We all want to feel that butterflies-in-your-stomach kind of love. The love that makes every day a little bit brighter and every bad day a little less bad. We want that companionship at the end of the day, so it isn’t too surprising that we love to watch a romance show. Whether it’s Sex and the City or Emily in Paris, we swoon with Carrie and Emily as they fall in love with each of their romantic interests.
But there are so many romance shows out there. Love stories that are waiting to be discovered by larger audiences. These romance series make us giddy with joy and kicking our feet. But they also show us the complex parts of love that can be difficult to watch. And before we know it, we are utterly and wholly invested in the characters’ relationships.
10
‘Dash & Lily’ (2020)
Created by Joe Tracz
Dash & Lily is the perfect cozy watch for the Christmas season. If you love watching Love Actually or Holidate, but want to watch a series, then this show is perfect for you. It’s only eight short episodes starring Austin Abrams and Midori Francis in this bite-sized romance series. In addition to being a book adaptation, it also features some big names as executive producers, including Nick Jonas and Deadpool & Wolverine’s Shawn Levy.
Unfortunately, the series was canceled after only one season. The series follows Dash, who dislikes New York during the Christmas season, and Lily, a fan of New York’s Christmas. Trading dares back and forth, the cozy and comforting holiday romance series is perfect if you’re missing home or want to get in the holiday spirit.
9
‘Home for Christmas’ (2019–)
Created by Per-Olav Sørensen
A Norwegian romance-comedy series that happens to take place during Christmas, Home for Christmas, is more charming than you can imagine. Home for Christmas is Netflix’s first Norwegian series, and it’s a strong start for the streaming platform. Johanne (Ida Elise Broch), the protagonist of the series, has 24 days to find a boyfriend to bring to her family for Christmas dinner after lying to her family that she has one. You can imagine the hijinks she gets into trying to find a boyfriend.
The series has two seasons, which premiered in 2019 and 2020, but has recently been announced to return in 2025 after a five-year break. It’s not surprising that Netflix wants more of this series because it’s unique in the genre. It can have the holiday feel of a cozy Christmas series, but without the cheesiness of a Hallmark movie. It isn’t afraid to have sex scenes and language, and share what the holiday season can feel like for people. It shows the reality of it all, but still brings the warmth of the season.
Home for Christmas
- Genre
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Romance, Comedy, Drama
- Debut Date
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December 5, 2019
8
‘Younger’ (2015–2021)
Created by Darren Star
“I wish I had done it when I was younger.” So many of us think we could have done something else in the past. This Darren Star series takes this thought to a completely different level. Liza (Sutton Foster), a 40-year-old woman, is divorced and an empty nester. She has been a stay-at-home mom and has a massive gap in her resume. But after being mistaken for a 26-year-old, she decides to fake her age and get a job at a publishing company. Younger is bold and brilliant from start to finish.
Besides having the Broadway legend Foster as the lead, we also have Disney star Hilary Duff playing her eventual best friend, Kelsey Peters. While Star’s other show, Emily in Paris, can be frustrating due to its inconsistent writing and stagnant characters, Younger shines brightly for its stronger writing and powerful story arcs. But best of all, it has Foster falling in love in a love triangle with a young man and an older man. While she lies her way through her career, she also lies to the men and people in her life. Watching her walk this dangerous line and cover her secret makes for fun and romantic adventures throughout the series.
7
‘Trying’ (2020–2023)
Created by Andy Wolton
Apple TV+ has created many strong shows, from Severance to Mythic Quest, and among its strongest is the hilariously heartwarming and real Trying. The heartfelt comedy starring real-life couple Nikki (Esther Smith) and Jason (Rafe Spall) follows their difficult journey of adoption. While we fall in love with the romance of Jason and Nikki, we also fall in love with their whole family. The support system that surrounds this couple as they deal with the heartbreaking path of finding a child to fulfill their lives. And when they eventually do with Princess and Tyler, we get to fall in love all over again as they find love in this new family dynamic.
And best of all, we get to see an authentic relationship between Jason and Nikki throughout. Neither is perfect, and both make mistakes constantly, but at the end of the day, they are always there for each other. The relationship never feels soap opera-esque, but it feels authentic throughout.
6
‘The End of the F***ing World’ (2017–2019)
Created by Jonathan Entwistle and Lucy Tcherniak
Imagine a series that combines crime, dark comedy, romance, and a coming-of-age story—that’s what The End of the F***ing World is. It’s so strange, it’s somehow great. The crime comedy series manages to make sense despite its ludicrous premise. The End of the F***ing World follows James (Alex Lawther), a self-proclaimed psychopath, who decides he wants to kill a human after having plenty of experience with killing animals. He decides his victim will be his classmate, Alyssa (Jessica Barden).
This absurdist comedy is based on a graphic novel by Charles S. Forsman, and keeps you constantly questioning where it goes. This is the epitome of an odd romance, but it somehow captures you with its oddities. It’s completely original and stands out among coming-of-age shows.
5
‘A Discovery of Witches’ (2018–2022)
Created by Kate Brooke
If you love Twilight, True Blood, and The Vampire Diaries, but want to watch something more adult? A Discovery of Witches is the perfect show for that. This series is shorter than True Blood and The Vampire Diaries, but very strong. The three-season show has witches, vampires, demons, history, time travel, and romance. It follows Diana Bishop (Teresa Palmer), an American scholar who is also a witch, but wants no part in that world. She works at Oxford University, but a long-lost manuscript forces her back into the supernatural world filled with enemy witches and vampire scientist Matthew Clairmont (Matthew Goode).
A love develops between the two leads as they learn more about their histories, the Clairmont family, and what needs to be done. The sincere love that blossoms between the two characters as they work together only grows stronger in the three-season story. A Discovery of Witches does an excellent job of creating a high-quality fantasy series within a fascinating world, while also crafting a romance that doesn’t detract from the story’s main plot but adds to it.
4
‘Starstruck’ (2021–2023)
Created by Rose Matafeo
A romantic-comedy sitcom that is extremely self-aware but written with sharp wit and self-deprecation? Yes, please. The creator, co-writer, and star of the series, Rose Matafeo, makes us fall in love with her character from the get-go. The BBC/Max series, Starstruck, has us rooting for her character’s love story, despite all the struggles she faces in it.
Their love story is complicated, fun, challenging, and every other adjective you can think of when it comes to love. Matafeo’s character, Jessie, accidentally hooks up with a film star, Tom (Nikesh Patel). She does a masterful job of crafting a story that feels realistic but refreshingly hilarious. It doesn’t take itself too seriously, but before you know it, you realize you’ve learned an important lesson about self-love. Laughing is the best medicine, and this romantic show keeps you laughing throughout all the ups and downs of Jessie and Tom’s relationship.
3
‘Fellow Travelers’ (2023)
Created by Ron Nyswaner
A historical romance TV series set in one of the darkest times in American history, Fellow Travelers keeps you glued to your seat throughout all eight episodes of the series. The fabulous Jonathan Bailey, who most know from Bridgerton and now Wicked, sees a beautifully complex and different side to Jonathan Bailey. The series follows two political staffers, Hawkins (Matt Bomer) and Tim (Bailey), who fall in love during the Lavender Scare of the 1950s. The Lavender Scare was during McCarthyism, when many people were fired because of suspicion that they were gay.
Not only does this show highlight a time in history that’s not well-known, but it also shows the difficult reality of falling in love as a gay person in the ’50s. There was nothing easy about it. The intimate acting portrayed by both actors leaves you captivated. Moreover, it spans their story from the ’50s to the ’80s, and you get to see them change as the world continues to. Their brilliant acting led to well-deserved Emmy nominations for both Bomer and Bailey.
2
‘Crazy Ex-Girlfriend’ (2015–2019)
Created by Rachel Bloom and Aline Brosh McKenna
Sometimes you can scroll through Facebook and see your old significant other from high school and think to yourself, “I wonder what they’re up to.” But some people bump into them in public in a totally coincidental way. That happened to Rebecca (Rachel Bloom), and instead of saying hi and bye and moving on, she moved to California. Rebecca leaves her fancy lawyer job in New York City and moves to California for him. To top it all off, she lies to everyone and says it’s completely unrelated. This romantic series is also paired with musical numbers in Rebecca’s mind. But she repeatedly sings that she’s definitely not the Crazy Ex-Girlfriend.
This musical romantic dramedy starts as a light and hilarious show about a quirky protagonist, but over its four seasons, it undergoes a complete transformation. The genius satirical songs, paired with a character constantly chasing love and romantic relationships, make for a show that shares important messages of self-love and mental health. Before you know it, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend becomes less of a romantic show about a girl chasing a guy, and more about the girl learning to love herself.
1
‘One Day’ (2024)
Created by Nicole Taylor
From Bridgerton to Dash & Lily, Netflix has created countless romance series, but none of them stand out like One Day. The series follows Emma (Ambika Mod) and Dex (Leo Woodall) through the years of their lives. While the friends-to-lovers trope is often overplayed and poorly executed, One Day creates a beautiful story about how love can take different forms and how it evolves through various stages of life. From Dex’s drunken parties as a film star to Emma’s life as a writer, the series quietly has you fall in love with the characters themselves.
By the end of the fourteen-episode season, you can’t imagine your life without them. Being able to see them grow over fourteen years from university students to fully functioning adults, you feel like you are growing up with them. Seeing them once a year on the same day feels like we get glimpses into their lives, and it creates a kind of bond between the two leads and with the viewers. The love here is unabashedly beautiful, complicated, and real. When the credits roll in those final moments, you can’t help but feel like the series has left a mark, and it becomes a romance you will never forget.
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