Dave Cunningham
The crime genre is one of the most popular ever, and for a lot of reasons too. Psychologists say that fear could sometimes trigger dopamine in the brain, which is one of the reasons people watch shows in the crime genre. They could also give you a sense of morality. It could also show you how to protect yourself in certain situations. Some people watch crime shows simply because they are obsessed. However, selecting a crime show to watch could present a real challenge, especially on Netflix where it seems like there is an endless list. And since the genre is such a popular one, there are some which are just not that good. You also might have seen one which was really good, and now you are looking for something similar but just can’t find it.
So whether you intend to binge over the weekend or watch in bits, whether you already love crime shows or you are just looking for a great show to watch, we get it. And we intend to save you that extra excruciating hour of trying to decide what to watch on Netflix. So here are the 15 best crime shows on Netflix.
Gotham
The origin story for characters in, and prequel to the Batman franchise. Gotham follows a young police officer, Jim Gordon in the Gotham City Police Department. He is determined to wage war on every criminal and hoodlum responsible for the reprehensible state which the city is in. It shows all the forces in Gordon’s life, what motivates him, and the lengths to which he is ready to go to achieve his goal.
Gotham also shows an even younger Bruce Wayne who is just recently orphaned, his relationship with Jim Gordon, and his teenage years. You also get to see the origin stories of other characters like Penguin, The Riddler, Poison Ivy and Cat Woman.
Top Boy
The higher you rise, the harder you fall. Top Boy tells the story of Dushane and Sully running a drug-dealing operation and heading a gang of other residents of the Summerhouse Estate in London. Most of the gang members are forced into that life as a result of their social and economic status.
Dushane and Sully, while trying to achieve the status of the biggest and most powerful drug dealers, of course, run into a lot of pitfalls. They have to deal with rivals, betrayal within their own organization, and law enforcement.
Wild Wild Country
A docuseries about Indian guru Bhagwan Rajneesh attempts to build a utopian community for his followers in Oregon after purchasing land for that purpose. After he moves in with his followers, however, the local residents of the area take serious objection to their way of life and press for them to leave their community. Following an attack, the group is forced to take up arms against their neighbours.
Watch a local crisis escalate into a national scandal. And with elections around the corner the Rajneshee group, in trying to influence the outcome, come so close to killing a presidential appointee, in this big debate on personal liberties.
Broadchurch
When the body of an 11-year-old boy, Danny, is found at the beach in Broadchurch, and the police detectives on the case, led by Detective Inspector Alec Hardy, begin to treat the death as suspicious, it threatens to tear the family and even the whole town, apart.
With the search for the killer going on for quite a while, the attention from reporters is significantly growing. This puts a lot of pressure on the family who have not dealt with Danny’s death, and the police detectives who seem to have a hard time solving this puzzle.
Narcos
The war on drugs in the ’80s has been told from many points of views. This time it’s told from the perspective of DEA agents who were on the ground as it all happened. Follow the rise of the wealthiest criminal in all of history, the King of Cocaine, and head of the infamous Medellin Drug Cartel, Pablo Escobar with his egregious personality. Discover all of his schemes that led to the influx of cocaine in the United States. Understand the whole operation from production in Colombia, distribution abroad, and getting the money back to Colombia, to dealing with competition and handling other problems at home.
Besides, what better point of view than that of the agents who led that operation on the ground?
How To Get Away With Murder
A practicing lawyer who is also a Criminal Law professor, does not like to teach just theory but wants all of her students to practically experience what it is to be a criminal lawyer.
But only four students will get to eventually work with her and actually experience what it is like to be a criminal lawyer and learn from the best. And only one student will be awarded the best at the end of the class. How far are her students willing to go to help her win cases and get that award? How much is it going to make or mar their lives? Find out on How To Get Away With Murder.
The people V OJ Simpson: American Crime Story: Although the trial of the century was mostly televised, with networks interrupting their regular programming to cover the trial, all of that did not fully show what was going on. The People V OJ Simpson tries to show everything that went on behind the scenes.
Effectively portraying the strategy of the defence team, making it less about the actual crime and more about race. Also showing how the prosecution lost it all, The People V OJ Simpson with stellar performances from the cast and amazing storytelling is simply outstanding.
Tiger King
This true-crime series focuses on Carl Baskins and Joe Exotic who are competitors in the small world of big cat conservationists and collectors. However, what starts out as mere business competition develops into something far more deadly when Baskins who claims to provide safety for the animals while Joe mistreats them. Joe, however, claims she is only just a business rival.
Joe Exotic accused Carol Baskins of murdering her second husband who mysteriously went missing, and is himself now on trial for hiring someone to kill Carol. How did business competition become deadly feud? Tiger King closely examines that and this world of animal keepers.
The Blacklist
Raymond ‘Red’ Reddington is the most wanted criminal on the FBI’s list. However, everything changes when The Concierge of Crime, as he is called, turns himself into the FBI. He offers to inform on and help catch other criminals on the blacklist, a list he has created and only he has access to.
His demands? That he gets full immunity and speaks only with FBI Special Agent Elizabeth Keen. What is Red’s endgame here? Is he retired or just trying to make the FBI his henchmen? And what does it have to do with Special Agent Elizabeth Keen? The Blacklist is thrilling, and with a new case each episode, it will keep you at the edge of your seat.
Forensic Files
How are forensics used to solve crimes? Forensic files give the answer to that. Also known as murder detectives, mystery detectives, or murder detectives, each episode focuses on solving new crimes, accidents, and even the outbreak of illnesses with the use of evidence gathered.
True crimes are solved by interviewing real-life witnesses or victims, and scientists or forensic experts in a documentary style, trying to solve the puzzling mystery behind these cases.
When They See Us
When They See Us is based on the true story of the Central Park Five. When a white woman jogging around Central Park in New York is found seriously beaten and raped, it is a crime which shocks the city of New York. The prosecutor, Linda Fairstein, proves she will go to any lengths to obtain a conviction for that crime.
Five black teenage boys who were around that area at the time were accused of raping and assaulting this woman. The prosecution is determined to follow through with their theory even without sufficient evidence to back up their claims. They eventually begin to offer deals to the boys encouraging them to turn on one another or to just take the blame for the crime. Superb performances from all of the actors are one of the reasons the show is so good.
Ozark
A family man runs a financial advisory company with his partner in Chicago, and he seems like a regular guy. What you wouldn’t realize from taking just a glance at him, however, is that he and his partner also run a money-laundering operation for a Mexican Drug Cartel.
The operation soon goes sideways when the people responsible for transporting the money, decide to steal some of it. The cartel then kills his partner but spares him after he convinces them he can launder more money in five years by moving to the Ozarks. The family moves and meets some really interesting characters including local crime families. And with the FBI sniffing around trying to investigate the death of his partner, it is one hell of a ride.
Sherlock
The legendary detective Sherlock Holmes is brought to life on screen by Benedict Cumberbatch in this ever-scintillating show. Set in modern-day London, but based on the original stories. Sherlock Holmes takes on and solves the most puzzling cases with his almost extraordinary deductive reasoning, and eye for detail. He also gets help from his trusted partner and friend John Watson, who has just returned from military service and documents their cases on a blog. This gains them some popularity.
Holmes also frequently clashes with his nemesis, Jim Moriarty.
Breaking Bad
As a chemistry professor turns 50, he is diagnosed with bone cancer which the doctors deem inoperable. With no money to pay for his medical bills and a pregnant wife, he realizes he actually has no money to take care of his family.
He watches the news about a drug bust on TV with his brother-in-law who is a DEA agent and is stunned by how much money drug dealers make. While accompanying his brother-in-law on a raid, he sees one of his former students who is now a drug dealer narrowly escape.
He eventually reaches out to that student offering a partnership, since he knew the chemistry and could make the drugs and, his student knew the business and could sell. And so, an ordinary professor is introduced into the world of drugs and gangs, and essentially committing crimes with science. Breaking Bad is excellent.
Peaky Blinders
The Peaky Blinders are a local Birmingham gang after the first world war. They get their name because they sew razor blades into their flat caps which they conveniently use as weapons. Headed by Thomas “Tommy” Shelby and the Shelby family, the gang deals mostly in gambling, racketeering, and robbery.
However, gang leader Tommy Shelby is ambitious and sees an opportunity after his men mistakenly steal some guns while robbing a factory. The government had plans to send these guns to Libya and want them back. He realizes this opportunity is even bigger than he initially thought when the government sends a Special Inspector Chester Campbell to recover the guns and eventually, clean up Birmingham. Tommy, unfazed by this, is only more determined to cunningly negotiate and achieve a higher status in society for himself, and his family.
Money Heist
Have you ever wondered what the most adventurous bank robbery in the world would look like? Money Heist or La Casa de Papel in Spanish (which means The House of Paper) paints a really close picture. After spending years to perfect a plan, a criminal mastermind known only as The Professor recruits some criminals and trains them for months to carry out the greatest heist of all time. Their strategy is mind-blowing, and not what you would expect. They are ready for whatever might arise, or are they?
The police team tasked with ensuring the criminals do not get away are led by an equally brilliant Inspector Raquel Murillo. She is committed to making sure the Professor’s plan is thwarted and that he and his crew are arrested. Money Heist is incredibly brilliant.
We hope you have found something you like and can start watching.
