The Investigation
This Copenhagen-set crime series is steady and deliberate by design, more committed to realism than perhaps any entry into the genre to come before it. The series retells the true story of the murder of journalist Kim Wall, which became known as “the submarine case” after she disappeared at the same time that a local man’s homemade submarine sunk. Investigator Jens Møller (Søren Malling) is technically the main character, but the series doesn’t focus much on him. Instead, it’s all about the steadfast attention to detail required to build a foolproof case, the countless man-hours that justice requires, and the hollow victory of a solution that won’t bring back the dead. The Investigation is dark stuff, but it’s also the most intricate, engrossing, and ethical type of crime procedural.
It’s A Sin
Russell T. Davies’ sweeping miniseries about a group of flatmates enduring the AIDS crisis is a celebration of queer life as much as a testament to those who died. At one point near the end of its five-episode arc, a character says, “That’s what people will forget: that it was so much fun.” It’s A Sin doesn’t let us forget the bright spot in LGBT+ history that came just before the HIV/AIDS epidemic, nor the vibrancy and strength of the people who lived through it–or didn’t. The series, which was partly inspired by Davies’ own friends, focuses first and foremost on the joy of queer found family; the central group of imperfect dreamers is instantly loveable. When tragedy comes, it has real, all-encompassing weight to it, but It’s A Sin never loses its vibrant spirit.
Kevin Can F*** Himself
The sitcom man-child’s reign has gone on too long; luckily, Kevin Can F*** Himself is here, and it’s ready for violent evolution. The series, which stars Schitt’s Creek’s Annie Murphy, is half sitcom and half dark drama. Murphy’s character, Allison McRoberts, is a put-upon housewife who tires of her dead-end marriage and her husband’s relentless laugh-track lifestyle and main character syndrome. Whenever Allison steps away from Kevin (Eric Petersen), the studio lights fade and the series turns into a cynical meditation on America’s broke-down towns and the complicated women who inhabit them. Kevin Can F*** Himself feels radical and unpredictable; it’s the rare modern original series that keeps you begging to know what will happen next.
Last Chance U: Basketball
The debut season of Last Chance U: Basketball (a spin-off of the successful football docuseries Last Chance U) drops us into the microcosm of the East Los Angeles College Huskies, a junior college team led by eccentric, driven Coach John Mosley. The stakes are high for team members like Joe Hampton, an all-star talent whose run-in with the law cost him a Division 1 spot, and team leader Deshaun Highler, who recently lost his mother. Last Chance U: Basketball is a series built on a foundation of endless empathy, but it also works because it keeps it real, refusing to shave the rough edges off its subjects or fit them into a narrative of neat, linear progress. The series is a triumph of filmmaking, too, editing games for maximum excitement and artfully employing some of the best needle drops of the year. The season finale, which turns what could’ve been a timeless sports saga into a gutting portrait of the here-and-now, pushes Last Chance U: Basketball from a very good series to an outright essential one.
Mare of Easttown
The latest prestige HBO mystery series sets itself apart from the competition by applying a light touch to areas other crime dramas tend to hammer home a bit too hard. Sure, it’s got a jaded detective lead, played with nuance by Kate Winslet, and it’s also got a murdered young woman and a whole fish tank’s worth of red herrings. Yet Mare of Easttown works because it cares more about everyday life stuff than it does about big, edgy, dark moments. It cares about the aching joints of Mare’s mom (Jean Smart), the drunken chatter of her new partner (Evan Peters), and the quiet desires of her teen daughter (Angourie Rice). In most mysteries, the devil’s in the details, but Mare of Easttown presents detail for detail’s sake, bringing texture to its small-town Pennsylvania setting and creating something special in the process.
Rutherford Falls
If you love the parts of Parks and Recreation where Leslie Knope (Amy Poehler) digs into the eccentric and casually colonialist parts of Pawnee history, your next TV stop should be Rutherford Falls. The series, which is co-created by Parks and Rec showrunner Michael Schur, lead actor Ed Helms, and Navajo filmmaker Sierra Teller Ornelas, is a game-changer and a delight. The comedy-drama follows two lifelong friends, white founding family member Nathan Rutherford (Helms) and Minishonka Native American tribe member Reagan (Jana Schmieding), as they reckon with the town’s colonial history and the still-uneven playing field of local politics. Rutherford Falls still has room to grow, but overall, its first season is a groundbreaking breath of fresh air that tackles long-ignored topics candidly and with good humor. Keep an eye out for the fourth episode, which showcases Michael Greyeye’s tremendous talent as it tells the story of how his character, Terry, became a businessman and casino manager.
Shadow and Bone
Several series have tried to fill the massive pop cultural hole left by Game of Thrones in the two years since it’s been off the air, and while Shadow and Bone isn’t poised to enter the zeitgeist in nearly the same way, it does hit a lot of the familiar genre sweet spots fantasy fans are craving. The Netflix series is based on several book series by popular YA author Leigh Bardugo, and its first season weaves together three plots and a large cast of characters to spin a saga of magic, thievery, and intrigue. At its center is Alina Starkov (talented newcomer Jessie Mei Li), a wartime cartographer who soon finds herself swept into a world of dark luxury after she discovers a rare and much-coveted power. Meanwhile, a trio of criminals called the Crows plays out their own uber-cool heist plot, while across the sea, a treacherous voyage yields an unexpected romance. Shadow and Bone is a lot to digest, but its fully realized mythology is engrossing and addictive, and it catapults forward in a way that all but guarantees your complete attention.
Starstruck
With only six short episodes in its first season, Rose Matafeo’s Starstruck has a limited window of time to make a good impression, yet it proves itself a stellar modern screwball comedy right out of the gate. Fittingly, much of the London-set show is about making the right impression, as it follows New Zealander Jessie (Matafeo) as she has a series of missed connections–and connections gone wrong–with a famous actor named Tom Kapoor (Nikesh Patel). The series quickly earned comparisons to another celeb-meets-normie romance, Notting Hill, but it has a distinct comedic voice all its own. Matafeo is a delightful lead, and Jessie and Tom have real (if hilariously off-kilter) chemistry, making Starstruck an endlessly watchable rom-com that’ll leave you yearning for more.
Superstore
By the end of its six-season run, Superstore established itself as a new classic among sitcoms, a workplace comedy that blew the competition out of the water thanks to its smart and consistent focus on the exploitation of the working class by major corporations. The big-box store-set series still had plenty of satirical ground to cover when it bowed out early this year, but writers were able to get some well-aimed jabs into its final batch of episodes. The series lampooned public responses to COVID, tackled anti-Black racism with a clever plot about hair care products kept under lock and key, and continued to speak frankly about America’s immigration system through the character of Mateo (Nico Santos). Superstore also concluded on a welcome hopeful note, giving each one of its characters the happy endings they deserved with a surprisingly emotional final episode send-off.
The Underground Railroad
In a recent interview for Vulture, Barry Jenkins describes his adaptation of Colson Whitehead’s The Underground Railroad as “not a fact-based depiction of history, but I think..in some ways a truth-based depiction of history.” Jenkins takes this artistic freedom and uses it to craft one of the most painfully beautiful cinematic stories ever put to the small screen. The Underground Railroad follows Cora (Thuso Mbedu), a slave on the run, through a somewhat mystical version of America, one in which the titular escape system is a real railroad and each new state presents unexpected, occasionally surreal dangers. Cora’s Odyssey-like journey is at once sweeping and specific, as Jenkins re-imagines one of history’s darkest chapters with clarity, grace, and his trademark sense for emotional intimacy. Soulful performances, unparalleled visuals, and an unforgettable score by Nicholas Britell also make the series a can’t-miss experience.
Wandavision
If you’ve seen Wandavision, you’ve likely also read some of the countless articles about its place within the Marvel universe. The show’s placement on this list, however, is in no way due to its success as a piece of interconnected IP, but instead thanks to its ability to work as a wildly entertaining near-standalone series. Wandavision is good TV, in large part because of the loving, detailed tour through sitcom history that forms much of its structure. Wanda Maximoff’s (Elizabeth Olsen) superpowered grieving process is fertile ground for ingenious pop culture homage, and an ultra-game Kathryn Hahn helps sell the journey through each decade of TV history. The series’ central love story is also stunningly realized, a remarkable turnaround for two minor franchise characters that’s thanks in large part to nimble, effective performances by Olsen and Paul Bettany.
Related Topics: bo burnham, it's a sin, Mid-Year Report, The Underground Railroad
