During these troubling times, it seems hard to escape the news of everything going around or online assignments, and even worse boredom. However, shows of the genre that is now called “sit-coms” are a great way to escape reality and distract us with not only their witty jokes, but their relatable characters and sometimes even their slow burn relations. If you happen to be bored of repeating the same episode of the same show, here are show recommendations that also excel in giving situational comedy.
Brooklyn Nine-Nine:
Created by one of the producers of a sitcom classic, The Office, this series follows Jake Peralta (Andy Samberg) who, although being one of the best detectives in his precinct, is also one of the most childish cops to ever work in the NYPD. His laid-back work ethic often conflicts with his serious, and almost robotic, commanding officer Captain Raymond Holt’s (Andre Braugher) way of running the precinct. Other detectives in the series include Jake’s work partner and rival, the nerdy and overachieving Amy Santiago (Melissa Fumero), Jake’s awkward but hard-working best friend Charles Boyle (Joe Lo Truglio), the mysterious and almost scary detective Rosa Diaz (Stephanie Beatriz), the devoted family man and the mom of the precinct Lieutenant Terry Jeffords (Terry Crews), and the egotistic and gossip-y civilian administrator Gina Linetti (Chelsea Peretti).
Superstore:
Similar to The Office or Parks and Rec, Superstore is a NBC workplace sitcom. Jonah Simms (Ben Feldman) and Mateo Fernando Aquino Liwanag (Nico Santos) are hired as employees who work for a big-box superstore called Cloud-9. The family of employees that include the fifteen year veteran and floor supervisor who Jonah crushes on, Amy Sosa (America Ferrera), their overly cheerful manchild general manager Glenn Sturgis (Mark McKinney), the strict and no-nonsense taking assistant manager Dina Fox (Lauren Ash), the sarcastic yet charismatic store announcer Garret McNeill (Colton Dunn), and bubbly but a little airheaded Cheyenne Lee (Nichole Bloom). Together they get through the daily struggle of odd customers, strict corporate policies, and anything else that could happen in a superstore.
The Good Place:
Another Michael Shur comedy, this critically acclaimed show is not only well known for its clever writing and plot but their interesting use of ethics and philosophy to answer one the biggest question in human history, what does it mean to be a good person? Eleanor Shellstrop (Kristen Bell) wakes up and is greeted into a heaven-like afterlife, by architect Michael (Ted Danson) and all-knowing robot-like Heaven virtual assistant Janet (D’Arcy Carden) and welcomed into the paradise as a reward for living a righteous life on Earth. Other Good Place neighbors include moral philosophy and ethics professor Chidi Anagonye (William Harper Jackson), British socialite and philanthropist Tahani Al-Jamil (Jameela Jamil), and ameature DJ and drug dealer who pretends to be a monk who took a vow of silence in order to stay Jason Medoza (Manny Jacinto). Soon Eleanor realizes that she was mistaken for someone else and tries to hide her secret and become a better person in order to not be sent to the Bad Place.
One Day At A Time:
The 2017 Netflix reboot of Norman Lear’s 1975 sitcom of the same name, One Day At Time revolves around a Cuban-American family living in Los Angeles. Single mother Penelope Alvarez has to deal with the struggle of parenting two growing teenagers, Elena (Isabella Gomez) and Alex (Marcel Ruiz), dealing with her crazy Cuban mother Lydia (Rita Morena) who’s always sticking her nose in her love life, the rich but wacky landlord Schineder (Todd Grinnell), and her own struggled with PTSD and depression as an Army Veteran. The show is praised for its portrayal of issues such as mental illness, immigration, sexism, homophobia, and racism that Latinos living in the United States face while still maintaining a comedy appeal.
