Byte Size: Best TV of 2021
Quality time on demand from the idiot box.
In 2021, it’s all too easy to have quality television on demand. Free-to-air is dead, long live the age of streaming.
However, I do think it’s incredibly telling that in compiling a list of great TV shows for this year, only four streaming services are required. The academic in me wants to talk about media consolidation and the profit motive of capital stifling creative diversity, but that’s a discussion for another time…
Here are the best TV shows of 2021, as chosen by me. Objectivity be damned.
The Nevers (HBO)
Synopsis: “The series is set in Victorian London and follows a group of people, mostly women, known as the Touched, who suddenly manifest abnormal abilities. Among them are Amalia True, a mysterious and quick-fisted widow, and her best friend Penance Adair, a brilliant inventor.”
Look, I know Joss Whedon is essentially cancelled at this point, and he’s almost entirely responsible for the all-pervasive ‘soy banter’ infiltration of media products, but The Nevers is his creation and it’s great. Set in steampunk-Victorian-era England, the show manages to bridge the gap between fantasy, sci-fi and prestige period drama without losing any heart. It’s a fun watch even if it’s somewhat rough around the edges. Plus, that season cliffhanger is a doozie.
For All Mankind (Apple TV+)
Synopsis: “The series dramatizes an alternate history depicting ‘what would have happened if the global space race had never ended’ after the Soviet Union succeeds in the first crewed Moon landing ahead of the United States.”
If you’re like me (which, if you are, unlucky for you), then you’re often tantalized by the metaphysical “what if?” questions of life. What if we never stopped going to the moon? What if the Soviet Union never fell? What if the Cold War never ended? The endless possibility of these contingent moments of reality is what makes stories of alternate history so enthralling to me. From the mind of Ronald D. Moore (Battlestar Galactica), For All Mankind posits these possibilities in the most entertaining way with great characters, dry, whip-smart dialogue, and a few memorable twists and turns.
Midnight Mass (Netflix)
Synopsis: “A young man returns to his isolated hometown on Crockett Island hoping to rebuild his life after serving four years in prison for killing someone in a drunk-driving incident. He arrives at the same time as a mysterious, charismatic young priest, who begins to revitalise the town's flagging faith.”
After the runaway successes of Netflix’s Haunting of Hill House (2018) and The Haunting of Bly Manor (2020), writer and director Mike Flanagan is three-for-three with his latest horror mini-series. Midnight Mass is the culmination of a passion project for Flanagan, transplanting his penchant for existential and cerebral horror to a remote fishing village in the grip of terminal social decline and crises of faith. It’s a moody and compelling character drama with superb pacing, stellar performances (Hamish Linklater’s portrayal of Father Paul Hill is Emmy-worthy in of itself) and a killer twist. (Exclaim!)
Invincible (Amazon Prime)
Synopsis: “The story of ‘Invincible’ revolves around Mark Grayson/Invincible (Steven Yuen), a 17-year-old teen that has just acquired superpowers and aspires to live up to the legend of his Superman-like dad Nolan Grayson/Omni-Man (J.K. Simmons).”
Superhero stories are quite literally dime-a-dozen in today’s media. So, while the idea of subverting those common tropes (I’m looking at you, The Boys) isn’t exactly revolutionary, Invincible manages to take things in a fun, interesting and thoroughly bloody direction. At times it feels like you’re watching a modern revamp of the X-Men cartoon series before something super dark and grim happens and you’re suddenly jerked right back into the hyper-realism of gods fighting among mere mortals.
I Think You Should Leave (Netflix)
Synopsis: “In this new sketch show, Tim Robinson and guests spend each segment driving someone to the point of needing—or desperately wanting—to leave.”
Man, I don’t even know how to accurately describe this show in any cohesive or totalizing way. Do you like laughing so much you can’t stop crying? Do you enjoy being made thoroughly uncomfortable? Do you want to watch people being thrust into situations so awkward and cringe-inducing that every fibre of your being compels you to look away, where your skin feels like it’s in revolt against your body and it might just get up and leave the room at any moment? If you answered yes to any of those questions, then there’s at least one sketch in I Think You Should Leave that will have you close to wetting yourself with joy.
Succession (HBO)
Synopsis: “The series centres on the Roy family, the dysfunctional owners of Waystar RoyCo, a global media and entertainment conglomerate, who are fighting for control of the company amid uncertainty about the health of the family's patriarch, Logan Roy (Brian Cox).”
With the exception of the indomitable It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia, it’s hard to think of another show where the emotional core of every character rests on them being a gigantic piece of shit. Succession is the most talked-about show in my Twitter feed due to its untouchable theme song and credits, the acidic dialogue, and the cocaine-addled scenes of moral debauchery and shameless capitalist decadence. But the real enjoyment to be found here is watching actors like Jeremy Strong, Matthew Macfadyen and Brian Cox imbue their pathetic characters with rich layers of pathos, disgust, and moral complexity.
Foundation (Apple TV+)
Synopsis: “Hari Seldon spends his life developing a theory of mathematical sociology called psychohistory. Seldon foresees the imminent fall of the Galactic Empire, which encompasses the entire Milky Way, and a forthcoming Dark Age to last 30,000 years. Although the momentum of the Empire’s fall is too great to stop, Seldon devises a plan to preserve the spirit of science and civilization, and thus become the cornerstones of the new galactic empire.”
With Amazon putting an end to The Expanse (easily the best sci-fi series of the last decade) after its soon-to-air sixth season, fans of world-hopping, star-filled space operas that aren’t part of well-worn properties like Star Trek or Star Wars will need a new home, and Apple are banking on Foundation to fill that starry void... While it’s clear that Foundation wants to be Game of Thrones in space, it has work to do before it’s able to take that crown. There’s fascinating world-building going on and the show’s production design is second to none. (Exclaim!)
The White Lotus (HBO)
Synopsis: “The series details a week in the life of vacationers as they relax and rejuvenate in paradise. With each passing day, a darker complexity emerges in these picture-perfect travellers, the hotel’s cheerful employees and the idyllic locale itself.”
While the prospect of a well-earned holiday remains far off for most people, writer and director Mike White’s The White Lotus uses the idyllic locale of a high-end Hawaiian resort to slowly unravel the social fabric of our collective moment. Through affably eccentric characters, crackling dialogue and an escalating whodunit premise, White’s biting satire gradually peels back the romantic filter of sticky swimsuits, glamorous day spas and sleepy buffet breakfasts to reveal a dark meditation on racism, class, privilege, consent and the potency of human desire. (Exclaim!)