Tag: Review

Top 10 TV shows of the Last Decade

It’s said we are currently experiencing a Second Golden Age of TV. There are more TV shows and channels than ever before vying for our time and fandom. Below is a list of some of the best shows of the decade that are absolutely worth anyone’s time if they happened to miss out on them.

10. American Horror Story (Seasons 1-4) (2011-)

AHS is not the show it once was. It has reached a point of being just bad. However, it still needed to be included because of how strong the first few seasons were. Season 1 “Murder House” was released in 2011 and there was nothing like it that had ever been on TV. It was legitimate horror that was on our televisions, not camp, but creepy and gory horror. The different ways that people have been killed or other awful things happened to them, on FX is shocking to see. The first season deals heavily with a school shooting. The second season focuses on mental health and sexuality, which we hadn’t gotten as much as we do now. They have always been quick to address social issues. AHS went four strong seasons before going off the rails. We regularly see anthology shows that have self contained episodes or seasons such as Fargo or Modern Love now. AHS was one of the first popular shows to pioneer this format. Each season was a stand alone story that cast the same actors in different roles. Throughout these seasons, showrunner Ryan Murphy built a powerhouse regular cast that included the likes of Jessica Lange, Evan Peters, and Sarah Paulson. 

9. Watchmen (2019-)

This show was released just in time for the decade. It was difficult not to include too many late 2010’s shows but this one needed to be here. Damon Lindelof was given the keys to this IP and was told to do whatever he wanted with it. Lindelof has done some interesting things in his career with Lost and The Leftovers. Lindelof isn’t interested in answers for his shows, it’s the journey that is the actual entertainment. Watchmen takes place a few decades after the comic and movie and viewers aren’t really given a lot of direct context of where the universe is at now. It takes focus to watch this show to catch up. Lindelof made this show for himself, and lucky for us, he gets to share it with everyone. In only one season, Watchmen is able to create images which will stick with viewers for a long while. Judd Crawford, played by Don Johnson, being found at the end of the first episode; Young Looking Glass, played by Philip Labes walking out of the fun house at the beginning of episode five, I could name a dozen more here. Lindelof has said he won’t be doing a second season which is very unfortunate to hear. Hopefully, if HBO continues without them they can try to capture at least a bit of how great the first season was.

8. Big Little Lies (2017-)

The cast alone gets this show on a best show of the decade list. Imagine if someone told you 10 years ago that Reese Witherspoon, Nicole Kidman, and Laura Dern would be on a show together. Not only was the aforementioned cast amazing, it provided excellent performances by Shailene Woodley and Zoe Kravitz who held their own sharing the screen with the giants. If the first season wasn’t impressive enough, they returned with a second season and dropped a nuclear bomb by adding Meryl Streep to the cast. Streep creates many iconic moments in the second season, but my favorite would be her screaming at the dinner table. In an age of memes and gifs being so popular, this show really churns out a lot of quality moments. Putting the cast aside, this show blends the tone, music, and message to make a high quality show that deals with timely topics around domestic abuse, assault, and harassment.

7. The Good Place (2016-2019)

The fact that the Good Place has gone four seasons, let alone aired at all is very impressive and shows the change in major network’s sensibilities to their shows. Unique and rule breaking shows such as Community struggled if they did one episode that followed a typical sitcom format. The Good Place does full seasons that bend the rules of a network sitcom and we didn’t have to worry about sudden cancellations ending their story early. Each season finds a new way to reinvent itself to keep the seemingly limited story going, but not in a desperate “keep making paychecks” way. In a world of generic half hour comedies, this show was a breath of fresh air that changed the game for future sitcoms. Ted Danson plays a character named Michael, who is not human. He is an architect of The Good Place, a place for good people to go to when they die. Eleanor, played by Kristen Bell, ends up at The Good Place. She immediately knows this is a mistake because she was a bad person on earth. All of the actors have amazing chemistry with one another, especially Kristen Bell and William Jackson Harper who plays Chidi.

6. Ozark (2017-)

My favorite way to describe Ozark is “The Perfected Anti-Hero” story. If Ozark came out in the mid-aughts we would have a season or two where Jason Bateman’s character is just a normal accountant who is presented an opportunity and over time starts becoming wrapped up in the criminal world and craziness ensues. Ozark cuts all of that. Right from the beginning, viewers are introduced to Bateman having no issue laundering money for drug cartels. It saved us from seasons/episodes of boring buildup and gets us right into the thick of the drama. The location of the show is beautiful and gets us out of the big cities that regularly accompany drug cartel shows/movies. Julia Garner’s performance needs to be mentioned, she really steals the show despite sharing the screen with established stars Laura Linney and Bateman. There is constant drama and twists that always catch the viewer off guard. I would love to list some, but want to avoid spoilers for a show that is probably pretty overlooked since it’s Netflix and they are bad at advertising. 

5. Atlanta (2016-)

Atlanta breaks all the rules of television. You will have an episode that ends in a situation that needs resolution and expect it with the next episode. Instead you’ll have two episodes that have nothing to do with the main story and are essentially stand alone episodes. Atlanta does episodes that have built in commercials that if you aren’t paying close enough attention look like legitimate commercials, not jokes. The episode this takes place in is one of the main characters Paper Boi played by Brian Tyree Henry as a guest on a local TV talk show, the entire episode of Atlanta is as if you are watching an episode of Montague, the talk show. Donald Glover has never liked rules or doing what is expected. Such as being a regular cast member on a network sitcom and quit in the middle of the run. Or following up a successful rap album with an experimental electronic album. With Atlanta, he is constantly looking to do distinctive and quirky things while also providing social commentary by highlighting issues that will have a wide audience on FX and reach demographics that it otherwise may not. FX has, rightfully, given him full creative control over this project and allows him to do whatever he wants and it has resulted in some amazing product over the last couple years. The only downside is the wait between seasons. Season 2 ended in May of 2018 and it could be the end of 2020 or 2021 before season 3 is released. 

4. Girls (2012-2017)

Girls took four privileged, millennial, mostly unlikeable women and created a very touching well crafted show that HBO showed trust in by continuing the show’s run longer than the creator expected. Lena Dunham was one of the pioneers of Mumblecore cinema and after the indie success of Tiny Furniture, HBO greenlit her show Girls. It follows the lives of four women living in New York City after college maintaining their friendship and relationships. Some of the best moments of the series are bottle episodes that feature one of the main characters in a stand alone adventure. Take for example Season 5 Episode 6 “The Panic in Central Park” where Allison Williams’ character Marnie runs into her ex Charlie, played by Christopher Abbott. The series started with them being together and Charlie being a secondary character. He was phased out after a couple seasons but brought back for an episode to see how his life has changed. The episode builds slowly as Williams is stepping out of her life for a moment, only to be met with deep disappointment in the end. Girls had a lot of great guest appearances throughout, like Patrick Wilson in another well done bottle episode “One Man’s Trash” season 2 episode 5.

3. Justified (2010-2015)

Headlined by Timothy Olyphant and Walton Goggins, this show was almost guaranteed to be a hit. The entire series centers around how Olyphant and Goggins’ characters, despite being a US Marshall and a criminal, are more alike than it appears. Olyphant and Goggins characters used to work in a coal mine together when they were younger and that kind of work builds brotherhood. Throughout the 6 seasons Olyphant is pursuing Goggins, while also thwarting other bad guys’ plans, while also having a mutual respect for each other. Justified has a very classic western feel to it that is palatable to those who aren’t fond of that genre. The very first scene of season 1 episode 1 is Olyphant shooting a drug dealer because he didn’t get out of town in the 48 hours he was given, about as classic a western sheriff trope as you can get. The series begins with a “Case of the week” feel that is much more procedural than the show becomes. Eventually, they create season long villains, who are cast very well. A couple examples of these villains are Margot Martindale (Season 2) and Michael Rapaport (Season 5). 

2. Game of Thrones (2011-2019)

Game of Thrones gets a bad rap these days. They had difficulty sticking the landing of the final season and people have really soured on it. Honestly, there is probably no way they could have ended it and made a majority of their fans happy. Regardless, the iffy ending shouldn’t negate just how important this show was. For almost the entire decade it was a driving force of discussions in popular culture. It was nearly impossible to escape all the conversations and theory surrounding each episode’s release. Fans had to watch the episodes air live so nothing was spoiled, which no longer really applies to any show due to the popularity of streaming services. Moments like The Red Wedding and Battle of the Bastards rocked the culture almost as much as real events. The Battle of the Bastards is the best battle sequence I have seen, including film. Even if you have no interest in the story, I would recommend checking this battle out just for the quality. Adding in the complex woven story, great performances, and unparalleled production quality you have an absolute hit of the decade.

1. Succession (2018-)

I went back and forth a lot on Game of Thrones or Succession taking the top spot. I ultimately had to go with this order. On the surface this show can appear shallow and frivolous. Who wants to see a bunch of rich people having problems? But rather than being a soap opera of well-to-do idiots, it’s actually a chess match of verbal sparring and wit. Throughout the two seasons, people who are part of the family, and not are all jockeying for position to succeed after the patriarch can no longer lead the family business. It’s not possible to find a weakness in the cast and just watching them all go off on camera is pure joy to watch. The MVP of the show would have to be Kieran Culkin who plays the youngest son of the family Roman Roy. He is smarmy and his delivery of insults is masterful. Succession isn’t getting the attention that it deserves yet, but with the second season being even better than the first, it will surely win some awards and get people talking about it more.

Fall Sitcom Intro

It’s one of the best times of the year…the weather is getting more chilly, trees will start changing colors soon, people are going out and picking pumpkins and going to apple orchards…and all the new and returning TV show premieres roll out! 

The idea of a laugh track disgusts me, tropes are boring and unimaginative. However, I can’t help but watch or at least try all of the sitcoms that come out every year. Since I watch them all, I wanted to spotlight some that might be worth checking out!

The Good Place Season 4 (NBC)

The Good Place is arguably one of the best things on TV. It’s unprecedented that a show this unique is aired on a major broadcast network. Shows like Community struggled if they did one “weird” episode. The Good Place does full seasons of “weird” and we didn’t have to worry about sudden cancellations ending their story early. If you’re tired of the generic sitcom plot that is always used and you want a change of pace, give this one a try if you haven’t already.

They are only a few episodes out so far and they haven’t missed a step. All of our favorite characters are back, and we have a few couple new residents to The Good Place. So far the new residents haven’t been fleshed out a ton, but I have no doubt, considering the track record, that they will be able to do so. They have set them up for quite the challenge with one of the new characters. Brent, played by Benjamin Koldyke, who plays a horrible male chauvinist trash person. We’ll see if they can make him likeable at all, they have to keep us on our toes somehow.

Each season finds a new way to reinvent itself to keep the amazing story going. I can’t really go too far into this without spoiling things. So please, just go over to Netflix and catch up on the series so you can watch along for the final season.

The Neighborhood Season 2 (CBS)

This one really surprised me. I had a lot of negative opinions from the premise and commercials. It seemed like the point was to criticize the black neighborhood for not accepting the white family moving in as a gross “see all people do this!” validation. I was thrilled to see that it wasn’t the neighborhood that had a problem with the white family moving in, just the grumpy neighbor.

Despite my concerns when first learning about The Neighborhood, I was looking forward to Max Greenfield having his own show with New Girl ending. I loved his character Schmidt and I just needed more Max on my TV. Greenfield has a certain charm and excited energy to him that lends well to Schmidt’s “Bro” persona but still being endearing, which allows the negative aspect of his womanizing to not be his defining characteristic. In The Neighborhood he is able to strip all of that douchiness and he is just pure excited charm which is perfect for his role as Dave.

The second season is a couple episodes in so far and its following the same solid path the first season went. With it being more a typical sitcom, there isn’t really a big overarching plot line that was resolved and then a new one starts on the next season. The episodes usually revolve around the growing friendship of Max Greenfield and Cedric The Entertainer’s characters. A lowkey great relationship is between Cedric the Entertainer’s adult sons and Greenfields young son. They look out for him like a little brother and create some cute moments together. This one might be a little bit more difficult to catch up on since you can’t stream it anywhere except CBS All Access. 

 The Unicorn Season 1 (CBS)

Confession: I love Walton Goggins. Anything he touches is gold, and when I saw he was getting his own sitcom I was on board immediately. Goggins plays a widower with two young daughters. A year plus has passed and he is encouraged to get back in the dating scene by his group of friends. He is considered a “Unicorn” because he is a single father and it’s not by any negative actions of his own. AKA he isn’t an ass..

Goggins regularly plays villians. Sometimes they are flat, by-the-book villains. Other times, like his character Boyd Crowder in FX’s Justified, he is very complex and it doesn’t feel right calling him a “bad guy”. In all these roles it’s clear he has leading man qualities, yet nothing ever comes. Seeing him play a sweet father to two young daughters is such a breath of fresh air. One would think your mind would immediately jump to him as one of his many nefarious characters, it just doesn’t happen in The Unicorn. He immediately pulls you into the character and you’re along for the ride with him getting his life back together.

Aside from Goggins the rest of the cast is really strong as well. Rob Corddry, Omar Benson Miller, and Michaela Watkins creates a pretty strong and compelling supporting cast. They all have their own kids and so far after two episodes the chemistry between all of them is strong and there will be a lot of real estate for the story to go.

This show is about as much of a guarantee you can get to having multiple seasons. Goggins is arguably the biggest star CBS has on any of their new shows this season and as long as he wants to hang out there, they will keep letting him.

Bob Hearts Abishola Season 1 (CBS)

This one is a unique story of a Detroit businessman falling in love with a Nigerian immigrant nurse. It has a lot of things going for it. Folake Olowofoyeku, as Abishola, is pretty fantastic. The budding relationship between the two is very sweet. Also, I’m always going to root for a story that takes place in my city, Detroit. 

Bob Hearts Abishola is included on this list because it will be a fun one to watch for a season. I would be willing to bet it won’t get a second season, though. CBS is throwing everything at the wall and hoping something sticks. They have too many sitcoms and something has to give. It doesn’t feel like they put a lot of money into the budget or time into the writing. A lot of the jokes fall short and don’t have the punch you know they wanted. I don’t really have a lot of love for many of the supporting players either. Despite pulling some names like Vernee Watson, Barry Shabaka Henley, and Matt Jones…I just don’t care about any of their stories and I don’t think this one can last long relying so heavily on just Bob and Abishola.

Also it’s a horrible name for a show…

Sunnyside Season 1 (NBC)

I’m all for a group comedy. Community is one of my favorite sitcoms of all time. Taking a bunch of different personalities and throwing them into a room and having them play off each other and see what happens. Sunnyside stars Kal Penn as a former New York City councilman who is disgraced and fired. He finds himself tutoring a group of immigrants studying for their US Citizenship test. 

The cast of this show is very diverse and from the first couple episodes, quite funny together. The character Griselda played by Diana-Maria Riva has a running joke where she always shows up working different part time jobs. She catches a lot of characters off guard being in unexpected places and they way she plays off everyone is very entertaining. The character The cast, aside from Penn is fairly new. It’s hard to tell how successful the show will become this early. It all relies on how well the actors hold up and are fleshed out by the writing. This could either be the next big thing that goes 7 or more seasons, or it could be a dumpster fire and be done after a season, there will be no inbetween.

I would definitely recommend hopping on early here and going for the ride. You could be on the ground floor for the next Office. If it gets cancelled after a season, no harm done!

UPDATE: Sunnyside was cancelled after 4 episodes.

There ya have it, folks! Of course, there are a ton of other shows out there, but here are a handful to check out to help navigate the wild waters of Fall TV Premier season.