Best of 2015: Television

It’s been a good year for television, hasn’t it? Here’s my top 10 TV series’ of 2015.

10. The Muppets Season 1

I was rather curious and unsure about The Muppets’ TV show, being a fan of the originals and fond of the films. I felt like The Muppets wouldn’t work with a new, adult documentary-style format, but… it really does work. It’s a fun parody of the documentary/interview style of programme we see in such shows like Modern Family. It’s nice to see a product of The Muppets that doesn’t rely on the ‘we need to put together a show at the very last minute to save our theatre’ and instead relies on mature, slapstick comedy in a working environment with some puppets added into the mix. It’s a bizarre combination but it works surprisingly well, and is most definitely worth a watch.

9. Modern Family Season 7

Being a fan of the first six seasons of Modern Family (I cannot tell you how many times I’ve binge-watched it), I was incredibly excited for the seventh season. It’s been particularly interesting to see the children of the show develop in character, in this seasons case Haley especially. This feels like a classic season of Modern Family.

8. The Syndicate Series 3

Before watching this, I was familiar with The Syndicate but I had never seen an episode apart from a few minutes while waiting for the programme afterwards to start. However, after seeing the trailer for this series I was most intrigued so I decided to watch. The intensity and fluidity of The Syndicate made it stand out from other dramas on television at the time, and the mystery of Amy’s disappearance was particularly interesting and a conversation point between myself and others.

7. Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt Season 1

Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt certainly wasn’t on my radar, but when I had heard Tina Fey was the genius behind the Netflix series I decided to check it out. I loved the back story for Ellie Kemper’s Kimmy and found the series genuinely funny and enjoyed it’s feel-good factor so much that I finished it within two days. Besides, the theme song is catchy as heck. 

6. Downton Abbey Season 6

Of course, Downton Abbey. The final season of ITV’s huge period drama was as brilliant as ever, and it was so redeeming to see some loose ends tied up and for some characters to have their happy endings (and others not). The dramatics were as high as ever alongside Maggie Smith’s supreme sass. A fitting farewell for a beautifully articulated programme. Bring on the Christmas special. 

5.  Supergirl Season 1

When I first heard about Supergirl getting her very own TV series, I wasn’t too sure on how I felt. After watching the trailer I still wasn’t too sure, I decided to check out the first episode anyway, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. So many superhero shows are dark and gritty that it’s nice to have something fun and colourful. It’s quickly become part of my weekly routine and a fond favourite for not only 2015, but superhero shows in general.

4. Daredevil Season 1

All the hype this show has had certainly lives up to it, and after a rather poor movie a few years back, the character finally gets the good quality content it deserves. Of course, Supergirl is fun and bubbly which I enjoyed but, having gone off Arrow and Agents of Shield slightly, I did need some gritty superhero show to fill that gap. Daredevil was carefully crafted to present the dark side of the Marvel Cinematic Universe and did so with precision and expertly written scripts that made it one of Marvel’s best products so far.

3. Doctor Who Series 9

While, admittedly, I’m still not too fond of Peter Capaldi’s Twelfth Doctor sorry, I thoroughly enjoyed the ninth series of the revived Doctor Who which managed to pick up the pieces from an unfortunately unexciting eighth series. Clara’s departure was tasteful (spoilers – following a devastating death in Face The Raven) and fitting for the characters’ adoration for adventure. The episodes were extremely well written (except perhaps Sleep No More which was difficult to watch and slightly boring). 

2. Humans Series 1

As soon as I read the synopsis for Humans, I was hooked. Human VS Synth. Katherine Parkinson and Gemma Chan were superb in their roles and managed to bring a large amount of intensity and mystery to the series. I found myself tremendously excited every time a new episode aired, the general aesthetic of the series being something that appealed largely. The general concept of the storyline is one that propels it to one of the best shows to have aired in 2015, and the upcoming second series is one of my most highly-anticipated of 2016. 

1. Jessica Jones Season 1

Finally, a straight-talking, non-sexual female Marvel hero. First impressions were cautious as I wasn’t entirely sure how well Jessica Jones would work live-action, but I truly believe Jessica Jones is the most unexpected piece of genius to come from Marvel yet. While a tad disappointed to have no Squirrel Girl references at all, I was surprised at just how much I enjoyed the series, and just how well received it has been by both the general public and critics, even bagging a Critics’ Choice TV Award nomination for Krysten Ritter’s portrayal of Jessica Jones. David Tennant’s villain Kilgrave is by far one of the most complex Marvel Cinematic Universe villains so far, perhaps one of the best villains alongside Loki, Nebula and Ronan. David Tennant’s charm works to his advantage as he plays a sinister and controlling (literal) villain to counter Jessica Jones, who is blunt and unforgiving. Jessica Jones is most certainly worth a watch.

That’s all for now. Tomorrow I’ll be posting Best of 2015: Songs, be sure to check back to see my top 25 songs of 2015. The day after will be Best of 2015: Films, and after that will be Best of 2015: Albums. 

Thanks for reading!

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