Every summer I take the time to scour Netflix for a show I’ve heard is good but haven’t seen yet and burn through the series up to the point where it currently stands. Well…only if it’s good. So the following are 5 shows still currently on TV that I think you all should be watching.
Honestly this makes the list to round out a solid 5. The first season is decent and the second season is a bit better. Season 3 is a lot like season 2 but takes that idea of a “special episode” and turns it into an entire season. I feel like the characters are the only reason I keep coming back for more, but not necessarily the story-lines. It is all about pop culture references and being “meta”. We all know Ryan is a huge fan of this show and he can more accurately give you details (and has) on this show. If anything, the characters of Troy and Abed make the show worth watching. If they got their own spinoff I’d be all over it. But it’s not without its faults. The series creator didn’t know what he was getting himself into. He cast Chevy Chase and either didn’t know what he’s become or just was under prepared for the mess he now is. As a result he has publicly criticized his performance and has an open distaste for him. After watching commentaries and interviews with him, I’ve come to the conclusion that the firing of Dan Harmon was the best thing that could happen to the show (Sorry, I know Ryan has already posted about this, but the writing staff comes off as dismissive of Dan Harmon and the way he runs his show). But that’s not to say it’s a bad show. It’s definitely worth watching for some of the amazing episodes such as the Paintball episodes and one where they copy the style of The Office. Give it a watch and decide for yourself. I’ll be continuing it just because I’ve fallen so head over heels in love with Donald Glover (Troy) and Danny Pudi (Abed). Those two steal the shit out of every scene they’re in. They seem to be the only ones who actually want to be there, and I want them to ALWAYS be onscreen. It’s not for everyone, but it might just be for you. Check it out.
BatSTUD side note: Personally I think you're completely missing what makes the show special, and the cast's loyalty to Harmon over anything else is what I've noticed. I also think that whatever happens between Chase and Harmon off-set hasn't been reflected on the show so to me it's utterly pointless. And EVERYONE on the show wants to be there - I think that's extremely obvious.
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| This should be a show in its own right, with actual cameras. |
The only reason this show doesn’t rank higher is because it’s coming into its final season. But I LOVE this show. The characters are wonderful and the storytelling is so well thought out
and planned out that you can’t help but be impressed by it. Sure, the main character Ted is difficult to like. But that’s part of the charm of the show. It’s “the greatest love story ever told” through the eyes of a douchebag. Which is an interesting take on a great love story. His friends, however, are wonderful people. The perfect couple of Lilly and Marshall, the playboy Barney, and the on-again off-again love interest of Robin (who's not just Ted's love interest). The humor is genuine and it has become the LOST of sitcoms. If a void has been left in your life since Friends left the air, How I Met Your Mother fills it with a more realistic (I don’t know about you, but I hang out in bars, not coffee shops) tone. It has flash forwards, flash backs, flash upside downs, musical numbers and some extremely well done experimental episodes. For a multi-camera show, it breaks boundaries most single-camera shows are scared to tackle. As I said before, it’s going into its final season, and I can’t see it being a disappointment. Get into it, you won’t regret it.
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| HIMYM, making high fives legendary. |
I don’t love reality TV. I have a few on my list of shows I watch, but this one is something special. I heard the ads on TV calling it the “Number one show on Friday night” but that wasn’t saying much. I thought, “Cool, people mining gold. Whatever.” But then I had friends telling me to check it out and I finally did. Over the next 2 days I crushed through it and saw one of the most heart warming/breaking shows I’d ever seen. The show revolves around 7 men who are hit hard by this downturn in the economy and decide to risk it all and go to Alaska to mine for gold. They have all the equipment and none of the know-how, but spend the entire season learning. Everything breaks down, from their tractors and trammels to the people themselves. There are people you love, and people you hate, and even a 15 year old kid that knows more about gold mining than all the 40+ year olds combined. They’re not characters, they’re real people. Season 2 has a complete change in style and starts following 3 different mining groups (all of whom you meet in season 1) and the tensions rise even higher and keeps you watching and hoping these people all find their weight in gold. If you want true heart and heartbreak, watch this one. Even if reality TV isn’t your thing, you’ll find something to love about this show. As one of the men on the show says in the first episode, “There isn’t one man in America, if he’s got anything inside him, who wouldn’t want to be here with us.” Give this show an hour, and you’ll agree.
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| You will LOVE to hate this man. |
Being a huge fan of The Office, I was excited for this show to come out. I was excited to see Amy Poehler head a show and loved that they were going to be doing it in the style of The Office. I watched the first three episodes and stopped watching it entirely. It was AWFUL. The characters were disjointed, Amy’s Leslie Knope was an idiot who stumbled her way through this local government. The Office’s Rashida Jones’s character was dating an idiot and it didn’t make sense. Aubrey Plaza’s April was just emo and annoying. Also there’s the character of Mark Brendanawicz who had zero reason to ever exist in life, let alone TV. So I gave up on it. Then two summers ago I was bored and thought “OK, there’s two seasons on Netflix now, let’s check out what I skipped out on”. Wow. The show’s creators saw ALL of these problems and quickly addressed them. They practically threw out the entire first season and started over and it was the greatest change I’ve ever seen a show make. They made Leslie Knope competent, and allowed the amazing character of Ron Swanson to shine. They broke up Rashida Jones and her boyfriend and set him up with Aubry Plaza’s April (who were SO good together they had them married three weeks into dating). By the end of season 2 the character of Mark barely had anything to do and they eventually got rid of him to bring in the amazing duo of Rob Lowe and Adam Scott to replace him. To say they added a lot to the show is an understatement. They turned the show from good to amazing. It has FAR surpassed The Office, even at its greatest. If you’re not watching this show, you are missing out on some truly spectacular comedy. Skip season 1 entirely. You won’t feel left behind by starting with season 2.
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| Don't misunderstand him. He wants them ALL. |
If you read my review of Rock of Ages, you know I HATED that movie. However the one thing that it gave me was such a sour taste in my mouth that I decided to watch something new I hadn’t given a chance yet when I got home. I’d heard good things about this show and decided to give it a shot, not expecting much. Half way through the first episode I was completely hooked. I was apprehensive at first, I’m not a big fan of drug dealers. Something about them being scumbags puts me off. Plus, it’s about crystal meth. The dirtiest of all drugs next to heroin in my opinion. But wow. Wow, wow, wow. Bryan Cranston (Malcolm in the Middle’s freakin’ dad) plays a high school chemistry teacher who has been diagnosed with a rare form of cancer. He doesn’t have enough of a nest egg to make sure his family (a pregnant wife who doesn't work and a 15 year old son with cerebral palsy) can survive should he die. His brother-in-law (a DEA agent) shows him pictures of a recent drug bust and the "
low"
sum of $700,000 that was confiscated, and he realizes that crystal meth is nothing more than chemistry and his plan is formed. He teams up with a former student who is already dealing meth and they decide to become the new drug kingpins in the BEAUTIFUL city of Albuquerque (The ABQ). Filmed on location, every frame of the show is a work of art. They put the camera in places you would never have imagined. The dynamic of Walt (Cranston) and his former student Jesse is phenomenal. Nothing about this lifestyle is glorified as they both realize that this life is not only hard, but deadly and dangerous. Over the next 4 seasons (which I watched over the course of 5 days) he moves further and further into the dark underbelly of the meth trade. Keeping his life secret from his family and narrowly escaping death on a weekly basis, the show manages to pull off things I’ve only ever seen on HBO. After watching this show, I can see why it is sweeping the awards circuit. Walt is the ultimate badass and Jesse is the perfect partner. Give this show a chance and you too will be saying “All hail the king!” Season 5 starts July 15th. Catch up now while you still have time.
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| It's not HBO, it's basic cable. |
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