We love movie recommendations here at Polygon. But we also love recommending TV shows. Whether it’s horror, sci-fi, miniseries, comedy, thrillers, or just the best of the year, we’re always trying to introduce readers to new and exciting shows they’ll love. And now — after much movie to-do — we want to find the perfect TV show for you. (We mean you.)
That’s why we have this regular open thread dedicated to helping you, our dear readers, find the perfect watch. Looking for a limited series that will tell a self-contained story with questions that linger with you forever? We’ve got you. Looking to find the next best sitcom to watch so you can branch out from the sitcom you’ve been looping? We’ve got you there too.
From 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. EDT, I will be in the comments section down below answering your questions and fielding requests for what you should watch. This is also a great place to share what you’ve been watching, if you want to talk about that with your fellow Polygon readers! Participation is very welcome, even without questions.
A little bit about me, your curator for this go round: I’m Joshua Rivera, Polygon’s entertainment writer. I’m extremely omnivorous in my media diet, and what I’m into can vary pretty wildly depending on when you ask me. While a lot of my time is taken up keeping up with new releases, I’ve been revisiting a bunch of stuff from what I call “the box set era” — shows that were huge on DVD, like Lost, Supernatural, The Sopranos, and so forth.
I tend to be on the road a lot in the summer, where it’s easier to read or game than it is to watch stuff, but if you want a bit of a mood board from me right now it would look something like this: Scavengers Reign, Lorelei and the Laser Eyes, I Saw the TV Glow (which has also spurred a sporadic Buffy the Vampire Slayer rewatch), Sugar (I am Polygon’s No. 1 Sugar Fan), and Layla Martinez’s beautifully angry and haunting novel Woodworm.
I bring this up because I love pairing things across media. So if you don’t have an existing TV show as a point of reference for what you’re looking for, use a comic, a video game, or an album that gave you the buzz you're after, and I’ll see what I can do! Just remember that the focus here is TV recommendations, so TV is what you’re going to get in response.
Now it’s time to turn it around to you. What would you like to watch this weekend (or what are you planning to watch)? Leave a request in the comments and I’ll get to it between 3:30 p.m. and 5:30 p.m. EDT. Details help — let me know what you’re looking for, some idea of your taste as a viewer, and any other relevant info you feel like sharing (like the streaming services you have access to, or what it was about the show you’re looking to emulate, if anything).
Some examples of good queries from last month’s TV recs thread:
facecheekwall
My wife and I thoroughly enjoyed The Sopranos and Mad Men in recent years. Both have an anti-hero main character, and a thoroughly developed set of supporting characters too. Also, both are perfect representations of their time period.
Is there a show of this caliber out there, but with a female anti-hero lead?
ItsAlwaysSunnyyy
Is this still going? If so, I need show recommendations... Just had a baby end of April and am up a lot of the nights. Finished Fallout and started True Detective but it's so dark it's actually giving me (probably lack of sleep assisted) nightmares. Looking for something a bit light-hearted, preferably a mini series. I started A Man in Full and for some reason I find it awful, but was super hopeful
calebkent
Hello,
My girlfriend and I usually have 2 shows we're watching at any given time, usually one sitcom that's largely background fare (our "funny/silly show" ), and what we call our "serious show" that we actually watch actively and especially might not want to be eating while we watch.
Currently our silly show is Scrubs and in the past we've gone through 30 Rock, Malcolm in the Middle, Community, the Mike Schur Extended Universe, and so on. But we've been between serious shows for a while, our favourites have been Midnight Mass, Devs, Game of Thrones (yes even the last season, I maintain that the Battle of Winterfell is one of the best episodes of TV I've yet seen), Scavenger's Reign, Over the Garden Wall, The Last of Us, Twin Peaks, and other mostly prestige TV.
Any recs to for any new serious shows in this vein? I think my girlfriend's favourite show of all time is probably Over the Garden Wall, and mine is probably a three-way tie between Midnight Mass, Devs, and Twin Peaks.
Sending vaguely existential autumnal vibes,
Thanks
See you in the comments!
