Shows For Hank

Hank Green, this one's for you!

Kayvan Novak, What We Do In The Shadows, FX

This post is for Hank Green, an author, educator, philanthropist, YouTuber, and all-around great internet guy whose work I’ve loved for well over a decade now. 

Years ago, my best friend and I screamed along to Hank’s music when his band performed a show in Seattle, then chatted with him while he spontaneously lay on the ground outside to sign some random paperwork a guy from the venue handed him. Years before that, Hank also signed my first-ever paycheck, after I answered his random Twitter call for help doing some “mind-numbing data entry” for the Nerdfighteria website. I have books with Hank’s autograph and a tattoo of a Vlogbrothers quote and a picture of pregnant Harry Styles from The Project For Awesome, and if none of this means anything to you, that’s okay. Suffice it to say that Hank and his brother have made my life a lot better in a lot of different ways for a very long time.

Hank recently shared news of his Hodgkin’s lymphoma diagnosis, and in the video where he spoke about it, he requested recommendations for lighthearted shows, movies, and games to watch and play while he’s undergoing treatment. As a person with very little expertise in anything, but lots of expertise in TV shows, I was elated to hear that his homework for fans involved the one task I can definitely help with. He also asked (and I’m paraphrasing here) that we not all be sappy bitches about this, so before I break that rule, I’ll stop talking and start recommending now.

Here are some fun (and sometimes dumb) shows and movies that, hopefully, will not make anyone cry.

SHOWS:

• American Vandal s1* - There is a scene in this true crime parody involving a dramatic recreation of a sex act that still makes me cry laughing if I think about it.

• Arrested Development - Family Love Michael!

• Be Cool, Scooby-Doo - As a lifelong Scooby-Doo fan, I’ve watched most of the shows and can confirm that this version, made by some of the same folks who made Phineas & Ferb, is far and away the funniest (and wackiest)

• Broad City - Chaotic besties doing it for themselves in the Big Apple!

• Chewing Gum - Before she made I May Destroy You, Michaela Coel made this absolutely wild show about a religious twentysomething woman trying to become more worldly. Another one with some laugh-til-you-cry scenes.

• The Dick Van Dyke Show - If you want to disappear into an old-fashioned sitcom for a while, what’s better than the one led by two of the funniest comedians of all time?

• Emily in Paris - Is this show good? No! Will it take over your mind like a parasite so that all you’ll want to do is talk to other people who have seen it about the many creatively ridiculous ways it is bad? Yes!

• Flight of the Conchords - Two Kiwi sweethearts trying to make it in the big city. Classic, low-stakes, delightful.

• Fortune Feimster’s stand-up specials - The rare comedian who is neither mean-spirited nor boring, Fortune’s Netflix specials will leave you smiling incredibly hard.

• The Gay and Wondrous Life of Caleb Gallo - You can watch this absurd (and absurdly hilarious) short YouTube series about a queer LA friend group in one sitting.

• Girls5eva - This Peacock series about a former girl group reuniting is a wild music industry satire with incredibly catchy songs!

• How It’s Made - Everyone likes How It’s Made, but most of us forget it exists most days because we don’t have cable anymore. This is me reminding you it exists.

• The iCarly revival - If you haven’t seen the original iCarly this is a weird recommendation. If you have: the new one is excellent!

• The Joy of Painting - Happy little trees time with Bob Ross.

• Murderville - Yes, this obviously has murder in it, but it’s the opposite of dark. It’s a wild immersive improv show that gets funnier with each episode.

• Party Down - Are we having fun yet?! You will be if you watch this super-sharp comedy with an amazingly talented ensemble cast.

• Riverdale - In theory, there are plots in Riverdale that are probably meant to make us cry. In practice, it is an exercise in high camp that is extremely enjoyable to watch with friends. It gets a lot wackier after season one, for what it’s worth.

• Schitt’s Creek** - I don’t know if this is better described as a big fish in a small pond comedy or a fish out of water comedy. Either way, it’s the sitcom equivalent of a warm hug (also, it gets much better after season one).

• Seinfeld - The “no hugging, no learning” motto means this classic show also elicits no real feelings, while still providing a near-endless amount of laughs.

• Short Poppies - This is a very odd show where documentarian David Farrier plays a version of himself interviewing people from a small town, only every person is played by Rhys Darby. No, I am not kidding.

• Silicon Valley - Great stupid-smart comedy of the variety only Mike Judge can provide.

• Taskmaster - An indescribably fun and singular viewing experience.

• Very dumb, low-stakes cooking shows - Think Nailed It, Zumbo’s Just Desserts, Is It Cake? or Phoning It In on Youtube.

• What We Do In The Shadows - This is the best kind of comedy: the kind where everyone’s kind of gay and slutty and dumb and also they are vampires.

• Whose Line Is It Anyway? - A classic pick-me-up! I always think I’ve outgrown it and it always proves me wrong by making me laugh all over again.

MOVIES:

• Bend it Like Beckham - Just gals being pals!

• Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure - This classic comedy is fun and dumb, but also weirdly more educational than you might remember?

• Birds of Prey - The best DC movie and the only one that will inspire you to buy a whole new wardrobe’s worth of clothes.

• The Bling Ring - For if you want to watch something that feels like a crime movie or thriller, but don’t actually want anyone to get hurt.

• Booksmart - It’s like Superbad but with girls (and less problematic shit)!

• Clue - Tim Curry, end of tweet.

• Clueless - The first of two adaptations of Emma on this list.

• Crazy Rich Asians - Drama! Romance! Gasp-worthy outfits!

• Dolemite Is My Name - This movie about real-life filmmaker Rudy Ray Moore’s (Eddie Murphy) attempts to make a hit blaxploitation film is a total delight, and I’m still mad it didn’t get any Oscar nominations.

• Easy A - You’re going to see a lot of coming-of-age movies and teen sex comedies on this list, and that is because they are fun and not usually deep. Just roll with it.

• Emma - The 2020 version. This is the second adaptation of Emma on this list! Jane Austen sure can make a good lil story!

• Enola Holmes - Millie Bobby Brown is out here solving mysteries, look at her go!

• The Emperor’s New Groove - This is the most entertaining Disney animated movie that currently exists. I am not taking any questions at this time.

• Ferris Bueller’s Day Off - Of all the movies on this list, this was the one mentioned by the most people when I asked for suggestions.

• Game Night - One of the best action comedies of the 21st century, hands down.

• Help! - The Beatles’ second film is weird, y’all. Paul gets shrunk down and wears a gum wrapper like it’s clothes.

• High School Musical 2 - My friend Grace suggested the whole trilogy, but I think the second one is the most downright delightful. They turned up the saturation and also the fun, am I right?

• Labyrinth - David Bowie + Jim Henson = match made in creative weirdo heaven

• The Lady Vanishes - This 1938 Alfred Hitchcock caper would’ve been a blockbuster if it came out today, and I would’ve seen it like five times in theaters.

• Legally Blonde - What, like it’s hard?!

• Little Shop of Horrors - This won’t make you cry, but might make you think about the fact that dentists exist, which is always upsetting.

• The Lizzie McGuire Movie - This movie is so good that I watched it twice in a row at a sleepover in 2003. That’s basically little Val’s equivalent to two thumbs up.

• Napoleon Dynamite - Is this movie more funny or stupid? Most of us decided one way or the other when it came out in 2004, but that was a long time ago, so maybe our opinions have changed.

• Night At The Museum - You know what they say: tiny Owen Wilson is the best medicine.

• The Princess Bride - For some reason, I feel like there’s something in this movie that would make me cry, but I can’t remember what it is. I can remember that the R.O.U.S.’ joke made me laugh my ass off the first time I saw it, though.

• The Princess Diaries*** - A truly transporting movie, and I say this with zero irony.  

• School of Rock - You’re not hardcore unless you live hardcore! This is the definition of a feel-good watch.

• She’s The Man - Peak Amanda Bynes! The tampon in the nose gag, a classic!

• Sing Street - A sweet, underrated musical coming-of-age movie about some Irish lads who make up a band to impress a girl.

• Singin’ in the Rain - Is this the best musical movie in history? I don’t know because I kind of hate musicals, but I don’t hate this one and I think that’s a good sign.

• Snakes on a Plane - The most 2006 movie to ever 2006. Sure, this can’t really be considered “light” because a bunch of people get killed by snakes, but it’s also campy as hell and zero percent scary.

• Some Like It Hot - One of the best comedies ever made, a gender-bending classic that holds up surprisingly well over a half-century later.

• Stuck in the Suburbs - Pretty much any Disney Channel Original Movie can and should be on this list, but in the interest of saving time, I’m just listing my favorite. This has Saturday Night Live alum Taran Killam playing a pop star.

• The To-Do List - The best teen sex comedy of all time, in my humble opinion.

• Wayne’s World - This stoner comedy speaks for itself, but if it’s not funny enough for you, let this weird context add a layer of humor: I used to act out complete scenes from this movie with my brother and neighbor when I was five years old, Pepsi hat and all.

• Weird: The Al Yankovic Story - It’s pretty much impossible to watch a music biopic with a straight face after this movie, and I’m not complaining.

• Wet Hot American Summer - There’s really nothing else like it.

• Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory - Okay, this one might make you cry from fear during the tunnel scene.

GAMES:

• Animal Crossing: New Horizons - I feel like you all know this one already.

• Disney Dreamlight Valley**** - Kind of like if AC:NH and Stardew Valley had a baby but that baby was cooler and more fun than either of its parents.

• Disney Emoji Blitz - I promise I’m not a Disney adult, Disney video games are just fun. This one is a mobile match game.

• Halloween Farm: Monster Family - This is kind of just a Farmville-like mobile game but everything is Halloween themed and there are monsters, which makes it somehow entertaining and not embarrassing.

• Hydro Thunder Hurricane - Per my friend Nova: “a fabulously silly speed boating game.”

• Neko Atsume - The cutest little cat-collecting game in the world! There’s also a hedgehog game from the same company but be warned that if you delete the app you lose all your progress.

• Neopets - I have been getting back into Neopets in a big way and it brings me joy every day. Nothing gives me that sweet dopamine hit quite like doing my silly little dailies.

• Ooblets - All my friends are playing this game and when they talk about it, it sounds like they’re speaking gibberish, which I think is fun.

• Picture Cross - A mindless mobile game that’s good for anxiety.

• Pocket Frogs - The most low-stakes game ever. You just fuckin’ catch frogs, man.

• Psychonauts - Colorful and funky, with graphics that look like a throwback to the original Playstation days.

• Solar - Per my friend Nova: “ a quiet meditative game where you’re a comet roaming the galaxy trying to become a planet.”

EVEN MORE MOVIE AND TV SUGGESTIONS FROM MY FRIENDS (that I either haven’t seen or haven’t recently vetted as cry-proof):

Austin Powers, Baby Mama, Barb and Star Go To Vista Del Mar, Best in Show, Better Off Ted, Billy Madison, Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs, Crossing Delancey, Dirty Grandpa, Down With Love, Dumb and Dumber, Ducktales (2017)*, Game Changer, Get Smart, Happy Gilmore, Heartbreakers, Hot Fuzz, Legends of Tomorrow, Letterkenny, Logan Lucky, The Lost City, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Music and Lyrics, My Cousin Vinny, Office Space, Paddington, Paper Moon, Psych, Regular Show, Rosaline, Rye Lane, The Sea Beast, Sky High, Something’s Gotta Give, Song of the Sea, Stardust, The Sweetest Thing, Taxi (1978), That Thing You Do, The Velocipastor, Walking and Talking, The Way Way Back, The Wedding Singer, We’re The Millers, Wedding Season, Wolfwalkers, Would I Lie To You?

ADDITIONAL CRYING CAVEATS:

*EDIT: commenters pointed out that at least one episode of each of these shows is a bummer.

**This show eventually has a love story that will make you cry in a good way. The specific episodes that made me cry are 4x06, 4x13, and 6x14.

***There is a dead dad offscreen in this movie but if you get too sad about it, just remember that he is alive and well and very annoying in the book series on which the film is based.

****There’s a weird plot in this game where some characters can’t remember each other until you help them, and it’s not meant to be particularly sad but it reminds me of dementia, so there’s that.

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Thanks to Grace, Ryan, BJ, Nova, Catt, Jess, Erin, James, Cecily, Bee, Dana, Rachel, Danielle, and Zoe for additional recommendations for this post. A note to subscribers: I usually paywall every third post, but I’m making an exception for this post, which means Sunday’s newsletter will be subscriber-only. Thanks!