Annabel Youens, CMO & Co-Founder
Clarkson’s Farm (TV series, available on Amazon Prime Video)
In short: A warm, fun show about Jeremy Clarkson’s farming adventures and disasters.
Choosing media for me is tricky right now. I find myself stopping, starting and rewatching shows. Languishing anyone? So when my mother recommended Clarkson’s Farm I wasn’t sure. I’m not a huge Clarkson fan and I never really watched Top Gear, but I do love a good farm story. Well, I binged watched it in two days. Thanks mum, you were right.
Jeremy Clarkson has no farming experience but decides in 2020 he’s going to live and run his farm, instead of outsourcing the job. From the Cotswold’s a wonderful team support Clarkson on his journey and tell him each episode that his terrible ideas won’t work. Kaleb, Clarkson’s right-hand farmer spends the year trying out different hairstyles to see what he likes best, and when COVID hits he’s most upset because he can’t get his perm done.
I won’t spoil any of the adventures and disasters. Just know it’s a warm, fun ride that shows Clarkson become more self aware as he rides his Lamborghini tractor… I know, of course he has a Lamborghini tractor. Enjoy friends!
Jeff Mitchell, CTO & Co-Founder
The Way of the Househusband (TV series, available on Netflix)
The Way of the Househusband is a new Netflix anime series that I’m not sure I would actually classify as anime. It is more like a slightly interactive version of the comic it is based on, where animation is minimal and it is more of a series of stills.
In any case, it presents a series of short stories about Tatsu: a former legendary Yakuza boss known as ‘The Immortal Dragon’, who is now a supportive househusband for his career minded wife (Miku).
The series of vignettes in each episode always make me laugh as they show Tatsu approach all his mundane day-to-day activities, such as shopping, cooking and cleaning with the same over the top intensity you would expect from a former Yakuza. For example, Tatsu often uses gangster phrases such as “scoring some white powder” to describe buying flour.
The voice acting is excellent in both Japanese and English, though I find the Tatsu Japanese voice actor a bit more intense which adds even more ridiculousness to the situations.
Due to each episode being divided into the little vignettes it is easy to sit down and enjoy even a partial viewing. So for some quick easy laughs – Check it out!
Morgan Deno, Captain of Customer Success
New Girl (TV series, available on Netflix)
It’s my second pop culture pick since joining the AE team and I’m going with another TV series that has come to an end but is worth rewatching and that is New Girl.
My wife and I watched New Girl as soon as it came out and stuck through all 7 seasons. It was really good. Since it finished airing in 2018, we decided to watch all 7 seasons again (are you noticing a trend with my picks?). The second watch-through brought even more laughs. You see, we’re now 10 years older and relate SO MUCH more to the characters in the show. I’m literally married to a ‘Jessica Day’ and at times I’ve been known to be a bit of a ‘Nick’.
While Nick, Jess, Cece, Winston and Coach are all great, the star of the show for me is Schmidt, played by Max Greenfield (if you’re on Instagram, he’s a must-follow). Schmidt has so many one-liners that will leave you in tears. With that, I leave you with one of my favourite Schmidt quotes: “Can someone please get my towel? It’s in my room next to my Irish walking cape.”
Now, off to find an Irish walking cape.
Roxanne Baker, Marketing Magician
Resident Evil Village (Video game, available on PC and consoles)
My first Resident Evil game was Resident Evil 4 on the Gamecube and it’s been one of my favourite games ever since I first played it. I even preordered the remaster so I could get the digital art book. However, unpopular opinion here, I didn’t really like the earlier Resident Evil games and never got around to playing 5 and 6 (though of course I’ve seen the classic Chris Redfield vs. the boulder scene). So while I was a huge fan of 4, you probably couldn’t call me a fan of the Resident Evil series as a whole.
And then along came Resident Evil Biohazard and I once again fell in love with the world of Resident Evil. This year, Resident Evil Village was released. It’s a direct sequel to Biohazard and once again stars the faceless Ethan Winters as he battles scary mold monsters.
One of my favourite aspects of Village is that the story is split into 4 distinct areas, each with it’s own dynamic and feel. For example, the first area in Castle Dimitrescu feels very classic Resident Evil as you’re trying to make your way through the castle while being stalked by the 9’6″ vampire Lady Dimitrescu and her daughters. Side note, Lady Dimitrescu memes never get old for me. Especially the mod where her hat gets bigger every time you see her. Area 2 feels almost like an entirely different game. It takes place in a house, mostly in the spooky basement, and feels straight out of the Silent Hill franchise. I’m not easily scared, but playing it in the dark for the first time was pretty tense! Never have I jumped so much when my cat hopped up into my lap while playing. The third and fourth areas once again have a completely different feel to them – but you’ll have to play or watch a playthrough to find out!
Overall, Village is just fun. The story and gameplay are interesting, the characters are intriguing and designed well, and there’s tons of lore to read if you sweep the areas for collectibles. If you’re a fan of the horror genre and action adventure games with some light puzzle solving, check it out!