Seven Cozy TV Series for After-Thanksgiving Couch Time
There’s a very specific kind of tired that happens after Thanksgiving dinner.
Not just “I could nap,” but “I might become part of this couch now.” You’ve done the turkey, the mashed potatoes, the pies, the “no really, I’ll just have a sliver” that somehow turned into a second plate. Now everyone is half-chatting, half-scrolling, and fully committed to staying exactly where they are.
This is not the time for a three-hour prestige war drama.
This is the time for something cozy, clever, easy to follow even if someone wanders off to make another leftover sandwich. Think funny, lightly mystery-adjacent, and emotionally satisfying without being emotionally taxing—very much in the world of A Man on the Inside with Ted Danson.
So here are seven series that are perfect for that post-Thanksgiving limbo: a little bit whodunnit, a little bit comedy, and a lot of comfort.
7. A Man on the Inside (Netflix)
Let’s start with the obvious one.
In A Man on the Inside, Ted Danson plays a retired professor who gets pulled into undercover work and basically becomes a late-in-life amateur detective. It’s a cozy comedy with mystery elements: episodes are structured around cases, but the heartbeat of the show is aging, family, and how you rebuild a life when you thought all the big chapters were already written. Netflix+1
It’s also very much a “you can watch two or three episodes in a row without realizing it” kind of show. The tone is warm, the humor is gentle, and the episodes are self-contained enough that your uncle can fall asleep in the middle and rejoin later with minimal confusion.
Best for: Multi-generational crowds, people who love a little mystery but don’t want anything dark, and anyone who already loves Ted Danson from Cheers or The Good Place.
6. The Good Place
If you want to keep the Ted Danson train going, The Good Place is a perfect follow-up.
The premise: a woman dies and accidentally ends up in a heaven-like afterlife she definitely has not earned, and Ted Danson is the architect of this supposedly perfect neighborhood. It’s bright, weird, and genuinely one of the cleverest network comedies of the last decade. Wikipedia+1
Episodes are only about 22 minutes long, which is exactly the right length for people who are “awake but not fully operational.” The show manages to talk about ethics, morality, and what it means to be a good person… while also having frozen yogurt jokes and sight gags.
Best for: Teens and adults, philosophy nerds in disguise, and families who like to argue (lovingly) about what they would do in impossible situations.
5. Only Murders in the Building (Hulu / Disney+)
If your family leans into true crime podcasts and whodunnits, Only Murders in the Building is essentially a cozy murder mystery wrapped in a very chic Upper West Side sweater.
Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez play neighbors who start a true crime podcast about a murder in their building and then, of course, keep finding more murders to investigate. It’s funny, stylish, and somehow both comforting and twisty at the same time. Wikipedia+2IMDb+2
The show is great at balancing stakes: there is a murder, but it’s never so gruesome or bleak that it kills the holiday mood. Think: “speculating about suspects over dessert” energy.
Best for: Older teens and adults, mystery lovers, and anyone who enjoys Steve Martin and Martin Short just being chaos together.
4. Monk (Peacock and others)
Monk is the TV equivalent of a well-worn sweater: soft, reliable, a little bit old-fashioned, and exactly what you want when you’re tired.
Tony Shalhoub plays Adrian Monk, a detective with obsessive-compulsive disorder and about twelve dozen phobias, who solves murders with almost alarming attention to detail. The show is part mystery, part character study, and part “this man cannot handle a slightly crooked picture frame.” Wikipedia+1
You don’t have to watch it in order, which makes it an A+ choice for a house full of people drifting in and out of the living room. Pick almost any episode and you’ll get a complete story in about 40 minutes.
Best for: Mixed-age groups, people who like gentle stakes and character quirks, and anyone who misses the days of cable marathons.
3. Psych
If you like the detective vibes of Monk but want more chaos and banter, Psych is your guy.
The main character, Shawn Spencer, has freakishly sharp observational skills and pretends to be psychic so the police will hire him as a consultant. It’s pure “buddy comedy with crimes” energy—lots of 2000s pop culture references, silly running jokes, and light, solvable mysteries. Wikipedia
It’s also fun to watch as a group because everybody can yell out theories about what actually happened, which feels very on brand for a living room full of people who swear they’re not tired.
Best for: Teens and adults, families who like to talk through TV instead of sitting quietly, and anyone who loves a good fake psychic.
2. Brooklyn Nine-Nine
Not in the mood for mysteries at all? Brooklyn Nine-Nine is just pure ensemble comedy with a procedural wrapper.
It’s set in a Brooklyn police precinct, but the focus is very much on the interpersonal chaos: found family dynamics, running gags, and some surprisingly heartfelt arcs. The episodes are short, the jokes are dense, and the vibe is “we all survive work because of the people we work with,” which hits differently after a day spent with your actual family. (Bonus: Try and figure out how the actress that plays Rosa is also the retirement home director in A Man on the Inside.)
Best for: People who want something light and easy to follow, older kids/teens, and anyone who loves a good holiday episode—you can cherry-pick the Halloween and Christmas ones and call it a theme.
1. The Great British Baking Show (aka The Great British Bake Off)
At some point in the night, everyone crosses the line from “we are watching a show” to “we just need something kind and pretty on in the background while we pretend we’re not about to fall asleep sitting up.”
That is where The Great British Baking Show comes in.
This is the gentle baking competition where amateur bakers gather in a big white tent, bake cakes and pastries, and are very nice to each other. No screaming judges, no sabotaging, just people trying to get their pastry layers even while a host makes a pun about pastry layers. Wikipedia+1
It is famously soothing—soft accents, pastel mixers, and truly unhinged confectionery architecture. If you’re finishing dessert or building your first leftover turkey sandwich of the night, it’s ideal. I love, Love, LOVE this show.
Best for: Literally everyone, including the people who claim they’re not watching TV but mysteriously know exactly who over-proofed their dough.
How to Turn This Into a Thanksgiving Night Lineup
If you want to make this into a full post-dinner ritual:
Start with A Man on the Inside for 2–3 episodes while everyone settles in.
Move into The Good Place or Only Murders in the Building once people are warmed up.
Let Monk or Psych carry you into late evening.
Finish with a few episodes of The Great British Baking Show, when you’re all half-asleep and full of pie.
Optional but encouraged: a round of espresso martinis or Irish coffees for the grown-ups, hot cider for everyone else, and at least one person insisting they’re “definitely getting up early tomorrow” while pressing play on “just one more episode.”