Fast Links
2022 was a wild year for TV shows, so as the year wraps up, we look back on the best that premiered this year. We got a bit of everything from everyone to celebrities buying soccer clubs to wholesome pirates. We all watched something good, so let’s celebrate all that good watching.
The main qualifier is when it premiered. Yellowjackets was phenomenal, which I watched this year. Except, the cannibal teens all grown up story premiered in 2021, so it does not count. These are the best TV shows that started and ended in 2022. The rest is up to what I have seen and what I liked the most. So, I can already sense your angry typing when your favorite show did not make the list. No worries; what matters is that we were all entertained this year.
Severance
This is not a ranking of the best TV shows in 2022, but if we did, then Severance might be number one, or at least in the top three, as it is hard to choose just one. A smart sci-fi show that puts workers with split minds, meaning they live a life outside of work, and all those memories get blocked out when their working selves are clocked in. It is a serious psychological trip with a bizarre sense of humor as it shows us the dystopian world that we are already living in, just with sexy waffle parties.
Peacemaker
James Gunn hit a high note with The Suicide Squad, but did we need an entire show around John Cena’s patriotic Peacemaker? It seemed odd as other characters in the film stood out more than him and the people in the control room watching the squad’s every move to ensure they completed the mission. To no surprise, the filmmaker delivers nobody characters who I fell in love with. He packs his style of violence and mature humor from the film with great effect while giving those gut-punch emotional beats that give it heart.
Harley Quinn Season 3
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LFZhq7y_hfg
Harley Quinn continues to be one of the best ongoing DC projects with its brutal violence, colorful animation, all-star cast, and heartstring-pulling moments. Season 3 picks up with Harley Quinn (Kaley Cuoco) and Poison Ivy (Lake Bell) with their extensive honeymoon. It explores the couple seeking out their own goals and identities with this newfound love. The rest of the cast gets their own interesting stories as the show continues to explore its roster of obscure supervillains, with a side of the Bat-family.
Stranger Things Season 4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yQEondeGvKo
It may not have had the most consistency compared to the incredible third season; Stranger Things season 4 opens up the world, unlike the previous outings, while setting itself up for the endgame. What makes the show is how it expands its supernatural side while giving us great dynamics between adults, the late teens/early 20-somethings, and the main cast of the high schoolers who seemed so young not that long ago. Season 4 was the darkest and most epic yet, and we are not even at the finale.
Welcome to Wrexham
It was hard to think how Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney buying a soccer (or you international readers, football) club would be one of the best docuseries of the year, let alone one of the best TV shows in 2022. The series gives plenty of fun and compelling scenes with the two celebrities growing this friendship and managing this business which they barely understand. It leads you in with the Always Sunny creator and Deadpool actor, but sticking around came down to getting to know the small town of Wrexham, Wales. The fans, the team, and everyone else involved at the club get their stories told properly to let them outshine the stars. I am not a fan of any sport, yet even I was compelled by these people and found myself rooting for this team during every match.
The Rings of Power
Amazon dumped money unlike the TV industry had ever seen for its Lord of the Rings show, The Rings of Power. That cash not only made for a beautiful-looking show on a 4K TV, but it gave a fresh yet familiar take on the world. While some fans may have been divided, this recent TLOTR watcher was gripped by its slow build to an epic conclusion.
House of the Dragon
I begrudgingly loved House of the Dragon. Game of Thrones killed all excitement for prequels, sequels, and anything in between. By delivering quality characters and stories to tell in the world, the Targaryen prequel got me back on the wagon of the fantasy series. Having a prequel puts it in trouble as GOT fans know where it all leads, but the nuance gets filled in to make you almost forget that it does not matter who slept with who or who gets killed because it is that compelling and well executed. Plus, HOTD is the best acronym in recent television history.
The White Lotus Season 2
Mike White took the premise of The White Lotus – a show that follows rich people in different countries at the luxurious White Lotus hotel – and managed to up what he had done before. We get lunches that are more awkward, characters who are more neurotic and annoying, and a greater mystery as to who dies. Sometimes it is fun just to watch awful characters be terrible and see the destructive things they do or say to themselves or others.
Barry Season 3
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yx6AS0zzfGM
Barry season 3 is the darkest season so far as we get an unhinged personality from Bill Hader’s hitman-turned-actor. The comedy is there is lighten the mood, but this time around, it gets more uncomfortable and emotional, as we see the consequences of his actions from last season take a toll on his psyche. It is a fascinating character study that delivers an incredible chase scene, memorable times with the supporting cast, and a heart-pounding setup for the fourth (and possibly final?) season. Out of every excellent HBO series, this TV show remains one of the best that it gave the world in 2022.
Better Call Saul Season 6
Bob Odenkirk hanging up the ugly suits for good as Saul Goodman/Jimmy McGill is an end of an era. The prequel that showed us a slimy lawyer becoming the “criminal” lawyer we met in Breaking Bad rounds out its story by putting us in a post-Walter White world. We see the consequences of what he had done in the original series and throughout the prequel with a satisfying end.
The Staircase
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TftAFQflBy8
Shows based on true stories, particularly when it comes to murder trials, can get into messy territory as there are always misfires on the truth for the sake of entertaining drama. The Staircase follows the death of Kathleen Peterson, the wife of author Michael Peterson, who was convicted of killing his wife. The story unfolds as it seems it was an accident. No matter what the viewers think of what really happened by the end, its writing is gripping, and its performances are superb, particularly from Toni Collette, Colin Firth, and Michael Stuhlbarg.
The Afterparty
We have seen plenty of whodunit takes over the years; even this year, we got the horror movie Bodies Bodies Bodies and Knives Out 2, Glass Onion. The Afterparty is a creative twist with an ensemble cast who tell their stories to the cops after a murder happened at a high school reunion afterparty involving their former classmate-turned-superstar Xavier (Dave Franco). Each episode plays out differently from their perspectives while playing with genres from a musical to an animated story. The humor adds to the mystery as people’s stories contradict one another, making for one of the best mystery TV shows in 2022.
Hacks Season 2
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_vejwSYhpk
Season 1 of Hacks was perfect, so doing another seemed dangerous to revisit Jean Smart’s provocative comedian and her assistant writer, Hannah Einbinder’s Ava. As they go on the road for a tour, we see what the aftermath of that season 1 finale leads to, with a mix of tension and comedy ensuing at every stop. Now that the seemingly impossible has been done with another outing, the confirmed third season should be welcomed with open arms.
The Boys Season 3
The Boys continues to be one of the best TV shows currently running, and its third season makes it one of the top to release in 2022. The gang continues their pursuit to find a way to kill Homelander (Antony Starr) by finding a supe who seemed to have died decades ago, but might be alive, Soldier Boy (Jensen Ackles). Somehow, the A plot and B-Z plots continue to be bombastically riveting, and the show’s provocative nature continues to make it the most extreme thing that can be watched without going through unsafe territory online. It also continues to have some of the strongest social commentary as it paints an almost too-real look at alt-right extremism with a superhero costume.
She-Hulk: Attorney at Law
Marvel’s lawyer sitcom She-Hulk takes an episode or two to get the ball rolling on the meat of the show. Once it does, it becomes a hilarious and cute ride with a new cast of characters to fall in love with who are complimented by familiar faces like Wong (Benedict Wong) and Daredevil (Charlie Cox). Tatiana Maslany being the lead obviously makes her “the star,” but she shines brighter than imagined, putting her in the upper levels of the best Marvel casting we have received. She is irresistibly adorable and charming when hitting the fourth-wall-breaking comedy or hopping on cute notes, but manages to tackle the show’s darker subject matter of misogyny in a real manner that puts your heart in your throat.
Ms. Marvel
Iman Vellani follows Maslany in the same footsteps of being one of the best casting choices in Marvel history. Ms. Marvel also nails being one of the best superhero origin TV shows in 2022 and beyond. We get a coming-of-age story with a Pakistani American teenage girl who slowly finds her superhero identity. Supported by a great cast for her friends and family, the feel-good and awkward teenage moments go above the sometimes lackluster superhero moments (like most of the Marvel shows so far). Still, the heart and cast make up for its faults to make for an enjoyable ride that sets up the hype for next year’s The Marvels.
Our Flag Means Death
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xFE8ASwxmpA
Our Flag Means Death shows a gentleman-turned-pirate (Rhys Darby) with his crew as they hunt for treasure and do all sorts of piratey things you would expect while being surprisingly progressive for 18th-century pirates. The setup is a comedic pirate show that slowly grows into something with a lot of heart and a wonderful gay love story. The dramatic way it ended leaves plenty of options for where the show sails, so hopefully, that second season arrives as soon as possible.