{"id":117646,"date":"2025-08-04T07:41:14","date_gmt":"2025-08-04T07:41:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/117646\/"},"modified":"2025-08-04T07:41:14","modified_gmt":"2025-08-04T07:41:14","slug":"if-you-can-rewatch-these-10-heartbreaking-tv-shows-youre-stronger-than-most","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/117646\/","title":{"rendered":"If You Can Rewatch These 10 Heartbreaking TV Shows, You’re Stronger Than Most"},"content":{"rendered":"

From The Wire to BoJack Horseman, there are some really devastating TV shows that take some emotional preparation to rewatch. There are plenty of comfort shows that are a joy to rewatch<\/a>. Feel-good shows like The Office and Gilmore Girls and Schitt\u2019s Creek and the golden-age seasons of The Simpsons will never get old.<\/p>\n

But not every TV show that demands a rewatch<\/a> is easy to get through. Chernobyl, for example, is rich with historical details, so you need to watch it more than once to fully appreciate it. But it\u2019s a haunting portrayal of a real-life nuclear disaster and all the death and destruction that followed, so it\u2019s a tough rewatch.<\/p>\n

10 <\/p>\n

Better Call Saul<\/p>\n

The Comic Relief Fades After Season 1<\/p>\n

\"Jimmy<\/p>\n

In its first season, Better Call Saul was styled as a comedic counterpoint to its predecessor, Breaking Bad. But that comic relief fades after season 1, and by the end of the show, it\u2019s just as dark and depressing as the original show. At just the midpoint of the series\u2019 run, you have to watch Chuck McGill burn himself alive.<\/p>\n

You have to watch Lalo Salamanca murder Howard Hamlin with a smile on his face. You have to watch Kim Wexler leave Jimmy McGill broken and alone. You have to watch Jimmy very almost murder Carol Burnett as the law is closing in. Who knew Walter White\u2019s clown-like lawyer had so much darkness?<\/p>\n

9 <\/p>\n

Band Of Brothers<\/p>\n

A Harrowing Journey Through World War II<\/p>\n

\"Buck<\/p>\n

Executive-produced by Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg as their follow-up to Saving Private Ryan, Band of Brothers is both one of one of HBO\u2019s best miniseries<\/a> and one of the earliest shows of the Peak TV era. It proved that TV shows could be just as visually stunning, powerfully acted, and epic in scope as movies.<\/p>\n

But as great as Band of Brothers is, it\u2019s tough to rewatch. It\u2019s a harrowing journey across the battlefields of World War II. The whole series is brutal on its audience\u2019s emotions, but the hardest scene to watch is when the Band of Brothers find an abandoned concentration camp<\/a>. That one\u2019s hard to get through just the first time.<\/p>\n

8 <\/p>\n

The Walking Dead<\/p>\n

You Have To Watch A Beloved Character Die Every Few Episodes<\/p>\n

\"Glenn<\/p>\n

The best way to describe The Walking Dead is a zombie-infested soap opera. It has a sprawling cast of colorful characters, each with their own personal struggles, and they just happen to be surrounded by hordes of the undead. But the series isn\u2019t as much fun as that makes it sound; it\u2019s really, really dark.<\/p>\n

When you rewatch The Walking Dead<\/a>, you fall in love with characters like Hershel and Glenn and Beth and Tyreese all over again \u2014 except this time, you know they\u2019re doomed to a grim fate. As you go through the series, you lose one of your favorite characters to a gruesome and untimely death every few episodes.<\/p>\n

7 <\/p>\n

Six Feet Under<\/p>\n

Death Is The Heaviest Subject<\/p>\n

\"Ruth<\/p>\n

Alan Ball\u2019s Six Feet Under is one of the most beautiful TV shows of all time, but it spends every single episode focused on the heaviest subject matter there is: our collective mortality. The series revolves around a dysfunctional family trying to keep their late patriarch\u2019s funeral business afloat. In every episode (except the last one), somebody dies.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s a really touching family saga \u2014 and Six Feet Under\u2019s final episode<\/a> is one of the greatest series finales in TV history \u2014 but it\u2019s also pretty devastating. The show\u2019s pitch-black humor offsets its grim focus on death a little bit, but it\u2019s not a show you\u2019ll want to watch over and over again.<\/p>\n

6 <\/p>\n

I May Destroy You<\/p>\n

A Shocking Depiction Of The Trauma Of Assault<\/p>\n

\"Arabella<\/p>\n

Michaela Coel\u2019s I May Destroy You is one of the greatest TV shows ever made. It\u2019s incredible filmmaking across the board: well-observed writing, keen-eyed direction, perfectly paced editing, a vibrant soundtrack, and compelling performances by its cast. But the story revolves around the horrific trauma of assault.<\/p>\n

At the beginning of the series, Coel\u2019s character Arabella is attacked on a night out. She spends the rest of the show reckoning with that horror and trying to come to terms with it with the help of her two best friends. It\u2019s a masterpiece, but it\u2019s not easy to watch.<\/p>\n

5 <\/p>\n

Chernobyl<\/p>\n

A Masterfully Crafted, But Deeply Horrifying Look At A Nuclear Disaster<\/p>\n

\"Chernobyl<\/p>\n

HBO\u2019s Chernobyl is a masterfully crafted chronicle<\/a> of one of history\u2019s worst tragedies: a disastrous nuclear explosion at a Soviet power plant in 1986. The performances are deeply affecting, the writing captures all sides of the fallout, and the production design pays impeccable attention to detail. But it\u2019s not a show you can watch more than once or twice.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s one of the best TV shows ever made, but it often feels like an endurance test.<\/p>\n

Every single episode has something that\u2019s really hard to sit through, whether you\u2019re watching people die of radiation poisoning (one of the most agonizing ways to go) or seeing soldiers gun down irradiated dogs. It\u2019s one of the best TV shows ever made, but it often feels like an endurance test \u2014 and it\u2019s not easy to pass.<\/p>\n

4 <\/p>\n

Breaking Bad<\/p>\n

Walter White’s Transformation Into A Monster Is Paved With Tragedy<\/p>\n

\"Walt<\/p>\n

Breaking Bad revolutionized television with a story of change. The medium had traditionally been used to maintain a status quo for years, but Vince Gilligan used this long-form storytelling format to chronicle a character\u2019s gradual transformation. Walter White starts off as a mild-mannered high school chemistry teacher, but he slowly morphs into a cold-blooded, meth-cooking monster.<\/p>\n

Bryan Cranston gives one of the finest performances<\/a> ever captured on film, and the storytelling is pitch-perfect from beginning to end. But Breaking Bad takes so many grim turns, from poisoning a child to blowing off half of a chicken entrepreneur\u2019s face, that it takes a lot of guts to go back and rewatch it.<\/p>\n

3 <\/p>\n

Pose<\/p>\n

A Relentless Portrayal Of Prejudice<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

Ryan Murphy\u2019s TV shows<\/a> have been very hit-and-miss, but Pose is one of the undeniable hits. It\u2019s an emotionally engaging depiction of New York City\u2019s ball culture in the 1980s and 1990s, anchored by a stellar ensemble cast. It\u2019s a brilliant show that everyone should watch, but you\u2019ll have a hard time revisiting it.<\/p>\n

The series is unrelenting in its portrayal of the traumas and tragedies faced by this underground LGBTQ+ subculture. It\u2019s inspiring to see the characters persevere through unimaginable pain and hold onto their identities, but the pain itself is tough to watch.<\/p>\n

2 <\/p>\n

BoJack Horseman<\/p>\n

You Have To Be In A Good Place Mentally To Go Back Into BoJack’s World<\/p>\n

\"BoJack<\/p>\n

You shouldn\u2019t watch BoJack Horseman unless you\u2019re in a good place mentally, because it takes some seriously dark turns. On first glance, it might appear to be a silly cartoon about a talking horse, but that\u2019s the genius of it. It uses that premise to explore the darkest corners of the soul.<\/p>\n

BoJack might be a talking horse, but he\u2019s more human than most other characters on television. He\u2019s full of self-doubt and self-loathing, he self-medicates a variety of mental illnesses, and he makes some of the most horrifying decisions you\u2019ve ever seen. If you\u2019re going on that journey with him all over again, you need to be emotionally ready.<\/p>\n

1 <\/p>\n

The Wire<\/p>\n

A Hauntingly Realistic Look At Society’s Darkest Problems<\/p>\n

\"Duquan<\/p>\n

The Wire is one of the greatest TV shows ever made (it might be the greatest, period), but it\u2019s not an easy watch. It\u2019s a hauntingly authentic look at the darkest problems embedded in American society. It deals with poverty, drug addiction, police brutality \u2014 basically all the worst things happening on the streets of the average U.S. city.<\/p>\n

As much as I love The Wire, it\u2019s not a comfort show by any means. It takes a lot of emotional preparation before going into a rewatch and seeing Bubbles being incessantly bullied<\/a> or Chiquan getting slashed across the face in the classroom or Duquan slowly slipping into heroin dependency. The Wire takes a lot out of you.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"From The Wire to BoJack Horseman, there are some really devastating TV shows that take some emotional preparation…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":117647,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[171,173,67,132,68],"class_list":{"0":"post-117646","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-tv","8":"tag-entertainment","9":"tag-tv","10":"tag-united-states","11":"tag-unitedstates","12":"tag-us"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/114969371413115174","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/117646","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=117646"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/117646\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/117647"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=117646"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=117646"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=117646"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}