Spring shows captivate students
If there’s one thing the majority of students do, it’s watch TV.
Most Cal High students have a Netflix account and spend hours of their time on it, streaming movies and procrastinating on homework.
With shows like “Daredevil” and “Orange is the New Black,” there seems to be a new trend of shows only available on Netflix.
Many Cal students seem to like this trend.
“We don’t really have a need for cable anymore, so Netflix exclusives make sense for a lot of people,” said senior Mitchell Claussen.
Marvel is creating four Netflix-exclusive dramas, including “Daredevil,” which premiered on April 10 as the first one.
Charlie Cox (previously in “The Theory of Everything”) plays Daredevil, a blind superhero whose other senses are enhanced due to his blindness.
Unlike other Marvel superheroes, Daredevil is a gritty and dark character. This gives the show a more realistic tone than most Marvel movies.
Three more shows will be based on the Marvel characters Jessica Jones, Iron Fist, and Luke Cage.
They are all superheroes that encounter each other in some way or another in the comics.
These shows will premiere at a later time, and even later there will be a miniseries starring all four characters.
Marvel is known for its mega popular Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) with films such as “Iron Man,” “Captain America,” and “The Avengers” drawing huge crowds.
Marvel’s small-screen ventures will doubtlessly attract the same hordes of fans.
The popular HBO series “Game of Thrones,” based off of George R.R. Martin’s novels, returned for its fifth season on April 12.
“I just want to see some really intense moments with my favorite characters like Jon Snow and Arya,” said English teacher Donna Montague.
Four episodes of the new season were leaked a few days before the premiere.
This caused controversy amongst fans as they debated whether to wait for the premiere or watch the leaked episodes.
“Veep,” a popular HBO comedy, returned on April 12 for its fourth season.
This political satire stars Julia Louis-Dreyfus (from “Seinfeld”) as Selina Meyer.
Meyer is the vice president of the U.S. who becomes president this season after the unexpected resignation of the former president.
While many Cal students aren’t very interested in politics, this show could be a good way for them to learn about such things while being entertained at the same time.
“Parks and Recreation” paved the way, as it was very popular despite it having to do with politics at the local level.
Another new show, “Happyish” premiered on April 26 on Showtime.
This show was originally planning to star Philip Seymour Hoffman, who was Plutarch Heavensbee in “The Hunger Games” series.
Unfortunately, Hoffman passed away recently.
He had already filmed the pilot before his passing, and that original pilot has been released.
Steve Coogan replaces Hoffman as Thom Payne.
The character is a middle-aged ad executive trying to resist the now youth-driven culture.
In addition to shows that are currently premiering, students are preparing themselves for upcoming shows.
“I guess I’m excited about the new season of ‘Orange is the New Black,’ but the trailer didn’t seem that great,” said senior Cassidy Quilalang.
Another show coming soon from Showtime “Penny Dreadful,” which is set to premiere its second season on May 3.
It is a period horror-drama which I can see attracting audiences of shows like “American Horror Story.”
Eva Green, who has been in recent movies like “Dark Shadows,” is set to star alongside Josh Hartnett.
A lot of stuff is happening in the TV world this spring between new shows and returning favorites.