Mid-year top TV shows of 2022 feat. Alison Herman
A completely subjective appreciation (with a special guest)
Hello! This week’s episode of Criticism Is Dead is a mid-year special: our respective top 5 picks for TV from 2022 so far, featuring special guest Alison Herman!
Alison is a writer for The Ringer, one of our favorite critics, and our first ~repeat guest~; she was previously on the pod to talk about Made for Love (RIP).
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02:59 TV!
The majority of the show or season had to have aired in 2022 and wrapped up before July to be eligible for inclusion. Our choices are ranked, for a change. Some of them overlap; others, we agree to disagree on. Now, in loosely ascending order from bottom to top:
Tokyo Vice (HBO Max)
Alison: “I really enjoyed being steeped in this world. I felt like I could reach out and touch everything.”
As We See It (Amazon Prime Video) (previously discussed on CID here)
Jenny: “Emotionally, it really stuck with me months after we talked about it.”
Winning Time (HBO Max) (previously discussed on CID here)
Pelin: “I had such a good time watching it every week, and stylistically, it’s just really fucking different from anything else on TV that I’ve seen in a minute.”
The Righteous Gemstones (HBO Max)
Alison: “It is the most insane production value that I have ever seen on a straight comedy. It probably has some of the best action filmmaking on TV.”
Barry (HBO Max) (previously discussed on CID here)
Jenny: “It’s still funny … plus a lot more darkness progressively as we inch deeper into the core of the depravity and the hollowness of certain people.”
Pelin: “There’s just something about Bill Hader and the way he navigates comedy … I can’t help but stan forever.”
Alison: “There have been all these anti-hero shows that have examined the question of redemption and forgiveness, but the way Barry is the supervillain of his own story is not something I think I’ve seen before.”
Standing Up (Netflix) (previously discussed on CID here)
Pelin: “It doesn’t take itself too seriously … it’s just really good writing and storytelling and character work.”
Pachinko (Apple TV+) (previously discussed on CID here)
Alison: “As an adaptation, I thought it was so impressive … It’s a show that’s entirely subtitled, but it makes sure you understand what it means that these characters are saying these words in this way.”
Outer Range (Amazon Prime Video) (previously discussed on CID here)
Jenny: “I was really won over by its ambition and its weirdness.”
Slow Horses (Apple TV+) (previously discussed on CID here)
Jenny: “Just a very fun show, especially if you’re into the genre.”
Abbott Elementary (Hulu) (previously discussed on CID here)
Pelin: “I have a great time. The entire cast is amazing. I love them all dearly.”
The Dropout (Hulu)
Alison: “This show managed to … make Elizabeth Holmes feel like a real character, do social commentary without seeming pedantic, do humor without losing sight of the seriousness of the situation, make her feel like an actual person with wants and needs and quirks without making her an extreme unknowable personality or excusing what she did.”
Severance (Apple TV+) (previously discussed on CID here and here)
Pelin: “As far as I’m concerned, it’s the best TV show that we’ve had in recent memory.”
Jenny: “I think no show has gripped me as much as this has in recent memory.”
Where to find Alison
Follow her on Twitter: @aherman2006
Read her and Miles Surrey’s list of the best TV shows of 2022 (so far).
That’s it for now. Let us know your personal top 5, and see you next week!
— Jenny
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Inquiries, complaints, and recs for what to watch can go to criticismisdead@gmail.com.
Some credits:
Music: REEKAH
Artwork and design: Sara Macias and Andrew Liu