Must watch TV shows

So for the last 3- 4 years, I’ve been drawn to (rather addicted) to TV shows. They provide scope, prolonged suspense; they are elongated versions of our favourite movies except that they fulfill that feeling inside us after we watch a movie where we just wish it could go on for longer, to further allow us to be part of their world. So I’ve come up with some absolutely brilliant shows that I believe people must watch, as they offer something far more than just entertainment. My list may not appeal to many, but I’ve offered an explanation as to why I believe they deserve to be watched. So here goes, in no particular order:

1.  Breaking Bad: The hype surrounding this has put many people off to even getting a taste of it. Even I was apprehensive just looking at the synopsis. It’s about an average (yet overqualified) high school chemistry teacher who gets diagnosed with cancer and realizes he won’t be leaving his family well off. He has a realization that the demand in the public and the returns for a methamphetamine manufacturer are high, and its easy money with the skills he’s already equipped with. Driven with desperation and frustration he ventures into this trade. But please, this show is not to be mistaken for simply being about making drugs and watching a middle aged man have a mid-life crisis. As you watch it, you will begin to drift away from the what this synopsis mentions and be enamored by the beautiful, powerful irony this show possesses throughout the series to the very end. You will find yourself unable to believe how justice, and injustice is poetically achieved, constantly. Its almost as if Shakespeare wrote it, for he used a similar mind game on his audiences to give them that extra thrill! But that’s not the best part. As the story unravels, your feelings insidiously transform from loving and cherishing the character to absolutely hating him in the end. And that’s the intent on which the show was born. It’s beautiful, absorbing, and in the end you’ll have the greatest satisfaction of having been a part of it. And oh, if that wasn’t enough and left you wanting more, a spin off series has emerged called: ‘better call Saul’ which took all its fans back into that trance.

2. Downton Abbey: If you’re a fan of Jane Austin, and frankly all things English, this show is for you. And even if you’re not, I’d like to see you escape the enchantment this puts on people. It’s a show portraying the lifestyle of an aristocratic family in England, at a time when that was a thing. A time when people used to merely live off their inheritance and manage estates, when a working woman is a recent fad. A time of ‘milords’ and ’milady’, when household help was a needed in big numbers and was a profession of dignity and loyalty. It’s a time, I think all of us who’ve watched the show would want to go back to (even if we’ve never lived in England). The story entails the personal lives of pretty much everyone in the household. A beautifully knit series making us fall in love with everyone from the footmen to the Lord is the result. There is suspense, laughter, joy, sadness, and reality.. There isn’t much to say about what actually happens, but if you’re thinking: “why would I want to watch a show about the personal lives of a household?” please take that leap of faith, I did 😊 More than anything, I got immersed in the brilliant English accent. I almost wish I’d been born English! The dialogues are witty, the acting is excellent, the plot has so much to offer. Just watch it.

3. 13 reasons why: A recent show, which is about a teenage girl who is driven to suicide due to unfortunate experiences she faced in high school; but before she does she leaves behind tapes for each of the people she felt was partly responsible for her decision to give up. It’s a powerful, intense, series which doesn’t hold back in portraying what people go through true the eyes of a teenager, bringing up issues like bullying, the casual nature of sexual assault, the extremes of peer pressure, and most importantly the inability of people to accept what they want to do for the sake of what other people may think. It has something for each one of us to acknowledge and be inspired to make a change in modern society and relationships. It brings up the rarely talked about issue of mental health, and the way people are indifferent to it or can’t see when someone needs help. Its not all depressing and gloomy. In fact you don’t even think about that side of it, cause you are already wrapped up trying to acknowledge the reality of it. For me, its fired me up to believe that so much good can come if people just openly talked with each other, rather than live out superficial relationships.

4. Dickensian: Another one for ‘all things English’ fans, but this one brings you into the world of the great Charles Dickens! A somehow brilliantly concocted plot starring Dicken’s most popular characters, takes you into the beginning of an industrial London, with all its pollution, workhouses, and pickpockets. The plot revolves around the individual characters in their own stories as well as an investigation into a murder which strings everyone along. It’s an absolute beauty of a thing, for it pulls you back to your childhood, and makes you yearn once again to be a part of your favourite book. Unfortunately it only aired for one season but even with that, it’s still worth watching.

5. Homeland: I’m not one for political shows, but I’ve been hung on this ever since it came out, for it gives more than American politics and corruption, etc. The focus is on the concept of terrorism, and the effect of war and hatred on people. Claire Danes. I’ll say it again, Claire Danes. She is one of my favourite actors and in this series you see the overwhelming talent of this woman. She goes from being bipolar, to a person in love, to a person stricken with grief, sometimes all in one season! The show gives an interesting take on terrorism and counter terrorism organisations showing realistic angles from both sides. And I must note how well it was able to deviate from a simple ‘good always wins against bad’ by dedicating a whole season to Pakistan fighting back, and you almost want them to! It’s intense, its unexpected, and the characters draw you in. I must mention at this point another show called “Band of brothers” which I’m hoping you’ve already seen otherwise I must say: stop reading this write now and go download it!

6. Modern family: This is the one show that can always make me laugh, no matter how many times I’ve seen it. The jokes are incredibly witty, so much so you really wish one of the writers was your best friend. A well thought of family consisting of diverse ‘modern’ relationships, each having their own pros and cons, and they make it a point to bring them out in each episode. It’s a pleasant experience to watch them overcome things and get closer to each other, not afraid of sharing their flaws. It makes you wish you had similar building up experiences with your own family. Its heart warming, and is something you can watch at any time, in any mood.

7. The man in high castle: A riveting series set in a dystopian, or rather a parallel universe which brings an answer to a question, probably no one dared to ask- what if Germany had won world war 2? It’s a magnificent idea, and I congratulate whoever thought of it. Again I’m not one for political stuff but this is far from that as you can imagine. It centers around a woman who was brought up in a japan occupied America and tangles herself into the resistance who believe they’ve found the answer to ending this nightmare. And it involves the appearance of a set of mysterious tapes, the significance of which is unraveled at a later stage. It is produced by Ridley Scott! So you can believe me when I say it’s a work of art. The purpose of series and most visual media is to bring the authors world and its characters alive, which this does pretty well. It shows a frail and paranoid Hitler, and makes him out to be a lesser evil compared to the people setting out to claim his spot once he’s through. It also includes a romantic couple, a troubled Japanese official who may have found the end game of meditation, and the not so comfortable life of a German official. I just can’t wait to see where the story goes.

8. This is Us: A pleasantly surprising new series starring Milo Ventimiglia and Mandy Moore, about a young married couple who end up with triplets. And the series introduces you to everyone who’ve impacted their lives in detail, from the stand-in gynaecologist who delivered the kids, to the stranger who comforted them in the hospital, to flashbacks from the past which have made up the people they are today. It makes us think back on our own lives and think of people who’ve impacted us. Furthermore, it takes us into the lives of the children, the troubles they face. Each having their own unique personality: an aspiring actor who had everything he wanted but felt a void and decides to make a change, an obese woman who has never looked at herself as anything but being fat and finds love, a brilliant and successful ‘weather commodities trader’(don’t really understand what that is) who lives out the struggles of being a black man in a white neighborhood; and gets reconnected with his biological father who happens to have terminal cancer. What makes it worthwhile is seeing the family members support each other, and not support each other at times when you least expect it; making it quite realistic and moving. So moving I can guarantee you’re bound to tear up atleast once. A definite must watch, an elaborate platter of family values making you rethink how you treat your siblings, spouses, etc.


9. 11.22.63: Adapted from a Stephen King novel of the same name and starring James Franco, It’s a story about an average man tumbling into the past, with the alleged mission to prevent the assassination of JFK. In the process he finds love, changes a few things he has the power to, and seeks for the courage to let some things occur as they did. Its actually the best role I’ve seen James Franco play. Admittedly, this doesn’t really compare to the league of the other series on the list, but I felt the uniqueness of the story, and the genuine characters makes it a series no one should miss out. It’s also an emphasis on how the past affects the present, sometimes for the better even if we don’t understand how.

10. Black Sails: Welcome to the world of pirates😊 It’s not the typical ‘pirates of the Caribbean’ effect that Johnny Depp does oh-so-well, but it’s gives the raw, hardcore, through dirt, pain and betrayal nature of pirates. Beautiful cinematography, and well scripted character development. It’s a prequel of Robert Louis Stevenson’s ‘treasure island’, and so it deals with how those characters became who they became. Captain flint, Long John Silver, Blackbeard… They’re names any pirate enthusiast would’ve caught hold of as a child and it brings an enormous amount of delight to see them make their name. Winning not just hard fought, viscous battles at sea, but personal challenges with each other and with themselves. It gives a deep insight into the motivation of a pirate, the circumstances that make them do things. Its provides a preview into their feelings and aspirations of wanting to earn an honest living and strive towards a betterment of their state. It ultimately leads up to an unexpected united front against colonization by the British, putting aside greed and past exploits. It concentrates heavily on the unlikely friendship between two men, and the turmoil they face in deciding to lead their fellow men together despite each other’s reputation. It’s a beautiful world, with a highly satisfying ending.

11. Westworld: This is a stunning piece of work. An absolute thriller, with climaxes at just the right time; and It keeps you guessing till the very end. And Anthony Hopkins. What more do you need? It’s based on the 1973 movie of the same name, and it’s about a futuristic theme park where highly advanced artificial intelligence (robots) are made to exist, not knowing that they are robots, and live out programmed storylines everyday catering to the guests. I’m not sure if I should say much more! But let’s just say: what happens when one of them figures it out? It’s authentic, it’s addictive, it’s so much more than any of you expect! To quote one of the dialogues: ‘We can’t define consciousness because consciousness does not exist. Humans fancy that there’s something special about the way we perceive the world and yet we live in loops as tight and as closed as the hosts do, seldom questioning our choices, content, and for the most part, to be told what to do next”. The ending of the first season (infact even the first episode) will leave you bamboozled and ravenous for more!

12. Full metal Alchemist: This is an anime. And that does not mean “it’s a cartoon, ergo it’s for children!” That’s a common but very misinformed (and insulting) belief. I very recently delved into the world of Japanese anime, and my God; I wondered how I escaped this marvel for so many years (the addict that I am). The storylines that these people come up with, the character development, the freedom to create countless episodes… It breaks every restriction tv series seem to have and it makes sense that all the breathtaking ideas come to this platform because to depict them without animation would result in a severe lack of creativity and storyline restrictions, spoiling the entire idea of the creator. Anyway back to FMA. It’s set in a world where the magic of alchemy exists. Based on the law of equivalent exchange, an alchemist is able to mold, or create matter after offering something in return. The story is about two brothers who lost their mother at a very young age and in desperation attempted the one thing alchemy does not permit: bringing someone back from the dead. In the process, one of the brothers lose their body only to have his soul trapped in a metal armor and the other brother loses his right arm and leg. With full determination to find a way to get their bodies back, the brothers set out and end up joining the State police as they figure it’s their best chance. However they get entangled in a conspiracy so deep and convoluted that the entire country is in danger. It’s a personal journey for the boys, and mans flaws are clearly outlined as characters in the form of the 7 cardinal sins. It’s a beautiful story, absolutely immersed in emotion and filled with imagination. Watch it, please. Now there are two versions: the earlier one just called FMA and the later one called FMA: Brotherhood. Both are excellent although I must tell you if you like a darker story with an even darker ending, the former is the one for you.

Honourable mentions:

·         Game of thrones

·         Mercy street

·         Sherlock

·         The walking dead

·         Dexter

·         A series of unfortunate events

·         Fargo

·         Stranger things

·         Utopia

·         American crime story

·         Daredevil

·         The handmaid’s tale

·         Monster, death note (anime)

·         Mr Robot