The COVID-19 pandemic has forced us to stay home and distance ourselves from other people so we can keep as many people as possible safe. Having to stay inside and sometimes be alone can be very difficult and mentally draining, but everyone should try to be productive and keep their mind from all the negativity. I have a list of five shows that will keep you occupied for a while and distract you!
- Elite
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Elite is a Spanish Netflix thriller show that follows three poor students who are given scholarships to an elite school where they meet multiple rich students who are less than excited about the new kids’ arrivals. Thanks to all this tension, drama ensues. The show so far has three seasons and each focuses on a mystery. As the episodes progress, we are given more information on what happens and come closer to solving the mystery. Elite is addictive from the first second of the first episode and is the perfect show to watch while you are staying at home as you will become completely absorbed in a new world that will hopefully help you forget a little bit about our current sad reality.
- Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan
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Jack Ryan is a political thriller that tells the story of a CIA analyst, Jack Ryan, who is led into the field after he discovers bank transfers that are tied to an Islamic extremist group. So far there are two seasons of Jack Ryan that, as soon as you start watching, you’ll want to finish. The episodes are addictive and keep you on the edge of your seat and are also a good form of distraction, as you are able to travel with the characters to the different places where the show was filmed. Overall, Jack Ryan is an engaging, action-packed show.
- Vagabond
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Vagabond is an action thriller. The story features a mysterious plane crash in which over 200 civilians are killed, including the main character Cha Dal-Gun’s nephew. After convinced that the crash was anything but an accident, Cha Dal-Gun begins to investigate alongside NIS (National Intelligence Service) agent, Go Hae-Ri. They become tangled in a web of national, political corruption. This show is insane and episode after episode, you discover things you were not expecting and could never have imagined.
- Meteor Garden
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Meteor Garden is a 49 episode soap opera that tells the story of Don Shan Cai, an ordinary girl, who gets accepted into the most prestigious university in China. While attending university, she meets F4, an elite group composed of the four most popular boys in the institution. She instantly clashes with the leader of F4, Dao Ming Si, but as the episodes go by, they start to fall in love. Meteor Garden is a soap opera worthy of its name; it has all the drama founded in the enjoyable surreal-ness of the characters’ lives. It is a good show to pass time as you are staying home and taking a break from being productive. Additionally, the show is more lighthearted than the thrillers I have recommended so far.
- One Day at a Time
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One Day at a Time is a sitcom that tells the story of the Alvarez family, a Cuban-American family who lives in the United States. The story focuses on the mother, Penelope, how she raises her kids and her life with her mother. One Day at a Time is very different from your usual sitcom as it talks about issues like mental health, racism, alcoholism and sexual orientation. While dealing with all those issues, it never fails to make you laugh. 100% recommended as a social distancing show.