Jeff "Jmunney" Malone's Self-Styled "Expert" Thoughts on Movies, TV, Music, and the Rest of Pop Culture
March 26, 2020
Best of the 2010s, Best of the Decade, Television 30 Rock, American Dad!, Atlanta, Baskets, Best of the 2010s, Best of the Decade, Better Call Saul, Billy on the Street, Bob's Burgers, Bojack Horseman, Comedy Bang! Bang!, Community, Documentary Now!, Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23, Halt and Catch Fire, Hannibal, Key & Peele, Mad Men, Man Seeking Woman, Nathan for You, New Girl, Pose, Review, Review (TV Series), Rick and Morty, The Eric Andre Show, The Middle, Twin Peaks, Twin Peaks The Return 1 Comment
CREDIT: YouTube Screenshots
As a voracious consumer of Peak TV, I could have easily filled my list of the Best TV Shows of the 2010s with hundreds of entries. But instead, I chose to zero in on a golden set of 25 that I am absolutely sure I love and will continue to love for years to come. These are the shows that affected me profoundly when I first watched them and that continued to linger in my brain and my soul as the decade marched on.
December 30, 2017
Best of 2017, Best of TV 2017, Television Best of 2017, Better Call Saul, Downward Dog, Fargo, Halt and Catch Fire, Mr. Robot, Review, Review (TV Series), Search Party, The Good Place, TV, Twin Peaks, Twin Peaks The Return Leave a comment
CREDIT (Clockwise from Top Left): Michael Gibson/FXX; Showtime; AMC; Kelsey McNeal/ABC
This ranking was originally posted on News Cult in December 2017.
In recent past best-of-year lists, I have pointed out the impossibility of watching every single program that airs on television. The medium is now saturated to the point that not only could one average viewer be watching a completely different set of shows than another average viewer, but so could one professional critic be similarly disconnected to another critic. It naturally follows then that no best-of is any more “correct” than any other. But this has been the case all along. The value of such year-end curating is not a matter of accuracy, but of insight and personal style. Thus, I encourage readers to seek out as many best-of lists as they find edifying, from as diverse a group of critics as possible. Think of each as the best according to a particular palette. Here is my contribution to that cornucopia.
(Shows that were top 10-worthy this year that I didn’t have enough room for include Baskets, BoJack Horseman, The Carmichael Show, Legion, Rick and Morty, Riverdale, Silicon Valley, Speechless, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, The Young Pope, and You’re the Worst.)
10. Review (Comedy Central)
If this list were determined by density of entertainment value alone, the three-episode final season of Review would easily take the top spot. Andy Daly’s career-defining work as “life reviewer” Forrest MacNeil brought his combination of explosive hilarity and existential despair to its logical eternally continuous endpoint. Great series finales tend to be either ambiguous or definitive; Review’s is somehow both open-ended and forcefully conclusive.
April 3, 2017
Television, What Won TV? Bob's Burgers, Final Four, Full Frontal with Samantha Bee, Jane the Virgin, March Madness, New Girl, Review, Review (TV Series), Rick and Morty, RuPaul's Drag Race Leave a comment
In this feature, I look back at each day of the past week and determine what shows “won TV” for the night. That is, I consider every episode of television I watched that aired on a particular day and declare which was the best.
Sunday – A Bob’s Burgers twofer – the debate on top
Monday – Jane the Virgin
Tuesday – New Girl floored me: (SPOILER) Schmidt?! (SPOILER) still loves (SPOILER)?!
Wednesday – Full Frontal reveals that Government Works!
Thursday – Review stopped, but Forrest MacNeil didn’t.
Friday – RuPaul’s Drag Race
Saturday – Rick and Morty delivered a delightful April Fools surprise, but the Final Four showcased offensive rebounding like all get out.
March 26, 2017
Television, What Won TV? Baskets, Bob's Burgers, Elite Eight, Jane the Virgin, Legion, March Madness, Review, Review (TV Series), RuPaul's Drag Race, The Mick Leave a comment
In this feature, I look back at each day of the past week and determine what shows “won TV” for the night. That is, I consider every episode of television I watched that aired on a particular day and declare which was the best.
Sunday – Bob’s Burgers
Monday – Jane the Virgin
Tuesday – The Mick
Wednesday – Legion is figuring it out.
Thursday – TIE: Baskets is in the family business; Review throws it all out there.
Friday – RuPaul’s Drag Race
Saturday – The Elite Eight hasn’t been close, but it is March Madness.
March 19, 2017
Television, What Won TV? Bob's Burgers, March Madness, Milo Murphy's Law, New Girl, Review, Review (TV Series), Speechless, The Middle, VICE Leave a comment
In this feature, I look back at each day of the past week and determine what shows “won TV” for the night. That is, I consider every episode of television I watched that aired on a particular day and declare which was the best.
Sunday – Bob’s Burgers
Monday – Milo Murphy’s Law
Tuesday – The Middle and New Girl are both heating up, relationship-wise.
Wednesday – Speechless
Thursday – Review is as necessary as ever.
Friday – VICE
Saturday – This college basketball is so mad.
February 18, 2016
Best of 2015, Best of TV 2015, Television Better Call Saul, Nathan for You, Rectify, Review (TV Series), Rick and Morty, The Eric Andre Show, The Middle, The Muppets on ABC, Tim and Eric's Bedtime Stories Leave a comment
These were the moments that had me had me keeling over, on the edge of my seat, and begging for mercy.
10. The Eric Andre Show, “Bird Up!” – Focus group – This is how TV gets made, apparently.
February 6, 2016
Best of 2015, Best of TV 2015, Television Bojack Horseman, Rectify, Review, Review (TV Series), The Grinder Leave a comment
I have already posted my picks for the top 10 shows of the year on Starpulse, but of course I wanted to expand that list, because there are obviously much more than 10 excellent programs in any given year. This year I decided to do something little different and organize my rankings by platform. So we have the best of network TV, the best of basic cable, the best of premium/subscription cable, and the best of streaming. The organization of these categories is a little informal, considering, for example that whether a cable channel is basic or premium can depend on the cable provider and/or location. But I did my best to stay consistent. Basic cable is easily the most impressive field (as it has the most channels).
