When sick, I love to watch TV. As sick season is now upon us, I’ve started wondering, what makes a show good to watch while sick? So, I consulted Lincoln students (the wisest people I know) to find out what types of shows they watch while sick.
I found that generally people like shows that don’t require too much thinking; something that’s easy to pick up and put down, and whose plot isn’t too complex. Typically, this manifests in one of three ways: 1, an action-heavy show; 2, a romcom; or 3, a show from your childhood.
Action heavy shows are great because they’re exciting, but don’t require you to follow the plot too closely. While Finn Luebbe (12) doesn’t have a specific show that he watches while he’s sick, he looks for media that is, “highly entertaining, with non-stop action 24/7.”
Louie Roberson (11) also prefers to watch action shows, and has a personal favorite to watch while sick: Daredevil. He recommends it as he feels the shows’ action makes it much more exciting.
However, many of the folks I interviewed weren’t looking for something as exciting. Quite a few prefer calmer shows when sick, such as Evelyn Byrne (10).
Evelyn recommended American Housewife saying, “it’s really funny, but also it’s dry humor so it’s not like you’re going to start laughing and then coughing.” She went on to say that American Housewife is “funny if you want it to be funny, but it’s not if you don’t.”
Maddie Manville (11) also said she prefers “something really easy to follow, that’s not too loud and crazy.” She said that she felt romance and comedy fit well within those criteria.
Ceci Roupp (10) felt similarly, saying that she thought good shows to watch while sick should be “comforting, and not too intense.” Ceci doesn’t like action shows as much while she’s sick, but prefers “cozy, chill” shows, such as Gilmore Girls.
On that same cozy vibe, Ilaria Kaiser (12) likes shows that she can “fall asleep to,” and likes watching “something I’ve already watched, so I don’t have to be paying attention all the time” while sick. She said that typically she would watch Disney Movies as they often filled those requirements.
This is in line with the largest response I got by far: when they’re sick, students enjoy watching shows from their childhood.
Whenever Elle Doppelt (11) isn’t feeling her best, she likes to watch Barbie in a Mermaid Tale, as she watched Barbie throughout her childhood whenever she was sick.
Jayden Dance (11) and Madeliene Rosenfeld (12) shared that they love to watch My Little Pony when they’re sick, because of the simple but sweet plot. Jayden said that My Little Pony was a good show because “it’s about friendship and adventure”, and simply because “it makes me happy.”
Madeliene felt the same way, as she said due to its “wholesome” vibe, it helped make her feel “less depressed about the economic situation of the world.” She also said that many other kids shows were good to watch for this same reason, such as Dinosaur Train.
In fact, the desire for a simple show to watch while sick seems to be universal. Whether it is full of action, humor, or illustrated pegasi and unicorns, we all want to watch something that allows us to relax and fall into a different world, far from our earthly concerns.
While I don’t wish for any of you to get sick, I hope that if you do, you find yourself curled up under some blankets, with snacks and a good show. Truly, shows hit different when you’re sick.
P.S. If you’re looking for something a little less relaxing, Jayden and Elle also mentioned that sometimes they’ll watch horror movies when sick. Elle recommended The Visit, as she said “Last time I was sick, I watched The Visit. Crazy movie, really good though.”
