Students Turn to Shows for a Cozy Fall Escape

Images via: NeverHaveIEver, Scooby-Doo, Shameless

​As fall approaches, students are settling inside and relaxing into the comforting embrace of their favorite TV shows. Students have found warmth in a diverse lineup of series, ranging from comedic mysteries to intense dramas.
by Finn Brown, Raine Mobley, and Mariana Castaneda

​As fall approaches, students are settling inside and relaxing into the comforting embrace of their favorite TV shows. Students have found warmth in a diverse lineup of series, ranging from comedic mysteries to intense dramas.

Maddie Villegas — Never Have I Ever (2020)
Maddie Villegas, a freshman, settled on the show Never Have I Ever, a coming-of-age dramatic comedy series. The show takes place in a high school setting, giving a relatable and comforting feel to the Netflix series. Devi Vishwakumar, the protagonist, is a chaotic teenage girl trying to get through the struggles of her high school years. “It’s just very relatable. She’s a girl in high school, she’s different from everybody else, and she’s just trying to fit in.” Maddie finds reassurance in the relatability of the show, feeling understood through the accurate depiction of the drama and struggles that come with being a teenager. “She stood out to me because I feel like I can relate to her a lot. About her family, about friends, about high school.”

Addison Davis — The Scooby-Doo Show (1976)
For Addison Davis, her go-to fall comfort show is The Scooby-Doo Show. The series follows Scooby-Doo, Shaggy, and their friends as they travel around solving mystery cases. They often investigate spooky places and try to figure out who or what is behind these strange events. Addison enjoys watching the classic cartoon because of its humor and entertaining characters. She especially likes Scooby-Doo because of his funny moments and the way he adds humor to the show. Her personal favorite, however, is Shaggy. “My favorite character is Shaggy. He stands out to me because he likes to eat a lot, but he's also got humor.” Addison also has an unusual opinion about the show, joking that the ghosts and mysteries the group encounters might actually be real: “I think they do.”

Caroline Noll — Shameless (2011)
​Caroline’s fall free time is spent watching Shameless, which showcases the chaotic, dysfunctional lives of the Gallagher family living in a poor neighborhood on the South Side of Chicago. Caroline’s enjoyment of the show is fairly simple; she finds herself liking it for the entertaining and all-over-the-place storyline. A single favorite character is always difficult to choose, but Caroline adores both Fiona and Lip Gallagher due to her attraction to Fiona’s appearance and Lip’s sway over the plot and audience. There is a variety of potential debates swimming around the fandom of Shameless; however, Caroline believes that despite popular belief, “Trevor was actually a good person. He’s not bad like everyone says he is.”


Whether students choose a classic cartoon, a favorite movie, or a newer series, comfort shows can make fall feel more relaxing and help students settle into the season.