Favorite TV of 2020
What streaming service we watch things on may change, but TV remains the same. Still watching it in our living or bedrooms. Maybe you watch some on your phone. Not for me, but sure. But overall it is still TV. Nostalgia is king in recent years with a lot of people watching shows they loved before over and over. There was still more new TV than ever this year, but it is the least TV I’ve maybe ever watched in one year. So I didn’t watch enough TV to give you a big list but I can give you some honorable mentions and a top ten.
Honorable mentions
Beef House (Adult Swim/Hulu)
Betty (HBO)
Dispatches from Elsewhere (AMC/Amazon)
Fargo (FX & Hulu)
I’ll Be Gone in the Dark (HBO)
Medical Police (Netflix)
Perry Mason (HBO)
The Undoing (HBO)
Now the top 10
10. Rick & Morty (Adult Swim/Hulu/HBO)
a show that will go from a poignant observation about the fragility of life in this universe to a poop joke. That’s why I love it. Combining the most Sci-Fi of Sci-Fi tropes and satirizing them while also making them work and tell a story with enough jokes for anyone to enjoy. It is partly improvised and insane at times. But few shows can make me smile and admire it as much as this one.
9. The Queen’s Gambit (Netflix)
It has been praised for the last few months and for good reason. It is rare to have a show that is for adults, that have characters that look like teens, in a sports movie story and spaced out to tell a wider scope with great actors and a talented writer/director that made a show for everyone above 13 years old. And most simply, they made chess fun. Completely bingeable and exciting but never goes too far towards trying to be some masterpiece. This is solid TV with great moments. I wish more shows could pull it off.
8. The Outsider (HBO)
Already announced it won’t be coming back for another season, and that is fine by me. It didn’t need one. This can just stand alone as a strange but engrossing Stephen King adaptation with great actors. I think the ending really soured some people on it but I liked it. King stories don’t usually end well and he knows it but I don’t mind. When a show pretty much nails it for 85% of the 13 hours I’m not going to be upset if they don’t completely pull it off. This show had ambition and I appreciate that. I would watch it all again. Filled that True Detective sized hole in my dumb brain.
7. The Last Dance (ESPN/ABC/Netflix)
Michael Jordan was a stone cold killer maniac who was very good at basketball and business. The timeline stuff doesn’t work as well here as I think it should’ve but it’s still captivating because of the subject for anyone even tangentially interested in the 90’s or basketball.
6. Better Things (FX/Hulu)
Pamela Adlon is an incredible talent. The voice of Bobby Hill, and many other characters, now is the show runner, director, writer, and star of the best show about family in recent years. I love her work and hope she gets to make this as long as she wants.
5. Devs (Hulu)
Alex Garland makes cerebral Sci-Fi that usually isn’t completely satisfying unless you like to let the mystery be. His movies make an atmosphere of tension and uncertainty that he cranks up to 11 here. It is an off putting show with deadpan almost alternate universe level acting. It is not for everyone. But if you take the ride I swear you’ll get something out of it at some point. Nick Offerman and Allison Pill really do something great here.
4. The Eric Andre Show (Adult Swim/Hulu)
This show is hard to do. Eric “interviews” people and needs them to not know much about the show for it to go to well. He pranks the public and destroys his set. He gets naked a lot and says the craziest things you’ll ever hear on TV. It’s complete madness that somehow feels like it is only a couple clicks off what our normal talk shows claim to be. This is just a wild show that makes me happier than almost any form of comedy.
3. How To with John Wilson (HBO)
My favorite surprise of this year comes in the form of a faux-documentary style narrated weird 6 episode one man show. What Wilson does over the course of what seems to be almost 2 years is create intimate and ironic comedy with just the most mundane filming of New York. I can’t imagine what it was like to edit this show into a cohesive narrative. It’s hard to explain without watching but I hope you will. It brought me joy and could be worth some meditation at times.
2. Better Call Saul (AMC/Netflix)
I think it is just a good show. It’s weird to only say that but it’s true. It’s just good drama. It has built itself into this foundation of tense, emotional, clever storytelling. Bob Odenkirk is great, only to be outshined by Rhea Seehorn. I think it was a super dumb idea that they made into a smart one. No one makes TV like these people.
1. The New Pope (HBO)
Not going to be for everyone but what great pieces of art usually are? This show made me laugh, smile, and think after the episodes long after they ended. I even cried. I was worried when Jude Law would only be in a few episodes but it was great without him and worth the wait when he comes back. I do think you need to watch The Young Pope first, but what a treat that is. Paolo Sorrentino made two of the best seasons of TV in the 21st century to me and it ended perfectly. But if they ever want to come back I will watch The Last Pope or whatever they want.