Created by Pamela Adlon and Louis C.K., ‘Better Things’ is a black comedy-drama. It delves into an actress’ life as she juggles her professional career and the hard task of being a single mother. Sam Fox is an actress in Hollywood and raising her three daughters- Max Fox, Frankie Fox, Duke Fox.
The series first premiered on September 8, 2016, on FX. On February 28, 2022, the fifth cum final season of ‘Better Things’ is released. One of the creators Pamela Adlon plays the role of the main character Sam Fox. Her oldest daughter Max, middle daughter Frankie, and youngest daughter Duke are played by respectively Mikey, Hannah, and Olivia.
The series is a quite popular one scoring a 97% on Rotten Tomatoes. Pamela Adlon’s portrayal of a single mother has been praised too, giving the show a feminist energy. It won the 2016 Critics’ Choice Awards for Most Exciting New Series and a Peabody Award the same year.
Before Season 5 of ‘Better Things’ hits the streaming media and the series concludes, there are some more TV Series that might cater to your taste if you like ‘Better Things’.
Must Watch TV Series If You Like ‘Better Things’:
Breeders-
Number of Seasons: 2
This American-British dark comedy is created by Martin Freeman, Chris Addison, and Simon Blackwell. Freeman who is famed for playing Bilbo Baggins in ‘The Hobbit and is a veteran actor also stars in this Toby Welch-produced series besides producing it.
The plot revolves around two parents who are facing struggle with practicing parenthood. The story is somewhat inspired by Freeman’s experience as a parent himself.
Martin Freeman plays the role of the father Paul Worsley with Daisy Haggard playing his wife Ally Grant. In season 1 their son and daughter Luke and Ava were played by George Wakeman and Jayda Eyles. But in season 2 they got replaced by Alex Eastwood and Eve Prenelle.
Great News-
VarietyNumber of Seasons: 2
This series is about a unique relationship between a mother and a daughter which elongates from home to the workplace. Katherine Wendelson is segment producer of a Television News ‘The Breakdown’. But her experience in the work field becomes complicated when her mother Carol Wendelson joins ‘The Breakdown’ as an intern. The series is created by Tracey Wigfield.
Briga Heelen and Andrea Martin play the roles of Katherine and Carol respectively. The series ran from April 25, 2017 till January 25, 2018. The sitcom got favorable reviews.
Transparent-
Radio TimesNumber of Seasons: 5
Joey Soloway created this American comedy-drama that is set in Los Angeles. The main theme of this series is the trans identity of Maura. It is the story of a family living in Los Angeles where the family members find out that their parent Maura is actually a trans woman. Maura comes out as a trans woman at seventy-five years of age.
The plot revolves around Maura’s struggle along with her family’s journey to cope with this transformation. It not only restricts itself around a trans woman’s struggle to come out of the closure, but it also depicts her role as a transparent grandparent and a professor, ex-spouse, and sibling as well as her registration of the queer aging.
Transparent ran from February 6, 2014, to September 27, 2019, on Amazon Prime Video. Jeffrey Tambor stars as the series’ main character Maura. The series got a high rating throughout all its seasons on Rotten Tomatoes.
Master of None-
VoxNumber of Seasons: 3
Created by Aziz Ansari and Alan Yang, this American comedy-drama is about two lead characters in three consecutive seasons. In the first and second seasons, Dev Shah is a thirty years old commercial actor and in the third season, Denise is a thirty-seven years old novelist who is lesbian.
The plot is set primarily in New York and Italy. The lead characters’ lives, professions, romantic experiences are the focus of the series.
Aziz Ansari and Lena Waithe play the roles of Dev and Denise respectively. The series premiered on Netflix on November 6, 2015. It is critically acclaimed and the winner of three Emmy and one Golden Globe Awards.
Parenthood-
IndieWireNumber of Seasons: 6
Produced by Imagine Television and Universal Television this American family comedye centers on the Braverman clan. An older couple is the patriarch and matriarch of the clan that also consists of their four children with their families. The series is based on Ron Howard’s novel of the same name.
Cast of ‘Parenthood‘ includes Peter Krause, Lauren Graham, Dax Shepard, Monica Potter etc. The series ran from March 2, 2010, till January 29, 2015. It won a Television Academy Honors for Television with a Conscience in 2010 and won a Critics’ Choice Awards in 2013 for Monica Potter as best supporting actress in a drama series.
