15 Ways 'unREAL' Is The Perfect Summer Show

Are you watching unREAL? If not, what's your possible excuse? The Lifetime drama combines two amazing things -- a soap opera that shows the behind-the-scenes of a reality TV show and a reality TV show within the show. Confused yet? Don't worry, it's not as complicated as it might sound. Here's the deal: the main characters, Rachel, and Quinn, are producers of Everlasting, a reality show that is essentially The Bachelor. Where that show is sugary and sweet and all about that princess dream of meeting your Prince Charming and walking down the aisle in a pretty white frilly dress and living happily ever after, Rachel and Quinn are super dark, super clever and just not into it at all. It's an amazing, addictive show that you will absolutely not regret getting into, and you may as well get into it now that the second season has started. Here are 15 reasons that unREAL is the perfect summer show. We can always use another TV show to get obsessed with, right?

15 The Dialogue Is Smart

It's pretty rare these days to see a show with super intelligent, witty and clever dialogue. Sure, you've got the prestige, award-winning and critically-adored dramas like Mad Men and Orange Is The New Black. The dialogue on those shows absolutely rocks. But it's not as common on regular old TV -- and definitely not on a channel known for super, super cheesy made-for-television movies. If you're a fan of Aaron Sorkin who is pretty much the King Of Smart Dialogue and you loved The West Wing, you may not think that you would be into unREAL since the two shows are pretty much the opposite of each other, but you really will get into it. You'll love how intelligent the characters are and what the show is really saying about the way that women relate to work and love and all that stuff in today's world.

14 There's Tons Of Character Development

If you think this show seems super soapy and cheesy since, well, it's on Lifetime, think again. It's got tons of character development and really would rival any drama that you could possibly think of. Quinn and Rachel, for instance, are absolutely amazing characters. Quinn is pretty much Rachel's mentor -- she's the boss, but also a role model in a sense. Rachel wants to be Quinn -- this season, she's supposedly gotten a massive promotion but things don't work out as planned. Sorry but you're going to have to start watching if you want to find out why this is -- and it's a super juicy storyline, so it's worth it. Quinn wants to mentor Rachel and help her out since Rachel is kind of a tragic character with some issues, but she also is pretty jealous of her since she's got youth on her side. Their relationship is super fascinating and unique -- it's honestly unlike anything else you've ever seen.

13 It's Funny

It's not funny in the fake laugh track way like most network sitcoms these days, and it's not laugh-out-loud hilarious like your fave Judd Apatow movie. But it is really, really funny, and that's mostly because the humor is super smart. Sometimes the best jokes and one-liners come from a place of intelligence because the jokes make you think about yourself, society and how people behave. The show examines what it means to be female in today's day and age -- do you want to be totally bitter and broken like Rachel and Quinn and be against love, or do you want to be super hopeful and believing in the super naive fairy tale like all the reality TV hopefuls?

12 It's Relevant

The Bachelor and, of course, The Bachelorette, are super popular. People go absolutely insane on social media when the latest episode hits the air, and they love to make fun of the contestants. Well, unREAL is a super relevant show since it deals with the kinds of issues and contestants that come up on the real-life show. It's nice to watch a fictional show that is not absolutely ridiculous and has nothing to do with your real life. Sure, sometimes you do want to escape and that's completely fine, but it's also nice to watch something that has some meaning for your own life. This show will completely change how you think about reality TV in general and dating reality TV shows in particular. You'll realize how completely fake they are and how you can never believe anything that you see. And we mean nothing.

11 It's Juicy

Seriously, this show takes the word "juicy" to a new level. The storylines move faster than any other show, and you will pretty much be on the edge of your seat. You will have your favorite contestants just like you would if you were watching the actual reality show, you will have characters that you absolutely hate, you will have girls that you make fun of, and you will ship certain characters and want them to be together forever and ever. You will want to text your best friends about certain plot lines… but if they're not watching, well, you're going to have to defend this show and make a huge case for them to tune in so you guys can talk about it all the time. It's such a juicy show that you really can't watch it alone, but if you do, you absolutely need a friend to talk about it with later on.

10 It Turns The 'Happily Ever After' Idea On Its Head

It's nothing new to say that living happily ever after is not always possible or even realistic, but it is pretty original to create an entire TV drama that deals with this topic. If you laugh at these kinds of reality shows and are pretty realistic when it comes to falling in love, you're going to love unREAL. This show is for you if you believe in love, too, because it's going to make you realize that you have to calm down a bit and not be so quick to believe that falling for someone new can fix absolutely everything about your life. It's important to turn this popular, constant idea on its head and think about whether or not it's really possible to love someone forever, and where the line between naive optimism and realistic cynicism is. The characters are either super innocent or super jaded, which is pretty interesting.

9 It's A TV Show About TV

Sign us up, right? What is better than TV? That would be nothing… except for, of course, even more TV. It's really, really fun to watch this show because you're not only watching a TV series but you're watching a show about a show. It's super meta, yes, but it's absolutely fascinating. You get to see the inner workings of a television series and the power struggles and tough times that go along with that. There are promotions, firings, tiny mistakes, massive mistakes, fights, confusion, and all kinds of problems. It pretty much makes you glad that you don't work in that industry and that you have your own not quite as exciting but much better life and job. So yeah, this is definitely a show for all you TV addicts out there (which is everyone, right?).

8 It's Got Attractive Guys

Hey, you knew this point was on its way, right? Because what's a summer show without hot guys? Exactly. We rest our case. Season one had rugged, adorable and gorgeous Jeremy, who was one of Rachel's love interests and the guy she couldn't stay away from even though they are terrible for each other… which pretty much describes the best of any TV relationship. Then there was Adam, the season one suitor for the reality show Everlasting, who was Rachel's other love interest. Yup, talk about a love triangle. Aren't those just the best? If you're looking for some eye candy this summer, seriously, check out this show. You will not be disappointed in the least. Season two doesn't have Adam anymore, sadly, but Jeremy is still around and as cute as ever, and there a bunch of other male characters that aren't too ugly, either.

7 It's Got Romantic Tension

Tension is pretty much at the core of any good dramatic storyline. You need conflict or things are all lovey-dovey and totally happy and there's really no reason to even put a story out there. Yup, unREAL definitely delivers in the romantic tension department. Just consider Rachel and Jeremy's on-again, off-again thing. They're usually fighting, or making up, and now this season they're barely speaking. It's super addictive and you're going to be rooting for them, even if you know they're both pretty horrible people. That' just the nature of the show. Even Quinn has her own love story that is pretty much the total opposite of a good experience: she's on the outs with her ex-boss who she was having an affair with last season (and, oh yeah, he was married with a pregnant wife).

6 It's About Strong Women

Strong women are a pretty big thing these days, in case you hadn't noticed. Even Netflix has a section where you can find shows and movies that deal with strong female characters (although, of course, they don't put nearly enough stuff into that category, but that's a whole other story). unREAL needs to be your summer TV obsession because it has two very strong women, and it will inspire you to stand up for yourself no matter what you're dealing with. You'll want a promotion or raise at work, you'll want to make your life what you want it to be, you'll want to dump your bad news boyfriend and make sure that you're being understood and respected in every single possible situation. In that way, watching the show is kind of like reading a self-help book, but much more fun (and less embarrassing).

5 It's Real

Hey, the title might be the opposite of real, but the show is actually pretty real and raw. It doesn't shy away from tough topics that no one likes to talk about. Rachel, for example, has a history of depression and has had a really rough time in her life, and that point is always being brought up. Her mother is a therapist who is always calling the show's therapist when Rachel doesn't return her phone calls and everyone always thinks that with any crisis or chaotic moment, Rachel could totally snap. That might not be the best portrayal of mental illness, but that's pretty realistic since anyone that has dealt with those issues knows that lots of people treat them like they're paper dolls and don't really respect them enough, unfortunately.

4 It's About Good And Evil

So these are pretty classic troupes, right? It's pretty cool how many different stories, whether in a book or movie or TV show, can deal with the concept of good vs. evil and still be totally original. Basically, we're not saying that characters like Quinn and Rachel are evil because they force the girls to act certain ways and they manipulate situations on the reality show within the show… but, yeah, we kind of are saying that. Because it's basically true, and they're honestly pretty proud of being bad. A lot of the other characters -- some of the producers, the cameramen, the suitors, some of the contestants -- can definitely be classified as good because they have morals and often make big speeches about how they're completely against what's going on. It makes for really, really good drama -- and that, of course, makes for really, really good television.

3 It's About Hard Work

Okay. So your day job probably doesn't involve scheming and making crazy plans and listening to your weird ideas in order to force other people to behave exactly how you want them to. Or maybe it does. We don't know. But we're guessing probably not. So you might not think that the characters on this show, like Rachel, work hard. But they really do. They work crazy long hours, they work through the night often since night shoots are a huge thing in the TV world, and they don't run away from the possibility of even more work. Basically, it may seem weird to take inspiration and get some advice from a show like this, but it really does show that hard work pays off. Hopefully you're using your own productivity and long days at the office for good, not evil, but you can still be glad that there's a TV show out there that actually shows the characters working. Because that's pretty rare.

2 It's Socially Important

In season two, the show is going in a socially important kind of direction: the show-within-the-show, Everlasting, has its first black suitor. There is lots of talk about racism and social rights and social justice and how the world is going to react to it, and that is definitely really revenant in today's world. This just speaks again to how totally intelligent this series is. It's not just silly fluff about girls in gowns who want to find a husband and fast. It's talking about things that matter to everyone, and the audience can definitely relate to the topics and subjects that are being talked about on the show. It's nice when a show can be both fun and interesting and entertaining to watch but also educational. You wouldn't expect that from this show, right? But we swear that's what it's like.

1 It's Dark But Not Depressing

Some dark shows aren't the greatest -- they can totally depress you, and make you feel much worse than you did before you started tuning in. But not unREAL. It's dark, sure, between the characters and their feelings and the storylines, but it's not going to make you hate your life and yourself, too. You'll probably even feel better about yourself after watching a few episodes. Well, hopefully, you will, because they're not the nicest characters in the world and hopefully you don't just tell people exactly what you think of them. But that's what makes it such amazing TV. So go ahead, tell your friends you're staying in this weekend and catch up on the first season and what's aired of the second season so far. You won't want to miss out, because if the episodes that have aired so far are any indication, this is one show that is going to seriously last.