I like seeing a group evolve and form good friendships. I also like sci fi and weirdness. For these reasons, two of my favorite shows are The Expanse and Severance. In both, by the end, I felt like I was “part of the team” in some way.
What are a couple of your favorites? What kind of itch do they scratch?
A recent one? Resident Alien. It has a lot of unexpected laughs. The female characters in it are also really well done and not one dimensional.
Stargate SG1 and Stargate Atlantis. From the sound of it if you haven’t already watched them you would really like them. Sci fi and definitely has the group/team evolving aspect.
Seconding Stargate, ideal for what OP is looking for.
Also Firefly for something with similar energy.
Firefly
And by the end I feel like it almost started.
Avatar The Last Airbender. An animated series with a complete story arch that takes place in a unique world. The characters are very relatable and have great development over time, even the villians are better than what most shows have. The animation is sophisticated in the way it is used to help tell the story, and the story is wonderful, it hooks you in from the intro:
“*Water. Earth. Fire. Air. Long ago, the four nations lived together in harmony. Then, everything changed when the Fire Nation attacked. Only the Avatar, master of all four elements, could stop them, but when the world needed him most, he vanished. A hundred years passed and my brother and I discovered the new Avatar, an airbender named Aang. And although his airbending skills are great, he has a lot to learn before he’s ready to save anyone. But I believe Aang can save the world.”
Hell, the villains have more character development than protagonists in other shows.
Also Uncle Iroh, it possibly the greatest male role model in TV.
Amen to Uncle Iron. I legit teared up when he had his short in Ba Sing Se.
This show truly deserves all the praise. My older brother used to watch it back in its time, and I couldn’t understand how a 30-ish year old could watch cartoons like that.
15 years passed and someone recommends it. One day, while recovering from some cold in bed, I put Avatar out of boredom, some days after that recommendation. Damn. First couple of chapters are not very strong, but enough to keep digging. As these are short episodes, it really doesn’t matter. But the ending of the first season? That is art.
Arrested Development & Frasier for wit.
Friends and also the Chicago version of Friends (Happy Endings) for familiarity, knowing and growing w/ characters.
American Dad. It’s Family Guy made way better. The episodes are so original and creative. The first 7 seasons are all gold.
In no particular order, genre shows include:
- Babylon 5
- Firefly
- X-Files
- Fringe
- Buffy/Angel
- The League of Gentlemen
- Dr Who / Torchwood
- True Blood
- Utopia
- Supernatural
- Third Rock
- Ash vs Evil Dead
- Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy
- Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency
- Peacemaker
- The Nevers
Poirot. It’s charming, full of mostly subtle humor, and generally just well written, acted, and produced. I appreciate that it has a deeply humane perspective where justice matters, and that effort has been put into historical accuracy. It’s also sufficiently detached from contemporary reality that its not a downer to watch even though it still has a very honest view of human nature.
It’s Always Sunny and Bob’s Burgers are standouts for me, along with a lot of this thread.
I guess I’d categorize them both as shows where every character, however minor, contributes perfectly to the hilarity and overall vibe of the show. Really, any show with great chemistry/cohesion and ownership of the characters, where you couldn’t change a single thing to make it better. Psych and Futurama are a couple mentioned that fit the bill. Others are on the tip of my tongue but not coming to me. Oh, King of the Hill!
The best thing about IASIP and Bob’s Burgers is there isn’t a single off/bad episode in the first like 12 and 5 seasons, respectively. I stopped keeping up with both at some point when I was up to date and waiting. There’s not really a bad episode in any of those shows.
What I really like about Bob’s Burgers is how they record all together and have a lot of fast quipping and reactive energy.
Oh, and Archer! At least until things really switched up.
Upon repeated viewings I’m enjoying the Archer coma seasons more and more!
Bob’s Burgers’ biggest appeal is it’s a family that all love each other and don’t treat one-another badly. I know it sounds corny but it really does have a much bigger appeal than on animated shows where they do the opposite.
I was recently watching Archer again, so I’ll have to see how the later seasons hit this time around. It’s one of those shows I’ve watched multiple times over (all the shows I mentioned are, honestly) and it seemed to fall off, but I might have just been finally burnt out lol.
And that’s a good point about Bob’s Burgers. It’s always pretty wholesome. I almost forgot about all the songs, too. They’re so good!
Awesome songs! So many great ones.
Yes! 100% with you. Any show that makes me care about the characters and miss them when they’re gone is a win in my book. Same for character growth. Firefly, Parks and Rec, and Schmitt’s Creek were like that for me as well.
This Schmitt sounds like a great guy!
Scrubs! [0] [1] [2].
It had a great 8 season run (the 9th season doesn’t exist, ignore those who incorrectly say it does). The show was funny, insightful, great dialogue, characters, serious moments and a great cast. Additionally the music choices in each episode were always top-notch. Note that “a handful of songs were replaced in the versions released to streaming services such as Netflix and Hulu due to licensing issues.” [3].
Lastly, “IGN gave the first season a perfect score of 10. The seven following seasons were rated, respectively, 9, 9, 9, 8, 7.5, 8.3 and 7.5” [4].
[0] https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/scrubs
[1] https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0285403/
[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scrubs_(TV_series)
[3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scrubs_(TV_series)#Music
[4] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scrubs_(TV_series)#Reception
Watch Ted Lasso
The X-Files because childhood and Gillian Anderson.
Star Trek TNG becuase childhood and Gates McFadden.
@[email protected] you might enjoy The Good Place — not sci-fi, but awesome group building. Don’t read anything about it online to avoid spoilers, just sit and watch season 1. If you like it, watch the other seasons as well.
I had a panic attack on the way to work four or five years ago. Turned around, drove back home, and climbed into bed with my partner. We laid there and started The Good Place, and watched for like eight hours. Excellent show, very comfy for me now.
Better Call Saul. I find it so amazing how they were able to take an existing (brilliant in its own right) story, and extend it in both past and the future. It fits in so nicely. There are very few (if any) plot holes, and the story is enjoyable in its own right. Add to that the superb acting of almost everyone, and the elite cinematography. I don’t think there’s a single aspect of this show that I don’t like.
I’m always hesitant to watch Better Call Saul knowing that Walt ruined everything anyways. I wished i watched it before BB
There are a few moments that nod straight to Breaking Bad though, like Tuco’s entry. It had me fanboying and hyped for the directing/writing especially across shows. I also feel like you can really get a sense of the writers’ personal development coming off of Breaking Bad, like they refined so much that was already some of the best TV. And the contrast between Walt’s unreal saga and how Saul is so humanized; he’s deeply flawed but just a guy trying to make it.
I really need to finish Better Call Saul.
Don’t get me wrong. Breaking Bad is fantastic.
I enjoyed Better Call Saul more
Sesnse8 Supernatural Buffy Seinfeld Curb your enthusiasm Arrow Legends of Tomorrow
And animated: Simpsons Family guy Adventure time South Park American dad Bob’s burgers
You want The Good Place
Yup, a lot of great shows are being thrown around, but a good place captures everything you want - growing friendships and relationships, unravelling weirdness, and being a part of the team.
