SPOILER ALERT FOR HOW I MET YOUR MOTHER!
POV: You’re on your couch, curled up in your fuzzy blanket. You turn on the TV and watch New Girl for the third time to calm your anxiety and once you see Nick, Schmidt and Winston, your troubles instantly all go away. You wonder how this happens, but don’t worry! I got you! Let’s talk about why shows like How I Met Your Mother, Friends, Modern Family and New Girl are so… rewatchable. We’ve all been at that place in our lives where we have no drive to do anything except watch Netflix. There’s just something about having that sense of belonging that provides so much comfort to me and so many other people.
When you watch a long TV show like the ones I mentioned before, you bond with the characters and feel what they feel. It’s amazing how television does that — but also so simple. We follow a character’s journey from the beginning right to the very end. Take How I Met Your Mother for example. From the beginning, we follow Ted Mosby’s journey of finding love and we feel his emotions when he breaks up with Robin and we see the satisfaction of Ted finding Tracy. Through the story, we feel his bond with Marshall, Lily and Barney and all his highs and lows. At the end of the story, we know that it’s going to be okay, and we know there’s a happy ending. That’s what provides us the ultimate comfort: everything turns out the way we want it to. New Girl also follows a similar pattern, and at the end of it, the characters almost feel like a second family. That’s exactly why we feel so much love — knowing a character at that level is kind of intimate and we know they’d never disappoint us.
That’s the ultimate difference between shows like How I Met Your Mother and Game of Thrones, for example. Shows that don’t have static characters and familiar dynamics are fun to watch but rarely comforting since we don’t know what direction it’ll take, just like life. We live each day not knowing what will happen next, and in those moments, it can be consoling to watch a TV show where you know that everything will be okay!
So, what should you do in those anxious moments where you don’t know how things will turn out? If you’re asking me, I’ll always recommend easygoing TV shows to make you feel safe and alleviate the stress of everyday life. My personal favorite show to rewatch would probably be The Office or Modern Family because I find so much happiness in Michael Scott’s eccentric personality or Cameron and Mitch’s petty arguments.
What’s your favorite show to rewatch?