Being at home for the past four months meant that I quickly ran out of things productive things to do (there's only so many times you can vacuum) and so most of my time was spent on the couch, writing, eating all of the snacks and unhealthy food, and watching tons of Netflix and Hulu.
I'm a huge TV show person; I always say that I would rather watch five hours of TV shows then five hours of movies. I just find them way more interesting, I feel like they can do more because they aren't limited to two to three hours, and less likely to utilize filler scenes to fill up space than movies do.
At the beginning of starting my blog, I did a blog post about Netflix's show Too Hot to Handle which was a lot of fun to binge watch and then write about.
While I would love to give every show I watched its own full length post, I've watched a lot since writing that post, and unless you guys just want to read show reviews for the next month, I figured I'd condense them all into one and rate them for you based on my thoughts. Some of the shows I watched that are on this list are newer shows, some are children cartoons, some are game/competition shows, etc. There's something for everyone here unless you like thrillers and horror shows and then you're fresh out of luck.
I did my best to not spoil any of the shows, especially the newer ones. I tried to focus my review on the animation, execution, cast, storyline consistency, and general overall show quality.
Sofia the First (2012-2018)
I really love Disney and I really love kids shows, especially the ones that aren't centered around getting the kids to participate where half of the episode is awkward silence and cartoon characters staring you down.
Sofia the First is like if Disney decided to make a Hallmark show for kids. Sofia is this little girl who becomes a princess because her mom marries a king. It's a pretty cheesy show, the villains aren't really that scary, the content is fairly wholesome, the Disney princesses we all know and love make appearances, and there's a lot of singing.
It might be weird to criticize a children's show, but some of the things I didn't particularly enjoy was that there wasn't a whole lot of character development, some of the episodes were so stale story wise that I ended up skipping them all together, and some of the episodes felt really disconnected from the seasons they were in.
Overall, I give this show a 6.5 out of 10 because it was a good background show and a good "I need a mood lift" show.
Pose (2018-2019)
I'm about halfway through this show, so I can't accurately describe the whole show yet. It's about New York's black trans/gay ballroom culture back in the 1980's amidst the AIDS epidemic.
It's a very real show; it deals with loss, heartbreak, discrimination, betrayal, chasing dreams, and so so so much more. It doesn't feel like you're watching a TV show; it feels like you have a glimpse into this secret world and life none of us knew about. That being said, it can be really hard to watch sometimes because of my mental health; I try to avoid watching it on days where my depression is really bad because I never know what could trigger me.
I love the characters; Blanca is 1000% my favorite. She does her best to be such a good house mom by taking care of and consistently encouraging her children. I love watching the balls because the outfits are so amazing and glamorous and I WISH I was even 10% that stylish.
This show gets a 8 out of 10 just because while I love it, it can get extremely heavy.
Crossing Swords (2020)
Disclaimer: I probably wouldn't have watched this if it wasn't for my husband. It's a show centered around Patrick, an average dude who's big dream was to become a knight for the king, but when he lands a job as the king's squire, he quickly realizes that it's not all it's cracked up to be.
This entire show is just a hot raunchy gorey mess. There is a LOT of cartoon nudity and pretty much everyone in the show is an asshole, like not even lowkey, just very blatant about it. There are some decent and actually funny moments, like pretty much any scene with Broth in it, but mainly, it's just a lot to watch and process. I feel like if you have the same sense of humer as a thirteen to fifteen year old boy, this is for you.
I would give this a 4 out of 10 just because I did enjoy spending time with my husband and some of the show was funny.
The Big Flower Fight (2020)
This show is basically if they took Cake Wars and swapped out the baking aspect for flowers. Each episode, the contestants get a theme and they have to craft something out of plants, flowers, and other materials. At the end of every episode, someone wins best in bloom and someone gets sent home.
This is probably the most wholesome show on the whole planet right now. I'm not even kidding. Everyone is so nice and so supportive of each other despite the fact that they're competing. The judges are so sweet and even their criticism feels polite.
Also, this show is just visually gorgeous; there are so many beautiful plants and vibrant colors that just bless your screen every episode. So much talent, so much beauty, I don't know what anyone else could ask for.
This show gets a 9.5 out of 10 because the people I wanted to win didn't and I'm still salty about it.
She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018-2020)
My mom introduced me and my siblings to She-Ra and He-Man when I was a kid, and while I didn't watch the original She-Ra show from the 1980's, I did watch He-Man and so was really excited when I saw this title on Netflix. The show is about Adora, a teenager who gets the powers that make her She-Ra, who leads a literal army of princesses with magical powers resistance against the villain Hordak and his army, the Horde.
This show has everything: action, drama, romance, LGBT representation, empowerment, magic, and so much more. It also deals with pretty heavy topics like abusive relationships, mental health, dealth, etc., but I thought they handled them so well. There was beautiful character development, the storyline was so well written and executed, and the animation quality was so colorful and clear.
This show gets a 10 out of 10 because I literally would watch this show again and again.
The Good Witch (2015-2020)
Ten out of ten the cheesiest show I watched in the last four months. The show follows Cassie, the "good witch," and her family following the 2008-2014 Hallmark movies series.
If I'm really honest, this show is a good background show, but I wouldn't watch it if you're looking for something stimulating or particularly interesting. It's your typical Hallmark type feel where all of the dialogue is cheesy and all of the drama is extra dramatic. I liked writing while this show was one just because I didn't really have to pay attention in order to get what was going on.
Umm... I guess this show gets a 5 out of 10 because there isn't really anything memorable about it, but it wasn't a bad show.
Little Fires Everywhere (2020)
So I'm 1000% the person who reads the book before watching the tv/movie adaption and then spends the entire time saying "the book was better." Guilty as charged. The book and the show focus on Elena Richardson and Mia Warren and their relationship with each other, their children, and their community in Shaker Heights, Ohio.
For a book to TV show adaption, this one wasn't too bad! The book was definitely better, but the show was consistently interesting, dramatic, and entertaining to watch. They makes a couple changes that, to me, didn't really make sense, but it was probably to make the show 1) able to be more than four episodes and 2) make everything seem WAY more dramatic.
I do feel like they did Elena dirty in the show, but Reese Witherspoon is my hero and played her so well. Honestly, the entire cast was phenomenal; can we just talk about Kerry Washington?
This show gets a 7 out of 10 but thats only because they strayed away from the book in places I feel like maybe they shouldn't have.
Sweet Magnolias (2020)
This was a cute and wholesome show and it was probably my favorite show that was released during the last four months of quarantine. Sweet Magnolias is about the Sweet Magnolias, Maddie, Helen, and Dana Sue, who are three women living in a South Carolina town trying to navigate through their love lives, families, careers, and all of the other things life throws at them.
I feel like this show did a great job showcasing each Sweet Magnolia and their individual lives while still seamlessly connecting them all together to create one bigger storyline. Their lives tug on your heart strings, and you can't help but cheer them on when everything is going great and cry for them when they experience hurt.
The cast was amazing and really brought each character to life. You get so drawn into everything that is happening and makes you feel so connected to each character. It's very difficult to hate anyone in the show because even the "bad people" have redeeming qualities.
OH MY GOSH THE LAST EPISODE KILLED ME THOUGH! No spoilers, but like HUGE plot twist. Whenever I rewatch the show, I still don't see it coming. I need season two, like, now.
15 out of 10 for this show. Ugh, I just love it so much and everyone should watch it. Tbh, I will probably rewatch it again this weekend.
In conclusion, I liked all of these shows, but I'm pretty close to being TV'd out. Lol. I don't know if that's a thing, but I'm at the point where I'm ready to go back to work and have some purpose to being awake besides sitting on my couch. I hope that these short and sweet reviews help you find your next Netflix/Hulu obsession. Leave me a comment for what shows you think I should watch next.
Take a shot for all of the truly terrible shows I never watched past episode one and toast to the good shows coming out later this year,
Cheers,
Kristaleagh