Every year we do three weeks of top 10 posts: first albums, then TV shows, and finally movies. We do them in exactly that order because that roughly reflects how late into the year each of those three industries are putting out noteworthy new releases – it’s a survival strategy that gives us the most time possible to consume interesting media. But in 2023 we had a big strike that fucked things up, and it made it even harder to deny an uncomfortable truth. So this year I’m trying something: dropping the word “television” from this post’s title.

I think maybe we’ve outgrown the term “TV show,” since shows (and movies) are now made for online streaming platforms and definitely not over-the-air broadcast television. Maybe “series” would be better than “shows” on its own? “Series” maybe more evocatively hits on the most meaningful distinction between the stuff on this week’s list and next week’s: duration. Seasons have gotten shorter and binge releases are common, so how do we differentiate a season from an eight-hour film? This is a bit of a stretch, but are shows and movies really that much more different now than LPs and EPs are? Are there a generation of kids right now who don’t really differentiate between TikTok, YouTube, shows, and movies? It’s all just “content” we watch, right? Does Killers of the Flower Moon (now streaming on Apple TV+) not have an intermission because that would bring it too close to being a miniseries?

TV may be dead but at least I got to hear my friends complain about MILF Manor and The Idol.

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In 2022, so many shows that I cared about came back with new seasons that it felt overwhelming. This resulted in some resignation toward the fact that I just wouldn’t get around to watching all of them, so I didn’t really try as hard as I could have. That said, I still managed (barely) to watch enough shows from last year that I felt good enough about including on a top ten list. However, I can’t help but feel that my list is especially incomplete because I never got around to watching the final season of Better Call Saul — both Sean and John’s number 1 show this year — despite having caught up with the first five seasons. Unfortunately, AMC just didn’t make it that easy to watch this final season if you don’t have a cable subscription and I’m guessing it won’t be on Netflix for another few months. Oh well. Continue reading →

Let’s see what’s on the ‘ol idiot box this year… I kid, I kid. Seriously though, I am more of a movie guy. TV shows are a commitment, and with the amount of “content” out there it’s getting harder and harder to even remember what I’m supposed to be watching. There are genuinely good shows I will probably never see. Does that stress me out? Oh definitely, but hey man, it’s just TV.

As for shows I started but didn’t finish, I want to give props to; She-Hulk, Andor, and Interview with the Vampire. As for shows I have yet to watch? I should probably be watching Abbott Elementary, Reservation Dogs, and White Lotus. What’s embarrassing is that I am all caught up on Euphoria. I don’t know what horrible spell that show has cast over me, but it’s strong.

Alright, Top Ten TV Shows, here we come!

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Now that TV is like mainly an online content farm, we had more franchise shows than ever in 2022. And of those, so goddman many of them were prequels. From Rings of Power and House of the Dragon to Obi-Wan Kenobi and Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, you couldn’t give a geek a swirly without a prequel gurgling up to the surface. Makes me wanna puke. I have historically been opposed to this approach, deriding these stories as unnecessarily filling in gaps that were better left vacant. But you know what? Far and away my favorite shows from 2022 were prequels. Maybe I’m turning over a new leaf? Or maybe good stories are about the journey and not the destination? Oh, wait, I’ve got it: I’m just a hack shill. Someone’s always playing corporation games and who cares, they’re always changing corporation names.

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Like Sean and John, I spent a decent amount of last year watching older shows, though I think I was less successful. I started out watching The West Wing before losing interest around the time that Rob Lowe (and slightly before Aaron Sorkin) left the show, while I also tried to slog through watching the later seasons of Friends, which I also gave up on. Those projects kept me a bit from staying on top of new TV, though I feel better about this list than I thought I would. I didn’t even have to marathon a season of a show in the week leading up to making this list, which is often the case. Still, there are some big shows I wish I’d caught up with, the most notable being Succession, Squid Game, and the final season of Insecure. But regardless, here’s what I did watch… Continue reading →

There were great shows this year. Seems like there are great shows every year. Did the Golden Age of TV ever end? Are we forever doomed to be subjected to too much good TV? Why god?! WHY? Anyways, I spent a good chunk of this year only watching The Sopranos. So by the time October rolled around, I had to haul ass and catch up. That being said I’m happy with my list. Though there are definitely shows I wish I’d caught up with.
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