What to watch from high–rated TV series for the New Year - 2026
New Year's holidays are the best time for a long serial marathon: you can finally stop looking at the clock, pour tea into a large mug and choose a story that will be responsible for the mood of the whole family for several evenings in a row. Izvestia has collected seven Russian TV series that can be watched during the chimes or during the New Year holidays. All the details are in the Izvestia article
"The Magic Area"
The series "The Magic Precinct" is a modern Russian crime tale with elements of humor and fantasy, which takes place in a special police department dealing with crimes of fabulous creatures. The project combines the atmosphere of urban fantasy, a police procedural format and a family drama around the main character and his niece.
At the center of the story is Lech Popov, a former police sniper who is dismissed from the service after a scandalous incident. He gets drunk in the countryside and lives without any special plans for the future. The situation changes when Lehi's sister informs him that she is terminally ill and asks him to take care of her little daughter Vasilisa, otherwise the girl faces an orphanage.
For the sake of his niece, Lech tries to "come to his senses" and gets a job in an unusual police department — the Department for combating fabulous crimes. Not only ordinary people serve in this area, but also fabulous creatures, and the cases are connected with goblins, Koshchei, Baba Yaga, ghouls, Rusal and other characters who officially "do not exist" in the human world.
"Mammoths"
Critics have singled out the Mammoths series as one of the brightest and most inspiring Russian projects of 2024: the story of a teenager who embarks on a journey across Russia in search of his father gradually turns into a family road movie with a focus on human relationships. In each episode, the hero meets new people, and the series works like an emotional advent calendar — one small miracle per episode.
This is a great option for sharing with teenagers: there are almost no violent scenes, and instead of dark twists, there is empathy, humor, and conversations about trust, growing up, and responsibility. It is convenient to turn on the series in the evening after a walk or a trip to relatives, so that the whole family can "finish the day" with something kind.
"The Hammer of Witches"
The series "Hammer of Witches" is a 2024 Russian ethno—fantasy in which Russian fairy tales, modern science and an action movie converge in one plot around the small town of Kalyazin and the escape of a powerful sorceress Mistress of the elements. The project is aimed more at the young adult and adult audience than at children: for all its fabulousness, it has many dark themes and moral dilemmas.
The action takes place in Kalyazin, where scientists study magic at a secret institute and conduct experiments on supernatural beings, including the Mistress of the Elements, one of the strongest witches. During an unsuccessful experiment, she breaks free, cuts off the city from the outside world with a wall of enchanted hogweed and begins to turn the inhabitants into goblins, mermaids and other evil spirits, dreaming of cleansing the world of people.
Three heroic heroes of the 21st century are forced to confront her: Ilya Muromtsev, a programmer, Nikita Dobrynin, an ambulance driver, and Alexey, an athlete (in some retellings). Popov. Everyone has their own biography, injuries, and personal motives, but now they are united by the task of stopping the witch, saving their loved ones, and returning Kalyazin to a normal life.
"Alone at home"
The series "Home Alone" is a 2025 Russian family comedy about four children from the Akimov family with many children who suddenly find themselves without parents and have to deal with "adult" life on their own. The project is designed for family viewing (landmark 12+) and is largely built as a modern analogue of children's novels about the "holiday of disobedience", but with an emphasis on responsibility.
At the center of the story are four very different children.:
Alina is a young beauty blogger.
Eugene is a teenage pranker.
Vika is an excellent student and a "stifler" who controls everything.
Kolya is a six—year-old fan of true-edge and eternal questions.
They all dream of staying at home at least once without the total control of adults. This dream comes true when mom and dad fly away on vacation and get stuck in Kamchatka due to volcanic ash, unable to return. Technically, children should be controlled by infantile uncle Vitya and his girlfriend, but in fact they are more "older children" than real adults, so the children get almost complete freedom.
"Freshmen"
The series "Freshmen" is a Russian comedy drama about how at the age of 40 you can become a student again, return to the dormitory and try to start life anew. At the center of the story are two friends, Zhanna and Nastya, who once dropped out of college, went into family and everyday life, and by the age of forty they realize that neither their careers nor personal happiness really worked out.
One is going through another divorce after her husband's infidelity, the other has lived with only twin children for 20 years and suddenly finds herself alone when her sons join the army. The friends meet, cry to each other and decide to return to the same university, recover their studies and even move into the old dorm room — but now it's not the nineties, but the generation of zoomers, their own campus rules and former classmates who have turned into teachers.
The plot of the first season revolves around their encounter with a new student reality: noisy parties, uncomfortable neighbors, a strict commandant and a teacher, Vika, with whom Zhanna has a long-standing conflict in her youth. At the same time, Nastya unexpectedly begins a relationship with a much younger student, Danila, and Zhanna is trying to deal with her personal life and her self-esteem.
The Khimki Witches
The series "Khimki Witches" is a 2025 Russian mystery comedy about three "psychic" con artists from Khimki near Moscow who suddenly become real witches. It combines a light sitcom, fantasy and a bit of detective.
The main characters are friends Marina, Sveta and Olya, who earn money by posing as mediums and opening a magic salon in a shopping mall. They arrange "sessions", guess, remove spoilage and work with pure psychology and scams — until they encounter a real street witch, after meeting with whom they receive real superpowers. Now Marina hears people's thoughts, Sveta sees the future, and Olya begins to see the dead.
From that moment on, their lives change dramatically: what used to be a game turns into sheer stress. Magic interferes with everything—personal life, relationships with clients, family, police, and one's own conscience. The girls realize that a gift is not a gift, but a heavy burden, and they begin to look for a way to get rid of their abilities and return everything "as it was."
Culinary College
The Culinary College TV series is a new 2025 Russian comedy drama about a star chef who has to relearn how to be a son and a father. This is a light, warm series in the spirit of family stories.
At the center of the story is Slava Vinogradov, a world—renowned chef who worked in Michelin-starred restaurants for many years. He returns to his native provincial Staroozersk "for a short rest" and a meeting with his father, who works as the head of the local culinary college.
A surprise awaits the hero right away: Slava finds out that he has had a teenage son for 17 years, whom he did not even know existed. The guy is studying at the same college, is going to become a cook, and all these years he grew up next to his grandfather, not his father. Faced with sudden fatherhood and an icy relationship with Vinogradov Sr., Slava decides to stay in the city longer and goes to work as a teacher at a college.
All important news is on the Izvestia channel in the MAX messenger.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
