How Much Watching Time Do You Have This Weekend?

No matter how much free time you have this weekend, we have TV recommendations for you. Come back every Friday for new suggestions from our TV critic on what to watch.

… a Half-Hour, and I Need a Laugh

‘Toast of London’
When to watch: Now, on Netflix.

This fantastic British comedy is gleefully silly without being stupid. Matt Berry stars as Steven Toast, a washed-up actor and louche, still tremendously full of himself. The show happily goes high brow — there’s a joke about a “Brideshead Revisited” prequel called “Brideshead” — as well as lower brow, with a whole scene devoted to terrible faux-kissing noises made in a voice-over booth. If you like “The IT Crowd” or “Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace,” or you like the plotting of “Extras” but don’t need the celebrities, try this.

… 5 Hours, and I Already Love ‘Transparent’

Jay Duplass in “Transparent.”Jennifer Clasen/Amazon Studios

‘Transparent’
When to watch: Now, on Amazon.

The new season of Jill Soloway’s family-drama masterpiece about casting off the shackles of a binary gender system is for the die-hards — don’t just jump in now to see what all the fuss is. (Start at the beginning! The fuss is good!) Season 4 follows the Pfeffermans on a trip to Israel, and thus much of the show’s signature California dreaminess is missing. This season feels more brittle and less fluid than previous ones, although gorgeous performances — especially, this season, from Jay Duplass and, of course, Judith Light — hold it together.

I strongly encourage you to listen to “Jesus Christ Superstar” before embarking on this season. The album plays a surprisingly major role, with songs sprinkled throughout the 10 episodes and a few family singalongs. Music has always been part of the connective tissue of “Transparent,” and being able to track some of “Superstar” through the episodes helps this season gel.

… 10 Hours, and I Need a Twisty Crime Show

O-T Fagbenle in “The Five.”Red Production Company

‘The Five’
When to watch: Now, on Netflix.

The crime author Harlan Coben turns his talents to serialized TV in this tense, absorbing British drama. Twenty years ago, a 5-year-old boy named Jesse disappeared — so how did his DNA wind up in a present-day murder scene? His brother (Tom Cullen) is desperate to find out, and luckily he has the aid of a childhood friend (O.T. Fagbenle), who is now a police officer. The show is violent and surprising and dangerously bingeable; plan on watching in long stretches.

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Two audio warnings: First, one of the characters on the show is named Alexa, and everyone shouts her name a lot. Second, if you’re at all bothered by that high-pitched drone sound that indicates psychological panic on prestige shows, this isn’t for you. That sound happens a lot on this show. A lot.