TV Talk Rec Fest: Romances

[yourlibrarian]

Welcome to day 6 of Rec Fest! Today please recommend shows which could be considered romances. These would be shows that focus on a couple or romance theme, even if they cross into other genres

Please include in your recs the following information:

Show Title:
Audience Rating: Young Children/All Ages/Teen and Up/Mature Content
Warnings: (Could include gory content, raunchy situations, explicit sex, offensive content, etc.)
Length of Episodes: (30 minutes/1 hour/Other)
Length of Series: (Number of seasons or number of episodes)
Why you recommend it: (What draws you to it? What niche does it fill/mood is it good for?)

You can copy and paste the following code into your comment.

<strong>Show Title:</strong> <strong>Audience Rating:</strong> <strong>Warnings:</strong> <strong>Length of Episodes:</strong> <strong>Length of Series:</strong> <strong>Why you recommend it:</strong>

Feel free to include any other information you’d like, such as what year(s) the show was originally broadcast, standout cast members, or what other shows it may connect to or be like. You can also include outside links to Wikipedia, Fanlore, IMDB, your favorite review etc. which contain more show information.

If someone else has already recced a show you were planning to rec, please include your own rec as well! People have different takes on shows and it can also help people if they see a number of people find a show to be a must-watch.

If you have questions about what to post or how the Rec Fest will run, please ask them at this link, not in comments below

Comments

[yourlibrarian]

Show Title: Remington Steele
Audience Rating: All ages
Warnings: Period sexism
Length of Episodes: 1 hour
Length of Series: 5 Seasons (94 episodes)
Why you recommend it: It might seem that this show better belongs in the Mysteries post, however to me the mysteries were always secondary (and not often very interesting on their own). The real draw of the show was the relationship between Laura and "Mr. Steele."

I have not seen the show in a very long time so I am not sure how well it holds up. But at least at the time it was very refreshing to be presented with Laura's character. Not only is she independent and determined but that there was any acknowledgment as to how difficult it was to succeed as a woman in most industries, was very welcome. Her detecting skills were apparently of little concern to most people when compared to their sexism.

The enduring mystery of Steele's past (I am not sure if his birth name was ever confirmed on the show although it was hinted at) was an ongoing thread in the series and we do learn more about him as time goes on. They make a fascinating pair because of their very different backgrounds and life experiences, and it's a particularly romantic one because Steele respects Laura's intelligence and capability. It's clear in the show that beautiful women have been in his life, but it's her character he admires even if he finds it difficult to live with.

Though not a comedy it is a lighthearted show with two attractive, appealing leads. Over time the premise of him stepping into the shoes of a persona invented by Laura to succeed in business becomes less important, and his actual contributions to the agency increase (whereas in the first seasons he is as much a problem to be managed as any kind of help). One ends up rooting for him to find a way to live with his past and for her to be able to rely on him to be a true and enduring partner.

Bridgerton

[tinny]

Show Title: Bridgerton
Audience Rating: Teen/Adult
Warnings: explicit sex scenes, one dub-con scene in season 1
Length of Episodes: 1h
Length of Series: 3 series of 8 eps each so far
Why you recommend it:

I recommend it mostly because of the sex scenes. They are very female-gaze-y, and the couples are all equal and all enjoy the sex equally. I LOVED it. And that's coming from someone who doesn't usually get very invested in period dramas. Adding sex to period drama is the way to go!

I love a lot of things about the show. The romance and the sex is just one part of that - an important one, to be sure. I don't think I would have watched it if there was no sex. The writing is witty, the characters are all three-dimensional, and the music is beautiful, and the overwrought costumes (and no bonnets!) are gorgeous, most notably the wigs of Queen Charlotte. (Who also has a spin-off series that is supposedly excellent but which I haven't seen yet.)

The many complex and layered female characters are another important draw. Yes, the show (mostly) adheres conventions/tropes of romance novels, but it shows many different characters in the Regency setting, and that's interesting. I love that both couples (season 1 and season 2) are mixed-race couples. Another plus point for me is that both main couples are prime examples for their brains fighting their hearts. They keep pretending not to like each other for the longest time, and that's my catnip.

I wrote a rec post for it here.

My Lady Jane

[tinny]

Show Title: My Lady Jane
Audience Rating: Teen/Adult
Warnings: explicit sex scenes (but not as much nudity as Bridgerton)
Length of Episodes: 1h
Length of Series: 8 eps
Why you recommend it:

Another book adaptation, but there's only one book about Lady Jane, so there's only one season. It's a fantastical retelling of the story of Jane Grey, but with pretty much a guarantee of historical inaccuracy, and featuring people who can turn into animals. :D

The other two genres this show would have fit into are comedy and fantasy, but for me the love story is at the heart of it. The two leads have amazing chemistry with each other, and the supporting cast are brilliant. The writing is very funny, and the modern music score of this show is its own attraction - very unlike Bridgerton, but just as great.

Heartstopper

[tinny]

Show Title: Heartstopper
Audience Rating: Teen
Warnings: eating disorders, bullying
Length of Episodes: 45min
Length of Series: 3 series of 8 eps each so far
Why you recommend it:

Charlie and Nick go to a British school, they're around 15/16 years old, and fall in love with each other. We follow their lives as well as that of their friend group, which includes a trans girl. It treats difficult subject matters (bullying in the first season, eating disorder in the second, I haven't yet seen the third) with a gentle hand. Overall very heartwarming and sweet. The fact that it's an adaptation of a graphic novel (by Alice Oseman) is evident in the little hand-drawn squiggles that sometimes appear.

Young Royals

[tinny]

Show Title: Young Royals
Audience Rating: Teen/Adult
Warnings: bullying, hazing, homophobia, character death, drug use
Length of Episodes: 45min
Length of Series: 3 series of 6 eps each so far
Why you recommend it:

Much more gritty than Heartstopper, this Swedish Netflix show follows Simon, one of the few non-noble and non-rich students at a Swedish boarding school. He falls in love with Wille, who is in line for the Swedish throne.

The two leads are both cute and good actors, and all the main characters look like teenagers, not twentysomething models. Their family situation is realistic - Wilhelm being in the public eye and constantly followed by bodyguards - and Simon having a very caring divorced mom and a sister he feels very protective about. The whole show is nicely multilingual, with one character speaking English, and Simon's mom speaking Spanish. Some of the characters (including Simon, of course) are multi-ethnic.

The secondary characters are relatively well developed and not too stereotypical. I found some of the scenes hard to watch, it's far from a happy show, but all the young actors do an amazing job, and it drew me in despite my preference for more fluffy things. I haven't seen seasons 2 and 3 yet, so I cannot speak to the ending.

I wrote a review for the first season here.

The Full-Time Wife Escapist

[tinny]

Show Title: The Full-Time Wife Escapist
Audience Rating: PG
Warnings: -
Length of Episodes: 30-50min
Length of Series: 11 eps plus a special
Why you recommend it:

A jdrama about a young woman, Moriyama Mikuri (Aragaki Yui), who gets fired from her job, and then accepts a part-time job cleaning the apartment of Tsuzaki Hirasama (Hoshino Gen), computer scientist and professional bachelor. When she then also loses her place to live, she suggests he hire her as a "wife" (by which they don't mean sex, just housework and cooking and sharing his living space) - and he does.

She's wonderful and quirky, but also disciplined and "old on the inside" (which sounds stupid on paper, but the way it's presented on the show, it's so sweet). He's smart and focused and a total nerd and not all that good at communicating, while also sweet and kind and I LOVE HIM. The "escapist" part of the show's title comes from her tendency to daydream, which is shown in magical fantasy sequences.

The show is somehow not making fun of them, but very cute? Also, don't let the strange title put you off. You can watch it on Netflix.

I wrote a review for it here.

[lirazel]

Show Title: Queen In-Hyun's Man (sometimes referred to as Queen and I)
Audience Rating: Teen
Warnings: honestly it's been so long that I don't remember
Length of Episodes: 60 minutes
Length of Series: 16
Why you recommend it: My favorite straight-up romance TV show ever. In Joseon Era, Boong-do is a scholar serving Queen In-Hyun. In the present day, Hee-jin is an actress playing Queen In-Hyun in a TV show. TIME TRAVEL ENSUES! Boong-do ends up in the present day and of course they fall in love.

One of my favorite things about this show is that Boong-do is really smart. This is not one of those "look at this slapsticky idiot who can't deal with modern times!" time travel stories. He figures many things out just by paying attention and the things he doesn't figure out make sense.

The romance is so wonderful and with a great pay-off.

This one may be difficult to find, but if you can hunt it down, I recommend it!

Dimension 20: A Court of Fey & Flowers (2022)

[delphi]

Show Title: Dimension 20: A Court of Fey & Flowers
Audience Rating: Unrated, but I'd say fine for older teens and above
Warnings: Elaborating on the rating, this has some jokes about sex and drugs that might not be appropriate for younger viewers
Length of Episodes: ~2 hours
Length of Series: 10 episodes
Why you recommend it: This actual-play tabletop roleplaying campaign is a mash-up of multiple systems including Dungeons & Dragons and the Jane Austen-inspired roleplaying game Good Society. The characters are all inhabitants of the Faerie realm who've come together for the social event of the season - the Bloom - to make moves both personal and political. This includes two kenku cousins with a reputation for hedonism who have promised their stern grandfather they will find respectable matches at the Bloom, a decorated soldier from the Goblin Court there to arrange a marriage for a princess while unexpectedly finding love himself, a socially awkward prince of the Unseelie Court making his social debut, and a mysterious uninvited guest. That setup right there is half of why I love it, and the execution is the other half. The cast are all experienced roleplayers and comedians who throw themselves wholeheartedly into Regency romance along with a DM who is amazing at worldbuilding and weaving the complex threads of court politics and romance into something special. The characters are all queer and bring some wonderful variety of backstory and fantastical forms to the mix.