The torrid summer of 2022 would seem to be over and we are gradually returning to work or school.
Usually the summer season is characterized by outings with friends, sun, sea, beach and of course relaxation. It is therefore a period in which even the most avid cinephiles and televisions leave their greatest passion aside, allowing themselves a moment of well-deserved rest. This is obviously favored, too, by the scarce releases of films in cinemas or of important titles for TV or streaming platforms.
Just think of Netflix which in the summer months focused everything on Stranger Things and in August on The Sandman , in particular the latter was an unexpected success especially considering the month in which it was distributed.
HBO has instead decided to preside over the summer schedule by launching, in the month of August, one of the most anticipated series of the year: House Of The Dragon , a prequel spin-off of Game Of Thrones .
The time frame comprising the end of summer and the beginning of autumn is not easy for everyone and what better way to deal with it than to spend the evenings watching (or reliving) some television series? Here are some tips for TV series perfect for the gloomy autumn season, which has just begun.
1- A mother as a friend
Designed by Amy-Sherman Palladino and her husband Daniel Palladino (the same authors of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel ), Una Mamma per Amica represents one of the comfort series par excellence and is certainly perfect for the autumn season. Set in the fictional and (mostly) quaint town of Stars Hollow , the show chronicles the intense bond between Lorelai Gilmore ( Lauren Graham ) and her daughter Di lei Rory ( Alexis Bledel ). Lorelai, from a respectable family, became pregnant before finishing school; the woman decided to raise her daughter on her own strength, thus far from the wealthy environment of her parents. Fate, however, is mocking: in order to pay Chilton , a prestigious school in which Rory has been admitted thanks to her excellent results, Lorelai will be forced to ask them for financial help.
The series in addition to having institutionalized a language that has entered the collective imagination, such as the famous “Friday dinners”, is also characterized by many episodes having as their main theme autumn, Halloween, thanksgiving and this is one of the reasons why it is perfect for the period. All 7 seasons of the series are available on Netflix , as is the revival of the series ( A Mom to a Friend: Together Again ) produced by the platform in 2016.
2- Call me Anna
Based on the famous novel “Anna With Red Hair” by Lucy Maud , Call Me Anna is a Canadian series consisting of three seasons and present on the Netflix platform . The show tells the story of Anna Shirley ( Amybeth McNulty ) who was orphaned from early childhood, after spending many years in an orphanage, the girl is sent to live by mistake in the home of two elderly brothers: Marilla and Matthew Cuthber . The latter initially wary of little Anna , will soon understand her goodness of mind that distinguishes her and will also be able to become very fond of her.Call me Anna is characterized by the successful mix between the traditional style of the novel and the more current and modern one, in fact there are many themes of our days to be the background to Anna ‘s events . For example, the feminist imprint given to the narrative but also the allusion to themes such as pedophilia and Sapphic love.
Furthermore, the aestheticism in this series is a very important feature, as demonstrated by the countless autumn landscapes represented. Anna herself in a famous scene from the series utters these words: ” I’m so glad to live in a world where there are Octobers, aren’t you?” , as if to underline the enormous importance given by the series to autumn and the discoloration of the leaves during this season.
3- The terrifying adventures of Sabrina
2018 was the year of witches on television, among the many titles offered there was the original Netflix production The terrifying adventures of Sabrina , which lasted 4 seasons. The series tells the story of the teenager Sabrina Spellman ( Kiernan Shipka ), being half human and half witch on the day of her sixteenth birthday, the girl will have to perform a dark ritual to definitively become a witch and go to study in the magic academy. But Sabrina likes to live in her mortal town Di lei Greendale, she has friends but above all also a boy and she is determined not to abandon them. Over the course of the episodes will you be definitively faced with a choice, to give in to the charm of “evil” or to stay in the human world?
To direct her decision will be her aunts Hilda and Zelda but also Salem , a magical creature with the appearance of a cat who has the task of protecting her. There will be many pitfalls that Sabrina will face in the course of the episodes and seasons, with an increasingly dark plot. The terrifying adventures of Sabrina is a series taken from the comic of the same name and for this reason it also has a connection with the Riverdale show . However, having aired on different networks, the two titles were not subject to crossover as one might expect at first. Although things changed after Sabrina endedwhich took place in 2021.
4- American horror story
Along with Glee , Ryan Murphy ‘s most popular show is undoubtedly American Horror Story . Since its debut in 2011 it has represented a bit of the forerunner of a type that has been well tested in recent years: that of the anthological series. Although with a very often recurring cast in the names, in American Horror Story each season stages a different story with always new plots and characters, also providing a subtitle explaining the horror theme.
The first, for example, is entitled Murder House and tells the story of a house haunted by ghosts; the second, universally recognized as one of the most successful, has Asylum as its subtitle , the story is in fact set in a dark asylum. Over the years Ryan Murphy has decided to combine the seasons into a single universe, for example the eighth is the result of a crossover between the first ( Murder House ) and the third ( Coven ). The show is obviously characterized by creepy and horror atmospheres with many episodes set on Halloween, but also by an artistic style recognized as one of the sources of success. In addition to launching Evan Peters ‘ acting career, now starring in Dahmer – Monster: The Story of Jeffrey Dahmer , American Horror Story in the various seasons boasts a first-rate cast with names like Jessica Lange , Kathy Bates , Sarah Paulson and Lady Gaga . In Italy the series is present entirely on the Disney + platform .
5- Modern Love
Produced by the Amazon Prime Video platform and based on real testimonials published by a weekly column in the New Yok Times , Modern Love immediately stood as a series eager to tell love in all its forms. This is also an anthological show but structurally more similar to Black Mirror , in fact each episode (lasting about 30 minutes) tells different stories that really happened. One of the most successful elements in Modern Love , beyond the great relevance to reality, is certainly the characterization of the characters.
The spectators almost always manage to become attached to the protagonists of the events narrated in the course of the episodes. How not to mention the poignant story of Lexi (a fantastic Anne Hathaway ), who due to her bipolarity struggles to establish lasting relationships with men. Or the story told in ” Strangers on a (Dublin) Train” , the third episode of the second season featuring a boy and a girl who met on a train during the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic and precisely because of the latter never met later. Modern Love , in addition to warming the heart, is the classic series to watch with a cup of hot chocolate and while it is raining outside.