Five free action shows to stream online
Action television can deliver spectacular fights, tense investigations, strange worlds and character-driven drama without requiring a paid subscription. For Australian viewers, these five series are available at no extra cost through services including Pluto TV, Tubi, Roku and Hoopla. If you enjoy screen action as much as arcade action, explore RETROCADE’s arcade blog and arcade videos while you watch.
1. Ash vs Evil Dead
Where to watch: Pluto TV and Roku
Sam Raimi’s Evil Dead trilogy put Ash Williams, played by Bruce Campbell, through one supernatural ordeal after another. This television continuation brings an older Ash back into conflict with Deadites three decades after the conclusion of Army of Darkness. He is joined by Pablo, played by Ray Santiago, and Kelly, played by Dana DeLorenzo.
Ash initially wants to preserve the quiet life he has built, but that becomes impossible after he reads from the Book of the Dead to impress a woman and accidentally unleashes a Deadite plague. Across three seasons, the series combines practical gore, frantic pacing and outrageous combat. Ash uses a chainsaw and a double-barrelled shotgun attached to his wrist stump, while blood-soaked explosions and dismemberments keep the action deliberately excessive.
Underneath the chaos, the show gives its central trio room to develop. Ash carries survivor’s guilt and regrets failing to do more during the years between adventures, adding emotional weight to the comedy and horror.
2. Into the Badlands
Where to watch: Roku and Hoopla
Created by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar before their work on Wednesday, Into the Badlands is a post-apocalyptic drama built around exceptional martial-arts choreography. The story takes place 500 years in the future, in a society that has rejected firearms. A feudal hierarchy controls the Badlands, but its oppressive structure begins to fracture during a struggle for power.
Sunny, played by Daniel Wu, rescues a teenage boy named M.K., played by Aramis Knight, and discovers that the boy has a supernatural ability originating beyond the Badlands. With weapons limited to melee combat, the series draws on Hong Kong cinema and wuxia films for inventive, carefully rehearsed fights.
The battles are a major attraction, but the setting is equally important. Each level of the feudal system shapes the ambitions and loyalties of its inhabitants, giving the action a strong world-building foundation.
3. Naruto
Where to watch: Tubi and Roku
Masashi Kishimoto’s Naruto follows Naruto Uzumaki, an orphan in the Hidden Leaf village who is treated as an outsider. His attention-seeking pranks mask a deep loneliness. His path changes when he joins Team Seven with Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno, beginning his education in the responsibilities, techniques and history of a ninja.
The long-running battle shonen balances comedy with elaborate animated fights. Its ninja techniques, known as jutsu, make combat strategic as well as physical: a fighter’s methods often reveal their personality and worldview. Naruto and his allies steadily improve, and that physical progress is closely tied to their emotional development, particularly in Naruto: Shippuden.
Some episodes lean heavily into light comedy and filler, but the series remains a showcase for dynamic action and psychologically driven battles.
4. Stargate Atlantis
Where to watch: Pluto TV
A spin-off of Stargate SG-1, Stargate Atlantis begins with the discovery of the legendary lost city of Atlantis. An international team from Stargate Command investigates it, with Major John Sheppard, played by Joe Flanigan, leading a military unit through the Stargate to distant planets.
New viewers do not need prior knowledge of the wider franchise. The series introduces its own expedition, threats and alien cultures, including the Wraith, who feed on human life force. A young Jason Momoa plays Ronon Dex, who becomes an important member of Sheppard’s crew.
The action moves quickly and often depends on tactical strikes, improvisation and problem-solving rather than conventional firefights. The crew faces persistent danger from hostile civilisations, making each off-world mission a high-stakes science-fiction adventure.
5. Miami Vice
Where to watch: Tubi
Miami Vice reshaped 1980s television with pastel colours, music-video-inspired presentation and heightened crime drama. The series follows Miami detectives James “Sonny” Crockett, played by Don Johnson, and Ricardo “Rico” Tubbs, played by Philip Michael Thomas.
The early seasons can be playful, but Crockett and Tubbs soon encounter increasingly difficult cases, corrupt officials and morally uncertain situations. Some plots risk feeling dated or theatrical, yet the show’s sincerity gives its stylised approach lasting appeal.
Shootouts and chase scenes are bold and dramatic, while the stories examine the human cost of crime. Miami’s neon-lit streets become a setting for people trying to survive or find purpose, and the detectives are repeatedly confronted with the limits of undercover police work and the suffering behind the cases they investigate.
More ways to enjoy action at home
These series cover horror comedy, martial-arts fantasy, anime, science fiction and police drama. For an action-focused games room, compare cabinets in RETROCADE’s arcade machines collection, or consider arcade light guns for a more direct shooting experience.
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