Netflix Anonymous

Now that The Beard is at school until 8 pm every night, and I have tons of reading/writing for my Master's program, I'm spending even MORE time with my best friend and true love - Netflix.

These are my latest obsessions that I need to talk about, ASAP. So watch them if you haven't and email me, because I crave analysis, gushing and discussion.

Once Upon a Time

Last Sunday, (September 15) I started watching OUAT, and today I finished Season 1.n I'm hoping to finish Season 2 before the Season 3 premiere on Sunday night. I'm literally a crazy person. I'm a goner with this show. Seriously. I'm shipping (abbreviated from relationshipping: when you obsess over a particular fictional relationship) Rumplestiltskin and Belle so hard I am nearly brought to tears just thinking about it. Ask me if I spent 20 minutes on my prep watching clips of them set to sappy love songs on YouTube. I have a problem. A real problem.

Derek

As a diehard Office fan, I also appreciate the BBC version and therefore, Ricky Gervais. However, he can be VERY offensive in a lot of his current comedy shows. I was very cautious. This show is definitely a little foul-mouthed and irreverent, but it's SO sensitive to the autistic/handicapped/elderly/otherwise different. It follows Derek, an autistic man who works at a rest home with his best friends. You will be laughing hysterically at Derek and his friends doing hilarious and inappropriate things, then be crying at the sweet, sad and poignant moments. It left me feeling uplifted - like our lives have meaning and how important it is to be kind. It honestly made me a better person. I can't wait to re-watch it in a few weeks when I'm done with OUAT.

The Killing

I got really into this show 2 summers ago and blew through it so fast. I just re-watched it alongside my bestie Katie and I'm starting the third season on Amazon Prime with her soon! So crazy and suspenseful, great cliffhangers and a shocking resolution. Perfect for people who like Law & Order, CSI, and any other crime dramas. 

Jiro Dreams of Sushi

This crazy documentary is a must-see for any sushi lover. This guy is like the god of sushi. It's cool to see how he gets his fish, cures it and carefully crafts it into thousand-dollar sushi. Sushi is his LIFE. 

Safety NOT Guaranteed

We watched this movie with our besties Brad and Eliesa and really liked it. It's quirky and suspenseful, with a great ending. We love Aubrey Plaza from Parks & Rec, and she's a similar character so we obviously approve.

Breaking Bad

I've written about this before before, sorry. We still have one whole Netflix season and then the current season until we're caught up, but HOLY FREAKING SHIZ YOU GUYS THIS SHOW! So violent. So awful. So dramatic. So crazy. So suspenseful. So insane. I've never been a huge fan of 45 minute episodes (short attention span bred by the 22 minute Office episodes) but if you want a series that will compel you entirely and has plenty of episodes up and ready to blow through, this one will not disappoint. 

Zoolander

This recent addition to Netflix needs no introduction or review. A comedy classic and total gold.

House of Cards

We got really into this show right before school started and it was awesome. It's about a congressman that gets slighted by the President and uses all of his power to exact revenge and get back on top. It's absolutely incredible - which is why it won an Emmy last night! Again, language and sexual content is over the top. Strangely, though, I feel like it helped me understand our government better than anything else in my years of education.


On our To Watch List:

• BBC Sherlock - we've heard great things, we just need to work up the courage to take on a 90 minute episode!
• Portlandia Season 2 - I love sketch comedy and making fun of hipsters
• Vampire Diaries - my sister Brooke has been trying to get me to watch it and I'm slowly getting into it
• New Girl Season 2 - one of the few shows me and The Beard like equally. I shout "WHERE THE HELL ARE MY DRIVING MOCCASINS?!" at least once a day. 
• When Strangers Click - a documentary about finding love through the internet, which has always fascinated me.
• Safe Haven - I indulge in a cheesy romance now and then. The Beard does not. 
• Sushi: The Global Catch - another sushi documentary!

What else should I be watching?

Watching Lately - An Ode to Netflix

I'll never give you up, Netflix. Never. You're like a warm blanket, comfort food, a hot date, an exciting adventure and the best class I've ever taken all in one. (On a related note - Hulu Plus can suck it!)

Obviously we are constantly rotating through all the seasons of The Office. {and by 'we' I mean 'I', averaging 4-5 episodes a day, working on my next project - an in-depth analysis of the show to help me grieve its end.}

But besides that, here are our latest faves on the 'Flix. (hate that I called it that)


Happy - an interesting, inspiring documentary that I watched when I was sad a few weeks ago. These filmmakers travel around and interview people about what makes them happy. They even go into the psychology and biology of happiness. It's really cool. It's basically just the Gospel - serve, have enough but not too much, live with purpose, etc.






 Breaking Bad - the Beard and I needed a new show to watch together that was "new." The Beard somehow gets bored of watching The Office over and over. How? Anyway, we caved to Breaking Bad fad. Wow. I kind of hate it, but can't stop watching. It's so engaging and crazy every single episode! You hate and love everyone. I've cried, laughed, dry-heaved, sworn, screamed, smiled and grimaced. The great thing is that there are tons of episodes and you never want to stop, so it's a great marathon-watching show.




 Freakonomics - The Beard just finished listening to the audiobook at work, so we decided to watch it on a whim. It's so interesting! Very cool to see things a different way - even if it has some depressing thoughts about education. See/read this especially if you like Malcolm Gladwell, stats, and social experiments. 






Aziz Ansari: Intimate Moments for a Sensual Evening - I really love stand-up, but the Beard kind of hates it. We were able to compromise on this one because he loves Tom Haverford from Parks & Rec, and that's basically Aziz in real life. This stand up is hilarious, but be warned - way, way, way too much cursing and sexual innuendo. But if you can't figure that out from the title... maybe put down the laptop and go read a book?

The Truth About Zombies - Very interesting scientific approach to zombies. It ranges from epidemic research to survival techniques to Haitian Voodoo. Max Brooks, the author of the best zombie book ever "World War Z" (coming soon with Brad Pitt yayayayaya!) is a narrator and perfect. The Beard was unimpressed.

"How can you call yourself a 'Zombie Expert' with a straight face?!"

Portlandia - Obviously you can make fun of hipsters to no end, and obviously I'm gonna like it. I've never been to Portland, but my Oregonian coworker says it is spot-on. Season 2 just went up a month or so ago, so if you like awkward humor, sketch comedy, and making fun of those multiple varieties of hipster that make our lives miserable, check it out. 

On my "To Watch List"

• Vampire Diaries at the persistent request of my sister
• Firefly because I'm a nerd and want to watch it
• The Queen of Versailles - Rainn Wilson tweeted about it so it went right in my queue
• America: The Story of Us - I've watched 3 of the episodes and they are AWESOME. I use them in my US History classes all the time. I want to finish the series.
• ESPN 30 for 30 - Guess who put all of these in the queue?

Anything else on Netflix I should watch?

Mockumentary vs. Documentary

In the past 6 months I have watched more documentaries than in my previous life combined. With my great love of Mockumentaries like The Office, Parks and Rec., Arrested Development, etc, I suppose the taste continues to their real counterparts - documentaries.

Netflix has an AWESOME collection of documentaries and I watch them for both business and pleasure. For history teachers, documentaries are gold. When a new unit is coming up, I watch documentaries to brush up on information and to look for potential documentaries that I'd like to show my students. Ryan and I also watch documentaries for fun pretty regularly.

Here are some suggestions and warnings for you:

Loved (fun):

It Might Get Loud - a rock-n-roll documentary (think real Spinal Tap, with less humor) that is pretty awesome. Watching Jack White play makeshift instruments is absolutely mesmerizing. Definitely worth a watch.

Exit Through the Gift Shop - ok, we haven't ACTUALLY watched this one. It's been in our queue for ages, and we really will get around to it. But I've heard great things from multiple sources and can't wait to watch it.

Loved (to learn):

National Geographic: Stress, Portrait of a Killer - super enlightening documentary about what stress does to our bodies and the change in stressors since primitive times. Really cool.

Project XX - these period-specific documentaries are awesome. I showed some of "The Great War" edition in class. They include real footage, cultural elements and actually HELPFUL commentary. They don't even feel like a dry, educational documentary.

Hated:

Waiting for Superman - this documentary chronicling the *failure* of the public school system in the US is so frustrating. As a teacher I can definitely sympathize. Our system is a bit of a mess. There are issues to be dealt with. But the spend far more time criticizing bad teachers and districts, very little time on good teachers and districts, and absolutely no time at all speculating about possible alternatives. In the end, you're left with this empty-handed discontent. What was the point of that?

Bowling for Columbine - after the recent Ohio school shooting I decided to watch this famous Michael Moore piece. I didn't even finish it. I can't stand the guy. I get his style. I get the drama. School shootings and violence are a problem. But this is sensationalist, muckracking, yellow journalism. Again, the only positive outlook is when he compares the awful United States to more successful, less violent nations, showing that it IS in fact possible to be peaceful. If you're not going to make this for a positive reason, shut the front door. I don't want it.

What about y'all? Agree? Disagree? Suggestions? I'd love to hear some more that I should look up.