Bingeable TV

I recently ditched my satellite TV and internet in favor of unlimited cell data, so I’ve begun watching a lot of series on Netflix and YouTube TV that I didn’t have access to before.

I’m really getting into quite a few series, and learning about my tastes, what draws me in. ‘Soap Opera Suspense’ could sum it up.

So here’s a few of my favorites. I might be forgetting one or two!

Big Little Lies

Saw this when we still had Dish and had a free month of HBO, and loved it. Read the book recently and loved it too. I like the satirical elements, which are more apparent in the book, mixed with a lighthearted, seemingly shallow tone, with very dark undercurrents.

Riverdale

Surprisingly dark, especially for characters based on the Archie comics: Betty and Veronica, Archie and Jughead, even Josie and the Pussycats. At first I was like, ‘oh please’, but quickly got hooked. Then there’s the Mean Girls style cheerleader who you’ll love to hate, and hate to love. It’s her beloved twin brother that shows up dead in the first episode, kicking off the whole mystery.

Hemlock Grove

If you want a laugh, read the reviews of the book that the series is based on. The author is probably laughing too—all the way to the bank. It’s got some things in common with my book (I see parallels everywhere): a Gypsy boy named Peter who lives in the woods, an imaginary small town, hazily explained paranormal activity. Some of the reviews I agree with, like the wandering plot, strange pointless cat killing, bacon grease facial? I’m near the end of the first season, but I must say I’m starting to lose interest and find myself staring into the distance thinking about ideas for more books instead of watching it. That’s okay, it’s good background noise.

Twin Peaks

The original. I watched this every week with my mom in when I was high school. We supposedly knew David Lynch’s parents through church or something, which gave us an excuse to watch the TV show, although I’d been secretly watching his movies since I turned weird in puberty and somehow got a hold of a VHS of Eraserhead. And underneath her demure manner and tea-and-toast Britishness, my mom loved the offbeat as much as I do. I still have my Laura Palmer T-shirt from back then. I should pull it out and wear it.

Animal Kingdom

Love the locale, which is mostly North San Diego County, where my book is based too! See how I relate everything to my book? The near Shakespearean levels of family drama—loyalty and betrayal, the need for power. The anti-heroes, criminal bad-asses who aren’t bad looking either. Ellen Barkin as the fierce Smurf, the kingpin matriarch (is that an oxymoron?) to her clan of boys. Chock full of Mexican cartels, femme fatale love interests, and cross border action depicting the way that Tijuana and San Diego, Mexico and the US, are interlinked. It’s so real. Even my fiancé got into this one, so it must be good!

So, what are your guilty pleasures when it comes to TV?