On My Mount Rushmore of Shows

Boys,

I don’t know how things will be in 10-20 years when I’m envisioning you reading this, but in the Web 2.0 world, people love to debate the dumbest things. I read a comment on Facebook the other day where someone said something about how they “loved the new Two Rivers restaurant in Powell!!!” Below is a more-or-less reenactment of the comment section that followed that comment:

• My family and I loved the new Two Rivers restaurant in Powell!!!
  • Yes we love Two Rivers! The food is great.
  • We love it there. The service is great!
  • We tried it and loved it.
  • I found the food to be mediocre at best. I think the food is premade and heated up cafeteria-style. Service was also lacking. It’s crazy what people in Powell pass off as “good food” these days.
  • Why do you have to tear down a small business like that Todd?
  • Yea, Todd. She was just saying she and her family liked it. Why do you have to attack a business like that?
  • Well, I was just giving MY OPINION on MY EXPERIENCE. I never attacked a small business, Darcy.
  • YOU LITERALLY SAID ITS CRAZY WHAT PEOPLE PASS OFF AS GOOD FOOD THESE DAYS, TODD. Grow up you asshole!

The point is, Todd is a jerk. But also, people will just debate things because they’re bored and don’t have anything better to do. Maybe when Web3 takes over, people will be nicer to each other.

I say all that because I’ll be posting my Mt. Rushmore — aka my four favorite — of shows. I know at least one person (who you currently live with) that will object in some way to probably all of the shows I mention — one especially so. But I think it’s an interesting exercise to put your name on something and say, “this is what speaks to me the most. It doesn’t mean other shows are worse or better. Rather, this is what I like.”

Before we get there, and I will put some honorable mentions at the bottom, but my Mount Rushmore is very much my brand of TV. I like shows that make the viewer uncomfortable, or do things in a way that they might not have been done before. Ultimately, I like shows that stick with you, make you think, and make you want to watch the next episode right away.

Anyway, when you’re older, maybe we can download the files to our brain chips and argue about why they don’t make good TV like they did back in my day.

My Definitive Mt. Rushmore of TV Shows circa 2024

Black Mirror

No other show has made me think or want to engage in conversation more than Black Mirror. It’s a show about the dangers of technology and what our future might look if things go bad for humanity.

Each episode is unique unto itself and has a completely different cast and (I think) director. This makes every episode feel like its own thing and they’re all done so well. I probably think about something from this show weekly, which probably isn’t healthy, but the show is so good. It’s very dark and very adult, so proceed with caution and watch when you’re older.

Ozark

Ozark is the story of a family who moves from Chicago to the Ozarks and get involved in money laundering for the cartel — super heartwarming stuff! There is a lot of Breaking Bad going on with this show, but it’s more about trying to get out of a bad situation than trying to become the bad situation. You feel like the family is about to fall apart at any moment, but at the same time they all realize they need each other despite their flaws and differences.

It’s just a really cool show that I would tell you to wait until you’re older to watch. And if you’re anything like your mom, probably better to watch it anytime other than before bed.

Arcane

Your mom is going to kill me when she reads this, but this (animated, not anime) show is amazing. The artwork, the style in which the show is presented, the way the music and the plot work together, and the imagination that went into making this show are second-to-none. It’s a Netflix show that cost $250M to make, and it’s not like they have Leonardo Dicaprio and Meryl Streep voicing the characters. And the whole show is only 18 episodes across two seasons.

It’s the story of two sisters who turn into enemies after one blames the other for their dad’s death. They’re from this undercity that is being oppressed by the progressive “city of the future” that is literally built on top of the undercity. So there is this personal clash, this clash of the oppressed vs the oppressors, there’s magic and fighting, and you’re captivated the entire time. I could go on and on about this show, but we’ll keep things moving.

Ted Lasso

Very few shows can toe the line between heartfelt and hilarious quite like Ted Lasso did. It felt like it ended too early after three seasons, but it was so well written and you never felt like they were rushing the plot along. What I like about Ted Lasso is that the story never gets too deep, but you’re so tied in emotionally to the characters that you can’t help but feel everything that they’re feeling.

Ted Lasso is a football coach turned European soccer coach who inherits a bottom feeder team. Despite his own moral compass and eventual success as a coach, his own personal life deteriorates. Still, he is persistent and steadfast in his beliefs, and ultimately there is a happy ending to his story. The story is light and the characters are fresh and I was so excited to watch each new episode when it came out.

Honorable Mentions

• Breaking Bad – show got better with each season, characters were believable and developed perfectly, and everything was tied up nicely by the finale.
• Severance – I’m currently watching this one, but two days after I watch an episode, I’m upset that I have to wait five more days to see the next one.
• Entourage – hasn’t aged great, but some of the funniest characters and one of the rare “show for the boys” that your mom also really liked.
• This is Us – heartfelt family show that explores three generations of a family that is centered around the tragic death of the dad. Pretty sure your mom saw me tear up weekly when we watched this one.
• Parenthood – see “This is Us” above. You see each character’s flaws, but just like your own family, can’t help but see the good in everyone despite the good/bad decisions they make along the way.
• Brooklyn 99 – I’m a sucker for good writing, and when you combine that with good comedy actors, you have a great show. Also invented the most reusable gotcha phrase since “that’s what she said,” “name of your sex tape.”
• Lost – probably the first show that I binged. My roommate in college figured out how to download episodes onto his iPod and we watched 3-4 episodes at a time until we caught up to the show live. Last few seasons were no good and I stopped watching.
• South Park – part of me will always enjoy this sort of childish toilet-humor, but nobody did it better.
• It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia – This show is about as consistent as it gets in terms of comedy. Every character is hilarious — even the secondary characters are so well done. Each episode has so many moments that just work and the banter is so so funny.

So debate me on these when you’re older, just don’t be a Todd, OK?

Love you boys either way…

Dad