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So this has been a very tumultuous year for me. It began with me moving several states away and starting a new job, and we also got a puppy and a kitten at the same time at the start of summer, we traveled a lot, I did a lot of writing, so my TV watching has really imploded this year. There are a lot of shows that I never got around to seeing (The Bear, Better Call Saul, The White Lotus) and some I started watching, got distracted, and never returned to (The Patient, The Boys, Only Murders in the Building). So I feel like I'm going into this with a lot of blind spots. But with that in mind, here is my top ten list: 10: The Resort (Peacock) I went back and forth on what the tenth should be here, but settled on The Resort, which is almost unique in and of itself by being a good original miniseries from Peacock. This year and last year has seen a ton of true crime shows (Only Murders, Dr. Death, Dropout, Inventing Anna, WeCrashed spring immediately to mind) and resort-set shows (The White Lotus, Nine Perfect Strangers). The Resort starts out seeming like it will be a cross of those genres, and then reveals itself to actually be a magical realism show anchored by the great chemistry of William Jackson Harper and Cristin Milioti as a disillusioned couple, and the extremely charming Luis Gerardo Méndez (co-star of the fantastic Spanish Netflix show Club de Cuervos) as a would-be detective. While the final few minutes of the show were a bit disappointing in how fast everything was resolved, the journey was extremely solid, in a genre you don't generally see in English-language shows. 9: Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (Paramount+) As a long-time Trekkie, I know I have not been alone in not being satisfied with the recent offerings provided by Star Trek. And "recent" is doing a lot of work here. Unarguably, Strange New Worlds is the best Trek of this century, and it does it by going back to the basics, with the added twist of taking on very modern social issues while also looking to the 1950s for aesthetic inspiration. It's fun, it's utopian, and it's very Star Trek. 8: WeCrashed (Apple TV+) As mentioned above, the last two years have seen an explosion of "true crime" shows, with this year alone seeing three prestige streaming miniseries based on real-life (and very recent) cases. Of them, I think WeCrashed was the best, as it dove head-first into how just truly weird and offputting these people are, while also letting the two leads fully indulge in the hamminess they deserve. Considering how since this show came out, Elon Musk has done his best to torch his reputation (and bank accounts), I appreciate even more that WeCrashed kept at its heart not some moral about the importance of truth or journalism or anything like that, but that rich tech people are just incredibly weird and unlikable and will gently caress over everyone to personally get ahead. 7: Prehistoric Planet (Apple TV+) Just an incredible look at what might be called the home life of dinosaurs at the end of their epoch, with incredible CGI. Absolutely stunning, and extremely engrossing for a nonfiction quasi-documentary on prehistoric wildlife. What more needs to be said? 6: Light & Magic (Disney+) I feel like I've seen nothing about this anywhere, which is somewhat shocking considering what it is: a six-part documentary on ILM, written and directed by Lawrence Kasdan, and featuring interviews with most of the surviving big names of ILM/Lucasfilm from the 1970s and 80s. Including Lucas himself, and getting George Lucas to participate in a Disney Star Wars production seems like a modern miracle. If you're at all interested in special effects and/or Lucasfilm history, this is a great series, but even if you aren't, listening to Phil Tippet, John Dykstra, Dennis Muren, and the like explain how they got into special effects, show off their early home movies, discuss how they solved various technical problems for now-iconic and groundbreaking shots - it's far more engrossing than almost any of Disney's Star Wars fiction from this year. 5: On Cinema (HEI Network) Movie experts Tim Heidecker and Gregg Turkington return to cohost On Cinema and More! In the Mornings, the premiere entertainment show now sponsored by the mysterious lithium magnate G. Amato. Overcoming such problems as a car crash that puts Tim's two bandmates in the hospital, drinking septic "miracle water," and falling into a coma, Tim continues to skewer right-wing grifter culture in the guise of mocking opinionless YouTube movie "experts." 4: The Rehearsal (HBO Max) Nathan for You is one of the greatest shows of the past decade, in my opinion (I say this as someone who owns a copy of The Movement). As glad as I am that Nathan helped throw his weight behind How To with John Wilson (a show that means a lot to me, as I'll say below) I was even more thrilled to see Nathan return to his own show. And what a show it is. This feels like a glimpse into Nathan's personality and creative process that takes the rawest parts of NFY and explodes them. If you asked me to tell you what the thesis of The Rehersal is or what it's "about" at its core, I'm not sure I really could, beyond being a combination of extremely impressive and cringey in brilliant ways. Particular shout-out to the episode "The Fielder Method" where he opens what can only be called a school for stalking that seems extremely reminiscent of "The Finders" cult. 3: Andor (Disney+) I agree with whoever above said this feels like a West End Games RPG supplement from 1993 (and that's actually where Mon Mothma's lovely daughter originated from!). Of all the live-action Star Wars, this one feels the closest to what I imagined back when I was a kid and only had the three original movies to go off of - it goes its own path without being indebted to what Star Wars is "supposed" to be or without being full of gratuitous cameos. It's the first live-action Star Wars where lightsabers don't appear, and even the words "Force" and "Jedi" aren't mentioned once. Plus, it has some great action setpieces and tension-raising. And it has a ton of Star Wars politics! If Strange New Worlds gave us the best Star Trek in decades by going back to the Star Trek basics, Andor gives us the best Star Wars in decades by ignoring the Star Wars basics. 2: Severance (Apple TV+) What if you crossed Dilbert and Dark City? Really, if you've seen it, there's nothing new I can add; if you haven't seen it, it really is best to go in cold. So I'll just say that Severance has a great score, a great intro sequence, and probably the best set design of the past few years. It's kind of funny that Mythic Quest this season also has a new set that's a bit similar to the Lumon office of Severance; it's just a shame the plot, acting, and atmosphere of MQ aren't anywhere near the exquisiteness of Severance. 1: Station Eleven (HBO Max) I know this is a controversial add for a top ten list of 2022, especially for the number one spot, but for extremely subjective reasons there's no other show I would put here. As I mentioned above, the start of 2022 (the end of January) my (now) fiancee and I moved and we both started new jobs. We had been living in Queens, New York for a number of years and had finally put down what felt like roots. We developed close friendships with several other couples in the area, became regulars at a few local places, weathered the pandemic. But when the pandemic hit, my fiancee lost her job, and ultimately to financially survive we had to relocate to the only place that was hiring, in Massachusetts (and not the area around Boston everyone thinks of when they think of Massachusetts). Since we moved, we've struggled with finding new friends and keeping up with our old friends and family. One of our highlights was seeing our closest friend couple for a day over the summer when we met up halfway in Connecticut. But we also missed the announcement that they were pregnant to our old friend circle in New York. We both got covid for the first time over the summer, which was scary but also meant we missed the wedding of another friend, which would have been an opportunity for a reunion. But at the same time, we've been able to see family members more often up here we hadn't seen in a while, and have plans for friends to finally come up and visit. All the while, while not disliking where we are now, still having to deal with the feeling that we left a lot behind that we haven't yet gotten over. So Station Eleven, a series about surviving a pandemic but having to leave the city, deal with relationships and people left behind while making new connections, building a new future while coming to terms with the grasp of the past - the show obviously still hits very hard to me. Which is a testament to how well it was made all around, because I definitely don't keep thinking back to Y or The Stand remake in the same way. (As I mentioned above, whenever we get lonely for NYC, we watch an episode of How To with John Wilson - not only did we live relatively close to him in Queens and recognize well some of the places he goes in episodes, it also feels like the most accurate depiction of life in NYC in general and Queens specifically, especially the episode about finding a car parking spot which is 100% spot on to our experience in the city. It's a shame the second season finale was on December 31, 2021, because even if the last episode had been on January 1, I would have included it on this list. I'm glad it was renewed for a third season, but given the recent HBO track record....) Honorable mentions: The Afterparty Dexter: New Blood The Dropout The Essex Serpent The Great British Baking Show House of the Dragon Inventing Anna Made for Love Never Have I Ever The Offer Peacemaker Servant Stranger Things The Woman in the House Across the Street from the Girl in the Window Yellowjackets Dishonorable mentions: And Just Like That The Flight Attendant The Book of Boba Fett The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Obi-Wan Kenobi
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Jan 2, 2023 23:34
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cryptoclastic posted:How to With John Wilson How to with John Wilson aired entirely in 2021, with the finale on December 31. I think it aired 11:00-11:30 PM EST, so just under the line, even! Had a lot of good memories for our New Year's Eve with friends, and coming home late and topping it all off with watching the How To finale as our welcoming in 2022.
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Jan 13, 2023 00:49
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Great work, Looten! I'm surprised that Severance made it to the top spot and that Andor got so high, but surprised in a good way for both. Reminds me also that I need to get around to Sandman and finishing BCS and The Boys. I also didn't get around to Reboot until a few weeks ago, otherwise it might have made my list. Ah well... RIP. I didn't really realize how much good TV there was in 2022 before trying to make my list, and now I'm even more daunted. Part of me wonders with all the recent streaming service snafus if we're going to hit a sharp decline soon, but only a month in and 2023 still looks like a very strong year. Already Paul T. Goldman, Poker Face, Last of Us, Servant, and On Cinema have aired and could potentially make it to my end of year list just based on quality so far. And in the next few months there are the return of Mandalorian, Yellowjackets, Succession, Party Down, and (later) True Detective, and debuts of The Consultant, White House Plumbers and Hello Tomorrow, all of which at least have potential for goodness.
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Feb 3, 2023 16:13
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Looten Plunder posted:Final Results by Network That's a pretty impressive showing for Apple TV.
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Feb 5, 2023 16:33
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