I’ve also loved Twice in a lifetime (obscure Canadian series); Quantum Leap; and the Wonder Years.
Like:
Light and mostly upbeat; you can count on crying (happily) at the end
Poetic narration at the end (Wonder Years, 80s TZ episodes) is a bonus
Heavy handed lessons very welcome; as are simplistic plots.
Dislike:
Overt, pushing Christianity. Touched like an Angel would be my #1 show of all time if they removed all the over the top jesus references (“I’m here to tell you that Jesus lobes you”). I respect that spiritual jewish guys like myself aren’t the target!
Can’t deal with cynicism, open-end endings, and hell no on gritty, depressing, dark storylines.
I can give up sci fi/fantasy for something good. Love Boat, for example.
-Todd
Thanks very much for help! It’s my annual bachelor month and i am running out of choices. I think we have to go deep into the archives.
[ul]
[li]Drop Dead Diva is exactly what you’re looking for.[/li][li]Leverage is a fun heist show. No fantasy element, though.[/li][li]Hu$tle is the UK equivalent of Leverage.[/li][li]Psych. No explanation needed.[/li][li]Perception is the standard murder-mystery trope of a perky woman Detective and an unorthodox male interlope who becomes their crime-solving partner. In this case he has hallucinations that stem from clues he saw that don’t add up.[/li][li]Limitless is also part of this trope, as is Forever, and plenty of others.[/li][li]Moone Boy. An Irish comedy about a boy and his imaginary friend.[/li][li]Detectorists, a couple of loveable Brits who go detectoring for treasure in the English countryside. A gem.[/li][/ul]
All good, I tried Wonderfalls and Joan of Arcadia. Premises were great, especially Joan but both were too out there, and more on the sarcastic side (than the sappy, simplistic morality tales i want). Maybe I’m too Gen X for most shows after 1993.
Highway to Heaven is nicely heavy handed, it sometimes moves too slow (and has a 70s look and feel) but some I love the way Landon delivers the messages and most end happy and teary. 90% of the time he veers from overly blunt Christianity - even though obviously the premise is Christian. Or maybe i can buy into it because Landon was Jewish (like me).
Touched by An Angel has the same “God loves you” speech in every episode and it ruins it for me. Plus all the bible quotes and references. Again not to hate… just wasn’t my upbringing and not for me. It’s too bad because the stories / concept is perfect. in a few cases, the stories are so good i can ignore the religious overtones.
I’m also checking out Providence. i don’t think it has fantasy elements but it looks simplistic and heartwarming. I can trade off.
Ghost Whisperer I’ll post after i try an episode. I’m not sure the darker, solving murders episodes will delight but the ones where she delivers messages to bring closure to people dead and alive look right up my alley.
Huh, really? It seems like he was pretty much “the Christian actor”, back in the 80s. When you wanted to make a show with a Message, he’s the guy you got.
Pushing Daisies is still one of my all-time favorite shows, though I’ll warn the OP that its sense of humor is on the quirky (and sometimes macabre) side. Even so, at least give the first episode (“Pie-lette”) a try.
Probably closer in tone to the OP’s wish list would be “The Librarians.”
He also became “spiritual”, which ends up looking more like Christianity than Judaism. So while I don’t think he ever disavowed his Jewish background, the way he expressed his faith looked more Christian, in the sense of a personal deity heavily invested in your personal well-being.
OP, what about something like The Golden Girls or Empty Nest? Those were good, lighthearted 1980s shows, with friendly plots and a feel-good message.
Pushing Daisies is too out there for me. The theme song is warm and fuzzy but it seems more like a wild fable (like the film Big Fish).
Ghost Whisperer is tempting. i watched episode 1, pilot. I didn’t like the first 25 minutes, with the symbols and horrific looking ghosts suddenly appearing. Once she met the (living) people she was supposed to help, i liked it (happy familiar territory of Highway, Touched where Landon tries to convince his assignments why they should bend). The last 10 minutes were tearjerkers. And then they ruined it at the very end with the ghost appearing from the next episode. I don’t think this one will work. Later episodes seem to be about solving murders and meeting mean ghosts. No thanks.
Has anyone seen Promised Land? (1996-9).
From the same exec producer as Touched by an Angel but supposedly religiosity watered down, seems to be the case from a few short segments i watched on YouTube.
I’d also like to try Providence (1993)
But cannot even find a sample to try it before i go buy from an obscure website. Thoughts welcome!
How about Northern Exposure? It’s a bit vintage by this point, but very very sweet. Starts off straight, but includes more and more bizarre fantasy elements as the series progresses.
