Harsh reality hard to shake
Top 10: Gripping story of war leads list of year’s best new programs
Two obvious things you can say about television in 2017: There was a lot of it, and some of it was very good. That was easy. Now comes the hard part: deciding which of those very good shows merit a spot on the list of the best series of the year.
There are plenty of great continuing shows from previous years, of course — “The Crown,” “Mr. Robot,” “This Is Us,” “Designated Survivor,” “Transparent,” “Atlanta,” “Master of None,” “Lady Dynamite,” “American Crime,” among others. But television’s vitality depends increasingly on the continuing addition of new, quality shows, especially as the nation’s short attention span means that a show has to prove itself within the first couple of episodes. For that reason, this year’s best list includes only shows that premiered in 2017. 1 National The Long Geographic Road Home, Channel. Emotionally about a single shattering deadly day drama for American troops in Iraq. Extraordinary performances and great storytelling. 2 The Handmaid’s Tale, Hulu. Elisabeth Moss starred in this brilliant adaptation of Margaret Atwood’s dystopian novel. A 1985 book about the future resulted in an adaptation that felt disturbingly current. 3 The Deuce, HBO. George Pellicanos and David Simon teamed to re-create Times Square when pornography became legal. Superb, gritty performances by Maggie Gyllenhaal and others. 4 I Love Dick, Amazon Prime. Jill Soloway and Sarah Gubbins pushed all kinds of boundaries in the story of sex and obsession, graced by an incredibly courageous performance by Kathryn Hahn. 5 Ozark, Netflix. Jason Bateman and Laura Linney are magnetically despicable in the story of a morally bankrupt couple who flee to the Ozarks to launder money for a Mexican drug kingpin in order to save their lives.
6 The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Amazon Prime. Amy Sherman Palladino and Daniel Palladino created a magical comedy-drama about a 1950s housewife whose perfect life comes apart at the seams, sending her drunkenly to open-mike night at a comedy club. A career is born and so is a richly entertaining series. Terrific performances by Alex Borstein and, in the title role, Rachel Brosnahan.
7 The Vietnam War, PBS. Ken Burns and Lynn Novick’s exhaustive opus traced our long, tortured history in Southeast Asia through the war itself and afterward. While it cried out for a stronger connection to contemporary foreign affairs decisions, “The Vietnam War” answered significant questions about how the war changed the nation, perhaps forever.
8 GLOW, Netflix. Liz Flahive and Carly Mensch poured a lot of truth and imagination into a fictionalized version of women’s wrestling, starring Alison Brie and Marc Maron. Don’t tell anyone, but it’s also a feminist flag-waver.
9 Legion, FX. Noah Hawley stretched himself yet again to create a brilliant comic book show, which, for once, is not a conflict in terms. Dan Stevens plays a young man diagnosed as schizophrenic, but who may have entirely different issues.
0 One Day at a Time, Netflix. Gloria Calderon Kellett and Mike Royce took a vintage popular sitcom and not only gave it a Latin twist, but also gave it relevance and currency without missing a laugh opportunity. The cast is great, especially Rita Moreno, whose comedic chops are without equal.