Recommend: Upbeat, positive TV shows for Adults

[Amaris]

All I've seen lately is a lot of grimdark programming. That seems to be what all of these show creators want to do, is create a very grim, depressing world. Even shows I normally like, somebody is often killed, or somebody dies in some horrifying way, and it's getting very old. I'm not normally a fan of violence, anyway.

So does anyone know of any modern (post 2010) TV shows for adults where no one is murdered, and no one dies? Something positive? Upbeat? Fun?

 

[dahj]

Brooklyn Nine-Nine.

Though technically there are dead people in it occasionally, it being a cop show

 

[Spot's Meow]

Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. It's an odd little show, a comedy/musical/drama/satire all at once. It's also brightly lit and makes me smile, and some of the songs end up being very catchy. I know the premise and format seem weird, but give it a shot and you won't be disappointed.

Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. Another comedy, very positive and fun.

It's hard to think of examples that aren't comedies. TV creators nowadays seem to think that drama=dark and depressing. When I want to watch something upbeat or at least not a downer, I usually have to turn to older shows like The Wonder Years, Full House, Family Ties, etc.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

I'll always come back to Corner Gas. It's my favorite show of all time.

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[Balok's Decoy]

The Good Place

The Great British Baking Show

Toast of London

 

[Owain Taggart]

I'll always come back to Corner Gas. It's my favorite show of all time.

Good choice. Yeah, that's a classic.

Possibly my favourite episode:

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And yeah, I second The Good Place.

 

[JirinPanthosa]

The Good Place is a good upbeat show but violates the no death rule a lot.

I think an issue with dramas is if you don’t make it dark it comes off as less realistic and believable. What is your criteria for upbeat, every episode having happy endings or just not painting a strictly negative view of humanity?

If you like game shows, The Wall is an endless cycle of making you like people then handing them hundreds of thousands of dollars.

 

[1001001]

Brooklyn Nine-Nine and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt are both excellent choices.

Without a doubt, however, the most sweet, uplifting, positive show that's also funny as Hell, is....




Parks and Recreation.

 

[Amaris]

Oh wow, thanks guys! Regarding Parks & Rec, I saw the first few episodes and loved it, I just never got back to it, so you've reminded me to go back and start watching it full tilt. I've never seen The Good Place, but it sounds interesting, same for Brooklyn Nine Nine, and there are other really good suggestions here. I'll check them all out.

I still can't believe I forgot about Parks and Rec, because I love Amy Poehler. I watched the heck out of Tina Fey's 30 Rock, which was a blast. I can only imagine P&R being just as funny, if not funnier. **

The Good Place is a good upbeat show but violates the no death rule a lot.

I think an issue with dramas is if you don’t make it dark it comes off as less realistic and believable. What is your criteria for upbeat, every episode having happy endings or just not painting a strictly negative view of humanity?

If you like game shows, The Wall is an endless cycle of making you like people then handing them hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Well, when I say 'no death' (and I should have specified in my OP, sorry about that) I mean more along the lines of "she's been murdered!" or "Frank, you've stabbed 30 people. You're going to fry for sure, and I can't wait to watch" and so on. I don't like that kind of thing. I like uplifting stories, where love, kindness, mercy, and compassion, these things ultimately triumph.





**None of these titles have been italicized, because ain't nobody got time for that.

 

[JirinPanthosa]

Ok, I was considering The Good Wife, because it's a show with an equal amount of positivity and negativity, and there is some death but not frequent death.

House is also a borderline thing. Because 90% of the patients do have their lives saved, but it's also extremely critical of human nature, and a lot of the arcs don't turn out great for the main characters. Plus two major characters die and two more have diseases that doom them to death soon after.

Community is hilarious, mostly positive, though occasionally goes to some dark places because a few of the characters have serious emotional issues, episodes always end on positive notes. Parks & Rec has no death (Among humans at least, with one exception of a 100 year old who dies with a happy fulfilled life) and the later you go in the show, the more positive it gets. Season one is depressing but last season is extremely uplifting.

 

[Owain Taggart]

The Good Place is a good upbeat show but violates the no death rule a lot.

Haha, well only when you consider it actually takes place in what is supposed to be heaven. However, I think the show's more about finding one's place.

The OP's question is actually a pretty good one, as I've found that even on some shows that have been pretty benign in the past, like Murdoch Mysteries for instance, have gotten increasingly gruesome.

 

[Snaploud]

Add another recommendation for The Good Place. I would also recommend Black-ish.

 

[bigdaddy]

It's from 2004 but when I'm sick of death I watch Wonderfalls. So underrated.

 

[Greg Cox]

The Librarians? People occasionally get killed on the show, but it's whimsical fantasy violence and never gets too gory or brutal.

"Oh no, a redshirt just got disintegrated by a magic emerald! And the bad guy just got eaten by a giant CGI crododile! Or buried alive beneath an ancient Mayan temple!"

That kind of thing.

 

[Timewalker]

Good choice. Yeah, that's a classic.

Possibly my favourite episode:

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Heh, my aunt used to live in Vegreville.


Unfortunately, the current climate for TV shows seems to be dark, gloomy, and violent.

I recently rewatched a bunch of Are You Being Served Again? episodes (aka Grace and Favor). It's an old series, but nobody gets murdered.

 

[Owain Taggart]

Oh, just thought of another recommendation. Galavant. A fantasy musical comedy. Nothing about it is too serious. It's just plain fun

 

[Sparkle Fabulosa]

I second Crazy Ex-Girlfriend and Galavant!

 

[Balok's Decoy]

Reiterating Toast of London because it's so damn funny and light-hearted. I feel like I'm the only person who likes this show. It's on Netflix, people!

Also it has a fun DSC connection in Clem Fandango.

 

[Amaris]

Thank you for the recommendations! Now, I will say I have watched Galavant, and I thoroughly loved it. It was exactly the kind of silly fun I had hoped to see when I had watched the pilot a few years back.

 

[1001001]

Oh wow, thanks guys! Regarding Parks & Rec, I saw the first few episodes and loved it, I just never got back to it, so you've reminded me to go back and start watching it full tilt. I've never seen The Good Place, but it sounds interesting, same for Brooklyn Nine Nine, and there are other really good suggestions here. I'll check them all out.

I still can't believe I forgot about Parks and Rec, because I love Amy Poehler. I watched the heck out of Tina Fey's 30 Rock, which was a blast. I can only imagine P&R being just as funny, if not funnier. **

Well, nothing is as funny as 30 Rock, but it's close. It also has more heart.

This is the show that made Chris Pratt famous. His character has a great arc.

Definitely check it out. The whole series is on Netflix.

I just started The Good Place, so I can't comment on that yet.