I don’t know if I would call a comedy about a group of vampires that are roommates living in Staten Island as ‘light hearted’ but I’d suggest What We do in the Shadows. Think the office/parks and rec style work place moucumentary sitcom with characters totally out of touch with reality and the time they’re living in turned up a bit on the absurd.
this post was submitted on 18 Aug 2024
57 points (98.3% liked)
Television
4620 readers
107 users here now
founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS
Seconded
The office and parks and recs was too similar and run of the mill. Both shows were wildly overrated. Like they were doing the "hint hint, nudge nudge" thing, but they were screaming "hint hint" in your face, and "nudging" you with a hand on the fist to put extra force into their elbow going into your ribs. It wasn't nearly as subtle as people acted, and was mostly just annoying.
I agree that they are extremely similar seeing how both were created by Greg Daniels. Both are funny upon first watch but I do not see the office as the greatest sitcom ever, it gets old and replayed way too much. I was more so comparing what we do in the shadows to the office and parks and rec in the shows format- Fake reality shows following around people in their day to day lives (undead lives in the case or WWDITS).
Ahh ok I get it. That makes sense.
Better off Ted.
It's 15 years old now, but the jokes are top notch.
God damn, I thought I was the only one who appreciated that show! I loved the whole cast and it's irreverent take on corporate evil. I loved how blatantly evil the company was. And Veronica just dealing with anything however she wanted. That show was too perfect for the world.
If you'd appreciated it harder, maybe we wouldn't have lost it!
I miss that show. Wife asked me yesterday which show I'd love to see revived, and Better Off Ted was my answer.
What We Do In the Shadows.
It's another one from Taika Waititi, who did our Flag means Death. Probably his best work, yet. Plus it has Matt Berry!
It's a fake reality TV documentary about a group of vampires that are roommates in an old house on Staten Island, and their human servant who helps them with the promise they will turn him some day.
Along the same lines, Wellington Paranormal. It’s short but hilarious and ties into What We Do in the Shadows.
Love wellington paranormal. Not enough people know about it
Idk if it fits what you're looking for, but Dirk Gently popped to mind when I read your post. Or maybe The Good Place.
If you like those shows, check out Norsemen on Netflix. It's like vikings but very silly. Very tongue in cheek.
Really? Im going to check it out now with that description.
Awesome! I hope you like it, and with the shows you mentioned, I have a good feeling you will.
Also, if you like that, then check out wellington paranormal. It's a hilariously dry show about some new Zealand cops dealing with crazy paranormal shit. The balance between the dry wit and the ridiculousness of the situations is unmatched. It's like Reno 911 meets the x-files.
Resident Alien has a similar mix of comedy and serious sci-fi as the Orville.
It's fucking amazing too!
Miracle Workers with Daniel Radcliffe, Steve Buscemi, and a great cast. Each season is a different setting, it's so good.
Have you seen Star Trek TNG? If not, then check that out, since it's the inspiration for The Orville. It's not as comedic, but it's hopeful and not dark, and there's a decent amount of comedy in there. Skip season one if you're not a Star Trek fan.
And if you want to err on the side of more comedic instead, go for Star Trek: Lower Decks.
If you enjoy a little bit of history, you might enjoy Detectorists. It’s fairly short, but it’s a fun watch.
Community can have some really great writing (dips in season ~~3~~ 4, but recovers in ~~4~~ 5).
30 Rock, Parks and Rec (particularly picks up once two new members join the cast), the Good Place, and Brooklyn 99 are all usually pretty light hearted and fun.
Scrubs can be very funny, but also has some somber episodes where you'll find some of the best writing is the series. Generally more fun than grim though.
The writing quality in how I met your mother was good for the first few seasons, but dropped off in the latter half.
Friends was pretty consistent, but not as good as some of these others, for me at least.
The Oreville is inspired by Star Trek, particularly shows like the Next Generation. That's a good series with some great episodes, but has some filler lower quality between. Not as silly as the Oreville, but some are still fun. Others are interesting or exciting in a variety of ways.
I haven't watched What We Do In The Shadows, but it is on my list for the same reason you asked the question.
Community can have some really great writing (dips in season 3, but recovers in 4).
Is this an "arrays start at 0" joke? The 4th season is the one where Dan Harmon was booted off and the quality dipped significantly. It can safely be skipped even if it's your first watch.
All you need to know is that they wrote out Pierce partway through the season, Abed gets a gf (but she's only in like 1 or 2 episodes of season 5), and the gang all graduate from their programs and go on to get some kind of job. Everything else is explained fairly quickly in the 5th season.
The writers basically did everything in their power to erase the mess that the 4th season was from existence. The characters refer to it as the school year where there was a gas leak in the whole school and that's why everyone acts weird and doesn't remember anything.
No, it's a goof on my part. I forgot what season Harmon was out.
Way to go super mainstream. Most of those are standard sitcoms with nothing really special about them. 30 rock is good because of how absurd they get with older business culture compared to contemporary ideals.
Community became too meta after season 2 and they leaned on that to their detriment.
The good place and Brooklyn 99 were both great sitcoms, with both kind of dealing with heavier elements, but in the end, they were just that. They're great in their own right being infinitely rewatchable but they're pretty basic sitcoms.
Scrubs was a great show as well, but it isn't as rewatchable. They absolutely killed it on the final episode and then ruined it with 2 more seasons with a different cast.
Friends needs to stay in the time frame wence it came from. I don't understand why it's so popular with people who weren't around when it came out.
How I met your mother was average at best. It was quotable but a background show while you surf the web.
If you're just looking for something wholesome and entertaining, Schitt's Creek is probably a good one.
I've heard Ted Lasso and Kim's Convenience have similar wholesome vibes, but haven't watched either.
Ted lasso is great after the first, very raunchy, episode. Kim's convenience ranges from curb your enthusiasm awkward to modern family wholesome.
Schitts Creek and the good place tower above everything.
Op you may want to try Firefly, or for a much lesser known show check out "galavant" it's one of my favorites
I love Firefly, but I'd hardly call it wholesome
because of your comment and the fact taht kims convenience was not on a paywalled service I watched it and was very pleasantly surprised. I have only seen the first two episodes but I like it.
The Completely Made-Up Adventures of Dick Turpin has a similar vibe to Our Flag Means Death, maybe a little goofier. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt19516036/?ref_=ext_shr
Strange New Worlds is the closest I can think of to a current show that is somewhat close to Orville.
Brooklyn 99 comes to mind.
Also Reservation Dogs and Atlanta, they have a bit of surrealism while telling amazing stories and being funny.
Check out Lodge 49.
What we do in the shadows
If you want to keep the space theme going, Star Trek Lower Decks is lighthearted an fun. It probably helps if you've seen lots of Star Trek, but I'd say give it a shot.
I'd also recommend Bob's Burgers. It's not going to give you much in terms of long term story arcs, but each episode is its own self contained story. The family in the show is just great and fits your lightheaded criteria.
You might want to have a look at Firefly. It’s a bit odd and a mix of serious and lighthearted and sometimes downright goofy (the hero of canton 🎵), which makes it one of my absolute favorites. Please just watch it in the dvd release order, they seriously messed it up on tv.
this and lord of the rings sit in a special place on my shelf on their own in a show off type of way.
What we do in the shadows, for sure.
Another show you may have already watched but it's the first thing I think of when talking lighthearted is Parks and Recreation, though the the first season is not good.
Have you tried Our Flag Means Death fanfiction? My wife is really into it lol.
Letterkenny is fantastic.
Guessing you're after found families.
Mythic quest: raven's banquest. Stick with it. The first few eps are middling, but then they find their feet and voice
What we do in the shadows, same deal
Ghosts - cbs or bbc, both good in different ways. Bbc is gentler, cbs is unhinged in the best way