With so many TV shows to choose from on broadcast networks, cable channels and various streaming services, there is no shortage of dramas and comedies, and those that are a mixture of the two—which means that there's also no shortage of great storytelling. As someone who watches a large portion of those TV shows, I like to highlight the stand-outs each year.
And just because something isn’t on this list, it doesn’t mean that it doesn’t deserve to be. It just means that with so many TV shows, featuring so much talent, and so many places to watch them, I can’t possibly watch all that there is, which means that I not only likely miss some good ones, but some great ones also slip through the cracks. Given all of that, here are my selections for the Best TV of 2019.
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*Be aware that spoilers are discussed*
TV Series of the Year: When They See Us
From creator/co-writer/director Ava DuVernay, the four-part Netflix limited series When They See Us has haunted me since the moment I watched it. Chronicling the notorious case of the five teenagers of color from Harlem – Antron McCray, Kevin Richardson, Yusef Salaam, Raymond Santana and Korey Wise – who became labeled the Central Park Five after being accused of a violent rape in New York in the spring of 1989, the story follows their questioning by police as teenagers, how they were pressured to the point that they confessed, their conviction and sentencing, and how serving between 6 and 13 years in prison before their exoneration in 2002 permanently altered their lives.
Watching their journey is an undeniable gut-punch that will break your heart, turn you into a sobbing mess angry at the injustice of it all, and inspire hope. What these men went through when they were still just boys is unconscionable, and the fact that they are a beacon of light today, now known as The Exonerated 5, is truly a miracle, but they went through it and even though it is, at times, heartbreaking and physically painful to watch, it’s also important to witness and understand why their story is still so relevant today. That’s why it’s my TV Series of the Year, it’s on my list of Best TV of the Decade, and it will likely remain on my list of Best Television, period.
Best Comedy Series: Fleabag
Family gatherings can be painful and scarring, and with the TV series Fleabag (available to stream at Amazon Prime), you have a safe space to laugh at the awfulness of it all. As the show’s namesake (the fantastic Phoebe Waller-Bridge, who is the jack-of-all-trades star, creator, executive producer and writer) continues to deal with family and tragedy, which are often one in the same, she meets The Priest (Andrew Scott, who will forever be known as “Hot Priest,” whether he likes it or not), who teaches her that there is more than one way to see the world. Over the course of the season, the story’s blend of uniqueness and universality hit me so hard that I found myself both laughing out loud and sobbing, sometimes both in the span of one scene. All hail Phoebe Waller-Bridge, and while I believe her when she says she has no plans for another season of Fleabag, I am grateful that we were gifted with the two seasons and 12 episodes that we have.
Best Drama Series: Succession
There’s something about the dysfunctional Roy family, wrapped up in and warped by their own immense privilege and wealth, on the HBO series Succession that you just can’t turn away from. It’s hard to root for any of them because then you start to wonder whether you, yourself, have gone full sociopath, but you also can’t help but be compelled. Whether it’s Kendall’s (Jeremy Strong) latest meltdown, Shiv’s (Sarah Snook) wardrobe, whatever is going on between Roman (Kieran Culkin) and Gerri (J. Smith-Cameron), the odd bromance between Tom (Matthew Macfadyen) and Cousin Greg (Nicholas Braun), or whatever Connor (Alan Ruck) is up to, it almost always comes down to what they’re willing to do to impress family patriarch Logan (Brian Cox). Every member of the Roy family is despicable in their own right, and that bleeds out into everybody that crosses their paths, but you still just can’t get enough of their every dastardly deed. I’m so glad that there will be a Season 3 to continue watching their every wild manipulation.
Best New Series (Comedy): What We Do in the Shadows
I loved the What We Do in the Shadows movie from writer/directors Taika Waititi and Jemaine Clement, and as a result, I wasn’t sure what to make of the FX TV series. By tuning in, what I found was a delightfully delicious and deranged story of bloodsucking roommates who are terrible at just about everything, including their planned world domination, mainly because it just takes too much effort. This supernatural comedy is equal parts wacky, weird and wildy hilarious while also being heartfelt, poignant and socially relevant. It plays with vampire mythology in a refreshing and entertaining way that gives the characters a charm that they wouldn’t have, if they were just evil bloodsuckers who were looking to take over the world.
And can we please talk about Guillermo (Harvey Guillén), the loyal human servant stuck in a toxic relationship with vampire Nandor (Kayvan Novak), always wishing, hoping and begging to someday be turned into a vampire himself, only to take a DNA test and learn that he’s descended from Abraham Van Helsing, the original vampire hunter? I have to say, now that we know he’s not supposed to become a vampire, but instead be the one to kill them, I’m on the edge of my seat waiting to see how that plays out in Season 2.
Best New Series (Drama): Evil
The biggest surprise for me this season has been the CBS drama series Evil. I’ve come to expect great writing and storytelling from show creators Robert and Michelle King (The Good Wife, The Good Fight), but what I wasn’t expecting was such a thoughtful and thought-provoking exploration of good and evil, and how the line can be very blurry between the two. Throughout its freshman season, its core trio – skeptical female psychologist Dr. Kristen Bouchard (Katja Herbers), priest-in-training David Acosta (Mike Colter) and contractor Ben Shakir (Aasif Mandvi) – have delved deeper and deeper into the origins of evil and the dividing line between science and religion, as they investigate the Church’s backlog of unexpected mysteries, including supposed miracles, demonic possessions and hauntings. Their job is to assess whether there is a logical explanation or if something truly supernatural is at work, but when it comes to the topics of racism and sexism, nothing is ever that clear cut.
Best Docu-series: The Imagineering Story
As a lifelong Disneyland attendee and fan, one of my most anticipated projects this year was the Disney+ docu-series The Imagineering Story, and it did not disappoint. Director Leslie Iwerks (whose father and grandfather worked for Disney) has turned what was originally meant to be a 90-minute feature into a six-hour series that provides a fascinating and unprecedented look at the unique blend of artists and engineers, known as Imagineers, whose job it is to carry on the legacy of Walt Disney in theme parks around the globe, that could easily continue on for another season. It’s a rare peek behind the curtain at the creation of Disneyland and every subsequent theme park – from Epcot and Disney’s Animal Kingdom to the parks in Tokyo, Paris and Shanghai – and highlights the trials and tribulations, as well as the joys and successes. It explores attractions that aren’t there anymore, ideas that never fully materialized, classic attractions (from Pirates of the Caribbean to Haunted Mansion), and new favorites like Cars Land and Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, and even gave a behind-the-scenes peak at what it took to bring the latest theme park experience, Rise of the Resistance, to life.
Best Final Season: The Good Place
I’m going to miss NBC’s The Good Place. The unique and special story about what makes a good person, which is something that many of us strive to be, has had surprise after surprise and twist after twist, while always bringing things back to a desire to shed a more selfish way of living and just being a better human being. Eleanor Shellstrop (Kristen Bell) is an ordinary woman who’s had many ups and downs since entering the afterlife, but with the help of Chidi Anagonye (William Jackson Harper), Jason Mendoza (Manny Jacinto), Tahani Al-Jamil (Jameela Jamil), a demon named Michael (Ted Danson) and personal assistant Janet (D’Arcy Carden), she’s also actually learned from her mistakes and become a better person, in the process, which is really all any of us can ask for. Watching this show for four seasons has made my heart happy, and having to say goodbye is forkin’ bullshirt, but I’m happy that the series is saying goodbye on its own terms and I know that tears will be shed before the final credits roll.
Best Comic Book Series: Watchmen
Series creator Damon Lindelof has done the impossible. He’s taken the dense, complex and complicated source material of Watchmen, created by Alan Moore and illustrated by Dave Gibbons, and turned it into a TV series for HBO that is equal parts challenging and thought-provoking, as it looks at so many of the modern issues that plague us today, and questions who the true heroes and villains really are. It’s allowed fans to maintain their love for that source material while also giving them something wholly its own. Through the lens of an alternate history where masked vigilantes are treated as outlaws and the police conceal their identities behind masks to protect themselves from a terrorist organization, it feels uncomfortably raw and real. It’s hard to watch, it challenges your comfort level and, at times, it’s even a history lesson, which makes for some terrific storytelling, fascinating characters, and a great TV series.
One of the greatest assets of Watchmen is its ultra-talented and incredibly diverse cast. With Academy Award winner and acting goddess Regina King at its center, and the duo of King and Jean Smart that is an absolute delight to witness, the combined efforts of Jeremy Irons, Tim Blake Nelson, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Louis Gossett Jr., Hong Chau and Don Johnson, among others, took what were already great scripts and made the material soar. I would love there to be a second season, if it were on the level of what we’ve already been given, but I’m also satisfied by the nine-episode work of art that we have.
Best Superhero Series: The Boys
From showrunner Eric Kripke and based on the best-selling comic by Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson, the eight-episode series The Boys (an Amazon Prime original series) is an irreverent look at what happens when the popular and influential superheroes abuse their superpowers rather than use them for good, and often need someone to cover up all of their dirty deeds and secrets for them. But when Hughie (Jack Quaid) suffers a devastating loss as a result of one Supes’ recklessness, he becomes so outraged that he teams up with Billy Butcher (Karl Urban) and The Boys, in order to seek out their own brand of vigilante justice.
The series is uncomfortable and shocking and, at times, you’ll cringe over the behavior of these morally bankrupt Supes, but the cast is all in with their characters, which sells it all in a way that sparks thought and conversation, and gives it a fresh feel that sets it apart from other superhero/comic book series currently on the air. Special MVP shout-out to Antony Starr as Homelander and Chace Crawford as The Deep, for their nuanced performances of characters we shouldn’t like, but still can’t help but be curious about.
Best Limited Series: Chernobyl
From creator/writer Craig Mazin and director Johan Renck, the five-part HBO miniseries Chernobyl explores how the 1986 nuclear accident becomes one of the worst human-made catastrophes in history. After the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine suffered a massive explosion that released radioactive material across Ukraine, Belarus and Russia, and as far as Scandinavia and western Europe, countless brave men and women sacrificed their own lives, both knowingly and unknowingly, in an attempt to save Europe from unimaginable disaster.
Chernobyl is masterful in its storytelling, as it shines a spotlight on the domino effect of what happens when a government values their own agenda over human lives. As the viewer witnesses the role that truth and lies played in the outcome of this terrible disaster, you also get to see the incredible strength and courage that was displayed by so many. It has a phenomenal cast with no weak links and includes stand-out performances from Jarred Harris, Stellan Skarsgård, Emily Watson and Jessie Buckley. There are tragic images throughout that will haunt you long after seeing them, like the moment on the Bridge of Death in Pripyat, and as someone who grew up with a father who was a fireman and first responder, I was particularly haunted by the efforts of the firefighters that had no idea what they were walking into, but stayed anyway.
Most Heart-Wrenching Gut-Punch of a Series: Unbelievable
From showrunner Susannah Grant and inspired by real events, the eight-episode Netflix mini-series Unbelievable is a story of unspeakable trauma and the strength and resilience that you can discover within yourself, as a result. When 18-year-old Marie Adler (Kaitlyn Dever, giving a reserved but remarkable performance) reports that she’s been sexually assaulted by an intruder in her home in 2008, everyone from her former foster parents to her friends to the investigating detectives doubt the truth of her story. Meanwhile, in 2011 and hundreds of miles away, Detectives Grace Rasmussen (Toni Collette) and Karen Duvall (Merritt Wever) find themselves investigating a pair of intruder rapes that are eerily similar to Marie’s experience, and they partner to catch what is clearly a serial rapist.
Throughout the case, and as more victims are discovered, you get a real sense of why it’s so hard for survivors of such crimes to come forward. You want to scream and cry for Marie, and it physically hurts, as a viewer, to watch what she’s put through, as she’s dismissed and judged by those she thought would help her. It will break your heart and make you sad and angry, again and again, but although it is difficult subject matter, it’s also really informative, compelling and necessary viewing, with a trio of incredible performances at its center.
Best Lead Female Performance (Comedy): Kirsten Dunst
God bless Kirsten Dunst. Not many people would or could throw themselves so entirely and completely into a role, in the way that Kirsten Dunst does in the Showtime series On Becoming a God in Central Florida with Krystal Stubbs, a former beauty pageant queen and current water park employee, who sets out to take down FAM (Founders American Merchandise), the multi-billion dollar, multi-level marketing scam that ruined her family and marriage. Dunst can do anything, from spot-on comedic timing to outrageous fun to dark moments that make you wonder how her character just keeps pushing through. It’s an impossible show to describe, but no matter how crazy and wild things get on the series, Dunst’s charm carries through in every circumstance and makes you root for her, even if you have no idea where it will take you.
Best Lead Female Performance (Drama): Zendaya
The HBO series Euphoria, an unflinching portrait of teen life, wasn’t without its fair share of controversy, with its drug use, sexual content and nudity, but it’s also not a message show that’s trying to convey a moral high ground. Its main character, Rue (Zendaya), lies and manipulates while giving in to her destructive compulsions, much to the pain of her own family. It’s hard to tell if she’s truly loyal to anyone, but you can also see an innocence and vulnerability just under the surface, where her pain is hiding. Watching Zendaya bring those layers to life through her hauntingly beautiful performance as Rue feels like watching a young actor fully come into their own and developing an inner confidence in their craft that’s deep enough to take risks that might be scary, but that definitely pay off.
Best Lead Male Performance: Jharrel Jerome
When They See Us (available to stream at Netflix) is excellence in storytelling, on every level, and everyone in the cast does terrific work, with the real stand-outs in this story being the young men playing the teenaged versions of the Central Park Five – Asante Blackk (Kevin Richardson), Caleel Harris (Antron McCray), Ethan Herisse (Yusef Salaam), Marquis Rodriguez (Raymond Santana Jr.) and Jharrel Jerome (Korey Wise). And while it’s nothing compared to what Korey Wise, himself, went through while locked away for a crime he didn’t commit, the physical and mental transformation that Jerome went through to embody Wise took a psychological toll, as the only cast member to play both the younger and older version, in a 12-year span, and carry an entire episode. It’s a remarkable and haunting performance that’s so intense and raw that it’s undeniably painful to watch, but also necessary. After all, these five men had their young lives ripped away from them and their dreams stolen, and that should be difficult and uncomfortable to witness and be reminded of.
Best Breakout Performance: Hunter Schafer
From show creator and writer Sam Levinson (who also directed five episodes), the eight-episode HBO drama series Euphoria follows 17-year-old Rue (Zendaya), a drug addict who’s just out of rehab and trying to figure out what’s next. As she comes to terms with how deeply her addiction affects her mother and sister, she forms a deep connection with Jules (Hunter Schafer), a transgender girl who’s new to town, and the two search for where they belong among the minefield of high school life. While both Rue and Jules are struggling with where they fit in, there’s something beautiful about the fact that they find each other. For Rue, Jules is a positive force who encourages her to get clean, but for any addict, it is dangerous to replace one obsession with another, and it’s sometimes hard to differentiate between love and obsession when the cloud of addiction and heightened teenage emotions are involved. The most remarkable thing about watching the layered work that Hunter Schafer does as Jules is the fact that it’s her first acting role, ever.
Best Bromance: Michael Sheen & David Tennant
When the armies of Good and Evil start to gather together, and the Four Horsemen get ready to ride, it seems as though it’s safe to assume that the Apocalypse is coming and the world is about to end. But when it comes to the story that Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett created for Good Omens, and that Gaiman brought to life via a six-episode TV series (available to stream at Amazon Prime), nothing goes according to plan. At the center of it all is the unlikely duo of Aziraphale (Michael Sheen) from Heaven and Crowley (David Tennant) from Hell, who set out to find the currently misplaced young Antichrist (Sam Taylor Buck) and stop Armageddon before it’s too late. And it is that dynamic between Crowley and Aziraphale, as well as the dynamic between Sheen and Tennant, that has a truly delightful spark that makes you want to keep watching them on their adventure. They are two characters who have spent thousands of years rubbing off on each other until they’ve formed an oddball bromance of the angel/demon variety, and it’s that bromance that is the true stand-out of this series.
Most Dysfunctional Character: Dex Parios on Stumptown
On the ABC series Stumptown, Dex Parios (Cobie Smulders) is a sharp-witted veteran with a complicated (!!!) love life, who’s trying to turn her life around and be there for her brother, but who has varying degrees of success in staying on track. Her skills make her a great PI, but her bull-in-a-china-shop approach gets her into trouble on a very regular basis. What makes her such a compelling character is the portrayal that the show’s lead, Cobie Smulders, delivers. Smulders is completely believable and never fails to deliver, whether she’s sharing a tender brother-sister moment, expressing a crippling feeling of loss in a dramatic scene, physically taking down a bad guy, or stuck in the middle of an awkward moment between her sometimes romantic interest Detective Miles Hoffman (Michael Ealy) and her best friend Grey McConnell (Jake Johnson), who has his own demons to deal with. That’s what makes you want to root for her, week after week, and hope that she can overcome her PTSD, keep her life on track, and start focusing more on her successes than her failures.
Best Villain: Alice on Batwoman
Alice (Rachel Skarsten), on The CW series Batwoman, is a great villain that’s also deliciously delightful and fun to watch because she relishes her villainy. With a flare for the dramatic, impeccable fashion sense, and a vendetta that she feels is perfectly justified, Alice undeniably makes an impression. She is directly connected to the show’s namesake (played by Ruby Rose), allowing the viewer to see a hero and villain that are family. They are both sympathetic and damaged beings and, as sisters, you can see that they’re not all that different at their core, except for how they’ve let their life experiences lead them down very different paths with very different goals.
Best TV Family: All-American
Inspired by the life of NFL player Spencer Paysinger, The CW drama series All American follows Spencer James (Daniel Ezra), a rising high school football player whose promising talent leads football coach Billy Baker (Taye Diggs) to recruit him from South Crenshaw High to join the team at Beverly High School in Beverly Hills. Once there, Spencer has to learn how to navigate two worlds – the southside neighborhood that he knows and loves and the affluent Beverly Hills world that feels so foreign to him – while taking advantage of the opportunity that will help him accomplish his dreams.
The best thing about this series is its exploration of family and what that can mean. We all have the family that we’re born into, good or bad, and then there’s the family that we choose for ourselves. You can be a friend, parental figure, or mentor to anyone, whether there’s DNA that connects you or not, and we see that between Spencer and his best friend Coop (Bre-Z), single mother Grace (Karimah Westbrook) and the two sons (Spencer and Dillon) that she provides with a life that she can be proud of, and Coach Baker who moved Spencer into his own family’s home, in order to provide him with an opportunity that he wouldn’t have otherwise had.
Best Nostalgia: Cobra Kai
The YouTube Originals series Cobra Kai is better than it has any right to be, and that is a fact that makes me both grateful and happy. When the series, which takes place 30 years after the vents of the 1984 All Valley Karate Tournament and gives viewers a new perspective on the lives of both Johnny Lawrence (William Zabka) and Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio), first debuted, I admittedly tuned in with some cynical doubt, sure that there would be no way that they could pull off what they were attempting to do. What I found was a Daniel LaRusso who had a loving family and successful string of car dealerships throughout the San Fernando Valley but with a bit of an edge to him that didn’t always make him a likeable guy, and his high school adversary Lawrence’s life had taken a turn that set him on a path of seeking redemption by reopening the infamous Cobra Kai dojo and overcoming his own demons that made you want to see him succeed. Making each character the hero of his own story and the villain to the other built on the nostalgia and love for the Karate Kid while also bringing something new and fresh to the story, all while making sure to work in an ‘80s music montage.