Best of 2021: Television
At the beginning of each year, I look at some of the best things that happened the previous year. This year is no different. And since we are stuck at home again this year, I knocked out a lot of good TV. Here are my top 10 TV shows of the year, along with 5 honorable mentions (note: this list doesn’t include stuff released at the end of 2021 being released on a weekly basis – things like the Book of Boba Fett).
Honorable Mentions:
My Name – Everyone talked about the Korean gem Squid Games, but this one got lost in the shuffle. The Netflix show is about a girls who’s father was killed right in front of her. As a result, she wants revenge. It was a good series that might have gotten more notice if it didn’t come out at the same time as Squid Games.
Reservation Dogs – FX released this comedic look at life on an Indian Reservation on HULU and it’s a delight. The characters are not the best people, but sympathetic at the same time. The show is dark, but shows the struggle of youth in a small town. The episodes are also quick, so it’s an easy watch.
Falcon and the Winter Soldier – I feel bad for having this show this low, but there was a lot of good television in 2021. There were some slow episodes, but it did a lot of set up for the future of the MCU: Sam Wilson as Cap, the introduction of Isaiah Bradley and Eli, establishing Sharon Carter as a potential bad guy, and bringing back Baron Zemo. It was a fun show.
The Premise – Another FX/HULU show that was very enjoyable, if not uncomfortable. The show pokes fun at a lot of the current climate of our country: being woke, gun control, social media, etc. While it wasn’t a critical hit, I was continually cracking up; while I didn’t agree with it all, I found the situations funny and the way the approached everything refreshing. B.J. Novak is a great writer, and it showed here.
Last Chance U: Basketball – I loved the first 2 seasons of the football show, but felt like the they should have stopped there. I went into this show a little hesitant. I was wrong. The kids were all entertaining and the coaches were good. It really hit home how Covid impacted the season though; while it had been going on for a while, this was the first I saw it in a non-Covid documentary. I really want to get a season 2 for the 2020-21 season to see how the program rebounds.
10. Masters of the Universe: Revelations – I’ve gone on about nostalgia and how to do it right and wrong; this was a case of doing it right. I get people being upset about the first part, but that was only the first half of the story. This whole series gave depth to generic characters we all loved; Teela, Evil-Lyn, Orko, and Beast Man all evolved. It also opened up He-Man to a whole new generation of kids.
9. Invincible S1 – Robert Kirkman knows how to write a story; he also knows which properties make good TV. Invincible is a teenaged, modern version mashup of Superman and Spider-Man. The story pulled heavily from the comic and nailed the message. The season finally might be one of the most violent episodes of TV for the year, while also being one of the most heartbreaking. Season 2 can’t come quick enough.
8. Letterkenny S10 – I love this show, but this season was down a little bit. Don’t get me wrong, it’s still hilarious; but this season was too short and lacked a lot of the banter we’d gotten in past seasons. All of the characters were still great and we had moments like the Dyck’s Sausage Party and McMurray negotiating with a car salesman. If there would have been more, this would have probably been top 5.
7. Squid Games S1 – Squid Games was last years Tiger King; a show that everyone watched and talked about. The show took the best part of Battle Royale and mixed with with reality TV games. While that could have been enough to be successful, the show added an underlying story about Player 001 and his relationship with 456. I wish they would have just left it as a one and done, but studios will cash in a popular series for everything they can.
6. Mythic Quest S2 – I thought it would be hard to top season 1 with their take on Covid towards the end of the season, but somehow they did it. Specifically with the backstory of C.W. and the story of Brad and his brother. The series could have ended with their season finale, but I’m happy to get another season; although, they could have ended Mythic Quest and create a new show based off the new video game that Ian and Poppy create.
5. Sweet Tooth S1 – As I wrote in my review after the season debuted, it was a much different story that ended at the same place as the first graphic novel. I’m still worried about some of the changes they’ve made, but the show was so touching. They nailed the relationship between Gus and Big Man. The supporting cast was perfect. And I’ll never look at “Dirty Paws” by Of Monster and Men the same way.
4. Loki S1 – Marvel and Disney+ won the year in Television; we got 5 MCU and 2 Star Wars shows. Of those 5, we have 3 in the top 4. Loki was the wildcard coming in; the character was dead and brought in from a earlier point of the MCU timeline. We lost a lot of character development by moving the character back. But we got all of that development back, and then some in this series. They added in an incredible cast of characters and set up a lot of the upcoming MCU story – the Multiverse – while giving the possible next big villain in Kang the Conquerer. I’m curious to see where season 2 goes. Depending on the day of the week, this could very easily move to #3.
3. WandaVision – This might have been right there with Squid Games as the most talked about show of 2021. People were enamored with the sitcom within a sitcom aspect of the show when it started. I’ve never seen as show that got people to speculate so wildly (me included). The show nailed grief in a way that many shows couldn’t imagine. The show, along with Loki, laid the path for the multiverse and will be a big part of Dr. Strange: The Multiverse of Madness. It also started introducing members of the Young Avengers.
2. Ted Lasso S2 – While many were disappointed with Ted Lasso, I loved every minute. Right off the bat, you have to remember they they called this the Empire Strikes Back season, where it’ll be darker and end on a down note. I liked the Nate heel turn and the Jamie face turn. I loved the Christmas episode. I want a Coach Beard series about once he leaves the pitch for the day. If there was one down thing, it was the Rebecca/Sam relationship; I do like it better then Rebecca/Ted.
1. Hawkeye – I’m surprised that this was my #1 show, but after the fact it was my favorite thing I watched all year. Matt Fraction’s run that the show was loosely based off of is one of my favorite recent comic runs, so seeing it play out on TV was great. Clint finally got some respect and development. Hailee Steinfeld nailed the Kate Bishop role. Yelena and Kingpin were great additions to the story. My only complaints would be it was too short and it really didn’t have the true MCU stringer at the end. If that’s the worst I can say about it, then it was pretty damn good.
I’ll be back with books, comics, and the MCU later in the week.
