CONTENTS
We all can’t be interesting. Not all of us have the savviness to dig out the most interesting content or web series and be able to recommend them. Some of us are boring people and aren’t suffering the brunt of social isolation. We lead to uninteresting and non-happening lives. The social distancing that everyone is observing (hopefully) nowadays, used to be our natural habitat for weekends since pre-COVID-19 induced lockdown days.
A Watch Guide For Boring People:
Boring people make boring choices. Our recommendations are boring too. So if you too are one of us, this list of boring content might be of interest to you as we approach week 2 of the COVID-19 lockdown era. Here we go.
1. Greatest events of WWII in color (Netflix)
Boring people dig facts. We prefer realism over fiction. Through actual footage that has been digitally restored to color, this series covers 10 of the greatest events that at some stage either triggered the Second World War, spread it; or turned out to be a turning point that changed the course of the war, and consequently the history. The Second World War was one of the biggest human tragedies of the 20th century.
The COVID-19 pandemic is already the biggest human tragedy of the 21st century. We all have moments during this lockdown where we struggle to deal with this unprecedented situation. The series shows that humans have been in deep shit before, and have managed to come out of it for better. Nothing like a dose of boring realism to put things in perspective, right?
2. The Man in the High Caste (Amazon Prime)
I had said earlier, that boring people dig facts. We prefer realism over fiction. By realism, I mean that even if it is a fiction, the range of emotions should be relatable and not overly melodramatic. This series is based on a book by Philip K Dick, and explores the rare genre of alternate history. The Second World War has ended in favor of Nazi Germany, and the Empire of Japan. The Allies have lost and their territories have been taken over by the victors.
The USA is divided into three zones – Germany controlled, Japan controlled; and a neutral zone. Spread across 4 seasons, the series has its protagonist fight the dictatorships to establish an ideal world based on the principles of freedom, equality, and liberty; that maybe we were taking for granted until the COVID-19 got us locked indoors.
3. International Cricket Council – Archives (ICC website, Facebook page, Instagram handle; and Twitter account)
A lot of us did not realize that we were actually boring folks because we were usually buzzing from the impact Bruno Fernandes has had since joining Manchester United, or how the Indian cricket team has finally unearthed a potent fast bowling attack, or that 2020 is going to the Olympic year. As sports fans worldwide grapple with the reality of no live sports action happening in the foreseeable future, a lot of masks (metaphorically) are off and the count of boring people has suddenly swelled considerably.
Well, to keep us engaged, the cricket’s Apex governing body has decided to open its archive and release footages from the past 45 years. The fans can join via watch parties on the ICC Facebook page relive those moments, flirt with nostalgia; and literally, have a blast, albeit from the past. Jumping fans can join in the fun via watch parties on the ICC Facebook page. Now jumping up and down to celebrate something that happened in 1983 is obviously not everybody’s idea of fun. You need to have a certain nerdy’ness to your boring self, to be able to relish it. For us bores, it is certainly not a bad way to deal with the lockdown imposed due to the COVID-19 pandemic!
What more can one want, you ask? Only if the ICC could conjure up a provision for fans to correct history, and get Sourav Ganguly to bat first after winning the toss at the 2003 World Cup final. (sigh)
If you have any recommendations that might be of any interest to the boring ol’ me, do drop them.
by Pratik Dogra
