Let’s get one thing out of the way immediately. GOT, Game of Thrones is king. That is and has been the best show/series on TV for the last couple of years, period. Granted, last season was the first season where it didn’t really stand up to GOT standards; it was, however, GOT and that by default makes it awesome. I would also like to give a special shout out to Blackish, which is hilarious and in my opinion the best comedy on TV right now. But this article is about Mr. Robot,  the best new show on television.

I know a lot of people already know about this show. It probably had the most buzz this year and rightfully so. It is cool and edgy and smart and different. It is not your typical show. The protagonist isn’t your normal handsome, charming guy. He is a drug addict who is mentally unstable and just happens to be a hacker. He has bags under his eyes and is extremely socially awkward. He barely speaks. We really only know him from his internal monologue which again is coming from a mentally unstable person. If this hasn’t piqued your interest then I guess you can stop reading. Actually, no, keep reading. Because even if the story or characters don’t pull you in, the cinematography and music direction of the show will. The show is shot beautifully. The show uses weird angles and non-traditional positions of characters in scenes. They use the music in an interesting way. Even the way the title of the show pops up in every episode is unique. During the opening scene of each episode, the title Mr. Robot pops up on-screen in huge red letters, unexpectedly and without cue. I’m not really doing the show justice because a lot of the appeal of the show is in the mood and setting. It’s dark, but realistic.   It is hard to describe but you will definitely know you are watching a different kind of show immediately.

One of my guilty pleasure movies is Hackers. A movie that is best known for having a young Angelina Jolie star in it. And there being a brief, kind of nude scene with her. Anyway, this movie was cheesy and unrealistic, but I love it nonetheless. The villain is introduced riding into a room on a skateboard. Again, if this doesn’t interest you, don’t seek this movie out. I bring this movie up because it is also about hackers, obviously. But where that movie fails in its attempt at realism, Mr. Robot succeeds. Now I don’t know how to program or hack or even know all of the terminology of that world. But I know that Mr. Robot is the most accurate TV show when it comes to the lingo of the computer world. And they don’t try to dumb it down either. Throughout the show, the protagonist tells the audience how he does certain things or hacks more specifically. But again, he’s speaking from his own head, so all of this stuff is already second nature to him. So when he breaks down how he does certain things, he kind of speeds through it. But to be honest it doesn’t matter if you can’t keep up because it doesn’t deter from the story. But it does lend to the authenticity of that world. Funny thing is, the show actually references Hackers and makes fun of the movie within the show. Little things like that are what make this show so dope to me.

Another piece of the show that I love is the overall story of the show. This is almost forgotten or pushed to the background because of all of the other stuff going on with the characters. But in essence it is a rebellion against the status quo. As hackers they feel like the world as we know it, is a broken system. They point out how easy it is to disrupt order and how big, evil and greedy corporations are in control. So, in true hacker fashion, they want to shake things up. Who can’t relate to feeling small? Who can’t relate to thinking big corporations control everything? And who can’t relate to feeling helpless when a computer problem happens? We are so reliant on computers and programs that it is fascinating and scary to think what would happen if there was a large-scale breach or hack on our systems. What would you do if you couldn’t access your bank account? Or your social security number was erased? These questions are what make this overall story so compelling.

I will not steer you wrong. Like I said even if you don’t like the story or characters, the look of the show itself is worth the watch. The main character does an amazing job, he is so good in fact, that I looked up videos of his interviews to see if he was this awkward in real life. The season finale just aired recently, but you can watch on on-demand or buy the dvd’s when they come out. You have more than enough time to catch up before next season. You will not be disappointed, I promise.