If you’ve ever read anything I’ve decided to share on the internet, then you know that I love TV. This year, Rona through quite a wrench into my usual TV viewing schedule. Everything was pushed back, some finally aired towards the end of the year, and some I’m still waiting for in January. The shows such as Supernatural, Greys Anatomy, Chicago PD, Chicago Fire, NCIS, and NCISLA are staple cable TV shows that I’ll always watch, always rave about, and always recommend. But in waiting for those to come back and looking to get lost in some good entertainment during a shitty time, I found four shows that did the trick.
- Normal people
I honestly cannot rave about this show enough! Paul Mescal and Daisey Edgar Jones as Connell and Marianne are some of the best performances I’ve seen in such a long time. The material given by the author of the book Sally Rooney is beyond incredible. While watching this show, I laughed, I was angry, and my god did I cry; I cried so many times. This show hooks you and never let’s go. I was so invested I binged the whole thing in one weekend; absolutely nothing was going to tear me away from this show. It’s the kind of show where you have to ask yourself if sleep is worth turning it off or not. It’s on Hulu and needs to be apart of your next binge weekend asap. Paul and Daisey have both received a lot of praise from this show and are listed under who to watch in the coming years, and I could not agree more.
- Little Fires Everywhere
I have never watched anything Kerry Washington and Reese Witherspoon did that I didn’t love and Little Fires Everywhere was absolutely no exception. The material written by Celeste Ng is so raw and real, and the actors involved in this show took it and ran with it and blew me away. I didn’t think Reese could play a character that I would find myself genuinely hating, but she’s so good that it happened. I found myself multiple times in this show literally getting so angry at her character, and I love that so much. I was outraged; I cried…again, I laughed, felt for the characters, saw pieces of myself in them, and could not wait until the next week’s episode was released. While Reese and Kerry were phenomenal in this show, the younger actors in this show? They’re going places, no question about it. Lexi Underwood, Megan Stott, Jade Pettyjohn, Jordan Elsass, and Gavin Lewis, acting, grabbed ahold of me and didn’t let go. I will, for sure, be following what they do moving forward. This is also on Hulu and should be watched ASAP if you somehow have not already.
- The Mandalorian
The Mandalorian. I was hooked with season one, but it was a little slow for me, and I was slightly unsure, but I love Star Wars, and I wanted to get involved in more than just the movies, so I started and stuck with it. My god, am I glad that I did. This second season is insane. I have fallen even more in love with The Child (who I am so god damn happy has the cutest name now). I am invested, not just The Child, but in Mando, Cara Dune, and Greef Karga. I am actively hoping and waiting for Moff Gideon to get what’s coming to him, and I love all the people that Mando meets along the way. What else I love about this show is the directing and the cinematography. Over the last few years, I’ve become really into this side of TV and movies. The directing and cinematography abilities shown on this show are incredible, absolutely incredible. The season two final is quite honestly one of the most insane, emotion-inducing piece of TV that I’ve seen in quite a while, and I’m still obsessing over it. It’s on Disney plus, of course, with season two wrapped up and season three expected to drop in December of 2021.
- Virgin River
When I started Virgin River, I thought it was a movie. I’m a sucker for one of those cute movies, and it had Martin Henderson in it, so I was in right away. Except, it’s not a movie; it’s a wonderful TV series that hooked me from episode one. Season Two was just released in November, and it managed to be even better than season one! While it has my favorite kind of angsty love story attached to it, in more than one way, it covers powerful topics of loss, spouses, children, military brothers. Abuse, motherhood, divorce, love, and my goodness, so much more. It has been renewed for season three, and I couldn’t be happier because I needed more right away after the season two finale; it was that good. Find it on Netflix.
- Dead to me
I was anxiously waiting for this show to return to Netflix after season one knocked me off my feet. Christina Applegate and Linda Cardellini are so god damn good together, their chemistry is so good, and James Marsden brings so much to the table, not just in the story but in his acting. The writing in this show is stellar as well, of course. I’m glad we’re going to get a season three, but I’m also sad that it’ll be the last. Everyone should be watching this show. Find it on Netflix.
- Criminal minds
Criminal Minds might not be a new show, but it was for it. I have no excuse for what took me so long to watch it because it is literally my show. The show’s whole idea is what I love, why do people do what they do, getting into people’s heads, looking at victimology, going beyond regular police work. I’m majoring in Psychology, so I was glued to the screen throughout the whole thing, trying to figure things out as they did and getting ridiculously excited when I was right. The cast’s chemistry is no joke, and it is no surprise that it lasted as long as it did. And yes, I quickly realized why everyone loved Spencer Reid because now I do too. It will be a tv show like NCIS or NCIS LA where I’ll be watching re-runs forever. Find seasons 1-12 on Netflix and there’s a rumor of seasons 13-15 hitting Hulu soon, otherwise they’re tough to find.
- The Undoing
This is the most recent show that I watched this year on HBO Max. I heard so many good things about it on social media that I had to give it a shot. I love Nicole Kidman, and she does not disappoint in this show. The show’s entire idea, the path it takes, the story it tells, I loved it. I watched it all in one day. My favorite part is just when you think you’ve figured it out; it manages to make you question yourself. I don’t think we’ll be seeing any more seasons of it, as it wraps up pretty well, but man, it is an incredible six-episode, six-hour piece of work. Find it on HBO Max.
Fleabag, on Amazon Prime, definitely gets the honorable mention here. It was such an incredible watch, and I cannot recommend it more. I got to watch all of the golden girls from the beginning, and while I’ve seen every episode about a hundred times, I don’t think I had ever watched it from beginning to end. The Michael Jordan Documentary was a really good watch, even for someone who is just a casual basketball viewer. I am proud to say I didn’t watch a single second of Tiger King, never had the need to, and never will. Grey’s Anatomy is tackling the pandemic storyline in a way that I couldn’t have imagined while also tackling social justice issues, and the first few episodes of season seventeen have been outstanding. Chicago Fire and Chicago PD have kicked off their new seasons in spectacular fashion as well, and I look forward to more episodes in 2021.
I said goodbye to The Magicians, Hawaii 5-0, and Supernatural this year, all of which were three of my absolute favorite shows. Hawaii 5-0 was such a fun show with a fun dynamic with incredible storytelling weaved in. The Magicians, I could have watched 500 more seasons of this show. From the cast to the writing, to the character dynamics, I related to the characters in such a unique way, and even though I liked the ending, I really wish we had more. Supernatural, I still have a hard time talking about the fact that this show is actually over. As it would seem, I’m to be in the minority of those who liked the ending, but I really did. I thought it was beautiful, even with the few minor things that could have been done differently. The show of Supernatural will always be more than just a TV show to me, and I’m grateful we got the 15 years we had. The magicians and Supernatural can be found on Netflix and I cannot recommend them enough. Hawaii 5-0 is unfortunately no longer on Netflix, I think you can find it on CBS all access though.
In 2021, I’m looking forward to more episodes of Greys, NCIS, NCIS LA, Chicago PD, Chicago Fire, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Law and Order SVU, The Mandalorian, Riverdale, Legends of Tomorrow, Roswell NM, The Flash, Legacies, Batwoman, and Supergirl. (And more that I’m sure I’m forgetting). New shows such as Walker and Wanda Vision come out this year. I hope to getting around to watching The Boys and Schitts Creek soon, as well as other gems I’m sure to find. I cannot imagine what it must be like trying to make a TV Show during a pandemic, with all the guidelines and restrictions to do things as safely as possible. Still, I’m glad for the sake of those missing paychecks that they were able to find a way, and selfishly I’m glad they were able to find a way so I can get back to being overwhelmed with all the fantastic TV I have to choose from and find time to watch.
Miss Raee 