Recently I've been catching up on tv and some of the more mature/adult shows, which I've been...Enjoying? Seems like the wrong word, but they've all generally been cynical or dark.

For reference, I've just finished Better Call Saul, which got me to finally get around to finishing Breaking Bad, and I've also been doing a rewatch of the anime Monster as it's been years since I last watched it.

So basically back to back dark shows.

I've already watched The Good Place, which nails what I'm describing, but it's a little blunt with the sweetness, while I've watched some of Bee and Puppycat which seems like it's closer to a nice middleground of sweet and real.

What are some of your go-to shows for this kinda vibe?

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[–] 55 points 3 years ago (3 children)
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    [–] 52 points 3 years ago (3 children)
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    [–] 40 points 3 years ago (1 child)
  • [–] 38 points 3 years ago (2 children)

    Try Better Off Ted. It only ran for a season and a half but it was funny.

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    [–] 29 points 3 years ago* (last edited 3 years ago) (1 child)

    Taskmaster

    Would I Lie to You?

    Avatar The Last Airbender

    Loremen podcast

    Edited to add:

    One Punch Man first season is hilarious.

    The trifecta of 2010s animation: Regular Show, Steven Universe, and Adventure Time. There's jokes and themes in these that are pretty adult, but the darker stuff is generally avoided.

    1980s: Dogtanian and the 3 Muskehounds. Mysterious Cities of Gold. Best theme tunes ever, and very easy watching.

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  • [–] 29 points 3 years ago (3 children)
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    [–] 27 points 3 years ago (4 children)

    Bluey pretends to be for kids but it's surely for adults.

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    [–] 27 points 3 years ago (2 children)

    My Name Is Earl is my favorite go-to light-hearted and positive sitcom. Follows the story of a rather silly, ignorant redneck that begins to believe in karma, and so writes a list everyone he has ever wronged and goes about fixing it one by one.

    It's pretty good.

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    [–] 25 points 3 years ago

    I highly recommend Bob's burgers!

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    [–] 25 points 3 years ago (6 children)
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    [–] 24 points 3 years ago* (6 children)

    I love sitcoms but beneath their light exterior they always have a heart of darkness, or at least a trace of one. But given your OP, I figure you can handle a teensy bit of a shadow side. Here are some generally upbeat shows with lots of laughs.

    Catastrophe- I think it strikes the right balance of optimism in the face of doubt. It's light but not saccharine. It's my favorite sitcom.

    It Crowd

    Black Books

    30 Rock

    Black-ish

    Adventure Time

    Mentioned in lots of other replies:

    Parks and Rec

    New Girl (extremely underrated)

    Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt

    Brooklyn 99

    Taskmaster

    WILTY

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    [–] 21 points 3 years ago

    Bob's Burgers.

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  • [–] 20 points 3 years ago

    Community! If you like The Good Place you'll love it. It's my favorite show of all time

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  • [–] 20 points 3 years ago

    Ted Lasso for the win

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  • [–] 20 points 3 years ago* (1 child)

    Schitt's Creek (was already mentioned but is worth mentioning again

    Brooklyn Nine-Nine

    Superstore

    Derry Girls

    Wellmania (sadly Netflix did a Netflix and discontinued another great show after only one season)

    Or just rewatch The Office or Parks & Recreation once again 😄

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    [–] 18 points 3 years ago (2 children)

    Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency

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    [–] 17 points 3 years ago (9 children)
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    [–] 16 points 3 years ago (1 child)

    Our Flag Means Death is upbeat in the first season. The second is more dramatic, but also fucking phenomenal. A romantic adventure comedy becomes a romantic adventure dramedy.

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    [–] 16 points 3 years ago (1 child)
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    [–] 16 points 3 years ago (3 children)

    Ted Lasso, can't recommend it enough.

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    [–] 16 points 3 years ago* (3 children)
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    [–] 16 points 3 years ago

    Star Trek the next generation

    Brooklyn nine nine

    One piece

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  • [–] 15 points 3 years ago*

    I love "the good place". It's light comedy, it actually makes you think a little, it's a lot of feel good and it's one of those shows where you can see that everyone is having a blast making it.

    Edit: I should finish reading the post before commenting, lol.

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  • [–] 15 points 3 years ago (2 children)

    Here's a weird suggestion, watch all Mr. Bean shows. It's like one season and few episodes.

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    [+] 14 points 3 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)
    [–] 13 points 3 years ago* (last edited 3 years ago)

    Letterkenny and Shorsey if not Archer. Trailer Park boys

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  • [–] 13 points 3 years ago (2 children)
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    [–] 13 points 3 years ago

    If you love "the good place", then I can only recommend "parks and recreation". That is my all-time favorite show

    Also recently I have started watching "Chuck". It's a action/comedy/spy series, there is ofcource action, guns and bombs. But Iam laughing so much each episode, I find myself rewatching some scenes.

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  • [–] 13 points 3 years ago

    Agree about Parks & Rec and Black Books

    Adding Boston Legal

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  • [–] 13 points 3 years ago (3 children)

    British panel (game) shows like Would I Lie to You and 8 out or 10 Cats Does Countdown. The game element is just an excuse for funny, interesting people to crack jokes and have a good time.

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    [–] 11 points 3 years ago

    Happy Endings

    Cougar Town

    Community

    Derry Girls

    Parks and Rec

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  • [–] 11 points 3 years ago

    Pushing Daisies. If you like death mixed with comic book sweetness

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  • [–] 10 points 3 years ago (3 children)

    Kim's Convenience on Netflix.

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    [–] 10 points 3 years ago (1 child)

    The Venture Brothers is hilarious.

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    [–] 10 points 3 years ago

    I don't think there is a more light-hearted show than Detectorists

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  • [–] 9 points 3 years ago (1 child)

    Eureka is kind of a disaster of the week pseudoscience problem show with a lot of heart. Don't go looking for true scifi, but it's so damn charming and the cast has exceptional chemistry.

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    [–] 9 points 3 years ago

    Not adult, but The Owl House was a surprisingly good one. One of those multi-audience shows. Makes me think a lot of about the type of parent I want to be someday!

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  • [–] 9 points 3 years ago (1 child)

    Scrubs in addition to a bunch of the great suggestions in here.

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    [–] 9 points 3 years ago

    Schitt’s Creek and Letterkenny deserve some spots here

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  • [–] 8 points 3 years ago

    Joe Pera Talks To You

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  • [–] 8 points 3 years ago (2 children)

    Going for the more obscure: Bajillion Dollar Properties. Originally made for a dead streaming service, now exists on PlutoTV for free (and can be purchased through Apple et al). It's a satire of real estate reality shows with phenomenal guest stars throughout. Main cast includes a few folks before they got their bigger roles (like Tawny Newsome, Drew Tarver, and Eugene Cordero) but also includes the GOAT, Paul F. Tompkins.

    Very related, I would also suggest the Comedy Bang! Bang! TV show that ran for 5 seasons on IFC. It's a treasure trove of comedic goodness, lots of great guests, and who doesn't love Reggie Watts, Kid Cudi, then Weird Al as the band leaders??

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