Should I watch Scrubs?

The long and short of it: Yes
When was it made: 2001

Bill Lawrence's brainchild started as a parody of hospital drama shows such as ER, but has grown into one of the greatest show on television. It deftly combines humor and drama, starting the show with characters who either didn't know each other or had lasting relationships and mixing them together in such a way that when, in later seasons, they all know each other it was real bonds of friendship, love, and hate, not tacked on relationships just ascribed to the character. Sure there is some contrivance (it's a comedy show) and realism is not always held to a high standard, but it is so charming that they can be easily overlooked.

The show is either still on air or just finished its last season (I don't receive television programming: any series I review has been borrowed on DVD), so it is still fresh in the minds of those who watch it. It is also popular among college kids who grew up when the show first started. It's combination of humor and drama makes it a favorite that gets passed around and shared everywhere.

Scrubs takes place in a hospital, and some of its humor revolves around that fact, but don't worry, there isn't a lot of jargon or tech speak muddling up non-nerds who watch the show. However, a great deal of focus is put on interpersonal relationships, but it isn't done in a horribly cheesy way like some other hospital dramas. There is one relationship that I have trouble believing, but I won't spoil it for you, and you might disagree. Now because this deals with adults in adult relationships there are some naughty jokes, so beware of those, but the show is relatively clean. So if you can't stand any sexual content or don't want to be amused, don't watch Scrubs. But if you want to see a hilarious and yet poignant show about love, laughs, and medicine, than get your hands on Scrubs as soon as possible.

This show is fantastic, I'm not going to lie. If you don't like this show it could only be for personal reasons. Sure it does suffer from some of the sitcom shenanigans, but usually when that occurs it's a lampshade. They're not afraid to play around and lampoon themselves, but the relationships remain true to form throughout it all. The relationship between Turk and JD is my personal favorite-its funny to see two guys who are incredibly close friends, epitomized by the song Guy Love (Guy love/He's mine I'm his/There's nothing gay about it in our eyes). In fact, that song is my favorite scene from the entire show. I can't get enough of it. Their relationship is what makes you start watching, but the ones that branch of from it makes you stay.

Should I watch Afro Samurai?

The long and short of it: Yes
When was it made: 2007

Fuminori Kizaki has managed to create an awesome and fun-filled action story in five episodes based on a manga by Takashi Okazaki. Afro Samurai is as campy as you would expect, taking its serious back story and placing that next to sex jokes, violence, and Samuel L. Jackson.

What more hype need I mention than Samuel L. Jackson? The man is himself an industry with a built in fan base. The series has spawned a movie and a video game, and along with Snakes on a Plane can be given as an example of why people love Samuel L. Jackson.

This is a violent show, full of killing. The story itself is little more than a backdrop to the fights. Afro wears the number two headband, meaning that anyone wanting to be the most powerful fighter in the world has to kill him, causing violence to erupt all around. The show has some points that cause introspection, where Afro contemplates the sacrifices he has had to make and losses he has incurred on his path, but whenever that starts to get heavy, he finds someone new to murder. If you want a violence filled fun show with only a few episodes, than get Afro Samurai. If you don't like sophomoric humor or require your stories to revolve around more than violence and the quest for more violence, than head for a different show.

I loved Afro Samurai because it has an incredible story behind it that somehow fits the weird world in which it is set. This is a world ruled not by armies and governments, but by warriors, and the story reflects it. There is a lot of group on one and one on one combat, and Afro always avails. In a lot of stories I would call it a Mary Sue character, but the world allows me to believe one super powered warrior can defeat an army. My personal favorite moment comes when Afro battles Kuma: it fleshes out these characters designed solely to kill more than some characters in serious work are. It is this juxtaposition of serious back story and silly and over-the-top violence that makes Afro Samurai work. Also, Samuel L. Jackson.

Should I watch the original Red vs Blue?

The long and short of it: Yes
When was it made: Started in 2003, new series are still made

Made by Rooster Teeth (yeah, if you didn't already know this is not the most intellectually sophisticated property) using games from the Halo series, Red vs Blue follows two sets of incompetent soldiers as they blindly stumble through improbable situations with only their snappy comebacks and swearing to protect them. While the first few episodes suffer from poor sound quality and some long silences, pretty soon things pick up and hilarity ensues almost constantly; out of 100 episodes-the majority of which are only 5 minutes, so don't worry about this taking your life away-I can't find one that doesn't make me laugh.

If you've seen one show made with video games, odds are it was Red vs Blue. It is by far the most famous machinima(movie made with a video game) out there, having made machinima popular before most people even knew it existed. Red vs Blue is also the most successful, making Rooster Teeth into a successful company. Unlike most shows of this kind, Red vs Blue is well shot, has good voice acting, and is well written and timed, making it one of the only machinima worth watching.

Red vs Blue is incredibly hilarious, but the original series is a bit lacking in the plot department. Not that there isn't a story, but it is so convoluted that you shouldn't worry about it, just get the laughs. Now these are adults using adult language, so this isn't for younger people or those offended by swearing. If you're looking for a hilarious comedy with no real thinking required, then watch RvB. If you want a good story and hate swearing, the original series isn't for you, though the newer RvB series have more story to them and are just as hilarious.

I am a big Red vs Blue fanboy, I'll admit. I try to watch every episode, and I have seen most of Rooster Teeth's other stuff too. It really is a great series, and the 5 minute episodes allow you to watch an episode or two even if you're crunched for time. Also, while there is a bit of slapstick and visual humor, a lot of the gags are character or conversation driven, so it makes great background noise, too. There are so many good characters, but for me the funniest will always be Caboose. Tucker's "lady's man" attitude and Sarge's bloodlust are both well played, but Caboose's innocent stupidity-of which he is oddly aware-allows him some of the funniest moments, like when he avoids a pregnant character because "I do not want to catch pregnancy!" The original series is also on YouTube, so there really is no excuse not to at least try the show. I'm sure you'll love it.