Maybe a little darker but I do like hanging out with the bromance coupling on Lonesome Dove and on HBO’s Rome.
Same here. I’ve been watching NG, Voyager, Enterprise and DS9 in a constant loop for years now. I’ll sometimes put the show on just to use as background noise to go to sleep to.
If Netflix ever drops them, I will weep.
After Midsommer Murders switched over to the new detective, I really began to miss the Barnaby family, so I wound up purchasing most of the earlier series on DVD. Spending more time with Tom, Joyce, and Cully!
Has Big Bang Theory been mentioned yet? *** Frasier***? Fawlty Towers? Gilligan’s Island? Dick van Dyke? Batman? Columbo?
Lately, it’s been The Greatest American Hero for me, flaws and all. Also Firefly and Alien Nation.
I came in here to say that the show isn’t that good writing-wise, but I enjoy mostly all the characters and they’re really the only reason I’ll still watch.
I thought of another one: Wings, about the little airport on Nantucket.
I just have to say, ThelmaLou, how much I always enjoy your threads. (Also your contributions to them.) This thread has given me a lot of new places to visit when I need to have a break from reality. It’s also reassuring to know that other people put the TV on to familiar shows as background; I thought maybe it was just me.
And I forgot to mention MASH. If Alan Alda can’t make you feel better about life, no one can.
Quite a few:
- Queer as Folk. I live near an area similar to Liberty Avenue in the show.
- Poirot. A fascinating glimpse into the past, not sure I’d really like to live there, but it’s fun to imagine while watching the show as well as reading the novels.
- Murder She Wrote. Who wouldn’t want a relative like Jessica Fletcher.
I never thought about it as liking to hang out with the characters, but there are definitely shows I’ll watch over and over.
There are two British comedies I watch repeatedly, that seem to never get old: The IT Crowd and Black Books.
I frequently go on Aaron Sorkin benders: it usually starts with The West Wing, then Sports Night, then Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip (The Newsroom doesn’t make this list; I’ve tried re-watching it, but it’s not like the others). I’ve seen every episode of those shows many, many times.
Less frequent are Joss Whedon benders: those usually start with Firefly, then selected episodes of Buffy. It’s rare for me to re-watch all of Buffy or Angel, but not unheard of. I actually like Whedon more than Sorkin; I’m not sure why I re-watch his stuff less often. (Maybe because I get more emotionally invested in his 'verses…?)
I also re-watch St. Elsewhere* every so often; in fact, I’m currently about halfway through Season 5 and will finish most of the rest of that season today.
I’ve recently re-watched all of Frasier, Friends, and Wings. I love them, but need time between viewings.
I’m thinking it might almost be time to re-watch The Wire (I’ve seen it twice). I’ve also been thinking about re-watching ***Carnivale *** (I’ve only seen it once) and ***Treme ***(also only seen it once).
*Only Season 1 has ever been released on VHS/DVD, but I have bootleg copies from when the series aired on public television – in order, in its entirety – about 24 years ago. I have 135 out of 137 episodes.
Actually, Cheers probably would be my number one in this category. I could almost second Peep Show, but I"m not sure if I like hanging out with the characters so much as enjoy watching their failures and pratfalls.
Yeah, this is a difficult one to not include, for me.
The Sam and Diane thing, the whole thing … 
The friendship between the main characters in Reaper and in Warehouse 13 both make those shows worth watching. (Warehouse 13, otherwise, doesn’t have a ton to recommend it - though it’s not bad). I wouldn’t necessarily say that I’d want to hang out with them - particularly not the Reaper crew, but it’s nice to see a strong bond between the people performing. Like, even without all the explosions and fast cars, the Top Gear trio would still be fun to watch, just because they get along so well. Again, I probably wouldn’t want to hang out with them, but the relationship is fun to watch.
I do like Nina, the demoness on Reaper. I’d hang out with her. 
The actress really captured a quirky, malevolent, caring cattiness that’s downright cute. Unfortunately, none of the other shows she’s been in have appealed to me enough to even try watching.
American Dad.
Also, The Incredibles.
Well, Parker was only nominally human at the start. The best part of the show was watching all 5 of them change and grow through the years.
ME! I have absolutely no desire to be charged with murder, even if the psychopath serial killer did end up getting me off by pinning her crime on someone else.
Me too. This is one of my favorite binge watches and I have made the rounds a few times.
Old and geeky, I guess, but I’ve rewatched Babylon 5 through four or five times over the years, in small part because I do like to hang out with the characters, and because it’s one of the very few fictional universes I’d like to John Carter into. 
Yeah, but would you invite her to your next birthday party? :dubious:
Northern Exposure is one of these
Rat Patrol. The only thing comparable to manning the gun turrets on the Millennium Falcon would be cruising around North Africa in jeeps with Sgt Troy and crew, blowing Nazi convoys away with .50 calibre machine guns!