Southern Belle in Training

Fashion, Travel & Lifestyle Blog || Est. 2012 || Virginia Beach, VA

August 14, 2018

What I've Been Watching on Netflix / On Demand This Summer.

     It sounds so cliche I'm sure, but it's the truth that watching TV is one of my favorite ways to de-stress and relax! Summer is one of my favorite times of the year, but one of the few things that I dislike about summer is that almost all of my favorite TV shows are on hiatus. Part of that is good I suppose- as it gives me more free time to do summer activities. But I also really miss my regular shows!

     This summer I've been on the hunt for fun new things to watch, and I've also been enjoying some older favorites. Sharing what I've been watching in my free time this summer- I'd love to hear in the comments if you've seen any of these shows or movies!


Best TV Shows Summer 2018



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     What TV I've Been Watching: Live TV



  •      TODAY (NBC): I could probably count on one hand the times that I'd seen the TODAY show before I moved to Vermont. When my work hours at my job there switched from being on-air middays to afternoons (last August), I suddenly had a lot more free time at home in the mornings. I started watching TODAY off and on some mornings, but became a religious watcher this winter following Matt Lauer's departure. I love the fact that TODAY is currently a female-lead morning show, and each one of the ladies kill it every morning! Watching TODAY before work just puts me in a great mood, and I sometimes use the stories that I hear about on the show in my radio show later that afternoon! Plus watching TODAY in the summer means that you get to see the amazing performances in the weekly summer concert series!

  •      Megyn Kelly TODAY (NBC): I wasn't too familiar with Megyn or her style of journalism when she worked at Fox for several years. I have however grown to love her NBC show, which airs following the first two hours of TODAY. Megyn starts off each episode with a roundtable discussion with other NBC reporters (or sometimes people in other professions, like lawyers), to discuss the news of the day. It feels like a table of smart friends discussing current events, and I love it! Megyn also brings guests with absolutely amazing personal stories onto her show for interviews in the second half, and I am always mind blown at the types of stories featured on her show. This is one that I'd love to get tickets for the next time I'm in NYC! 

  •      Live! With Kelly and Ryan (Check local listings): This was my favorite daily show to watch in Vermont!! Kelly Ripa and Ryan Seacrest have such fun chemistry as hosts. I want to be BFFs with Kelly- she is just the cutest and funniest person. My cable in Vermont aired NBC morning programming at slightly different times, so I used to be able to watch all of Kelly and Ryan before work. Now in Virginia I usually leave for work about 20 minutes into the show, but most weekdays now I still try and catch their fun opening monologue! 

  •     Younger (TV Land): This is the only scripted show I watch that has new episodes in the summer, instead of the traditional TV season. Younger is such a guilty pleasure show, and I love it. It's currently in season five. Sutton Foster stars as Liza Miller, a 40 something recently divorced New Jersey woman, who finds that getting back in the workforce after being out of it for years is harder than she anticipated. She lies about her age on a resume to get a job in NYC, and the TV show follows her city adventures playing the role of a late 20s single girl. Hilary Duff also stars in Younger as Liza's coworker and friend Kelsey! 



     What TV I've Been Watching: Streaming


  •     Friends (Netflix): Okay I know I'm the absolute last person on earth to watch Friends in full, but I'm committed to doing it! I started watching the first season a couple years ago when it first went on Netflix.... don't hate me but I just couldn't get into it! This winter I decided to pick back up with Friends and see if it got better further along. I'm currently in season four- it's definitely better now than it was at the beginning... but I still don't know if I love it? I'm a huge HIMYM fan and I keep comparing the humor in Friends to that, so maybe that's the problem. Either way I do want to eventually finish this. I put Friends on a lot when I'm working on my computer- it's a good "background noise" show.

  •      Dynasty (CW, on Netflix): This is a newer CW drama that finally went on Netflix! I've always enjoyed the CW shows that aren't superhero or supernaturally based, so I thought I'd give this one a try. It has somewhat similar vibes to Gossip Girl, in that it follows characters that are extremely rich, and there is a lot of drama thrown in as well. I love the fashion and costuming in Dynasty. The two female leads, Crystal and Fallon, always have stunning outfits! As far as the show itself, I'm about halfway through season one and still can't decide if I like it. Maybe it's like Friends and I have to keep going? I'll probably finish the first season eventually in my free time, but it would have to get a lot better for me to watch it live this fall. 

  •     Teachers (TV Land, On Demand): This is another TV Land comedy, and the third season is currently airing on Tuesday nights following Younger. I'd seen the commercials for this show so many times when watching Younger, so I finally decided to give it a try when I saw the entire show was available with Xfinity On Demand. I finished the first season, and got about halfway through the second before I gave up on it. Teachers is a sitcom that follows the lives in and out of the classroom of six elementary school teachers. There were some really funny moments in season one (I love the "Sex Ed" episode especially), but in season two I felt that the plot lines and jokes were getting too absurd and unrealistic, so I stopped watching.

  •      Superstore (NBC, On Demand): I'd been wanting to see Superstore pretty much since it premiered, but I missed the first several episodes of the show, and I hate to start watching sitcoms midway through. So I waited patiently for it to go On Demand or a streaming platform. The complete series so far finally went on Xfinity On Demand this summer!! So far I'm about halfway through season one and I LOVE THIS SHOW!!! Every episode that I've seen so far makes me laugh so hard that I cry. I can't wait to finish season one, and I hope the show stays good! 

  •      It Takes a Church (Game Show Network, on Netflix): Oh man... if you're having a Girls' Night anytime soon, this is a MUST-WATCH! I feel like this would be an odd show to watch alone, but it's made to be watched in groups. It Takes a Church is the Christian version of The Bachelorette! Christian pop star Natalie Grant serves as the host, and each episode is stand-alone and set in a different church community around the country. (The first episode is actually set in Charlotte, although I wasn't familiar with the church it was set at.) I don't want to spoil a lot of the magic of this absolutely ridiculous show, but I'll just tell you this. Each episode's "Bachelorette" is surprised by her church congregation and nominated to be on the show in the middle of a church service (truth), trade out Fantasy Suite Dates.... for very chaperoned and awkward group dates, and the pastor of the church is always very involved in deciding which Bachelors stay and which leave. This show is a train wreck. I watched a random episode during a Girl's Night last week and we were all laughing so hard that we cried! 


     What Movies I've Been Watching: Theaters


  • Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again: This movie was one of the biggest delights of my summer! I've seen the first Mamma Mia! a couple of times throughout the years, and where I enjoyed it, I wouldn't say it was one of my all-time favorite movies. Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again might have just changed that. I absolutely loved the sequel, and I thought the music was much better in this movie! This is truly the most delightful film to see on the big screen, and if you haven't seen it yet, try and catch it before it leaves!

  • Crazy Rich Asians: Okay technically this doesn't premiere until later in the week, but I already have my ticket pre-purchased so I'm counting this anyways. I know it's going to be amazing! The Crazy Rich Asians trilogy were some of my favorite reads of 2018, and I am just over the top excited for this movie to come out. 


      What Movies I've Been Watching: Streaming


  •      Ibiza (on Netflix): I haven't seen a ton of Netflix original movies, and I wanted to try a couple this summer. I saw the preview for Ibiza, and it looked like a cute film about a girls' trip to Europe. I'm not even sure I made it halfway through before turning it off. This movie is filled with over the top sexual content and drug references and use. I don't mind mature content if it makes sense with a plot, but this movie seemed like it added all of these things solely for shock value. Not a fan. 

  •      Set It Up (on Netflix): I enjoyed this much more than Ibiza (and I did watch it all the way through!). Set It Up is a 2018 millennial centric romcom, made exclusively for Netflix. It tells the story of Harper and Charlie, two 20 something NYC workers, struggling to advance in their careers due to having terrible bosses. Harper and Charlie meet by chance one night, and get the idea to try and set up their bosses on dates. Their plan doesn't exactly go as they'd like, but the ending of the movie is cute. 

 

     If you have any watching recommendations for me, please let me know! Comedies and sitcoms are my favorite types of shows to watch (I'm not into any shows that are too scary or violent), but I'm open to watching other things as well!




      God Bless,



      xoxo Annaliese 




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19 comments

  1. Hey Annaliese! I love your picks of what you've been watching! I love starting my days with the Today Show!!!! It's so fun and interesting. I suggest if you love comedies, or a cool, witty "family" oriented show, Jane The Virgin is INCREDIBLE!! Happy watching!

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    1. LOVE Jane the Virgin! I'm sad the final season will be next!

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  2. I've never heard of It Takes A Church but I love the Bachelor/Bachelorette so it sounds REALLY entertaining. I really want to see Crazy Rich Asians, I've heard it is a great series!

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  3. I have heard that Crazy Rich Asians is a great show so I want to check it out. I don't think I've watched any of these shows!

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  4. YEs ive been needing a few new shows to watch ha- i LOVE FRIENDS ha :D

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  5. I've been watching Friends again as well! I just can't get enough of it

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  6. I only made it five minutes into Ibiza so you beat me!

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  7. I have so many on my list to watch. It just seems that I can't get time enough to do so. You've got me wanting to see It takes a Church!
    :) gwingal

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  8. I watch Younger too! I also watched It Takes a Church. Weeds is pretty funny. I didn't expect to enjoy it as much as I did. Drop Dead Diva is a great recommendation as well.

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  9. I've heard so many good things about Younger - I really need to watch it! This summer I've been into watching older shows like Frasier and Cheers - I love that there are so many seasons to watch.

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  10. I'm always down for new show recommendations!

    Briana
    https://beyoutifulbrunette.com/

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  11. younger is my favorite show ever!! I used to watch it just because of my love for Hilary duff but I’ve really grown to love the storyline as well!

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  12. There are so many great movies + TV shows out! I loved Set It Up on Netflix too :) I can't wait to see Crazy Rich Asians!

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  13. The only thing I watch on live TV anymore is The Bachelor/Bachelorette and their spinoffs. On Netflix, I'm on an Office rewatch. I should check out Younger though, I hear such good things about it!

    xo Deborah
    Coffee, Prose, and Pretty Clothes

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  14. I really want to see Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, it comes out next month!

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  15. First of all, YOUNGER! It's SO GOOD! And second, I've been watching Friends in order from the beginning and it's been perfect for summer.

    Molly // Miss Molly Moon

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  16. Omg I LOVED "Set it Up" on Netflix! It was so freaking cute! I feel like it is my time to start watching Friends because everyone always looks at my crazy when I tell them that I haven't seen it! You should check out "The Handmaid's Tale" on Hulu too! It is soooo good!

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  17. I feel like I am the only person in the world who doesn't watch TV. If my TV is on, either NCIS or Fixer Upper are playing. However, I'm super excited to see Crazy Rich Asians next week :)


    -xo, Azanique | www.lotsofsass.com

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  18. OMG Live with Kelly and Ryan is my fave! I loved the interim period she had before Ryan came on full time with all the guest hosts, but loving Ryan too!

    Xo Mindy
    amixofmin.com

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