Let's chat: What's a show that *feels* Jewish to you but actually isn't?

We've got a Talmudic question for you.

A while ago,

Daci Platt

asked us a question that feels almost Talmudic. “What’s a show that feels Jewish but isn’t?”

Her answer? “Hacks,” but she can’t explain why. She just knows that every time the show makes news, she gets excited to read my take on it in Kveller — and then remembers that there’s basically nothing Jewish about it. (Yes, I gave it an honorary mention in a recent article, but Daci is right, it has hardly any Jewish content.)

Molly Tolsky

was quick to answer with her favorite: “Frasier.” It is, after all, a show about two psychologists, a profession that feels innately Jewish. It’s witty and smart, something that we like to associate with Jews. And it has one of the best television bar mitzvahs of all time.

For me, the first thing that came to mind was, for some reason, the medical procedural “House.” Maybe because of Dr. House’s kvetchy sensibilities. Maybe because it is all about asking questions, which is very Jewish. Maybe it’s because it’s created by Jewish Canadian TV maven David Shore. Maybe it’s because it takes place in a New Jersey hospital. Maybe it’s because Hugh Laurie just starred in the latest season of the Israeli TV show “Tehran.” Maybe it’s because “A Bit of Fry & Laurie” feels Mel Brooks coded. Maybe it’s because I didn’t realize that not only is the show’s Dr. Chris Taub (Peter Jacobson, who went on to play a rabbi on “Fear of the Walking Dead”) Jewish, but so is Dr. Lisa Cuddy (Lisa Edelstein) and Dr. James Wilson (Robert Sean Leonard). Is “House” actually a Jewish show, and do I have to completely rethink my answer to this question?! Maybe!

Anyway, let me know what your answer to the question is! What show isn’t Jewish but feels Jewish to you?