The 10 Best TV Shows of the Year (So Far)
28.06.2023 - 17:01
/ variety.com
Alison Herman TV Critic The first half of 2023 has seen some of the most acclaimed shows in recent memory conclude on their own terms. Fortunately, as the likes of “Barry” and “Succession” wound down, promising newcomers and returning favorites have made a case for optimism even in these series’ absence. From the plains of Kansas to an English palace to a California courtroom, great TV could come from anywhere — if not the “mind” of an artificial intelligence, whatever dystopia “Mrs.
Davis” depicts (and the ongoing writers strike aims to prevent). These are one critic’s picks for the best television of the year thus far, plus a handful of honorable mentions. Plot points for certain series are discussed in detail, so spoiler-phobes beware.
In its final two seasons, Bill Hader’s HBO half-hour veered away from the “hitman tries acting” setup that served as its initial premise, splitting the Hollywood satire off from the increasingly dark crime drama. But to close out its run, “Barry” ended with a brutal indictment of Hollywood storytelling that weaved its two halves together. Hader’s Barry dies at the hands of his former acting teacher Gene Cousineau, an abrupt end that at first seems like a long-overdue consequence.
But in a coda set years later, Barry’s son watches a movie that depicts his father as a hero, and reveals that Gene is spending life in prison. “Barry” began as a dark comedy, then only got darker. Yet the show’s darkness never felt unearned, and a final season directed entirely by Hader illustrated it with surreal action and convincing horror.
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