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?
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.
Leaves from the Vine is the most “try not to cry, cry a lot” moment in any show for me.
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.
Batman: The Animated Series
Unique art style (it was drawn on black paper), excellent writing, excellent voice acting.
Inequivocal yes! Grew up with Batman:TAS.
Batman: TAS was and is dope. The entire DCAU is the best adaptation of comic books to date. There’s a reason Alan Moore was happy to give his approval to For the Man Who Has Everything.
Shout out to Dwayne McDuffie too. Passed too soon.
Expanse was great. Firefly was also great. A good series about relationships was NightSky, sort of a slower paced show about an elderly couple with a hint of SCI-FI.
If you liked The Expanse, check out For All Mankind.
It feels almost like a prequel, set a couple of hundred years before the events in the series.
Came here to make sure For All Mankind was mentioned. I had so much fun watching this.
Thanks
Thanks
Futurama!
Farscape. Always farscape.
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.
Too soon, man…
But seriously, it is tragically short, but worth it. And at least they managed to tie up things with the movie.
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.
Don’t get me wrong. Breaking Bad is fantastic.
I enjoyed Better Call Saul more
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.
Monk, Psych, white collar and Frasier are probably my most favorite shows ever. They have all the things i want in a show, comedy and some drama, and really immersed me into the plot
You know that’s right.
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.
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.
Westworld (Season 1). The other seasons are good and have great moments but season 1 is special.
Yeah season 1 was so good, it got worse after which is a shame
Didn’t see it mentioned yet so i’ll shout out:
Devs.
Super super good sci-fi mystery series relating to quantum theory that introduced some … moral quandaries that stick with you. I dont see it talked about much but I really enjoyed it. Nick Offerman plays the main “bad guy” and it was a jarring but refreshing role change, kinda like John Goodman in the second cloverfield movie. God Damn he killed it.
I also loved Devs. Great soundtrack too.
Dark
- This is the most intricate show ever. The Sistine Chapel of TV
The Wire
- The most real and relevant show. Much more than just a cop show. I would say this is the best bit of TV ever.
Colin From Accounts
- Hilarious. Kind of insane. First 5 minutes and I can’t believe what just happened. Makes me want to visit Australia.
I absolutely loved Dark and followed it for most of the run. However, I haven’t watched the last season yet. Is it good?
Yes.
Cool. I’ll watch it.
Yes
Cool. I’ll watch it.
Dude, the casting in Dark absolutely blew my fuckin mind, choom. I don’t want to spoil the plot in the seasons after the first by telling people who haven’t seen it what I mean, but if you’ve seen it you know exactly what I mean.
It’s sooooo good. Young/old Noah. Young/old Boris. So many amazing examples.
Battlestar Galactica will always be my comfort apocalypse.
On the final episode with my rewatch
I’ve watched it too many times now. I still recommend it to everyone, I just can’t watch it myself anymore. Maybe when I retire.
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.
