We take a look at all the treats the small screen had to offer us this past year, from horror to kitchen drama. Here’s our top TV shows of 2023.
It’s been a heck of a year for great television. We’ve bid goodbye to multiple shows and characters, but we’ve also been introduced to many new faces, new friends.
Between myself and James Harvey, we’ve tried to compile some of the best telly we’ve seen this year. It’s not an exhaustive list, but just a glimpse into what 2023 offered us on the small screen.
The Last Of Us
The year started with a bang as HBO and Sky released The Last Of Us, a long-awaited adaptation of Naughty Dog’s brilliant videogame, originally released in 2013 and followed by a critically acclaimed sequel in 2020. In a world ravaged by a fungus which turns people into raging, feral, zombie-like monsters, Joel and Ellie (Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey), the latter of whom is immune to the fungus, are on a journey to find the Fireflies – a militia group which may be able to turn Ellie’s blood into a cure for all. Episode three might just be the best hour of television released in 2023 and we have high hopes for season two. – ML
Poker Face
Rian Johnson might have single-handedly revived the murder mystery genre with Knives Out and its sequel, but it doesn’t look like he’ll be running out of ideas any time soon. With a delightfully unlikely detective in the form of Natasha Lyonne as casino worker Charlie Cale, Poker Face’s Columbo-style “howcatchem” formula feels like a breath of fresh air as Charlie drives from Nevada casinos to barbecue cook-outs with a cheery disposition and an in-built lie-detector. The case-of-the-week structure means Johnson’s latest enterprise has the potential to run and run – nothing would make me happier. – JH
Dead Ringers
Rachel Weisz is mesmerising in Alice Birch’s TV adaptation of David Cronenberg’s 80s classic. Like Jeremy Irons in Cronenberg’s film, Weisz plays the double role of two sisters, Beverly and Elliott, gifted gynaecologists who set out to revolutionise women’s reproductive care. Although the series later adopts a pretty fantasy-filled and gory narrative path, it’s hard not to be compelled by the premise a year after Roe vs. Wade was overturned in the US. Weisz is better than ever here and as far as adaptations and remakes go, it doesn’t get much better than Dead Ringers. – ML
Succession
HBO’s wildly successful and gripping series Succession finished its run earlier this year. The final series included ups and downs for each of the Roy siblings and in the end (spoiler alert), none of them ended up as the CEO of their father’s media empire. Kieran Culkin emerged early as the MVP of the final season, delivering a thoroughly compelling portrayal of a man child forced to face his daddy issues. Jeremy Strong and Sarah Snook were on equally fine form and while season four isn’t Succession at its best, it’s still damn fine telly. – ML
The Bear
On paper, it seems like mission impossible to top a first season as critically acclaimed as The Bear’s. Yet, somehow, season two of the Chicago-set kitchen drama is even more star-studded and compelling. Jeremy Allen White leads an impressive ensemble cast as chef Carmy Berzatto, but Ayo Edebiri is arguably the series’ heart and soul. The love of cooking and food in general is present in every frame of the show, but this is really a story about family, the one we’re born into and the one we craft. – ML
The Fall Of The House Of Usher
Mike Flanagan’s tenure at Netflix came to a close with the release of The Fall Of The House Of Usher and it is, dare we say, Flanagan’s finest work yet. There is no shortage of blood and gore in the fall of the titular house of Usher, but Flanagan’s work has rarely felt this loose and fun. That’s not to say the series is without substance; ultimately, this is a meditation on legacy and the choices we make in life. Bruce Greenwood illuminates the screen with his central turn as the patriarch of the Ushers but Rahul Kohli, Kate Siegel, Mark Hamill and Samantha Sloyan also get to shine amongst the large cast of Flanagan regulars. – ML
Read more: The Fall Of The House Of Usher review | Mike Flanagan’s Netflix era ends on a macabre high
Yellowjackets
Yellowjackets was an unlikely hit when it first premiered, but season two upped the ante for the sports team stranded in the woods. The first season merely hinted that something truly awful and horrific happened when a bunch of high school girls and their coach were stuck in the woods for months, but the second season finally gives in to the urge to fill us in. Cannibalism. Cannibalism is what happened. It’s done pretty tastefully (pun fully intended), but the real meat of the story (I’m so sorry) is Lottie’s emergence as a spiritual leader of sorts. The season ends on a cliffhanger of sorts and honestly, we can’t see what wicked treats season 3 has in store for us. -ML
Silo
AppleTV+ has really invested in quality TV this year. Not only did the firm wrap things up for Jason Sudeikis’ awkwardly charming footy coach Ted Lasso (see below), but it’s also dived in deep with Kaijus (Monarch: Legacy Of Monsters) and the supernatural (The Changeling). One of their its of the year, though, is Silo. Based on Hugh Howey’s series of novels, the series stars Rebecca Ferguson as Juliette Nichols, an engineer who lives in the titular Silo. The outside world has been deemed to be toxic, with no chance of life, but Juliette accidentally stumbles on a mystery that might throw their entire society into chaos. It’s a twisty story, filled with great performances and impressive visuals. – ML
Ted Lasso
Almost everything on this list is pretty dark and gloomy, and often violent too. Ted Lasso, AppleTV+’s flagship series, by contrast, served as a tonic when a new episode dropped each Wednesday. Although the adventures of an American football coach in good, ol’ England have been wrapped up for now, the ending of the beloved series was left open enough to continue the story. It is, and always was, an impossibly nice TV show, with nothing sinister or depressing about it, while still managing to touch on some really important themes, like male mental health. – ML
Daisy Jones And The Six
Based on the hit novel of the same name, Taylor Jenkins Reid’s tale of a fictional 70s rock group hit Amazon Prime with a Fleetwood Mac-inspired bang. Daisy Jones And The Six blends music mockumentary stylings with good, old-fashioned young adult drama, and while the story itself might not be completely new, the band’s full album accompanying the series (Aurora) is a fresh slice of the 70s for the streaming generation. Riley Keough and Sam Claflin lead a brilliantly accomplished cast, and the premise alone is just different enough from much of the drama we’ve seen recently that the show is definitely worth checking out. And, yes, they did come at the top of my Spotify Wrapped. – JH
I Think You Should Leave With Tim Robinson
Tim Robinson’s gloriously absurd sketch show isn’t so much like Marmite as [INSERT CONTROVERSIAL PUBLIC FIGURE HERE]. While the third season from the people who brought us “tables” and “Sloppy Steaks” might not quite hit the same heights as the first two outings, at this stage it’s hard for Robinson and co. to go too wrong. Masterfully wringing too much mileage out of the “person takes something way too far” premise, ITYSL season three is a deceptively smart and frequently hilarious sketch show in an era where that sort of thing is becoming increasingly rare. – JH
What were some of your small screen favourites this year? Share your recommendations in the comments!
