CREDIT (Clockwise from Top Left): Screenshot, Netflix, Screenshot, Screenshot
For the Year of Our Screens 2021, my list includes all the shows that I would recommend to my fellow viewers as “worth watching.” So that’s 77 shows! There’s a lot of TV nowadays, and a lot of it’s also pretty good.
I utilized a self-imposed rule in which I had to watch at least 50% of a show’s 2021 output for it to be eligible. However, there were some noteworthy shows that I watched less than 50% of, so I’ve spotlighted those in an honorable mention section:
Every week, I list all the upcoming (or recently released) movies, TV shows, albums, podcasts, etc. that I believe are worth checking out.
Movies
–Benedetta (Theaters) – Paul Verhoeven’s lesbian nun movie.
–Flee (Theaters)
–Wolf (Theaters)
TV
–PEN15 Season 2, Part 2 (December 3 on Hulu) – This is reportedly the end.
–Jeopardy! Professors Tournament (December 6-17, check local listings)
–Abbott Elementary Series Premiere (December 7 on ABC) – Starring Miracle Workers‘ Quinta Brunson.
–Live in Front of a Studio Audience: “The Facts of Life” and “Diff’rent Strokes” (December 7 on ABC)
–Welcome to Earth Series Premiere (December 8 on Disney+) – The World According to Will Smith
Every week, I list all the upcoming (or recently released) movies, TV shows, albums, podcasts, etc. that I believe are worth checking out.
Movies
–The Card Counter (Theaters) – Oscar Isaac, Tiffany Haddish, and Paul Schrader, oh my!
–Malignant (Theaters and HBO Max) – Another horrific directorial effort from James Wan.
TV
-2021 MTV Video Music Awards (September 12 on MTV)
–Ultra City Smiths Linear TV Premiere (September 13 on AMC) – Wild-sounding stop-motion show that previously aired on AMC+.
–Jeopardy! Season 38 Premiere (Check local listings)
–Y: The Last Man Series Premiere (September 13 on Hulu) – Finally!
Music
-Andrew W.K., God is Partying
-Kacey Musgraves, Star-Crossed
-Sleigh Bells, Texis
Jeff welcomes veteran Jeopardy! contestants Steven Grade, Sarah Jett Rayburn, and his dad Bob Malone to discuss the recent run of guest hosts on the classic answer-and-question game show. Also discussed: vacations, and other important matters related to Jeopardy!
This week’s mini-episode is an edition of “That’s Dad-ertainment,” as Bob Malone joins his son Jeff to discuss their favorite moments from the 2021 Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions.
The Underground Railroad (CREDIT: Amazon Prime Video/YouTube Screenshot)
Every week, I list all the upcoming (or recently released) movies, TV shows, albums, podcasts, etc. that I believe are worth checking out.
Movies
–Army of the Dead (May 14 in Select Theaters, May 21 on Netflix)
–Oxygen (May 12 on Netflix) – Directed by Alexandre Aja, but no piranhas.
–Profile (Theaters)
–Spiral (Theaters) – Chris Rock joins the Book of Saw.
–Those Who Wish Me Dead (Theaters and HBO Max) – Might check out to see what Angelina Jolie is up to.
–The Woman in the Window (May 14 on Netflix) – Joe Wright directs Amy Adams.
TV
–The Underground Railroad (May 14 on Amazon)
-2021 MTV Movie & TV Awards (May 16 on MTV)
-2021 MTV Movie & TV Awards: Unscripted (May 17 on MTV)
-2021 Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions (May 17-28, check local listings) – 19-game winner Jason Zuffranieri looks like the one to beat.
Music
-Aly & AJ, A Touch of the Beat Gets You Up on Your Feet Gets You Out and Then Into the Sun – This came out last week.
-St. Vincent, Daddy’s Home
-The Black Keys, Delta Kream – Dan and Pat cover hill country blues.
When it comes to my game show fandom, there’s no semi-regular occasion I look forward to more than Jeopardy!‘s Tournament of Champions. For the pastfewToC’s, I’ve been handicapping the field in an attempt to identify the probable champions. My guesses have been decent thus far, as each of my #1 picks has made it to the Finals each time (and at least one of them won it all). But I’ve also come to realize that the entire ToC field is always filled with potential diamonds. You gotta keep an eye out for everybody. Having said that, I do feel confident in identifying certain favorites based on their performances in their initial winning streaks. So listed below are the 5 contestants in this year’s ToC who have impressed me the most, and listed below them are the other 10 contestants, who have also impressed me. (And sadly not included on the list is Brayden Smith, who won 6 games over December and January but passed away unexpectedly before the ToC.)
Clockwise from Top Left: What We Do in the Shadows, Never Have I Ever, Better Call Saul, How To with John Wilson (CREDIT: YouTube Screenshots)
Last year, I decided to rank as many TV shows as I felt like recognizing in my year-end list, and that worked out so well that I decided to do it again for 2020. So welcome to my ranking of the 67 Best TV Shows of 2020! Not every show is accompanied by a blurb, just the ones that I felt like I really needed to say something about.
I worked with a self-imposed rule that I had to have watched at least 50% of a show’s 2020 output for it to be eligible, but there were some shows that I’ve only just begun to watch that I wanted to recognize as well, so they’ve got their own Honorable Mention section. And there were also some shows that aired relatively few episodes in 2020 to the point that I didn’t think they should be eligible either, so they’ve also got an Honorable Mention section. And then there’s one more show that’s managed to establish its very own Honorable Mention section, and that’s where we start.
Alex Trebek (CREDIT: Jeopardy!/YouTube Screenshot)
In honor of Alex Trebek’s last week of new episodes, the That’s Auntertainment team is re-releasing their Jeopardy! episode (original airdate: 12/7/19), in which 2019 Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions semifinalist Steven Grade joins Jeff and Aunt Beth to discuss all things Jeopardy!
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