So which show are you obsessed with now that The Returned is done?

Fargo, both seasons.


Be sure to proof your posts to see if you any words out

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Some good shows in here, I'll echo the one guy who said 'Fortitude', it's probably the closest to the feel of The Returned.

Fargo, Hannibal, Twin Peaks & The Leftovers are also great mentions.

I also would throw in The Killing, Rectify & Top Of The Lake

The Leftovers for sure

Great post. I love all of the suggestions. Of the ones I've seen, I 100% agree with them being very addictive series to watch. For those I haven't seen, I can say they've been on my list to get around to. The cream of the crop for me are Fortitude and True Detective Season 1. I'll vouch also specifically for The Fall, Top of the Lake, Broadchurch, Fargo, and Twin Peaks. I'm looking forward to giving Hannibal another chance. I watched the first five episodes, and while visually intriguing (Maads included), it seemed pretty formulaic. Glad to know the best is yet to come.

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I also enjoyed True Detective (I also watched season 1 and didn't bother with season 2 after reading reviews) and I just finished Mr Robot which I felt was a nice companion piece to The Returned (more on that in a minute).

I will echo other suggestions for 'similar' shows that I've enjoyed: Broadchurch (I only watched season 1 but have deliberately not watched season 2 for similar reasons as True Detective) and Top of the Lake.

I tried to like Fargo and just didn't. I gave up after the first few episodes and I doubt I'll pick it up again.

The one not mentioned here yet and may not belong here yet is Sense8 (2015). I'm not sure it can be considered 'dark' and I think at times it's striving for just the opposite of dark. And people either seem to love this show or hate it. I loved it but ymmv.

I've watched Sense8, The Returned, and Mr Robot all in the last month. They all have creative ways to tell a story. They all are refraining from spelling everything out while still (in my case) keeping me interested. I am so over the LOST genre of show that builds up a mystery, tries to sustain it for as long as the show is in production, then either gets cancelled without resolution or tries to resolve but it's clear they were making stuff up as they went along.

And they all made me think. Either I was thinking about the show itself, the motivation of characters, the construction of the world/mystery, the plot and where it was going or what it was doing... or I was thinking about larger themes the show touched on.

For The Returned, the larger theme was grief and holding onto loss such that one can't move on or connect in meaningful ways to the living. As a person in some advanced years, my life is full of death and loss. So this is a theme I can think on plenty.

For Mr Robot, I tapped into how we related to each other in the digital age. How meaningful are our connections. And how much do we allow ourselves to be manipulated or pacified by others via mass media.

For Sense8 the larger theme was connections: how do the actions of one influence another, how can we combine efforts such that the strengths of one support the fragilities of another. I am very into connections between people and/or connections of people to the world/environment/nature around them.

It felt like a wealth to have all three of these intriguing shows stretch my brain, my assumptions, my comfort zones and get me thinking about things that matter.

That's why I might enjoy The Walking Dead, but I'd never feel overly motivated to *discuss* it like I have the shows I've listed above.

And here's another one way, way, way out of left field for this discussion... a movie that had a unique style of storytelling (which I'm a fan of as much as I'm a fan of a good story) and made me think: Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012). Not dark. But weird and wonderful.

And that makes me think of another weird and wonderful movie that I adored, maybe it's a little darker : Only Lovers Left Alive (2013)

I review and discuss movies in another forum and after I watched Only Lovers Left Alive, I begged off a detailed review - instead referring to other reviewers on the forum who loved it as much as I did. But I added this:

The setting of Detroit was a perfect backdrop for Adam's mood.

The movie was almost close to hilarious in spots without ever playing for a laugh.

I loved many simple touches that added reinforcement to some of the concepts of the film.

After it was over, I couldn't stop thinking about it and I'm hoping I'll have a chance to watch it again before sending the disc back. That is high praise from me because I don't know if I've done that for any other disc I've gotten from Netflix.

I'm copacetic with people not liking things I like. But if someone doesn't like this film there is clearly something deficient with them. lol. I could put this in a 'want to be my friend' questionnaire: "Did you like 'Only Lovers Left Alive'?"


oh, and Tom Hiddleston is a god. Seriously!