Common Side Effects (season 1)
{5/5} “The system isn’t broken. It’s working exactly how it was designed. You’re just the glitch.”
Common Side Effects season 1, aired in 2025
Marshall, who has a pet turtle named Socrates, found a mushroom in Peru that has astonishing healing properties. He wants to give it away for free to everyone. His old lab partner from school, Frances, works at Reutical Pharmaceuticals and at first she thinks that her company could make it and sell it. But her boss doesn’t want to do that — he wants to bury it so no one can get it, so people have to continue to buy his products.
This is a brilliant show — the properties of the mushroom aren’t exactly believable, but that doesn’t matter. The story of the little guy with the natural medicine versus the evil company is eminently believable. It’s gripping, and it has a nice sense of humour.
My favourite characters are agents Copano and Harrington, who are hilarious every time they’re onscreen.
The music is composed by Nicolas Snyder.
Stars Dave King, Emily Pendergast, Mike Judge, Martha Kelly, and Joseph Lee Anderson.
Created by Joseph Bennett (Scavengers Reign) and Steve Hely (writer on Late Show with David Letterman).