Netflix, Spanish. Some have subtitles. You can find these shows with Netflix search bar.
*Las Chicas del Cable. A group of young women work as telephone operators in Madrid, from late 1920’s to late 1930’s. Love stories, politics, phone modernization (big implications for our “chicas”) and more. Very entertaining, though I didn’t like the last season as much as earlier seasons. Great clothes, and it’s fun to see places in Madrid that you recognize in a different period setting.
La Cocinera de Castamar. Young woman takes over job as cook in a noble house near Madrid (easily recognizable as the palace in Boadilla del Monte). The man of the house has a tragedy in his past, the cook has some big issues but is an astonishing cook. Things happen.
La Catedral del Mar. Based on a book by Ildefonso Falcones, this is about building Santa Maria del Mar church in 14th century Barcelona. It’s also a coming of age story for a poor young boy who helps build the church, and has some big adventures on the way to adulthood – and as an adult. This is sort of like a Spanish Pillars of the Earth.
Baztan trilogy, three movies, in this order: El guardián invisible; Legado en los huesos; Ofrenda a la tormenta. Based on books of same names by Dolores Redondo. Part pólice/detective, part scary supernatural, part return-home story. Some nudity and sex.
Amazon Prime, Spanish
Another treasure trove for language learners. If your Spanish is pretty good and you would like to know more about everyday life in Spain, check out Cuentame Como Pasó. This long-running series follows an everyday Spanish family from 1968 to 1992 (so far), key years in Spanish history.
French, a quick note: My Spanish is fluent, so I’m trying to recover my almost-forgotten French. Graded readers were really helpful, after level C1 and following suggestion of someone in Pasajes bookstore I jumped to unsimplified but easy reading: Harry Potter, figuring that an entertaining young adult book with a known story would be a good start (and yes, it is). For TV series on Netflix I’ve watched Bonfire of Destiny and Lupin, both are good, especially Lupin. Several other shows bookmarked for the future.