The most crowded season in television history just came to a close for Emmy voters, leaving professionals scrambling to figure out how to dig out from the weight of so many new and returning shows. Programs that had been delayed because of COVID like “Atlanta” and “Barry” came roaring back, and all of the major networks and streamers seemed to invest in the Limited Series game. The result was a sense that television had become almost overwhelming, making it harder than ever to hear the best voices through all the noise.
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And yet, there were some amazing programs in the first six months of 2022 if you knew how to find them. HBO had one of the best half-years of its esteemed existence if you consider both its Max Original programming and the offerings by the traditional cable channel. They take up almost half the list below. But Apple TV+ is starting to climb in importance in the television landscape too, premiering acclaimed new dramas and mini-series almost every month of the year so far. These are the 20 best shows of 2022 so far, a list so solid that it could be a good one for a full 12-month period. And we still have half a year to go!
“Abbott Elementary” Season 1 (ABC)
One of the most likable comedies in years broke out of the streamer/cable system and landed in a place that most streaming subscribers have forgotten, network TV. It’s nice to get a reminder that a classic like ABC is still capable of producing a breakthrough hit like Quinta Brunson’s clever and heartfelt look at life at an elementary school in Philly. The creator also stars as Janine, the optimist in the system who strives to make legitimate change, but Brunson gives ample space to an excellent ensemble that includes star-making turns from Janelle James and Tyler James Williams, along with a reminder of the long-term excellence of Sheryl Lee Ralph. Funny and timely, this is the rare show that seems to have taken hold with just about every demographic out there. It will probably run until the first-season students have graduated from high school. – Brian Tallerico
“Atlanta” Season 3 (FX)
Donald Glover finally brought his beloved dramedy back after one of the longest pandemic-induced hiatuses on television—season two ended in Spring 2018! The third season of “Atlanta” was one of the show’s most ambitious, but also arguably its most inconsistent. There was almost a sense at times that Glover and company didn’t really want to bring back their core quartet of characters and were more interested in the divisive standalone episodes. And yet, there’s still so much ambition and brilliance in this ten-episode season that it can’t be dismissed. In many ways, it was the most ambitious season yet, finding new storytelling structures as it alternated a European tour for Paper Boi (Brian Tyree Henry) with the short films that break up the season. Funny, insightful, and razor-sharp, “Atlanta” remains like nothing else on TV. [Read our review] – BT
“Barry” Season 3 (HBO)
It should have been enough that Bill Hader is a great comedian. And was the world really clamoring for another assassin comedy about a hitman who is trying to leave his past behind and integrate into the world as a normal person? Well, Hader as the star, producer, a writer, and director on HBO’s “Barry,” has made one of the most gripping and emotionally intelligent shows on television about guilt, regret, and perhaps most importantly, tragic self-deception. Using the hilarity of self-absorbed narcissism inherent in most actors (Hader’s Barry character trades his sniper rifle for the stage), Hader’s “Barry” looks at a well-meaning, but dangerous man who thinks he can easily absolve his sins with a lot of twisted and comical logic. Featuring a great supporting cast, Stephen Root Sarah Goldberg, Anthony Carrigan, and Henry Winkler, in addition to terrific performers, the episodes Hader has directed are some of the best-shot eps of TV in ages. This one is destined to be one of the greats. [Read our review] – BT
“The Bear” (FX)
Our review of FX’s late-coming entry “The Bear,” summed up the series as (paraphrasing), the twitchy, agitated anxiety of the Safdie brother’s “Uncut Gems,” but applied to the chaotic kitchen at a failing local eatery. And that summary of its manic energy is accurate. “The Bear” centers on a young chef (a terrific Jeremy Allen White), from the world of elite cuisine who comes home to Chicago to run his family’s Italian beef sandwich shop. The rub is that he’s inherited the disordered, undisciplined joint because his older brother committed suicide and he’s left to try and pick up the pieces and whip it and the neurotic employees (Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Ayo Edebiri, Lionel Boyce, Liza Colón-Zayas, and more) into shape. Frenetic verve aside, “The Bear” is a great emotional drama, a story about dysfunctional, but connected found families and all that they do to survive each other. [Read our review] – Rodrigo Perez
“Better Call Saul” Season 6 (AMC)
The best drama on television is currently in the middle of its final season with only six chapters remaining in the saga of how Jimmy McGill became Saul Goodman of “Breaking Bad” fame. Some of the richest storytelling in the history of the form has unfolded across the run of this drama, which not only features an incredible ensemble but writing and directing that is feature caliber. Characters are starting to get killed off in this tense drama that has really evolved into a pure thriller in its final season, anchored once again by amazing turns from Bob Odenkirk and Rhea Seahorn, a pair that will truly be missed when their story comes to a close in August. [Read our review] – BT