2017: Year in TV

David Simon (The Wire) created a scarring tale of sex trade, porn, and power shifting on the streets of 1970s New York. We follow different night owls hustling the streets and telling their war tales through the dark alleys, under the colorful city lights, inside dirty motel rooms, and within the four corners of a struggling bar in Manhattan.

Watch for: Maggie Gyllenhaal’s stunning Eileen, a freelance prostitute in Times Square that became involved in the early days of the porn industry – not as an actress, but as a director.

28. ARE YOU THE ONE?(Seasons 5-6, MTV)

In a year of strong reality competition shows (all banner seasons from The Great British Bake Off, SYTYCD, Project Runway, Top Chef, RuPaul’s Drag Race, The Amazing Race, and Australian Survivor), my favorite is the underrated MTV dating show. With two binge-worthy seasons in 2017, the show displayed two very different ways to play this game. 11 couples are housed Big Brother-style, but here, each one has to find their pre-assigned perfect matches. It is a fun, sexy and campy combination of flirting, drama, sex, math, game theory, and well, love. Also a good place to watch good-looking people be vain and awful to each other.

Watch for: the crazy dynamics of Season 6 – the endless fighting, partner swapping, anger issues, no match curse, cheating, and in a surprise twist, women coming together to call out jerks. Highlight of the season has to be that perfect Season 6 finale (and the reunion show that followed), culminating one the shows most shocking seasons yet.

25. PLS LIKE (Season 1, BBC Three)

This new comedy takes a harsh and unapologetic jab at the culture of influencers and vlogging. Ridiculously current, it centers on Liam Williams, a guy who went on a drunk rampage and accidentally won a viral video contest. Before he can claim his prize, he must pass and complete six tasks on the road to becoming a legitimate influencer – from fashion shoots, beauty tips, health and fitness, music video, tech interview, and a prank video.

Watch: because it is short, bite-size, and the laugh per minute ratio is really really high. Also, it is available on YouTube

24. MASTER OF NONE(Season 2, Netflix)

The best thing about Master of None is that you cannot possibly predict what’s coming next. One episode you can be in Italy referencing classic Italian cinema, while the next episode could be a culinary trip to the world’s best restaurant in Modena. One episode could show lead actor Aziz Ansari on several Tinder dates, then the next could be a love letter to New York, hardly even showing him. One episode could be an entire episode of cupcake reality show, and then the next spans two decades of Thanksgiving tradition. Such is the ambition and commitment of the show in telling very specific stories – of food, cinema, friendship, sexuality, race, religion, and love.

Watch for: that stunning Thanksgiving episode, two decades of the annual tradition that shaped Dev’s best friend’s sexuality.

23. TRIAL & ERROR(Season 1, NBC)

A fish-out-of-water comedy that should never work, but somehow, with the ensemble’s unbelievable commitment, becomes one of the banner cringe-comedy shows of the year. A bright-eyed young lawyer from New York gets assigned to a small Southern town to defend a murder case. Backed with the most incompetent set of clients and associates, Josh learns it the hardest way that passion, dedication, and skill will never be enough to crack the surface of this case.

Watch: if you are a fan of NBC’s mid-2000s comedy – the quick wit of 30 Rock, the small town setup of Parks and Recreation, and the mockumentary style of The Office – BUT WITH A MURDER MYSTERY! How can you not be sold yet?

22. THE HANDMAID’S TALE (Season 1, Hulu)

The sinister mood, the cultish costumes, the revolting politics, the invasive close-ups, and the eerie world The Handmaid’s Tale created were more than enough to demand everyone to pay attention. The most awarded TV show of the year, it was a devastating tale of power and tyranny, buoyed by some of the strongest female performances of recent memory.

Watch for: Elisabeth Moss’ flawless performance.

21. RICK AND MORTY(Season 3, Adult Swim)

In an effort to stay as far away from home as possible, drunk mad scientist Rick takes his unwilling and perpetually mortified grandson Morty to adventures in the outer limits of the universe. As with previous seasons, episodes stand out for its sheer ambition and unparalleled imagination. From visiting a Mad Max-esque world to fighting rodents after turning into a pickle, the adventures are always fun and action-packed, but also reveal an emotional core understood and shared by this duo of misfits.

Watch for: the showrunners’ unwavering imagination – in tilting time, space, and parallel universes.

20. DEAR WHITE PEOPLE (Season 1, Netflix)

Based on the 2014 movie, Dear White People is an uncomfortable but accurate depiction of racial politics, identity, and privilege in a prominent American university. Lensed through the critical and revolting eyes of its black students, the show is not just woke, it even questions if being woke is enough in a regressive world of relentless racism.

Watch for: the standout episode of the season, the Barry Jenkins- (Moonlight) directed Chapter V, that will leave you shaken and enraged for days.

19. THE AMERICANS(Season 5, FX)

2017 ushered in the penultimate season of one of Peak TV’s most underrated and underseen shows. While still a benchmark of strong writing and tense spy thriller, this show will be mostly remembered for having one of the finest ensemble in television – led by Keri Russell, Frank Langella and the masterful Matthew Rhys – as they grapple between their duty to serve their country and their own moral compass, and the inevitable consequences of both.

Watch: this season to marvel at Matthew Rhys’ (Philip) performance as he sinks lower than he’s ever been before.

18. REVIEW (Season 3, Comedy Central)

Andy Daly is back as TV host Forrest MacNeil – a reviewer of life experiences. Over the last two seasons, his marriage, family, job, and life fell apart in front of our eyes. For the final season, the show was able to pack as much challenges as they can – including one involving the producer, AJ, and Forrest’s wife. With only three episodes, the show was abruptly, but aptly cut – the reason why I will not disclose for anyone who still have yet to discover the genius of this show.

Watch for: the series finale (“Cryogenics; Lightning; Last Review”) – the only acceptable way to end this show, but somehow still managed to shock everyone in the process.

17. ALIAS GRACE(Season 1, Netflix)

Based on the second Margaret Atwood novel adapted to television in 2017, the six-part miniseries is a collaboration between writer Sarah Polley and director Mary Harron. It recounts the case of the 1840s murders of a wealthy Canadian landowner and housekeeper, with servant Grace Marks at the center of it. Grace was eventually pinned as the main suspect, alongside another servant – but both their stories never aligned, and to this day remains a mystery. This production, however, is not interested in that mystery, but more on Grace’s scattered thought process, on the roles of women, and the class divide during this era in high society. If The Handmaid’s Tale showed us a fictional world of what could happen to women, this one showed us what exactly did.

Watch: for its beautiful production, strong writing and direction, and Sarah Gadon’s arresting performance – all culminating in a finale that is less interested in who and how, but raises a more difficult question that all of us viewers should answer.

 16. BETTER THINGS(Season 2, FX)

Comparisons to Louie in its first season were inevitable – the life of a working (actor) single parent raising children, with mundane daily vignettes of how difficult and exhausting it could get, and how it sucks to be one every once in a while. The tone was also similar – scathing dark comedy, and as much as possible avoided big dramatic tropes. That all changed in the second season when Better Things evolved into an entirely different show of its own. While it was still superb in its accurate observations of the joys and pains of being a parent, it was less afraid to expose its heart this time. The standout episode (“Eulogy”) in the middle of the season ripped the bandaid off and finally showed us the genius of Pamela Adlon. It was a perfect showcase of Sam Fox as a character, and the intersection between motherhood and work that she always has to juggle. No eyes left dry in that episode, for sure.

Watch for: “Graduation”, the second season finale that did not only showcase the dynamics of this family – both given and chosen, it also finally called out and discredited the presence of the many disappointing men in their lives. And damn, that dance number.

15. BIG MOUTH(Season 1, Netflix)

It’s funny that the most accurate account of puberty I’ve seen in a while came from an animated comedy show with (literal) hormone monsters and singing ghosts. The beauty of Big Mouth is how it understands that puberty comes unexpected and when you are least prepared for it, and that it can transform the sweetest children into unstable and raging monsters. It devotes complete episodes on the changes these children experience – from menstruation, bodily fluids, sexual confusion, mood swings, masturbatory calls, and (also literally) pillow sex. The episodes are all consistently funny, delivered by some of the best comedians working today with Nick Kroll at the helm.

Watch for: the MUSICAL NUMBERS! From menstrual anthem “Everybody Bleeds”, to a salute to dead gay icons “Totally Gay / I’m Gay?”, and the highlight of the season, the ensemble’s elaborate dance to “Life is a F*cked Up Mess!”

14. THE MARVELOUS MRS. MAISEL(Season 1, Amazon)

An upbeat period comedy-drama about Midge, a New Yorker in the 50s that was handed the sourest of lemons, but with passion, handwork, comedic instincts, and a bit of booze, turned it into a lemonade empire. Well, she’s not there yet; but the path is slowly being paved, and it is a blast treading along with her. You can very quickly tell that at thehelm of this show is Amy Sherman-Palladino of Gilmore Girls – the sharp-witted dialogue, the dancing, the energy, the colors, and that feeling that any moment, a character will just burst into a song and it will not be unwarranted. The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel is a very easy binge, and this is the one show in this list that I can comfortably recommend to any of my friends.

Watch: Rachel Brosnahan has one of the most charming but commanding breakthrough performances of the year. The finale is one of the most joyous celebration of pure raw talent and female friendships on TV in 2017.

13. SEARCH PARTY(Season 2, TBS)

The New Yorker coined the term “noir sitcom” to describe Search Party when its first season aired in 2016. It is about Dory, a spoiled and drifting 20-something who suddenly felt the need to help out an acquaintance who has gone missing. With her boyfriend and two other friends, these self-absorbed millennials vowed to solve the mystery surrounding the disappearance of a girl they barely know (complete with their personal social media coverage). The whodunnit in the first season was dark, twisted, addicting and funny (thus the noir sitcom), but the “how to get away with murder” arc in the second season further dismantled, not just the mystery of the incident, but each one of its players.

Watch: The fast-paced and busy last two episodes revealed the full picture and started calling for accountability. A really strong final act.

12. BIG LITTLE LIES(Season 1, HBO)

Despite dark undertones of murder, abuse, and politics, somehow, Big Little Lies was one of the most addictive and pleasurable viewing experiences of 2017. Some of that derived possibly from the sight of Monterey coastline dreamhouses, or the envy whenever they argue in front of their immaculate kitchen architecture, or the anticipation of the inevitable downfall of these gossipy rich people. Most importantly, I derive the most pleasure in watching some of the best actresses of our time sharing the same screen – Reese Witherspoon, Zoe Kravitz, Shailene Woodley, Laura Dern, and Nicole Kidman in an unflinching performance as a domestic abuse victim.

Watch: I have two favourite episodes – one is Once Bitten (Episode 5) where Nicole Kidman’s Celeste heartbreakingly admits to her therapist that she is a victim of abuse, and the GORGEOUS finale, where all the women, with their shared experiences, immediately understand each other without having to say one word.

11. WORMWOOD(Miniseries, Netflix)

A six-part documentary-drama recounting the truth behind the supposed suicide of biochemist Frank Olsen in 1953. In an attempt to capture not just the true accounts of the people involved in the case, but also the surreal nature of the entire incident, Errol Morris decided to reenact the moments leading up to the “fall” – showing a combination of documentary and fiction I have not seen prior. What initially was reported as suicide, was exposed as a CIA-initiated LSD experiment 20 years later. Despite this claim, the case has haunted son Eric Olsen all his life. Questions remained unanswered, details had yet to make sense – until a new technology allowed them to reanalyze the body in the 90s, where all the answers started lining up in an unbelievably outrageous manner that revealed some of the US government’s darkest secrets. But 40 years into the death, with everyone involved long passed, how do you seek justice?

Watch for the finale and the heartbreaking monologue of Eric Olsen that more than the delayed justice for his father’s death, these questions have haunted him and have put an indefinite stop on his life for the last 65 years.

10. BOJACK HORSEMAN(Season 4, Netflix)

BoJack Horseman is now known for packing devastating emotional wallops while carefully shedding BoJack’s misunderstood character. Over the last seasons, the main focus was BoJack – his fame (or lack thereof), his destructiveness, and his slow descent to depression. However, this season, the show expanded its scope to shine light on the minor character’s equally devastating miseries. Despite how I made that sound, it really is still one of the most hilarious comedies on TV, complete with endless animal puns, hilarious celebrity jokes, and an entire episode dedicated to an underground community ruled by Jessica Biel.

Watch for one of the most heart-wrenching TV episodes of the year – Time’s Arrow, a horrifying account on memory and dementia – transcending decades of BoJack family history, and providing better perspective on where BoJack’s depression was rooted and how long he’s been battling with it.

9. BETTER CALL SAUL(Season 3, AMC)

For a spin-off of one of television’s most beloved shows, Breaking Bad, it’s a shame this prequel has very little following. Early on in its first season, Better Call Saul successfully broke out of Breaking Bad’s shadow and revealed what kind of show it aimed to be. It is as tense and atmospheric as its predecessor, but its pace is more patient and assured – one episode even half-silent with Mike just methodically doing stuff. This season also started introducing familiar faces from the Breaking Bad world – the inner workings of the relationship between Mike and Gus Fring. But the heart of the season is seeing how Jimmy McGill slowly but inevitably transform into Saul Goodman, especially once his fragile relationship with his brother finally shatters, with the closest person in his life dragged as collateral damage.

Watch: Better Call Saul has always been about lawyers and the law, but never similar to the legal dramas we are used to seeing on network TV. So it was very special to watch the heartbreaking Chicanery (Season 3, Episode 5), an intense hour of courtroom drama with Jimmy and Chuck finally confronting each other, and the episode this show was meant to do.

7. ONE DAY AT A TIME(Season 1, Netflix)

In the golden age of television, is there room for a remake of a 70s multi-cam sitcom, complete with live studio audience and laugh tracks? Apparently yes, and with less of the conceit of making a pretty and ambitious show, the show focused on its heart – the Cuban-American family and the hard-working matriarch that glues them together. It is sweet and cheesy and the perfect comfort food for a Sunday binge. It took a couple of episodes to find the right stride, but once it did, it went on episode after episode of warmth and hilarity, with every half-hour somehow ending with me crying. It tackled not only family concerns but also topical issues faced while living in Trump’s America like immigration, alcoholism, PTSD, and sexuality. It feels good to watch a show that is single-handedly giving importance and new relevance to the dying genre of multi-camera family sitcom.

Watch: Many people have dismissed this sitcom without even giving it a chance. But I just finished the second season that dropped last month and glad to say that it is also great – so try to get on this as fast as you can. The first season had great momentum leading to the tender and heartbreaking quincenera in the finale, which is the highlight of the season (just a few tears more than the Veterans hotline episode). Also, it is hard to get your eyes off the screen presence of EGOT winner Rita Moreno as sassy and proud Cuban grandmother to the Alvarez family. And her speech in the penultimate episode!

PS: Also, the opening theme song by Gloria Estefan never fails to make me sing along and dance every single time! I can’t even tell you how much I love this show.

6. TWIN PEAKS: THE RETURN (Miniseries, Showtime)

Many people who learned about the return of Twin Peaks thought it would be a nostalgic pleasure. Instead, we got the return of David Lynch in full form, the experimental director of Eraserhead and Lost Highway. We got a bizarre, funny, otherworldly, and sometimes incomprehensible meditation on memory and the roots of evil. As with many Lynch creations, this 18-hour miniseries played like a dream, or nightmare, about the destruction of a small town; and providing a synopsis that makes sense and fully captures its spirit would be both futile and impossible. The sheer ambition and invention alone made most other shows in 2017 small by comparison.

Watch: There was nothing as strange, nightmarish, and perplexing as the standout Part 8, one that traced the origin of evil from an atomic bomb explosion, and a very strong argument against the use of nuclear weapons. And that finale. THAT FINALE.

5. CRAZY EX-GIRLFRIEND(Seasons 2-3, The CW)

One of the most admirable shows on TV today, the show not only packs the laughs every episode, it also produces 2-3 new well-written songs, of different genres, complete with choreography. But more than being a musical, it has challenged and developed the definition of “crazy” over the years. From the typical rom-com trope, to a careless and obsessive girl following her ex-boyfriend after a misconstrued invitation, and now into one of the strongest examinations of mental illness and self-loathing on TV.

Watch: The third season gave us one of the darkest moments this year when Rebecca hit rock bottom, isolated herself from her friends, and attempted to commit suicide – which was portrayed sensitively and realistically (maybe except for the part when Josh Groban appeared). Before the end of the year, the same show brought us one of the most joyous and triumphant celebrations on TV – Rebecca finally getting a diagnosis, and it is still to be seen if having this label would finally lead to getting out of dysfunction.

4. THE GOOD PLACE(Seasons 1-2, NBC)

I have a mild bias for Michael Schur shows – Parks and Recreation, The Office, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, and even Black Mirror’s Nosedive. I am a huge fan of The Good Place from after the first episode – it has a strong ensemble, great writing, and created a world I would want to immerse myself in. I kept watching for fun. Little did I know that they have so much ambition than any sitcom in the history of television. After that shocking first season finale, they literally twisted everything around, and I realized that my love for the show is not anymore related to my Schur bias – that it is very much warranted. It is objectively one of the best shows on TV right now, and that did not change or even falter a bit in its sophomore season. No other show can land a major plot twist that will change the course of the entire show like they do here, repeatedly. No other show has such a capable ensemble that can shift from drama to comedy in a snap of a finger, or retain a singular character quirk after thousands of iterations. But it also isn’t style over substance. Its second season is the most philosophical show on TV, dissecting how people define being good, and how different it means to different people. It is about the universal quest to try to do and be good even in a world of utter chaos and evil.

Watch: Season 1 finale, Michael’s Gambit. Played as a commentary on how episodic sitcoms are structured, it has one hell of a plot twist that the show has been cleverly building up to, but somehow no one saw coming.
Season 2 Episode 2, Dance Dance Resolution, the show’s most ambitious half-hour with thousands of reboots and hundreds of visual gags, and obviously the most fun its creators have had making this show so far.

Also, I can watch this show the whole day. Preferably with my own personal Janet.

2. THE LEFTOVERS(Season 3, HBO)

Its mysterious premise about an unknown event that led to the instantaneous disappearance of 2% of the world’s population attracted many viewers when it premiered. It didn’t come as a surprise that the more the show avoided to answer the “how”, the more people got frustrated. By the third season, it has become one of the most underseen shows of Prestige TV, which is a shame because it has also very assuredly become one of the best television shows ever created – with one of the most emotional and satisfying finishes. It is a modern television miracle and quite possibly the most intense 8+hour stretch on TV this year – with heart-wrenching monologues, parallel universes, lion orgies, penis scanners, literally leaving no stones unturned. It is a searing examination of faith, the lack thereof, and how it is to live in a world defined by tremendous loss. It is intellectually challenging but also emotionally satisfying. The Leftovers took us to a near-perfect journey to Australia in search of healing, of connection, of the truth, and of the mysteries of this world. It has never been about answers and clean resolutions, and while it gave us everything we needed, it still wanted us to let the mystery be.

Watch: While it is impossible to single out an episode of this superb third season, the final moments of the finale not only left me breathless – in its ambition, in its scope, in its storytelling, in its tone, in everything – it made me reconsider my life. This cannot only be merited to the stunning and sensitive writing by Tom Perrotta and Damon Lindelof, but also due to the indelible and career-defining performances of Carrie Coon (her final mnologue) and Justin Theroux.

PS: Even the opening credits became an event this season – changing every episode from Perfect Strangers’ David Pomeranz theme, to its original first and second season themes.