Not sure where it ranks, but I hardly ever hear anyone discuss Pachinko. Just finished its latest season and it's a very good show, all about a Korean family who ended up in Japan before WWII. It intercuts between one generation and another set in the 1980s.
Thank you! I must admit that I have a mild dislike of Lee Min-ho, which is the main reason why I never truly tried to check this one out. But, I guess, I should finally give it a chance! :)
I don't know what is currently in Apple's Top Ten, but these are all older releases, so most likely NOT in the current list.
Calls
This one is really difficult to describe because it's almost more of a radio broadcast than a TV show. There are no visuals. Each episode only displays wavelengths and text captions on the screen that move along with the audio. The narrative forms around a series of seemingly unrelated phone call conversations, with each episode telling a different story, eventually tying into a creepy mystery. Each episode only quite short (15-20 minutes), so it's quite easy to binge like a podcast or something. I kind of struggled with it because I NEED visuals or else I have a really hard time staying focused, but it was good.
The Afterparty
There are 2 seasons of this one -- both are investigations into murders. The first at a high school reunion party, the 2nd season is set at a wedding. Might have some "The Residence" vibes for some people? But it's quite ecletic -- incorporates animation, musicals, slasher horror, action, romantic comedy, and more. And it's basically a comedy.
Five Days at Memorial
This one can be difficult to watch at times, but really worth it. It dramatizes the real-life experiences of doctors and patients who were stuck for five days without power at Memorial Medical Center in New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, as well as the investigation into medical staff euthanizing critically ill patients.
Shining Girls
A thriller about a mysterious killer that involves alternate realities -- can be quite mind-bending at times. Combo of sci fi/horror/feminist drama.
I bounced off of Shining Girls (though it was long ago enough that I don't remember why) but agree that Five Days was quite a strong miniseries and I'm glad I watched it.
Kids' cartoon, but I love (and am currently rewatching) 'Pinecone and Pony', based on a Kate Beaton picture book. Delightful designs and a lot of diversity, including a biracial young princess lead, an older PoC w/nb couple that appear often (the woman is Pinecone's warrior school teacher) and a variety of body shapes in the designs. The show deservedly won a GLAAD award in 2023.
Oh, excellent question! Our Apple TV+ viewing choices are all pretty basic (Slow Horses, Bad Monkey, Shrinking, For All Mankind, The Morning Show (s1 was excellent; s2 was a hot mess), etc), but I'll be haunting these comments for inspiration. :-)
Oh, there's a nature doco called Tiny World, if that's your thing. Shortish episodes, probably aimed at kids, but very pretty.
That reminds me that there's a good nature doc on Apple called Earth at Night, remarkable footage that makes it look like day. Plus each episode is followed by a brief "behind the scenes" showing how they did it.
If you enjoy sci-fi mystery with horror elements, there's Constellation, which follows a female astronaut who returns to earth after a mysterious incident on the International Space Station. The show got cancelled after one season so not all plot threads are resolved, but I enjoyed what there is regardless.
Thank you! Sounds directly up my alley. Do you think that the S1 finale was satisfying as a series finale? (I can ignore some unresolved plot threads, but I don't want to scream in agony at the ending.)
The show does explain the main mystery of what's going on by the season finale. There is an open ending where some the characters are left in bad places, but they know what's going on, and there's a hook for season 2 that for me personally feels like the open endings that horror movies have anyway, so I'm okay with it. (Sorry, it's a bit hard to describe!)
I don't know. I've watched: The Essex Serpent (adapted from the book of the same name); Ted Lasso; Foundation (which is excellent and s4 is about to drop soon); Murderbot; and Curses ( a kids cartoon show about a family replacing the artifacts that their ancestors took to survive a curse). Also, Slow Horses (which is kind of like Dept Q but with spies and lot funnier and a lot better plotted) - it has another season to drop soon as well.
I also watched The Gorge, it was okay.
I tried Shrinking, Mythic Quest, Severance, For all Mankind, and Fly Me to the Moon - but couldn't get through them for some reason or other.
Dark Matter - also adapted from a book is supposed to be good.
here's my recs - a couple towards the bottom of the list ended after one season, but are still good imo.
Bad Sisters - its a comedy drama about some sisters who band together when one of the sisters' abusive husband dies. It flips between before his death with the sisters trying to kill him in often hilarious ways, and after his death with the insurance investigation. You don't know how he actually died until the end of S1.
Slow Horses - about the a team of MI5 agents who have been assigned because they screwed up elsewhere. Stars Gary Oldman, its really good.
Black Bird - about a dude with a prison sentence who makes a deal with the FBI to get a confession out of a serial killer in prison.
Time Bandits - fun family friendly romp about a group of people who travel through time trying to find a kids family. based on the movie.
Surface - about a woman who has amnesia, who begins to question her marriage, suspects there is something nefarious going on.
High Desert - about a woman who becomes a P.I. Stars Patricia Arquette
Dear Edward - drama about a 12 yr old who is the sole survivor of a plane crash. Its how he processes what happened, grief, coming of age etc.
Sunny - set in the near future, about a woman whose husband and son go missing after a plane crash, and she is sent a robot companion named Sunny who may or may not hold clues to what happened.
Dark Matter - twisty timey whimey scifi show about a man who can travel between universes - it gets very confusing at one point lol
the last thing he told me - action thriller about a woman whose husband disappears and she has to go on the run with her step daughter, while trying to find him, stars jennifer garner
Home Before Dark - skews younger teen, but is a mystery dective thing like nancy drew.
Little America - anothology series about immigrants in small town america
Girls State - a documentary about girls who attend Girls State where a group of young women try to build a government from the ground up. Its the girl version of Boys State which is also a good documentary with the same premise - I think its on Apple too but Im not sure. Its interesting to see the differences between the two.
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Calls
This one is really difficult to describe because it's almost more of a radio broadcast than a TV show. There are no visuals. Each episode only displays wavelengths and text captions on the screen that move along with the audio. The narrative forms around a series of seemingly unrelated phone call conversations, with each episode telling a different story, eventually tying into a creepy mystery. Each episode only quite short (15-20 minutes), so it's quite easy to binge like a podcast or something. I kind of struggled with it because I NEED visuals or else I have a really hard time staying focused, but it was good.
The Afterparty
There are 2 seasons of this one -- both are investigations into murders. The first at a high school reunion party, the 2nd season is set at a wedding. Might have some "The Residence" vibes for some people? But it's quite ecletic -- incorporates animation, musicals, slasher horror, action, romantic comedy, and more. And it's basically a comedy.
Five Days at Memorial
This one can be difficult to watch at times, but really worth it. It dramatizes the real-life experiences of doctors and patients who were stuck for five days without power at Memorial Medical Center in New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, as well as the investigation into medical staff euthanizing critically ill patients.
Shining Girls
A thriller about a mysterious killer that involves alternate realities -- can be quite mind-bending at times. Combo of sci fi/horror/feminist drama.
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Oh, excellent question! Our Apple TV+ viewing choices are all pretty basic (Slow Horses, Bad Monkey, Shrinking, For All Mankind, The Morning Show (s1 was excellent; s2 was a hot mess), etc), but I'll be haunting these comments for inspiration. :-)
Oh, there's a nature doco called Tiny World, if that's your thing. Shortish episodes, probably aimed at kids, but very pretty.
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Oh cool, thanks! :-)
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I also watched The Gorge, it was okay.
I tried Shrinking, Mythic Quest, Severance, For all Mankind, and Fly Me to the Moon - but couldn't get through them for some reason or other.
Dark Matter - also adapted from a book is supposed to be good.
Apple is good at sci-fi, I'll give it that.
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Bad Sisters - its a comedy drama about some sisters who band together when one of the sisters' abusive husband dies. It flips between before his death with the sisters trying to kill him in often hilarious ways, and after his death with the insurance investigation. You don't know how he actually died until the end of S1.
Slow Horses - about the a team of MI5 agents who have been assigned because they screwed up elsewhere. Stars Gary Oldman, its really good.
Black Bird - about a dude with a prison sentence who makes a deal with the FBI to get a confession out of a serial killer in prison.
Time Bandits - fun family friendly romp about a group of people who travel through time trying to find a kids family. based on the movie.
Surface - about a woman who has amnesia, who begins to question her marriage, suspects there is something nefarious going on.
High Desert - about a woman who becomes a P.I. Stars Patricia Arquette
Dear Edward - drama about a 12 yr old who is the sole survivor of a plane crash. Its how he processes what happened, grief, coming of age etc.
Sunny - set in the near future, about a woman whose husband and son go missing after a plane crash, and she is sent a robot companion named Sunny who may or may not hold clues to what happened.
Dark Matter - twisty timey whimey scifi show about a man who can travel between universes - it gets very confusing at one point lol
the last thing he told me - action thriller about a woman whose husband disappears and she has to go on the run with her step daughter, while trying to find him, stars jennifer garner
Home Before Dark - skews younger teen, but is a mystery dective thing like nancy drew.
Little America - anothology series about immigrants in small town america
Girls State - a documentary about girls who attend Girls State where a group of young women try to build a government from the ground up. Its the girl version of Boys State which is also a good documentary with the same premise - I think its on Apple too but Im not sure. Its interesting to see the differences between the two.
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Dark Matter sounds super interesting. I also might give High Desert a try for Patricia Arquette.
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