Quick run-through of the 2017 Top 20 list that didn't make the cut:
Didn't Air in 2018:
= Curb Your Enthusiasm (#19 in 2017)
= Veep (#18)
= Fargo (#14)
= Game of Thrones (#11)
= Nathan For You (#10)
= Stranger Things (#9)
= Big Little Lies (#6)
= The Young Pope (#1)
Just Not as good in 2018:
= Dear White People (#20): Just didn't like the format and focus on so many secondary characters. Hopefuly its Season 3 can recapture the loose fun of the first season.
= Sneaky Pete (#17): The plot, and people essentially figuring out Pete was an imposter, stretched a llittle too thin, and was a bit too complicated.
= 13 Reasons Why (#12): To be honest, just didn't watch it, but based on the critical response and reports I read, it was a good decision. This was a show that needed just one season
20.) iZombie (Season 4 - The CW)
iZombie took a calculated risk at the end of their 3rd season, making Zombie-ism known to the world, which did allow for a whole new range of stories, but to me it felt a bit less zany and fun with the whole world in on the secret. The case of the week style became a bit more ineffective. What did improve though was the show's sharp critique on government and cultural biases & fear. There are a lot of similarities with the current immigration crises around the world, in reality, and the show did a good job exposing some of the fearmongering issues. The one storyline that should have worked better, and I think will do so in its final 5th season, is the 'Underground Railroad' characters bringing sick kids into Zombie-fied Seattle to get 'cured' with Zombie-ism. I'm hopeful for the final year of one of my pet favorite shows, it can climb up the rankings - and more than that, get critical fame it so sorely deserves.
19.) Brockmire (Season 2 - IFC)
Brockmire was one of my two oversights last year, though not as big of one as missing Mindhunter was. Sadly, the second season to me was slightly worse than the first - almost fully because I really liked Amanda Peet's character, and found her absence to be a glaring hole in the show. What was left though, a real-life version of Bojack Horseman in a way, was great. Hank Azaria played guy realizing fame isn't as important as he once thought was great. Seeing Charles became a national success was great. Having there be slightly more stakes, with being in the big leagues, and having a story around racial acceptance of baseball, lifted the showslightly up from comedic farce (in teh best way). Hopefully, Amanda Peet's absence will be rectified, and the show can continue its great success.
18.) Sharp Objects (HBO)
It was HBO's spiritual sequel to Big Little Lies, a woman-centered drama directed by Jean-Marc Valee, but while Big Little Lies popped, to me, Sharp Objects was a very average show dragged to brilliance by the acting. Amy Adams, who I've always liked, was brilliant in this role, perfectly playing her tortured, mysterios protagonist. The plot itself was a bit weak - it is hard to believe that a group of teenage girls could brutally murder classmates without anyone figuring it out - but the class warfare lesson it tried to impart was reasonably well played. In the end, Sharp Objects got a ton of Emmy buzz, but I think apart from Adams, and maybe Valee as director, most will be somewhat undeserved. I'll give HBO all the credit though for putting these shows, and backing them with endless promotional money, on the air.
17.) Silicon Valley (Season 5 - HBO)
The first post-TJ Miller season wasn't the worst of the shows run because of his absence (though it didn't help), but because it shifted a bit to a drama-and-plot instead of loading up on the jokes. The cynic can say it is because they lost their easiest source of laughs in Miller, but in reality, it was a pointed shift. The new show was still good, but different. I'll commend them for giving Pied Piper some success - a nice trendy, 'startup-y' office, money, etc., but not losing focus of who they were. In the end, the show will return for one last season.
16.) My Next Guest Needs No Introduction (NETFLIX)
Dave Letterman could have retired to a log cabin and done nothing. The way he looks, with mountain man beard, shows he gave that option considerable thought. Instead, he created a soft interview show, picked six people he cared about, a varied group of actors, comedians, and political giants, and gave us a beautiful little video podcast. Letterman over the years graduated from skeptical dick to a person who seemed to really care about some people. He showed that in these shows, but also showed his quick wit, his sardonic style, his engaging method of interviewing, and nicely spliced in little video vignettes, with everything from a long story of John Lewis to George Clooney's childhood home. It's so funny to watch Dave Letterman return to TV with a show that featured the one part of his Late Night Show that he seemed to hate at first: interviewing people. It goes to show you how meaningful he can be when he talks to people that, above all, he respects. I truly hope that wasn't a one-off.
Didn't Air in 2018:
= Curb Your Enthusiasm (#19 in 2017)
= Veep (#18)
= Fargo (#14)
= Game of Thrones (#11)
= Nathan For You (#10)
= Stranger Things (#9)
= Big Little Lies (#6)
= The Young Pope (#1)
Just Not as good in 2018:
= Dear White People (#20): Just didn't like the format and focus on so many secondary characters. Hopefuly its Season 3 can recapture the loose fun of the first season.
= Sneaky Pete (#17): The plot, and people essentially figuring out Pete was an imposter, stretched a llittle too thin, and was a bit too complicated.
= 13 Reasons Why (#12): To be honest, just didn't watch it, but based on the critical response and reports I read, it was a good decision. This was a show that needed just one season
20.) iZombie (Season 4 - The CW)
iZombie took a calculated risk at the end of their 3rd season, making Zombie-ism known to the world, which did allow for a whole new range of stories, but to me it felt a bit less zany and fun with the whole world in on the secret. The case of the week style became a bit more ineffective. What did improve though was the show's sharp critique on government and cultural biases & fear. There are a lot of similarities with the current immigration crises around the world, in reality, and the show did a good job exposing some of the fearmongering issues. The one storyline that should have worked better, and I think will do so in its final 5th season, is the 'Underground Railroad' characters bringing sick kids into Zombie-fied Seattle to get 'cured' with Zombie-ism. I'm hopeful for the final year of one of my pet favorite shows, it can climb up the rankings - and more than that, get critical fame it so sorely deserves.
19.) Brockmire (Season 2 - IFC)
Brockmire was one of my two oversights last year, though not as big of one as missing Mindhunter was. Sadly, the second season to me was slightly worse than the first - almost fully because I really liked Amanda Peet's character, and found her absence to be a glaring hole in the show. What was left though, a real-life version of Bojack Horseman in a way, was great. Hank Azaria played guy realizing fame isn't as important as he once thought was great. Seeing Charles became a national success was great. Having there be slightly more stakes, with being in the big leagues, and having a story around racial acceptance of baseball, lifted the showslightly up from comedic farce (in teh best way). Hopefully, Amanda Peet's absence will be rectified, and the show can continue its great success.
18.) Sharp Objects (HBO)
It was HBO's spiritual sequel to Big Little Lies, a woman-centered drama directed by Jean-Marc Valee, but while Big Little Lies popped, to me, Sharp Objects was a very average show dragged to brilliance by the acting. Amy Adams, who I've always liked, was brilliant in this role, perfectly playing her tortured, mysterios protagonist. The plot itself was a bit weak - it is hard to believe that a group of teenage girls could brutally murder classmates without anyone figuring it out - but the class warfare lesson it tried to impart was reasonably well played. In the end, Sharp Objects got a ton of Emmy buzz, but I think apart from Adams, and maybe Valee as director, most will be somewhat undeserved. I'll give HBO all the credit though for putting these shows, and backing them with endless promotional money, on the air.
17.) Silicon Valley (Season 5 - HBO)
The first post-TJ Miller season wasn't the worst of the shows run because of his absence (though it didn't help), but because it shifted a bit to a drama-and-plot instead of loading up on the jokes. The cynic can say it is because they lost their easiest source of laughs in Miller, but in reality, it was a pointed shift. The new show was still good, but different. I'll commend them for giving Pied Piper some success - a nice trendy, 'startup-y' office, money, etc., but not losing focus of who they were. In the end, the show will return for one last season.
16.) My Next Guest Needs No Introduction (NETFLIX)
Dave Letterman could have retired to a log cabin and done nothing. The way he looks, with mountain man beard, shows he gave that option considerable thought. Instead, he created a soft interview show, picked six people he cared about, a varied group of actors, comedians, and political giants, and gave us a beautiful little video podcast. Letterman over the years graduated from skeptical dick to a person who seemed to really care about some people. He showed that in these shows, but also showed his quick wit, his sardonic style, his engaging method of interviewing, and nicely spliced in little video vignettes, with everything from a long story of John Lewis to George Clooney's childhood home. It's so funny to watch Dave Letterman return to TV with a show that featured the one part of his Late Night Show that he seemed to hate at first: interviewing people. It goes to show you how meaningful he can be when he talks to people that, above all, he respects. I truly hope that wasn't a one-off.
