What constitutes a perfect fall show? To me, it goes beyond aesthetics. I don’t necessarily have to witness the perfect flakey golden leaf falling on screen to consider myself in the spirit of the season.

When I think of a fall show, my immediate response is “Gilmore Girls.” The nostalgia and love that spills from the series is one that is definitely reminiscent of the coziness of fall.

To me, simplistic factors like a tight-knit community, small towns, local businesses, sprinkled mystery and familiarity with characters carefully construct a fall show that can’t be replicated in regard to other seasons.

But here’s the thing, there’s no real example of what the perfect fall show looks like. It goes beyond vibes and a warm autumn aesthetic. After all, shows like “Stranger Things” and “Vampire Diaries” fit under the fall show category without necessarily incorporating pleasant themes and trends.

While fall is associated with hints of cinnamon and comfy yet stylish outfits, it’s also a season that is equally as possessed by the spooky spirit of halloween festivities.

“Wednesday,” “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” and “Chilling Adventures of Sabrina” are not shows displaying support for small businesses and attendance of town meetings as emphasized in the Netflix series “Ginny and Georgia,” but they deal with the supernatural elements that are authentic to the season.

After all, watching Wednesday bleed out her eyes has a better reaction from the audience if watched in anticipation of Halloween rather than to summer break. The probability someone digests the scene of having a glass of lemonade by the pool are low.

So, with such diversity of content, what makes a fall show feel different than a summer or even winter series?

For starters, visuals. To me, visuals can seriously break or make a fall show. While I’m not expecting every show’s scenery to look like Stars Hollow or Green Gables, it must elevate the storytelling. If there’s a town square, I’m expecting it to be used in a way that serves the community it was built for.

I think something that makes “Gilmore Girls” a successful fall show is that the storytelling doesn’t feel rushed. Various summer shows are produced for us to sit with character’s actions exercised within a two-month context.

Fall, however, has a slower clock. Its gentle pacing allows the activity of watching a singular episode to be an extremely delightful experience.

In Netflix’s “Anne with an E,” the setting is that of a fictional town in Canada during the late 19th century. While it’s not set in modern times where extras are seen conversing while holding pumpkin spice lattes, the town of Green Gables still exudes a fall feeling given the picturesque landscapes and emotional tonality of the show.

But not all shows deal with carefree horses and autumnal wind. Some are focused towards audiences that enjoy the thrill of the unsettling that shows like “Gravity Falls” and “A Series of Unfortunate Events” capture efficiently.

Another category within fall is murder. This seems to be the focal point of lots of shows produced in anticipation of the season.

While yes, murder shows are watched by people no matter the season or occasion, there’s something captivating about unraveling a murder mystery during the months composing a season that’s all about the nefarious and peculiar.

Hulu’s “Only Murders in the Building” is not what one thinks of when considering fall TV and yet, the apartment complex space provides proximity among the detective friends. This pushes forward a message of closeness, and therefore comfort.

Fall allows for shows to be consumed through various lenses. Some are looking to intentional scares while others prefer the soothing ambiance of the season.

Given the extensive catalogue of shows that exist, the core essence of a fall show doesn’t lie in the outward expression of the season, but rather in the elements that are associated with such changing time, including warmth experienced through visuals and characterization, as well as enigmatic plots.

Fall is truly the one-size-fits-all for TV series. The perfect show for the season doesn’t exist, it’s the experiences we have while watching that classify a show under the fall label. Whether you find comfort in introspection or the infinite screams of teenagers in distress, fall validates the type of reflection expected from such time of year.