See all of our Best TV of 2015 here.
This year I decided to do something a little different with my Best Of lists, in the hopes of giving even more space to discuss the greatest shows and acting performances of the year. In the unforgiving world of Peak TV, there is no room for mediocrity. There’s really not even room for “really good, but not the best.” What does it take for a comedy, a drama, an actor or actress, to really stand out in such a crowded landscape?
In order to help determine that, I’ve set limits on each category of nominees. It was painful. I have agonized over them. I could have expanded each to 25 and still not had enough room. But that’s what happens when you watch over 120 TV shows a year.
This year’s lists are split into three separate posts rolling out this week: Comedy, Drama, and Miniseries & More. We're also expanding our coverage with editorials in the next two weeks on Late Night shows, sketch comedies, the year in villains, the rise of the superhero show, and much more, so be sure to check back for that. These lists and commentaries are all a celebration of great TV, where the nominees are just as important as the winners. Let's bask in the greatness, shall we?
Rules: Series had to air between January 1st and December 11th 2015, Best Comedy/Drama limited to 12 series, Best Actor/Actresses limited to 10, Supporting/Guest Actor/Actresses limited to 8, Miniseries limited to 5. Broadcast series are considered for both their winter and fall seasons. (And since Orange Is the New Black is running as a comedy in the Emmys, so too with the Collider TV Awards).
Best Actress - Comedy
Constance Wu - Fresh Off the Boat (ABC)
Ellie Kemper - Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt (Netflix)
Julia Louis-Dreyfus - Veep (HBO)
Tracee Ellis Ross - black-ish (ABC)
Melanie Lynskey - Togetherness (HBO)
Gaby Hoffmann - Transparent (Amazon)
Amy Poehler - Parks and Recreation (NBC)
Josephine Bornebusch - Welcome to Sweden (NBC)
Rachel Bloom - Crazy Ex-Girlfriend (CW)
Aya Cash - You’re The Worst (FX)
Winner: Constance Wu
As you’ll see in its parallel drama category, this list is filled with a wealth of outstanding performances. Melanie Lynskey was heartbreakingly earnest, Josephine Bornebusch was a gorgeous vision, Rachel Bloom was indefinably hypnotic, and Julia Louis-Dreyfus was (and forever) a standout among a wonderfully sharp and hilarious cast. But for the comedy category I have to stick with comedy, and no one provided that better than Fresh Off the Boat’s matriarch, Constance Wu. No one can give a disapproving look or a sing-songy platitude quite like Wu, who makes Jessica Huang both strict and wonderfully soft. As the Tiger Mommy with a weakness for Stephen King, Wu’s charisma and well-honed comedic timing elevates the 90s sitcom from good to excellent, becoming one of the year’s true break-out performers.
Best Supporting Actress - Comedy
Lucille Soong - Fresh Off the Boat (ABC)
Jane Krakowski - Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt (Netflix)
Lauren Weedman - Looking (HBO)
Kristen Schaal - Last Man on Earth (Fox)
Amanda Peet - Togetherness (HBO)
Taryn Manning - Orange Is the New Black (Netflix)
Elizabeth Banks - Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp (Netflix)
Lena Olin - Welcome to Sweden (NBC)
Winner: Jane Krakowski
Few actors or actresses are able to steal every scene quite like Jane Krakowski. Though all of the actresses in this list added something wonderful and necessary to their series (both comedically and emotionally), Krakowski transcends that to be a shining star wherever she is. Her talent and charisma are beyond scope, as she glides with a luminous air throughout her scenes, her characters often skirting the edge of sociopathy and madness. She also brings a sense of old-school comedy and glamour that is lacking in most series today, and is never anything other than a desperately welcomed sight.
Best Actor - Comedy
Patrick Stewart - Blunt Talk (Starz)
Thomas Middleditch - Silicon Valley (HBO)
Jay Baruchel - Man Seeking Woman (FXX)
Jeffrey Tambor - Transparent (Amazon)
Rob Lowe - The Grinder (Fox)
Anthony Anderson - black-ish (ABC)
Andy Daly - Review (Comedy Central)
Jonathan Groff - Looking (HBO)
Fred Savage - The Grinder (Fox)
Will Forte - Last Man on Earth (Fox)
Winner: Patrick Stewart
Blunt Talk flew under the radar for most this year, but Jonathan Ames’ comedy was a beautifully bizarre portrait of a fictional news talk show host, played by Patrick Stewart. Stewart portrayed him in such a gloriously childlike fashion, being babied by all those around him, yet finding himself in the most adult of situations. He was earnest and vulnerable, gleeful and troubled, and all the while lighting up the screen with his indomitable charisma. There were many fantastic performances this year, including heartbreaking moments from Jonathan Groff, fantastic banter between Rob Lowe and Fred Savage, an unabashed leap into complex waters for Jeffrey Tambor, and truly incredible meta-deadpanning from Andy Daly. But ultimately, Stewart’s panache cannot be denied.
Best Supporting Actor - Comedy
T.J. Miller - Silicon Valley (HBO)
Tituss Burgess - Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt (Netflix)
Tony Hale - Veep (HBO)
Murray Bartlett - Looking (HBO)
Raul Castillo - Looking (HBO)
Adam Driver- Girls (HBO)
Steve Zissis - Togetherness (HBO)
Timothy Simons - Veep (HBO)
Winner: Tituss Burgess
HBO really ran this category for me. However, when it comes to a winner, I went with the Netflix outlier. Echoing my praise of Jane Krakowski for Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Tituss Burgess also completely owned his outrageous character, stealing all of his scenes in the oddball comedy. As much as I truly, truly adore T.J. Miller, Tony Hale, and everyone else on this list, it’s Burgess who made the biggest splash and provided the most lasting impression with his high-octane yet earthy portrayal of his “Pinot Noir”-singing, Baby Slut t-shirt-wearing Titus Andromedon.
Best Guest Actor/Actress - Comedy
John Slattery - Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp (Netflix)
Becky Ann Baker - Girls (HBO)
Peter Gallagher - Togetherness (HBO)
Jason Sudeikis - The Last Man on Earth (Fox)
Chris Diamantopoulos - Silicon Valley (HBO)
Rex Lee - Fresh Off the Boat (ABC)
Jon Hamm - Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp (Netflix)
Winner: Jon Hamm
Maybe the unexpected place to find a Jon Hamm win this year, but the actor is often very underrated for his comedy work. His surprise appearance as “The Falcon” was one of the year’s most memorable, and his take-down of the local kids at the drug store and then walking away from the flames is still one of the best scenes from any episode of TV this year. Hamm was deadly serious but also incredibly funny, embracing the ridiculous role with the same earnest sincerity as his co-stars (which is what has always made Wet Hot American Summer work so well).
Best Comedy Series
Man Seeking Woman (FXX)
Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt (Netflix)
Fresh Off the Boat (ABC)
Blunt Talk (Starz)
Transparent (Amazon)
Veep (HBO)
Silicon Valley (HBO)
black-ish (ABC)
Looking (HBO)
Review (Comedy Central)
Louie (FX)
Orange Is the New Black (Netflix)
Winner: Silicon Valley
What an exceptional year for comedy. The returning series upped their games tremendously, while newcomers (Man Seeking Woman, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Blunt Talk) entered in boldly with fresh, strong, and incredibly funny debut seasons.
But few shows are able to marry the absurd with the real in a way that is both raucously funny and incredibly emotional. HBO’s Silicon Valley made us care, desperately, about the fate of a fictional tech start-up. Who else could move viewers to near panic attack levels over the gang’s server space issues, or about whether the founders could lose the company they so haphazardly built? Mike Judge has once again used his perceptive wit and stinging satire to call to arms the exceptional cast and eerily prescient material for a second season that was never anything but outstanding. In a year of truly great comedies that pushed the boundaries of comedy, filmmaking, and story at every level, Silicon Valley continued to excel.
Stay Tuned: The Best Dramas are up next