#TopTenTuesday XIV | Top Ten [Bookish] serialised Stories which make me SMILE!

I decided to give this week’s topic a bit of a SPIN – instead of focusing on the STORIES I’ve been reading this year which has had several slow starts and several slow ends as my readerly life has taken quite a few hits this year, I decided to focus instead on my Top Ten *favourite!* new serialised stories which I’ve happily been streaming and *devouring!* ?

#TopTenTuesday is a meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl
Topic of the Week: Top Ten Stories Which Make You Smile

Jorie’s #TopTenTuesday Stories
via serialised tv which make me SMILE!
most of which are INSPIRED by a BOOK ?✨

 

INSTINCT | (CBS All Access) starring Alan Cumming
*based on James Patterson’s “Murder Games” (2017)

When we reached a point streaming series on CBS All Access to where we were running out of new content to enjoy as the series we already loved (ie. Magnum for instance) were equally running out of new episodes to share with us, we decided to take a bit of a walkabout in the catalogue. Of course, I immediately went to ‘drama’ as that is generally where the Mystery, Suspense, Thriller and Legal Dramas are stored – in order words, my family definitely has a craving for wicked good stories set against sleuthing and solving crimes! Is it any wonder why I love reading Crime Fiction!?

I actively tweeted about my love of this series, however, I hadn’t realised it was based on a Patterson novel!! ? Talk about a shocker! He just doesn’t write stories I’d be keen to seek out and that strikes me odd as this particular series was wicked fresh, delightfully sophisticated and had such beautiful symmetry of continuity!

I am still in full ache of knowing how their adoption plans not only moved forward but how it was for Andy and Dylan. I could have gone another several years of this show – they not only made the series endearing from the perspective of getting to know the lead characters and what drove them in their jobs but they created wicked sweet puzzles of intrigue with the shows themselves. You really had to think hard about what you saw, how you understood the clues and then, try to root out the truth before Alan Cumming had that smirk of a glow about him as he was about to disclose ‘what really happened’.

(see tweets: 1, as well as the collection of them via #BookishNotBookish)

ALL RISE | (CBS All Access)
*based on Courtroom 302 by Steve Bogira

I was attempting to get involved with Bull again after a bit of an absence of watching the series – then of course, I made the keen mistake of finding out a slightly HUGE spoiler (ie. its about Cable FYI if you’re a ready fan) and decided to start watching this series a bit out of order and sequence of the general scope of the storylines. I went from S2 to S3 and even dipped into S4 for a bit – found some good episodes, found some ‘eh’ ones and when it came to Cable, I just had to take a break — didn’t see that coming and it was beyond difficult to get through her story’s arc spilt over two seasons and several episodes.

Ergo, I knew I wanted a courtroom drama but which one? I’d already seen the full five years of Perry Mason and although I was enjoying watching The Commish, Hunter and previously the entire series of TJ Hooker via Roku; I was simply in the mood for something ‘else’ and yet what that would materialise into was a bit unknown.

Then, I saw “All Rise” available to watch start to finish (of the episodes which have aired) and I found my new courtroom drama series!! Eek. It was beyond spectacular! I loved the diversity of the cast and how this isn’t your typical courtroom drama per se, as there is a brilliant friendship between the judge and one of the DA lawyers – they share a history that stems from law school and I loved it because it was one of the first times (perhaps, the only one come to think on it?) where I saw a platonic friendship in a leading cast for a tv series such as the one on ALL RISE. They need to do that more often!

The stories gripped me and it was lovely and bright – such a refresh of a series if you love these kinds of stories. I had a hankering to continue seeing For the People (see also this Wikipedia article) until I sadly learnt it had been cancelled. All Rise stepped into my life right at the best moment and became my top favourite courtroom drama instantly! I loved how there is this balance between ‘life and work’ – from ‘family’ to ‘job’ and how it examines the fuller scope of what it is like to work in this intensive sphere of where lives and worlds collide in the courtroom.

One of the best inventive series surprises was how they filmed a ‘new’ episode of this series virtually and I would presume using Zoom? It was definitely one to see and what a brilliant way of tying in a fictional Contemporary Legal Drama into our chaos of the real world! It should take an Emmy just for the creative ways in which they produced it and how well it fit within the timeline of the series itself.

MY LIFE IS MURDER | (AcornTV)
starring Lucy Lawless

I would equate this series with the Australian equivalent of INSTINCT – due to its sharp dialogue, witty character interactions and how sophisticatedly different and unique this series is set in Melbourne. In many regards, it shouldn’t come as a surprise I love this one – because I adored Rizzoli and Isles and this series has that kind of vibe even though I definitely think its the mirror series for INSTINCT. All three series are stand-outs in their fields because of how you approach the investigations, how the crimes are discussed and of course, what is going on in the ‘background’ as well.

In this case, Lawless does a brilliant job at portraying a character who is more comfortable discussing forensics than opening her heart and being vulnerable to her colleagues and friends (wells, the few she has). From her obsession about making bread to the quirkiest of how she has a ‘cat’ and how she interacts with her inner circle – all of this percolates into a brilliant dramatic Crime drama you do not want to miss seeing!

I literally ache to know if this is going to be renewed! I even reached out to #AcornTV and of course, similar to series I’ve found on NetFlix recently – no announcements about which series are being greenlit for more given the current climate in the industry (and world). However, I did find out this week that for those of us who are #Chessies and love #CheseapeakeShores on Hallmark Channel, we’re getting a NEW season! ✨?

SWEET MAGNOLIAS ? (2020, NetFlix)
*based on the series by Sherryl Woods

When I first re-activiated my library card in [2008] I hadn’t known then that I would become smitten and in love with the ‘Sweet Magnolias’ by Southern Women’s Fiction writer Sherryl Woods. It was a random selection I found via the library and it became a series I attempted to have them continue to purchase in paperback in order to keep reading the installments as they were published. I fell short a bit of that goal – however, after reading at least five of the novels, I was a bonefide appreciator of this quaint Southern towne which held so many secrets behind the drama of the characters’ lives!

I used to call this series ‘Serenity’ as I wasn’t entirely convinced it was titled properly – especially as you read the series, it felt more like it was centred on the towne moreso than the three best friends – on the level, that yes its about their lives but so much of their lives directly interact with and impact ‘Serenity’. I loved the changes they are making to the tv series and how they’ve kept the essence of the novels intact.

I was NOT prepared for the cliffhanger though – about whose in the car? For whichever reason,  I do NOT remember a car accident and I am on worried pins about the repercussions of that crash! I did think I saw a bit of a nudge of a clue that if Ty couldn’t play football anymore he could become a coach – as it was one of those throwaway comments by his coach but after this final scene, I was thinking to myself – was that a foreshadow?

I seriously need this to be renewed.. I cannot leave this series in the moment the Sweet Magnolias reach the scene of the crash, huddled in prayer and fraught with anxiety,…. I’ve been contemplating listening to the audiobooks via #Scribd but mindful of what Mum said that sometimes its best to see a series based on books and give yourself some distance to revisit the books lateron. Plus I know we’d get a kick out of reading / listening to them together.

AGATHA RAISIN (AcornTV)
*based on the series M.C. Beaton

I previously attempted to READ this series but it wasn’t until we took on a free trial for AcornTV did I realise that this is a series that is much BETTER viewed as a serialised adaptation! (at least for me) I admit, this was a slow starter for me – I just could not get attached to the quirky behaviour and the strangeness that makes this series so loveable in the end! It took at *least!* 4x episodes for me to actually say ‘Ooh, yes, I want to watch more!” rather than “Really? Another?” I just wasn’t connecting with the cast or the stories and then, for whichever reason the best way to describe what changed is what inspired the topic for the week on Top Ten Tuesday: I was smiling and laughing! ?

This became the ‘feel good’ series to stream and watch with reckless abandonment!

You cannot sit through one of these lovelies and not find yourself in an insta-better mood for having the time spent with Agatha! I credit this to the actress – her instincts in how to portray Agatha are bang-on brilliant and I love how she truly immerses us into that headspace where only Agatha will understand the goings-on in both community and the criminals she’s rooting out of the woodwork!

I am now on pins – will this be renewed?! ?

VIRGIN RIVER (NetFlix)
*based on the series by Robyn Carr

Ever have a book on your shelf which languishes there year after year? Even if you move round a bit and your books move with you, there are certain books that call to you, beg you really to be read and all you do is shift they round? Virgin River is that book for me!

I was contemplating reading the first novel (of the same name) recently as I started to pull some of my books out of a bin to read this last half of the year. Virgin River happened to be one of the books I found nestled in a stack of unread Romance novels. I immediately knew the series was currently available on NetFlix and there was a strong pull to put the book back in the bin and just stream it. I mean, after all these years? Oy.

I was thankful we decided to watch this one recently – by which, I mean last Thursday! – there was such a charming quirkiness to this series but also a lot of darker drama! I was a bit shocked that this also ended on a cliffhanger – wherein we do not know if someone is alive or dead; though I was frustrated that the one person who could intervene staid at the bar to oversee its business than to rush out and ensure someone was safe! I mean, how unrelatable is that? This is a community that bans together in times of crisis and they had a whole episode where half the towne was chipping in to run the bar – so why did Preacher stay behind?

I loved seeing Sally from Aurora Teagarden (via Hallmark Movies & Mysteries) whilst I also spied other Hallmark actors and of course, the best surprise was Annette O’ Toole! I *knew!* I recognised her – it just took a bit to place her from a previous role but I told Mum, I believe her name is O’ Toole. *snapped fingers* Annette O’ Toole! Who knew the actress I loved on Nash Bridges is now on Virgin River? I also loved how Tim Mathieson is approaching this character and how the two of them play off each other well.

My heart breaks again – will this get renewed? ?

THE BABY-SITTERS CLUB (2020, Netflix)
*based on the series by Ann M. Martin

I admit, when I first heard rumours about this new adaptation, I was apprehensive about the news because they’ve been remaking loads of my childhood stories and/or films/series and I must admit, more than 90% I’ve either boycotted or passionately refuse to watch – which is why it was a bit surprising when I caught sight of the very first teaser for this new NetFlix series (via Twitter) I instantly *knew!* I was going to drop CBS All Access & AcornTV in July in order to stream it! Even if NOTHING else whet a thirst of curiosity to be seen, I *knew!* this series would be the one for me.

And, I wasn’t wrong,..

The hardest bit I have is not devouring a series soon after I start watching it! It took at least 3x days to get through *Sweet Magnolias* but it took less than that to stream this series and in some wonderment of random joy – I saw the ENTIRE *Virgin River* S1 in one singular day!! (dear hearts, that’s over 10x hours of drama!)

I am hoping this series has a lot of longevity – each of the girls who are portraying the characters of my childhood have tapped into them so dearly well, I can see each of them in their roles. The only disappointment for me is that Kristy in this series is a bit more of a grudge holder than I remember she was in the book series. Outside of that, I love the changes they’ve made to update the stories – from changing the ethnicities of some of the girls to having a transgender girl to babysit for and how I felt the series dealt with Kristy and her Step-Dad was a bit easier to swallow than I felt sometimes the books hadn’t gone far enough to resolve. (based on old memories, of course)

The ending capstone so far was the two-part camp episode where I think they both excelled and lost their footing a bit with the flow of the current series. What they did do which I was hoping they might was reveal the two Junior Babysitters: Mallory & Jesse. Not a spoiler – I mean, who is watching this series who hasn’t read the series? I mean, I think most of the audience has to be the same age and generation I am right now! (ie. GenX)

I loved the original series of films they adapted because at the time, even though I was older even then from when I binge read the books in elementary school, I could see the girls in their portrayals as much as I can right now. The one episode that nearly crushed me though was when Mimi went to the hospital! I also, felt Claudia’s parents are unfairly being represented in this adaptation but my gosh, Jeanie they definitely nailed! Claudia was always my favourite of the girls’ and seeing this series is insta-love and gratitude for me because I love when a childhood favourite gets a fresh spin and pays such beautiful homage to the original. I wish all remakes were as honourable and well made as this one.

More, please! ?

MS FISHER’S MODERN MURDER MYSTERIES (AcornTV)
*spin-off of #MissFisher Murder Mysteries (based on book series)

I admit, this series was a series which I questioned how they would transition us from the #MissFisher we all have come to love and know into a new world of where her niece takes up the sleuthing role her Aunt loved much whilst she was alive. They had a bit of a scheming mind in how they connected the two – Aunt and niece and how the interconnecting storylines would make logical sense about how Miss Fisher might have her legacy re-examined.

I was not disappointed – it is a lovely new era (the ’60s) and everything I loved in the first series is equally matched in the sequel. Including having a police detective as smitten with the niece as Jack was with Miss Fisher! lol ? The fashion, the context of how this is set in Melbourne and the stories themselves – there is so much to love and to pull apart to discuss because of how well conceived I felt this series became over the course of the first year. It definitely has room to grow and roam – I am eagerly hopeful it gets renewed in order to pursue its own course but also to see where the characters are shifting forward!

It helped that I saw the fan-sponsored #MissFisher motion picture ahead of this series as that took a lot of weight of guilt off my shoulders of not knowing where Miss Fisher was currently and what became of her, Jack, Dot and Hugh. In that regard, I wish they had given Dot and Hugh more airtime… but similar to how I felt seeing the Downton Abbey motion picture this late Spring, early Summer – I felt they did a good job with Miss Fisher, though of the two I think Downton Abbey pulled theirs off a bit better because of the fullness of what they eclipsed into the film. You literally felt nothing was left out whereas with Miss Fisher, I knew they left key bits out and I wish they hadn’t.

HART OF DIXIE | (NetFlix)
*starring Tim Mathieson

Uniquely enough, when I saw the ‘doctor’ who as the bane of Dr Hart’s existence, I had a feeling I was going to enjoy this quirky series. In many ways, it is a junior version of Virgin River and more interesting to note, Tim Mathieson basically developed his character on Virgin River through how he approached the character he portrayed on Hart of Dixie!

I wasn’t too sure how I felt about this series for the first few episodes as after seeing a crash course binge fest of Virgin River – the two felt eerily alike in so many ways! What really changed my mind wasn’t Dr Hart — it was Lemon! She’s the daughter of Mathieson’s character and a true Southern Belle. A lot of the charm of this series is a reminder about why I loved the film Doc Hollywood – if you’re familiar with that you’ll instantly know why this one is equally appealling. A true fish out of water in the South kind of series.

Lemon has a lot to shoulder and she is a character I felt was the most challenging to portray because of how rooted she is in Southern culture and hospitality; she is also struggling to fit into her fiancé’s family and co-raise her younger sister Magnolia. For me, it is that part of the storyline that has the most weight outside of the fact the Mayor of Bluebell as equal space for having the most complex back-history with a character (ie. Lemon). I am thankful NetFlix has the whole series and I won’t have to ache after knowing if this one renews – I just have to resolve that whatever is meant to happen did and however they chose to end the series I have to live with as well. Never easy!

I forgot to mention that I grew up watching tv movies starring Mathieson because he was a romantic lead – especially in Christmas Romances and/or other ones of a similar nature. Seeing him in two series this year was quite a treat! I was wondering what he was up to these days! lol ?

This marks my 2nd #TopTenTuesday

this Summer & I’m hoping to continue writing more!

PS: Wondering why I didn’t list #ZoesPlaylist?

I specifically kept #ZoesPlaylist off this list because of the fact that after awhile, we stopped streaming the episodes. It wasn’t due to anything specific – other than it was getting harder to sort out how to watch the series without Dad overhearing the series, as we knew it might affect him to hear about a Dad whose life had changed so radically due to a medical crisis as he’s been going through a lot himself since his stroke in [2016]. Not to mention the more episodes we saw, the more the drama of the series was affecting Mum and I – I guess we just decided to take a breathier and never quite managed to return to watching the show. Maybe this Summer!? It is a wicked brilliant series and I stand by everything I’ve blogged about previously and have shared on Twitter.

Equally I omitted Enterprise as I felt I have talked about my love of that series enough as it was such a special part of Spring and a series I will always champion and love. ??

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Copyright © Jorie Loves A Story, 2020.

I’m a social reader, I tweet my reading life

✨NEW #TopTenTuesday!✨

Topic: Stories Which Make Us Smile

Jorie respins topic to her favourite serialised stories which give her a heap of lovely #randomJOY + SMILES😊

Which ones made the list?
📺feat. series from #CBSAllAccess, #NetFlix & #AcornTVhttps://t.co/pZf1fAuwkG

— Jorie Story 📖🎧 (@joriestory) July 16, 2020