See all of our Best TV of 2015 here.

Yesterday, I listed my favorite performances and overall best comedy series of the year, and as much as I enjoyed them, my heart really belongs with the dramas. And holy smokes, what an exceptional year. Gorgeous, thought-provoking, inspiring, devastating -- this year was stacked with fantastic television. Unfortunately, my honorable mention list added up to about 30 series more than I allowed myself to list, and it pained me to cut each and every one. There are so many shows that had very good seasons, but in the world of Peak TV, there can only be room for the very best.

Over the next two weeks, we'll also be rolling out a number of features about Late Night, sketch comedy series, the rise of the superhero shows, villains we loved to hate, and more, so be sure to check back for that. But first, let's celebrate some of the best dramas of the 2015. And remember: the nominees are just as important as the winners.

The rules and results are below:

Metrics: 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. Fargo, by the way, is running as a Miniseries.

Best Actor - Drama

Matthew Rhys - The Americans (FX)

Aden Young - Rectify (Sundance)

Sam Heughan - Outlander (Starz)

Hugh Dancy - Hannibal (NBC)

Jon Hamm - Mad Men (AMC)

Rami Malek - Mr. Robot (USA)

Grant Gustin - The Flash (CW)

Bob Odenkirk - Better Call Saul (AMC)

Timothy Olyphant - Justified (FX)

Antony Starr - Banshee (Cinemax)

Winner: Matthew Rhys

Picking the nominees was easy, picking a winner was extraordinarily hard. Rami Malek was fantastic in Mr. Robot as the paranoid, split-personality hacker, while Sam Heughan devastated in Outlander’s final episodes as a survivor of a brutal sexual assault. Aden Young was spellbinding as always as the unknowable Daniel Holden, and Bob Odenkirk carried the full weight of his Breaking Bad spinoff series in a way that was both hilarious and heartbreaking. Grant Gustin, too, has been both incredibly charming and emotionally raw as Barry Allen, playing his character with the utmost sincerity and enthusiasm.

But it’s Matthew Rhys who absolutely stunned in his role this year as Philip Jennings, a complicated and conflicted man pushed to the brink in not one but several different relationships — some real, some fake, all difficult — and who can, in turn, be loving, manipulative, uncertain, and ice-cold. Exceptional work.

Best Supporting Actor - Drama

Clayne Crawford - Rectify (Sundance)

Tom Cavanagh - The Flash (CW)

Walton Goggins - Justified (FX)

Jon Voight - Ray Donovan (Showtime)

David Tennant - Jessica Jones (Netflix)

Andre Holland - The Knick (Cinemax)

Ben Mendelsohn - Bloodline (Netflix)

Jonathan Banks - Better Call Saul (AMC)

Winner: Ben Mendelsohn

What’s notable about the nominees for Best Supporting Actor in a Drama this year is that they each had an integral part in defining the series they were in. Without them, these shows wouldn’t be even half as interesting. Their portrayals — of villains, of family members, of foils — are what helped make Justified, Bloodline, The Flash, and the others as complicated and engaging as they ultimately were. And while each of these men easily stand out as having provided some of the best characters and drama on television, Ben Mendelsohn’s performance as the Rayburn clan's black sheep, Danny, was deeply affecting, haunting, and unforgettable. Danny was impossible to pin down, both for his family and for viewers. Mendelsohn’s nuances with the character made you want to love him or kill him, but regardless, you were emotionally, viscerally invested watching him on his twisted journey.

Best Actress - Drama

Vera Farmiga - Bates Motel (A&E)

Ruth Wilson - The Affair (Showtime)

Krysten Ritter - Jessica Jones (Netflix)

Keri Russell - The Americans (FX)

Viola Davis - How to Get Away with Murder (ABC)

Shiri Appleby - UnReal (Lifetime)

Eva Green - Penny Dreadful (Showtime)

Taraji P. Henson - Empire (Fox)

Tatiana Maslany - Orphan Black (BBC America)

Ivana Milicevic - Banshee (Cinemax)

Winner: Krysten Ritter

Our TV cups overfloweth'd with fantastic women in 2015, in extremely diverse roles that showcased complicated characters and some beautiful portrayals of them. Vera Farmiga was both fragile and hypnotically unhinged as Norma Bates, Ruth Wilson and Tatiana Maslany played completely different versions of their characters that all felt believably distinct, Shiri Appleby was desperately dark and manipulative, while Eva Green fought demons with heartbreaking strength. Taraji P. Henson, too, stole the show on Empire, which isn’t easy to do.

But Krysten Ritter’s role as Jessica Jones was a season-long portrait of someone desperate to put their life together while fighting against a supreme evil, both as a reluctant hero and as a survivor of their assault. It was raw and complex, sexy and strong, and absolutely mesmerizing. Ritter carried her Netflix series with such luminosity that almost all other characters faltered in comparison. A well-deserved break-out role for an actress who has been doing great work for years.

Best Supporting Actress - Drama

Abigail Spencer - Rectify (Sundance)

Christina Hendricks - Mad Men (AMC)

Elisabeth Moss - Mad Men  (AMC)

Constance Zimmer - UnReal (Lifetime)

Eleanor Tomlinson - Poldark (PBS)

Carrie Coon - The Leftovers (HBO)

Eve Myles - Broadchurch (BBC America)

Phyllis Logan - Downton Abbey (PBS)

Winner: Elisabeth Moss

No character on Mad Men went through as much change as Elisabeth Moss’s Peggy Olsen, rising through the ranks of Sterling Cooper in its many iterations, and landing at McCann to fight new battles after already having been through just about every struggle and heartache one could imagine. It’s that journey, and Moss’s mastery of her character, that made some of her appearances in the show’s final episodes so iconic. There was Peggy, skating in the empty office while Roger played the organ, or walking confidently past the McCann misogynists with sunglasses on, a cigarette dangling from her mouth and a sexually explicit painting in her arms. Peggy also helped bring Don back from the brink, as the only person whose opinion really mattered to him. It mattered to us, too. In a crowded category of exceptional actresses with powerful roles, Moss stood out once again as her wonderful character.

Best Guest Actor/Actress - Drama

Richard Armitage - Hannibal (NBC)

Patti LuPone - Penny Dreadful (Showtime)

Margo Martindale - The Good Wife (CBS)

B.D. Wong - Mr. Robot (USA)

Cicely Tyson - How to Get Away with Murder (ABC)

Sam Elliott - Justified (FX)

Miranda Otto - Homeland (Showtime)

Ian McShane - Ray Donovan (Showtime)

Winner: Richard Armitage

2015 saw a wealth of fantastic guest appearances (Sam Elliott has never been more devilish, Margo Martindale never more conniving, B.D. Wong never more beguiling), but none were more fully arresting than Richard Armitage on Hannibal. Transforming himself — even through his physical movements — into the Red Dragon character was astonishing, terrifying, and without equal. Hannibal was a show that grew and matured with each new season, and for Armitage’s exceptional portrayal of Red Dragon to cap off the show’s run was a fitting, if bittersweet end.

Best Drama Series

Jessica Jones (Netflix)

Justified (FX)

The Americans (FX)

Mad Men (AMC)

The Flash (CW)

Mr. Robot (USA)

Game of Thrones (HBO)

Penny Dreadful (Showtime)

Rectify (Sundance)

Hannibal (NBC)

The Affair (Showtime)

The Knick (Cinemax)

Winner: Mr. Robot

This was, by far, the most difficult decision I made throughout all of these awards. Every single one of these shows is outstanding, truly, and there are so many more that remained on my Honorable Mention list that I was distraught to cut.

Jessica Jones and Mr. Robot were the only new series that made the list this year, showing just how hard it is for freshman series to get noticed in the wake of already great series getting even better. This was an exceptional year for The Americans and Hannibal, while The Affair and The Knick doubled down on their premiere season excellence (The Knick also finished up in a particularly devastating manner). The Flash remains one of the most fun and engaging series on television, and Rectify one of the most beautifully painful. Mad Men and Game of Thrones had their fits and starts, but they were still some of the most compelling and ambitious series on TV this year. And Justified, my beloved, brilliantly-penned series, came to a close in the best ways possible.

But ultimately, I'm choosing Mr. Robot as the king of 2015 dramas because it had a little bit of everything that made all these other series great: an incredible lead performance, prescient subject matter, gorgeous style and stunning cinematography, a clear sense of itself and the story it wants to tell, a great hook, and not one but several mysteries that revealed themselves in beautifully startling ways throughout the show's inaugural run. It's the kind of show that wakes viewers up, demanding to be consumed and considered. But it also was just one of an incredible number of great drama series this year, all of which deserve our unabashed praise.

Stay Tuned: The Best Miniseries are up next