Despite it nearly being August, I am only ready to tell you how much I enjoyed 2022 TV series such as Peacemaker and Dahmer. But it takes me a while to catch up with so much TV out there, and last NFL season saw me working side projects on the weekend that cut into my binging time.
But after finishing The Peripheral (cool but hard to understand) as my 85th new series of 2022, I am ready to debut my list of the best 15 new TV series for 2022. You can see the 2021 list here and the bottom of this page shows tweets – yes, they are still god damn tweets and not X’s – from past years.
If you do not see your favorite listed in the top 15 or the dozen honorable mentions, there is still a good chance I watched it, but it did not click with me. Seems like Winning Time about the Lakers is probably the top show I do not enjoy as much as the average viewer. I felt they are wasting a perfect cast with too many cheap camera tricks, ugly filters, and breaking the fourth wall in an uninventive way. You’re not Fleabag. Just let the actors do what they do. But maybe I will prefer the upcoming S2.
Note: Limited series and anime are included; all documentary series are excluded.
I try my best to avoid spoilers, but no promises…
15. The Bear (Hulu)
I must point out this is just for Season 1, but I would be lying if I did not say a much stronger Season 2 influenced me to prop this one up. Remember, ranking 15th out of 85 is solid praise.
S1 still prepares you for the greatness to come later as you’ll start randomly referring to people as “chef” and “cousin” if you spend a binge with this fast-paced show. The episode that is one long tracking shot during a busy time at the restaurant is outstanding, and how can you beat a series that uses New Noise by Refused four times in two seasons? But again, I am only trying to judge S1 here.
Think of it as a Shameless spin-off following Lip’s character after he left the Gallagher family. He is basically the same self-destructive smart guy in this standout from Hulu.
14. Somebody Somewhere (HBO)
Again, this is for S1 and not an also incredible, improved S2 that has already aired. But this little slice of midwestern life is really unlike anything on TV right now. This is an ideal dramedy that is usually so lighthearted and fun to watch. I swear the actors go without a script in many of the scenes cause the chemistry just feels so natural, especially between Sam and Joel.
Speaking of Joel, try telling me this isn’t true about Jeff Hiller and Tom Brady, who are both 46 and 6’5”.
13. Spy X Family (Watched on Hulu)
I absolutely loved the first half of this anime about a spy who constructs a fake family with an assassin wife and telepathic daughter to infiltrate a school and befriend the son of a powerful target. But I took a long break before picking up the second half, and not long after they get the dog, it just loses its steam for me. By the finale, I was shocked at how slow things were moving and that bummer of a second half dropped it in the rankings for me.
But obviously this is based on a manga and there are more episodes to come. The beginning is fantastic stuff you should check out if you are a fan of anime.
12. Shoresy (Hulu)
I watched about 7 episodes of Letterkenny a few years back, liked the unique dialogue and comedy, then never got back to it. Then I saw Shoresy pop up as this hockey player spin-off series, and I ended up watching the whole thing in one sitting. Just the first scene in the first episode with Shoresy in the bathroom is something I have probably watched 6 or 7 times. It is a perfect example of the series you can expect from this one.
Eventually, I went back and finished Letterkenny and better understand the Shoresy character, who does not show his face in that show as he does here since it is the same actor as Wayne from Letterkenny.
But I loved Shoresy and only wish it had more episodes.
11. Black Bird (Apple TV+)
After three comedies and an anime, let’s get into the true crime limited series with A-list actors market that Apple TV+ is mastering these days. This was a true story about a criminal who agrees to lessen his sentence by transferring to another prison to befriend a suspected serial killer and learn about his crimes.
Taron Egerton and Paul Walter Hauser carry this show with Hauser doing an incredible job as the killer with his signature high-pitched delivery and creepiness. Egerton’s charisma is also excellent, and for the people who say he should be the next James Bond, I am down with that after watching this one.
Ray Liotta (RIP) fans will also appreciate him playing the father of Egerton’s Jimmy character. If you enjoy prison shows like me, you should make this a top priority the next time you get Apple TV+.
10. Under the Banner of Heaven (FX/Hulu)
This is another true crime series about Andrew Garfield as a detective investigating the murder of Daisy Edgar-Jones’ Mormon character (loved her in Normal People, my top show of 2020). This show does not hold back at all about how cult-like the LDS and Mormons are. It is a dark story and Garfield, who I have really come to enjoy in recent years, does a great job with battling his character’s religious beliefs throughout the case.
9. Five Days at Memorial (Apple TV+)
Another shocking true story that looks at what a hospital went through during Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans. Some of the saddest scenes from anything that aired in 2022 come from this series, and pet lovers will also be crushed at what happens here. Just a total disaster that they did not do a better job of getting aid to the people there.
To me, this was 2022’s Dopesick on a scale of how angry you will feel about things in this country after you watch this.
8. Chainsaw Man (Watched on Hulu)
I knew this was highly rated everywhere, but after 3 episodes, I was not feeling the juvenile dialogue from the main character, who kept mentioning how he wants to touch boobs every other line. The animation was cool, the fight scenes were bloody and good, and I liked the world they were building.
But as the season wore on, I understood the character better, why he’s had to mature from his dog-like state, and by episode 8, I was hooked and quickly finished the rest of it. This ended up being my top anime of the year and the hype is warranted. Looking forward to more episodes.
7. The Devil’s Hour (Amazon Prime)
Without giving much away, I thought this was a very original and compelling series that mixes horror, sci-fi, and mystery. A woman wakes up at the same time every night (3:33 AM), which is considered the Devil’s Hour (between 3:00 and 4:00 AM).
Her son is one of the creepiest little bastards you’ll ever see, so casting gets two thumbs way up for that one. You also get to see Jamie Tartt from Ted Lasso in a role where he understandably hates the son. Peter Capaldi is great as you would expect playing the mysterious man.
Again, I do not want to give anything away, so check out the 6 episodes and know they have already renewed it for two more seasons.
6. Peacemaker (HBO Max)
I’m so behind on this that HBO Max has already been changed to Max but fuck that stupid name. Peacemaker is one of the biggest highlights of the HBO Max era. I enjoyed the character in The Suicide Squad, but John Cena really surprised me with how good he is at this role in the series. The supporting cast is good too, and the overall tone and comedy is something right up my alley. I look forward to multiple seasons of this one.
5. Dahmer (Netflix)
As someone who loved and misses David Fincher’s Mindhunter series on Netflix, this was a solid consolation prize. It is a very detailed work in the serial killer genre of Dahmer’s bewildering murders, and Evan Peters was an excellent choice to play him. Ditto for Richard Jenkins as the father, and I must say after watching this, you have to wonder if Dahmer would have turned out the way he did if his father was not so encouraging about his dead animal fascination.
4. The Dropout (Hulu)
The 2022 TV landscape was filled with limited series on tech bros and Silicon Valley twats breaking bad. There was the WeCrashed series about WeWork and the Super Pumped series about Uber’s bad boy. I enjoyed both, but I think Hulu’s The Dropout with Amanda Seyfried portraying Elizabeth Holmes was the best one. Her performance was the best work of her career, and I had to bring back the shot of her dancing in her Steve Jobs outfit in front of his poster in the banner above. Perfectly creepy scene. Naveen Andrews (Lost) was also great as her shady partner Sunny.
What a disappointment Holmes was. If she had just waited to get a working model, she could have been a billionaire. But the greed and drive to be first to market was a huge part of these series about these grifters.
3. The Offer (Paramount Plus)
Was this really 2022? It feels like two summers ago when I binged through Paramount’s The Offer, a fun, detailed look at the real-life story behind the making of The Godfather. This was so good that it made me finally go back and watch the first two Godfather movies start to finish, making sure I had a solid viewing in HD as an adult as it had been a long time. My conclusion was that I do in fact enjoy Part I more than Part II, and it really is close to perfection. But both were great.
As for this series, Matthew Goode as producer Robert Evans stole every scene. There are movies coming out about Evans, and all I can say is good luck to those actors trying to follow what Goode did here.
2. Heartstopper (Netflix)
Finally, I got this in before S2 drops in early August.
I only discovered this show, which is based on a graphic novel, a few weeks after it aired thanks to it debuting with a very high ranking on the IMDb Top 250 Series. I questioned how good it could be (in an all-time context) as it just sounded like a coming of age, high schoolers discovering love story aimed at the LGBTQ crowd.
I ended up watching it in one sitting. The performances are fantastic, the music is on point, and the pacing is excellent. It is not heart-stopping drama, but it absolutely is heartwarming and encompasses all those feelings of shyness and awkwardness that you would expect from such a story about teens.
Seems like I probably mentioned this last year when I gave It’s a Sin, the limited series about AIDS in the 80s, a very high ranking, but the British are just so much better at telling these stories than Americans. They let the characters and story do all the talking, and it doesn’t come off as political or preachy virtue signaling.
If an American made this show, the gay kid would get an over-the-top yassification, the bi-curious kid would be a jock from a Conservative Christian family with Trump signs, and the trans girl would likely face horrifying scenes of abuse and trauma on a weekly basis.
Here, they’re just two blokes who share a trans friend. Live and let live. Simples.
1. Severance (Apple TV+)
My main interest in trying Apple TV+ was to see Severance, and it did not disappoint. With so many networks taking the limited series based on a true story approach, or making every series they can in the Star Wars, Marvel, Walking Dead, and Game of Thrones universes, this is a breath of fresh air.
This is probably the best original series with elements of sci-fi, mystery, and psychological thriller since Mr. Robot. I don’t want to give anything away, but the general premise is these people have their life at work and a life at home, and their conscience is split between the two without overlapping.
Of course, our lead character (played perfectly by Adam Scott) discovers that things are not quite right about this, and piece by piece we start to see what’s behind this company. The supporting cast is great too with Christopher Walken and John Turturro always stealing scenes, and Britt Lower as Helly should be a breakout star for her role in the office.
I’m not sure how many more episodes they can pull out of this one, but S1 left many things unanswered, and the writers have a hell of a job left to complete. But I really look forward to it, and I hope they can get paid extra to bring S2 to us. Original, quality TV is so important to have.
Honorable Mentions/Fun Binges
- Andor: Who knew a Star Wars project could still be done well this century?
- Cyberpunk: Edgerunners: Not familiar with the game this is a prequel to, but I dug the animation, and it has a solid story
- Fleishman Is in Trouble: Felt like a timely series for me, exploring the difficulties of relationships, dating, and finding purpose in life as you near 40
- House of the Dragon: It’s not peak Game of Thrones yet, but the first season had some solid episodes and I will look forward to more
- Mike Judge’s Beavis and Butt-Head: Technically, this is top 15 for me because I love it, but just feels wrong to call this a “new series” when it literally is taking the classic at its best and just updating it with more modern plots. But it is so well done
- Outer Range: Nice little mixture of sci-fi and mystery with a good cast
- Reacher: Blows the Tom Cruise movies away and should be a great Amazon replacement for the departure of Jack Ryan, which was a bit of a dud the final few seasons
- Smiling Friends: Amusing little animated dramedy series you can finish in one sitting
- The Legend of Vox Machina: I’ve already watched both seasons of this, but it’s like that Netflix Castlevania animated series meets The Witcher, or Skyrim meets The Boys
- Tokyo Vice: There is great potential here for this neo-noir take on investigative journalism into the Tokyo underworld
- WeCrashed: Jared Leto and Anne Hathaway crush their roles in yet another limited series based on a greedy tech person, otherwise known as a tech person
- Wednesday: The Tim Burton fan in me appreciated seeing this, but I wish it stayed a bit darker like his classic era, and it did not really stick with me after I finished it
Here are the previous lists from past years:
You can always find me tweeting about the shows I’m currently watching. Fortunately, I have caught up on a lot of 2023 stuff already, and I do not anticipate a deep fall due to the strikes going on. So, I might be able to get 2023’s list out sooner next year, and all I can say now is watch Beef on Netflix.
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