Right Now, You Can Watch The 15 Finest Tv Shows Of 2023:
In 2023, TV was like swimming in time with the music. There was swirling and churning below the surface. A lot of work couldn’t be done this year because of the writers’ and players’ strikes.
Because of the fallout from the business binge on streaming platforms, shows had to be canceled or shortened. A lot of hall-of-fame shows ended without a clear plan for what would come next.
Is it because there aren’t many shows this year? Many of the release dates have been moved due to the SAG-AFTRA strike. It’s more possible that we got along because we both liked 2023’s best TV show: comedy.
When Jury Duty came out early in the year, it was a surprise. James Marsden gave an Emmy-nominated performance in which he played himself.
As the year went on, What We Do during the Shadows made us happy, and The Great ended its amazing three-season run. The Bear, Succession, as well as Barry, the year’s best comedies, were also in the mix.
The Bear:
I utilized to say it was good when “The Americans” was on TV. I put it at the top of my list by letter because I think it would be my first choice if I had to choose. That’s now where “The Bear” belongs.
After a big opening in 2022, the restaurant drama-comedy went to the next level, showing how the main family’s turmoil was like a volcano and praising taking care of guests as a spiritual calling. There’s gas in this show.
Judge Steve Harvey:
Even though Steve Harvey isn’t a real judge, he stars one in this funny and uplifting show about a court where regular people argue about small claims. Judge Steve Harvey talks about cases that are interesting but don’t have a lot at stake. These cases are more about people than money.
This could happen between a husband and wife because their wife is crazy about tennis, between a mom and her son due to his broke his word to cut his hair, or between two groups of a cappella singers over expensive outfits.
Harvey, a comic, experienced TV host, author of books on relationships, and self-described “full-blown Christian,” skillfully gets to the heart of these problems in a way that shows how much more important people are than things.
The host often greets the defendants, like a stay-at-home mom who works hard or a couple whose wedding was destroyed by COVID, with expensive gifts and much-needed cash. This makes sure that the show has lots of feel-good moments.
And everyone gets a good dose of brutal affection when they leave court. “I think you all have to find your way back to each other,” Harvey tells two brothers who are fighting over a dating app page. “Because all these men will come and go, you’ll still be sisters.” The review was in: Judge Steve Harvey was the best comfort TV ever.
The Great:
Catherine the Great is in a tough spot in Season Three of Hulu’s “occasionally true” comedy about her. She is determined to make life better for working-class Russians now that she has taken the throne from her useless husband Peter, but her ideas of progress could lead to class fighting.
She forgot to kill Peter, she’s pregnant with the heir to the throne, as well as she can’t help but love Peter even though she knows it’s wrong.
Catherine has problems in her personal life in the third season of The Great Clobbers, but the show stays as hilariously violent and rude as ever. Then, in the middle of the season, Catherine suffers a terrible loss that turns her world upside down and shows her most vulnerable and honest side.
When producer Tony McNamara wrote the season finale of Bravura, he had no idea that it would be the last episode of the whole series. But in an episode full of hard-won wins and character release, he really lands the plane alongside a sense of arrival. Let’s raise our hands one last time for The Great, an unbelievably good show that was always coming up with new ideas.
Beef:
“Beef” was an enjoyable tale about angry people, like Amy Lau as well as Danny Cho, whose angry meeting on the road leads to a mess of bad decisions. But the story was great. It showed why individuals get mad.
In a blunt but understanding way, it pulled back the layers of their conflict to show class differences, family resentments, as well as strains between and within Asian American groups. “Beef” said that a house can be made very easily on fire with a lot of “last straws.”
The Curse:
I can’t say too much about this strangely funny comedy from Nathan Fielder as well as Benny Safdie because I don’t want to give anything away. So far, only four of the ten episodes have been shown. As a whole, though, The Curse, which stars Fielder and Stone as married TV hosts, makes a strong and very unsettling impact.
As hosts of HGTV’s Flipanthropy, Asher and Whitney Siegel say they want to improve the working-class city of Española, New Mexico by building high-end, eco-friendly houses. Many people in the area are not excited, including Nala, who curses Asher because he broke his promise to provide her $100.
There isn’t a silly spell behind The Curse, though. It’s their miserable directors, Asher, Whitney, as well as Dougie, who won’t be honest alongside themselves or each other regarding what they really want. Come for Nathan Fielder’s tiny penis; stay for the cruel parody of British greed that looks like modern friendship.
Foundation:
How is Foundation on Apple TV+, which is a beautiful remake of one of the more famous science fiction shows ever, one of the the majority criminally underrated shows of the year? A review: The story takes place in the far future, when the Galactic Empire is run through a genetic line of cloned rulers.
Hari Seldon, a scientist, and his “foundation” are sent to a faraway world when they create a complicated program that can tell the future. After 138 years, Season Two begins.
Brother Day, played by Lee Pace, wants to strengthen the Empire’s power by marrying strategically, while the Foundation faces new risks since it has become the focus of a new religion. Pace plays the Empire’s egotistical ruler, and Laura Birn plays Demerzel, his tough robot majordomo.
These are the Foundation’s best scenes. In this season, Demerzel’s full power is shown. As always, the tension between her emotional robot master and her lifeless master makes for some of the best sci-fi on TV. It’s still possible to tune in to Foundation. Yes, it’s a long, talky, and complicated tale, but it’s worth the wait for those who stick with it.
Dead Ringers:
We would have been fine in 2023 if there hadn’t been so many remakes, reboots, as well as copies. As an exception, “Dead Ringers” was a bloody, clever movie. Rachel Weisz starred twin gynecologists within a part that was a gender swap of Jeremy Irons’ role in the movie.
The writer Alice Birch reimagined the story in a way that was truly unique, keeping the body horror but adding a modern take on scientific arrogance and big-money medicine.
Harlem:
One scene in the second season of Harlem sums up everything great about Tracy Oliver’s smart, quick comedy about friendship, being a woman, and finding yourself.
Angie comes in with her hair and makeup done for a party scene because she just got a small part within a Hallmark Christmas movie. The white stylist puts a gentle hand on Angie’s natural curls. “I believe it’s ideal!””I chirp,” she says as she quickly leaves the room.
Angie is shocked and there is quiet around her. On either side of her are pictures of white actors from Hallmark movies like Christmas Sail and You’ll Tide Me Over. She’s about to leave when the famous show star Countess Vaughn comes to her in a dream.
“What about that brown girl who watches too much Hallmark?”” Does she ask Angie?” “Do you want her to see you? “The happy story of four best friends anthropology professor Camille, fashion designer Quinn, queer tech executive Tye, and hopeful actor Angie Harlem looks at what it’s really like to be a black woman with honest observations and vicious pop culture parodies.
Really, don’t call it “the new sex as well as the city.” Just know this: You don’t have to settle if you want a series that is smart, funny, and has a real point of view.
What We Do In the Shadows:
After living on Staten Island for a hundred years and doing nothing, our favorite vampire friends are finally putting down roots. In its shocking fifth season, What We Do within the Shadows sends the vampires out into the community.
At the same time, Nadja gets in touch with her roots in “Little Antipaxos” on Staten Island, and Colin Robinson runs for local office. The cliffhanger ending of Season Four has also changed the dynamics of the family: after Laszlo’s vampiric transformation goes wrong, Guillermo as well as Laszlo become odd partners in keeping secrets.
What should Nandor do when he’s angry? Of course, you should fly to space. Many shows lose their edge after five seasons, but What We Do within the Shadows never does. Come for the crazy parts where vampires take over the nightly news as well as the local Pride parade, and stay for Matt Berry’s famous line reads.
I’m A Virgo:
Boots Riley’s take on the Brobdingnagian family was both unbelievable and fantastic. Riley made the 13-foot-tall teen from Oakland, California, Cootie the personification of the concept of the young black man to be a danger while telling a crazy, political, and always enjoyable story that mixed superhero myths with anti-capitalist analysis. It was hard for the show to keep its big goals in check, but it showed that you are unable to aim too high.
Bargain:
Bargain has a lot of reward in its six short episodes. It’s a fast-paced mix of body horror, disaster drama, black comedy, as well as psychological character study.
The Korean survival movie starts with a creepy scene: Park Joo Young, a young girl in a short black skirt as well as a private school jacket, meets Noh Hyung-soo, an older guy, within a remote hotel room.
After that, they have a long conversation about the legal state of her virginity. To make things even more exciting, there is chaos after an organ-harvesting ring on the black market, a huge earthquake, as well as murderous gangsters looking for any witnesses who might still be alive.
The natural disaster doesn’t lead Joo Young and Hyung-soo into a forgiveness story like one would expect, thanks to writers Jeon Woo-sung, Choi Byeong Yun, as well as Kwak Jae Min. Instead, they send Bargain’s group of shady and unreliable characters on a survival race that is so crazy and exciting to watch that it’s worth every penny.
Barry:
Barry got the shorter end of the stick, like a lot of the show’s characters. Bill Hader’s pet project had the difficult job of following Succession for its fourth as well as final season, which aired every Sunday night.
Too often, people ask, “Who will be the CEO?!?” Strange things that took place in Barry, particularly during the last few shows, were hard to hear over the background noise.
Most of the time? Sarah Goldberg as well as Anthony Carrigan give performances that should have won Emmys, Hader becomes a great director, as well as the ending is both perfect and controversial. I hope that Barry will always be remembered within the HBO Hall of Fame.
American Born Chinese:
Jin Wang, who is in the tenth grade and is very worried, has a dream the night before his big soccer game. In the 1990s, Beyond Repair was a silly comedy with Freddy Wong as the crazy neighbor. Now, he’s upon the apartment set of that show.
Jin’s parents, Simon and Christine, come in and call him to the dinner table just as he says he was too scared to help his friend Wei-Chen discover the mythical Fourth Scroll. Cindy tells her son Jin, “You need to be brave.”
“You are all the pieces coming together into one.” American Born Chinese, which is based on Gene Luen Yang’s acclaimed graphic novel, combines many interesting elements into a heartfelt story about high school, friendship, and saving the world.
These elements include ancient folk tales, wuxia-inspired martial arts action, common racist stereotypes, and the story of one Asian-American family. There were a lot of Marvel spinoffs as well as Star Wars brand extensions coming out at the same time as American Born Chinese. It stood out because of its great cast, lovably familiar characters, and wonderfully simple message.
He tells Jin about his dream, “A hero doesn’t always need to be superpowered.” A hero was someone who takes a risk, helps others, and goes on an adventure. Let’s hope that the executives at Disney, who haven’t renewed ABC for a second season yet, are listening.
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds:
Disney+’s Star Wars TV world is having trouble, but Paramount+’s Star Trek is king. It really is a strange new world! Strange New Worlds came back in June and did even more amazing things than before. It paid a big tribute to The Original Series, had an exciting split with Lower Decks, and even had a singing episode.
Strange New Worlds made some big risks in its second season, but it still delivered on well-loved episode ideas like “away mission gone sideways” and “Starfleet court martial.” Throughout it all, Star Trek stayed true to what makes the show great: its deep study of what these battles between galaxies mean for our culture, our morals, and our humanity.
“All told, Strange New Worlds is a labor of love through writers who are passionate about Star Trek, sure, but they also just get what it is: a way to employ the future to tell compelling tales regarding who we are now,” I wrote in my review of the new season. If you haven’t seen it yet, beam up to the Enterprise right away. The captain’s orders.
Reservation Dogs:
We met Bear, Elora, Willie Jack, and Cheese for the first time. All they wanted was to get away from their quiet tribe town of Okern, Oklahoma, from the constant advice of their elders, as well as the pain of losing their closest companion Daniel to suicide.
After two years as well as 28 magical episodes, Sterlin Harjo as well as Taika Waititi’s wonderful coming-of-age comedy came to an end with the rez dogs realizing and appreciating the gift of community.
In the last season, which was dreamy and deep, The Deer Lady, a ghost who gets revenge on immoral men, came back in a scary story about how the U.S. government takes Indigenous children and abuses them in federal “boarding schools.”
We got to see Okern’s charmingly weird older siblings, Big, Brownie, Irene, Bucky, Fixico, as well as Maximus, acting like lazy teenagers in the psychedelic “House Full of Bongs.” In “Elora’s Dad,” Ethan Hawke played the awkward, sincere energy of a parent who hasn’t seen their child in decades and is trying to make up for it over a cup of coffee at a diner.
“I know I didn’t get to spend a sufficient amount of time with you,” Willie Jack said at the end of the last episode. It hurts when you say goodbye to this little gem of a show. But thanks for everything you taught me.
