Listmania: The Best TV Shows of 2017

Scene from Twin Peaks: The Return
With the passing of another year is another great year of TV. In 2017, there was a strong mixture of new series, returning favorites, and finales for some of the most influential. This installment is meant to highlight 20 TV series that made a difference over the past year and definitely deserve to be remembered for everything that they did right. So join in as the commentary explains why you should have been watching these shows week-to-week (or in the case of Netflix: hour to hour) and should definitely catch up on them if you haven't been doing so.

1. The Leftovers (HBO)

There wasn’t a show as unpredictable, depressing, or hilarious as the final season of this Damon Lindelof drama. For a show that started as a dour dissection of the rapture, it has come to embody every emotional response in the human condition. The final season wasn’t afraid to go into bold directions, exploring a fraught relationship in between episodes about sex cruises and international spy stories fueled by phallic humor. In spite of its diverse pallet, it also served as a redemption of sorts for Lindelof, who managed to turn the finale’s cryptic final moments into a powerful commentary not only of the series, but of the viewers. This show never played it safe or conventional, and one can only hope that it will find an audience willing to find the catharsis even within the most challenging of moments.

2. Better Things (FX)

No comedy came close to matching the overall poignancy of Pamela Adlon’s ode to motherhood in the 21st century. The series not only explored the rocky relationship of a single mother and her teenage daughters, but tough issues that she faced in her dating life. It was a show that painted the modern woman in an unflattering life, and in the process found the humanity that defines their power. The season ended with an incredible dance scene meant to embody that even if the men in your life are disappointing, mother will always be there to help you. It’s a show about looking past the conflict to find what’s great about the people in your life. No show captured it better, of funnier, than Better Things did in its second season. It’s a step up in every possible way, and hopefully there’s more shows like this to come in the future.

3. Halt and Catch Fire (AMC)

After a rocky start, Halt and Catch Fire managed to become AMC’s best show that nobody’s watching. In its final year, it jumped forward in time from the 80’s to the 90’s to show how the computer company upstarters fared during the tech boom. What the show did best was capture the humanity and connection that brought these characters together. The final stretch of episodes defined this best, especially as death brought out a powerful, emotional episode that showed how each character grew. It’s a great looking drama with an underrated cast, and it’s unfortunate that more people don’t know about it. Still, the future is bright for the show. It ends by suggesting that there are still ideas out there for people to aspire to. There’s no better way to go out than by encouraging the future, which AMC definitely will need as they move more and more towards genre entertainment.

4. Twin Peaks: The Return (Showtime)

Is this a remake or continuation? Maybe a little of both? After being largely absent from long form cinema, David Lynch returned to his career-defining TV series by tearing apart everything that audiences loved. The show no longer made sense, and instead had Cooper existing largely as an invalid for three quarters of the season. The show gave some answers, but raised many more that may or may not be answered. For those who just let the mystery be, then the show was as great as ever – even producing the artiest hour of TV with the origin story of Bob. Does it make sense? Does it have to? It doesn’t matter. Twin Peaks may not look the same anymore, but that’s just part of its charm down to its frustrating ending. This show doesn’t exist for an easy answer, or even a comprehensible one. It’s the definition of bizarre, and no show since, well, Twin Peaks has been crazy enough to pull it off this well.

5. The Marelous Mrs. Maisel (Amazon)

From the creator of Gilmore Girls and Bunheads comes a new series about finding your voice in a male dominated society. The year was full of shows with empowered women, but few were as witty as Mrs. Midge Maisel as she navigated dive bars and networked with comedy agents to try and make herself standout. In an era where there's too many shows about biographical stand-up narratives, this one avoids sentimental cliches by exploring the inner life of a woman who hasn't known freedom like this before, whether from her family or husband. It helps that the writing is some of the sharpest and most exciting that 2017 managed to produce, and one can only hope that the show continues to be a shining star in Amazon's great line-up of original programming.

6. BoJack Horseman (Netflix)

How do you make a fourth season about a manic depressive talking horse who’s mostly wallowed in self-pity? You do it by looking at the people in his life, of whom owe a lot to him. The series focused around satire related to current events regarding politics and sexual orientation. Even then, the show wasn’t above dropping absurd humor and puns into their Hollywood industry satire. It’s the boost of energy that the show needed to stay relevant this far along. In case you’re wondering, BoJack is doing fine. He just happens to have some personal problems to resolve, possibly in season five (that, and Todd’s killer clown project may be up for ethical debates).

7. Feud (FX)

In the annuls of history, the feud between actresses Bette Davis and Joan Crawford has a certain notoriety, thanks in large part to the hagsploitation masterpiece What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?. However, their story is more tragic and intertwining than the stories of kicking and cursing at each other would suggest. It was the story of women trying to navigate Hollywood as they grew older, unable to capture the vitality that they once did. In a year that saw plenty of conversation around sexual harassment in the industry, the show feels prescient in its sad reality. These were great women, and Ryan Murphy lovingly recounts their lives with fascinating details and reenactments that may or may not be accurate (just ask the director), but the point is clear. There's so much that these two could've done, and the additional meta subtext of Susan Sarandon and Jessica Lange's performances only add to the vibrant relevancy of the series.

8. Dear White People (Netflix)

The process of adapting a movie to a TV series is difficult, but Dear White People made it look easy as it took the events of the film and used it as a launchpad for a wider array of themes. It was a place that explored race relations, sexual orientation, and all things that make up a young person's identity. It was a show about activism, but managed to be so without being preachy either. In some ways, the show proved its vitality in the latter half of the season when a central conflict mirrored real life and created a poignant narrative around police relations. On the bright side, it's not always a harrowing show, and is often very, very funny. It's among the better shows that Netflix released in 2017, and one that will hopefully stick around for some time.

9. Riverdale (CW)

It didn't take long for the year to produce the best comic book series on TV this year. What's more shocking is that it doesn't involve caped crusaders, but instead a kid narrating from a laptop inside a diner. Riverdale updated the goody-goody Archie comics into a dark and gritty story with a surprising amount of success. The show manages to convey a high school drama that is full of pop culture references (and the complex ones, too) as well as some of the more shocking plot twists of the year. The show is currently in the middle of its second season, and the steam looks to still be building with another murder mystery. In an era where dark and gritty reboots are all too common, Riverdale is the one that justifies it wholeheartedly. It may be a remix of old ideas in a 21st century gaze, but that's not at all a bad thing.

10. The Crown (Netflix)

The show may have taken a hit without John Lithgow’s Churchill, but this Queen Elizabeth series remains just as vital as it enters an era of uncertainty. Her relationship with Prince Phillip causes conflicted regarding control of the country and their own lives. It’s a drama that manages to be both isolating and all too familiar. The themes, ranging from introversion to jealousy, are fascinating and manage to get deep and psychological dives within the confines of a period piece drama that is the most elegant drama of the year. For a popular figure whose likeness has been done to death in pop culture, The Crown manages to find humanity and make her a much more compelling figure without sacrificing historical accuracy. It’s going to be strange without the great Claire Foy in the lead, but at least she went out on a high note.

11. Rick and Morty (Cartoon Network)

Even if season three didn’t premiere, the show would deserve an end of the year mention for its famous April Fools episode, where it managed to resurrect Mulan’s Schezuan sauce briefly (the stunt backfired, but that’s besides the point). However, the rest of the season continued to prove why the show is among the best in animated comedy. Its sci-fi premise knows no bounds, going into even more ambitious directions that included a socio-political episode all about the Rick and Morty hierarchy, and one in which Rick turned into a pickle. The show is as great as it has ever been, and it managed to be unpredictable as the chances of it airing even a month before it happened. It’s a show with so much depth that it would be easy to rewatch and still find something new to love.

12. Better Call Saul (AMC)

The Breaking Bad spin-off is etching closer to the moment Walter White stood in the desert in his tighty-whities, but it manages to fill in the gaps with an impressive finesse. The show’s central focus on Jimmy and his brother Chuck continues to remain the most compelling element, making one wonder when he’s going to change his name. The show also introduced the additional ABQ cast, including audience favorite Gus Fring. The show has managed to find mileage out of its premise and has arguably made a show that’s just as compelling and gripping as the original. It may not be as energetic, but that doesn’t mean it’s any less tense. It’s the best lawyer show out there about one of the worst lawyers in TV history. That’s quite an achievement.

13. The Mick (Fox)

The network comedy has largely become a barren wasteland where safe shows have staked their place amid shows like Young Sheldon. However, there was one show that reminded audiences that TV could be edgy and fun. The Mick is the new series from Kaitlin Olsen, who transitions from It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia into a great leading lady in charge of a family who slowly become corrupted by her influence. The show's best feature is how unpredictable it is week to week, and how much mileage it gets out of a great cast of actors who play bad kids with enough charm to make the shameless moments funnier. It's the perfect new comedy for those who want something a little different in their TV comedy. It's demented in its colorfulness, and few shows could compete with its ability to be rude and charming at the same time.

14. Legion (FX)

Since David Lynch is considering Twin Peaks as a "movie" (spoiler alert, I'm counting it as TV), it's safe to say that Legion was the weirdest TV show of 2017. The adaptation of an obscure X-Men character managed to produce some of the wildest stories of the year, even breaking into ambitious tangents of surrealistic silent film techniques mixed with Tim Burton imagery. The show manages to warrant every last piece of oddity, which includes going inside characters' heads to listen to jazz music. From Fargo creator Noah Hawley, this show revolutionizes the medium by creating a more complicated form of story telling. It made TV fun in the process, and definitely warrants the belief that there's more to comic book adaptations than we're getting. Hopefully Legion will maintain its insanity in season two. For now, it can at least admit to having one of the best, craziest first seasons of any show ever.

15. The Handmaid’s Tale (Hulu)

In some ways, The Handmaid's Tale was the most important series of the year. Its themes of oppression managed to parallel the important cultural events of 2017. The story may have been written 30 years ago, but its themes still feel unfortunately relevant. It helps that everything about the production also helped to finally make Hulu's first runaway hit, with a show that was beautiful to look at and featured iconography so immediate that protesters adapted Offred's outfit. This is another great moment for Elizabeth Moss's post-Mad Men career, producing a drama that's all the more powerful by what she doesn't say. This is the series that became part of the cultural lexicon more than any other show, and for that it deserves an extra layer of credit in how much it succeeds at being entertaining, shocking, and heartfelt.

16. Girls (HBO)

The controversial Lena Dunham show ended its run on a quiet moment, suggesting that lead character Hannah had finally become a woman. While the show had become patchy in its later years, Dunham found a way to bring vitality to the show’s ode to mid-20’s stagnation. Everyone gets a happy ending, and learn hard lessons about maturity. Whether they stick is another question. Still, it’s an exciting moment that showed everyone in their top form, giving some of the show’s most emotional moments. It may not be as popular as it used to be, but it served as a voice of a generation for six interesting years. It will be missed, if just a little.

17. The Deuce (HBO)

Creator David Simon is known for creating gritty neo-realistic dramas like The Wire and Show Me a Hero. However, his best show since his definitive Baltimore crime drama takes place in a very controversial setting: the adult film world. It's a seedy subject that may turn some off, but Simon is more interested in the production of the culture than about exploitation. As a result, it creates one of the most human and powerful dramas about doing what you have to just to get by. With great dual performances by James Franco, the show manages to take a niche subject and make it informative and engaging in ways that one wouldn't expect. It's his best work since The Wire, in large part because he finds sympathy for those who you didn't think would deserve it. That alone is an incredible feat.

18. Orange is the New Black (Netflix)

While the show has remained an engaging ensemble series throughout the years, the Jenji Kohan drama needed a hook to make the Netflix flagship series relevant. It did so by focusing around a riot following the death of an inmate. What could’ve been an insufferable premise lead to a fascinating exploration of what chaos without order looked like. The show’s attempt to rebuild law helped to draw from current events and helped to make a season full of memorable and eye-opening moments. For a show that’s been around, it still manages to surprise and give emotional impact where it counts. It helps when the ensemble is this strong, and it’s only getting better by the episode.

19. Baskets (FX)

The Zach Galifianakis comedy remained just as obtuse as ever in its second season as it explored even more existential grief. This time, it explored the conflicts of the Baskets family including the Republican roots of their mother, played by the underrated Louie Anderson. The show’s ability to mix ennui with frustrating situations plays up the strengths of his unique style of humor, and finds the heart buried underneath the conflict. If nothing else, this is the only show to have a dog named Ronald Reagan. It’s an achievement all unto its own.

20. Runaways (Hulu)

The show may have premiered a little later than the other entries here, but Hulu's first foray into comic book TV is pretty impressive. From the creator of The O.C. comes a show that focuses on the children of supervillains who discover their own whimsical powers. The show is incredibly entertaining and manages to avoid the droll origin story motifs by finding empathy in their personal struggles. These are kids with obnoxious tics, but they use them to great effect. Even if they don't always have the best stories, they do have one of the best superpowers of the year: a dinosaur that you can control. Now that's awesome. The show is still finishing up its first season, but its first seven episodes are massively entertaining, and one can hope that they maintain momentum going forward.

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