LHS students and faculty are constantly in need of a new show to watch. Since television is becoming increasingly accessible with DVR, Netflix, and other services, people are able to watch more TV than ever. Last issue, I featured The Office, Grey’s Anatomy, and Stranger Things as the top shows that everyone should be watching. Here are this issues recommendations.

Glee is a musical mix of comedy and drama that follows the lives a group of ambitious and talented students from their experience in the glee club at McKinley High School to their lives after graduation. When Spanish teacher Will Schuester (Matthew Morrison) becomes the director of the dying glee club, he hopes to be able to revitalize both the club and his failing marriage. The club faces fierce rivalry with other high school groups in the choir competition circuit, but as they gain success, the school cheerleading coach, Sue Sylvester (Jane Lynch), becomes determined to destroy them in order to keep her grip on the school district’s limited funding. On top of those conflicts, the students also struggle with the cruel reality of being a “misfit” in high school. They learn the hard way how to face struggles concerning race and sexuality as well as relationships and teamwork. One thing that makes the show as unique as its characters is that each episode features several musical numbers. The characters sing and dance to arrangements of popular songs that apply to the situations they are in. In addition to Will and Sue, the original cast included guidance counselor Emma Pillsbury (Jayma Mays), Will’s wife Terri (Jessalyn Gilsig), and eight club members played by Dianna Agron, Chris Colfer, Kevin McHale, Lea Michele, Cory Monteith, Amber Riley, Mark Salling, and Jenna Ushkowitz. “I like glee because it’s really inspirational and you can watch it whenever you want to laugh. It shows real life situations and the music is good, too,” says senior Jessie Cohen. “I really like watching Glee because I’m a musical person and I can relate a lot to the musical aspect of the show,” adds sophomore Julia Tucker. Overall, you should definitely be watching Glee if you aren’t already. The show ran from 2009 to 2015 on FOX and can be viewed on Netflix.

This Is Us is dramedy series that takes a look into the lives of triplets Kevin (Justin Hartley), Kate (Chrissy Metz), and Randall (Sterling K. Brown). Kevin is a Hollywood television star on a sitcom, but he quits the show and moves to New York to look for a more meaningful career in the theater. Kate, Kevin’s obese sister, struggles immensely trying to lose weight; however, at a support group, she meets her caring, witty, and inspirational boyfriend, Toby (Chris Sullivan). They try their best to motivate each other, but along the way they encounter some bumps both in their relationship and their weight loss. Randall, Kevin and Kate’s genius, black, adopted brother, is a well-off professional. He has a wife, two kids, and pretty much every aspect of his life figured out. That is until he locates his ex-junkie, terminally ill birth father, William (Ron Cephas Jones), who ends up staying with him and joining his family. In addition to the storyline of the triplets’ lives, each episode also has a flashback plot that parallels the events occurring in the present. The flashbacks tell the story of the triplets and their parents’ lives when the triplets were growing up. The flashbacks take the issues presented in the characters as adults and relate them to their lives as children. The viewer gets to see both Randall’s struggles with racism in the present and his difficulties growing up as the only black child in a white family in the past, as well as Kate’s struggle with obesity as a child and an adult. Having so many perspectives in one show is really what makes This Is Us so unique. Furthermore, the show is fictitious, but refreshingly authentic. The realism of the show not only allows the viewer to relate to the plot, but also to learn from it. Family values, discrimination, and relationships are some of the many important topics that This Is Us touches upon. This show is so heartfelt that viewers actually become better people for watching the show. “It is emotional, multilayered, and unlike any other show on TV,” raves sophomore Kerin Bartels. “I love This Is Us because it shows us that we should enjoy the people around us and the little things in life,” says senior Jen Stewart. “It’s like a Christmas present because it makes me feel good inside,” adds freshman Terence Deegan. All in all, This Is Us is a must-watch for anyone with a television. The show is currently in its first season. You can watch it on NBC on Tuesdays at 9:00pm. And if you become a fan, you can watch the after-show series on the NBC app where the actors and producers discuss each episode, too.