"How would you like to come to mine and watch a two-hour supercut of people being really good at their jobs? Oh God, you're really speaking my language. Of course I am. I'm speaking everyone's language. Because, in 2026, when it feels like the entire world is being run by people who wouldn't be able to successfully locate their own bottoms with their hands tied behind their backs, nothing is hotter than basic competency."
"How competent are we talking? It depends. We could watch The Paper, the sitcom about a struggling local newspaper fighting to maintain journalistic integrity in a world more interested in short-term clickbait. Be still my beating heart. Or The Pitt, the hospital drama that keeps winning awards purely because it's about doctors in Pennsylvania doing their jobs to a high degree of success."
"Or there's always my favourite. Be careful, though, because most people can't handle it. What is it? It's a TikTok account by someone who can perform the wet on wet cookie-icing technique without making a single mistake. This feels almost transgressive. What's going on? Well, at the moment the world is permanently three seconds away from any number of disasters, and in times of great stress all anyone wants is a little escapism. This is that."
In 2026, audiences increasingly prefer watching skilled people performing everyday professional tasks with calm competence. Viewers find comfort and arousal in displays of basic competency amid perceived societal incompetence and frequent crises. Popular entertainment spans sitcoms about conscientious local journalists, award-winning medical dramas focused on effective doctors, and short-form videos showcasing flawless craft techniques. Widespread anxiety and the sense that leaders are failing fuel demand for calm, skillful demonstrations. Competence functions as escapism and reassurance, replacing sensational or fantastical narratives with realistic portrayals of people quietly performing work well. The trend elevates mundane expertise into a form of cultural attraction.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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