This year has left a lot of us stuck at home, and stuck to our screens. We take a look at what shows have kept the Fräulein team tethered to their devices and TVs over the past months of rest and respite.
FRÄULEIN’S FAVORITE TV SHOWS OF 2020
vor 4 years
We Are Who We Are (HBO)
A beautiful visual delight from the acclaimed Italian director Luca Guadagnino. We Are Who We Are is a coming-of-age series set in a US army base in Italy, and follows the lives of 2 fourteen-year-olds who are living the trials and tribulations of being a teenager in 2020. The show is an exploration of friendships, first love, identity, and everything in-between. A well-chosen cast and a well-written story. I see big things for cast lead Jack Dylan Grazer. SK
The Real Housewives of Potomac (Bravo)
Something of a guilty pleasure. I have religiously watched ALL of the franchise and have managed to only just discover this year the ladies of Potomac. From butt-grabbing controversy to the iconic Grand Dame Karen Huger. This show is best medicine to keep the bad news blues away. SK
I May Destroy You (HBO / BBC)
Michaela Coel is one of the few breakout talents that has managed to stand out against the current pandemic. Coel, who wrote, co-directed and executive produced the show, stars as the main protagonist of the show and is loosely based on her own experiences with sexual assault. The East London native managed to speak to a thousand survivors of sexual assault via this smashing 12-part series. Definitely worth a stream! SK
Cheer (Netflix)
A heartwarming docu-series that follows the lives of a cheerleading squad in a small town in Corsicana, Texas. The unscripted show follows the forty-member Navarro College Bulldogs Cheer Team as they prepare to compete in the National Cheerleading Championship. If you liked Bring it On, this is essential viewing. SK
Mrs. America (FX)
A series speaking unpleasant truths. SB
The Queen’s Gambit (Netflix)
Even though I’ve never played chess, this series has cast a spell over me. It’s about so much more than the game, it’s about a woman who has to assert herself in a world that is dominated by men. Chess, which seems to be such a dry, inaccessible subject, comes to life here through the emotional glimpses into the life of the leading actress. This series deals with the pressure and consequences of staying at the top and takes us through her way up there. CB
Spinning Out (Netflix)
„Spinning Out“ tells the story of a high-level figure skater who, like her mother, suffers from bipolar disorder and how this affects her life and career. The series as well demonstrates how mental illness is still seen by society and which burden and shame this creates for those affected. CB
Ratched (Netflix)
2020 has been a year full of real-life horror. How nice to watch (soft) horror in a series from “American Horror Story” Director, Ryan Murphy. Sarah Paulson, who plays the lead role “Nurse Ratched”, is giving one of her best performances in this prequel to the 1975 movie “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” with Jack Nicholson. Binge-worthy for sure! NC
The Crown (Netflix)
“The Crown” gave us in 2020 the best season of the show. Despite the rising amount of critiques against the show for its take on real-life events, this season succeeded in giving us one of the strongest plot with three female leads (The Queen, Lady Diana and Margaret Thatcher) instead of one. A must-watch before the new award season that will not forget to honour one of the greatest cast in the Netflix catalogue. NC
And for fans of Vlogs…
I don’t have much desire to watch TV shows. After I spent four long months of lockdown binging six long seasons of The Sopranos, I don’t think I could stomach that level of commitment to a screen for another year (ask me again in the midst of this upcoming lockdown. I may not contribute much to this list, but I certainly might utilise it!) My one viewing pleasure that I am happy to pass down, however, is a youtube series by a beauty blogger… wait! Where are you going?! Hear me out! Every Monday, Bailey Sarian uploads a video entitled “Murder, Mystery, and Makeup Monday” – need I explain more? Bailey spends around an hour going into grisly details of real life crime mysteries ranging from German cannibals to Victorian era exorcisms, and while she tells these stories (all in a fairly comical way), she is also doing some fabulous (also erring on the dark) makeup looks. Watching a beautiful woman doing her makeup in real time (not sped up or filtered) is like ASMR to me. JS
