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[RatskyWatsky]

*Rules*

- Each person makes a list of up to 10 entries. No more than 10, please. Their #1 will get 10 points, #2 will get 9 points, #3 will get 8, and so on. Unranked lists will not be tallied.

- Editing is permitted for as long as the thread stays open.

- Add your thoughts for each show and some of them may be included in the results thread!

- After voting ends, I will compile a single list based on the established point system.

Sample Ballot

You don’t have to follow this format strictly, but it will make the thread a lot easier and avoid any complications. Thanks!

1. TV Show A ; Your thoughts on TV Show A.
2. TV Show B ; Your thoughts on TV Show B.
3. TV Show C ; Your thoughts on TV Show C.
4. TV Show D ; Your thoughts on TV Show D.
5. TV Show E ; Your thoughts on TV Show E.
6. TV Show F ; Your thoughts on TV Show F.
7. TV Show G ; Your thoughts on TV Show G.
8. TV Show H ; Your thoughts on TV Show H.
9. TV Show I ; Your thoughts on TV Show I.
10. TV Show J ; Your thoughts on TV Show J.

Eligibility

Any TV new series, any season of an existing series, or miniseries that aired in 2014 is eligible.

TV Movies, Foreign series, Reality series, and Documentaries (e.g. Frozen Planet, Human Planet) are all eligible.

Please do not list fake/joke shows.

Here's a list of 2014 TV shows for reference.

Voting will end on January 7.

Link to the previous voting threads - 2013, 2012, 2011

 

[RatskyWatsky]

HitFix's TV Critics Poll:

1. Fargo
2. The Good Wife
3. Game of Thrones
4. Transparent
5. True Detective
6. The Americans
7. Mad Men
8. Orange is the New Black
9. Louie
10. Broad City

(Here's the list of critics that were polled.)

Poniewozik @ Time Magazine

1. Transparent
2. The Americans
3. The Good Wife
4. Orange is the New Black
5. Fargo
6. Last Week Tonight with John Oliver
7. Broad City
8. Louie
9. High Maintenance
10. Silicon Valley

Matt Zoller Seitz

1. Hannibal
2. Olive Kitteridge
3. Private Violence
4. Last Week Tonight with John Oliver
5. The Missing
6. The Americans
7. Mad Men
8. True Detective
9. Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey
10. The Roosevelts

Hank Stuever @ The Washington Post:

1. The Americans
2. Fargo
3. Game of Thrones
4. The Walking Dead
5. Transparent
6. The Good Wife
7. Silicon Valley
8. Oliver Kitteridge
9. The Roosevelts
10. Orange is the New Black

Maureen Ryan @ Huffington Post: (she lists 10 without ranking them)

The Americans
Enlisted
Happy Valley
Jane the Virgin
Orange is the New Black
Penny Dreadful
Recitify
Review
Transparent
You're the Worst

Alan Sepinwall @ Hitfix:

1. The Leftovers
2. The Americans
3. Transparent
4. Review
5. Fargo
6. Orange is the New Black
7. Rectify
8. Hannibal
9. Mad Men
10. True Detective

Entertainment Weekly

1. Transparent
2. Rectify
3. Fargo
4. Please Like Me
5. Louie
6. Inside Amy Schumer
7. Mad Men
8. Game of Thrones
9. The Good Wife
10. Hannibal

Joanne Ostrow @ Denver Post:

1. The Good Wife
2. Game of Thrones
3. Homeland
4. Transparent
5. Orange is the New Black
6. Olive Kitteridge
7. True Detective
8. The Affair
9. The Americans
10. The Roosevelts

E!Online's Comedies List:

Getting On
Broad City
The Comeback
The Mindy Project
Transparent
Parks and Recreation
Girls
Playing House
Orange is the New Black
Veep

AFI Top 10: (unranked)

The Americans
Fargo
Game of Thrones
How to Get Away With Murder
Jane the Virgin
The Knick
Mad Men
Orange is the New Black
Silicon Valley
Transparent

Poniewozik's Top 10 Episodes:

1. Mad Men "The Strategy"
2. The Leftovers "Guest"
3. Bob's Burgers "The Equestranauts"
4. True Detective "Who Goes There"
5. Game of Thrones "The Lion and the Rose"
6. Masters of Sex "Fight"
7. Review "Pancakes, Divorce, Pancakes"
8. Outlander "The Wedding"
9. Girls "Flo"
10. The Knick "Get the Rope"

 

[Solo]

1. True Detective - most engaging and well acted piece of television I saw in 2014.

 

[RatskyWatsky]

1. True Detective - most engaging and well acted piece of television I saw in 2014.

Not Justified?

 

[BertramCooper]

Alan Sepinwall @ Hitfix:
1. The Leftovers

:lol

 

[TheExhaustedWalrus]

I didn't watch tons of stuff, but from what I've seen...

1. Louie - Best season of my current favorite show. I'm not even sure what this show can be classified as anymore, and I love it. So many great storylines and moments, especially the "Into The Woods" episode. Brilliant writing, directing, and acting from Louie.

2. Fargo - A super fun ride. Nailed the Coens' aesthetic perfectly. Acting was great, as was the writing. The ending was satisfying and I am hooked for more.

3. Transparent - I loved the characters on this show so much. What a beautiful tale about trying to find love. Tambor is outstanding.

4. True Detective - I think I lost interest towards the end of the show but some of the twists and turns were awesome. Kept me interested throughout with these two characters and their downfall and eventual rise again.

 

[Solo]

Not Justified?

Not since S2!

 

[BertramCooper]

Probably going to amend this before all is said and done. And like many of you, I've missed tons of good stuff.

1) Rectify
Beautifully written, superbly acted and exceptionally shot. Best drama on TV at the moment.

2) Veep
Hasn't lost its edge. Not one bit. "Alicia" is one of my favorite comedy episodes ever.

3) Mad Men
(avatar quote). Going to miss it so goddamn much.

4) Bob’s Burgers
Best animated show on TV, and with Archer having a weak season last year, it's not even close anymore. One of the the most realistic depictions of a blue-collar family on TV. It's a warm show that loves all of the weirdos in its universe while maintaining a razor-sharp wit.

5) Fargo
I don't know a single fan of the film who wasn't completely blown away by the quality of this show. A remarkable achievement considering the legacy it had to live up to.

6) Orange is the New Black
OITNB continues to improve as it branches out from its ostensible protagonist and builds its great ensemble.

7) Last Week Tonight
LWT has pretty much perfected political comedy. It discusses critical societal issues in depth and addresses under-the-radar topics that heavy-hitters like Stewart either can't or won't.

8) Review
Pancakes, Divorce, Pancakes. Andy Daly is a god.

9) Happy Valley
One of the best UK dramas I've seen in a while, and Sarah Lancashire is one of the best female lead actors on television in any country. Definitely deserves more attention.

10) BoJack Horseman
Started out rough, but grew to become one of my favorite new shows of the year. Brilliant satire of the entertainment industry.

 

[Zippedpinhead]

1: The Good Wife - I watched the first four seasons over the summer, mainly thanks to the constant praise in the TV cancellations thread. Instant must watch, and I knew that when season five hit amazon prime I needed to watch it. Got through season 5 in about a week, and am now watching the series live. The tail end of season 5, with all the fallout from the SHOCKING DEATH, and the first half of this season with SHOCKING CASE THAT HITS CLOSE TO HOME really have me thinking this is one of the best if not the BEST show that not many are watching.

2: Fargo: I knew from the moment I saw that a thematically similar TV show was being developed from the Coen Brothers seminal "Fargo" I knew it was on my watch list. The casting helped the show immensely, Billy Bob Thornton was seemingly a force of nature on a show where most of the characters are all bumbling small townspeople. Allison Tolman brought an innocence to the incredibly smart and under appreciated Deputy Molly Solverson. Martin Freeman and Colin Hanks also performed very well. Freeman can routinely be expected to do a great job, sherlock is fantastic, but Hanks was a surprise. Mainly because his turn on Dexter was awful. Guest stars were great and used very effectively, (Key and Peele, Bob Odenkirk, Adam Goldberg, Oliver Platt and Kieth Carradine all were spectacular). Looking forward to Season 2.

3: House of Cards: I thought that Frank Underwood's (as performed by the brilliant Kevin Spacey) continued rise to power was fantastic. The supporting cast really brought their A-Game, with great runs by Michael Kelly and Rachel Brosnahan. Some of the turns I wasn't a fan of, not really enough back stabbing, but when you only really need to backstab one person you make sure the knife is ready and pointed in the right direction...

4: True Detective: There are things I liked, Casting, Plot, and direction shot choices are great. It brings a very animalistic and raw look into a terrible criminal legacy. That being said, some things do keep it from being further up the list. Pacing is really hurt, and I think some of this is due to he fact that it was written by one person. While this got HIS vision across, even another person in the writing room could have helped with some of the more slow episodes. This being as high on my list as it is, shows just how much this show gets right. Looking forward to Season 2.

5: Mad Men - while I love this series, I have only really gotten into it in 2013, catching up with just enough time to watch the first half of the final season live. I really enjoy it but I could not help but feel like this was only a tease. Eventually I think this half season will get overshadowed by it's latter half.

6: Homeland: *tentative since there is still one episode left before 2015 hits* I figured Homeland would be back on point after the death of Nicolas Brody last season, and so far I have been right. No useless plots with daughters running away and forgotten sons. Instead we get terrorist kidnapping, deaths of prominent recurring characters, and a scene that if it had played out differently probably would have made me quit the series (

Spoiler

when Carrie bathed her infant daughter and almost let her drown. They got me, I knew deep down they would not let the main character kill her own infant but that did not stop me from thinking how terrible she was

)

7: The Strain: Corey Stoll is all over the place this year, from being in seven movies, to a brief turn in Homeland to staring in his own TV show. Sadly FX decided to give him a terrible wig (maybe next season they will let him shave his head as plot development method). I have read the novels and while I know generally how this series will go, I am interested in how it will play out. Hopefully they can keep up with the less is more visual effects with the vampires.

8: Arrow/9: The Flash AKA CW Superhero shows): It is hard to judge these series separately, especially when I have to place one over the other. I am giving the lead to Arrow, mainly because It is more consistent with it's vision. the Flash still has some growing pains as it figures out its own voice. Love the casts, the current plots, I hope frequent cross overs happen (because the few we have gotten are already awesome, even if it is just recurring villains show up in both series)

10: How to get away with murder: Like the premise, like the cast, like the main murders so far. Only time will tell if this is just lightening in a bottle, or if they can truly make it catch fire and take off.

EDIT: Just off the List ( No Comments): The Americans (Just barely off), The Goldbergs, Orange is the new black,

 

[The Storyteller]

1. True Detective - most engaging and well acted piece of television I saw in 2014.

You have boring and predictable taste.

 

[TripOpt55]

Mmmm... I love this thread. I want to try and finish off a few more things before I make my list. I just enjoy seeing everyone else's lists too.

 

[ElectricBlanketFire]

1) Hannibal - Beautiful in every capacity. Look. Set design. Soundtrack. The violence. The story. How quiet 90% of the show is.

Best show on TV hands down.

 

[Conflict NZ]

This is hard, probably one of the best seasons of TV in a long term in terms of new entrants.

1. Manhattan; This show blew me away. Despite some of the inaccuracy the acting and cast were superb, the show was able to maintain itself without introducing new ridiculous plot-lines and they managed to turn scientists working into compelling television. Please give this a go if you haven't seen it yet.

2. The Knick; It's great seeing some of cinema's best stars attaching themselves to some amazing television projects. Clive Own and Steven Soderbergh team up to bring brutal turn of the century surgeries to television.

3. Fargo;

4. The Affair; Almost seemed to be taking a cue from True Detective, but executing it in a much better way, a he says she says flashback while being interviewed about the apparent murder of someone in the small town both characters are in. Please don't turn into what Ray Donovan turned into.

5. Halt & Catch Fire;

6. True Detective;

7. Rick & Morty;

8. Tyrant;

9. The Legend of Korra;

10. The Goldbergs;

 

[Karu]

This was an outstanding year of television, I can’t believe it myself honestly. So many amazing new additions through the board. Really glad to be alive as such time. 2014 will be remembered, at the very least by myself.

Excuse me for “not so great”-language and such, was in the mood for some longer explanations.

1. The Leftovers (10/10)
I will admit Damon Lindelof’s philosophy of writing television, his style and thought-process is one of the most admirable things in the world of US television for me personally. Lost had its undeniable flaws, some episodes of the final season were embarrassingly bad, but it’s also an unique, adventurous odyssey filled with great characters, terrifying scenes and probably the master of asking questions that will tear into the audiences mind, taking control over them without giving most of them any pleasure of answering them to their satisfaction.

The Leftovers leaves the answers out of the equation this time around. And again, Lindelof pulls of the feel of something unique and the reactions he gets from his audience, this time seemingly prepared, cautious and almost comically without passion, are that more interesting for it. The relationship between Kevin Garvey, the maddening Guilty Remnant, said audience and Lindelof himself to an extant is one of the most engaging dynamics on television, and it’s a huge part of why I love this show so much. I’m not denouncing anyone who found no interest in this show or thinks this is bad, I disagree, but The Leftovers – on a pure subjective level – spoke to me like no other show in 2014. It explores universal themes of faith, family and humanity – but is, as was Lost before it, truly personal. Backed up by an amazing score and beautiful shot, it gets the number one spot on my list.

2. Hannibal (10/10)
The reluctance towards Hannibal as the production was announced was understandable and everybody knows why. The first season came and went did so much so well and convinced the doubters that you have something special here. Always on the cusp of death itself, the show somehow managed to stay alive.

In its second season Hannibal shattered expectations once again with everything that made the first season great dialed up to eleven. Its structure is confusing and scattered at times, without ever losing its focus, the relationship between Hannibal Lector and Will Graham. Brilliantly played by Mads Mikkelsen and Hugh Dancy, paired with a direction that’s above all else on network and television as a whole. It also has one of the single strongest season finales of any show ever, across the board. They simply nailed it, a composition so thoroughly executed; it leaves you wondering how they want to top that. They got my trust and my number two spot on this list, that is for sure.

3. Mad Men (9,5/10)
This will be a rather short one, but know this: Mad Men is not a show that slows down on it’s tails end. While many found the sixth season to be lackluster, I only partly agree, the first half of the seventh season is as good as this show has ever been. With some truly outstanding episodes, Mad Men delivered and only got denied a 10 out of 10, because I have faith in Weiner & Co. that this won’t be the last high point and 2015 will give us another batch of episodes of one the most well-crafted shows there are.

4. Rectify (9,5/10)
I prefer Rectify’s first season, simply due to its unparalleled sense of wonder, coming from the mind of one man, who did or did not rape and kill a girl in his teens, and had to live half his life in prison for it, only to be set free into the world again. Just based on that alone season two seemed to have an impossible task bestowed upon itself – sustaining what seemingly can’t be sustained. And yet it did with bravour. An amazing cast, one of the many perfectly directed shows on this list and with a calm and poetry-ness, that won’t let you go. Ignored by almost anyone, if you want to watch one show & one show only, watch Rectify. It deserves it!

5. The Good Wife
The last herald of the once dominating network business, some might call it. And while that’s certainly not true (see Hannibal) it can’t be ignored that The Good Wife holds a special place amongst its peers, on CBS no less. While the best episodes were aired in 2013, the back half of season five and the first half of season six were still packed with astonishing quality. There might be an average episode here and there, a drop that have people wondering if this was it, the end of an unbelievable run, but it always came back. With the death of Emergency Room (The one show they should bring back and could easily, but don’t. Eh&#8230 my hope for long running serious network drama had seemingly died with it. The Good Wife gives me that hope back, that there will always be a world besides serializied cable shows and dull case by case-checklist shows.

6. The Knick (9,5/10)
Steven Soderbergh. Clive Owen. Best score of goddamn television! One episode that is among the best of the best. This show.Fucking. Rocks! Watch it.

7. Fargo (9/10)
It is mentioned in every describtion of Fargo probably ever, but this show was somewhat a surprise to many. What is probably the bigger surprise: It topped True Detective (8/10) with ease – at least on my list. How they managed to bring the Coen’s classic style on the little screen is astonishing. A captivating ride from beginning to end, Fargo delivers from its cast to its pacing, simply on all fronts. If you want to watch one Miniseries of 2014, make it this one.

8. Boardwalk Empire (9/10)
Flashbacks are a tough think to pull off, especially with a tragically shortened final season, were there were no prior to this point. And still they pulled it off. While I don’t think the final moments were quite right, the amount of brilliant scenes in this single season is just mind-boggling. Boardwalk Empire was always the dark sheep it seems, but for the ones who dare to look, HBO delivered another breathtaking drama with scope and a sense of epicness that the channel is so famous for. While other services such as Netflix are eager to catch up, HBO’s still the king.

9. Rick & Morty (9/10)
Dan Harmon is good in my books for his work on Community either way, but Rick & Morty cemented his status as an incredible creative mind. With a first season that is at times near perfection, he created another colorful playground that is able to surprise you with any moment anytime. It’s a special show with heart and humor. Animated show of the year, no doubt.
10. Shameless (9/10)
I almost forgot about this season myself. In any other year this would probably be a standout, not so much in 2014, where there is no escape from groundbreaking television. And yet, I have to give applause where it’s due. It was dark, depressing year for the Gallagher family. Furthermore you just can’t ignore what a powerhouse this cast has developed into. This is the best childrens cast on TV period, GoT be damned. Showtime’s best and I’m so glad that a show that is seemingly destined to fall off the wagon at some point, can still reach such highs.

Honorable mentions:
Game of Thrones (9/10)
Veep (8,5/10)
The Killing (8,5/10)
Marco Polo (Yet to finish)
Bob's Burgers
True Detective (8/10)
24 (8/10)
The Affair (Yet to finish)


Flop of the Year
Helix
The Strain

Comeback of the Year
24
New Girl

 

[boingball]

1. Fargo ; I was quite skeptical when I heard that they wanted to remake this great movie into a TV series. But they managed to do an outstanding job script wise, production wise and casting wise.
2. The Americans ; Great idea for a show, great setting (finally a show set in the 80s).
3. Game of Thrones ;
4. House of Cards ; While the second season was not as good as the first season it was still a very good show. I wonder where they are now going from the end of the season.
5. True Detective ; Excellent cast and excellent acting.
6. The Good Wife ; Discovered the show only last year and like it a lot. Very good scripts and good acting.
7. Justified ;
8. Boardwalk Empire ;
9. Orange is the New Black ; Similar to HoC the second season was not as good as the first one. Though I liked that they are trying to spread out the stories to other inmates too.
10. Mad Men ; Don't like the trend of splitting the "last" season always into two seasons. While it is sad to see the show ending I am looking forward to binge watch a whole run once it is over.

Others:
Hannibal ; Loved the first season but the second season was a little bit of a letdown.
Vikings ; Enjoyable show, just outside of the Top 10.
Marco Polo ; Liked the first season, hopefully they can build upon it. Historically not very accurate but I don't really expect that from a TV Show.

Have to watch The Knick and Olive Kitteridge, shows I think I might like a lot.

 

[Adam Scott Aukerman]

1. Fargo ; Where the heckings did this come from? Head and shoulders above anything else I watched this year. Gripping, hilarious, beautiful - it was a rare tour de force.
2. Hannibal ; I just can't get enough of this. It's quickly become my preferred rendition of Hannibal Lecter's world.
3. Halt and Catch Fire ; I'm mostly stunned that someone managed to make a compelling story out of this premise. Even as someone who grew up around computing in the 80s and early 90s, it didn't exactly sound promising. Really glad it's been renewed.
4. The Detectorists ; It's been a long time since I've seen a sitcom as touching as this. The vast majority of people here won't have even heard of it, but they'd do well to seek it out (it aired on BBC4 in the UK).
5. The Knick ; Horrifyingly compelling, and slick as fuck. Yep, it's a turn of the 20th century medical drama!
6. Review ; The premise alone is brilliant, but what makes this show so great the persistent narrative throughout Forrest's challenges. It's quite unlike anything else I've seen.
7. Sherlock ; Series 3 was undoubtedly the weakest, but it still comfortably made my top ten. Says a lot [about Sherlock].
8. Silicon Valley ; It would have been easy for this to devolve into pop culture cameo/reference-of-the-week-territory, but thankfully it's got a really strong narrative underneath the cheap laughs at the bizarre happenings of Sillicon Valley.
9. Louie ; One of the most consistently creative and bizarre things on television.
10. The Americans ; Even better than the first series. Hopefully it's not dragged out too long.


Narrowly missed out: The Comeback, Comedy Bang Bang, Playing House, True Detective & Homeland

 

[rexor0717]

1. True Detective; A really gripping story that I have to rewatch in HD. Loved Rust and the mystery.
2. Steven Universe; This show deserves exponentially more attention than it gets. Its fucking beautiful and the world building is spectacular. Its very lighthearted and really understands its fans.
3. Cosmos; I fucking love space/physics stuff.
4. The Legend of Korra; The third season was everything I wanted since the start of the series. This is probably the only season that will stand up to the quality of AtlA. The fourth season started slow but the last three episodes were great.
5. House of Cards; Frank's diabolical plans are really entertaining.
6. Orange is the New Black; I'm glad they opened up the show more to focus on other characters.
7. Sherlock; Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman are great together, I'll like this show always.
8. Agents of SHIELD; The first season was still airing this year, so I can't put this too high, but the second season is my most anticipated show weekly. This show got really good out of nowhere.
9. Broad City; I just marathoned this show, holy shit its funny. The characters are people I'd want to be friends with. This just knocked off Arrow from my list.
10. The Flash; Good start to its first season, the characters haven't really gelled with me yet, but I'm hoping it finds it way by the end.

 

[Shaffield]

1. Hannibal ;
so bloody, so pretty. Mads is so damn charming and terrifying. the second season was even more bizzare than the first, more frantic and unsettling than anything else on television.
and the cooking scenes... they make it look so tasty

2. Rick & Morty ;
best cartoon since the Venture Bros. As a fan of their old Channel 101 shit, Justin Roiland and Dan Harmon nail all the absurd humor i expect from them, and more. the episode with the interdimensional TV channels fucking slayed me.
and of course, Roiland is the greatest voice actor in the world. his performace as Rick is fucking hysterical.

3. Game of Thrones ;
probably my least favorite season so far,

Spoiler

rough patch for Daeny and Jorah

but still had some amazing moments. some great new characters introduced

Spoiler

RIP in peace Oberyn

and some truly wild character development

Spoiler

ur a wizrd Bran!!

4. The Eric Andre Show ;
"Morpheus drinkin' a forty in the death basket"

5. True Detective ;
after Hannibal, TD was the most compelling show of the year. marathoned the first 7 episodes a week before the finale, and I was seriously itching for more. McConaughey was absolutely stunning. I would have liked a little more surreal stuff, but the little tastes of it were excellent.

6. Steven Universe ;
Adventure Time has definitely dropped off in quality, but DAMN Steven Universe delivers more than enough to make up for it. never takes itself too seriously (although i didn't really care for the season finale that much), but still manages to build an awesome universe with real problems and real heroes. if you liked Samurai Jack and Adventure Time, yo owe it to yourself to watch.

7. Louie ;
"Elevator" was so beautiful. Louie and Amia were so strange and nonsensical, its amazing that Louis CK can write so many different awkward relationships with women.
and then holy shit the 2 episodes about Louie's childhood. i've always thought the show was good, but that arc was on another level.

8. The Meltdown with Jonah and Kumail ;
excellent stand-up show with a cool format. episodes are 4-5 standup sets (comedians including Emily Heller, Michael Ian Black, Rory Scovel, Maria Bamford), plus hilarious back-stage scenes. definitely check it out for the solid alt-comedy and to see some bizzare sets from comedians you might have seen before (check out the Rory Scovel set, its amazing)

9. Broad City

10. Bob's Burgers


that's it for now, might think of some more shit later

 

[T Dollarz]

Reserving my post. Got a few more episodes in Hannibal season 2 (which will be very high on my list) and then I'll craft my list. Excellent year for television. So many great choices.

Note: WHERE IS THE FINAL SEASON BOARDWALK LOVE

 

[LaunchpadMcQ]

1. The Good Wife - I can't talk about this show enough, but I will keep it brief. The back half of season 5 was just phenomenal, dealing with a major occurrence and just moving with an emotional heft that is often missing from even the best dramas on any network. Season 5 was the series moving away from "the format" of procedurals, which it did marvelously and provided episodes heavily reliant on the viewer having a history with these characters. Coming into season 6, the show has topped itself yet again, delivering what I believe to be the best television episode I've seen this year and such a stupendous story arc (that seems to not have concluded, from the looks of previews). Even then, it had these meticulously crafted episodes sprinkled in between these two half seasons. Definitely the best show on television, and the one many are not watching.

2. Hannibal - This feels like another show that doesn't get enough credit (though I think it gets a sight more internet attention than The Good Wife, just because of the different in plot). Coming into the second season with the twist of the first (which I had spoiled to me by commercials), they really brought a change of landscape while ratcheting up the tension to unbelievable heights. Then, finally, everything comes crashing down and the result is still keeping me up at night. I don't have the words for how shocked I was at the end of this season. Above everything else, this show tells its story masterfully.

3. Mad Men - Ok, I may be in the minority, but I loved seasons 5 and 6 almost as much as the seasons that came before it. It felt like it was meandering a bit, sure, but it was all necessary development for the arrival of this final season. So, we come into this season with a completely different landscape from the previous seasons, and we have Don at wit's end trying to make sense of his life. The shift, as I see it, is that in the past, Don's misbehavior usually cost him relationships - but the one static thing in his life, losing his ability to work, was the real wakeup call that he needed to fix things. Some very poignant development moments here, but it felt incomplete (for obvious reasons).

4. The Americans - This series is what you get when you make a grounded, believable conspiracy show. The historical accuracy is [mostly] there, the characters are fleshed out, there's a growing sense of dread and tension. It really drives home what I feel to be a realistic representation of what being a spy must have been like.

5. Person of Interest - I'm really appalled by how little critical attention this series has gotten for that remarkable third season. Sure, it's held down by its format and by its network (something The Good Wife has all but broken away from), but "The Devil's Share" is a clear indication of the creative power behind this series. It was an episode from last year, but I think that it resonates with what the series brought to the table this year. Having spun so many webs of conspiracy and deceit, everything came together in such a masterful season finale and delivered yet another devastating blow. The first half of season 4, from what I've seen, has been doing more of the same from season 3, but the effects of that finale have been prevalent in the series' plot.

6. Game of Thrones - I don't know what I can say about this series that hasn't already been said. I'm not a diehard fan, to be sure, but this series is exceptionally written and the political intrigue is most of the reason why I watch it. Actually, I wasn't a huge fan of the

Spoiler

battle of Castle Black

, mostly because it felt to lack in comparison to the

Spoiler

tactical significance of the battle of Blackwater

. There was some definite payoff in this season, though, and some truly shocking moments. It was very entertaining, to say the least.

7. Sherlock - I may be in the minority, but I enjoyed this season more than the first two. Sherlock always drags its feet in the second episode of a series, but "The Blind Banker" was hilarious and entertaining, so that's a feather in its cap. The first episode was also wildly entertaining. But the third one is what really blew me away. Sherlock faced his own "Joker" dilemma and dealt with it in a manner which made sense; I think a lot of people had a problem with that, but I most definitely didn't. The repercussions of Sherlock's actions will surely be felt when it returns in God knows when.

8. Jane the Virgin - Ok, ok, I know I'm putting this ahead of True Detective - what the hell is wrong with me, right? Well, I really enjoy Jane the Virgin for a number of reasons, chief among them how they make nearly every character grounded and relatable, even characters like Petra who initially comes off as a bitch until we find out why. The show is hilarious, has already found its voice in the first few episodes (that of its Latino narrator), and it has subverted the expectations of the genre. This is my favorite new show of the year, hands down.

9. True Detective - TD was a fantastic series, so don't think that I have something against it

Spoiler

even though it is terribly overrated

. What the two leads brought to this series could not have been provided by any two other actors. However, where I felt the show really shined was in how it told its story and the overall tone. The story was nothing to write home about; hell, the message wasn't even all that deep or profound. But the journey to the ending was really something else, a technical and stylistic marvel.

10. Parks and Recreation - A lot of people felt like this show slumped in the last two seasons, it just kind of fell to the wayside for others. I have to say, those people should have been watching this season, because Parks and Rec has never been funnier. Having

Spoiler

Chris and Ann depart

actually allowed them to focus on other characters, which has been great for the series as its delivered some of its best laughs ever. I don't watch many comedy shows, but I've stuck this series for a long time and I've only seen it deliver in the best sense.

 

[Karu]

5. Person of Interest - I'm really appalled by how little critical attention this series has gotten for that remarkable third season. Sure, it's held down by its format and by its network (something The Good Wife has all but broken away from), but "The Devil's Share" is a clear indication of the creative power behind this series. It was an episode from last year, but I think that it resonates with what the series brought to the table this year. Having spun so many webs of conspiracy and deceit, everything came together in such a masterful season finale and delivered yet another devastating blow. The first half of season 4, from what I've seen, has been doing more of the same from season 3, but the effects of that finale have been prevalent in the series' plot.

That's just all true, but I just don't review potential. The S3 final of Person of Interest ist amazing. I mean, it's incredible. So is the trilogy. But that's certainly not enough with that much quality TV to get elsewhere. As you said The Good Wife did something with its potential albeit its home. An entire season of PoI will probably never get something like a 9 or so from me, simply because it can sustain its high points through out a large period of a given season. S2 came close, sure, but S3 was a solid (good) 7,5/10 for me.

 

[Turin]

1) Hannibal - It's a feast for the senses, thoughtful writing, top notch acting, the wry sense of humor, Hugh Dancy's performance, etc....

2) Fargo - "Oh jeez."

3) True Detective - "Time is a flat circle."

4) The Knick - "I will sew your mouth and nostrils shut and happily watch you asphyxiate."

5) Boardwalk Empire - "To the lost."

 

[CreeperBlocks]

1.Hannibal- This show had a Stellar 2nd season. Mads Mikkelsen is fantastic and should be nominated for something, both Him and Hugh Dancy. Most beautiful show on Television.

2.Arrow- FINALLY, Superhero shows aren't crap!( Looking at you The Cape!, you piece of crap!) anyway, lets start with my favorite, Arrow, for it's third season it' starting a bit slow, but as always it kicks into high gear for mid season finales. But, this year's Crossover with The Flash was AMAZING even with the limited budget of course it still looked great. Props to you CW DC! you're making great TV!

3.The Goldbergs- I love this show, I was scared last year that this would be cancelled. But this still one of best Comedies ABC has ever put out.

4.Sleepy Hollow- This show is a guilty pleasure. i love crane. can we have more episodes of Crane discovering 21st Century? Please? Thanks.

5. Legend Of Korra- this show has so many ups and downs i was hesitant to put it on this list. Honestly, Season 3 was fantastic, it had the qualities of the original series which makes this season great.

 

[Jigorath]

1. Mad Men - Now that Breaking Bad has come to an end this is officially the best show on television. The writing is excellent, characters are memorable, and the period is fascinating to watch.

2. Brooklyn 99 - I'm not a big SNL fan so I don't have much experience with Andy Samberg but he is hilarious here. This is one of the best ensemble casts I've ever seen in a sitcom. I'd put it on the same level as Seinfeld or Arrested Development. One of the funniest sitcoms in years.

3. Veep - Another sitcom with an incredible ensemble. The only reason this is lower than B99 is because I don't feel they're utilized well enough. Only Selina and Jonah get decent screen time in the series. The show is still hilarious which makes it the best HBO comedy since Curb Your Enthusiasm.

4. Fargo - As a fan of the movie I thought this was a terrible idea. But thanks to input from the Coen Bros. they really nailed it here. Great cast, very well written, and the humor was great. Managed to surpass True Detective and become the best miniseries of the year.

5. You're the Worst - It isn't easy to craft a comedy around two incredibly unlikable people. You don't really root for them but you do laugh. A lot. Compared to most comedies which are just ripoffs this gets a lot of points before very original. There is no sitcom like it out there.

6. Boardwalk Empire - It isn't easy to end a show, and it definitely isn't easy to end a show with a reduced final season. While I don't feel like Boardwalk Empire quite hit the mark here that doesn't stop it from still being an excellent gangster drama with engaging characters and some of the best writing ever.

7. The Americans - After a good but not great first season I would pleasantly surprised by how much The Americans had improved. The show had found its groove this season by juggling between Phillip and Elizabeth's home lives and secret lives as KGB agents. I really began to care about the characters this season and get emotionally invest in what's going on.

8. True Detective - While I don't love the show as much as others do I can't deny the quality here. The acting is incredible and the lengthy tracking shot is one of the best directed scenes in television history. The reason it's not higher on the list is because I wasn't a big fan of the last few episodes. But when this show works, it really works.

9. Community - After a decent but ultimately underwhelming 4th season Community got back on track with season 5. Once again the show was about the characters and how they fit together as a group rather than just putting them in whacky sitcom adventures. An entire episode that takes place in GI Joe is something that only Community can get away with and I'm very happy with that. Losing Pierce hurt but Jonathan Banks did a good job filling the gap and I wish they could have gotten him back for season 6.

10. Bojack Horseman - I wasn't too interested with the mediocre trailer and rather lackluster first couple episodes. But the show quickly picks up and becomes very invested in character development which is quite rare for cartoons. I wish they could get a better handle on the humor because that's the only thing keeping this low on my list. The characters are great and I love how they're handling the drama and development but I wish it was just a little bit funnier.

 

[RatskyWatsky]

2.Arrow/The Flash

No combined answers please.

 

[CreeperBlocks]

No combined answers please.

Aww alright. I'll go change that

 

[xbhaskarx]

1. Last Week Tonight with John Oliver
2. True Detective
3. Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey
4. Fargo
5. Veep
6. The Goldbergs
7. Brooklyn Nine-Nine
8. Mad Men
9. Game of Thrones
10. Bob's Burgers

Apparently I need to check out Broad City...

 

[NotTheGuyYouKill]

Wooooooo TVSOTY time! My ballot will be coming in after work.

 

[HoJu]

1. The Good Wife
2. True Detective
3. Mad Men
4. Transparent
5. The Knick
6. Bob's Burgers
7. Happy Valley
8. Louie
9. Game of Thrones
10. Veep

will probably edit once i finish watching Rectify, The Americans, Hannibal, Fargo...
and why aren't more people watching The Good Wife? it's so good.

 

[L1NETT]

1 - Utopia - Bit of an evangelist for this show, probably borders on the annoying. Anywho the second series. Best 'flashback' episode I have ever seen, sensational cinematography, engrossing characters arcs, great performances from Akhtar and Maskell and one of the best TV soundtracks ever. I will rewatch this again and again now c4 have cancelled it. Love, love love this show.

2 - Peaky Blinders. Dodgy accents aside, a tremendous second series building on a solid first. Tom Hardy was a fantastic addition and the soundtrack with the sumptuous visuals made this a pleasure to watch every week. Sam Niell bordered on the cartoony on occasion, but it didn't detract too much. Also lovely to see Birmingham represented in a far too often london-centric tv landscape.

3- Babylon . With 5 episodes gone I am confident putting it here. Think Thick of It (same writer) wrapped within a police drama. Looks at every level of the met with engrossing storylines and capable performances throughout. Not laugh out loud comedy, but it doesn't need to be. Sobering at times but never loses it acid tongue.

4 - Detectorists. A warm cup of hot chocolate in a sitcom. Loving performed and made, it was understated and thoroughly lovely. Toby Jones and Crook were a treat. Yet next to nobody posted in my thread about it! Grrr!!!!

5- Happy Valley. Not usually a huge Lancashire fan but got really absorbed in this. Steve Pemberton was my standout here, great performance. Tense and gripping drama, good stuff BBC.

6- Rev - Olivia Colman. How good is she. Another lovely show. Clever, sharp and full of heart.

7- The Code - Why is nobody talking about this? Could not stop watching this Aussie show after the first episode. Excellent stuff

8- Gomorrah - Gritty Italian drama. Think the wire but set in Naples. Tough as old boots but brilliant.

9- Please Like Me - Was on and off with the first series but really enjoyed the second. Funny and sweet stuff.

10- Prey - Gritty and compulsive stuff. Can barely remember it though! Need to re-watch it

Edit: Honourable Mentions:

True Detective/ Line of Duty/ Rectify/ Black Mirror: White Christmas/ Marvellous/

 

[Kilvin]

1. The Americans; Smart dialogue, fantastic acting and an engaging story. The second season improved greatly on an already excellent first.

2. Brooklyn Nine Nine; This season started off a bit slow but has recently picked up to the level of hilarity last season offered. The past couple of episodes in particular have been phenomenal. This is my favourite comedy on television.

3. Portlandia; A hilarious sketch comedy set in Portland, Oregon. This show is clever as hell and Fred Armesin and Carrie Brownstein knock it out of the park in nearly every roll. Guest stars are also well chosen.

4. Person of Interest; This show may as well be a superhero show. Smart writing and twists and turns at every corner, you never know what's going to happen next. Chock full of likeable characters and intense action.

5. Sherlock;

6. The Flash This show starts off at a lightning pace, no waiting for a show to get its feet wet here. Cast of characters are incredibly likeable and are so natural together. If you haven't liked previous super hero show offerings, give this one a shot as it may change your mind. The Arrow crossover a few weeks ago was amazing fan service. Grant Gustin is also an excellent actor.

7.

8. Game of Thrones;

9. New Girl;

10. The Walking Dead; Yes the show is ridiculous, yes the writing is bad and yes the characters are stupid but I still find myself enjoying the show. It's a great popcorn show, turn your brain off and enjoy the gore.

Last two picks and remaining descriptions to follow. I've run out of time at the moment.

 

[anaron]

I was worried you weren't doing one Ratsky! BLESS YOU


1. Rectify
2. Hannibal
3. The Good Wife
4. Orange is the new black
5. Outlander
6. Inside Amy Schumer
7. Broad City
8. Mad Men
9. Orphan Black
10. Homeland (this one barely squeezes in but I was mostly really entertained by it this year)

Honourable mentions:

Agents of SHIELD (most improved, so much fun to watch now), The Flash, Jane the Virgin, How to Get Away with Murder (batshit crazy with Viola Davis and Liza Weil. YAS), The 100,

 

[Dalek]

1. True Detective; To me, it’s honestly the best thing that HBO has ever produced. I was riveted to it, and it completely changed my perspective on Matthew McConaughey. The format of this show has so much potential.

2. Hannibal ; This is the most entertaining show I watched all year-it’s gorgeous, yet terrifying and the second season of this show is basically just all payoff from the first season. This show does things during it’s second season most shows would hold off to do in their final season.

3. Fargo ; I was highly skeptical that a series could be achieved that matched the quality and quirk of the movie, but they succeeded and then some. Billy Bob Thorton is a FUCKING GENIUS-he plays one of the best characters I’ve ever seen on television.

4. The Flash ; Pure liquified fun displayed on television. Grant Gustin is playing the most likable superhero ever, and Jesse Martin + Tom Cavanagh elevate the show to another level with their greatness as well. This is the one show on this list that I wish I could immediately watch every episode that will ever be produced of it in a row right now.

5. Doctor Who; After a shaky start, this season had some of my all time favorites of Doctor Who (although some of these are love ‘em or hate em’) Listen, Flatline, The Mummy on the Orient Express. Some people detest Listen for it’s ending-but I think the message on how fear affects us is genius. " Fear can make you faster, and cleverer, and stronger. And one day, you’re gonna come back to this barn, and on that day, you’re going to be very afraid indeed. But that’s okay. Because if you’re very wise and very strong, fear doesn’t have to make you cruel or cowardly. Fear can make you kind. … It doesn’t matter if there’s nothing under the bed, or in the dark, so long as you know it’s okay to be afraid of it. "

6. Arrow ; Season 3 has started off a bit slow, but 2014 brought us the second half of season 2-which brought us Slade Wilson. And honestly, he’s a hard villain to top. In my mind, few scenes stand out and are as memorable as his “Reveal” in the episode Three Ghosts.

7. Game of Thrones ; Consistently great, so many great scenes, episodes and characters from this year. The battle at the Wall was incredible.

8. Last Night Today with John Oliver ; The funniest show on TV-that writing staff is off the charts.

9. Happy Valley-the most overlooked gem on television. Seriously if you're reading this, find it on Netflix and watch it. Easily one of the best television series I've ever seen. I've always heard the phrase "nail biting tension" but this is the only series I've ever felt deserved this description. Perfect in every aspect-brilliant dialogue,

10. Rectify ; The fact that this is number 10 shows how much great TV there is to watch-and there’s even more notable shows not on here that I haven’t gotten around to yet. But that being said-there’s nothing else on TV like Rectify-any lesser show would take this story and add some dramatic nonsense like some great revenge plot, etc. This is more interested in zooming in super close to your characters and cranking the pace down to a crawl-and it works. The fact that the first two seasons have only covered like 2 weeks in Daniel’s life is really nuts. I also feel the next season should be it’s last-there’s only so far we can go with this before it gets a bit redundant.

 

[EulaCapra]

1. How to Get Away with Murder - No one should apologize for loving this show. Right now it's the show that has friends and colleagues buzzing every time and egging everyone on to catch up so they can talk about it.

2. Orange is the New Black - I didn't binge it and watched it for 5 months because I like savoring every moment with these characters.

3. The Legend of Korra - Such a shame Nick just folded and gave up. There's a lot of hard work that went into these final two seasons.

4. Game of Thrones - Surprise, surprise. Old standby is still good and has everyone buzzing.

5. Jane the Virgin - The critics weren't lying. It did turn out to be one of my favorite new fall shows. It's just so charming and everyone is already so well-rounded. There's no Mary Sue's or Over-the-Top Villains here. And the mother-daughter relationship here is so endearing. Oh, and the of narration and texts that break the fourth wall really help elevate it.

6. House of Cards - Unlike Orange, I wanted to binge the latest season because I didn't want to see these stakes keep going higher and higher for characters I don't want to root for but yet so fascinated by.

7. The Walking Dead - See number 4.

8. Scandal - Another watercooler show. It's gotten ridiculously soapy and sometimes trashy with monologues that go on for days, but it's still pulpy and delicious that I need immediate viewing.

9. Gotham - I don't care for procedurals but their world building is incredible! The costumes, the set dressings, props, and spiffing up New York and its actors to look like a neo-noire Gotham and Gotham characters is so refreshing. It doesn't feel like a superhero show... that happens to take place in places that looks like present day New York/Vancouver/LA/etc. It's in its own ecosystem.

10. Devious Maids - I wouldn't be surprised if I'm the only shoutout for this show. Such an underrated dramedy with emphasis on sharp-tongued comedy and pretty good mysteries. It's basically the acclaimed parts of Desperate Housewives without the burden of 22 episodes.

Not caught up/Closely followed by: Homeland, Parks and Recreation, Orphan Black, Revenge, American Horror Story, Veep

Jumped the Shark and Over the Bear Into the Pits of Hell: Under the Dome

 

[Clevinger]

I wrote out this big post with all my thoughts and I accidentally closed the tab.

-_-

I'll just add in a bit where I might differ from people, or for a show no one watches.

1. The Knick
2. Rectify
3. The Americans
4. Review ; One of the funniest comedies in a long time. Andy Daly is brilliant.
5. Transparent
6. Hannibal ; I adored 90% of the season, but unlike everyone else I didn't like the finale much. *shrug*
7. You're the Worst
8. Rick and Morty
9. True Detective ; Fantastic acting, dialogue, direction, and lead characters. However, the story and mystery did nothing for me. And the fact that there were only two interesting characters, regardless of how enjoyable they were, was a problem.
10. Person of Interest

Jane the Virgin
Fargo

 

[Spotless Mind]

1. Last Week Tonight with John Oliver
2. The Good Wife
3. Transparent
4. Hannibal
5. Fargo
6. Mad Men
7. Please Like Me
8. Broad City
9. Outlander
10. Defiance

There's a ludicrous amount of quality TV right now. I could have placed any of the following in there: Orange is the New Black, 24: Live Another Day, Veep, Parks and Rec, Rick and Morty, Doctor Who - and i still have to catch up on Rectify and The Americans. Blerg! I hate lists!

 

[ivysaur12]

I'll add more later:

1. The Good Wife
2. Rectify
3. Hannibal
4. Transparent
5. Orange is the New Black
6. Game of Thrones
7. Brooklyn Nine-Nine
8. The Americans
9. The Comeback
10. You're the Worst

 

[BertramCooper]

Psyched to see a couple other people list Happy Valley.

I was afraid it had gotten completely ignored on GAF.

 

[maxcriden]

*reserving spot so I remember to do this*

Will compile a list with my wife and edit it in ASAP!

 

[Rhaknar]

1 - The Good Wife
2 - Brooklyn 99
3 - Hannibal
4 - True Detective
5 - Person of Interest
6 - Game of Thrones
7 - Justified
8 - The Flash
9 - Arrow
10 - Marvel's Agents of Shield

I havent watched The Americans Season 2 or it would be up there for sure judging from my love of season 1

Flop of the year - The Strain
Comeback of the year - Marvel's Agents of Shield

 

[Turin]

The love for Hannibal so far.

 

[KefkaPalazzo]

1. Last Week Tonight with John Oliver
2. True Detective
3. Game of Thrones
4. Mad Men
5. Modern Family
6. Parks and Recreation
7. House of Cards
8. The Walking Dead
9. The Middle
10. Bates Motel

I've been meaning to watch Transparent, The Knick, and Fargo...probably will knock out at least two of those during Winter break.

 

[Jables Swan]

1. True Detective
2. Fargo
3. Agents of Shield
4. Rick & Morty
5. Flash
6. Sherlock
7. Game of Thrones

 

[NotTheGuyYouKill]

1. Hannibal

Gorgeous, gut-wrenching show. Amazing finale. Amazing acting. Beautiful cinematography. A show that left me feeling haunted.

2. Person of Interest

The best procedural on TV, cause it has evolved past being a mere procedural and being a lens through which we view surveillance, corruption, crime, evil, artificial intelligence, and all sorta of paranoia-inducing activities the human race engages in. Great action, acting, cinematography, tone, this show, everything's on point. It juggles its serial arcs, character arcs, and procedural tales like nobody's business. Watching this show from the beginning to now is some of the most rewarding TV you can check out.

Being the lone few battling against a cold and uncaring world at the dawn of the AI age is a tough job... but someone has to do it.

3. Flash

After guesting in Arrow, Barry Allen (Grant Gustin) gets spun-off into his show and it's the best premiere of the season for me. Flash has a undercurrent of fun running through it as Gustin's Peter Parker-esque Barry Allen gets a handle on his powers. Great visuals for a television show, great villains (WELLS! CAPTAIN COLD! REVERSE FLASH!), great supporting cast, crappy romance, well, it's a CW show, but it's a great one.

4. Arrow

Whereas Flash is light and fun and running around Central City, Arrow's Starling City is... a shitty place to live. While a sluggish start to Season 3 has places Arrow a a notch or two lower this year, a magnificent end to Season 2 and a fantastic Season 3 mid-season finale still make it one of my favorite shows. Amell is great as Oliver, this show has some of the most swaggerific villains on television, great action choreography, I love archery, relentless pacing, typical CW shenanigans, and crappy Olicity stuff, still places it at number 4.

5. Brooklyn 9-9

I think it's on par with Parks & Rec at its best right now, this show. I fucking love it. Not a single bad episode, and it always makes me feel great watching it. Santiago is my perfect gal. Jake Peralta is the best friend I wish I could be. Andre Braugher fucking kills it. Great comedy.

6. True Detective

Phenomenal crime drama outta HBO. While Nick Pizzaman seems pretentious as fuck, he still created a fantastic show. McConoughey and Harrelson give some of the finest performances of their lives in this riveting, intensely atmospheric and noirish crime drama set in Louisiana. While a lot of people had issues with the finale, I didn't. It was incredibly satisfying, while still leaving me hungry for more.

7. Jane the Virgin

Man, CW got two of the best premieres of the season here! I wasn't expecting much from JTV, but man, was I wrong! Great soap opera that actually blends in great comedy and some heart-wrenching emotion. Gina Rodriguez is perfectly cast as Jane, who basically anchors all the craziness happening around her. Rogelio is hilarious ALL THE TIME, and Latin Lover Narrator is life.

8. Agents of SHIELD

While it had a sluggish start, the SHIELD/HYDRA twist fucking kicked things into high gear. Betrayals! Action! HYDRA! Mysterious alien writing! Season 2 kept up with the momentum, introduced fantastic villain in Whitehall and The Doctor (MacClachlan put in a magnificent performance). The cast got more comfortable in their new roles, team dynamics changed, and the show is finally living up to its potential now that it's actually altering the Marvel Universe and its characters have agency.

9. Fargo

10. Gotham

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

1) The Good Wife - This show would normally place high on my list, but I'm still working my way through the early seasons, so that's the reason why it's not on the list. I'm not at the current 2014 season yet.

2) Teen Wolf - Still good, but this season wasn't strong enough to place for me.

3) Justifed - Same reasoning as Teen Wolf.

4) Parks & Rec - Great season, but I think it'll place high when it's final season ends.

5) Orphan Black - still great, but some weird and overstuffed plots and stuff made it so it doesn't place. Alice is the queen of everything though.

6) Da Vinci's Demons Season 2 - Riario is the best. That is all.

7) Last Week Tonight With John Oliver - Great debut for a great and funny guy. Love that he has no restrictions and just murders everyone that's an asshole with his words.

8) The Knick

9) Penny Dreadful

Shows that have disappointed me this year:

1) Banshee - Second season's been meandering and disappointing compared to the first. Waste of characters and momentum.

2) Sleepy Hollow - Maybe the novelty's worn off? I'm like six eps behind and in no rush to catch up.

 

[CreeperBlocks]

The love for Hannibal so far.

It deserves it all. Hugh and Mads are the best actors on television

 

[Wiktor]

1. Hannibal - perfect show to me. Stunningly shot, acted, writen and directed. Makes the movie series look like amateur show. Second season was even better than previous one with some truly shocking twists, while also retaining all the symbolism and character depth. Add to this that I have a serious hard-on for serial killer stories and nothing else could win.

2. Person of Interest - the most consistently entertaining show on TV and the best plotted one. They do everything right, from big arcs to cases of the week. Great characters and villains plus courage to go the extremes the story wants to go, even it it shatters status quo procedurals love so much. And huge number of episodes didn't end as detriment. Instead it gives them wider canvas to work with and they use them fully. Plus 3rd season was definitely the best one.

3.Arrow - the best superhero show that in season 2 fully embraced it's comkcbook roots delivering what I consider the best live action superhero adaptation (yes, better than any movie). Slade was stunning villain and the action was incredible for the kind of show it is. It also fixed most of problems season 1 had. It wasn't perfect season, but nothing else made me so pumped up about upcoming episodes. By comparision S3 started out much slower. But the last three eps before break were just plain incredible, so I'm hyped as hell for the rest of the season.

4.Justified - this show is always extremely dependable, delivering fun stories, great characters and most of all the very best dialogues on TV. Raylan and Boyd remain amazing characters with truly spectacular chemistry.

5.Flash - I absolutely love this show. It's so low solely because it barely started. But it does everything right. No holding back on comicbookness. Ridiculously good for TV effects, extremely sympathetic lead with good support cast. Show usually get this good only in their 2-3 season, not right out of the gate.

6.Banshee - this was my favorite show last year, so the drop is huge and painfull, but I still enjoyed the show week by week. It still had the best action on TV (not hard, considering Strike Back wasn't out this year ) and great cast plus some good plot twists. Plus it has completely bizzare, yet beautiful episode midway through the season, which was the first time I've seen any tv show rival Hannibal in cinematography. I'm hoping S3 will be a lot better, but S2 still remained very enjoyable watch.

7.Penny Dreadful - I'm a sucker for supernatural stories and this one was beautifully made, with good storylines and great characters.

8.Fargo - yet another example that tv shows can surpass the movies they're based on. Beautiful show, with great plotting and characters, as well as nicely self contained story.

9.Constantine - this one is a bit overrated by my The show still has ways to go before it becomes truly great, but I've always been a huge Hellblazer fanboy and seeing John Constantine actually played correctly on TV is incredible experience to me. it started a bit shaky, but Episode 4 ended up a turning point and first ep that felt like a true Hellblazer adaptation, with ending that was one of the most disturbing things I've seen on tv this year. SInce then Constantine has been dependably enjoyable each week and growing in confidence. I hope that it will get second season, because at this pace next year it will could be in my top 5 without having to rely on my love for the source material.

10. Agents of Shield. I'm glad I've stuck with it despite how terrible most of the first season was. The Winter Soldier twist turned the show into something great and it continued to improve. It's still not a show I'm truly excited to tune in each week, in large part because I don't really care about lead characters, but most episode end up as very satysfying watch.

 

[RatskyWatsky]

Aww alright. I'll go change that

Thank you, good ser. It's just that it makes scoring more difficult/impossible if any of the answers are combined.

I was worried you weren't doing one Ratsky! BLESS YOU

<3 always <3

I'll add more later:

6. Game of Thrones

WHAT

 

[dead souls]

WHAT

That baffled me too. I can't make my list until after the Showtime finales next Sunday.

 

[Lactose_Intolerant]

1. The Knick - best looking show on tv plus the subject matter is interesting

2. Last Week Tonight with John Oliver - gets people talking about some seriously fucked up things in the world

3. Veep - funniest show on tv

4. Hannibal - Great continuation from last season + new characters really makes me love this show. Plus it employs a kid in the hall.

5. Game of Thrones- Just because I like the books. I didn't think this was a very good season though. They left out / changed so much from the books, makes me upset.

6. The Flash - More fun than Arrow. Arrow took a dive this season + super powers in Flash.

7. Penny Dreadful - I like monsters + Eva Green. She should win some awards for this show.

8. Brooklyn Nine Nine - The cold openings are the best in the business and has a great cast.

9. Fargo - Billy Bob Thorton's character stole the show. His interactions with everyone was hilarious.

10. Wheeler Dealers - guilty pleasure. I could watch that giant guy build cars all day. It is the most in-depth car remodeling show I've seen. I don't even like car remodeling and I watch this shit.

 

[blainethemono]

1. Rectify ;

2. Louie ;

3. The Affair ;

4. The Knick ;

5. True Detective

6. Fargo

7. Rick & Morty ;

8. Transparent

9. Jane the Virgin

10. Silicon Valley