Why found family is the best genre
Horror, comedy, romance, rom-horror, found family, slice of life, career-oriented shows, drama, crime, found family, historical, found family, and so much more. There are so many different genres of shows, and in this article, I will be trying to convince you—and hopefully not confuse you—that found family is one of the best, if not the best, genre of movies and TV shows out there.
Watching movies is something I like to do in my free time or when I’m stressed, and it’s something I’ve done for as long as I can remember. When I was younger, I watched a lot of cartoons because my parents didn’t like us watching “shows with human beings,” as I liked to call them. So I watched any cartoon I could get my hands on and they cultivated it, knowingly or unknowingly, because my mom tended to return with a bunch of CDs whenever she arrived home. I like to think I have a good number of cartoons under my belt.
As I grew up, I started watching “shows with human beings” through Disney and similar channels. However, my parents insisted, no romance, not knowing that there was always something going on with the teens on the Disney channel shows back then, but I wasn’t going to say anything. For the longest time, I considered romance the top genre because who doesn’t love being in other people’s business? Plus, it was messy, sometimes cute, other times disgusting, and a few times intolerable. They were fun to watch. However, my views changed as I transitioned to K-Dramas.
It wasn’t like that in the beginning. I stuck to romance and then thrillers but as I watched new shows, I began to appreciate the little squabbles the family had—the lead leaving their demanding job and moving back home to the outskirts of the city with only a few hundred dollars, living in a community where everyone knew everyone. I loved the little adventures they had, always learning something new, deconstructing the bad views and ideas they had of certain people, the beach scenes!
Found family shows make me feel warm and fuzzy on the inside and can put a smile on my face even when it seems like nothing could make me smile. The people becoming one family, learning to navigate certain emotions, especially because they’re in a new environment, and so much more. It’s a roller coaster ride for your emotions. You’ll be annoyed when everyone judges a character for something but smile when the conflict is resolved and root for them when they all come together to support their new friend. Cry when they open up about something and be jealous because now you want to move to a small town and find a community just like them.
The found family can also be a bunch of genres mixed together—slice of life, romance, thriller, comedy, historical, crime, career-oriented, horror, and so much more. Contrary to common belief, the leads don’t always need to move to a small town either. They could change jobs or start a new one, move into a new apartment where they are stuck and have to fight for their lives, and so much more. I love that the characters can meet people and form genuine connections with them, regardless of whether it's long- or short-lived.
I think I’d attribute my love for shows like this to age. I’ve also realized how important communities and a sense of belonging can impact us as people, and I’ve come to appreciate people who go out of their way to create that for others and themselves; what’s better than knowing someone who will always be there for you and will defend you with their life? Or knowing someone that you could talk to and say anything to, but it wouldn’t be ‘off’ or ‘weird’ because you just get each other. As we grow older, our interests change and there’s nothing I love more, nowadays, than a good found family trope. So with that, I hope I have convinced you, and not confused you, that found family is the one of the best—if not the best—trope out there.