There's a ton worth streaming in November 2023. So as prices rise, here's how to avoid breaking the bank.

By Mike Murphy

With 'For All Mankind,' 'The Crown,' 'Fargo,' 'Bass Reeves' and much more on the way, it may be time to make ad-supported tiers your default

November offers a false spring for streaming viewers.

After a slow couple of months, there's suddenly an abundance of top-tier shows on the way, but don't be fooled -- the streaming scene is going to be largely bleak in the coming months, until productions fully ramp up sometime next year following the strikes that have crippled Hollywood.

Meanwhile, streaming costs keep rising (Netflix's top tier is the first to cross the $20 barrier) and consumers are getting less for their money, with fewer new shows and smaller libraries, while streamers push subscribers toward ad-supported tiers that generate more revenue per user while providing a worse viewing experience. Still, all the ad-supported tiers cost less than $10 a month, meaning it may be time for budget-conscious consumers to suck it up and deal with commercials if they don't want to break the bank.

Read more: Netflix is raising prices to get you to watch ads, and it will probably work

That's why it's even more important to examine which services you're really willing to pay for. The days of subscribing to six streaming services -- even though you might only regularly watch three -- are over. But by adding and canceling services month to month, you can save money while still being able to watch your favorite shows (for example, instead of watching a 12-episode show that drops every week and paying for three months, subscribe for just one month once the show nears its end and binge it all at once).

Such a churn strategy takes some planning, but it pays off. Keep in mind that a billing cycle starts when you sign up, not necessarily at the beginning of the month.

Each month, this column offers tips on how to maximize your streaming and your budget, rating the major services as a "play," "pause" or "stop" -- similar to investment analysts' traditional ratings of buy, hold or sell, and picks the best shows to help you make your monthly decisions.

Here's a look at what's coming to the various streaming services in November 2023, and what's really worth the monthly subscription fee:

Apple TV+ ($9.99 a month)

The price of Apple TV+ has doubled in a little over a year, and in any other month, it'd be easy to argue it has priced itself out of the range of casual viewers. But Apple's November lineup is so impressive that it's actually somehow still a good deal.

The alt-history space drama "For All Mankind" (Nov. 10) returns for its fourth season, with an eight-year time jump after Season 3's shocking finale. The Mars colony is now thriving, but tensions are rising over the mining of mineral-rich asteroids. Toby Kebbell ("Servant") joins the cast, along with Daniel Stern and Tyner Rushing, who join holdovers Joel Kinnaman, Krys Marshall, Wrenn Schmidt and Coral Pena. It's a fantastic and frequently thrilling series, and arguably Apple's best drama.

And a challenger to that title is also coming back. "Slow Horses" (Nov. 29), the darkly funny thriller about a group of washed-up spies, returns for its third season. Gary Oldman stars as perpetually disgruntled spymaster Jackson Lamb, leading his team of misfits as they get dragged into an international conspiracy after one of their own is kidnapped. Based on the novels by Mick Herron, "Slow Horses" is smart and cynical, a terrific twist on traditional spy stories.

Then there's "Monarch: Legacy of Monsters" (Nov. 17), an action-conspiracy series about a ragtag group trying to expose a secretive organization that knows the truth about Godzilla and other kaiju creatures terrorizing the planet. Kurt Russell stars with his son, Wyatt (who plays his dad in flashbacks), along with Anna Sawai, Ren Watabe and Kiersey Clemons. The series is intended to slide right into the MonsterVerse that includes "Godzilla vs. Kong," "Kong: Skull Island" and "Godzilla: King of the Monsters," and for anyone who grew up watching monster movies, this could be a lot of fun.

Apple (AAPL) also has "Fingernails" (Nov. 3), a sci-fi romance movie starring Jessie Buckley, Riz Ahmed, Jeremy Allen White and Luke Wilson; "The Buccaneers" (Nov. 8), a "Bridgerton"-esque period drama based on the Edith Wharton novel about a group of rich American girls who hit London in the 1870s looking for suitable husbands; the holiday musical special "Hannah Waddingham: Home for Christmas" (Nov. 22); and a new version of the tear-jerking children's classic "The Velveteen Rabbit" (Nov. 22).

Meanwhile, Martin Scorsese's critically acclaimed "Killers of the Flower Moon" should hit Apple TV+ within the next month or two, after it completes its theatrical run, and Ridley Scott's historical epic "Napoleon," starring Joaquin Phoenix, his theaters Nov. 22. It, too, will stream on Apple at an as-yet-undisclosed date in the coming months.

There are also new episodes every week of "Lessons in Chemistry" (finale Nov. 24), and "The Morning Show" (season finale Nov. 8). If that's not enough, you could always catch up on "Foundation," "Swagger," "Platonic" or discover "Bad Sisters."

Who's Apple TV+ for? It offers a little something for everyone, but not necessarily enough for anyone -- although it's getting there.

Play, pause or stop? Play. Even though its price has soared, Apple is still cheaper than most, and it delivers value this month. (Remember, you can get three free months of Apple TV+ if you buy a new Apple device.)

Hulu ($7.99 a month with ads, or $17.99 with no ads)

After a fallow October, Hulu has a lot more to offer in November, continuing its strong year.

FX's "A Murder at the End of the World" (Nov. 14) was pushed back from an August release date due to the Hollywood strikes, but it should fit better in a colder season anyway. From Brit Marling and Zal Batmanglij, the producers of Netflix's cult favorite sci-fi series "The OA," the limited series is an Agatha Christie-style murder mystery set at a billionaire's secluded, snowbound retreat in Iceland. Emma Corrin ("The Crown") stars as an amateur detective while Clive Owen ("Children of Men") plays the mysterious tycoon.

A wintry setting also plays a key role in the fifth season of FX's "Fargo" (Nov. 22), the latest installment in Noah Hawley's noirish crime anthology. Juno Temple ("Ted Lasso") plays a seemingly ordinary Midwestern housewife who's not at all what she appears to be. She's joined by an all-star cast that includes Jon Hamm, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Lamorne Morris and Dave Foley. Each season of "Fargo" is a quirky, violent delight, and this one looks no different.

Also: Disney officially plans to buy remaining Hulu stake from Comcast

Just to make things confusing, while both "A Murder at the End of the World" and "Fargo" are FX series, "Murder" will stream exclusively on Hulu, while "Fargo" episodes will first air on FX then stream a day later.

In an interesting experiment, director Baz Luhrmann has recut his 2008 romantic drama "Australia," starring Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman, and turned it into a six-episode miniseries -- renamed "Faraway Downs" (Nov. 26) -- using extra footage shot during the original filming. The movie flopped in theaters, but Luhrmann says it should work better as a miniseries, saying "episodic storytelling has been reinvigorated by the streaming world."

For more: Here's what's new on Hulu in November 2023 -- and what's leaving

Hulu also has "Black Cake" (Nov. 1), a generations-spanning family drama based on the bestselling novel by Charmaine Wilkerson; "Quiz Lady" (Nov. 3), a comedy movie about estranged sisters, starring Awkwafina and Sandra Oh; and a handful of sports documentaries, including "The League" (Nov. 9), about Negro League baseball, and "Brawn: The Impossible Formula 1 Story" (Nov. 15), hosted by Keanu Reeves.

Fresh off October's addition of "Moonlighting," Hulu is adding all eight seasons of another 1980s classic, "L.A. Law" (Nov. 3), along with a ton of holiday fare, including "Adam Sandler's Eight Crazy Nights" and "Miracle on 34th Street" (both Nov. 1), and "Elf" and "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation" (both Nov. 23).

And don't forget the season finales of "Welcome to Wrexham" (Nov. 15) and "Goosebumps" (Nov. 17), as well as next-day streams of network shows such as "The Golden Bachelor" and "Bob's Burgers."

Who's Hulu for? TV lovers. There's a deep library for those who want older TV series and next-day streaming of many current network and cable shows.

Play, pause or stop? Pause and think it over. If you're on the ad-supported plan, it's well worth it. But for the pricey, $18 ad-free plan, you may want to wait until December and see how some of these new series pan out.

Netflix ($6.99 a month for basic with ads, $15.49 standard with no ads, $22.99 premium with no ads)

Netflix just raised some prices again, but for most customers, it's still a good value.

The critically acclaimed royal-family drama "The Crown" (Nov. 16) is back for the first half of its sixth and final season (four episodes drop this month, with the final six coming in December). Events pick up in 1997 after the marriage of Prince Charles (Dominic West) and Princess Diana (Elizabeth Debicki) ends, as Queen Elizabeth II (Imelda Staunton) reflects on her legacy. There's already controversy over how it'll handle Diana's tragic death.

Read more: Here's what's new on Netflix in November 2023 -- and what's leaving

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11-01-23 1850ET

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