Right now the world is turned upside down and hopefully, you’re all safe at home as much as possible. Whether you’re spending that time with kids, working on Zoom, or filling your time with creative pursuits, I’m almost willing to bet that at least some of your time is spent staring at a screen. So I’ve put together a list of my recommendations for getting through this quarantine and no, Tiger King isn’t on there, you’ll find it yourself.

10. The Office. Duh. It’s obvious one so it goes at number 10. The most rewatched show on Netflix for a reason, this classic is an easy binge. It’s the binge you can put on while you’re ordering pizza and reclining on the couch after a long day. Or a long morning. Or a long night. You don’t have to think too hard, you can just sit back, relax, and let Michael Scott entertain.

9. Agents of Shield is Marvel’s longest-running tv-series and will be airing the final season starting in May, to fans dismay. While this show was slow to start, about 3/4 of the way through the first season we found out why when Captain America: Winter Soldier turned the Marvel universe on its head. What had appeared to be a typical procedural, turned into a team fighting for its life and its heart through space and time. You can catch up on Hulu before the final season releases.

8. The Expanse is a hard science fiction dream. Canceled and then picked up by Amazon it delivers confusion and intrigue in spades. This is not a lazy binge. Consider this one your brain exercise for the day and sit back while spaceships and space cops and weird-ass glowing spikes enthrall. You can now watch all current seasons on Amazon Prime.

7. Jack Whitehall’s Travels with my Father is the only reality comedy that matters. This father and son duo would appear to be a nightmare in the making. They argue, disagree, and have profoundly different ways of viewing the world around them. Yet they consistently show how much they adore each other (whilst also taking a serious piss) and you’re left laughing and wanting to call home to say hi to your parents. There are 3 seasons available on Netflix.

6. Kim’s Convenience is a Canadian half-hour comedy about a Korean-Canadian family and their tiny convenience store. Ok, only on the outside. It’s a story about family and values and love and joy and and and. You can find it on Netflix and prepare to sit for hours, because once you fall for Appa you’ll be saying “Ok, See You” to anything outside of this show.

5. Wynonna Earp on Syfy is everything a fun-loving science fiction fan could ask for, as long as they’re also ok with having their guts ripped out and tears streaming down their face at times. But we all know that only makes the gun-slinging, cowgirl quipping fun even better right? A descendant of *that* Wyatt Earp, Wynnona is a demon hunting, swaggering, drunk of a hero and will have your jaw dropping in all the best ways.

4. She-Ra was brought back by Netflix to some seriously deserved acclaim. Don’t dismiss this show as one for kids (although if you, like me, have them, it’s a PERFECT family show). It’s diverse, timely, and beautifully animated. It does what cartoons can do best, address serious issues with a backdrop of lightness that makes them easier to digest.

3. Schitt’s Creek. This insanely funny, surprisingly heartfelt comedy is such a gem. The first season is the roughest and frankly, the whole tone of the show seemed to shift from bordering on dumb humor to seriously heart touching in the offseason. Picking up in season 2 you’ll be hard-pressed to find another show that hits the humor and heart buttons as effectively as Schitt’s Creek. Starring half of the Levy family, Schitt’s Creek is about a uber-rich family that loses everything and has to move to podunk nowhere, otherwise known as Schitt’s Creek. The expected culture wars ensue, but the growth of the family is endearing and beautiful to see. Watch now on Netflix.

2. After Life starring Ricky Gervais has just released its second season on Netflix and is a must-see. It’s not a light-hearted comedy, but in times like this a little emotional catharsis can be a good thing. Playing a widower dealing with the throes of grief, long after his friends think he should be, Gervais gives the performance of his life. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, you’ll be left feeling somehow both raw and healed.

1. Strike Back. If you know me, you knew this was coming. My favorite show of all time. You can watch past seasons on Amazon Prime or Cinemax on Demand. This show will give you all the action and humor you’ll be needing while stuck motionless at home. Strike Back is an underrated show in which the actors perform 99% of their own stunts, the special effects are incredibly solid and the whole cast and crew bring an intensity generally reserved for big action movies. The series just wrapped its final season so you have loads of shows to sit down, veg out, and catch up on.

I’d love to hear what you think about my recommendations for the quarantine, and what you think was left off the list! Shoot me a tweet and let me know! Kelsey

 

Check out shows recommended by some of the other writers on the site here to keep your spirits high during quarantine:

Female-led series to get you through quarantine.

Amazon Prime Originals keeping you busy during the quarantine.