Is anyone else as wrecked as I am after watching Parenthood? Of the first six episodes of the NBC family drama, no fewer than five of them have brought me to tears. Sometimes it’s just a little liquid pooling in my eye; other times I’m talking full-fledged streaming-down-the-cheeks waterworks. Never in my life has a TV show affected me so viscerally and so consistently. I don’t think I’m particularly emotionally unstable right now; rather, it’s a testament to how truthful and well-acted this series is. Usually my tears spring from some plot line involving Peter Krause’s harried husband and father, Adam Braverman—whether he’s reacting to his daughter finally introducing him to her boyfriend, or experiencing a breakthrough with his mildly autistic son. Lately, I’ve also grown more attached to Dax Shepard’s slacker character, Crosby, who I thought was going to annoy me at first but has now proven to be one the show’s most endearing protagonists as he deals with the five-year-old son he never knew he had. And I have to say that Miles Heiser and Mae Whitman (pictured here), who play Lauren Graham’s teenage kids, are two of the best young actors I’ve ever seen on television. I fully agree with my colleague Ken Tucker, who lamented in his review of Parenthood that it’s being unfairly compared to Modern Family, my other favorite series right now. I mean, Modern Family makes me cry too, but that’s from laughing so hard.
But let’s put aside comedies for the moment. Can any of you name a dramatic TV series that made you cry on almost a weekly basis?
Image credit: Chris Haston/NBC
Friday Night Lights makes me cry buckets whenever it’s on. I usually have a rule with myself that I don’t cry during any fictional TV show or movie, but FNL is my exception. Note to NBC: change Parenthood’s timeslot, please! I watch The Good Wife on Tuesdays at 10. Get rid of Mercy and put Parenthood on at 8 on Wednesdays. Thank you.
Friday Night Lights’ and Parenthood’s every single episode. Never had an episode where i never bawled my eyes out crying. T-T . Why does JASON KATIM’s shows never get a lot of viewers. Roswell, FNL and parenthood never got a big audience
ditto: FNL and parenthood. I LOVE JASON KATIMS- he is brilliant!!! Roswell was awesome too in its first season or two
my husband and i can not get over how well casted this show is. mae whitman and lauren graham look like they can be mother and daughter.
noooo! i love mercy lol
Friday Night Lights is the one for me too. Endless crying!
I literally just finished finally watching this week’s Parenthood on my DVR, sniffly as usual, then sat down to my computer and saw this. This really is an absolutely fantastic show so far, I love it! The writing and acting are very impressive. I have to say – How come no weekly recap??? Get on it! As for shows that made me cry, it’s so cheesy but the one that immediately jumps to mind is Party of Five.
agree completely, JH.
ditto
Wow- I loved Party of Five- thanks for the reminder!
Mae Whitman has been fantastic in every role I’ve seen her in, from Grace in State of Grace to Anne “Egg” “Plant” Veal in Arrested Development, even in a crappy Lifetime movie. And….
“Her?!”
OMG – it’s been driving me nuts trying to figure out where I knew her from. “her”?! love it!
Her?…love it. Mae Whitman has picked some pretty excellent roles, I hope that she continues to do well in her career.
don’t forget she was the girl-scout in Friends that Ross sells cookies for! Awesome!
i didn’t see mae in ‘her’ but i hope to check it out, you guys make it seem like i’m missing out. i loved her in sandra bullock movie ‘hope floats’ she was so adorable in it!!!
Canada Girl – There is no movie called ‘Her.’ People are calling back to the joke from Arrested Development when anyone mentions her character, someone else asks “Her?”
LOL… Her? Really?
While I definitely agree that “Parenthood” is EXCELLENT (Lauren Graham, back on my TV every week, wearing those sad, broken eyes, really slays my soul), and certainly one of those shows that elicits a visceral emotional reaction, I’m going to have to agree with bootsycolumbia that FNL is the ultimate cry-your-eyes-out-every-week show. It’s like they’ve bottled every emotional extreme and then let little bits of pure joy/sorrow/pain/love drip out every week. (And a lot of that is owed to Connie Britton.)
But as both “Parenthood” and “Friday Night Lights” are tied to Jason Katims, it’s not surprising that they’d have this in common.
Thank you for mentioning Lauren Graham! I am not someone who falls to pieces due to a tv show often, but every time that woman cries, I cry! She is just so believable and knows how to make me feel her characters’ pain. Dam you Lorelie!
Parenthood hasn’t made me cry, but it has captivated me in a way I did not originally expect it to.
I cry almost every week during Lost. Whether it’s a death sequence, two lovers connecting in an alternate universe, or a passionate plea for acceptance, I have to choke back the sobs.
I literally paused the television for 10 minutes each during the fifth season finale and the sixth season premiere because I was crying too hard. The (twice occurring!) death of my favorite character was expected and shouldn’t have hit me that hard, but the acting and the writing and the accompanying score just caught me and I downright bawled.
That being said, I have cried during ER (usually from the early days or Maura Tierney’s character) and Fringe, so I’m not an exclusive television crier.
Agreed. I’ve never cried harder than during Juliet’s death scene. Elizabeth Mitchell and Josh Holloway gave heart wrenching performances.
I cry during Lost as well. Mostly from how crap the show has been for the last few seasons. Will there be yet another reboot before the final seasons ends? Cause it’s all about the sideways universe now? The fcuk?
“how crap the show has been”? I’m guessing you hate the show because you just don’t understand it?
Yeah. the longer the show goes on, the geekier and more mind blowing it gets (rather than the generic, manipulative first season). You are clearly too normal and boring for it.
I would have never watched the show Parenthood but my friends son plays Jabbar. I started watching the show to see him. It’s now my favorite show. As a father with two boys in baseball I can feel the pride and joy that Adam felt playing baseball with his son and watching his son make that catch. I don’t cry watching fictional tv but like the others have said, I get pulled into this show and wrapped up in the emotion. I just wish it was in a different time slot.
Tell your friend his kid is adorable!
I have looked for info on this little boy, Jabbar. Why isn’t he shown with the cast? Why no bio? Is he going to be released? Die off? Could it be that he has parents that let him act but want him to stay out of the limelight and just be a kid? Kudos to them. I’m still interested though.
I like this show, but there is something lacking in it, i think it could be that there are so many characters so the storyline bounces around a bit. the first few season’s of grey’s anatomy were tear jerkers before the characters got to “soapy” and the patient stories were the core of the show.
I completely agree. I went in to this show just looking forward to Lauren Graham’s return to TV, but I ended up being impressed with the whole cast. It’s certainly a quality show, and I hope it sticks around.
Friday Night Lights makes me cry every single week.
I actually thought Parenthood was similar to Brothers & Sisters, except with more of a focus on the parenting.
But so much less hokey than B&S
Parenthood is what Brothers & Sisters should have been. Where Parenthood is honest Brothers & Sisters is smug; Where Parenthood’s characters are real and performances are excellent, Brothers & Sisters are transparent and over the top.
Yup, Brothers and Sisters was very promising in the beginning and then went downhill.
I’m sixteen years old and lovelovelove this show. Saw the sappy previews and expected to hate it, but tuned in for the pilot anyway just because Ron Howard’s name was attached. Haven’t looked back since. It’s the most honest, realistic drama right now and filled with layered, realistic characters that you might actually meet in real life. You can relate to everybody in some way. Who knew Dax Shephard could redeem himself from ‘When in Rome’?
Yes, we’ve done a 180 on Dax as well.
This show has been pleasantly surprising. I love Lauren Graham and I’m glad to see Coach back on TV. Shephard’s character has actually taken a focus and I now enjoy watching his scenes. The core Bravermans, Adam and Kristina, are by far my favorite couple. They have chemistry and are so witty with each other. It’s not snappiness, but it’s just fun little jokes here and there. That’s what’s really kept me glued: the constant drama with a tablespoon of comedic writing and superb acting on all of the actors’ parts. Great show! I am definitely pulling for this show.
I have too! At first the Dax Shephard character was wicked annoying but now you’re seeing more layers. I think we’ll see this in all the family members over time. Great show.
thankyou Its been driving me crazy trying to place the young actress who plays Lauren Graham’s daughter love the show
I just got hooked on Parenthood, after deciding that I wanted to watch the 5 episodes they have on Hulu in a row. It hasn’t made me cry yet, but I really feel captivated in the story. Thankfully none of the story arcs carry over more than 2 episodes, so at the end of each one there has always been a satisfying conclusion. Anyways, I’m now a devoted fan! Keep up the good work Parenthood!
Man up, Nancy. Real men don’t cry at television.
Don’t you have an antique shop to be in?
Tom is right, men aren’t allowed to cry at television. And they certainly shouldn’t be talking about said crying on the internet, but Dave Karger is a real sissy softie, so whatever.
This show does have a lot of tender and emotional moments. When I heard they were going to make it I didn’t think it would be as good as the movie, but it stayed true and I thoroughly enjoy it, just as I did the movie.
I used to cry during E.R. a lot too. And the movie that makes me cry every time (besides the obvious “The Wizard of Oz” is “Peggy Sue Got Married.” Kathleen Turner is so good in that film that I always get caught up.
I was going to watch this show until Lauren Graham replaced Maura Tierney. Maybe I’ll have to give it a try despite LG’s presence.
“Maybe I’ll have to give it a try despite LG’s presence.”?????? Thems fightin words!!!!!
I had no intention of watching it until i heard LG replaced MT. Glad i did cos it’s great.
I never watched Gilmore Girls and, I know many will hate me for this, but I find Lauren Graham kind of annoying. I even find her character kind of annoying because she’s so… Lauren Graham. That said, I love this show and actually don’t mind Lauren Graham. I think the entire show would have a different vibe were Maura Tierney still in it- maybe a bit better- but still, it’s so good that not even LG takes away from it’s awesomeness!
*its awesomeness, not it’s. Meh.
Lauren Graham and Peter Krause are the standouts in a vey impressive cast. LG is a major star IMHO, and she does it again in Parenthood.