15. “Westworld”
After various speculative premiere dates, a most fiercely anticipated TV show finally saw the light of day in 2016. Created by the husband-wife creative team of Jonathan Nolan and Lisa Joy, produced by J.J. Abrams and based on Michael Crichton’s 1973 cult classic, “Westworld” had a lot to live up to from paper to screen, including showing proof of worthiness for its top-drawer cast in Evan Rachel Wood, Jeffrey Wright, Anthony Hopkins, Ed Harris, Thandie Newton and Sidse Babbett Knudsen. Now that the dust has settled on the A.I. wonderland, the big question is: Does it? Even if it’s not a resounding “YES!”, all our motor functions froze during the taut construction and mind-bending twists “Westworld” delivered. A gorgeously constructed, composed and performed story of a scary-believable futuristic theme park where the A.I. “hosts” slowly acquire consciousness, the show’s surgical aesthetics are punctuated by powerfully emotive undulations as we dig deeper through the layers of the year’s most mesmerizing and thought-provoking mystery. It’ll be a long wait until 2018 for the second season, but if the results are as satisfying as the first, it’ll be more than worth it.—Nikola Grozdanovic
14. “Silicon Valley”
Much like the nerdy characters at the center, “Silicon Valley” grows more confident, poised, wise-in-its-ways and aggressive in its tenacity with each passing season. But that’s not to suggest that, unlike its protagonists, it was never misguided in its approach. From the pilot onward, co-creator Mike Judge’s newest office comedy has nailed the high-minded lunacy that is the high-wire city that shares its name, finding new, creative and consistently hilarious ways to skewer and satirize the high-tech town that’s somehow crazier than almost anything that happens on-screen. With its third season, however, “Silicon Valley” still brilliantly expanded on its scope and outreach, all while never losing the core bro-y group dynamic that made it so fiercely lovable from its inception. At its best this year, the buddy chemistry never felt more palpable, and the top-notch writing still remains some of the most seasoned, snappy and well-attuned to hit the tube, even in peak TV. But it’s still the performances that really make “Silicon Valley” shine, from Thomas Middleditch’s endlessly fidgety Richard, to T.J. Miller’s hopelessly deluded Ehrlich, to Martin Starr’s richly deadpan Gilfoyle, to Kumail Nanjiani’s painfully underappreciated Dinesh, to Zach Woods’ perpetually well-mannered (and vaguely fucked-up) Jared, to Suzanne Cryer’s hilariously monotone Laurie, to Matt Ross’ manically unhinged Gavin Belson to Amanda Crew’s willfully supportive Monica. And it was only made better by the sadly all-too-brief season-long supporting turn from the great Stephen Tobolowsky as Jack Barker, a billionaire boss that might not be as open-minded and supportive as his liberated, progressively new-aged business model might suggest. Silicon Valley, the city, is defined by its hit-and-miss success rate, but you’d be hard-pressed to find a show as consistent as “Silicon Valley,” even these days. Here’s hoping season four is even better than ever! —Will Ashton
13. “Search Party”
Millennial shows aren’t hard to come by these days. Turn on any channel (or streaming service, for that matter) and you’ll likely find more than a few pop up like hashtags. But give “Search Party,” the new social-minded, emoji-friendly, noir-ish hipster dark comedy found, on all places, on TBS, a chance. A much-deserved platform for “Arrested Development” highlight and indie darling Alia Shawkat, this NY-based mystery thriller started as a lighthearted character piece centered around the precocious Dory (Shawkat) looking for her recently missing college dorm-room acquaintance Chantal, in the vein of HBO’s exceptional “Girls” and TV Land’s less-exceptional “Younger” with a light pinch of “Gone Girl,” soon turned into a scathing, soul-searching social commentary skewering the self-absorbed, self-important, selfie-loving culture spiraled from social-media addictions and a lack of empathy for anything that won’t get you more Twitter and Instagram followers. Creators Sarah-Violet Bliss, Charles Rogers and Michael Showalter walk a fine line between broadly comedic and intimately relatable, resulting in an acutely funny freshman series that earns odes to Lena Dunham and the Coen Brothers in equal measures. Spiced by a genuinely intriguing suspense drama and #winning supporting turns from John Early, Brandon Michael Hall, Christine Taylor, Ron Livingston, Griffin Newman, Parker Posey and, most notably, scene-stealer Meredith Hagner, it’s as hilarious as your new favorite Tumblr page and as addictive as a Buzzfeed quiz. There are a lot of millennial shows out there, yes, but don’t be afraid to search this one out. It’s a cut above the rest. #Nodoubt —Will Ashton
12. “The Night Of”
If FX’s absorbing “The People vs. OJ Simpson” was a thundering giant, HBO’s eerily haunting “The Night Of” was a subtle beast. Priding itself on minor details and inquisitive character beats over the brash melodrama that often populates your average crime-a-week broadcast detective series, Steven Zaillian and Richard Price’s beautifully patient, contemplatively refined mini-series, inspired by the limited British crime drama “Criminal Justice,” didn’t quite earn the same smash success of other recent crime programs. But in many ways, it often deserved just as much public interest. As Naz Khan, the wounded doe trapped in a pit of lions, Riz Ahmed’s star-making lead role was among the most textured and well-developed to come to the screen this year, either big or small. Similarly, John Turturro, as the eczema-inflicted attorney John Stone, in a role intentionally envisioned for the late executive producer James Gandolfini, makes his good-natured-but-crushingly-life-defeated supporting character all his own, to rewarding and humbling results. Michael K. Williams, Bill Camp, Peyman Moaadi and Paul Sparks, additionally, all deserve praise in their own rights for their impressive performances across the board, and we’d be sinners with a burden if we didn’t celebrate the excellent cinematography from Igor Martinovic, Frederick Elmes and the great Robert Elswit, which often paints a grim, menacing, unforgiving yet never-less-than-achingly beautiful New York City like a guarded prison with little remorse, sense or decency, even beyond its criminal readjustment system. The faults littered throughout the second half of the season, from its all-too-obvious symbolism to its somewhat-messy story pacing, damper what easily could (and damn well should) have been the number one show of the year. Having said that, it’d be an unforgivable crime if we failed to celebrate a show even a fraction as good as this one. —Will Ashton
11. “Stranger Things”
From the tsunami of Netflix Originals that hit 2016, no wave washed over us quite like the Duffer Brothers’ Golden Globe nominee “Stranger Things.” The coziness of its small-town setting, its unraveling supernatural mysteries and nostalgic retro ’80s vibes ensure the show as one of the easiest binges of the year. A 12-year-old boy goes missing, his increasingly frantic mother Joyce (Winona Ryder) experiences otherworldly clues to his whereabouts, the Chief of Police (David Harbour) slowly edges closer to uncovering a treacherous conspiracy, while the heart and soul of the show rests squarely on the shoulders of four kids who connect the dots as they search for their missing friend and harbor a fugitive who holds the key to the conspiracy. How can you not love that premise?! What Matt and Ross Duffer (who seemingly came out of the woodwork after only directing a middling horror and a writing a couple of “Wayward Pines” episodes) manage to do so well is keep every narrative thread as equally enticing. Brimming with homages to Spielberg, Carpenter and co., brilliant performances (especially from a resurgent Ryder and breakout Millie Bobby Brown) and an awesome original score, “Stranger Things” breathes new life into the genres of sci-fi, horror & superheroes with a beautiful force. —Nikola Grozdanovic