Content Shifter: 6 Series to Stream Free on YouTube
Film
Last month, YouTube surpassed Netflix, Hulu, HBO Max, Disney+, and every other “premium” service as the most-viewed streaming TV platform—YouTube! Amazon poured a billion Bezos bucks into that Lord of the Rings show and y’all are watching cat videos? Hilarious.
With this in mind, here are six series you can stream for free (with ads, of course) on YouTube in November.
Your Pretty Face is Going to Hell: The Cartoon (2022)
As a live-action series, Your Pretty Face Is Going to Hell (2013–2019) was Adult Swim’s most ridiculous Satan-adjacent show. It depicted Hell as a mismanaged corporate office place, which feels so right, following Associate Demon Gary’s (Henry Zebrowski) daily failures to climb up (down?) the management ladder. The new Your Pretty Face Is Going to Hell: The Cartoon lives up to the perverted legacy and adds scenes the micro-budgeted original never could have pulled off.
Lexx (1997–2002)
If Mystery Science Theater 3000 partnered with PornHub to remake Farscape, the result would be Lexx. The bizarro German/Canadian sci-fi series about planet-obliterating starship Lexx and its “crew,” security guard Stanley (Brian Downey), undead assassin Kai (Michael McManus), robot head 790 (Jeffrey Hirschfeld), and lusty love slave Zev/Xev (Eva Habermann/Xenia Seeborg) is sexy cult TV squared. Lexx runs from campy to dark to deadly serious, but never dull.
Hidden Palms (2007)
The CW’s long-forgotten teen drama Hidden Palms featured a cast of future stars toiling away in a fake “Palm Springs”: Tessa Thompson (Westworld, Thor), J.D. Pardo (Mayans M.C.), and Amber Heard (Heard v. Depp), alongside TV vets Sharon Lawrence, Gail O’Grady (both NYPD Blue), and Leslie Jordan (R.I.P.). Hidden Palms was just The O.C. lite, but it was named one of the most offensive shows of 2007 by the Parents Television Council, which is … something.
NewsRadio (1995–1999)
The Office may be the most popular NBC workplace comedy of all time, but NewsRadio perfected the format 10 years earlier. With a tight comic staff that included Dave Foley, Maura Tierney, Stephen Root, Phil Hartman, and pre-psychotic-break Andy Dick and Joe Rogan, the fictional WNYX was funnier and smarter than any AM radio station since WKRP. Even back in his NewsRadio days, Rogan played a conspiracy nut, so we really should have seen it coming.
The King of Queens (1998–2007)
Hear me out: The King of Queens was one of the great American sitcoms, and it still holds up today. Despite all of Kevin James’ other output (which includes his garbage follow-up Kevin Can Wait, the inspiration for the dark Kevin Can F**k Himself), this CBS series nailed it. James holds up his end, but it’s costars Leah Remini and Jerry Stiller (giving the hilarious, unhinged performance of his lifetime) who bring it all home. Not even Scientology could stop The King of Queens.
ALF (1986–1990)
An asshole alien life form (ALF) crash-lands on earth and moves in with a suburban family, despite his constantly announced intentions to eat their cat? The ’80s were weird. ALF is far more fun to watch when you’re forearmed with the knowledge that the furry puppet’s costars hated working with him, praying for the show’s cancelation and sweet release from Sitcom Hell—actor Max Wright once even physically attacked ALF on set. Now you want to watch it, huh?
For more SLUG Content Shifter:
Content Shifter: 6 New Shows to Stream in September
Content Shifter: 9 Upcoming TV Reboots