Written by Hailey

Many movies stand alone in their greatness, but when movies become series, they are either hit or miss. I set myself the goal of finding and evaluating the best movie series, regardless of genre and production date. Through this project for myself, I watched over 40 movies throughout three separate series. I spanned through several genres; action, sci-fi, adventure, fantasy, and mystery. In no way am I or could I ever rank these series, as they each portray their importance, but to give a thorough opinion. I specifically chose three of the biggest film franchises which can be called some of the most popular series as well.

The Harry Potter Series

The first series I chose to review was the Harry Potter Franchise, which is derived from the seven-book series by J.K. Rowling and contains eight movies. There are additional movies that can be included, but I chose to stick to the originals. Each movie contains a consistent main cast but a different plot throughout which builds on the previous one. The following are each of the movies in order; Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows Part 1 and 2. Each of the movies has its own unique aspects, and as you go through the series you can see the characters grow up and the storyline gets more mature.

At the beginning of the series, Sorcerer’s Stone and Chamber of Secrets, the storyline is an amazing introduction. The three main characters, Harry, Hermione, and Ron, create a bond and friendship that lasts the entirety of the series. The visuals and script of these first two movies are great, but not the best of the series. In my opinion, the best movie of this series third movie, Prisoner of Azkaban, which is where Harry’s Godfather is introduced. The script and screenplay through the actors and the visuals are amazing. The rest of the series brings an impactful and dramatic tale which I was hooked on as well. Throughout these movies, there are consistent themes of friendship, loyalty, death, grief, and good vs. evil. Overall, I can see how this series was so impactful for pop culture and the film industry. Don’t worry, I won’t spoil it for you, but I highly recommend watching it.

The Star Wars Series

This next series is one of my own personal favorites to watch, which contains three main trilogies and several independent spin-off movies that are important for further background knowledge into the trilogies. This series is also based on a collection of literature, a comic book series. For this article, I chose to focus on the nine main films which include the following; The Phantom Menace, Attack of the Clones, Revenge of the Sith, A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back, Return of the Jedi, The Force Awakens, The Last Jedi, and The Rise of Skywalker. The most intriguing fact about this movie series is that the second trilogy was actually filmed before the first, as producers and writers thought it would sell better. With this in mind, many people do find it difficult to know the correct order to watch the movies since it was filmed out of order.

The storyline is mainly focused on the Rebel Alliance fighting against the Jedi, which is where the terms dark side and light side typically refer to. The Rebel Alliance aims to take over and obtain control of the galaxies, with main villainous characters such as Darth Vader, Emperor Palpatine, the Sith Lord, Count Dooku, Kylo Ren, and the First Order. Each movie contains great action scenes, and plot twists which add to the excitement. Many people argue as to which movie or trilogy is the best, which is a very tough decision to be fair. The visuals and screenplay of the second trilogy, which was filmed first, are not the best as it was filmed in the 1970s-80’s. Though that does not reduce its standpoints, this trilogy is often seen as the best of all, three of which I can agree with. Though, my favorite movie is Revenge of the Sith, which is in the first trilogy. Many people however do not find the latest trilogy the best, which could possibly be due to the complete character and cast change, though they are still amazing movies. Overall, ranking these movies would be preposterous, but they are revolutionary to the film industry. This is my all-time biggest recommendation I give to anyone looking for a new film series.

The Marvel Universe

This series is by far the longest one I have yet to watch, which is divided into five current phases, with a sixth set to be released from 2025-2027. This series is also based on multiple comic books which are most commonly associated with Stan Lee. His impact on these comics was so vast he appeared in scenes in all the Marvel movies up until he died in 2018. To list every movie in this series would be absurd, as there are 34 released films and five more projected to be released within the next three years. This series is special itself, as for most of the movies you can watch independently without relying on the previous movies, though for some it would be best to.  I watched all the movies in order to better understand them all, and I felt as if it added to the experience.

I watched this series about a year ago and to this day it still sticks in my mind, I did have some refreshing to my memory as I rewatched the most recent films before watching the new Deadpool and Wolverine movie. Each of the movies is action-packed, while also being emotionally attaching as well. The characters rely well on each other which adds to the overall meaning and impact. Overall, I would say that this is a movie series that deserves to be watched, though it does take time. It took me around two weeks to finish the entire series, which I’m sure could be cut down to less. I do think that I couldn’t express enough words to accurately review this series as an entirety as some movies are hits and others are simply just okay. Just know, once you start the series, there’s no going back, you’ll want to keep going.

Feel free to let us know what you think about these series!