These highly acclaimed television shows of the 2020s have been rendered into jigsaw puzzles. Can you piece them back together?
1. Your first puzzle reveals a kitchen with some frantic chefs during dinner rush. A sign saying "Every second counts" is hanging from the wall. You recognize the faces of Carmy, Sydney, and Richie while putting it together. Which "ursine" show is it?
Jeremy Allen White stars as Carmen "Carmy" Berzatto, an illustrious fine dining chef who returns to his hometown Chicago to inherit a chaotic restaurant run by his deceased brother. Though it is billed as a comedy-drama, real culinary professionals have praised the show for its realistic portrayal of an intense restaurant work environment. Others have challenged its categorization as a comedy, citing its many dramatic scenes with incredible acting.
There is a real restaurant in Chicago called "Mr. Beef", which heavily influenced the show. The show has nearly doubled business at the restaurant, as it has become somewhat of a tourist attraction.
2. As you piece this one together, you notice a classroom coming into formation. Gregory is helping Janine put a poster up because she's afraid of heights, and all the students are snickering behind her back. Which "2nd grade" sitcom is this?
Abbott Elementary is a fictional public school in Philadelphia with a faculty full of zany characters. It is much like "The Office" in that it's a work environment mockumentary; and that the person in charge- principal Ava Coleman- is an unqualified, tactless and immature leader (but also very funny).
Quinta Brunson, who plays Janine as Ms. Teagues, is also the show's creator. Brunson has stated her mother's 40-year career as a schoolteacher in Philadelphia helped inspire the show. The teacher she looks up to, Barbara Howard (Sherry Lee Ralph), is based on her mother. Abbott Elementary is named after Joyce Abbott, Brunson's favorite elementary school teacher.
3. Is that Jenna Ortega? This one is Burtonesque with a spidery window and what looks like a severed hand. But the girl dressed in all black steals the show. Who is it?
Based on "The Addams Family", this series focuses on a teenaged Wednesday Addams, who gets expelled from public school and is sent to her parents' high school: Nevermore Academy. There she is able to develop her psychic abilities, which come in handy when a local murder happens. Tim Burton produced the show, and it stars Catherine Zeta-Jones as Morticia Addams.
Nevermore Academy is named after Edgar Allen Poe's "The Raven". Poe is described as the academy's most famous graduate, while Principal Dort models his appearance on the poet. Steve Buscemi played him starting season 2.
4. The next puzzle has you really scratching your head. It takes place in a minimalist office where the workers look lost. You start to feel like you can't remember your own working life. Which "surgical" show is this?
"Severance" is a psychological thriller about employees at the fictional Lumon Industries. They underwent a procedure that splits a person's memories between work and personal life. Office locations were filmed at the former Bell Labs complex in New Jersey, designed by the modernist architect Eero Saarinen. The sets deliberately feel constricting to make the viewer uncomfortable, adding to the tension.
5. Now you're seeing chess pieces on a board with Anna Taylor-Joy in deep concentration. Which "royal" show is this puzzle about?
"The Queen's Gambit" is the story of chess prodigy Beth Harmon as she rises through the ranks, wanting to become the best chess player in the world. The show won 11 Emmy Awards, including Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series- the first streaming series ever to win it. Chess celebrities Bruce Pandolfini and Gary Kasparov were consultants for the series, helping prepare realistic chess positions for the sets.
6. A psychologist and a teenager are in some heated debate in what looks like a detention facility. Also a stage of life, what was the name of this show?
13-year-old Jamie Miller is suspected of the murder of a classmate in this highly acclaimed thriller. Though the first season was only four episodes, each of them was shot in one continuous take. "Adolescence" was especially popular in the U.K., where the series was set. It prompted the Prime Minister to back an initiative that would stream the series for classrooms in order to address violent misogyny on social media.
7. This puzzle is a bit brighter than the last few. There is a soccer (football) field with an American coach who looks very awkward leading a British team. Sharing the name of a U.S. president, who is the coach?
"Ted Lasso" is a comedy about an American coach hired by a the owner of a British football team. One of the challenges for Ted is that he is unaware the owner is deliberately trying to sabotage the team. Another is that Ted is coaching a sport in a culture he knows very little about.
Jason Sudeikis, who developed the show and starred as the eponymous character, stated that the storyline was based on his own experience after breaking up with Olivia Wilde and moving to London to grieve.
8. Contestants in green tracksuits and guards in pink jumpsuits face off in what looks like an East Asian dystopia. Which aquatically-named show is this?
"Squid Game" is pure fiction, set on a South Korean island where financially desperate contestants risk their lives playing children's games for a major cash prize. The recurring colors of pink and green are meant to mirror a childlike, playful atmosphere that contrasts with the show's bleak premise.
9. This is totally an operating room. There are frantic surgeons racing to save a patient, while the city of Pittsburgh rises through the window. What show have we fallen into?
Set in Pittsburgh, "The Pitt" is a medical drama about an overcrowded and underfunded emergency ward. Noah Wyle helped produce the show and stars as the lead doctor. He was also part of the same production team on "E.R.". They are now facing legal challenges from "ER" creator Michael Crichton's Estate for allegedly rebranding the '90s classic.
Each season of "The Pitt" consists of an entire shift at the hospital, with each hour representing an episode in real time.
10. A young girl walks through the remains of a decrepit city overrun by wildlife and a local militia. The city this time looks like Seattle. What "final" TV show puzzle is this?
"The Last of Us" explores the remains of civilization after a fungal pandemic transformed most of the population to zombies. It is based on a video game franchise of the same name. Two of the main characters, Joel and Ellie, were played by two supporting actors in "Game of Thrones" (Pedro Pascal and Bella Ransey), though they had no scenes together in the latter. Gustavo Santaollala, who composed the music for the video game series, was also hired to compose the series soundtrack.
"The Last of Us" is the first TV show based on a video game to receive major award recognition, including nine Emmy wins and 40 nominations over its first two seasons.
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