So You Want... Collection
A collection of short films featuring Joe McDoakes in a variety of situations
Franchise Evolution & Timeline Analysis
The So You Want... Collection has evolved significantly over a span of 7 years, growing from a singular narrative into a complex cinematic universe. With 58 interconnected entries, tracking the consistency of the franchise reveals fascinating trends in audience sentiment.
The "Series" Benchmark: 2.5/10
The franchise maintains a steady average rating of 2.5. While most series experience "Sequel Fatigue," So You Want... Collection has managed to keep its narrative quality relatively stable, with So You Want to Be a V.P. standing out as the peak cinematic achievement.
Continuity vs. Commercial Appeal
Our data indicates that while the "Release Order" is preferred for first-time viewers, the "Chronological Order" provides a much deeper understanding of the world-building within the So You Want... Collection. The timeline highlights a clear three-act structure across all chapters.
Timeline & Watch Order
We recommend watching the So You Want... Collection franchise in the following order to fully experience the narrative expansion.
So You Want to Give Up Smoking
A semi-humorous look at the various types of smokers and the methods available to them to kick the habit....
So You Think You Need Glasses
A humorous but informative look at how an average man can remedy common vision problems....
So You Want to Play the Horses
In this outing, Joe loves playing the horses and shows what you can do to improve your odds of winning....
So You Want to Keep Your Hair
Average American Joe McDoakes searches in vain for any cure that will halt his fast-disappearing hairline....
So You Think You're a Nervous Wreck
Joe McDoakes attempts to deal with his myriad neuroses....
So You're Going to Be a Father
In this comedic short, Joe McDoakes goes through the problems and anxieties of becoming a new father....
So You Want to Be in Pictures
Aspiring actor Joe McDoakes blows his first part at Warner Bros. and has to settle for being a stand-in....
So You Want to Be a Salesman
Joe McDoakes begins a new job as a vacuum cleaner salesman but can't seem to sell any....
So You Want to Hold Your Wife
In this comedic short, Joe McDoakes attempts to save his five-year marriage to Alice....
So You Want to Be a Gambler
In this comedic short, Joe McDoakes experiences the pitfalls of gambling....
So You Want to Build a House
In this comedic short, Joe McDoakes is evicted from his apartment and decides to build his own home. As the project progresses, his dream house turns into a nig...
So You Want to Be a Detective
Joe McDoakes imagines himself as a private detective on a murder case. Throughout the film, he spars verbally with narrator Art Gilmore....
So You Want to Be in Politics
Joe McDoakes becomes enmeshed in a corrupt political election....
So You Want to Be on the Radio
Joe McDoakes and his wife love to participate in radio show contests, but something seems to interfere every time they are lucky enough to be chosen as particip...
So You Want to Be Popular
Joe McDoakes takes advice on how to be more likeable from his only friend Homer Hotbox...
So You Want to Get Rich Quick
Joe comes up with a complicated scheme to bilk his dead uncle out of an inheritance....
So You Want to Throw a Party
Joe and Alice McDoakes are planning on throwing a party, but Joe mixes up his list of creditors with the list of names Alice gave him to invite. The creditors h...
So You Think You're Not Guilty
Joe McDoakes pleads "not guilty" to a traffic violation but is convicted anyway. Handling this setback in his usual manner, the two-dollar fine quickly pyramids...
So You Want to Hold Your Husband
Fed up with Joe's indifference toward her, Alice McDoakes takes her troubles to a marriage counselor. None of the courses of action she is advised to take have ...
So You're Going to Have an Operation
A satiric look at doctors and hospitals through the eyes of Joe McDoakes....
So You Want to Be a Handyman
Joe MacDoakes' next-door neighbor, Marvin, comes over to help him fix his lawn-sprinkling system, but they get the pipes crossed with the gas-line and almost as...
So You Want to Be a Cowboy
Joe McDoakes and his wife Alice attend a western movie and George soon has himself in the movie shown on the screen as Jump-Along Skip-Along McGur...
So You Want to Be a Paper Hanger
Joe McDoakes, ever obliging and always helpful, volunteers to hang the new wallpaper for his wife....
So You Want to Buy a Used Car
In need of a new vehicle, Joe goes to the Cagey Car Company lot to get a used car,... with predictable results....
So You Want to Be a Bachelor
"I never knew what happiness was till I got married—and then it was too late," Joe recalls, flashing back to bachelor days and his courtship with Alice....
So You Want to Be a Plumber
In this comedic short, Joe McDoakes decides he should become a plumber....
So You Want to Get It Wholesale
Joe uses his "contacts" to buy a new oven as cheaply as possible....
So You Want to Enjoy Life
Believing he has only a month to live, average guy Joe McDoakes decides to live life to the fullest in the time he has left....
So You Never Tell a Lie
When a wristwatch intended for a office contest winner gets mixed up and confused with the one Joe McDoakes purchased for his wife, Joe once again finds himself...
So You're Going to the Dentist
Joe McDoakes' dimwit neighbor Marvin becomes a dentist, and manages to convince poor Joe to let him become Marvin's first patient....
So You Want to Wear the Pants
It's a dangerous hypnotic suggestion when a psychiatrist tells married couple Joe and Alice McDoakes to switch points of view during a session....
So You Want to Be a Musician
Joe McDoakes can't find a job as a bassoonist, so he pawns his instrument....
So You Want a Television Set
Joe and Alice buy a television set and, due to some excuse, or another, the neighbors begin to drop in, stay to watch television, and raid their refrigerator....
So You Love Your Dog
Despite the fact that during the war, Joe McDoake's dog Dusty did everything wrong including giving information to the enemy, Joe brings him home with him....
So You Think You Can't Sleep
Average working man Joe McDoakes tries desperate measures to cure his chronic insomnia....
So You Want to Be an Heir
Thinking he may inherit a million dollars from his dying grandmother, Joe McDoakes finds himself the target of murderously greedy family members....
So You're Having Neighbor Trouble
Joe starts having trouble with an obnoxious neighbor....
So You Want to Be Your Own Boss
Joe McDoakes, determined to be his own boss in this Joe McDoakes Comedy entry, opens up a new restaurant. Complaining customers and a sanitation inspector who c...
So You Want to Go to a Nightclub
In this Joe McDoakes Comedy, Alice insists they go to a night club, although Joe is both tired and broke....
So You're Taking in a Roomer
Joe and Alice decide to rent a room in their house to their neighbor Marvin, who says he is a potato broker....
So You Want to Know Your Relatives
Do-gooder Joe McDoakes is the guest on the "Know Your Relatives" TV show where, to his chagrin, many of his black sheep relations reveal the skeletons in the fa...
So You Don't Trust Your Wife
When his wife Alice questions Joe as to whether his insurance policy is paid up, he begins to see a plot to murder him in everything she does....
So You Want to Be a Gladiator
Joe thinks he's back in the gladiator days, and finds himself sentenced to be thrown to the Coliseum lions after breaking a string while playing the lyre for Ki...
So You Want to Be on a Jury
Joe and Homer are both on a jury trying an accident case involving their boss and a gangster. Interference from both sides makes their task difficult....
So You Want a Model Railroad
Alice visits Mr. Agony with her latest problem with Joe. They had given Junior a toy railroad for a Christmas present, and Joe had taken it over and become obse...
So You Want to Be a V.P.
Joe McDoakes is employed as the seventh vice-president in a firm that only makes promotions from the employee ranks....
So You Think the Grass Is Greener
When he gets to his office after a usual morning of nagging by his wife, Alice, Joe McDoakes starts to daydream about what life would be like married to the bea...
So You Want to Be Pretty
In this comedic short, Joe and Alice McDoakes each wish their looks were better....
So You Want to Play the Piano
Alice neglects her housework because she is enthralled with the long-haired piano player, Gregor Flatorsharpsky, next door. Joe buys a piano, and the accompanyi...
So Your Wife Wants to Work
Joe McDoakes' wife Alice wants to return to work to add income to the household. Joe would rather she stay at home to tend to domestic duties. When Alice threat...
Common Questions about So You Want... Collection
How many movies are in the So You Want... Collection?
There are currently 58 movies in the So You Want... Collection, starting from So You Want to Be a Detective to the latest release, So You Want to Be a Policeman.
What is the best order to watch the So You Want... Collection?
The best way to watch the So You Want... Collection is usually in release order: starting with So You Want to Be a Detective and ending with So You Want to Be a Policeman. Check our timeline for the full chronological breakdown.
Which is the highest-rated movie in the So You Want... Collection?
According to movieMx ratings, the fans have a strong preference for So You Want to Be a V.P. in this franchise.