From 'The Walking Dead' to 'Kingdom', here are 5 TV shows you should NOT watch during coronavirus lockdown
Disclaimer: We are not asking you to give the below-mentioned series a complete miss. These could be, instead, tabled for a later time
The year 2020 has been one where almost every month suffered a setback. If Kobe Bryant's death in January was the first blow to the world, the outbreak of coronavirus has been the headliner throughout February and, if anything, it has only gotten stronger.
Precautionary measures are being taken and as far as the media universe goes, most TV series and movies have halted production and pushed their release dates until normal activities can resume. At this stage, it is safe to say that the world has hit the lockdown button.
Now that there's enough context established. Lockdown means a rather quiet period. Be it just chilling or working from home, this means catching up on movies and series that were on the watchlist for quite some time.
And this article, keeping your best interests at heart, has compiled the list of top five shows you need to stay away from watching. Believe us when we say we have our reasons.
'The Walking Dead' and 'Fear the Walking Dead'
Coronavirus may not be the start of the zombie apocalypse. However, such is its rapid influence that drawing parallels are common, easy and, honestly, quite alarming.
AMC's 'The Walking Dead' is a post-apocalyptic horror story based on the comic book series by Robert Kirkman, Tony Moore and Charlie Adlard. The series sees an ensemble cast fend off zombies known as the walkers. Currently in its tenth season, 'The Walking Dead' has been one of the network's longest-running top shows.
'Fear the Walking Dead' is the prequel to 'The Walking Dead' created by Robert Kirkman and Dave Erickson. The series follows an entirely different set of characters and is renewed for a sixth season.
'The Last Ship'
Another classic tale of a virus wiping out mankind. 'The Last Ship' revolves around a virus that brings an end to 80% of the population in the world. The series also brings in real-life threats in the form of Al-Qaeda prisoners in addition to combating the virus.
The official synopsis according to Rotten Tomatoes reads: "Commander Tom Chandler (Eric Dane) and his crew are joined on the ship by two virologists, Drs Rachel Scott (Rhona Mitra) and Quincy Tophet (Sam Spruell), who have been tasked with the grave responsibility of collecting samples of the virus and developing a vaccine."
"After learning that the ship is the only safe haven from the deadly illness, the crew heads to the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base in order to collect food and supplies, but they are forced to fight back against escaped al-Qaeda prisoners."
The passengers aboard the naval ship must continue to defend themselves from danger when a Russian cruiser attacks the USS Nathan James and attempts to steal the doctors' research that is essential to finding a cure."
'Kingdom'
Netflix wasn't far behind when it came to creating content based on plagues. Their original debuted in January 2019 and follows a kingdom filled with crime, famine and corruption.
Worsening the situation is the news of a king's death and a strange plague that makes the infected immune to death and also giving them a hunger for flesh. The South Korean series is quite relatable and, given the widespread panic, this Kim Seong-hun-helmed series is better off unseen. We'd recommend 'Stranger Things' instead.
'12 Monkeys'
Loosely based on the '95 cult classic film of the same name, the Syfy series developed by Terry Matalas and Travis Fickett is a drama that sees a time traveler from a rather bleak post-apocalyptic future travel back in time to 2015 to save the earth from a plague that wipes out 93.6% of humanity.
Again, a part horror, part thriller series that can be given a miss. If you're an Amanda Schull fan, watch 'Suits' instead.
'American Horror Story'
It may be an anthology series, but 'American Horror Story' does cover enough to send a shiver down your spine. Season 8 lends a connect with the opener's synopsis reading: "In the wake of the nuclear apocalypse, a select group survives in a sealed bunker. As tensions rise, the occupants question whether the real hell is outside, or locked in with them."
While there may not be a missile bursting through from a silo, the chaos, horror, gore, and blood-curdling screams maybe a tad disturbing. After all, the coronavirus is depressing in itself. This one's okay to give a miss.
War of the Worlds'
A reimagined version of the classic HG Wells tale. There have been enough adaptations of the cult story and irrespective of platforms, the intergalactic threat saga never gets old.
Tom Cruise wading his way through, weaving in and out of the city, eluding death rays in Spielberg's hit 2005 part-thriller, part-horror flick of the same name, and the three-part BBC miniseries 'The War of the Worlds', and Edwardian period adaptation were solid examples of why this storyline could be borrowed time and again.
This is more than a repeat though. The brute killing, the grim tone and the metallic aliens aren't definitely going to induce laughs.