The Chair

Need to Know: The Chair is a comedy-drama that follows the life of JiYoon as she becomes the Chair of the English department at an important university. We follow her as she tries to navigate between difficult co-workers, reviving the English department and dealing with personal matters.

Creators: Amanda Peet, Annie Julia Wyman
Cast: Sandra Oh, Jay Duplass, Holland Taylor, Nana Mensah, Bob Balaban

Why Is It Worth Watching? The series begins with us being introduced to the first woman chair, Ji-Yoon (Sandra Oh) of the English department at Pembroke University. She is handed a crumbling department, which is outdated and seen as irrelevant to students due to the old-fashioned methods of the teachers. And as she tries to keep the department afloat, she must also deal with problematic co-workers such as Bill (Jay Duplass), who is struggling with the loss of his wife, and being a single mother to a troubled child. The show deals with issues such as institutional racism and sexism as well as cancel culture and how it affects people. It truly encapsulates how it feels to be a working mother trying to also build a career in such a tumultuous time, where you can lose your job over a joke. It’s definitely worth your time, and it’s a great show to binge over the weekend as it only has six episodes.

” The show deals with issues such as institutional racism and sexism as well as cancel culture and how it affects people.

How to Become a Tyrant

Need to Know: Have you ever wondered how some of the world’s worst tyrants came to power? In this six-episode documentary, you look at six different dictators and what they did right and wrong. And how you can learn from them to avoid becoming a tyrant yourself.

Narrator and Producer: Peter Dinklage

Why Is It Worth Watching? In this documentary narrated by Peter Dinklage, we learn from the ‘playbook’ the ultimate guide to becoming a tyrant. In each episode, we follow one of the worst tyrants of the 20th century. We learn about their achievements, faults and the actions they took to be remembered as a tyrant. From Adolf Hitler in 1933 to Kim Il-sung in 1948, and many others. In this fascinating documentary, everything is analysed including the personality and mentality needed to be a dictator and the lengths one goes to stay in power, such as manipulating the truth, crushing your rivals and keeping control with violence and fear. We also get to hear from various historians and professors as they comment on the brutal actions taken by these insecure, selfcentered and power-hungry men in their attempts at conquest. The documentary also clarifies why the 20th century was one of the bloodiest in human history. This is an absolute must-watch, with excellent narration and interesting delivery.