Labor Day has come and gone, and autumn is rapidly approaching, hopefully offering a welcome change from this past summer’s mounting heat. To help stay cool in the final days of summer, Netflix has unveiled several major season premieres while other fan-favorite shows take their last bow on the streaming service. And from gorgeously rendered food documentaries to merciless martial arts mix-ups, there is something for everyone to watch on the digital platform this week.
Here are CBR’s biggest and best recommendations for what to stream on Netflix this weekend, from classic movies and shows to fresh debuts that are poised to become enduring favorites themselves.
Dark Matter Ventures Into the Unknown
One of the most underrated television series to air on Syfy is Dark Matter, which ran for three seasons from 2015 to 2017. Adapting a comic book series of the same name by series creators Joseph Mallozzi and Paul Mullie, the series follows a group of spacefaring travelers who wake up on the same ship with amnesia. As the ensemble begins to piece their memories back together, they realize within the pilot episode that they are hardened criminals who have had their minds wiped.
Dark Matter stands as an exploration of the possibility of redemption and whether some individuals are destined to embrace violence. Set against a sweeping backdrop of cosmic intrigue and civil war, Dark Matter brought a more mature look to hard science fiction with a Dirty Dozen-esque twist. The series is set to leave Netflix week, making this weekend the last chance to binge all three seasons in full.
Cobra Kai Is Back to Reignite the Rivalry
After its shocking season finale this past December, Cobra Kai is back to continue the fight in its fifth season this week. The villainous Terry Silver may have commandeered the Cobra Kai dojo and won the latest All-Valley Martial Arts Tournament, but Daniel LaRusso and Johnny Lawrence aren’t taking this setback for long. However, before the veteran martial artists can lead the next generation of fighters to victory, Miguel Diaz has unfinished business in Mexico to attend to first.
Picking up in the direction laid out by Season 4, Cobra Kai Season 5 incorporates more familiar faces from The Karate Kid Part III while escalating the conflict against Silver. With even harder-hitting fights than its previous seasons, Cobra Kai doesn’t appear to be losing any momentum going into its fifth season. A perennial hit with longtime Karate Kid fans and new audiences alike, Cobra Kai returns for a big flex as its rivalries hit a bloody crescendo.
Chef’s Table Serves up Another Helping
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The 2011 documentary film Jiro Dreams of Sushi revolutionized how people saw food and how cuisine in all forms was examined from an objective lens while keeping the human element front and center. Filmmaker David Gelb has since continued this exploration and celebration of food culture around the world with his Netflix original series Chef’s Table. Just as 2020’s season focused on different types of barbeque, the latest season premiering this week is centered on pizza.
Running for six episodes, each installment of the season focuses on a different cook specializing in crafting pizza, from Italy to Japan. More than just focusing on the culinary ingredients, Chef’s Table has always delved into the motivations and personal connections each of the cooks maintain with their profession and cuisine. One of the greatest food-centric shows on television, the Emmy-nominated Chef’s Table is finally back with another season of people-pleasing fare.
Saved by the Bell Dismisses Its Class from Netflix
If there was ever a coming-of-age comedy/drama series that best captured the voice of a generation, it was Saved by the Bell. The initial series ran from 1989 to 1993, depicting the teenage antics of the popular students from California’s Bayside High School, headed by Zack Morris. All six seasons of the core series, along with its two TV specials and college-era spinoff, are all slated to leave Netflix next week.
Across the series’ run, Saved by the Bell followed Zack and his friends as they navigated the emotional rollercoaster that was high school in the early ‘90s. After this successful run, the friends reunited in college, where Zack and his longtime on-again/off-again girlfriend Kelly Kapowski got engaged and eventually eloped in Las Vegas. For those looking to experience the entire Bayside High journey from start to finish, now is the last chance to catch the show in its entirety on Netflix.
Road House Is Open for Business
Last month saw the announcement of a Road House reboot in active development, with the planned film adding Jake Gyllenhaal and Conor McGregor to its main cast. The original 1989 classic arrived on Netflix at the beginning of the month and is always a trashy treat for action movie lovers. With its unwavering depiction of cinematic machismo and surprisingly brutal martial arts fights, Road House remains an absolute crowd-pleaser over 30 years since its debut.
The 1989 movie stars Patrick Swayze as James Dalton, a famed bouncer who is hired to bring order to a lawless bar in the middle of Missouri. Dalton discovers the source of the town’s problems is a local business mogul named Brad Wesley, with the entire community becoming a battleground between them. The ultimate trashy ‘80s action, Road House is the perfect choice for something to watch any day of the week.