The Best Kids' Shows Are on Apple TV+

There's no denying that PBS Kids, the home of Daniel Tiger, was once the gold standard for children's programming. Unfortunately, many of their shows now feel recycled or like they're spoon-feeding their audience. For example, they've turned Elmo and Cookie Monster into transforming robots. A parent can't help but wonder if they're more interested in selling toys than entertaining kids. 

Apple TV+ has quickly (and quietly) been overtaking PBS' throne in quality programming for kids, bringing considerable value to this parent's dwindling streaming budget. Several creatives behind Sesame Street and Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood have their own programs on the streaming service, and the shows are targeted toward specific age groups, not just preschoolers.

Toddlers and preschoolers

Hello, Jack! The Kindness Show

After playing 30 Rock's Kenneth Parcell with "aw-shucks" aplomb, Jack McBrayer practically seemed destined to host a Mr. Rogers Neighborhood-type show. Here, he plays a version of himself, who also happens to be the kindest resident of Clover Grove, and spreads his fondness for others around his colorful hometown. Behind the scenes, McBrayer co-created this musical show (with songs by pop group OK Go) with Angela C. Santomero, the mind behind Blue's Clues and Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood. According to my oldest son, this program is strictly for preschoolers, as he doesn't enjoy the show as much as his younger brother does. 

Frog and Toad

Every streaming service has a children's series based on a book. Netflix has Captain Underpants, and Prime Video has If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, and each show translates its source material to the screen with varying degrees of success. Apple TV+ has Frog and Toad, which captures what made Arnold Lobel's award-winning series so delightful to read, from the color palette of its illustrations to its contagious positivity. The show moves at the same pace as your preschooler, so their senses aren't overloaded, and its core themes about communication and embracing differences are slipped in subtly. Both my sons love it. Don't be surprised if this becomes the next kids' show you watch without your kids.

Older kids

Stillwater

From each hair on the titular panda's face to the blades of grass that move with the breeze, Stillwater is far too beautiful for children's television animation. Even its sound design is soothing, which is on purpose, given the show's premise. Each episode deals with a problem that one of Stillwater's child neighbors brings to them. Rather than letting their emotions take over, he supports them in finding a solution by taking a deep breath and looking at the problem from a different perspective, offering a way to navigate complicated feelings so viewers can work on becoming more self-aware humans. Surprisingly, my kids love this show, particularly the beautiful fables Stillwater tells his young neighbors to get his point across.

Camp Snoopy

When Apple TV+ announced it was becoming the new streaming home for all things Peanuts, I wondered why, considering that most of the television specials had their heyday in the '70s and '80s. I obviously underestimated Snoopy's power, especially considering parents were up in arms when word got out that A Charlie Brown Christmas wouldn't be on broadcast television because of the arrangement.

The agreement also allows Apple to create new content featuring Charles Schultz's characters. Their most recent offering is Camp Snoopy, which follows Charlie Brown and siblings Lucy and Linus Van Pelt to the great outdoors. There are the usual shenanigans from Snoopy and Woodstock (which drew my kids in), but the other characters have issues of their own, such as getting homesick or fear of trying new things, that are dealt with gracefully.

Tiny World

Who needs to watch Honey, I Shrunk the Kids when the documentary program Tiny World breaks down the microscopic ecosystems of the jungle, savannah, and outback for viewers? Soothingly narrated by Paul Rudd, the series offers fantastic images they wouldn't likely see anywhere else to captivate your child's imagination. I recommend waiting to watch this on your new big-screen TV instead of your iPad, as the detail in these images is enough to make your family's jaw drop.

Tweens

Ghostwriter

My oldest son, a bookworm by his own admission, dove right into this reboot of the '90s live-action series about a group of kids who solve mysteries with literary characters mysteriously brought to life. He was caught up in solving the identity of the titular character, who communicates with the four young detectives through spilled drinks and a mysterious typewriter, as well as the other themes dominating the character's personal lives (like grief, for example). The greatest trick this show pulls off is making classic stories like The Jungle Book and Alice in Wonderland relevant when so many other characters (and toys) vie for your child's attention.

Circuit Breakers

Goosebumps. Are You Afraid of the Dark? In the '90s, there was no shortage of creepy anthology shows aimed at tweens. Now, there is Circuit Breakers, which focuses on the effects of using technology to solve kid-related problems, such as overbearing parents or waiting for your growth spurt. It's unusual content from a technology company, especially one known for policing its adult content for disparaging remarks that its creators say on-air. It's still refreshing that this exists, and, unlike its '90s predecessors, there are no jump scares or monsters to impede your child's enjoyment.

Wolfboy and the Everything Factory

Joseph Gordon-Levitt voices one of the characters in this animated show about a creative kid sent to boarding school to make friends. However, he wears a wolf mask (hence the nickname Wolfboy), so he doesn't quite fit in. He finds his tribe inside a magical portal in the woods near his school and finds the Everything Factory, where everything on the Earth's surface, from clouds to trees, is manufactured. The show has an Adventure Time vibe, but it feels like something one of my boys would make in a comic book. 

The Best Celestial Events to Watch for in July

July isn't the most exciting month of the year for stargazing and plant-finding, but there are a handful of celestial events worth putting on your calendar in the coming weeks, including the meeting of multiple meteor showers leading up to the peak of the Perseids in mid-August.

Here's when (and where) to look up.

July 2–4: Moon and Jupiter join up

Mars and Jupiter are moving closer together from July to mid-August, and the latter will be particularly bright in the early morning hours of July 2–4 and close to the moon. EarthSky has several helpful diagrams for where those in the northern hemisphere should look in the hours before sunrise to spot Jupiter, Mars, and the Pleiades star cluster.

July 21: Full Buck Moon

This month's full moon is expected to reach peak illumination at 6:14 am ET on July 21. The Buck Moon, also often known as the Thunder Moon, is believed to have gotten its name from the Native American lunar calendar and aligns with the time of year in which buck antlers are fully grown.

The 2024 Buck Moon is not a supermoon, but it will still be visible in the southeast after sunset.

July 29–30: Delta Aquariids peak

The Delta Aquariids will be active from July 18 to Aug. 21 with an expected peak on the nights of July 29 and 30. This meteor shower is fainter than some others throughout the year and is typically more visible in the southern hemisphere at a max rate of 15–20 meteors per hour. The moon will be only 30% full during the peak, and you may be able to spot the Delta Aquariids in the southwestern sky, particularly if you're in the southern United States.

Note that the Perseids—typically the best show of the summer—begins on July 14 with a peak expected in mid-August and may be mixed in with the Aquariids.

July 30: Alpha Capricornids peak

The Capricornids, active from July 7 to Aug. 15, are small in number but very bright. You're unlikely to see more than five per hour even during the peak, but the shower is visible in both the northern and southern hemispheres, and the sky will be relatively dark (with the moon 20% full) during the shower's peak. Estimates of activity vary, but the best time to view it is in the final days of July around 4 a.m. ET.

Today’s Wordle Hints (and Answer) for Tuesday, July 2, 2024

If you’re looking for the Wordle answer for July 2, 2024 read on. We’ll share some clues, tips, and strategies, and finally the solution. Today’s puzzle is harder; I got it in five. Beware, there are spoilers below for July 2, Wordle #1,109! Keep scrolling if you want some hints (and then the answer) to today’s Wordle game.

How to play Wordle

Wordle lives here on the New York Times website. A new puzzle goes live every day at midnight, your local time.

Start by guessing a five-letter word. The letters of the word will turn green if they’re correct, yellow if you have the right letter in the wrong place, or gray if the letter isn’t in the day’s secret word at all. For more, check out our guide to playing Wordle here, and my strategy guide here for more advanced tips. (We also have more information at the bottom of this post, after the hints and answers.)

Ready for the hints? Let’s go!

---

Does today’s Wordle have any unusual letters?

We’ll define common letters as those that appear in the old typesetters’ phrase ETAOIN SHRDLU. (Memorize this! Pronounce it “Edwin Shirdloo,” like a name, and pretend he’s a friend of yours.)

Four of today's letters are from our mnemonic. The other is uncommon.

Can you give me a hint for today’s Wordle?

Can be made of ivory or gold and embedded.

Does today’s Wordle have any double or repeated letters?

There are no repeated letters today. 

How many vowels are in today’s Wordle?

There are two vowels and one "sometimes" vowel.

What letter does today’s Wordle start with?

Today’s word starts with I. 

What letter does today’s Wordle end with?

Today’s word ends with Y. 

What is the solution to today’s Wordle?

Ready? Today’s word is INLAY.

How I solved today’s Wordle

I started with RAISE followed by LATCH and POUND to eliminate likely consonants (and remaining vowels). My next guess was FINAL, which left several possible words but INLAY as the most common.

Wordle 1,109 5/6

⬛🟨🟨⬛⬛
🟨🟨⬛⬛⬛
⬛⬛⬛🟨⬛
⬛🟨🟨🟩🟨
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

---

Yesterday’s Wordle answer

Yesterday’s Wordle was easier. The hint was “synonym for proverb” and the answer contained four common letters and one fairly common letter.

The answer to yesterday’s Wordle was ADAGE.

A primer on Wordle basics

The idea of Wordle is to guess the day’s secret word. When you first open the Wordle game, you’ll see an empty grid of letters. It’s up to you to make the first move: type in any five-letter word. 

Now, you can use the colors that are revealed to get clues about the word: Green means you correctly guessed a letter, and it’s in the correct position. (For example, if you guess PARTY, and the word is actually PURSE, the P and R will be green.)

• Yellow means the letter is somewhere in the word, but not in the position you guessed it. (For example, if you guessed PARTY, but the word is actually ROAST, the R, A and T will all be yellow.)

• Gray means the letter is not in the solution word at all. (If you guessed PARTY and everything is gray, then the solution cannot be PURSE or ROAST.)

With all that in mind, guess another word, and then another, trying to land on the correct word before you run out of chances. You get six guesses, and then it’s game over.

The best starter words for Wordle

What should you play for that first guess? The best starters tend to contain common letters, to increase the chances of getting yellow and green squares to guide your guessing. (And if you get all grays when guessing common letters, that’s still excellent information to help you rule out possibilities.) There isn’t a single “best” starting word, but the New York Times’s Wordle analysis bot has suggested starting with one of these:

• CRANE

• TRACE

• SLANT

• CRATE

• CARTE

Meanwhile, an MIT analysis found that you’ll eliminate the most possibilities in the first round by starting with one of these:

• SALET

• REAST

• TRACE

• CRATE

• SLATE

Other good picks might be ARISE or ROUND. Words like ADIEU and AUDIO get more vowels in play, but you could argue that it’s better to start with an emphasis on consonants, using a starter like RENTS or CLAMP. Choose your strategy, and see how it plays out.

How to win at Wordle

We have a few guides to Wordle strategy, which you might like to read over if you’re a serious student of the game. This one covers how to use consonants to your advantage, while this one focuses on a strategy that uses the most common letters. In this advanced guide, we detail a three-pronged approach for fishing for hints while maximizing your chances of winning quickly.

The biggest thing that separates Wordle winners from Wordle losers is that winners use their guesses to gather information about what letters are in the word. If you know that the word must end in -OUND, don’t waste four guesses on MOUND, ROUND, SOUND, and HOUND; combine those consonants and guess MARSH. If the H lights up in yellow, you know the solution.

One more note on strategy: the original Wordle used a list of about 2,300 solution words, but after the game was bought by the NYT, the game now has an editor who hand-picks the solutions. Sometimes they are slightly tricky words that wouldn’t have made the original list, and sometimes they are topical. For example, FEAST was the solution one Thanksgiving. So keep in mind that there may be a theme.

Wordle alternatives

If you can’t get enough of five-letter guessing games and their kin, the best Wordle alternatives, ranked by difficulty, include:

• Wheeldle, which lets you play one puzzle after another

• Dordle and Quordle, which ask you to play two (Dordle) or four (Quordle) puzzles at the same time, with the same guesses. There is also Octordle, with eight puzzles, and Sedecordle, with 16.

• Waffle, which shows you several five-letter words, scrambled in a grid; you play by swapping the letters around until you solve.

• Absurdle, which changes the solution after each guess, but needs to stay consistent with its previous feedback. You have to strategically back it into a corner until there is only one possible word left; then you guess it, and win.

• Squabble, in which you play Wordle against other people with a timer running. You take damage if you spend too much time between guesses; winner is the last one standing.

• Antiwordle, in which you are trying not to guess the day’s solution. You’re required to reuse any letters that you (oops) guessed correctly, so the longer it takes you, the better you are at the game.

The Best Movies and TV Shows to Watch on Prime This Month

I've scoured the new releases of Amazon's Prime and FreeVee platforms this month to present the best new, and new-to-streaming, movies and shows the services have to offer, plus a couple older choices for extra flavor.

If you're into fresh comedy, Amazon original movie Space Cadet could be your jam, and so could the new animated series Sausage Party: Foodtopia. If you're into domestic drama, check out Tyler Perry's Divorce in Black. Action fans can choose between recent action flicks The Beekeeper or Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning. So there's a lot to watch this month. Below are some suggestions.

Space Cadet

Remember that episode of The Simpsons where Homer is chosen to fly in a space shuttle mission? Space Cadet is like the training montage made into a fish-out-of-water comedy. It stars Emma Roberts as Tiffany “Rex” Simpson, a Florida party girl who’s always dreamed of being an astronaut. Her background is in bar-hopping instead astrophysics, so she lies on her LinkedIn and gets into NASA’s competitive astronaut training program. Surrounded by ambitious PhDs and engineers, Simpson tries to keep up her “smart and accomplished” ruse long enough to be blasted into space. If you like female-led comedy and jokes about science, Space Cadet might be your favorite movie.  

Starts streaming July 4.

Sausage Party: Foodtopia

Based on 2016’s CGI feature Sausage Party, Foodtopia details the efforts of sentient hot dogs, bananas, and other foods to create a society where they won’t have their heads bitten off just because someone is peckish. It’s sure to be packed with the scatological and raunchy humor audiences enjoyed in the original film, so it’s definitely not for kids. The eight-episode series features the return of voice talent from the original, including Seth Rogen, Kristen Wiig, Michael Cera, David Krumholtz, Edward Norton, Sam Richardson, and Will Forte. If you like your comedy uncut, this might be your new summer show. 

Tyler Perry’s Divorce in Black

Prolific writer/director/producer Tyler Perry takes on divorce in this drama starring Meagan Good and Cory Hardrict. Good plays Ava, a bank professional, whose life is upended when her husband (Hardrict) walks out of their home. She’s set on fighting to save her marriage until she uncovers secrets that suggest her husband has a very dark side and sabotaged a past relationship with Ava’s true soulmate. 

Starts streaming July 11.

The Beekeeper (2024)

The Beekeeper should be terrible. The premise makes you picture a slimy producer at a Hollywood development meeting saying, “It’s John Wick—but with bees!” But miraculously, The Beekeeper is not terrible. People like this Jason Statham-led action movie enough that it’s sitting at 92% audience approval at Rotten Tomatoes.  Even finicky critics like The Beekeeper enough for a 71% fresh rating. It’s not going to change your life or anything, but it you’re looking for a dumb-fun action flick about a British badass who beats everyone up, The Beekeeper is for you. 

Starts streaming July 2.

Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning (2023)

In case you haven't heard of him, Tom Cruise is a national treasure and the world’s greatest movie star who does his own stunts even though he’s 112 years old. In Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning, Cruise turns his charisma up to 15 million gigawatts in his recurring role of Ethan Hunt, agent of the Impossible Mission Force. The plot has something to do with an evil mastermind trying to take over the world with artificial intelligence or something, but it really doesn’t matter. Mission Impossible movies live or die based on the quality and quantity of their over-the-top action set-pieces, and Dead Reckoning over-delivers. It takes action to such ludicrous, even critics like it—the movie has a 96% Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes. 

Starts streaming July 25.

My Spy The Eternal City (2024)

Released in 2020, My Spy is one of a fair number of action/comedies where a tough guy and a little kid become unlikely partners. The sequel explores this rarely-misses formula by reuniting stars Dave Bautista and Chloe Coleman for a feel-good family adventure. It begins with JJ volunteering to chaperone his new daughter’s choir group on a trip to Rome to perform for the Pope. Things go south when the pair run afoul of International terrorists. Hilarious character actors Ken Jeong and Kristen Schaal return, and are joined by Anna Faris, Craig Robinson, and Flula Borg. Eternal City is full of stars, laughs, and exciting-but-not-distressing action—a perfect summer flick. 

Starts streaming July 18.

Sam Morril: You've Changed

Gravel-voiced stand-up Sam Morril takes the stage in a stand-up special where he drops hot takes on everything from the worst person he's ever dated, to the challenges of aging, to the dangers of social media, all delivered in the laid-back style Morril is known for. If you like people making ha-ha jokes at you, Sam Morril: You’ve Changed will make you laugh, or at least say “heh” a few times. 

Starts streaming July 9.

Cirque du Soleil: Without a Net

Cirque du Soleil, the circus that costs $100, had a rough time during the pandemic lockdown—it’s a cool show and all, but is it worth contracting Covid? Without a Net documents the struggles of Cirque's crew and performers as they dust off the trapeze and harnesses and work toward a grand re-opening in Las Vegas. With that famous the-show-must-go-on ethic driving it, the world’s most high-class circus journey’s back from the brink in an inspiring story. 

Starts streaming July 25

Rocky 1-6

If you’re looking for a summertime movie binge, consider hitting play on the first five Rocky movies and following the career of the Italian Stallion from his unlikely title fight shot in 1976’s Rocky to his brief career as a trainer in 1990’s Rocky 5. The Rocky franchise follows an arc as dramatic and erratic as its main character’s: It goes from a downbeat beginning about a palooka whose redemption comes through surviving a beating instead of winning a fight, to the over-amped, montage-heavy live-action cartoon Rocky IV, where Rocky KOs Ivan Drago in a battle that’s really about America-brand Freedom beating up Communist oppression. Then there’s the coda, Rocky V, where Rocky doesn’t even box. 

Starts streaming July 1.

Fistful of Dollars, For a Few Dollars More, and The Good the Bad and the Ugly

There are few film franchises better than Sergio Leone’s “Dollars trilogy” (Fistful of Dollars, For a Few Dollars More, The Good the Bad and Ugly), Steely-eyed Clint Eastwood defines cool as a nameless antihero locked in epic struggles against black-hatted adversaries (usually played by Lee Van Cleef) in a mythic version of the The American West. These aren’t really stories about cowboys as much as legends of Gods from some unfamiliar pantheon. So watch all these movies instead of doing anything else, please. 

Starts streaming July 1.

Evil Dead Rise (2023)

1981’s The Evil Dead is one of the best horror movies ever made, but sadly, it’s only on streaming on AMC+. Prime subscribers get a tasty consolation prize with Evil Dead Rise, a thoroughly enjoyable, suitably bloody, modern addition to the franchise. Evil Dead Rise drops the isolated cabin-in-the-woods location in favor of a deadite invasion in a city. It also features characters that are interesting enough that you might think they exist for reasons other than to be killed and eaten by undead monsters. They don’t, of course, because this is an Evil Dead movie. Like all the Evil Dead movies, it’s a gory, scary, silly, and fun treat for fans of horror mayhem.

Starts streaming July 2.

Last month's picks

Oppenheimer (2023)

Christopher Nolan's biopic about the inventor of atomic weapons took home seven Oscars, including best picture, and it also made over $900 million at the box office. Cillian Murphy stars as physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer, a complex, driven visionary tasked with creating the most destructive weapon in human history to fight the Axis powers during World War II. Spoiler: he succeeds, but Oppenheimer, both the movie and man, end up wondering if atomic weapons were actually such a great idea.

Starts streaming June 18.

The Boys, Season 4

The Boys, as they say, are back in town. In season four, the world is on the brink of collapse as evil Victoria Neuman gets closer to the Oval Office. If this were a normal superhero show, weirdos wearing underwear and capes would spring into action on behalf of mankind, but this is The Boys, so the corrupt, arrogant superheroes are causing the trouble in the first place, and only the titular team of un-super-powered CIA agents can stop them.

Starts streaming June 13.

Skyfall (2012)

In Skyfall, director Sam Mendes jettisons the campy gadgets and goofiness and goes for a "modern Bond" blend of intensity and breeziness that works perfectly with Daniel Craig's nuanced portrayal of the secret agent. The third James Bond movie starring Craig, Skyfall's Rotten Tomatoes score is 92%, and the Bond fan community generally places this flick in the company of the best films in the long-running series. If you know anyone who hasn't seen a Bond movie, this is a great way to jump in.

Starts streaming June 1.

I Am: Celine Dion

This original Prime documentary explores singer Celine Dion's struggle with Stiff Person Syndrome, a rare neurological disease. Described in a press release as an "emotional, energetic, and poetic love letter to music," I Am: Celine Dion takes viewers from the dressing room to the recording studio to the stage and captures an intimate look at the superstar singer's private life and struggles.

Starts streaming June 25

My Lady Jane

The real Lady Jane Grey was a Tudor noblewoman who became Queen of England in 1553 but only ruled for nine days before being beheaded. This Prime original series explores what might have happened if The Nine Days' Queen had kept her head. Based on the best-selling YA novel of the same name by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows, My Lady Jane is "an epic tale of true love and high adventure set in an alt-universe of action, history, fantasy, comedy, romance, and rompy-pompy," according to Amazon's promotional material.

Starts streaming June 27.

Counsel Culture

I'm intrigued by this upcoming Prime talk show. Based on host Nick Cannon's podcast of the same name, Counsel Culture is billed as a "safe space and a brave place for men to be vulnerable," but is a panel of dudes discussing mental health, masculinity, dating, and other dude topics the kind of thing men want to watch? Time will tell. Cannon is joined by therapist Dr. Mike Dow and psychiatrist Dr. Ish Major, and guest co-hosts include Howie Mandel, Lamar Odom, DeSean Jackson, and more.

Starts streaming June 6.

Marlon Wayans: Good Grief

Speaking of men sharing their feelings, in his new special Good Grief, stand-up comedian/actor/maker Marlon Wayans gets real about the death of his parents, but does it in a funny way. Filmed at Harlem's famous Apollo theater, Wayans's comedy-meet-therapy performance is based on the motto that "all grief is good grief," and touches on topics like which Wayans brother is funniest, and how remarkable it is that the matriarch of the Wayans family raised "five millionaires but only one crackhead."

Starts streaming June 4

Mean Girls (2024)

Written by and starring the supernaturally talented Tina Fey, this Gen-Z remake of the beloved 2004 movie adds original songs to the teen comedy mix. Up-and-comer Angourie Rice plays Cady Heron, a new girl at North Shore High School who is forced to navigate the backbiting cliques that make high school such a fantastic time. The cast includes Reneé Rapp, Jon Hamm, Auli'i Cravalho, Jaquel Spivey, Tina Fey, and Tim Meadows, so if you like crowd-pleasing comedies with can't-miss performances, check out Mean Girls.

Judy (2019)

Judy explores the over-sized life of iconic movie star Judy Garland, specifically, her last years in London, when films like The Wizard of Oz were a distant cultural memory and Garland was too broke to pay her hotel bill. Trying to stage another in an endless series of "comebacks," Garland juggles her professional responsibilities with her fierce protectiveness over her children, all while battling alcoholism and drug addiction. Darci Shaw plays young Judy, but the movie really belongs to Renée Zellweger, whose portrayal of time-has-caught-up-with-her Judy is heartbreaking.

Starts streaming June 26.

Godzilla Movie Marathon

I associate Godzilla movies with the 1960s and 1970s, but there's more in the Godzilla cinematic universe than cheesy, guy-in-a-rubber-suit flicks from 50 years ago: There's cheesy guy-in-a-rubber-suit flicks made more recently! In June, Prime is streaming eight made-in-Japan Godzilla movies released between 1999 and 2004, including Godzilla Vs. Spacegodzilla (1999), Godzilla Against Mechagodzilla (2004), Godzilla Vs. Destoroyah (1999), and Godzilla, Mothra, And King Ghidorah: Giant Monsters All-Out Attack (2003). All of these, I assume, are amazing.

Starts streaming June 1.

The Best Movies and TV Shows to Watch on Hulu This Month

Hulu's schedule this month is a bit summertime light, but there are some gems premiering if you dig a little. There's a new season of Futurama, for instance, and a grip of shark-based specials streaming as part of National Geographic's Sharkfest. If you're a ghoul like me, you can check out a couple of interesting looking new true-crime shows too: Sasha Reid and the Midnight Order and Mastermind: To Think Like a Killer.

Futurama, season 12

Matt Groening and David X. Cohen's iconic sci-fi cartoon Futurama is back this month for a 12th season, with 10 new episodes coming. Fry, Bender, Leela, and everyone else will be back to discover the secret of Bender's ancestors, learn the story behind coffee, and make sardonic jokes about the present even though it takes place in the year 3,000 or so. If you've never seen Futurama, you'll have nearly all month to catch up on the previous 12 seasons—they're also available on Hulu.

Starts streaming July 29.

Sharkfest

You know why they don't call it "Shark Week" anymore? Because it's expanded to an entire damn month. Hulu will feature a ton of streamable specials in July concerning Mankind's underwater enemies, including Attack of the Red Sea Sharks, Baby Sharks in the City, Shark Attack 360, Shark Beach with Anthony Mackie, Shark vs. Ross Edgley, Sharks Gone Viral, Supersized Sharks, and When Will We Finally Kill all these Goddamn Sharks? (I made that last one up).

Starts streaming July 1.

Sasha Reid and the Midnight Order

If you're a true crime fan, do not miss Sasha Reid and the Midnight Order. Reid is a psychologist with a singular obsession: catching killers. So she recruited a cadre of women that share her passion from various disciplines and backgrounds, dubbed them "The Midnight Order," and started tracking down criminals. The Midnight Order works outside the system and uses cutting-edge data skills and forensic knowledge to heat up cold cases—like Batman, but not fake. This series takes viewers inside their most intriguing investigations and introduces us to the women who have made Justice their profession.

Starts streaming July 10.

Mastermind: To Think Like a Killer

In 1978, psychiatric nurse Ann Burgess received a call that would change her life. It was the FBI's Behavioral Science Unit, and they wanted her help digging into the minds of serial killers. Mastermind: To Think Like a Killer explores this unsung woman who helped create criminal profiling as well as digging into the details of the killers who informed Burgess's work including infamous criminals like Ed Kemper and Ted Bundy, as well as lesser-known monsters like the Ski Mask Rapist.

Starts streaming July 11.

Hit-Monkey, season 2

The hero of Hit-Monkey is a Japanese snow monkey who teams up with the ghost of an American assassin to become the "killer of killers" and take out the most fearsome assassins in Japan. Season 2 finds the strange duo in New York trying to escape their shadowy existences, but it's not easy to give up that kind of life. Hit-Monkey is based on a Marvel comic, and the first season of the animated action show earned rave reviews from both critics and fans, so if you like heroes, action, cartoons, or just things that are awesome, check this one out.

Starts streaming July 15.

Last month's picks

The Bear, season 3

Hulu’s critically acclaimed, audience-favorite series The Bear is returning for a third nerve-jangling, poignant season. Now that they’ve opened The Bear, their ideal high-end restaurant, Carmy (Jeremy Allen White), Sydney (Ayo Edebiri), Richie (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) and the rest of crew must navigate the treacherous, cutthroat Chicago culinary scene. Expect things to get stressful. 

Starts streaming June 27.

Becoming Karl Lagerfeld

Before he became a fashion legend and fashion icon, Karl Lagerfeld was just some guy named Karl; this Hulu original bio-series Becoming Karl Lagerfeld explores this remarkable transformation. The series follows Lagerfeld, played by Daniel Brühl, as he navigates the 1970s Parisian high fashion scene. He encounters fierce rival Yves Saint Laurent (played by Arnaud Valois), forms a business partnership with Pierre Bergé (Alex Lutz), and develops a more personal relationship with bon vivant Jacques de Bascher (Théodore Pellerin). If you’re fascinated by fashion or the jet-set lifestyle, Becoming Karl Lagerfeld is a must-watch.

Starts streaming June 7.

Saw (1-7)

Saw movies are like comfort food to horror fans. From its humble beginnings with James Wan’s low-budget, indie horror movie Saw in 2004, the gritty franchise has grown into a horror mainstay with 10 feature films, a (bad) AAA video game, and more merchandise than you could collect in 10 lifetimes. Some are better than others, but all the Saw movies are variations on the theme of a madman putting people into devious traps so we can watch them die, escape, and/or enact revenge on their tormentor. Hulu is streaming the first seven movies in the series to celebrate the start of summer, a fact that will delight horror fans, even if horrifies everyone else. 

Starts streaming June 1.

Queenie

Queenie Jenkins, the hero of Hulu original comedy series Queenie, is a British Jamaican woman in the U.K. who is suffering from a quarter-life crisis, a bad breakup, and the general horror and annoyance of urban life in 2024 all at once. With the vibrant yet challenging landscape of South London as a backdrop, Queenie struggles to navigate her dual cultural identity and find her place in the world. If you enjoy witty, contemporary character studies that tackle themes of race and identity, Queenie is a must-watch.

Starts streaming June 7. 

Breakin' On The One

This documentary tells the story of how the Black and brown kids from New York’s poorest neighborhoods spawned a worldwide musical and cultural revolution through dance, music, and fashion. On August 15, 1981, New York breakdance crews the Rocksteady Crew and the Dynamic Rockers appeared at the Out-of-Doors Festival to settle their differences through a breaking battle. Ripples from the showdown reverberated all over the world, and Breaking on The One explores that epic breakin’ battle and the significance of breakdancing and hip-hop through archival footage and interviews with the dancers, DJs, MCs and B-boys and girls who were there. If you’re into hip-hop, or fascinated with how cultural revolutions begin, check out Breakin’ on the One. 

Starts streaming June 24.

Candis Cayne's Secret Garden, season one

Trans icon Candis Cayne hosts a gardening show like none other. In her “literally groundbreaking” comedy/DIY/gardening show, Cayne and her friends will teach you how to transform your home and garden into a magical place. Billed as a whimsical and visually stunning experience that combines the real-life gardening expertise of Candis Cayne with a playful and imaginative world, each episode of Secret Garden presents a different DIY project designed to inspire your imagination and motivate you to make your backyard and home magical. 

Starts streaming June 9.

Brats

To teenagers in the 1980s, no one was cooler, sexier, or more famous than The Brat Pack, that cadre of young actors that starred in every teen movie and seemed to rule Hollywood. Directed by original brat packer Andrew McCarthy, Brats gives us a view from inside the fame fishbowl through interviews with brat packer Demi Moore, Rob Lowe, Emilio Esteves, Ally Sheedy and more. (Spoiler: being in the Brat Pack wasn’t as much fun as you probably imagined.) 

Starts streaming June 13. 

Cult Massacre: One Day in Jonestown

This National Geographic docuseries examines the history, impact, and people behind Jim Jone’s terrifying People’s Temple cult. Told through never-before-scene footage and interviews with survivors and eyewitnesses, Cult Massacre: One Day in Jonestown explores the group’s rise and eventual mass murder/suicide in Guyana, shedding light on the causes of the grisly day that shook the world.

Starts streaming June 17. 

The Best Movies and TV Shows to Watch on Netflix This Month

I've pored over Netflix's release schedule to bring you the best movies and TV shows premiering on the service this month. Netflix is packed in July. The month starts with Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F, the long-anticipated sequel to 1984's Beverly Hills Cop; a few weeks later, the first part of the final season of Cobra Kai drops; and the month closes out with a new season of Unsolved Mysteries.

Not everything on the streaming service is based on intellectual property from the 1980s, though. There's a new season of "very-now" reality show Too Hot to Handle, Exploding Kittens (based on the card game), and a pair of getting-ready-for-the-Olympics documentaries: one on gymnast Simone Biles and one about the world's top sprinters.

Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F 

It's been almost 30 years since cop-out-of-water Axel Foley busted bad guys in Beverly Hills, and Eddie Murphy returns to the title role with some world-weariness to add to his panache. Old pals Billy Rosewood (Judge Reinhold) and Taggart (John Ashton) are on hand, but there's some new blood too: Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays Axel's partner, and Taylour Paige plays his daughter, whose life is in danger until Pop F. comes to save the day. The mixture of action, comedy, and Eddie Murphy worked in the 1980s, but will it in 2024? Watch Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F to find out.

Starts streaming July 3.

Cobra Kai Season 6, Part 1

Cobra Kai's mix of 1980s nostalgic meta-comedy, teen soap opera cheese, and martial arts shouldn't work so well, but somehow, the charm of its cast and its breezy, "none of this is important in any way" tone make it a must-binge series. This is the first part of the sixth and supposedly final season for the show, and it sees the members of the Miyagi-Do dojo pondering “if and how they will compete in the Sekai Taikai—the world championship of karate." So the plot is whatever, but the original cast are all expected to return to their places in the karate-based alternate universe in which they live, which is reason enough to watch.

Starts streaming July 18.

Too Hot to Handle

The hook of Too Hot to Handle is brilliant: the reality-competition show puts a gaggle of extremely attractive and sexed-up 20-somethings together in an exotic location, makes them sleep in pairs, then penalizes them for hooking up—the only way anyone can win the $250,000 prize is through abstinence. It's dumb reality show spectacle, perfect as a mid-summer guilty pleasure, and I promise I won't tell anyone you watched it all.

Starts streaming July 19.

The Man with 1000 Kids 

If you're interested in the future of Humanity, check out docu-series The Man with 1000 Kids. It tells the story of Dutch musician Jonathan Meijer who is accused of fathering hundreds, maybe thousands, of children through sperm donation. If the accusations are true, Meijer's DNA will have more influence on succeeding generations than just about anyone else's on Earth, and he's a super-creepy YouTuber who eats raw meat, stares directly at the sun, and makes absolutely terrible music. Good luck, human race!

Starts streaming July 3.

Exploding Kittens 

Based on the popular card game, Exploding Kittens is a cartoon-for-adults in which God and the Devil are sent to Earth in the form of house cats. That's not in the game, but it does capture the oh-so-random tone of the source material. Whether it'll work or not remains to be seen, but producers Mike Judge (King of the Hill, Beavis and Butt-Head) and Greg Daniels (The Office) know something about making comedy, so it's a solid bet.

Starts streaming July 1

Sprint: The World's Fastest Humans

Sprint: the World's Fastest Humans takes us into the world of elite sprinters so we can learn what motivates someone to devote their lives to the pursuit of speed. If you're planning to watch the track and field events at the Olympics later in the month, this is a perfect way to get to know some of the top athletes competing.

Starts streaming July 2.

Receiver 

Last summer's Quarterback followed three of the NFL's best quarterbacks; in this summer's Receivers, we learn about the dudes they throw to. This Netflix original documentary series details the 2023 seasons, both on and off the field, of Davante Adams, Justin Jefferson, George Kittle, Deebo Samuels, and Amon-ra Saint Brown, five best-of-the-best players that football fans either totally love or begrudgingly admit are awesome, even though they hate them, depending on their team loyalty.

Starts streaming July 10.

Back to the Future series 

Back to the Future is a perfect movie, and the other two entries in the series are alright too. If you have a few rainy days this summer, there are a lot worse ways to spend them than gathering the family and basking in the '80s glow of this trilogy. It still works all these years later.

Starts streaming July 1.

Lost: Seasons 1-6 (series)

Lost's ending was so epically terrible, it's easy to forget that its first few seasons were as good as any prestige television that has ever been produced—and it was made before "prestige television" even existed. Co-created by J.J. Abrams, and co-written by Damon Lindelof, Lost features a talented cast that includes Evangeline Lilly, Terry O'Quinn, and Dominic Monaghan, and mind-bending plot that ultimately doesn't make much sense, but it's still a fun trip.

Starts streaming July 1.

The Boy Next Door (2015)

Jennifer Lopez stars in good, old-fashioned domestic thriller The Boy Next Door. She's a teacher who has an affair with her much younger new neighbor, but he turns out to be one of her students, and he's a psycho who sets out to destroy her family and her life. You know the drill—it's a potboiler, but with the always charismatic J-Lo at its center.

Starts streaming July 16.

Simone Biles Rising

Gymnast Simone Biles grabbed the world's attention when she withdrew from the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. But the shocking move, partly in response to Biles' mental health concerns, didn't end her career. Biles is back for another go at Olympic glory this year, and Simone Biles Rising details her hard road back to potential greatness at the 2024 Olympics. This docuseries is a pre-Olympics must-watch.

Starts streaming July 19

Star Trek: Prodigy (Season 2)

If you've been looking for a first Star Trek series to watch with your children, Star Trek: Prodigy is for you. The CGI-animated series captures the thoughtful adventure-and-exploration vibe that makes Star Trek great, and does it in a kid-friendly way that isn't adult-unfriendly. The first season of the CGI series earned a 94% "fresh" rating on Rotten Tomatoes for taking the dusty franchise in unexpected directions; hopefully season two measures up.

Starts streaming July 1.

Skywalkers: A Love Story 

If you like white-knuckle cinema, Skywalkers is for you. It chronicles the life and relationship of Angela Nikolau and Ivan Beerkus, a young couple who live to climb the world's tallest buildings. Skywalkers: a Love Story follows the couple's elaborate plans to conquer Malaysia’s Merdeka 118 super-skyscraper without harnesses, ropes, or permission. It makes me nervous just thinking about it.

Starts streaming July 19

Dirty Pop: The Boy Band Scam 

Lou Pearlman, the impresario behind The Backstreet Boys, *NSYNC, and Britney Spears might not have been a super honest guy—shocking, I know. Dirty Pop details how Pearlman changed music while building his personal empire, and doesn't shy away from the dark side of the business of fame, power, and exploiting talented young artists.

Starts streaming July 24.

The Decameron

If you like unconventional comedy, check out The Decameron. Loosely based on Giovanni Boccaccio’s The Decameron, published in the 14th Century, this Netflix period comedy is set in Florence, Italy, in 1348 among a rag-tag group of nobles and their servants who are camped out in an opulent villa as the plague rages outside. To pass the time, they tell each other stories that range from from touching to ribald, while the social order descends into chaos. Seems relatable. Netflix describes it as "Like Love Island, but Back in the Day," and that's enough for me to give it a watch.

Starts streaming July 25.

Unsolved Mysteries, Volume 4

The first three seasons of Netflix's revival of Unsolved Mysteries are excellent. Netflix hasn't released a ton of details about volume four yet, but if previous seasons are any indication, it will feature a mixture of unexplained deaths, strange disappearances, paranormal activity, UFOs, and other "what the hell?" content presented in a thorough, thoughtful way.

Starts streaming July 31.

Tickled (2016)

Tickled is one of the strangest documentaries I've ever seen. Journalist David Farrier starts off hunting a quirky story about the "sport" of competitive tickling, but uncovers a strange underworld that's not funny at all. I don't want to spoil any of the twists and turns in this narrative, so I'll just urge you to watch this movie.

Starts streaming July 10.

Last month's picks

Hit Man

Directed by the supremely talented Richard Linklater, Hit Man tells the real story of a fake Hit Man. Gary Johnson's job is pretending to be a professional killer for police sting operations (where can I send a resume?) but he puts everything on the line when he falls in love with a potential client. Co-written by and starring Glen Powell, Hit Man takes a darkly comedic look at an unusual lifestyle. If you're looking for a funny, perfectly crafted, and intelligent movie, look no further.

Starts streaming June 7.

A Family Affair

Nicole Kidman, Zac Efron, and Joey King lead the cast of A Family Affair, a romantic comedy that begins with Zara (King) walking in on her mom (Kidman) and her ex-boss (Efron) in the middle of a passionate tryst. The ex-boss is an impossibly self-centered celebrity—so Zara is not at all sure how to deal with the new relationship. This exploration of love, sex, and identity is the kind of charisma-powered, crowd-pleasing movie that romantic comedy fans can't get enough of.

Starts streaming June 28.

My Next Guest Needs No Introduction With David Letterman, Season 5

David Letterman's in-depth interview series My Next Guest Needs no Introduction returns for a fifth season where Dave chops it up with basketball legend Charles Barkley and pop-singing legend Miley Cyrus. If you care about these specific people, or you're interested in larger-than-life people in general, Letterman's long-form, deep-dive interviews are worlds better than five minutes of banter on a late-night show's couch.

Starts streaming June 12.

Hitler and the Nazis: Evil on Trial

At the risk of starting a sentence with "You have to hand it to the Nazis for..." Hitler and company inspired more compelling documentaries than anyone else in history. This one examines the post-World War II trials of the Nazi leaders who survived. Hitler and the Nazis: Evil on Trial explores our failing cultural memories of the Third Reich and asks if forgetting about the past dooms us to a hellish repeat. It's not a lighthearted movie, but it is an important one.

Starts streaming June 5.

Trigger Warning

For her role as Parker in Netflix original action movie Trigger Warning, Jessica Alba learned Indonesian knife fighting skills to make the flick's intense hand-to-hand combat scenes extra real. Parker is a Special Forces commando who returns to her home town her father's funeral, only to discover a dangerous conspiracy that might be responsible for his death. Does she confront the evil men behind the plot with Indonesian knife-fighting skills? Goddamn right she does. Mark Webber, Tone Bell, Jake Weary, Gabriel Basso, and Anthony Michael Hall also appear in this treat for action movie fans.

Starts streaming June 21.

Worst Roommate Ever, Season 2

Learning that a second season of Worst Roommate Ever was coming to Netflix is the best news I've heard in months. If you're not familiar, this documentary series tells the stories of bad roommates through interviews with victims and animated re-enactments. If you're like, "Why would that even be interesting?" you're not grasping how monumentally, spectacularly, and unbelievably horrific these people are. Imagine your worst college roommate, now multiply their awfulness by 100; these people are worse than that. If you like well-made freak show TV as much as I do, you'll be hitting "play" at midnight on the 25th, too.

Starts streaming June 26.

How to Rob a Bank

I love true crime movies, especially when they're not about murderers, so I'm looking forward to How to Rob a Bank. This Netflix original documentary tells the story of the stylish and prolific bank robber Seattle cops nicknamed "Hollywood." His real name is Scott Scurlock, and he pulled off a string of audacious bank robberies in the 1990s, often using tricks and techniques inspired by action movies. How to Rob a Bank promises all the cat-and-mouse thrills of heist movies like Point Break with the added bonus of it all having actually happened.

Starts streaming June 5

Sweet Tooth, Season 3

In dark-fantasy series Sweet Tooth, Christian Convery plays Gus, a half-human, half-deer chimera who lives in a future where everything went to hell after a contagious disease killed 98% of humanity. Humanimals like Gus are seen as either abominations to be stamped out or as keys to a cure for the sickness. With the help of pig/girl Wendy (Naledi Murray), Gus will face off against the First Men, a paramilitary group that wants all the hybrids dead.

Starts streaming June 6.

Keith Robinson: Different Strokes

Keith Robinson is a very funny comic, but his new Netflix stand-up special should be extra hilarious and/or poignant because of its subject matter. In 2020, Robinson popped a Viagra on an airplane and had a stroke, and in Keith Robinson: Different Strokes he tells the whole story with his distinctive, no-bullshit style.

Starts streaming June 11.

Tour de France: Unchained, Season 2

Even if you don't care about bicycle racing, check out Netflix's excellent documentary series on the Tour de France. The annual race has been a national obsession in France since 1903, and Tour de France: Unchained explores the people, passion, fame, athleticism and power that makes it so fascinating. Understanding the backstory makes watching a bunch of European guys pedal fast riveting.

Starts streaming June 11.

Outstanding: A Comedy Revolution

This Netflix original documentary tells the story of LGBTQ+ stand-up comedy through interviews, stand-up performances, archival materials, and verité footage featuring huge comedians like Lily Tomlin, Sandra Bernhard, Wanda Sykes, Eddie Izzard, Hannah Gadsby, Tig Notaro, and Rosie O'Donnell. Outstanding explores the history of queer comics, the societal changes that came from their work, and the future of LGBTQ+ stand-up.

Starts streaming June 18.

That '90s Show, Season 2

Set 15 years after That ‘70s Show’s ending, That '90s Show continues the comic adventures of parents Red (Kurtwood Smith) and Kitty (Debra Jo Rupp), but now they're grandparents, and they have a new group of teenagers to wrangle, harass, and joke around with. But these are '90s teenagers, so expect lots of flannel shirts and Pearl Jam jokes. Season two sees the return of That '70s Show's Laura Prepon reprising her role as Donna. (Topher Grace, Mila Kunis, and Ashton Kutcher will not be returning.)

Starts streaming June 27.

Today’s Wordle Hints (and Answer) for Monday, July 1, 2024

If you’re looking for the Wordle answer for July 1, 2024 read on. We’ll share some clues, tips, and strategies, and finally the solution. Today’s puzzle is easier; I got it in three. Beware, there are spoilers below for July 1, Wordle #1,108! Keep scrolling if you want some hints (and then the answer) to today’s Wordle game.

How to play Wordle

Wordle lives here on the New York Times website. A new puzzle goes live every day at midnight, your local time.

Start by guessing a five-letter word. The letters of the word will turn green if they’re correct, yellow if you have the right letter in the wrong place, or gray if the letter isn’t in the day’s secret word at all. For more, check out our guide to playing Wordle here, and my strategy guide here for more advanced tips. (We also have more information at the bottom of this post, after the hints and answers.)

Ready for the hints? Let’s go!

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Does today’s Wordle have any unusual letters?

We’ll define common letters as those that appear in the old typesetters’ phrase ETAOIN SHRDLU. (Memorize this! Pronounce it “Edwin Shirdloo,” like a name, and pretend he’s a friend of yours.)

Four of today's letters are from our mnemonic. The other is fairly common.

Can you give me a hint for today’s Wordle?

Synonym for proverb.

Does today’s Wordle have any double or repeated letters?

There is one repeated letter today. 

How many vowels are in today’s Wordle?

There are three vowels (one is used twice).

What letter does today’s Wordle start with?

Today’s word starts with A. 

What letter does today’s Wordle end with?

Today’s word ends with E. 

What is the solution to today’s Wordle?

Ready? Today’s word is ADAGE.

How I solved today’s Wordle

I started with RAISE followed by BLOND. There were only a few possible solutions—EVADE and ADAGE seemed most likely, and I guessed the latter.

Wordle 1,108 3/6

⬛🟨⬛⬛🟩
⬛⬛⬛⬛🟨
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

---

Yesterday’s Wordle answer

Yesterday’s Wordle was harder. The hint was “as a proper noun, the name of an elf” and the answer contained three common letters, one fairly common letter, and one uncommon letter.

The answer to yesterday’s Wordle was BUDDY.

A primer on Wordle basics

The idea of Wordle is to guess the day’s secret word. When you first open the Wordle game, you’ll see an empty grid of letters. It’s up to you to make the first move: type in any five-letter word. 

Now, you can use the colors that are revealed to get clues about the word: Green means you correctly guessed a letter, and it’s in the correct position. (For example, if you guess PARTY, and the word is actually PURSE, the P and R will be green.)

• Yellow means the letter is somewhere in the word, but not in the position you guessed it. (For example, if you guessed PARTY, but the word is actually ROAST, the R, A and T will all be yellow.)

• Gray means the letter is not in the solution word at all. (If you guessed PARTY and everything is gray, then the solution cannot be PURSE or ROAST.)

With all that in mind, guess another word, and then another, trying to land on the correct word before you run out of chances. You get six guesses, and then it’s game over.

The best starter words for Wordle

What should you play for that first guess? The best starters tend to contain common letters, to increase the chances of getting yellow and green squares to guide your guessing. (And if you get all grays when guessing common letters, that’s still excellent information to help you rule out possibilities.) There isn’t a single “best” starting word, but the New York Times’s Wordle analysis bot has suggested starting with one of these:

• CRANE

• TRACE

• SLANT

• CRATE

• CARTE

Meanwhile, an MIT analysis found that you’ll eliminate the most possibilities in the first round by starting with one of these:

• SALET

• REAST

• TRACE

• CRATE

• SLATE

Other good picks might be ARISE or ROUND. Words like ADIEU and AUDIO get more vowels in play, but you could argue that it’s better to start with an emphasis on consonants, using a starter like RENTS or CLAMP. Choose your strategy, and see how it plays out.

How to win at Wordle

We have a few guides to Wordle strategy, which you might like to read over if you’re a serious student of the game. This one covers how to use consonants to your advantage, while this one focuses on a strategy that uses the most common letters. In this advanced guide, we detail a three-pronged approach for fishing for hints while maximizing your chances of winning quickly.

The biggest thing that separates Wordle winners from Wordle losers is that winners use their guesses to gather information about what letters are in the word. If you know that the word must end in -OUND, don’t waste four guesses on MOUND, ROUND, SOUND, and HOUND; combine those consonants and guess MARSH. If the H lights up in yellow, you know the solution.

One more note on strategy: the original Wordle used a list of about 2,300 solution words, but after the game was bought by the NYT, the game now has an editor who hand-picks the solutions. Sometimes they are slightly tricky words that wouldn’t have made the original list, and sometimes they are topical. For example, FEAST was the solution one Thanksgiving. So keep in mind that there may be a theme.

Wordle alternatives

If you can’t get enough of five-letter guessing games and their kin, the best Wordle alternatives, ranked by difficulty, include:

• Wheeldle, which lets you play one puzzle after another

• Dordle and Quordle, which ask you to play two (Dordle) or four (Quordle) puzzles at the same time, with the same guesses. There is also Octordle, with eight puzzles, and Sedecordle, with 16.

• Waffle, which shows you several five-letter words, scrambled in a grid; you play by swapping the letters around until you solve.

• Absurdle, which changes the solution after each guess, but needs to stay consistent with its previous feedback. You have to strategically back it into a corner until there is only one possible word left; then you guess it, and win.

• Squabble, in which you play Wordle against other people with a timer running. You take damage if you spend too much time between guesses; winner is the last one standing.

• Antiwordle, in which you are trying not to guess the day’s solution. You’re required to reuse any letters that you (oops) guessed correctly, so the longer it takes you, the better you are at the game.