12 Series To Enjoy This Summer

I was quite amazed to find out how accurate the Finns are when it comes to schedules, not that I expected anything different but I certainly did not expect all public offices to be literally "disconnected" throughout the whole month of July.

And therefore somehow we will have to occupy the time waiting for the public offices to reopen, luckily there are people who can tell good stories that are available in some spaces on the net, you know, right? Those sites called "streaming services", good, in this hot summer I am here to recommend some series, cartoons and much more, to be enjoyed in your cottage, by the sea, lake, river, generic body of water in solitude or in company, I also try to divide in a somewhat generic way by categories, to facilitate your work:

Comedy series:

Brooklyn 99 (Netflix): One of my all time favourite series, the eighth and final season came out very recently so it's still an extremely fresh and current product. Put together the detective genre and the generic comedy which can be Friends or - maybe more suitable in this case - The Office US and you will have Brooklyn 99. A fast, light series but also able to deal with important topics such as racism in the United States, sexual equality and many others. I've lost count of the number of rewatches I've done in this series that never tires

How I Met Your Mother (Disney+): hardly you don't know it, one of the pillars of the comedy genre, and I doubt it needs any introduction. But we are also here for this:

Ted Mosby is an architect from New York who in 2030 tells his two children the whole story of how he met their mother, starting with his first real flame Robin. From then on, the series is spread over nine seasons in which Ted and his group of friends live incredible adventures. Also in this case, since it is a comedy series, the tones are very often light and enjoyable, a series with which you can relax on the sofa but which on many occasions is able to make you cry, so if I were you I would keep one in the immediate vicinity a box of tissues.

Thriller/Investigative:

Mindhunter (Netflix): Incredible work by director David Fincher, set in the mid-1900s, tells in a fictional way the process that finally made it possible to elaborate the psychological profile of serial killers.

To simplify a lot: the series is focused on interviews with famous serial killers of the period, some more known to the masses, others to fans of true crime, but surely we all know for good or bad who Charles Manson was, if only for his name; well, one of the most controversial characters of the twentieth century makes his appearance in the second season.

Registically and scripturally absolutely flawless, a series that I can easly describe as "milestone" or "cinematic". If you are passionate or even just interested in the psychological aspects of the criminal mind you will appreciate it.

Sherlock (Prime Video): Even in this case I don't think we need many introductions; Benedict Cumberbatch is the protagonist, along with Martin Freeman who you have surely seen in The Lord of the Rings playing Bilbo, of a modern remake of the famous saga of books by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The series is characterised by extremely long episodes, practically the duration of a film, but in small numbers in the four seasons that make up the series (three or maximum four per season).

In my opinion an absolute masterpiece from every point of view, there must be a reason why the series is so acclaimed, right? Absolutely recommended.

Cartoons:

Rick & Morty (HBO Max/Telia Play/Netflix): Irreverent, unfair, naughty but also sensitive, funny to give stomach ache. RIck & Morty is all this but also much more. Also in this case, since it is generally comic content, the tones are for most of the time rather light, but there is no lack of moments of reflection, sadness and suffering.

Bojack Horseman (Netflix): Every time I talk about this series I like to start from one of its strengths: it is a work of writing; it's a beautiful story told really well, with a great development and a perfect ending. But to put hands forward: it's not a comic series at all, it is for the first two episodes and in flashes during its development, but it is in all meanings an introspective work.

Bojack Horseman is an actor horse who in the 90s made a very famous series that brought him to the peak of his career, but also to everything that follows if you are not psychologically perfectly stable, he lives on memories and all that the his horse body manages to get into his cavities, one of those series that doesn't need rewatch, once you're done it's over.

Tear Along The Dotted Line (Netflix): finding this Italian series in the Finnish Netflix catalogue pleasantly surprised me, because it's okay in Italy when it came out has made a lot of talk about itself, but I never thought it would leave Italy.

Zerocalcare, the author of the series, is an Italian cartoonist famous in my country both for the long career he had and for putting his political activism within his stories. Not as an integral part but let's say it does not hide it. Even in the case of Tear Along The Dotted Line, we are talking about a series that is very funny, very fast, lasting just over an hour and a half in total, but definitely introspective. The author asks himself some big questions and looks for explanations for his actions. Prepare your handkerchiefs, it will be an extremely exciting journey.

Teen Dramas:

The End Of The F***ing World (Netflix): one of my absolute favourites of the genre, a story well told - also because the first season is the re-adaptation of a comic - of very well characterised characters who do not remain static but change a lot in the plot development; on a visual level, purely aesthetic, it is an absolute feast for the eyes.

James and Alyssa are two British teenagers who one day decide to run away from home and wander around aimlessly. She is escaping from an annoying family, he wants to do his masterpiece and simply kill her, their adventures and misadventures manage to excite and make you attach to the characters.

Skins (Netflix): It has aged pretty badly in some aspects, this is very true. Unfortunately it is a feature that unites all the products of the early 2000s, but it is also today a beautiful product with excellent characters with whom you can reflect, it deserves a rewatch or a first viewing. In my opinion one of the best teen dramas ever made.

Special mentions:

Dark Tourist (Netflix): a one-of-a-kind documentary focused on the tourism of the macabre, the strange and creepy around the world. Extremely short but somewhat interesting.

The Joy Of Painting (Prime Video): How relaxing can a series be? Certainly no more than the television program conducted by the painter Bob Ross on air from 83’ to 94' where he "simply" teaches his viewers to paint. Personally I find it INCREDIBLY relaxing and enjoyable to look at, plus it's also nice to see fashions and hairstyles from that period.