I’m not someone who cries when I watch a highly emotive movie or TV series. Sure, I get teary-eyed but, in the vast majority of cases, I never find myself reaching for a box of tissues to stem the flow of tears cascading down my face after a particularly devastating scene or sequence.
So far in 2025, though, three different shows have somehow cracked my steely resolve and turned me into a blubbering wreck. Is it because I’m getting older and therefore more susceptible to emotionally-loaded productions? Are their stories so well designed that they tug harder at the ol’ heartstrings? Or is it simply a big coincidence that three of the most soul-destroying projects have all launched on the world’s best streaming services this year? Who’s to say.
Regardless, I don’t want to be the only softie around here, so here are the trio of TV Originals that have revived my cold, dead heart in the first six months of the year.
Adolescence (Netflix)
Release date: March 13
Episode count: 4
Main cast: Stephen Graham, Ashley Walters, Faye Marsay, Christine Tremarco, Erin Doherty, Amelie Pease, and Owen Cooper
Director: Phil Barantini
Rotten Tomatoes (RT) critics score: 99%
Netflix’s biggest TV hit of 2025 so far and, at the time of publication, the second most-watched English language TV Original in the streamer’s history (take that, Stranger Things season 4!) is an unmissable miniseries.
A story whose individual chapters are all shot as one continuous, long take – a highly-technical process known as a ‘oner’ – Adolescence tells the tale 13 -year-old Jamie (Cooper) who’s arrested on suspicion of murdering a female student at his school. Each episode focuses on different characters during and after the police investigation, too, with the immediate and long-reaching impact of the alleged crime felt keenly by all of those involved.
Hailed by fans and critics alike for its writing, directing, cinematography, tone, and individual and collective cast performances, Adolescence is an emotional powerhouse that deserves a permanent spot on our best Netflix shows list. Its impact has been so great, in fact, that it’s sparked multiple nationwide discussions in the UK about youth knife crime, the alarming rise of misogynistic views among male teens, and systemic failures and local and national government levels. A heart-breaking program that’ll leave a lasting impression on you long after its final credits sequence has rolled.
Andor season 2 (Disney+)
Release date: April 22
Episode count: 12
Main cast: Diego Luna, Adria Arjona, Genevieve O’Reilly Stellan Skarsgard, Denise Gough, Kyle Soller, Forest Whitaker, Faye Marsay, and Alan Tudyk
Directors: Ariel Kleinman, Janus Metz, and Alonso Ruizpalacios
RT critics score: 97%
Star Wars is a family-friendly franchise. Sure, it’s occasionally pushed the boundaries of what’s appropriate for younger members of its worldwide fanbase but, by and large, it hasn’t gone out of its way to alienate parts of its global community.
Andor is the one project that dared to be different. A live-action, adult-oriented Disney+ series, it threw out the traditional Star Wars playbook in favor of telling a political and spy thriller-oriented story that not only stars a whole host of morally gray characters, but also tackles difficult topics of conversation around fascism, sexual assault, the human cost of conflict, and the moral complications that arise from revolution.
I really enjoyed Andor season 1 but, whether it’s down to its hard-hitting narratives, the show’s much more confident second and final season, or a combination of both, season 2 is a whole other beast. You can read more about why it’s such a paradoxically entertaining yet heavy watch in my Andor season 2 review, or go and stream one of the best Disney+ shows in its entirety right now. It’ll be worth it once you reach Andor season 2 episode 8, i.e. the gut-punch of a chapter that made me sob my heart out.
The Last of Us season 2 (Max)
Release date: April 13
Episode count: 7
Main cast: Pedro Pascal, Bella Ramsey, Isabela Merced, Young Mazino, Gabriel Luna, Rutina Wesley, and Kaitlyn Dever
Directors: Craig Mazin, Neil Druckmann, Kate Herron, Mark Mylod, Stephen Williams, and Nina Lopez-Corrado
RT critics score: 92%
The Last of Us season 2 was a slight step down in quality compared to its more lauded forebear, but the popular HBO and Max TV Original still had the capacity to emotionally wreck viewers on multiple occasions.
I don’t think anyone’s gotten over last season’s harrowing second or sixth episodes yet, either. I include myself among that contingent, too – and that’s as someone who’s played The Last of Us Part II, aka the second game in Naughty Dog’s video game namesake that The Last of Us TV show’s sophomore outing is based on.
With The Last of Us season 3 in early development, there’ll be many more distressing moments to come in one of the best Max shows. It might be best to stockpile tissues now, then, before The Last of Us‘ third installment makes its TV bow and potentially rips out our heart like its predecessors did.
What TV episodes and/or full shows have had you wiping away tears from your eyes? Let me know in the comments!
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