Recently I’ve been catching up on tv and some of the more mature/adult shows, which I’ve been…Enjoying? Seems like the wrong word, but they’ve all generally been cynical or dark.
For reference, I’ve just finished Better Call Saul, which got me to finally get around to finishing Breaking Bad, and I’ve also been doing a rewatch of the anime Monster as it’s been years since I last watched it.
So basically back to back dark shows.
I’ve already watched The Good Place, which nails what I’m describing, but it’s a little blunt with the sweetness, while I’ve watched some of Bee and Puppycat which seems like it’s closer to a nice middleground of sweet and real.
What are some of your go-to shows for this kinda vibe?
I love sitcoms but beneath their light exterior they always have a heart of darkness, or at least a trace of one. But given your OP, I figure you can handle a teensy bit of a shadow side. Here are some generally upbeat shows with lots of laughs.
Catastrophe- I think it strikes the right balance of optimism in the face of doubt. It’s light but not saccharine. It’s my favorite sitcom.
It Crowd
Black Books
30 Rock
Black-ish
Adventure Time
Mentioned in lots of other replies:
Parks and Rec
New Girl (extremely underrated)
Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
Brooklyn 99
Taskmaster
WILTY
Wow we might be the same person, except I haven’t watched Black-ish or Black Books. I’ll have to look into those.
Please watch them - they’re very different but both great. What shows not on my list would you recommend?
Well you didn’t mention The Good Place, but from your username I assume you’ve watched it :) .
Ted Lasso is really great throughout and has a really positive viewpoint while still dealing with tough subjects.
Starstruck (you’ll recognize Rose Matefeo) is a great lightish comedy.
Crazy ex girlfriend
Santa Clarita diet
For animated stuff, these are all top-tier:
Thank you - I’m adding these to my list! And yes, I’m a Good Place fan. I didn’t mention it because OP mentioned recently seeing it.
Black Books, absolutely. There’s an episode where a shop owner gets beaten senseless by skinheads… because he asked them to. And then he had to trick them into it because they were too stupid to get the idea. Any show that can pull that off and still have an unironic laugh track is exactly the release OP needs.
Oh hey, the episode Grapes of Wrath is on Youtube.
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