Hope everyone had a great year! I bought a townhouse and in general got out a bit more in 2022, but I also enjoyed some really great television. Here’s the result of me spending way too much on streaming subscriptions.
One thing that many of my favorite shows have in common is a strong “sense of place”. I love a show that uses location shooting and careful details to give a real sense of a specific place and time. This year I traveled from pre-war Korea to modern Sicily to every corner of America, all without leaving my couch. (I did leave my couch and do some literal travelling though, I’m not a shut-in).
- Atlanta (FX/Hulu). Donald Glover gave us the gift of not one but two new seasons this year, sadly the last seasons we’re going to get. In season 3 the gang explored Europe before returning to Atlanta for the final season. Glover and team continue to play with surrealism and explore race and society with both insight and hilarity.
- Severance (Apple TV+). A shockingly original sci-fi tale that explores the modern corporate workplace with a ton of humor and suspense. Looking forward to season two!
- The White Lotus (HBO Max). The second season of Mike White’s resort-set anthology moves to Sicily and explores love, sex, and money under the Italian sun. In only seven episodes the show introduces a cast of characters and then carefully dissects how desire drives them.
- Andor (Disney Plus). I’m pretty surprised to be recommending a Star Wars show but this was one of 2022’s more welcome surprises. It’s my kind of Star Wars – no Jedi, no light sabers, no Force. Just a surprisingly intricate drama that weaves exciting action setpieces with deft politics.
- Reservation Dogs (FX/Hulu). I caught up on both seasons of this Native American comedy that follows four teens coming of age on the Oklahoma reservation. Riotously funny and stuffed with vibrant characters, this is a show I recommend to anyone.
- Pachinko (Apple TV+). A sprawling inter-generational tale that follows a family from Korea to Japan, this literary adaptation recalls many epic miniseries of the 1980s.
- The Bear (FX/Hulu). Working in a restaurant seems like the most stressful job ever. Makes for great television!
- The Sandman (Netflix). I really enjoyed this comic-book adaptation about a god of dreams and nightmares. Inventive and lyrical, particularly the episode about Death which I think was my favorite single episode of any show this year.
- Bad Sisters (Apple TV+). This Irish crime show about four sisters plotting the death of their brother-in-law varies widely in tone, at times feeling almost like a live-action Looney Tunes as the sisters’ murder plots go haywire. But it remains emotionally affecting up until the powerful conclusion.
- Better Call Saul (AMC). Nothing to say here I haven’t said in previous years. A perfect bittersweet ending for Jimmy and Kim!
Honorable Mentions: For All Mankind, This is Going to Hurt, Starstruck, The Dropout, Peacemaker, We Own This City, Karen Pirie, Abbott Elementary, Shoresy, Harley Quinn, She-Hulk: Attorney-at-Law, The Afterparty, Pam and Tommy, The Rehearsal, Barry, Rick and Morty, The Flight Attendant, Ms. Marvel, Players, Russian Doll
Still on my list to watch: Irma Vep, Fleishman is in Trouble, Our Flag Means Death, plus new seasons of Hacks, Girls 5eva, Only Murders in the Building, Mythic Quest, Bridgerton, and Undone.
2021 carry-overs that I loved: Yellowjackets, Station Eleven, Starstruck.
Best opening credits sequences: Pachinko, Bad Sisters, Winning Time, Severance, and of course Peacemaker.