Top Ten Shows to Watch in the Pandemic
by Sadie Heald
During the pandemic, many people have been forced to stay at home due to restrictions set in place, so instead, people have been watching a lot more TV. I asked middle school
students what shows they would recommend. I started Riverdale, so that’s what I’ve been binging lately. I really enjoy watching Riverdale because every season is a new mystery. Riverdale is about a group of kids named Betty Cooper, Veronica Lodge, Jughead Jones, and Archie Andrews. While battling the normal high school troubles of romance, school work, and family, the kids get caught up in the newfound dark mysteries of their small town, Riverdale. You can find Riverdale on Netflix.
One show that many eighth graders recommend is Law and Order. A common reason
that they liked it so much was because each episode has a new plot, keeping it interesting. Law and Order is both set and filmed in New York City, and is set up in a two part format. It is an hour long and the first half-hour is the investigation of a crime, (normally murder) and apprehension of a suspect made by NYPD dectives. The second half-hour is the prosecution of the defendant by the Manhattan District Attorney's Office.
Another show that came up a few times is Gilmore Girls, and I decided to put it in here
because I’ve watched it before and I absolutely loved it. Sixth grader Ellie Harwood said, "It's fun, funny, and dramatic." It is a silly, sweet show, but it isn’t the most appropriate at times. Gilmore Girls is about a young, single mother, Lorelai, and her teenage daughter, Rory, who act more like best friends than mother and daughter. Throughout the seven seasons, the two of them have good and bad times, but push through it all with the help of one another.
This show was by far the most popular, and it’s called Naruto. Eighth grader Jayden said, "It was funny. Also it had a lot of things going on in it."Naruto is an anime show on Netflix that’s about a kid named Naruto Uzumaki, a young ninja seeking recognition from his peers and dreams of being the Hokage, the leader of his village.
Brooklyn 99 was another common choice. Sixth grader Zach said, "There were so
many great and funny actors and characters which led me to watch the whole thing." Brooklyn 99 is a silly seven season cop show about a talented cop, but immature adult, named Jake Peralta. Him and his colleagues (who so happen to also be great friends) have to catch bad guys, and Jake Peralta often gets into mini conflicts with his very serious captain, Raymond Holt.
A show that came up a couple of times is The Amazing World of Gumball. A sixth grader named Viviana said, "It's funny and it's a cartoon." The Amazing World of Gumball is about a twelve-year-old blue cat named Gumball Watterson, and his best friend and ten-year-old adoptive brother Darwin, who is a goldfish, attending middle school in a fictional place called Elmore, California.
Another show that was deemed a good one was The Vampire Diaries. Sixth grader Anjelica Castillo said, "I loved how most of the characters would die for each other, and all the drama." The Vampire Diaries is about the lives, loves, dangers, and disasters in the town of Mystic Falls, Virginia. Creatures of unspeakable terror lurk beneath this town as a teenage girl is suddenly torn between two vampire brothers. The vampire brothers, named Stefan and Damon Salvatore, battle for the heart of selfless teenager Elena Gilbert.
Attack on Titan was a popular show because of its suspenseful plot, always keeping the audience on the edge of their seat. Attack on Titan is about a civilization inside three walls, the last location where humans still live. Over one hundred years ago, humans almost became extinct after humanoid giants called Titans attacked, and ate people on site.
The classic SpongeBob also came up a few times. Sixth grader Adam Kurylowicz said, "I love
how funny they are and just like the show." A yellow sponge named SpongeBob SquarePants lives in a pineapple on the floor of the Pacific Ocean with his pet snail, Gary, in the city of Bikini Bottom. He works as a fry cook at the Krusty Krab. During his free time, SpongeBob has a knack for getting into trouble with his starfish best friend, Patrick.
An old time classic, The Simpsons, was also frequently mentioned. Sixth grader Matty Chapman said, "It's funny and I like the characters." The Simpsons is about a family with that last name of Simpson, who, in a humorous and sarcastic way, portrays American life. The Simpson family consists of Homer, Lisa, Maggie, Marge and Bart, who live in the fictional town of Springfield.
Throughout the quarantine, people have been binging a wide variety of genres, and Japanese anime was a very common genre that lots of people liked. Besides Attack on Titan and Naruto, The Promised Neverland, Demon Slayer, and Rezero were also anime shows that people watched and really liked. I realized that people enjoy watching cartoon comedies, like The Simpsons, Spongebob Squarepants, and Amazing World of Gumball. I think that people have been watching so much TV because it helps escape the loneliness of not being able to see your friends. I hope this article helps you find some more shows to watch.