Best Netflix Shows for Teens

Avery & Poppy love making appearances here on Salty Lashes & they are so excited to share the top favorite Netflix shows they’ve been loving! As teens, Avery & Poppy have created the perfect Netflix Teen Watchlist with shows both entertaining, uplifting & appropriate (somewhat;)).

Netflix has been around for 21 YEARS! Can you believe that?! It started off with DVD rentals and slowly made its’ way to all of our homes via monthly subscriptions. The options are endless on Netflix’s streaming service. You can find everything from horror films to crazy documentaries, throwback movies and classic sitcoms! Avery & Poppy have watched a good handful of series on Netflix. And it’s been fun as a mom, to help my girls pick shows & series that are age appropriate, yet something they’ll be into. 

The girls have compiled a list of their top favorite shows, what they are about & most importantly, why they’re perfect for teens!

Best Netflix Shows For Teens

RIVERDALE

Riverdale is an American teen drama series, based off the Archie Comics. Starring KJ Apa, Lili Reinhart, Cole Sprouse and Luke Perry, Riverdale is currently 5 seasons long with a 6th season releasing in November!

Riverdale is about a small town murder mystery & a group of friends entangled in the mix. There are themes of friendship, mystery, loyalty, integrity & teen romance as well as general topics that help your teen deal with real life situations! Avery & Poppy love this show. They get excited every time a new season comes out & they love watching the mystery and clues unfold.

THE 100

Avery & Poppy love this post-apocalyptic science fiction drama, The 100. The 7 season long series follows a group of post-apocalyptic survivors who return to earth after a nuclear apocalypse. Actors like Eliza Taylor & Bob Morley star in this series. 

This is another awesome show for teenagers, especially those who are looking for something a little more science fiction than your average teen show. In the series, the characters are pressed to make daunting and life-threatening decisions. The lines between hero & villain are blurred, making it interesting for your teen to watch & determine for themselves what they think is right!

THE CHILLING ADVENTURES of SABRINA 

The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina is another awesome series based off the Archie Comics. With a story centered on Sabrina Spellman (Kiernan Shipka), it follows a tale of Sabrina discovering her magic powers in her teenage years. She uses her powers to fight evil in defense of her family, friends & home. This series puts a little bit of a darker twist on Sabrina The Teenage Witch. If you watched that when you were younger, this could be an awesome show to binge with your teen!

With other stars such as Ross Lynch, Lucy Davis & Chance Perdomo, this 4 season show is perfect if your teen wants a bit of a thriller to watch! Based in the 1960’s they do an awesome job of setting the time & creating a world of magic for your teen to love! Avery & Poppy loved watching this series together.

STRANGER THINGS 

I’m sure Stranger Things might be old news by now, but if you haven’t heard of it, or watched it, you NEED to! This is another great show to indulge in with your teenager! There are currently 3 seasons of Stranger Things on Netflix, with people waiting on the edges of their seats for the 4th! It is a thrilling science fiction story about the disappearance of a neighborhood boy among other supernatural events. As friends and family team up together to find him, more abnormalities occur and things start to get crazy.

Avery & Poppy couldn’t get enough of this show. Based in the 1980’s they loved seeing how well the series showed the time frame & what life was like in the 80’s! Another great thing they loved about this series was the soundtrack. It has such great music that fits so well with the theme, & a few awesome throwbacks as well!

VAMPIRE DIARIES

The Vampire Diaries is a huge teen favorite of Netflix. The show first aired in 2009 so all 8 series are up and available to watch! For some reason, this some is a huge teenager hit. With stars like Elena Gilbert, Paul Wesley & Ian Somerhalder, Vampire Diaries follows a story of a mortal girl who falls in love with a vampire. Little does she know, she will develop feelings for the brother as well. This is a great little romance for your teenager to follow!

Avery & Poppy have loved this one, especially because of the 2 heart throb vampires that star. They loved the anticipation of who the main character would choose & I loved that it was age appropriate for my girls!

Gilmore Girls

I used to LOVE this show & so do my girls. This is the perfect show that depicts the relationships between mothers & daughters, ESPECIALLY when they’re going into highschool with so many changes. My girls love the messages & lessons this show gives in such fun, real ways! Having 2 teen girls in our house, I can totally relate to this show & think it’s an awesome option for teen girls to watch!

Atypical

This is such an awesome show for teens to watch. There are currently 4 seasons on this show. It follows the teenage life of a boy who lives with autism. It is super educational, eye-opening & heartwarming. My girls love to watch this show and cheer on the characters. I love how it portrays the difficulties a family can face with a child with autism and how everyone can help, love & support.

Nailed It!

This show is hilarious! Not only is it a great show for teens, the family can enjoy it too! We love binging a few episodes together! This baking show takes 3 non-bakers from across the country & challenges them to replicate intricate baked goods! The results are always a mess and it always gives me & the girls a good laugh!

I always want to make sure my girls watch appropriate shows for their age! These shows are my girls’ favorites & have been for years! They’re perfect ‘coming of age’ shows that show real-life scenarios & can help teenagers process emotions & situations!

Some Other Great Shows For Teens:

The Flash: A 5 season long show about an American superhero, The Flash.

Supergirl: A superhero action adventure series based off of a female superwoman!

The Originals: A 5 season spin-off of the Vampire Diaries. A series about the first vampires ever to exist.

Pretty Little Liars: An American teen thriller mystery drama about a small town girl who goes missing.

UPDATE ON AVERY & POPPY’S TOP NETFLIX SHOWS DURING QUARANTINE:

All American – 3 seasons, 2018-now

All American is about an amazing football player, Spencer James, from South Crenshaw L.A gets recruited to play for Beverly High School. He lives two completely different lives and begins to bring them together throughout the series. I would highly recommend this series for teens and maybe even some adults. It is an extremely fast-paced series and will always keep you interested but is a bit of an emotional rollercoaster at times, that is if you are as an emotional person as I am;). Rating 9/10

The Vampire Diaries – 8 Seasons, 2009-2017

The Vampire Diaries is an extremely long tv-series with over 170 episodes. This series is based in Mystic Falls, Virginia and is all about supernatural creatures. Mainly Vampires of course but there are also plenty of werewolves, witches, and even sirens. I cannot even express how in love I am with this series. No, it’s not just because two of the main characters are Ian Somerhalder and Paul Wesley (even though that might help). I have rewatched this series more times than I can count. It will always keep you hooked and will never fail to surprise you. There are so many details in every episode that you can watch the series many many times and still be shocked and look forward to the next episode. Rating 10/10

Gossip Girl – 6 Seasons, 2007-2012

Gossip Girl is a dramatic tv series about privileged teens in Manhattan’s Upper East Side. These teenagers may seem like they live the dream life but in reality  they have many struggles of their own. One of them happens to be the local ghostwriter that keeps everyone updated on the most popular teens drama. This obviously causes many struggles in these teens’ lives and they spend a lot of their time trying to figure out who has been writing these updates. I am obsessed with this series and love the New York lifestyle. I recommend this to anyone looking for a show full of drama and of course, gossip. Rating 10/10

Criminal Minds – 14 Seasons, 2005-2020

Criminal minds is about a group of the best FBI profilers that make being in the FBI look easy. They are all insanely good at their jobs and throughout the series you learn a lot about their home lives and how they really rely on each other and treat each other like family. I would recommend this tv series to everyone but specifically, those who enjoy more of the mystery and crime-solving type shows. Rating 10/10

On My Block – 3 seasons, 2018-now

On My Block is a hilarious Netflix series based out of South Central Los Angeles. A group of four best friends from a mainly Hispanic and Black community tackles real issues as long as some extreme ones involve some pretty serious gangs and cartels. I would recommend this series to teens, adults, or really just anyone looking for a funny but also serious tv show. Rating 8/10

Cheer 1 season, 2019- ongoing?

A perfect blend of both reality T.V. and sports, Cheer will have all of you who say it isn’t a sport rethinking your statement. The six part docuseries follows a cheer team of college athletes through the strenuous work it takes to be the best from practices, to their home lives, and all the way up to the biggest college cheer competition of the year. The team shows that it really does take blood, sweat, and tears to not only win but to stay the best and leaves viewers wishing for more episodes to binge. 

Conversations With a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes 1 season, 2019

They say the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree so there should be no surprise that I had to add a true crime series to the list and Conversations With a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes is arguably the best. The series is carried out through recorded tapes of the infamous serial killer leading up from his capture to death row and interviews with different people who Bundy had crossed paths with along the way. The story is chilling and captivating both at the same time making you want to look away while being unable to do so.

Hart of Dixie 4 seasons,  2011-2016

For anyone who has a love for the idea of living in a small town in the south, Hart of Dixie is everything you could dream of. The story is both a comedy and a drama that follows a doctor from the big city of New York to a small town in Alabama. It isn’t easy at first, but along the way she finds a love for the people and the place, leaving viewers eager to watch more.

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