How to Find Your Next TV Obsession

I was late to the party and only watched Bridgerton a few weeks ago. Mostly because I'm always hesitant to start a new show (more on that later).

When I finally saw it, Bridgerton was the perfect mix of fantasy, confection, escapism, and dramatic romance. As someone who watches many historical TV shows and films, it was also powerful to see diversity in the cast from such a typically whitewashed genre.

If you enjoyed Bridgerton for its escapism and romance, your next binge-watch should be A Discovery of Witches.

Here’s the synopsis from the show’s page on Sundance Now:

Brilliant historian Diana Bishop is a witch denying her own heritage. But when she unexpectedly calls up an ancient, bewitched manuscript from Oxford’s Bodleian library, one that was thought by the creatures to be lost and could answer the mysteries of their existence, she finds herself thrown into the heart of a dangerous mystery – and into the path of the enigmatic geneticist and vampire Matthew Clairmont. Matthew is driven to solve the looming threat of the creatures’ decline and extinction, but their unlikely alliance to find the book before it falls into the wrong hands – and their deepening relationship – threatens to violate age-old taboos and shake the fragile peace that exists between the species.

Like Bridgerton, the show is based on a book series (the All Souls Trilogy by Deborah Harkness). Did you love Bridgerton's historical setting? You’ll get a different spin on that with A Discovery of Witches. Harkness is a historian with expertise in the history of magic and science. She infuses that background throughout the story. For lovers of history, A Discovery of Witches is well-worth your time.

Trust me. I can’t jump into a series without taking on a massive time commitment. So I have to be particular about pressing play.

Case in point: Since watching Bridgerton over just two days, I have read all eight books, all four prequels, and another of the author's books set in the same universe. I had never even picked up a romance novel before this. When I like something, my time commitment goes well beyond just watching the show.

Because TV shows are so time-intensive for me, I've had to figure out a reliable formula to help me decide what to watch next.

This is the TL;DR version:

A) Is it based on history?

• This can include actual events or historical fiction.

B) Does it have magic?

• The swords and dragons kind, not the card trick variety.

C) Does A or B apply, and is it based on book series?

• Anyone who watched season eight of Game of Thrones understands the benefits of having a book for source material.
• Books make the wait between seasons easier to bear. This is especially important now because of all the COVID-related production delays.

D) Skip it if it takes place in a school

• For some reason, I have no desire to relive high school.

If a show meets these criteria, there's a good bet I'll enjoy it.

Here are a few shows that fit the formula:

• The Americans (Amazon Prime Video)
• Outlander (Starz)
• The Witcher (Netflix)
• The Last Kingdom (Netflix)
• Vikings (Amazon Prime Video)

Casting directors, take note: These shows all lack the diversity of Bridgerton. Audiences want and deserve to see more inclusive and reflective casting, particularly in the fantasy and history genres that have lagged far behind.

We could just stop here with the formula and the list. If you have similar taste to me, that list should give you hours of entertainment. But, if you’re as prone to taking your TV fandom too far as I am, you might want to stick around for the extended edition. Because what I'm really looking for is a TV show that inspires new interests and experiences. Sometimes, that means stepping away from my formula and taking a risk with my time. For me, the real mark of an excellent series is how many rabbit holes it sends me down. When you let them, shows can bring more to your life than just eight to ten well-crafted episodes.

The best way to explain this is by telling you what happened when I watched A Discovery of Witches. If you can believe it, my obsessive behavior was even worse than when I watched Bridgerton.

First, I watched the whole first season in one day. I was dying to find out what happened to the characters but needed to wait for a weekend to watch the next season. I’m no TV cheater, and my husband didn’t have time to watch it during the week. Given the circumstances, I had no choice about the books. I had to read them all, just like with Bridgerton.

You won't be surprised to learn that I didn’t stop at the books. Once I was done reading them, I moved right on to the audiobooks. And the next thing I knew, I was watching cast interviews on YouTube.

Honestly, this is how bad I get when I really like a show. It’s like when you love a song so much you play it until you never want to hear it again. I told you, starting a new show is really bad for my time management.

Eventually, my A Discovery of Witches YouTube endeavors brought me to a special episode of The Wine Show @ HOME (the COVID-era version of The Wine Show).

You can probably tell from the title that it doesn’t follow my usual formula.

Here’s the connection. Matthew Goode, who plays the love interest Matthew Clairmont in A Discovery of Witches, is also a presenter on The Wine Show. So they did an episode with him sampling wines that Matthew Clairmont (a wine connoisseur in the A Discovery of Witches universe) would have in his wine cellar.

Do you see where this is going? I now have a wine app on my phone. I have opinions about Pinot Noir. I have made so many charcuterie and cheese boards that I may actually be sick of cheese. Who knew that was even possible?

I fully acknowledge that my kind of obsessive behavior is probably a character flaw. But it’s also enriched my life in so many ways that I really can’t feel bad about it. It’s given me new hobbies, gotten me back into reading fiction, and given me a way to keep myself from doom-scrolling my way through the pandemic. I just have to be careful about what I watch. That doesn’t mean I can’t veer off course every once in a while. The Wine Show may have been outside of my usual formula. Still, it was a fantastic break from fiction before I started Bridgerton. And I never would have found it without falling into total fixation over A Discovery of Witches. Knowing what you like matters -- and so does being open to something different. So, my fellow obsessives, dive into a universe and see where it takes you. Just be ready for the time commitment.