ShortList is supported by you, our amazing readers. When you click through the links on our site and make a purchase we may earn a commission. Learn more

Move over Squid Game! Netflix has a brand-new number one show

New show has headed straight to the top spot...

Move over Squid Game! Netflix has a brand-new number one show
Andrew Williams
11 December 2023

Squid Game: The Challenge has decimated all competition on the Netflix TV charts the last couple of weeks, but there’s a new top dog in town.

My Life with the Walter Boys is Netflix’s number one TV of the moment according to Flixpatrol.

Squid Game: The Challenge is finally starting to run out of puff, now sitting at number three on the chart below the new number one and Obliterated. It's pretty obvious why this has happened: the finale of the show aired early December, so the only ones watching it now are catching up.

Move over Squid Game! Netflix has a brand-new number one show
Image Credit: Netflix

But what is My Life with the Walter Boys? It’s an emotion-forward teeny drama based on a 2014 novel by Ali Novak.

Jackie’s parents are killed in a car accident. She goes to live with a friend of her mother’s in Colorado, among a family of 12 boys.

Yep, this one doesn’t have quite the same intended audience as the original Squid Game show. But is it any good?

My Life with the Walter Boys reviews

Collider calls My Life with the Walter Boys a “pleasant ride” that fans of this teen romance genre may enjoy.

“It might take a minute to get adjusted to the sheer number of characters and plotlines happening at all times, but you’ll quickly feel welcomed with open arms into the diverse and picturesque town,” the review says.

CNN’s impressions are similar. My Life with the Walter Boys isn’t going to convert many people to this style of show, but it’s a pleasant enough watch.

"While hanging out with the Walters brood might not be especially original, there are few more tried-and-true formulas than the combination of scenic wide-open spaces and turning young love/romance into a “team” sport,” says CNN.

Meredith Hobbs Coons of the AV Club is less keen, though, and suggests it should call out some of the “boys will be boys” behaviour in the show more clearly, given its intended audience.

“There are harmful behaviours in this that are never questioned at all, and it’s also not sweet, fun, or funny enough to hold its own against better shows. Frankly, we think we might prefer our life without the Walter Boys,” the review reads.

This will no doubt stem at least in part from the source material. Ali Novak wrote the My Life with the Walter Boys on Wattpad, a website where anyone can post their stories, many of which are fan fiction.

She was just 15 when she started writing My Life with the Walter Boys, so anyone expecting mature nuance might be hoping for too much. Still, if you like a bit of breezy teen romance TV, you could do a lot worse.