If you are anything like me, you have checked all of the quarantine/not so quarantine boxes. You picked up a new hobby, you became a plant mom, you started a blog, and maybe, you even binge watched all of the movies that Robert Pattinson is in.
Here’s the problem, though. Technically, quarantine is “over”, but most likely you are still primarily existing in the safe, COVID-19 free space that is your home.
So what do you do? You’ve watched the Twilight saga three times this week and now school is back in session, so time is even more limited, and still, I am thrilled that you asked. Do you have a pen near you?
Step 1: Get a fun roommate.
Step 2: Grab a blanket.
Step 3: Turn on The Umbrella Academy on Netflix.
In summary, on October 1, 1989, 43 women all over the world gave birth at the exact same time– but here’s the kicker: none of the women were pregnant when they woke up that morning. Yes, you read that correctly. If you, again, like me, enjoy a cast of quirky adopted siblings who all have literal superpowers and a bad case of the emotionally absent father, well here you go. (Side note: If you haven’t familiarized yourself with Robert Sheehan yet, add that to your Step 2.)
No spoilers, but you will have to strap yourself into the recliner and set at least two hours aside so you will have enough time to be invested in the family’s story– we get a lot of information in the first two episodes. I will be honest, there is a lot of time traveling in the beginning of season one, so you might be slightly confused at first, but do not let that deter you! My roommate and I finished both season one and two in two days.
What else have I been binge-watching? You are too kind to have asked! If you are familiar with the rapper Lil Dicky, and even if you are not, I highly suggest that the next show you binge be his show, Dave, on Hulu. Before you say no, listen! Before this show, I actively avoiding listening to this man’s music. I did not have anything against Lil Dicky specifically, but, if I’m being honest, I just did not take him seriously. I am a realist, however, and I can admit when I am wrong and in this instance, I was wrong.
The show revolves around a guy named Dave, who is, seemingly, just another one of those guys trying to make it big in the rap business. It sounds like a predictable storyline that would plateau really quickly, but wait, there’s more! Whether you’re just shocked at Dave’s interestingly unexpected friend groups or at the fact that he and his best friend and roommate, Mike, take baths together once a week, before you know it, you’re invested. The show is genuinely and actively fun to watch. Each character is specifically, yet individually, hilarious. No spoilers.
Basically, this show manages to introduce us to insanely normal people who really are more than meets the eye. Each episode manages to cleverly combine the seriousness of mental health while keeping this uniquely familiar sense of humor that really just spoke to me.
Folks, I’ve saved the best for last: The Midnight Gospel. I wish I could leave it at that because my summary could not possibly do it justice.
This show is created by Pendleton Ward, who created Adventure Time,plus a comedian named Duncan Trussel. Basically in this show, we follow a character named Clancy Gilroy who lives in a dimension known as “The Chromatic Ribbon.”
In this dimension, Clancy uses his handy-dandy multiverse simulator to travel to various other dimensions outside of his own and record his encounters for his space blog– or “spacecast.” Each episode consists of segments from Duncan Trussel’s podcast where he has these really thoughtful and honest conversations about whether or not drugs are good or bad, what happens before death, and what being spiritual really looks like. His guests are people like Dr. Drew, who was the host of VH1’s Celebrity Rehab, and Stephen Root, who’s a voice actor for several animated movies and show and is currently starring on HBO’S Barry and, for one episode, we even get to meet Duncan’s mom in an episode about accepting death instead of fearing it.
This show is so cool to watch– it’s actually a little trippy– but, it has become so meaningful to me that I even joined a Facebook group about it. 10/10 would recommend.
