As spring break is (somewhat) on the rise and thereafter summer break, we’re gonna start thinking about what to do during our downtime. While there’s always going out with your friends, playing games, all those things that keep you talking to people, we all need time to chill out, grab some popcorn, lie down, and just watch the same show all day (and sometimes for a week straight, it happens). A time where you don’t have to talk to anyone and can just forget about reality for a little bit and take yourself into the world of the characters on screen. However, an issue arises: there are over 800,000 programs to choose from, each with its own characteristics and target demographics, so I want to make that choice a little easier for you with feedback from fellow show watchers here at Quartz Hill!
While it isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, I find a good percentage of people love to sit and bask in drama and romance to forget about their own, possibly tragic, romantic life, and cry about a fictional character. Senior Ambree Ausby suggested The Vampire Diaries, with 8 seasons of drama-filled romance set in the lives of vampire teens. Possibly sounds corny, but sometimes those are the best types of shows. Another suggestion by Ausby, if that doesn’t sound intriguing, is Glee, with 6 seasons, and, at the other end of the spectrum, Glee. Featuring comedy, music, and deep emotion, it’s perfect for getting your mind off the outside world and getting sucked into the music, feeling it in your soul.
Despite the story itself, a good show is one you can watch on your own schedule, whether you’re only able to watch an episode a week or binge three seasons in one sitting. As someone who has watched most of the show by now, I can say that Supernatural features all the good elements that one would want in a free-time show, and 15 beautiful seasons of it. Drama, thrill, comedy, romance, and constant story building keep you entertained, woven into ghost-fighting and world-saving. It doesn’t go linearly like most shows; each episode’s recap section covers past episodes, seasons, and anything pertinent to that episode, but it’s different for every single one. Which means that if you wait weeks between episodes, you will start again with all the info you need, or watch three seasons in a week and finish it with half of your summer vacation left.
The only issue is the length of the show; sometimes you just want to sit down and finish it in one sitting. That’s where Over the Garden Wall comes in, with one season of animated greatness, falling much along the same feeling as Gravity Falls, just shorter. A quick adventure animation with a little bit of horror and a whole lot of wonder and whimsy, it suffices as a quick distraction and maybe even rewatch-worthy afterwards.
Even if you didn’t find interest in something here, find something new. Go out of your comfort zone and watch a type of show you aren’t used to, find new joy within something you aren’t usually watching, and most importantly: find something that makes you happy.
