Okay here is my top ten. I added some other stuff at the bottom for fun. You are a trooper if you actually read all this!
1. The Good Wife: I finally caught up on
The Good Wife this year and realized what many have been saying for years: it was one of television’s best. And that was as true as ever in 2014. Even after a big shake-up towards the end of 2013, The Good Wife wasn’t afraid to further reinvent itself this year. There was the departure of a core member of the cast which the show skillfully used to drive character motivations and develop new storylines towards the end of Season 5. This Fall saw Cary go on trial. This emotional arc created some excellent material for Matt Czuchry and gave recurring guest star Mike Colter an opportunity to really flex his acting muscles as the menacing Lemond Bishop.
The Good Wife also doubled down on its political side with Alicia exploring a run for State’s Attorney which allowed us a glimpse at another layer of the show’s main character. On top of all this, I continue to be astounded at the show’s attention to detail that helps fill out the space between these bigger plot points. Like the way it examined how the smallest things could play a part in the outcome of Cary’s trial or on the lighter side, the hilarious prestige drama parody
Darkness at Noon. This is just some of what made
The Good Wife so excellent in 2014 and my favorite show of the year.
2. Rectify: Rectify is as powerful and affecting as any show you will find on television right now. In its second season, there was a greater focus placed on the crime that sent Daniel Holden to prison. It led to some very gripping sequences, particularly those involving his debrief in the finale. Yet the show is still not all that concerned with helping us solve the mystery surrounding that night many years ago, but instead wants us to just watch how Daniel, his family, and the small town of Paulie are affected by his release in the present. And it is here that the show continues to shine brightest. Season 2 brought with it too many memorable moments to count, but several in the fourth episode “Donald the Normal” really stand out to me. Seeing Daniel get to leave the infamy that follows him so closely behind for a bit made for incredible TV and his visit to his old friend Kerwin’s family is ones of the sequences that has stuck with me the most from this past season. Aden Young continues to wow me in the lead role and the rest of the cast can certainly hold their own. The way everything comes together as the season ends makes for a wonderful cliffhanger, one that has me chomping at the bit to see Season 3. In its second season,
Rectify remained one of television’s most beautiful, moving, and fascinating shows.
3. Game of Thrones: Game of Thrones is always tough to place on a list like this for me. There isn’t a show still airing that I enjoy watching more than it. Yet my familiarity with and passion for the source material leads to me being a bit more critical of it as times due to problems with the adaptation itself. That was certainly the case with Season 4 where I took particular issue with the handling of Jaime and Cersei’s relationship. Yet there was still so much to love this season. The Royal Wedding. The Battle at the Wall. Tyrion’s trial. Everything with newcomer Oberyn Martell. Based on the books, this should have easily been the best season of the show so far. While I’m not sure it was, it is still a damn good season that featured all the beautiful scenery, shocking moments, and great acting we have come to expect from HBO’s epic fantasy series and that is certainly enough for me.
4. Brooklyn Nine-Nine: The past couple of years have seen some of my favorite sitcoms come to an end. Others have gone into cruise control as they’ve gotten on in years. So
Brooklyn Nine-Nine has swooped in at just the right time for me. It got off to a surprisingly quick start out of the gates in 2013 and has continued to deliver laughs a plenty this year. Since the beginning, I have praised how great the cast of characters is. There really isn’t a dud in the bunch, but Captain Holt has clearly separated himself from the pack. Andre Braugher’s deadpan delivery is unrivaled and the writing staff knows how to bring out the best in him. This season that included an inspired guest appearance by Kyra Sedgwick as the Captain’s old rival. Guest stars are another aspect where B99 excels with a number of great spots over the past year including Craig Robinson’s turn as the infamous and hilarious Pontiac Bandit. Even potential stumbling blocks like two romantic pairings within the main cast were handled with aplomb. Simply put,
Brooklyn Nine-Nine has become TV’s best comedy.
5. Rick and Morty: There is a certain freedom inherit in an animated series and
Rick and Morty takes full advantage of that freedom. The central dimension-hopping premise allows the writers to craft incredibly creative storylines and explore imaginative new worlds each week. I also appreciated the variety of material they covered in the first season. From the hilarity of Mr. Meeseeks to the dark ending of “Rick Potion #9” to the improvised brilliance of “Rixty Minutes,” Rick and Morty always managed to surprise me with each new episode. Along with top-notch writing, the voice cast deserves credit for helping bring these characters to life including the always funny Chris Parnell and Sarah Chalke as Morty’s parents as well as co-creator Justin Roiland who plays both leads. Even after only one season, this has become one of my favorite animated series of all-time and I can’t wait to see where they take things in Season 2 next summer.
6. True Detective: When looking at things like acting and cinematography, it is hard to beat
True Detective. It had my favorite performance of the year in Matthew McConaughey’s turn as Rust Cohle and my favorite directorial moment in the fourth episode’s incredible long take. But this was a well-acted and visually spectacular show throughout all eight episodes of its freshman season.
True Detective also excelled as a character study. Instead of focusing on the murder mystery like some similar shows have in recent years, they used the case as a way to dig deep into Rust and Marty and
TD was much better for it. With the help of its unique framing device,
True Detective allowed us to look at these characters at different points over the course of seventeen years slowly peeling away the many layers of its complex leads. While it was not without flaws (I had some issues in the final act that took place almost solely in present-day),
True Detective was a highly captivating drama and my favorite of the new shows that debuted in 2014.
7. Fargo: One of the advantages seen in this anthology type of series is certainly the kind of talent they can attract and it shows in FX’s
Fargo. The acting is great across the board. Martin Freeman and Alison Tolman were both excellent, but it was Billy Bob Thornton who stole the show for me as the chaos-creating hitman Lorne Malvo. While there are some connections to the film in the narrative, the show tells a great crime story of its own. But the type of people who populate this shared world and the kind of dark humor present throughout make it feel familiar in all the right ways. When you throw in stuff like the well-implemented mid-season time-jump, one of the year’s best finales, and even more laughs than the movie, you get a new Fargo tale that captures the spirit of the original film and in my opinion surpasses it in overall quality.
8. Person Interest: Person of Interest became one of TV’s elite dramas with its near-perfect third season and while I feel it lost a bit of momentum at the beginning of Season 4, it remains one of televisions must-watch shows. It continues to strike that great balance between procedural and serialized elements that I covet so much in a show like this. I’m equally impressed with how it juggles plots for our band of heroes as well as multiple long-term antagonists (this year included Decima, Vigilance, and The Brotherhood to name a few) and those in-between (I’ve loved seeing Elias again). And you might not expect it from a CBS procedural, but
POI finds itself dealing with important issues like national security in a post-9/11 U.S. and the evolution of artificial intelligence. On top of all that, it continues to deliver great action from some of TV’s utmost badasses in Reese, Shaw, and Root. It’s can’t-miss TV.
9. You’re the Worst: No show in 2014 grew on me quite like
You’re the Worst did during its first season. The pilot was really not my thing, but I kept watching and was rewarded with one of the year’s best comedies. I love this show’s unique take on the romantic comedy which approaches both how Jimmy and Gretchen get together and how their relationship develops in a very modern way. Its eighth outing “Finish Your Milk” was my favorite including a climactic argument between the two leads which blew me away with just how real it felt. And while focusing on this relationship, You’re the Worst never forgot that it was a comedy, doling out laughs in large doses each week. There were quite a few stabs at the rom-com on the small screen this year, but none were close to as interesting, funny or entertaining as You’re the Worst’s take on the genre.
10. Jane the Virgin: I originally wrote this show off due to its premise, but after watching it for myself I discovered just how big a mistake that was. It simultaneously embraces and pokes fun at telenovela clichés, and it is that tongue-in-cheek approach, buoyed by TV’s best narrator and some hysterically clever captions, that I think allows
Jane the Virgin’s ridiculous premise along with the rest of the show’s lunacy to work. Despite how silly and soapy the show can be, there is a surprising amount of heart at the core of it too. This is in large part due to lead actress Gina Rodriguez. Her performance as Jane is wonderful and gives life to a character that is easy for viewers to root for. It all adds up to my favorite new show of the Fall and one of this year’s best.
Honorable Mentions
Orange is the New Black: Didn’t like it quite as much as Season 1, but still damn good. Morello's backstory was the standout moment/episode I'd say.
The 100: A little too rough at the beginning for a top ten spot, but Season 2 has been one of my favorite shows airing this Fall.
The Missing: Only just finished this after writing up my list, but right up there with Fargo and True Detective as far as anthologies go. Finished much stronger than TD too.
Orphan Black: Mythology and plotting became kind of a mess this season, but I still love watching this show and Tatiana is just amazing.
Black-ish: Can’t believe how funny this is. Definitely makes me laugh more than most on TV.
The Legend of Korra: Really enjoyed both seasons, but Season 3 was especially strong.
TV-GAF Post of the Year
A brief discussion about whether anyone was going to make a Season 2 OT for The Following led to this gem by dead souls:
Same thread for both seasons?
Classic Poe.
Be proud of this dead souls. It's a coveted award I'm handing out here.
Runner-up: I also loved this one from The Bridge’s Season 2 thread by Cornballer:
On-set photo:
If The Bridge ends up getting canceled, I want FX to occasionally run random 30-second snippets of the two of them discussing vampire lit for the next few years.
A few more thoughts on TV in 2014:
-Veronica Mars, one of my all-time faves got a movie! That was awesome!
-Homeland and The Walking Dead were much improved this season.
-Silicon Valley is worth watching if for no other reason than that amazing dick joke in the finale. Good show overall though.
-Along with The Good Wife and Rectify, my favorites older seasons/shows that I caught up on/finished in 2014 were Spartacus, Rome and Les Revenants which were all fantastic.
-How I Met Your Mother was the worst thing I watched this year. While the finale is particularly horrendous, the whole season is like a master class on how not to end your television show.
-Show I'm most miffed about not being caught up on is Hannibal. On top of all of the praise, it seems like it'd be right up my alley as well.