I’m a TV addict at the best of times. I see no problem with spending an entire Sunday camped out in the living room binging an entire series of something gripping. Preferably with tea and chocolate.
But this year has been particularly heavy on the ol’ TV show-binging, seeing as I was on maternity leave for the first 7 months of 2019. And although I found it hard to concentrate on anything in the newborn days, as I got into the swing of motherhood, it became completely routine for me to watch a couple of episodes of something in the day during Indi’s naps. (Don’t worry I did actually take my baby outside too.)
So seeing as I’m on my #NovBlogathon rampage at the moment, I thought I would throw out a blog post I wouldn’t normally write. About TV. Because I love it.
In particular, the TV shows that I’ve discovered this year and completely loved. I should mention that most of the TV consumed this year have been re-runs of my faves – Gilmore Girls, RuPaul’s Drag Race, Queer Eye and Always Sunny. So these are just the ones that are new in my world.
10 TV Shows I’ve Loved This Year
The Marvellous Mrs. Maisel
I only decided to watch The Marvellous Mrs. Maisel as it’s created by Amy Sherman-Palladino, aka the creator of Gilmore Girls. So I thought it’d be worth a watch. I was not disappointed.
It’s about a 1950’s housewife whose life kind of falls apart but in the process she discovers she has a talent for stand-up comedy. It’s really funny as well as just being nice to watch as everything is so fifties chic. I really enjoyed binging the first two seasons and I CAN’T WAIT for season 3 to drop next month. The trailer is sick.
Life In Pieces
Another Amazon Prime pick, I started watching Life In Pieces as my mum recommended it when I was on mat leave. Purely because it had new parents on it. And she was right, it was actually quite relatable to my situation!
It’s a comedy about an extended family and reminded me a lot of Modern Family. Just easy-to-watch and short episodes, so good if you want to throw something on whilst you sit down for 20 minutes, y’know? Definitely easy viewing.
Working Moms
Another relatable one for me right now, I discovered Working Moms earlier in the year as Netflix recommended it to me. I mean, Netflix knows my life. And it is really good.
It’s about some mum friends in Toronto that start going back to work after having their babies and I found it really funny. I mean obviously it’s very apt for my life right now, but I think you’d find it funny even if you didn’t have kids. The first season is good but I started to love it in season 2 when stuff starts getting juicy.
Dead To Me
I actually went back through my Netflix history for the purpose of this blog post and I had forgotten about Dead To Me beforehand, purely because I binged it so fast (I think maybe a day?!). But it definitely deserves a place in this list as I really enjoyed it.
It stars Christina Applegate as Jen, whose husband recently died and she meets Judy (Linda Cardellini) in a grief support group. They strike up an unlikely friendship and well… I won’t give anything away but it has such good twists that when you finish an episode you feel the need to immediately watch the next one.
The Umbrella Academy
Another Netflix showed I binged way too fast is The Umbrella Academy. I didn’t know if it was going to be my kind of thing, I’m a bit hit or miss with superhero stuff. But the concept of this one is different.
It’s about a bunch of babies that are born to women that weren’t even pregnant (weird but stay with me) and get adopted by this old dude. And it turns out they all have powers. Fast forward twenty years, the old dude is dead and the now-adult, estranged, superhero guys try to solve the mystery of his death. Ok, I’m not selling it, it’s complicated. But it’s a decent watch and season 1 left my googling whether there would be a season 2 (there is) which is always a good sign.
The OA
I watched season 2 of The OA this year which is why it made this list (I watch season 1 last year) and it kind of blew my mind. It’s a weird one and I honestly don’t know where to start with the plot. So let’s just say it’s a sci-fi mystery drama with a bit of a love story too. It’s also about different dimensions / parallel universes, I guess? But yeah, it’s really good. So good that when both seasons ended I was straight on forums looking up fan theories. That’s how you KNOW it was good. I also rewatched both series on my mat leave because it’s just such a one-of-a-kind show. But I think it might be TV marmite, some love it, some don’t get it.
Russian Doll
I feel like no-one talked about this Netflix show, but I thought Russian Doll was ace. Created by and starring Natasha Lyonne (off of Orange Is The New Black), it is essentially a modern day Groundhog Day, with the main character Nadia continuously dying a different way, and then the day resetting.
I thought it was a good story that was funny in some parts and sad in others. And again kept me watching after each episode. Definitely worth a watch.
Killing Eve
I couldn’t not include Killing Eve could I? I know everyone raves about it, but it’s for a good reason. It’s such an awesome thriller starring Sandra Oh as an MI5 officer trying to track down an assassin called Villanelle (Jodie Comer) across Europe. It’s an awesome story and you don’t really know where it’s going to go, which I think is rare these days. And the acting from both Oh and Comer is top notch. Jodie Comer’s accents are amazing for a start.
Fleabag
My bestie told me I had to check out the British comedy-drama, Fleabag, so I binged both seasons in one weekend. I wasn’t immediately into it at first, the whole breaking the fourth wall, talking to the camera thing. But it’s pretty good once you get into it. Quite sad but also relatable. Very angsty millennial in London vibes, with a good twist in the first season.
But I way preferred the second season, which seems to be controversial amongst my pals. But the second season has a hot priest, so…
Stranger Things
I almost didn’t put this one in as it’s a bit obvious, but season 3 of Stranger Things landed on Netflix this year and I thought it was awesome. Way better than season 2 and up there with season 3. It’s all the things you want from Stranger Things – suspense, comedy, a bit of horror, and awesome 80’s outfits. And I might have shed a tear at the end.
What TV shows have you binged this year? Let me know if you have any recommendations!
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