Now that we have a bit of time on our hands, these are the shows suggests you watch so you can avoid cabin fever
This time is the pits. We can’t go anywhere. Even the beaches are ‘closed’.
That’s how you know this virus is a true crisis. But it also gives us an opportunity to catch up on some TV shows that a lot of people have been speaking about and yet we haven’t watched.
Instead of the news and documentaries, I thought it would be great to share some light and some heavy shows you can watch to pass the time and forget about what is happening outside. There’s also a few new shows that I think would be great for you to watch.
A BLACK LADY SKETCH SHOW
Quinta Brown, Loretta Devine and Robin Thede. Picture: Supplied
: This is the first sketch show that features majority women. Created by Robin Thede and executive produced by Issa Rae, A Black Lady Sketch Show is a brilliant half hour comedy that tells stories about black women in society and imagined situations, through sketches.
The writing is topnotch and so are the performances. The show features guest stars including , Angela Bassett, Issa Rae, Kelly Rowland, Patti LaBelle, Yvette Nicole Brown and Marsai Martin.
WHO
: Robin Thede, Quinta Brunson, Gabrielle Dennis
WHERE
: Vuzu and Showmax
SCHITT’S CREEK
WHAT
: Currently my favourite TV show, the Canadian comedy is really one of the most underrated shows on TV. The wealthy Rose family lose everything after their business manager is arrested for fraud and their possessions are seized by the government.
The only asset they have left is a small town called Schitt's Creek, which John Rose bought as a joke.
The comedy tells the story of how they went from holidays in the south of France, hobnobbing with world leaders and celebrities, to slumming it in a depressing small town.
From John’s efforts to try and make life easier for his family, his wife, Moira not being able to cope with the change in lifestyle and their children, David and Alexis, having to get used to living like the 99%, it’s a show that will put a smile on your face. The supporting characters also play a major role in providing the laughs.
From the mayor, Roland Schitt and his school teacher wife, Jocelyn; the motel manager, Stevie, whose deadpan humour makes her one of the best things about the show, to the other eccentric characters that the Roses now have in their lives.
WHO
: Daniel Levy, Eugene Levy, Catherine O’Hara and Annie Murphy
WHERE
: Netflix
DEAR WHITE PEOPLE
Ashley Blaine Featherson and Logan Browning. Picture: Netflix
WHAT
: It’s the TV adaptation of the 2014 comedy-drama. Set in a fictional Ivy League university called Winchester, "Dear White People" is a comedy-drama about the racial relations of these students in an affluent school. The title of the show comes from the title of lead character, Samantha White’s radio show - "Dear White People".
She uses the show to school her white fellow students on how to treat black people better, cultural appropriation, privilege and racism. She also has to deal with her being mixed-race and how much that makes her more privileged than other students.
The show takes a funny, but serious look at pertinent issues that we are facing as a society.
Topics include racism, sexual reproductive rights, sexual identity, student strife and student loans. You will laugh, sometimes uncomfortably, at the antics of the students. It’s a great, binge worthy about woke millennials.
WHO
: Logan Browning, Antoinette Robertson, Brandon P. Bell, Ashley Blaine Featherson and Marque Richardson
WHERE
: Netflix
NOUGHTS & CROSSES
Paterson Joseph as Home Secretary Kamal Hadley and Bonnie Mbuli as his wife, Jasmine. Picture: Supplied
WHAT
: When we watched Marvel’s "Black Panther" in 2018, it was exciting to see an imagined world, where the African continent had not been colonised. "Noughts & Crosses", which is based on the hit novels by Malorie Blackman, it is a drama that imagines a world where Africans are in power and have colonised England.
Shot in Cape Town, the show is about the race-flipped 21st-century Albion, where the lighter-skinned Nought majority have been ruled over by the darker-skinned Cross colonisers from “Aprica”. This may be controversial for some, but it’s completely fictional.
With all this racial tension happening, there’s also a Romeo & Juliet-esque story about Callum, a nought and Sephy, a cross. Sephy and Callum are old friends who used to play together when they were toddlers. Callum’s mother works as a maid for Sephy’s parents.
The six-part drama is one of the most talked about shows in the UK. You are likely to spot a few South African faces as the show was shot here.
WHO
: Bonnie Mbuli, Masali Baduza, Jack Rowan, Jonathan Ajayi
WHERE
: Showmax.
RAMY
Ramy (Ramy Youssef) Picture: Hasan Amin/Hulu
WHAT
: Golden Globe winning comedy about a young man who definitely is not into conforming into what is expected to him.
Ramy, who is Muslim, is expected, by his parents and society, to be married already, with his own family and a good job. Ramy is on a spiritual journey in his New Jersey neighbourhood.
Does he conform to what is expected of him? Does he go along with his friends? What about his relationship with God?
There’s loads of comedy on the show and will also get you thinking of the pressures we put on ourselves and why it’s sometimes OK to not stick to the plan you have for your life, especially when it’s informed by other people’s expectations for you.
WHO
: Ramy Youssef, Amr Waked, Mohammed Amer
WHERE
: Showmax
THE GOOD PLACE
William Jackson Harper, Jamilah Jamil, Manny Jacinto and Kristen Bell. Picture: Supplied
WHAT
: Created by Mike Schurr, the mind behind "Parks and Recreation", "The Good Place" is possibly the most perfect comedy I have watched in recent years.
We have always wondered what happens to us when we die. Do we go to heaven or hell? Is there a middle ground?
And also, who are the demons who are supposed to torture evil humans; or the angels who will make sure good people live in the after life in comfort? And what does being ‘bad’ really mean? Is it when you are a horrible person, a nuisance to society; or is it being a vapid socialite and an impossible to please ethics professor?
The Good Place answers these and more. It’s a brilliantly written comedy, with really great performances from the cast.
WHO
: Kristen Bell, Ted Danson, Jamilah Jamil, Manny Jacinto and William Jackson Harper
WHERE
: Netflix