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5 things to binge-watch this weekend: Fall TV edition

Kelly Lawler
USA TODAY
'Luke Cage;' 'Fleabag,' 'Amanda Knox,' 'Smallville,' and 'Lethal Weapon.'

Get your pumpkin spice latte, your boots and your raincoat ready, because fall is here.

And while the season brings cooler weather and pumpkin everything, it also brings a downpour of new TV shows for your viewing pleasure, on the traditional broadcast channels, cable, premium and streaming alike. In honor of the most wonderful time of the year (for TV fans anyway), we've rounded up five shows and movies you should watch this weekend if want something more than just a pilot. Some are new, some are old, but they will all get you excited for the new season.

If you liked Jessica Jones and are staying in all weekend: Luke Cage

Our reaction to the third Netflix/Marvel collaborative series is the same thing the titular superhero says when he realizes how powerful he is: Sweet Christmas. The show, which USA TODAY's Brian Truitt called the very best Marvel-on-TV offering, is an intense and rewarding binge. In addition to its super-origins, the show may remind you of The Wire, and boasts an incredible cast including Mike Colter, Mahershala Ali, Alfre Woodard and more. It may be slow to start (as many a Netflix original is these days — they know you're binging), but the (literally) explosive series will keep you transfixed as the episodes fly by.

Stream Luke Cage on Netflix.

If you wish Broad City was way more British: Fleabag

You think you know Fleabag, the vulgar, drinking, smoking, sex-loving title character of the British import available on Amazon, but you don't. She shares DNA with Hannah Horvath from Girls, Gretchen from You're the Worst and Amy Schumer in Trainwreck, sure. But Phoebe Waller-Bridge's anti-hero is so very specific, so very personal, you'll stop thinking of her as a generic messed-up leading lady immediately. The show — which explores Fleabag's crumpled life (she's struggling professionally, personally, financially and romantically) after she suffers a loss — is as hilarious as it is heart-wrenching. And between Fleabag's clever asides to the audience and the show's careful use of flashbacks, by the end of Fleabag's six-episode first season, you'll feel like you're one of her very close friends. Whether or not that's a good thing is up to you.

Stream Fleabag on Amazon.

If you love the CW superhero shows but remember they're not back yet: Smallville

Supergirl is joining The Flash, Green Arrow and the many quirky friends on DC's Legends of Tomorrow on The CW in October. But remember when the world's most powerful hero also had homework? You can thank the recent glut of superhero shows (yes, even Luke Cage) on the path that Tom Welling and the WB set for 10 seasons, chronicling Clark Kent (aka Superman) as a teenager in Smallville, Kansas.

Stream Smallville on Hulu.

If you're into true crime: Amanda Knox

You've seen Making a Murderer. And The Case Of: JonBenét Ramsey. And OJ: Made in America. Now what? Amanda Knox. The new Netflix documentary takes another crime that dominated the headlines and looks at it in a very different and new way. Quite literally, as the filmmakers had access to documents and footage that the world has never seen before. "People weren’t interested in looking at this much larger picture," filmmaker Rod Blackhurst told USA TODAY. The documentary makes an effort to do just that.

Stream Amanda Knox on Netflix.

If you're tired of reboots and/or excited about reboots: Lethal Weapon

You're not too old for this. There's a new version of Riggs and Murtaugh on TV (and hey, they aren't half bad according to our TV critic Robert Bianco), which means you should absolutely revisit the original. The full franchise is available on Amazon starting in October, so you actually don't have any excuses. You can either watch it and rue the reboot, or watch it and get more enjoyment out of the reboot.

Stream the Lethal Weapon series on Amazon.

Scroll through more of our binge recommendations below (see last week's here).