I’m not a television person. Growing up, we didn’t have cable in my house, so my sister and I would only watch shows and stuff on weekends when we would go and visit my tias (aunts) and tata (grandpa).
As such, I’ve seen bits and pieces of a ton of shows, but I haven’t actually committed to finishing most of them. Practically none of them at all. Even to this day, I’ll watch a bit of a show on Netflix, and then just lose interest.
That said, there are a few television shows that shot their way into my heart despite my initial inclination to ditch the medium.
So let’s get into them, shall we?
5) Rick and Morty
Yeah, I like Rick and Morty. As does the rest of the world. I jumped on this hype train when I was visiting a friend of mine, Irma. She’s one of my friends from elementary/middle/high school. Her boyfriend was showing a bunch of us his favorite episodes, and I was just so taken with the style of humor and the zany premise of an interdimensional scientist with severe alcoholism taking his grandson on adventures. The show captured me, and I consume every episode whenever the latest season comes out.
4) Avatar: The Last Airbender
I promise, this list won’t be just cartoons. But yeah, the majority of them will be. Don’t dismiss Avatar: The Last Airbender just because it is an animated kids show though. Quality storytelling leaped from episode to episode, beyond the typical formula you normally see in a cartoon. The characters grow and develop (Zuko’s character arc is one of the best in television history), and the world they inhabit is marvelous. Inspiration was clearly taken from real cultures, but they were combined with a universe in which bending elements is possible and fantastical creatures exist.
3) Stranger Things
Granted, this show isn’t complete yet, so the fourth season could come along and ruin the whole series. But even with only the three seasons Stranger Things has given me, I’m confident in calling it one of my favorite shows. I saw the first episode at my sister’s house before I had to travel 500 miles and return home. That very day, I literally exited the car, got inside my living room, turned on the TV, and resumed watching. I was that hooked. I’m a huge Stephen King fan, so the mystery and horror of Stranger Things appealed to every cell in my body. It was simply “my type” of show, and I’d never really felt that with any other show prior to that. (By the way, this is the part where you guys recommend shows to me that are similar that will catch my interest!)
2) Game of Thrones
Even with the way the series ended, I still say Game of Thrones is my second favorite show of all time. I think people have too easily forgotten the years of quality television the show provided to its viewers before the series finale came out. No matter how it ended, those top-notch moments we all know and love still exist. Ned Stark’s beheading, Daenerys emerging from the fire, the Red Wedding, Arya’s transformation, Theon’s character development, the revelation of Hodor’s name. Game of Thrones still gave us all of that. Just because the last season left me feeling less than satisfied doesn’t take away the fond memories I have for the series. Plus, I’ve always felt that television shows, more than movies, are a case of it’s-the-journey-not-the-destination.
1) SpongeBob SquarePants (Seasons 1-3)
Laugh all you want, but SpongeBob SquarePants is my all-time, favorite comfort show. I caught every episode I could whenever I visited my tias’ house, bought the DVDs for my house, and can quote the best lines to this day. I even know most episode names. Of course, this mostly applies to those first three seasons. Those are the heyday of SpongeBob’s time on television, and I’ll stand by that. Some might call the series childish and stupid, but by golly, the humor in SpongeBob always felt to me like FUN. If you ever wanted to win me over, you either have to know some quotes from The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy or SpongeBob SquarePants. Nothing more and nothing less.
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