Emotion and entertainment cross paths on rarer occasion that the promoted content on Twitter, Youtube, and Netflix lead us to believe.

How often do shows make us empathize with what we are watching? The days of shouting at the TV screen are over. Instead, we set our undead gaze on our phones and laptops. As the screens shrink, so does our investment in digital entertainment.

Sunderland ‘Til I Die, however, is worth shouting about.

Sunderland ‘Til I Die dances in the vulnerability of an insecure club placed in the beating heart of a forgotten city. It may sound harsh, but it is the simple reality of professional football. Contrary to the portrayals of dominance, respect, and success that were on display in First Team: Juventus or All or Nothing: Manchester City, Sunderland ‘Til I Die reveals the disappointment and denial that fills the lower regions of every division.

To a naïve American audience, the Premier League seems like a fair competition where at least 6 teams fight for the title with the possibility of a surprise victor like Leicester. The Premier League, however, is merely an exception to the understood reality that the majority of teams in every region of European football must reconcile defeat and years of struggle with fading memories of past success. Sunderland assumes the position of a defeated giant in STID with the common plagues of financial turmoil and poor management digging its grave.

What makes STID so intriguing to view is its central protagonist: hope.