What TV series do you like?

[Noodle]

For those who have Hulu, the series Veronica Mars has returned. I am only two episodes in but am really enjoying it. The first season, which is streaming on Hulu, is one of the best seasons of television anywhere (it can be pretty dark, be warned, although it did air on network television so it was not explicit). The second and third seasons and the movie which was made a few years ago were not as strong, but still enjoyable. I did have to read one of the online articles to remind me of who various characters were...the first season was extremely memorable but I admit I was a little vague as to the rest of it.

[iris lily]

OMG, just started watching Breaking Bad on Netflix and I am totally addicted! LOVE IT! I am midway thru the second season! I will watch Ozark when I am finished with Breaking Bad.

Big fan of BB.

I am walking away from Ozark after about 5-6 episodes. Is competent and entertaining is just not compelling for me.

Also, I probably will not watch more seasons of Better Call Saul, the spin off from Bebe. I watched three seasons that’s enough, too much of it lags.

[ketchup]

Also, I probably will not watch more seasons of Better Call Saul, the spin off from Bebe. I watched three seasons that’s enough, too much of it lags.

Wow, I completely disagree.  If anything I think it's even better than Breaking Bad.  Definitely better every season.  Season four was phenomenal.

[Roadrunner53]

I am going to watch Better Call Saul soon and I can't wait! Most people rave over it. OMG, I finished Breaking Bad and I am like a drug addict and need MORE episodes but alas, I guess there are no more! OMG, I need my fix! That was one of the best shows I ever watched! Very, very good!

[charis]

Big fan of BB.

I am walking away from Ozark after about 5-6 episodes. Is competent and entertaining is just not compelling for me.

I felt the same about Ozark, but recently went back and binged the rest of show during laundry folding sessions.  The character development gets much more interesting and I was hooked when I finished the second season.

[DavidAnnArbor]

Yes I had the same experience with Ozark. I think I was just angry at the main character by the second or third episode, so I set aside the show for awhile.
I gave it another try and the plot and development got very good and intense.

I thought Better Call Saul was an incredible series. ONe of the subplots is the strange issue of people who believe they have an adverse reaction to electromagnetic energy. I didn't think this was a real thing until I saw in a Nextdoor post in my area about people who were refusing get smart meters for their utilities.

[Roadrunner53]

I have Netflix and Hulu. I got Hulu to watch one show and rarely watch it now. I am thinking about cancelling it but before I do, can anyone suggest any good shows on Hulu? Seems most shows I find that I like are on Netflix.

[OtherJen]

I have Netflix and Hulu. I got Hulu to watch one show and rarely watch it now. I am thinking about cancelling it but before I do, can anyone suggest any good shows on Hulu? Seems most shows I find that I like are on Netflix.

Castle Rock was great. Handmaid's Tale is very good.

[SaucyAussie]

I have Netflix and Hulu. I got Hulu to watch one show and rarely watch it now. I am thinking about cancelling it but before I do, can anyone suggest any good shows on Hulu? Seems most shows I find that I like are on Netflix.

What was the one show?  Killing Eve is great.  The Path is "ok".

[Noodle]

What kind of thing are you looking for? Does it have to be brand-new? Hulu does less original programming than Netflix, but they have a really deep bench of current and past network shows. A few ideas:

If you like warm-hearted comedy: Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Parks and Recreation, The Good Place, Younger, Better Off Ted, Kitchen Confidential, Sirens, Happy Endings
If you like superhero shows: Cloak and Dagger, Runaways, Agent Carter
If you like family drama: This is Us, Parenthood, Bunheads, Friday Night Lights, The O.C.
If you like dark, twisty drama (really dark): The Handmaid's Tale, Top of the Lake, Unreal
If you like mysteries: Veronica Mars (the first season is terrific, the current (fourth) season is excellent, the second and third seasons weren't as good but enjoyable because of the characters)
If you like thrillers: 24 (it got stupid in later seasons, but the first season was great)
If you like medical drama: ER (again, later seasons were not as strong, but the first few were terrific)
If you like fantasy/SF shows: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Firefly, LOST, Timeless, X-Files

[OtherJen]

I have Netflix and Hulu. I got Hulu to watch one show and rarely watch it now. I am thinking about cancelling it but before I do, can anyone suggest any good shows on Hulu? Seems most shows I find that I like are on Netflix.

What was the one show?  Killing Eve is great.  The Path is "ok".

Thank you! We had wanted to watch Killing Eve but got distracted by new Handmaid’s Tale.

I agree with Noodle, there’s a lot of fun non-original programming on Hulu. We discovered a couple of seasons of No Reservations (RIP, Anthony Bourdain) and are enjoying Drunk History and Brooklyn 99. Peep Show is fun for weird, awkward British humor and recent Oscar winner Olivia Colman in one of her early roles. This Is Us is excellent, and I cannot keep to broadcast TV schedules so Hulu is they only way I get to watch it.

[Roadrunner53]

Currently, on Netflix I have watched Breaking Bad and am now watching Better Call Saul and will watch Ozark after that.

Not sure what these types of shows these are considered. Crime, thriller. They all have the same theme. Illegal money, criminal activity, money laundering. Bad guys conniving to take what other bad guys have.

I guess these are the type of shows I like at this point in time.  I also watched Hell on Wheels on Netflix. Very gritty and full of evil, nasty people. That show was great! A bit of history on building the rail road system.

[OtherJen]

Currently, on Netflix I have watched Breaking Bad and am now watching Better Call Saul and will watch Ozark after that.

Not sure what these types of shows these are considered. Crime, thriller. They all have the same theme. Illegal money, criminal activity, money laundering. Bad guys conniving to take what other bad guys have.

I guess these are the type of shows I like at this point in time.  I also watched Hell on Wheels on Netflix. Very gritty and full of evil, nasty people. That show was great! A bit of history on building the rail road system.

I can’t remember...have you watched Broadchurch or The Fall (both Netflix)? If not, I think you will enjoy both immensely.

[Noodle]

Currently, on Netflix I have watched Breaking Bad and am now watching Better Call Saul and will watch Ozark after that.

Not sure what these types of shows these are considered. Crime, thriller. They all have the same theme. Illegal money, criminal activity, money laundering. Bad guys conniving to take what other bad guys have.

I guess these are the type of shows I like at this point in time.  I also watched Hell on Wheels on Netflix. Very gritty and full of evil, nasty people. That show was great! A bit of history on building the rail road system.

Got it--that's probably the genre I watch least, but I spotted a few things on Hulu. Since they draw a lot from broadcast and basic cable, I think they tend to have less really gritty stuff in their library. But there is some.

--Sons of Anarchy (motorcycle gang drama)
--Prison Break (the first season is great)
--Killing Eve (that's more spies, I think, but still very dark)
--Top of the Lake (more of a detective show, but has a dark feel)
--The Path (takes place inside a cult, but still has plenty of bad people doing bad things)
--Fargo (different cast each season but they certainly have gotten some top-notch actors)

[OtherJen]

Sons of Anarchy was highly entertaining.

[Roadrunner53]

Thanks for the suggestions!

Also, spouse doesn't like vampire stuff, mythological things, movies with murderous maniacs like Freddy Kruger types. Also, not really into British type shows.

Sons of Anarchy and Prison Break and The Path will be at the top of our list.

[DavidAnnArbor]

On Hulu I liked, "Harlots", "11.22.63", "12 Monkeys", "Fixer Upper", "The Strain"

[Roadrunner53]

Well this list is supposed to be what you like on tv but I am going to crab about what I don't like! I was so looking forward to Better Call Saul and it started off pretty good. We are on maybe episode 5 and it is so boring. I am thinking of not watching any more. It is very disappointing because I did hear it was good. I also heard it was slow moving. I don't want to put any more time into this show if it is going to be a drag season after season! Anyone else watch this and if so, does it ever get more thrilling?

[ketchup]

Well this list is supposed to be what you like on tv but I am going to crab about what I don't like! I was so looking forward to Better Call Saul and it started off pretty good. We are on maybe episode 5 and it is so boring. I am thinking of not watching any more. It is very disappointing because I did hear it was good. I also heard it was slow moving. I don't want to put any more time into this show if it is going to be a drag season after season! Anyone else watch this and if so, does it ever get more thrilling?

Yes.  S01E06 (up next for you) is probably my favorite episode of the first season, which is a bit slow I'll admit.  Each season is even better than the last, and season four is perfection.  I think I said this before, but especially the later seasons I'd put above even Breaking Bad.

[soccerluvof4]

On Hulu I really liked
Silk
DCI Banks
Really liked Cardinal
 

Just finished Wired on Prime. Excellent show

[iris lily]

Well this list is supposed to be what you like on tv but I am going to crab about what I don't like! I was so looking forward to Better Call Saul and it started off pretty good. We are on maybe episode 5 and it is so boring. I am thinking of not watching any more. It is very disappointing because I did hear it was good. I also heard it was slow moving. I don't want to put any more time into this show if it is going to be a drag season after season! Anyone else watch this and if so, does it ever get more thrilling?

We all like Mike, and Jimmy’s shenanigans are sometimes funny. But I found the
Chuck character to be overwrought  and I just do not care about Jimmy and Chuck’s childhood and antipathy.

Kim  is a likable character but honestly, I think she is a weak character due to her involvement with huckster Jimmy. I watched thru Season 3. I can kinda see the attraction of a character that is mostly a Good Girl who likes the excitement of Bad Boy life. I was bored with Kim during much of Season 3 where She seemed to spend all of her time carping  at Jimmy and flipping her ponytail, but then action picked up in last episodes.

Gus, one of the most interesting character in Breaking Bad, makes small appearances, but the element of surprise about him is already gone since we know what a Big Wig he really is due to BB.

I think that for me I’ve already seen Vince Gilligan’s mastery of the genre so the over all series is not as interesting as it might’ve been before Breaking Bad.

[Lulee]

PBS in my area is running a British show called "Mum" with the lovely Lesley Manville who plays Cathy. It's a gentle show with some barbed bits to it --- the first episode is Cathy getting ready for her husband Dave's funeral while her family and one true friend, Michael, mill around her creating chaos on this hugely sad day.  But it has lots of humor and hope and even the characters who are frequently idiots or mean are also shown as real fleshed out humans that the show refuses to demean for all their faults.  There's three series, 6 episodes each, and we're starting the second series tonight to my delight.  I suspect it's available on BritBox and other streaming services and recommend it as an alternative to some of the other high intensity shows out there.

[soccerluvof4]

Just finished the first two seasons of Goliath on Prime. Every time I thought I was really going to start liking it the show would disappoint. I did read the third season is coming out end of this year so since each season is only 8 Episodes I will probably watch.

[Roadrunner53]

Well this list is supposed to be what you like on tv but I am going to crab about what I don't like! I was so looking forward to Better Call Saul and it started off pretty good. We are on maybe episode 5 and it is so boring. I am thinking of not watching any more. It is very disappointing because I did hear it was good. I also heard it was slow moving. I don't want to put any more time into this show if it is going to be a drag season after season! Anyone else watch this and if so, does it ever get more thrilling?

We all like Mike, and Jimmy’s shenanigans are sometimes funny. But I found the
Chuck character to be overwrought  and I just do not care about Jimmy and Chuck’s childhood and antipathy.

Kim  is a likable character but honestly, I think she is a weak character due to her involvement with huckster Jimmy. I watched thru Season 3. I can kinda see the attraction of a character that is mostly a Good Girl who likes the excitement of Bad Boy life. I was bored with Kim during much of Season 3 where She seemed to spend all of her time carping  at Jimmy and flipping her ponytail, but then action picked up in last episodes.

Gus, one of the most interesting character in Breaking Bad, makes small appearances, but the element of surprise about him is already gone since we know what a Big Wig he really is due to BB.

I think that for me I’ve already seen Vince Gilligan’s mastery of the genre so the over all series is not as interesting as it might’ve been before Breaking Bad.

Threw in the towel with Gotta Call Saul. So disappointed but don't want to waste time when there are other good things to watch. Going from Breaking Bad to GCS was like going 90 mph to 10 mph!

[WhiteTrashCash]

We're starting to watch this season's episodes of "Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." on ABC and it's a lot of fun. They clearly reduced the show's budget, but with modern technology being what it is, that hasn't harmed the show's quality very much. Some folks are complaining about the space-based adventures on the show now, but long-time Marvel fans know that's an integral part of the Marvel Universe. It's nice to see them expanding out into that stuff with "Captain Marvel", "Guardians of the Galaxy", "Thor: Ragnarok", etc.

[soccerluvof4]

Started watching the 3rd mini of the Heist last night on Netflix. Its a bit out there and being foreign the voices dont match up obviously with the English BUT we watched the first two and found it fun. I fell asleep was exhausted but looks like it will be another hell of a ride mini-season.

[Noodle]

Enjoying the new "Four Weddings and A Funeral" series on Hulu. It has no connection with the original movie, other than that it takes place in England and presumably involves Four Weddings and a Funeral (so far we're one wedding and the funeral in). The NPR reviewer, who I usually agree with, did not care for the series much so I was surprised at how much I liked it. I think it is much more of a romantic drama than a comedy...it includes some funny moments and the overall tone is warm but the stakes are higher and the goofiness level lower than what I tend to associate with rom-coms. The cast is excellent although not particularly high-profile.

[OtherJen]

We just started watching "Killing Eve" on Hulu. Yeah, this series got off to a strong start and seems really solid and entertaining. The two lead actresses are great.

[MatthewK]

Just finished the second season of Broad Church on netflix.

 Been really enjoying a lot of the BBC crime series they have on Netflix.  However some of them have such hard accents that it's difficult for me to catch every word.

[Nick_Miller]

I'm still waiting for a show to fill my post Mad Men void. Come on now, someone has to be making something like it!

We're watching The Boys right now (Prime), and it's...okay. I'm always intrigued by superhero stuff outside the standard mainstream DC/Marvel universe, because I think these other stories can take  risks that fanboys of Spiderman and Batman won't accept.

The Boys DOES feature both Scottie and Bones from the new Star Trek movie series, so that's pretty cool. And the show certainly isn't shy about presenting heroes as less than the altruistic messiahs they are usually portrayed as. It's definitely more in the Watchmen/Kick-Ass vibe, although nowhere near as good.

And we're sort loving Yellowstone (Paramount Network) these days. Costner as a bad guy is awesome. The cinematography is stunning, the cowboy side stories are entertaining, and the main conflict is gripping, but there are a few super annoying characters (looking at YOU, Beth and Jamie!) that almost ruin it.

And we are very much looking forward to Ozark season 3! My wife and I both dig it immensely. Sooooooo many delicious layers of conflict and a great cast!

[OtherJen]

I'm still waiting for a show to fill my post Mad Men void. Come on now, someone has to be making something like it!

That show was unique and masterfully done. I've found a lot of good shows, but nothing quite like it.

[yakamashii]

Just finished Season 1 of "In the Dark" with my wife, and we loved it. A snarky, alcoholic 20-something discovers her best friend's dead body. The police investigate, but lose interest because there's no body, and she didn't actually see it (she's blind). She leans on everyone she knows to find out what happened to her friend. Great lines, thought provoking, and a couple of gut punches along the way.

[EscapeVelocity2020]

Since I haven't seen it mentioned, I'm enjoying Netflix's 'Another Life'.  Not what I expected, but not for the faint of heart.

[Warlord1986]

Just finished season two of 'Stranger Things' and season three of 'The Good Place.' Both were great, but ST lagged a bit. I feel like there was too much time spent on Jonathan and Nancy's will-they-or-won't-they?

[Lulee]

Just finished the second season of Broad Church on netflix.

 Been really enjoying a lot of the BBC crime series they have on Netflix.  However some of them have such hard accents that it's difficult for me to catch every word.

I loved Broadchurch and watch lots of British TV.  Partly due to struggling with the accents and partly due to some series having HORRID sound quality, I tend to watch with subtitles on.  Even on series of shows like Primeval that I've re-watched, I often find I misheard something along the way when I re-view it with the subtitles enabled.

[OtherJen]

Just finished the second season of Broad Church on netflix.

 Been really enjoying a lot of the BBC crime series they have on Netflix.  However some of them have such hard accents that it's difficult for me to catch every word.

I loved Broadchurch and watch lots of British TV.  Partly due to struggling with the accents and partly due to some series having HORRID sound quality, I tend to watch with subtitles on.  Even on series of shows like Primeval that I've re-watched, I often find I misheard something along the way when I re-view it with the subtitles enabled.

I saw a couple of interviews with Broadchurch actors in which even they struggled with the Dorset accent. I didn't feel any shame about using subtitles after that. In fact, it seems like so many recent shows involve mumbled dialogue (I love Elisabeth Moss, but she was one of the worst for this on both Mad Men and Handmaid's Tale) that I sometimes find myself turning on subtitles even for US-based shows.

[TVRodriguez]

Just finished the second season of Broad Church on netflix.

 Been really enjoying a lot of the BBC crime series they have on Netflix.  However some of them have such hard accents that it's difficult for me to catch every word.

We loved Broadchurch.  Season 3 is very good, better than season 2, not quite as good as season 1, in my opinion.  We always use closed captions for the BBC shows!

[HPstache]

Season 3 of Stranger things was very "meh"... a bit of a letdown.  Just watched it all in about a week.

[GuitarStv]

Season 3 of Stranger things was very "meh"... a bit of a letdown.  Just watched it all in about a week.

Agreed!  I knew it wasn't going to be good after the first episode . . . where nothing interesting or suspenseful happened.

[Warlord1986]

Babysitter Steve was pretty good, but the lag was noticeable. I’ll probably give season 3 a shot if only to see if something good finally happens to Will.

[DavidAnnArbor]

There were a lot of rich cultural subthemes in season 3 of stranger things, such as the 80's music, cultural references such as the jazzercise studio, the way the mall was the teenage social center. Also, the series highlighted the US - Soviet cold war.

[charis]

I'm actually liking season 3, maybe more than season 2, which I think was a bit clunky and tried to cram in too much plot and action. I liked the pacing and the development of relationships.  And the theming of course.

[iris lily]

Just finished the second season of Broad Church on netflix.

 Been really enjoying a lot of the BBC crime series they have on Netflix.  However some of them have such hard accents that it's difficult for me to catch every word.

We loved Broadchurch.  Season 3 is very good, better than season 2, not quite as good as season 1, in my opinion.  We always use closed captions for the BBC shows!

I liked the first Broadchurch. I think I saw the second  one, but was unimpressed.

Now I watch everything exclusively on my iPad via streaming, and I don’t know how to turn on subtitles. When I watched  British shows at my friends house we watched on her TV and could turn them on.

Last night I watched a new season of Trapped, the  police procedural taking  place in Iceland. It is subtitled.  While  I enjoyed season One  well enough. I doubt that I watch anymore of it. It is all so depressing, that topography. I am in the tiny majority of Americans who has no desire to visit Iceland, it just looks like the place they send us to re-educate us in the Gulag.

[GuitarStv]

There were a lot of rich cultural subthemes in season 3 of stranger things, such as the 80's music, cultural references such as the jazzercise studio, the way the mall was the teenage social center. Also, the series highlighted the US - Soviet cold war.

The show is best when it's suspenseful, character driven fantasy-scifi-horror with a vaguely X-files feel.  The third season made a bunch of unusual missteps for the series:
- Kept the kids apart for 90% of the season for some unknown reason so we didn't get the fun banter/dialogue from the earlier seasons
- Focused on 80s nostalgia in place of plot
- Action movie CG monsters were over-done
- Too much painfully bad 'young love' tripe
- Half-baked invasion of the body snatchers thing (which could have been awesome if more build up and payoff had happened with this but felt rushed and cartoonish)
- Half-baked Russian invasion subplot (which, again, could have been awesome with more build up and payoff but felt rushed and cartoonish)
- No suspense of any kind


I enjoyed the first two seasons because of a tight and well written character driven plot*.  The 80s schlock was a fun backdrop, not the reason to watch.



*Notable exception was the chunk of the second season with L and the lost kids subplot that totally went nowhere . . .

[StarBright]

I'm still waiting for a show to fill my post Mad Men void. Come on now, someone has to be making something like it!

There are two shows that are completely different from Mad Men but are linked in the same category as Mad Men for me (in that I felt emotionally satisfied and artistically fulfilled and just flat out glad that I watched them and I still think of them sometimes): The Leftovers and Fleabag.  I would say that what both share with Mad Men is a dark humor that just comes with being human but both are tragic too (the Leftovers moreso).  Fleabag is funny w/tragedy and Leftovers is definitely a tragedy with flashes of humor and humanity.

The Americans sometimes leaves me feeling that way, but I haven't watched the last two seasons yet so don't know how I'll feel about the series as a whole.

[iris lily]

I'm still waiting for a show to fill my post Mad Men void. Come on now, someone has to be making something like it!

There are two shows that are completely different from Mad Men but are linked in the same category as Mad Men for me (in that I felt emotionally satisfied and artistically fulfilled and just flat out glad that I watched them and I still think of them sometimes): The Leftovers and Fleabag.  I would say that what both share with Mad Med is a dark humor that just comes with being human but both are tragic too (the Leftovers moreso).  Fleabag is funny w/tragedy and Leftovers is definitely a tragedy with flashes of humor and humanity.

The Americans sometimes leaves me feeling that way, but I haven't watched the last two seasons yet so don't know how I'll feel about the series as a whole.

Oh gosh, I am  still mourning the end of The Americans. The last season is so suspenseful and interesting and the last episode is just sublime. PS I just finished Fleabag and I liked it as well. Maybe I need to try Leftovers.

[Noodle]

I'm actually liking season 3, maybe more than season 2, which I think was a bit clunky and tried to cram in too much plot and action. I liked the pacing and the development of relationships.  And the theming of course.

I'm not sure why, but in the Age of Streaming, I often like third seasons better than second seasons. (In contrast to broadcast, where the first season or two or sometimes three would be great, and then quality would start to trail off as everyone got tired of the premise and the original talent started to leave. Or often, the second/third seasons would be strongest as the showrunners and actors got a handle on the characters etc. before the quality drop started. Parks and Rec, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, ER, even the more recent Brooklyn Nine-Nine were all that way). For instance, Broadchurch, Jessica Jones, Stranger Things, the fourth season of Veronica Mars...maybe because they shoot a whole season and then broadcast/stream it, instead of getting more granular feedback as they go along?

[Tyson]

I'm still waiting for a show to fill my post Mad Men void. Come on now, someone has to be making something like it!

There are two shows that are completely different from Mad Men but are linked in the same category as Mad Men for me (in that I felt emotionally satisfied and artistically fulfilled and just flat out glad that I watched them and I still think of them sometimes): The Leftovers and Fleabag.  I would say that what both share with Mad Med is a dark humor that just comes with being human but both are tragic too (the Leftovers moreso).  Fleabag is funny w/tragedy and Leftovers is definitely a tragedy with flashes of humor and humanity.

The Americans sometimes leaves me feeling that way, but I haven't watched the last two seasons yet so don't know how I'll feel about the series as a whole.

Watched The Leftovers about a year ago, around the time my marriage was disintegrating.  It was.... cathartic.

[Dr Kidstache]

Oooooh, I loved The Leftovers. I was a big Lost fan, too.

[DavidAnnArbor]

tyort sorry to hear about your marriage. hopefully you've found some resolution.