As we reach the midpoint of the year, how did that happen? You might be looking for something to watch as the Olympics loom. Here are the best shows of the year (so far). First some honourable mentions that I know the rest of the wider team loved that I didn’t take to. Those would be One Day on Netflix, Extraordinary on Disney+, Lost Boys and Fairies on BBC iPlayer and Mr Bates Vs The Post Office on ITVX.
Baby Reindeer
I will admit now that I wasn’t Baby Reindeer’s biggest champion but there’s no question that a deserves place here. Richard Gadd’s deeply personal story of online stalking and sexual abuse arrived with little notice but quickly became the year’s biggest word-of-mouth hit. Spending weeks on top of Netflix’s weekly charts, the show couldn’t be pigeonholed as one thing, part dark comedy, part memoir, part horror, rarely, something this raw and unflinching garners universal following but Baby Reindeer proved irresistible. Jessica Gunning was both terrifying and vulnerable as Gadd’s relentless stalker, her performance was completely unpredictable, putting the audience in Gadd’s shoes of being unsure of when she’d turn up and what mood she’d be in. I had my issues with Gadd’s performance but Baby Reindeer delivered one of the most truly original and surprising series in recent memory, even if it’s one I’m not keen to revisit any time soon, it’s one that will stay with me.
The Bear
Season 3 of The Bear wasn’t what I was expecting but that’s not to say it was bad. A season that at times felt like the episodes ended before really reaching the point that they had something to say, it still delivered two standout episodes which put two background characters front and centre adding to their depth and backstory in a way that only The Bear and creator Christopher Storer seems capable of. Perhaps there wasn’t the narrative push forward that other seasons of this miraculous show have had but more than anything else, this season just enforced how much I loved being in the world of this show and being with these complex characters. Ice Chips, the episode that sees Natalie go into labour is one of the best episodes of the year with a stunning lead performance from Abbey Elliott and co-star Jamie Lee Curtis that uses a different type of stressful moment to examine why these people behave the way they do. There seems to be a distinct lack of buzz around this third season which I can’t quite understand because although the season felt different, the show hasn’t lost any of the magic that made it so special.
The Bear season 3 feels lacking but there is plenty to enjoy and two standout episodes
Big Boys Series 2
Jack Rooke’s semi-autobiographical comedy about his alter-ego’s coming-of-age journey, after the death of his father, landed in 2022 like a cuddly duvet, smothering toxic masculinity in a soft blanket of chaotic comedy and male affection. Awkward, grieving and closeted, Jack finds the unlikeliest of allies in his university roommate Danny, when he takes the short physical – but long emotional – journey to Brent Uni. Laddish and lairy, Danny quickly proves he is more than his Margate swagger when he instantly pivots from trying to get Jack a girl, to trying to get him a boy on discovering Jack is gay. Taking nervous duckling Jack under his Lynx Africa scented wing, allows Danny to slowly reveals his own trauma and issues, and the pair become each others’ life raft in the strange academic seas they find themselves adrift in. Right-on, cool Corrine (Izuka Hoyle), and fabulous fashionista and LGBTQ leader Yemi (Olsa Odele) take the pair by the hand as they fumble through their fresher year – very much not aided by baffling student rep Jules (Katy Wix). This unlikely nursery group nurturing leads to emotional growth all around, paving the way for Jack to come out to his mum, and Danny to let his new friends support him through a mental health crisis. Big Boys delivered every hideously awkward, embarrassing student exploit, and fumbling, catastrophic sexual shenanigan in a messy, squashy comedy cake, topped with pin-point precise cultural reference sprinkles. It’s glorious and guffaw-worthy. This dazzling level of observation from Rooke means that not only is his portrayal of student life depressingly accurate, but he also creates one of the most believable modern British families on TV. Family members picking up the slack where others have been let down; X-Factor and Strictly treated with religious devotion; takeaways, tears, hugs and love spilling out of every inch of the mismatched cereal bowls and coffee mugs that accompany all of the above – all paint the picture of life from Devon to Dundee in the 21st century.
Jack Rooke’s brilliantly observed Big Boys delivers a moving second series.
Fargo Season 5
Fargo has always been brilliantly unpredictable but the fifth season managed to match the heights of the first and second seasons which are quite rightly held in high regard. Juno Temple was magnetic as Dot, a woman just trying to live a quiet suburban life with her daughter and dopey husband who can’t escape her past. Perhaps because it was set the closest to our time (November 2020) it felt the most timely and real of anything that Fargo had done before but also maintained the zany nature we’d come to expect from a series that can take its characters anywhere. When it is finally revealed who Dot is and why she is so desperate to keep her true identity to herself the series unwraps into something truly special. Dark, funny and scary Noah Hawley’s unique take on the Cohen Brothers’ world always feels fresh but these characters in particular feel cut from something entirely different. Arriving to little fanfare on Prime Video late last year, it’s perhaps little wonder that Fargo’s fifth season was barely mentioned at the time and very little sense but that’s just the way of this new streaming era we live in and in no way a reflection as to how good the season was. Even if you’ve not seen a second of the past seasons this one is a brilliant entry point into the genuis of Noah Hawley and a reminder of what a talent Juno Temple is when she’s given such a meaty role.
Girls5eva Season 3
Girls5eva is without question the funniest show you’ve never seen. Woefully under the radar, before Netflix plucked it from NBC-owned streamer Peacock, the comedy which sees a ’00s girl band who find a tiny amount again after their only big hit is sampled by a much bigger star delivers one laugh after another. I had hoped the move to Netflix would send the show to the heights it has always been deserving of. Instead, the all-powerful algorithm didn’t even have it on the home screen on the day of launch. There’s a certain sense of irony in the fact the band are always trying and failing to get attention and the same is true of the show itself but the fact that Netflix chose not to heavily promote a show they’d saved, isn’t a reflection of the quality here. The Girls of Girls5eva are wonderful. Sara Bareilles, Busy Philipps, Paula Pell and Renée Elise Goldsberry handle the silly slapstick, musical numbers and emotional turns that the show delivers and have great fun with it. It’s a show designed to make you smile and if we only get these three seasons I’m quite content.
Girls 5eva proves that comedy can be funny and still have something to say.
Inside No.9
It seemed right that Inside No.9 came to an end with its ninth series. The creepy and always imaginative anthology series went out on its own terms with Steve Pemberton and Reece Shearsmith continuing to find new and inventive ways to tell their twisty tales. The claustrophobic and uncomfortable opener Boo to a Goose played with our moral compass, while Ctrl Alt Esc reminded you how skilled the pair are at playing with our emotions with a story filled with poignancy. Pemberton and Shearsmith outdo themselves in terms of originality with every instalment of the series and the finale, Plodding On, paid tribute to the legacy and gave the two creators a chance to get really meta and bring back some of the famous faces who portrayed varying characters throughout. Never stale or repetitive, Inside No.9 proved that there was still an appetite for one story episodes in a TV landscape seemingly obsessed with serialisation. More than anything, it proved what incredible talents Steve Pemberton and Recce Shearsmith are both as writers and performers, with each of them morphing into countless different characters throughout the run of the show. Inside No.9’s legacy will live on and we’re unlikely to see anything like it again soon, luckily, the episodes are so good and varied that rewatching them will be just as good.
Masters of the Air
Let’s get something out of the way, Masters of the Air is the third in a trilogy which began with HBO’s Band of Brothers. Any hope that the third instalment could meet the staggering heights of that series should be immediately put to bed, but judging Masters on its own merits it’s a must. Apple TV+ shows have always looked stunning but Masters of the Air feels truly epic. The stomach-churning ariel sequences are unlike anything I’ve seen in serialised television at this point and there are times you truly forget you are watching a written drama as you are so immersed in the stakes of the battles these characters are fighting. Where Masters of the Air lets itself down is in its characterisation. I can’t say I truly cared for anyone here, having two lead characters with two similar names was never anything but confusing but when it came down to it, the fact the characters weren’t as strong didn’t really matter because the action and the wider story here is something we need to see.
Mr. & Mrs. Smith
The Hollywood Reporter recently declared the end of Peak TV and the rise of Peak IP. It’s been happening for a while, studios leaning into their intellectual property and attempt to breathe new life into a story people are already familiar with to save them the bother of coming up with something new. It’s easy to dismiss the idea as lazy, and often it is, we didn’t, for example, need Frasier back and I missed the cries for The Full Monty cast to reunite, but sometimes, in the right creative hands, those not so original ideas can be turned into something that supersedes the original. Case in point, Donald Glover’s take on Mr. & Mrs. Smith. When it was first announced that Glover was adapting the 00s film that gave rise to Bradgelina, I was genuinely surprised. Glover has always been an original, his series Atlanta was one you could never second-guess. What he managed to do with Mr. & Mrs. Smith was make that feel as original as anything he’d done before. Two strangers who work for a shady and underground company are thrown together and sent out on missions killing seemingly random people. Fun, dangerous and sexy, the show was a real pleasant surprise. Donald Glover and Maya Erskine had a palpable chemistry as two strangers thrust into the unknown. The first episode sees them tasked with following a woman with a cardboard box. They don’t know the woman, they don’t know the contents of the box and at this point, they don’t know each other. What follows is a twisty race across New York to get the box at whatever cost. Part buddy comedy, part action drama, part relationship counselling session, the show juggles a lot but handles each facet at play with impressive ease.
Review: Mr and Mrs Smith gets everything right and is a truly thrilling ride.
The Responder Series 2
There was an argument, that I probably made, that The Responder didn’t need a second series. The gritty Liverpool-set crime drama from Tony Schumacher accomplished so much in the first series that it felt as if its story had been told. More often than not series are given a second series when there isn’t enough story left to tell to warrant another six episodes, and sometimes, I’m wrong and the second series rivals the first in terms of writing and performance. The world of The Responder is bleak and dangerous. its characters are injected with so much humanity and humour that you can’t help but root for them even when things seem at their worst. All of the characters here are caught in an inescapable pit of despair. Responding Officer Chris Carson (Martin Freeman) still doesn’t have his doesn’t life in order before he’s unwittingly caught in another mess and at the mercy of a ruthless drug dealer. Add to that the father he despises is back on the scene and that his wife is back with the man who ruined his marriage, Chris has it harder than almost anyone else on television. Martin Freeman is the best he’s ever been as Chris Carson, often vibrating under the strain of stress and anger that he’s forced to live under. Rachel (the stunning Adelayo Adedayo) is still struggling with the after-effects of being in an abusive relationship with boyfriend Steve (Philip Barantini). She’s distracted at work, driving into a bush and self-harming by touching a hot iron and completely disturbed when she discovers Steve has moved on and is possibly treating his new girlfriend the same. Frantically searching for her details on Facebook she eventually finds Lorna (Izuka Hoyle) and goes to extreme lengths to keep her safe. It’s a terrific performance and a powerful way to continue Rachel’s story. Elsewhere, Marco (Josh Finan) is left literally holding the baby when the mother of his baby daughter is sent to prison. Initially clueless, it becomes the making of this once-lost young lad. Determined to make a better life for himself and his daughter, it’s Marco that has the most hopeful arch here even if he’s in constant danger of being pulled back into the only life he’s ever known. Casey (Emily Farin), is stuck. She doesn’t know a different way of life and going into a business with Jodie (Faye McKeever) initially feels like Casey could be on to the first good thing of life, if only until Jodie learns Casey’s direct involvement in her husband’s death. The majority of British drama feels stale and lacks identity. The Responder feels distinctly British, deeply rooted in Liverpool and the show has a lot to say (most of it not very good) about modern Britain.
Ripley
Another show based on well-known and beloved IP that you could argue didn’t need a refresh. Tom Ripley has appeared in two movies and a radio series, the idea of resurrecting the scheming conman again seems redundant and lazy, but when Ripley arrived on Netflix I found myself completely immersed. Shot in black and white, the whole thing was stunning. Andrew Scott is admittedly older than the other incarnations of the character, but he brings something very different to the role. A cerebral look at this unhinged character that feels entirely fresh. Writer-director Steve Zaillian turned the material into a riveting step-by-step procedural on how to be a sociopath. The beats may have been familiar, but the journey was fuller and more well-rounded than anything that had come before.
Shōgun
Few shows this year have been as epic as Shōgun. This factually-inspired historical drama set in 1600s Japan,it told a sprawling tale of sex, religion, and a land-grab fight for power amongst high-born families. A show that demands your attention, the series was full of rich and complex characters trying to rise above their pre-determined lives. Once you had a firm grasp of who was who and where their allegiances lay it was a truly gripping and fascinating experience. History fans will be nourished by the political landscape and fight scenes, but there’s plenty too for those here for the human story. A focus on honour, purpose, ritual and religion, along with the clashing worldviews on sex and love give Shōgun’s cast much to work with on the interpersonal side of things.
True Detective: Night Country
The fourth season of HBO’s dark crime anthology was incredible. New showrunner Issa López drew on the themes that the series had become synonymous with and brought something new, exciting and unpredictable with her. We’re in the fictional Alaskan Town of Ennis on the last day of proper sunlight in December before it disappears for good. Detective Liz Danvers (a brilliantly no-nonsense Jodie Foster) is called in when the town’s scientific research centre, hugely a hub of activity run by its entirely male staff is found strangely deserted along with the discovery of a human tongue. The discovery of the tongue is of particular interest to cop-turned-trooper Evangeline Navarro (the utterly captivating Kali Reis) who is convinced it belongs to a native woman who had her tongue removed after she was killed for protesting the town’s main source of income – the mine. Danvers is dismissive but the pair end up working together when it appears there could be a link. Jodie Foster and Kali Reis were electric together and the story was so well told that the week between episodes was only just bearable. Where other seasons within the series have felt dark and depressing, López understood how to use her version of darkness – the everlasting night, to feed into a wider of story of how people cope in such a harsh environment, the way Indigenous people are treated and how two women come together to solve a brutal case. Airing in early January, the season is truly one of the best shows of the year and quite possibly, the best season of True Detective so far.
True Detective is a return to form and feels properly exciting
We Are Lady Parts
It may have been quite a wait, but the second series of this brilliantly observed comedy didn’t disappoint. After a semi-successful tour, Asian punk band Lady Parts are determined to make it happen. But when it comes to the realities of funds, they face the moral dilemmas often seen in similar rockographies. Should they betray their punk roots and give in to the evils of capitalism, advertising mascara, or, worse, becoming wedding singers? Should they leave Momtaz behind and go with a bigger manager in order to sign a record contract? Every decision and brickwall they face is exacerbated by the tribute-band-come-rivals, Second Wife, who are snapping at their heels. With characters that feel real and fresh, We Are Lady Parts keeps you on its toes with its clever storytelling and incredibly catchy original songs. Nida Manzoor’s show is truly unique and offers a fresh perspective from characters who haven’t been as well served as this before.
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