Several of the shows I liked most this year could definitely be described as a “tough watch”. When you’ve had a long day of work and are ready to kick back, eat dinner, and escape into TV for a couple hours, it’s hard to be confronted with shows that mirror real-life horrors back to us. This year we had depictions of depressing true stories – from nuclear disaster, to unjust imprisonment, to the cruel systemic treatment of the victim of a serial rapist. Even fictional comedies grapple with depression, substance abuse, and the cynical politics of our era. I get why a lot of people don’t want to engage with these shows.

The epitome of this in movies is 12 Years a Slave, which is a meticulous, perfect gem of a film that I believe should be shown in every high school in America – but personally I NEVER WANT TO WATCH IT AGAIN. In the realm of 2019 TV shows I would point to the miniseries When They See Us, which crafts an astoundingly deep, empathetic portrayal of the Central Park Five but watching it never stops feeling like doing push-ups or eating kale – something you do to better yourself as a person but not really “recreation”.

I’m not trying to criticize When They See Us, which is excellent, but more explain why I tend to have outsized respect for shows that confront real-life tragedy in a way that actually makes me want to mash that “Play Next Episode” button and not go hide under a blanket.

As Mary Poppins once said, “a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine goes down”. The best show creators know how to balance tragic subject matter with more entertaining ingredients – whether it’s the dark humor of Chernobyl or the police procedural elements of Unbelievable. Speaking of which…

1. Unbelievable (Netflix). A few years ago, I was riveted by a Pulitzer Prize winning article that depicted the cruel treatment of a rape victim in my own backyard. (If you haven’t read it – go read it now!). Now comes the amazing miniseries – the first episode is a tough, depressing watch as we see the aftermath of a Seattle-area rape and how the police utterly failed the victim and went on to re-victimize her all over again. But the second episode introduces the Colorado detectives that actually did catch the rapist and the show transforms into a gripping forensics procedural. I may be suffering from recency bias because I just finished watching it but it feels like the best show of 2019 to me.
2. Veep (HBO). One of the greatest comedies of all time went out with a bang this year. No other show on television better speaks to the venality and stupidity of our political system. It’s very difficult to mock current events in 2019 in a way that feels completely fresh and original but this stellar cast and team of writers managed it while landing their best season ever.
3. Succession (HBO). What Veep is to politicians, Succession is to billionaires. The show matured in its second season into a juicy soap opera of corporate intrigue that never let us forget the many ways that these people exploit and hurt everyone around them, including the poor bastards unlucky enough to have to work for them.
4. Bojack Horseman (Netflix). I hate to be predictable but this show has been in my top ten for six years now and will probably be there next year too (the final eight episodes drop in January). This year felt a bit incomplete without a real season finale but it makes the list for the “surprise wedding” episode alone.
5. Counterpart (Starz). Cheating a little bit because most of the final season aired in 2018 but a few eps snuck over into this year. A thoroughly entertaining little sci-fi espionage thriller with an exceptional cast and intricate plotting. RIP.
6. Fleabag (BBC/Amazon). TV critics have named it the best show of 2019 and it’s hard to disagree. Equal parts hilarious and heartbreaking.
7. Chernobyl (HBO). As I mentioned in the intro, it feels a bit like homework. But in just five episodes, Chernobyl incisively dissects the technical and societal forces that made the disaster possible, in a way that manages to be quite gripping.
8. Russian Doll (Netflix). Honestly I just like watching Natasha Lyonne fall down stairs.
9. The Good Place (NBC). More like The Good Show, am i right? I’m sick of writing these blurbs.
10. You’re the Worst (FXX). The greatest love story of our time draws to a close in a happy ending that never feels untrue to the fundamentally unhappy characters.

I also quite enjoyed: Undone, Tuca and Bertie, The Deuce, Barry, Watchmen, Killing Eve, When They See Us, Silicon Valley, Catch-22, Documentary Now, Brockmire, Game of Thrones, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, Rick and Morty, Disenchantment, Dead to Me, Mindhunter, Star Trek Discovery, True Detective, Ramy, Los Espookys, Dollface.

Cancelled before their time: Pour one out for Counterpart and Tuca and Bertie. That’s a short list considering all the “final seasons” listed above but most either ended on the creator’s terms (e.g. Fleabag) or had a pretty long run before the network pulled the plug (e.g. Bojack).

The book was better: Catch-22, The Name of the Rose, The Passage, Good Omens, The Boys, The Rook, NOS4A2, His Dark Materials. Adaptation is hard.

Still on the list to watch: GLOW, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Mr. Robot, Lodge 49, Big Little Lies, Stranger Things, Better Things, Pose, Years and Years, The Politician, The Good Fight, PEN15, The Other Two, Schitt’s Creek, and most importantly the fifteen-years-later revival of one of my all time favorites, Veronica Mars. Also there’s some show about a baby Yoda that people keep telling me about.