20. “Jane The Virgin”
Halfway through its third season, this CW show still feels remarkably fresh and unlike anything else that’s on television. Walking the tightrope that somehow simultaneously straddles authentic drama, hilarious comedy and over-the-top telenovela, “Jane The Virgin” is always true to itself, just like the titular heroine. After three seasons on the air, Jane Villanueva (Gina Rodriguez) has grown as a woman, writer and a mother. Solving the love triangle between her, Michael (Brett Dier) and Raphael (Justin Baldoni) — for now, anyway — hasn’t removed any of the show’s appeal. (#TeamRaphael, for the record.) Instead, it’s allowed Jane herself to breathe and further develop beyond her relationship to men. Showrunner Jennie Snyder Urman deserves a special shoutout for the series’ devotion to female familial relationships, exploring the connection between Jane, her mother Xiomara (Andrea Navedo) and her grandmother Alba (Ivonne Coll). Father-son dynamics are television standbys, and it feels overdue for this much attention to be paid to a multigenerational family of women. That said, each time Jane’s father, Rogelio (Jaime Camil), shows up on screen, there’s clapping with glee. But as much fun as the show is — and it’s a blast — an episode rarely passes without prompting tears or serious discussion about issues facing women, Latinos or immigrants. The series is as much an overachiever as Jane herself. —Kimber Myers
19. “Game Of Thrones”
If, after season five, you were wary of keeping up with “Game of Thrones” in season six, we wouldn’t blame you. The show had become a living embodiment of the term “marching at a snail’s pace” when it came to continuing the momentum — or lack thereof — of the series’ narrative without a book to guide it. What once had been engaging, if far from perfect, television had become dull and fodder for little more than rightfully enraged think pieces. Season six managed to pull the utmost surprise, not by revealing that what’s-his-face came back to life (because the internet had already solved that), but by being nearly as exciting and entertaining as it had been since its first season. What benefitted this season more than the last two (or three) was the increased focus on the so-called “heroes” of the story. We needed more Starks to feel connected to these characters again, rather than just shocked by the violence, enraged about the sexualization of women or enthralled by the action — and that’s what we got. —Ally Johnson
18. “Catastrophe”
Few shows have entered the scene with as hilarious a bite as Sharon Horgan and Rob Delaney’s Amazon original series “Catastrophe.” Following the ups and downs of a relationship between two people after a one-night stand after they find out Sharon is pregnant, the first season tackled the two getting to one another and all the mess that comes with it. Season two finds the main couple after a time jump, where their firstborn is now a toddler and they have a daughter on the way. While the humor and its toxicity remains, the series also manages to bring in themes of doubt, depression, loneliness and addiction that help “Catastrophe” feel like a fully realized world, with Horgan and Delaney adding much to the richness of the characters and their shared lives. —Ally Johnson
17. “Orange Is The New Black”
Jenji Kohan’s Netflix original has rarely shied away from social commentary or contemporary issues, but its fourth season reaches new relevancy — and poignancy. There is internal strife among the prisoners with Piper (Taylor Schilling) suffering in particular, but the key power dynamic is between the inmates and the guards. The influx of new staff hired by MCC — led by this season’s primary villain, Piscatella (Brad William Henke) — worsens the imbalance, resulting in the death of a beloved character with a storyline that echoes the Black Lives Matter movement. We thanked the TV gods for the return of Natasha Lyonne’s Nicky from max, but even that joy was short-lived. As if those elements weren’t heartbreaking enough (we may still be crying), “Orange Is The New Black” also revealed what landed Suzanne (Emmy winner Uzo Aduba) in prison. We know season four made us laugh, but the moments that have stuck with us months later are the ones that made us cry — and these episodes may have set a new record in that regard. The season finale found Litchfield erupting into a riot, and the guarantee of three more years means that there are plenty more stories to tell — and tears to be shed. —Kimber Myers
16. “The Good Place”
Given that we’re in a year where Kevin James began another popular show in which he plays a fat slob with a hot wife, you could be forgiven for losing faith in network TV comedy. But in fact, there’s still some strong ones airing — the surprising darkness and ambition of “The Last Man On Earth,” the reliable gag rate of “Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” the sharp Norman Lear revivalists of “The Carmichael Show” and “Black-ish.” The best of the bunch right now, though, is “The Good Place,” and it’s no surprise given that it comes from “Parks & Recreation” creator Mike Schur. Essentially a sort of TV version of Albert Brooks’ “Defending Your Life,” it’s a heavily serialized comedy in which Kristen Bell’s selfish asshole finds herself in ‘the Good Place’ — a sort of utopian afterlife created by Ted Danson’s benign being — after being mistaken for a much better person with the same name. Involvingly plotted, visually striking and consistently funny (the cast, mostly of new faces beyond the two headliners, are terrific), it’s also thematically rigorous in a way that’s so rare for broadcast TV, digging into ethics and morality without ever feeling preachy. One of our fave new shows of the year. —Oliver Lyttelton
