamil (She-Hulk: Attorney at Law), and Manny Jacinto, of The Acolyte.
The Good Place
Release Date
2016 – 2020
Network
NBC
Showrunner
Michael Schur
If you fly through these watches and are looking for more but don’t want to take the dive into the rabbit hole of endless scrolling, here’s a full list of everything coming to Prime Video in October 2025.
Subscription with ads
Yes, via Prime membership or $9/month
Simultaneous streams
3
Live TV
No
Price
Included with Amazon Prime subscription ($15/month or $139/year) or $9/month standalone
Prime Video has a large volume of content to watch. The other Amazon perks are a bonus as well.
