|
|
Post by Jeremy on Dec 30, 2018 15:11:57 GMT -8
And here are my Top 10 TV Shows of the year! Please feel free to yell at me for... on second thought, it took a while to put this all together. Non-yelling would be appreciated. |
|
|
|
Post by otherscott on Dec 31, 2018 6:24:44 GMT -8
Personally I like that we both called Sharp Objects a “very solid” show in our reviews and then proceeded to put it in the same approximate spot in our rankings. A nice reminder that we do occasionally have the same opinions on things.
And I don’t remember anyone accusing you of having dissenting opinions just to be unpredictable, Jeremy. That’s Quiara’s job. (I kid, I kid)
|
|
|
|
Post by Jeremy on Dec 31, 2018 7:04:22 GMT -8
It doesn't happen often, but folks occasionally do ask if I'm trying to be the wild card by going against the critical consensus. I don't actually do it for that reason (well, except that one time. Or two).
Incidentally, TBS unexpectedly aired the entire fourth season of Angie Tribeca over the weekend. I just started it, and it's really fun. And now I'm regretting not being able to watch it in time to mention it somewhere on my list. Curse this "year-round television" model.
|
|
Quiara
Grade School
Posts: 775
|
Post by Quiara on Dec 31, 2018 10:27:36 GMT -8
And I don’t remember anyone accusing you of having dissenting opinions just to be unpredictable, Jeremy. That’s Quiara’s job. (I kid, I kid) That's not even wrong LMAO Anyway, I think Jeremy's list is fine, although I'm surprised you have Killing Eve so high even after railing against overly woke dramas in the opening. Then again, your praise of the show is qualitative and not "look, a show with two women in it" like some critics have been doing in their end-of-year lists. Now that all the lists are out - any conspicuous absences? |
|
|
|
Post by Jeremy on Dec 31, 2018 11:37:39 GMT -8
Anyway, I think Jeremy's list is fine, although I'm surprised you have Killing Eve so high even after railing against overly woke dramas in the opening. Then again, your praise of the show is qualitative and not "look, a show with two women in it" like some critics have been doing in their end-of-year lists. I think the reason Killing Eve did so well with critics across the board is that it can be appreciated on both a qualitative level (it's a well-written and well-acted show with a unique tone) and a super-woke level (it's about two women, one of whom is possibly gay for the other). Most of the woke-type shows I refer to in the intro are the kind that are noticeably flawed, but get acclaim anyway because critics want brownie points. ( Pose, for example, is a very middling series that appears on lots of Top 10 lists because of how politically resonant it is.) It's too bad DuckTales and Adventure Time didn't get much love, but kid-themed animated shows have always had an uphill battle. A Series of Unfortunate Events was also largely ignored (except by Gwen Inhat), in part for similar reasons. The one real surprise omission is America to Me. It was lauded in reviews upon its premiere, yet only four of the 100+ critics have it in their Top 10. |
|
|
|
Post by otherscott on Dec 31, 2018 13:03:28 GMT -8
I think the reason Killing Eve did so well with critics across the board is that it can be appreciated on both a qualitative level (it's a well-written and well-acted show with a unique tone) and a super-woke level (it's about two women, one of whom is possibly gay for the other). Only one of whom is gay for the other?! Anyways yes politics over craft is definitely becoming a worrisome trend in criticism. Mostly I don’t worry that much, if a show is politically relevant I just downgrade it a couple of notches from critical opinion when deciding whether I want to watch it. And occasionally I’ll like one of those shows more than critical reception for mostly non political reasons, like The Handmaids Tale. And with Pose I just don’t think I could get into a drag show. If one comes out with tremendous reception rather than pretty good reception I’ll re-evaluate. |
|
Quiara
Grade School
Posts: 775
|
Post by Quiara on Dec 31, 2018 13:43:10 GMT -8
Did Vida get any critical love? Not that it deserved it (although I'd put episode 4 on my best episodes of the year list).
|
|
|
|
Post by Jeremy on Dec 31, 2018 15:29:33 GMT -8
And with Pose I just don’t think I could get into a drag show. If one comes out with tremendous reception rather than pretty good reception I’ll re-evaluate. has a lot of tonal similarities with NBC's Rise, which flopped earlier this year - both are really melodramatic shows about a group of underdogs banding together to make a difference; both have lots of heart and little narrative substance. But Rise is centered on a straight white guy, while Pose is centered on a diverse group of LGBT folks, so it's pretty clear which one would get better reviews. Did Vida get any critical love? Not that it deserved it (although I'd put episode 4 on my best episodes of the year list). According to Metacritic, three critics put Vida in their Top 10, and a fourth one put it on NPR's consolidated list. Interestingly, Sorry for Your Loss didn't get much love, either - four lists, two of which weren't even full-fledged Top 10s. The only half-hour drama to get real acclaim this year was Homecoming. |
|
|
|
Post by Incandescence 112 on Dec 31, 2018 16:48:17 GMT -8
It's too bad DuckTales and Adventure Time didn't get much love, but kid-themed animated shows have always had an uphill battle. A Series of Unfortunate Events was also largely ignored (except by Gwen Inhat), in part for similar reasons. I'm just catching up on Adventure Time now. I'll post more of my thoughts when I finish the series, but yeah-what a show. |
|
|
|
Post by Jeremy on Dec 31, 2018 19:53:15 GMT -8
I really do need to finish Adventure Time someday. Uneven but at times quite brilliant show. (It appears on three lists.)
On the subject of omissions, I note with some relief that Murphy Brown did not make a single critic's list. Nor, for that matter, did Roseanne. The Conners made one Top 10 - by Glenn Garvin, the only non-liberal TV critic in America. (His Top 10 may be the biggest outlier of them all - on top of Conners, it's the only one that includes Homeland, The Looming Tower, Waco, Mr. Mercedes, and Tiny Shoulders... which is not a TV show.)
ETA: Another outlier is Neal Justin (list just added), the only critic whose Top 10 includes Rise, Final Space, Drew Michael (again, not a TV show), and My Next Guest Needs No Introduction. His list also contains Zen Diaries and The Circus, which only pop up on one or two other lists.
|
|
Quiara
Grade School
Posts: 775
|
Post by Quiara on Jan 1, 2019 8:53:45 GMT -8
|
|
|
|
Post by Jeremy on Jan 1, 2019 10:31:33 GMT -8
I mean, Pose is fine. Well-produced, and definitely better than Transparent. But it's still a Ryan Murphy show, with all the problems that come with it.
Ooh, almost forgot. My own favorite episodes of the year:
"Teddy Perkins" (Atlanta)
"Free Churro" (Bojack Horseman)
"The Dump" (American Vandal)
"Milk" (Sharp Objects)
"The Box" (Brooklyn Nine-Nine)
|
|
|
|
Post by Incandescence 112 on Jan 1, 2019 11:10:34 GMT -8
I really do need to finish Adventure Time someday. Uneven but at times quite brilliant show. (It appears on three lists.) It comes with the territory of a harsh production schedule and really long seasons. If an episode's not quite working, they don't really have the time to fix it, and it shows sometimes. Still, the overall quality on an episode-by-episode basis from Season 3 onward is ridiculously impressive. So many great episodes in there. Making a top 50 Adventure Time episodes list would be difficult. |
|
