inheritance
Photo: HBO
When narrowing down the great TV shows of 2023 to this year's top 10 list, I consider multiple criteria. The main one is currency. Does the work in question feel particularly contemporary or contemporary? beef, Lee Sung Jin's relentlessly tense Netflix limited series definitely checks that box. The action begins when a street assault occurs between Amy Lau (Ali Wong), a businessman, mother, and wife, and Danny Cho (Steven Yeun), who works at a construction site and doesn't get along. His 30-minute drama straight and narrow, beef This is a scripted reflection of the anger that seeps into the fabric of American daily life. Wong and Yoon practically piss themselves on screen with performances that unflinchingly expose humanity's worst nature. This is also the only series to feature a philosophical conversation between a pair of ravens in the final episode, which I respect.
Read Roksana Haddadi's book full review of beefby Erin Quarry essay about season finaleby Nina Lee Coombs Series summary.
This could have been a standard post-apocalyptic series with Pedro Pascal and Vera Ramsey running away from different beasts each week. Instead, series co-creators Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann also helped create the video game this HBO drama is based on, adapting the original source material and building on its core structure. We have built additional elements. The result is a show about the devastating effects of the pandemic. The show came on TV at a time when most people were trying to stop thinking about viruses and vaccines, and still managed to garner widespread attention. it is, the last of us It was as much a character film as it was a horror and action film, a testament to how deeply humans need each other in the darkest of times and its aftermath.
Read Jen Cheney's book full review of the last of usby Roxana Haddadi Essay on the show and American exceptionalismMr. Hadadi Interview with co-creator Craig Mazinby Keith Phipps Season summary.
In its fourth and final season, the drama from co-creators Bill Hader and Alec Berg finally reveals whether Hader's Barry Berkman, the antihero hitman, will ever find redemption. Masu. His eight-episode journey to answer that question explores some of his ambitions, including his multiple time jumps, while sticking thoroughly to the dark comedy, and sometimes just darkness, that has always been at the heart of the film. takes the risk of telling a story. barrysensibility. The powerful and provocative series finale ends with a peek into the made-for-TV movie about Barry's life, which shows how easily and regularly Hollywood sanitizes hard truths and downplays the effects of violence. barry That's not the case with the HBO series.
Read Roxana Haddadi's book review of barry season 4Ben Rosenstock's Season summaryand Devon Ivy's Interview with star Sarah Goldberg.
The popular waitstaff comedy returned to Starz more than a decade after its second season ended, and sonically it never missed a beat. in fact, party down It could have been even better at depicting the absurdity and tragedy of working in the hospitality industry. Especially for the older original characters who wore pink bow ties for a gig that was supposed to be a rest stop on the way to actual fulfillment. Adam Scott, Martin Starr, Ryan Hansen, Megan Mullally, and Jane Lynch all settled into a comfortable rhythm with each other, and new additions Zoe Chao, Tyrell Jackson-Williams, and Jennifer Garner felt as if they were their own. slipping into the group as if they were part of it. That's it from the beginning. But the heart of the series remains man's relentless optimism about natural disasters. That's Party Down boss Ron Donald, who, in the hands of Ken Marino, turns a very ill-timed bout of food poisoning into one of the funniest and most entertaining. Weirdly heartbreaking TV moment of the year.
Read books by Kathryn VanArendonck review of party down season 3by Erin Quarry Season summaryby Jen Cheney Ken Marino's profileand listen to songs by Jesse David Fox. good one podcast interview Along with star Adam Scott and showrunner John Enbom.
Just hearing the name of this show brings a smile to my face, but that's not the case. It's an enchanting and cozy concoction that avoids difficult subject matter.second season of someone somewhere An unexpected death, the energy-draining responsibility of caring for an elderly parent, and most importantly, Sam (series co-creator Bridget Everett) and Joel (Jeff Hiller). Few television shows exude as much natural joy as his half-hour long portrayal of small-town Midwestern life. It's a weekly reminder that even the most mundane and frustrating life requires acceptance.
Read Jen Cheney's book full review of someone somewhere season 2 and maggie freemont Season summary.
The same year that artificial intelligence became one of the main villains of the Writers' and Actors' Strike, the totally bizarre role of a nun named Simone (Betty Gilpin, perfectly on the show's weirdo frequency) A rocker adventure has also appeared. He reluctantly completes a series of quests at the behest of his titular AI, which has had a wider impact on modern life than Siri and Alexa combined. Co-created by Tara Hernandez and Damon Lindelof, the series crosses genres and themes, from a sci-fi cautionary tale to an absurdist comedy to an action thriller to a religious meditation, and does its best to reach its final conclusion. and makes no apologies at all. Its eighth and final episode includes one of the most ridiculously perfect eleventh-hour twists in recent television history. I found television to be both intellectually challenging and a lot of fun at times.
Read Jen Cheney's book review of Mrs. Davisby Kathryn VanArendonck Interview with creators Tara Hernandez and Damon LindelofSean T. Collins Series summary.
A relentlessly entertaining take on the cloud of fart nonsense that hangs over the entertainment industry, it's always packed with jokes. But in the third and final season, the writers piled ambition on top of density, creating elaborate set-pieces. Pleasantville This doubles as a transmission, or parody, of the television broadcast procedure. angels of america, a very silly storyline about a gay animated character turns out to be quite realistic. So too does the plot development, which captures both the post-coronavirus moment and the timeless silliness of show business. Few comedies in 2023 made us laugh so often and so deeply.
read Brian Moylan Summary 2 other people season 3by Jen Cheney Profile of star Ken MarinoBen Rosenstock's Interview with Josh Segarra.
This beautiful, groundbreaking depiction of life on an Oklahoma reservation began as a coming-of-age story about young men itching to leave that life behind, but over the next two seasons Starlin Harjo's refreshingly This unique series has expanded its range of expression. This Bildungsroman is multi-generational. As depicted in rich episodes like “House Made of Bongs,” dazed and confused “Send It,” a raucous hospital robbery that turns into an homage to the upper class members of a 1970s teenage reservation and meditation on the importance of community; reserved dog Ultimately, the Indigenous characters demonstrate that no matter our age, we all still struggle with loss and find our way forward. The reason why the final shot of the series is of the four older friends Maximus, Brownie, Irene, and Bucky sitting side by side, rather than the four friends who are the central characters: Bear, Elora, Willy Jack, and Cheese. That's appropriate. They are the elders and without them you are a lesbian dog. reserved dogit can't exist.
read Cari Simmons Summary reserved dog season 3, Interview with director Danis Goulet of Matt Zoller Seitzand Kathryn VanArendonck's interview with Dallas Goldtooth.
I kept coming back to the same question as I pondered which series deserved the top two spots on this list. The second season of What's Your Favorite Show for Me in 2023? bear It definitely was. Even though it can be hectic, stressful, and claustrophobic, I'm just talking about an episode of “Fish,” and I spend as much time as humanly possible listening to Christopher Stoller's I wanted to stay in the gourmet environment that Chicago has created. I watched the masterfully crafted suitcase episodes “Honeydew” and “Fork” repeatedly, capturing new and exquisite details each time. I wanted and still want to hug everyone on this show. A serious and hard-working Sydney (Ayo Edebiri) and a delicious French omelette with potato chips. Deeply flawed and very human, Richie (Ebon Moss-Bachluck), the secret Swiftie; Marcus (Lionel Boyce) is discovering a world he never knew existed, both literally and figuratively. Carmy (Jeremy Allen White) is still very scared of her own weakness and loss of control. I'm not kidding when I say there's not a day that goes by that I don't think about them all and this absolute TV show.
read Review by Kathryn VanArendok bear season 2 and Mara Eakin's Season Recap.
This is the most boring and unsurprising answer to the question “What is the best TV show of 2023?” That also happens to be true. No other television program offered such a rich combination of Shakespearean drama and corporate buffoonery. Nothing else needs to be analyzed as quickly after viewing. Nothing else has added so many new phrases to my vocabulary (“ridiculously large bag”, “horribly annoying”, “food fit for a king!”). It also convinced me that playing a game called Bitey might be unusually hot. Nothing captivated her more than the 62 minutes she spent watching “Conner's Wedding.” A wedding celebration is beautifully filmed and acted, turning into a tragedy in real time.
I mentioned the importance of having a zeitgeist at the top of this list; inheritancetapped into the spirit of 2023, the year in which wealthy megalomaniacs from media corporations rose as cultural supervillains, with spot-on precision. The process of ultimately finding a successor to the late Logan Roy, a fictional character whose death inspired a real-life obituary, and how the very rich and powerful operate behind closed doors confirmed all our worst suspicions about. But unlike real life, watching them act was extremely funny, blasphemously hilarious, and unexpectedly touching. inheritance It taught us how to see the Roy family and their compatriots as complete, complex human beings. To their credit, they reminded us that they would never, ever show us the same courtesy.
Read books by Kathryn VanArendonck essay about inheritance series finale, scott tobias season 4 summaryJackson McHenry Interview with Brian Coxby Matt Zoller Seitz Interview with Jeremy Strong; and catch up with the rest Vulture details inheritance coverage.
