Inside the Lightbox is a sponsored feature where we pluck out shows from Lightbox‘s extensive back catalogue. This week, we offer up some healthy political alternatives to binge on before the American people decide on the fate of the world as we know it.
Leslie Knope is what you imagined all politicians were like before you grew up and actually met one in person. The parks and recreation department of Pawnee, Indiana is small town government doing what it does best, which is apparently not a lot. In the first season, a giant hole is dug and it takes them seven seasons to figure out what to do with it. But their intentions remain pure and good, and that’s what matters. Vote Knope.
We’ve already proven that Wolf Hall is, contrary to popular belief, one of the most meme-able things on television (RIP Vine). That is, until the American election came around. Packed with all the funny hats, fur collars and political intrigue that the 16th century can provide, spend some time in Henry VIII’s court to escape the tension of 2K16. Plus, it has the BFG in it.
With the evidence mounting that Donald Trump is not actually a ‘Twistie Jesus’ (© The Spinoff’s Don Rowe) but a shapeshifting lizard man, spending some time with other mythical monsters might do you some good to make sense of this cruel and twisted reality. After all, believing in swamp monsters, Sasquatch and werewolves might actually be easier than fathoming that Donald Trump could be the next president of the United States.
Not to alarm anyone, but this could be good preparation for the apocalypse that may come if a certain Apprentice host gets in the big chair.
The Americans is about a Russian couple living under as, wait for it, Americans as they spy on the US government. Depending on how things pan out this Wednesday, some Americans might try to do the opposite and set up camp in Russia. Not to spy on anyone, just to get away for a while and drink a lot of quality vodka.
Let’s face it, 2016 has been a true American Horror Story. No amount of Sarah Paulson or Kathy Bates can top the monstrosity that is the Trump. But in an attempt to find the faintest silver lining in the potentially lethal thunder cloud, at least now is the only time you can watch a man crawl out of an old mattress and have it be a sweet escape from reality.
The UK show that inspired Kevin Spacey to talk directly into the camera and subsequently become the most boring interview guest in history, House of Cards shows a disturbing side of politics that you just hope has been dramatised for TV. Politicians not only figuratively throw each other under the bus all the time, they also literally throw people under trains and just generally in the direction of death. Hillary might have the stone cold stare down pat, but it’s easy to see ol’ Don sending out a death order on someone who’s slighted him.
Homeland, the perfect combination of CIA dealings, covert operations, and Claire Danes’ incessant crying. If Homeland were anything to go by, it’s safe to assume every employee in every government’s defence agency is both hugely unreliable and extremely weepy. When you see Hillary Clinton on Wednesday, speaking at her rally, just imagine Carrie Mathison is in charge of protecting her. I shudder at the thought.
In the opening scene of The Good Wife, Alicia Florrick, a defence attorney, stands by as her State Attorney husband apologises to the press for cheating on her. When it aired in 2009, comparisons were made between the Florricks and the Clintons, and rightly so. Alicia weathers the storm and goes on to thrive as both an attorney and a parent, despite her husband’s legacy haunting her all the while. Hillary Clinton has been weathering the same storm for 18 years now and might still end up as the most powerful person in the world.
Catch all these shows before the world burns, on Lightbox below
