This past season was a strong year for television — including new outings from recent best series champs in the drama (“Succession”) and comedy (“Ted Lasso”) fields. But beyond past winners, the list of entries grows so thick that voters may need a reminder of what was great — not just the most-promoted series but the ones that were idiosyncratic, intriguing and made with real sensibility.
From the shrewd humor of “Abbott Elementary,” to the way “Dopesick” and “The Staircase” went beyond the headlines to deliver insight, to the chilling vision of a world just moments away from our own experience of the office in “Severance,” TV was firing on all cylinders this year.
Even while the complaint that “there’s too much TV” remains ever relevant, the fact that there’s plenty to reward beyond the usual suspects does, too. Now, Emmy voters just need
to take the time to select the best of a seemingly boundless slate.
Variety’s chief television critics Daniel D’Addario and Caroline Framke place the spot-light on the shows that most deserve second look from the Television Academy.
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Abbott Elementary
Image Credit: ABC (ABC)
Every couple of years, a new show is heralded as the one that will bring back broadcast networks, period. It’s a heavy crown to bestow on any series (and not an especially fair one), but Quinta Brunson’s “Abbott Elementary” has borne the weight by simply being itself: a good-natured sitcom with smart writing and a cast that understood the assignment from day one. Its breakout performances — especially from Janelle James as an egomaniac principal and Sheryl Lee Ralph as the school’s steadiest hand — have rightly attracted Emmy buzz, but the cohesiveness of the show in general should earn it nods across more categories than one. — Caroline Framke -
The Dropout
Image Credit: Courtesy of Beth Dubber/Hulu (Hulu)
There are so many ways that “The Dropout” could have gotten too lost in the notorious scandal it tackles to shed any new insight. Instead, Elizabeth Meriwether dug deeper into the history not just of doomed startup Theranos and founder Elizabeth Holmes (Amanda Seyfried, rarely better), but the devastating ripple effects amongst those who bought in to their schemes. Seyfried and Naveen Andrews, playing Holmes’ mercurial partner in all things, are as magnetic as their characters are repulsive. Beyond its central toxic pair, too, the show’s deep bench of supporting talent — including Stephen Fry, Laurie Metcalf, and a wonderfully compelling LisaGay Hamilton — elevates every scene. With canny directing (established by Michael Showalter) and some truly inspired needle drops, “The Dropout” is as purely compelling as the story that inspired it. — C.F -
Euphoria
Image Credit: HBO (HBO)
Sure, HBO’s teen hyperdrama won an Emmy in its first season for lead actress Zendaya. But it deserves broader-scale recognition for just how much success it finds in its concerted attempt to throw as much as possible against the wall. The show’s second season made room for a Sydney Sweeney performance that pushed the young actor to heights of emotion that perfectly evoked what it is to be young and feel oneself at the center of the universe; it also, in the storyline around Eric Dane’s pained and closeted grown-up character Cal, told the story of a character for whom adolescence never really ended. In “Euphoria,” being a teenager is a state of mind, or a vibe: It’s the sense that one’s emotions are too big to hold in. This show gives its actors the space — and, as the season ended with a remarkable school-play set piece, the stage — to get them all out. — Daniel D’Addario -
The Gilded Age
Image Credit: Courtesy of Alison Cohen Rosa/HBO (HBO)
Julian Fellowes’ “Downton Abbey” follow-up gains vim and spark as it moves its creator’s approach to New York. But its wit and sumptuousness are pleasurable in a familiar way. Watching heiress Christine Baranski face off against new-money titan Carrie Coon allowed for some of the season’s most gruelingly melodramatic acting, against some of its most eminently award-worthy backdrops. Special credit, among a cast stacked with New York theater legends, to Coon and the actor playing her husband, Morgan Spector, for their masters-of-the-universe sneering and the way it so easily gives way to panic when their positions are threatened, and to Denée Benton, playing a young Black woman searching for her place in a world that might not have seemed to have room for her. — D.D. -
The Girl From Plainville
Image Credit: Steve Dietl/Hulu (Hulu)
Elle Fanning (“The Great”) excels once again as Michelle Carter, the figure of scandal who was convicted of manslaughter after texting her boyfriend (played by Colton Ryan) encouragement to die by suicide. This series plunges you within Michelle’s mind to examine why such a prospect might, potentially, be appealing to her, and evokes through fantasy sequences the thrumming, recursive patterns of Carter’s mind. In another era, her confused thoughts might have lacked so persuasive an outlet, but the tragedy of “The Girl From Plainville” is Carter’s easy access to technology, and to the drama she might play a part in without the weight of real life lending it ballast. Chloe Sevigny, as a bereaved mother, is excellent, as is the painfully insecure Ryan. And Fanning beautifully evokes the self-dramatizing power of one’s teenage years, shot through with the new anxieties a perpetually connected digital age brings up. — D.D. -
Hacks
Image Credit: Courtesy of HBO (HBO Max)
The Emmy winner is likely in no danger of falling out of voters’ minds this year, but now that the second season is out, it’s safe to say that if “Hacks” sees more awards success, it will deserve it. As it goes on the road and forces Deborah (Jean Smart), Ava (Hannah Einbinder) and even Marcus (Carl Clemons-Hopkins) to reconsider their futures, the comedy gives its writers and actors even more room to play. (Smart’s probably a lock to get every Emmy she’s inevitably nominated for while playing Deborah, but it will be a shame if she’s the only “Hacks” actor to ever win.) More importantly, creators Lucia Aniello, Paul W. Downs and Jen Statsky prove that they’re not content to sit on their laurels, instead peeling back the show’s layers and challenging themselves to get more creative with their already well-honed characterization. — C.F. -
Landscapers
Image Credit: HBO (HBO)
This compelling four-episode limited series would represent a return to the Emmy stage for Olivia Colman; she’d be more than deserving. Here, “The Crown” star plays Susan Edwards opposite David Thewlis as her husband, Christopher; the real-life pair killed Susan’s parents. This series is unconcerned with documentary realism, and, as directed by Will Sharpe, depicts Christopher’s and especially Susan’s mental states as a stew of movie references and of dreams. The two “landscapers” who buried her parents in the backyard are lost inside their minds, a surreal existence this show depicts brilliantly. — D.D. -
Love Life
Image Credit: HBO Max (HBO Max)
The second season of HBO Max’s comedic anthology series hands the spotlight over to William Jackson Harper, who immediately proves a perfect fit. Though the story of one person’s search for love in New York City has been told a million times before, co-showrunner Rachelle R. Williams (joining Season 1 showrunners Bridget Bedard and Sam Boyd) imbues Marcus’ with real wit and nuance. Sidestepping the most cringe-inducing rom-com clichés, indulging the ones that work and bringing out the best in Harper and his co-star Jessica Williams, this installment of “Love Life” was a winner that should not be overlooked. — C.F. -
Reservation Dogs
Image Credit: FX (FX)
Don’t let the fact that “Reservation Dogs” came out in August of last year make you forget that one of 2021’s most inventive and interesting series is, in fact, eligible for this year’s Emmys. Sterlin Harjo and Taika Waititi’s comedy not only centers a Native American cast in a way precious few other shows have dared to try, but lets them be just as flawed as they are funny. As the core quartet of restless, grieving teenagers at the show’s heart, young actors Devery Jacobs, D’Pharoah Woon-A-Tai, Lane Factor and Paulina Alexis are never short of excellent, and should be bigger contenders when it comes to recognizing the year’s best in TV. — C.F. -
Severance
Image Credit: Apple TV Plus (Apple TV+)
A slow burn that suddenly becomes a jaw-dropping sprint, the first season of “Severance” walks a fine line to the stunning cliffhanger that ends it with palpable confidence in its direction. As directed by Ben Stiller and with singular production design from Jeremy Hindle, the Apple TV+ drama is eerie in a way that sticks with you long after you’ve left it. Headliners Adam Scott, Patricia Arquette and Christopher Walken will likely get the most attention, but supporting turns from Britt Lower, Zach Cherry, Travell Tillman and John Turturro are what keep “Severance” afloat, and should not go unnoticed. — C.F. -
Sex Education
Image Credit: Sam Taylor/Netflix (Netflix)
Ncuti Gatwa’s recent casting as the next Doctor Who is welcome news, not least because the actor has more than proven his bona fides on “Sex Education” for three seasons now. Netflix’s perennially charming and heartwarming series hasn’t seen a single Emmys nom, probably because it can be dismissed as “a high-school show” for teens. And yet, every season has been as strong as the last, thanks to smart writing from creator Laurie Nunn and team and instant standouts including Gatwa, Aimee Lou Wood, Patricia Allison and Tanya Reynolds. (It’s also frustrating to see Gillian Anderson get automatic nominations for less compelling performances on shows including “The Crown” when she’s been giving such a fantastic one on “Sex Education” this whole time, but I digress.) It’d be a surprise at this point to see the show recognized by the Academy, and more’s the pity. — C.F. -
Shining Vale
Image Credit: Courtesy of Starz (Starz)
Starz has been quietly crushing it on the half-hour front lately, and “Shining Vale” exemplifies that trend. The series effectively balances the chill of a real ghost story with the dry humor of creators Jeff Astrof and Sharon Horgan, thus creating moments as funny as they are genuinely unnerving (especially when Mira Sorvino’s malignant housewife appears). Most impressive, though, is star Courteney Cox, who seizes the opportunity to play a character who yearns for a more exciting life even as she’s terrified of what might happen if she decides to embrace the wicked streak within her. — C.F. -
The Staircase
Image Credit: Courtesy of HBO Max (HBO Max)
This probing and inquisitive restaging of the famed true-crime miniseries works entirely on its own merits — even for viewers who are coming to this case only with the knowledge that it has been litigated, in part, in the media. Here, Colin Firth stands accused of murdering his late wife (Toni Collette). The trial is conducted not merely in a court of law but also on camera, as a documentary crew within the series documents every wince and misstatement of Colin’s character (for what would, in real life, become the infamous French documentary series also titled “The Staircase”). This “The Staircase” toggles between views of Firth’s character, as he really is and as he’ll appear to viewers of the documentary that cannot help but only capture certain aspects of him. As this show asks what might have happened one awful night in Durham, N.C., it also interrogates the urge viewers feel to know more about the unknowable. — D.D. -
Tokyo Vice
Image Credit: HBO Max (HBO Max)
It earns its title honestly: With a pilot directed by Michael Mann, “Tokyo Vice” is every bit as slick and suave as its “Miami” predecessor. But its story is all its own: Jake Adelstein (Ansel Elgort) undertakes a career as a newspaper reporter in Japan’s capital, drawn to the perfidy and corruption at society’s boundaries. Aided by police detective Hiroto Katagiri (Ken Watanabe), Jake takes viewers on a journey as richly compelling as it is stylishly drawn. Mann ought to be in the hunt for a directing Emmy for the way he both lends his trademark depth and cool gaze to the pilot and the way he sets a template for successive “Tokyo Vice” directors to follow; this show’s consistency is its strength. — D.D. -
WeCrashed
Image Credit: Apple TV+ (Apple TV+)
Series about flamed-out founders have been thick on the ground this season. But there was a high-stepping verve to “WeCrashed” that seemed to suit its subjects’ frivolity. Adam Neumann and his wife, Rebekah, (Jared Leto and Anne Hathaway) had big dreams — redefining the way work is conducted globally through their office-space company — that came down to a petty root, the desire for recognition. (Perhaps that’s why their attempts to bring the workplace to a higher plane ended up epitomizing the very worst of contemporary office culture.) Hathaway, especially, conveys the desire for thought-leader recognition as something that is grasping, unflattering, but essentially human: We sneer at Rebekah, and we feel for her being thwarted, too. — D.D. -
Yellowjackets
Image Credit: Courtesy of Kailey Schwerman/SHOWTIME (Showtime)
Showtime’s survivalist drama quickly became one of the most twisted, fascinating surprises of the season. While many shows purport themselves to be “about trauma,” “Yellowjackets” takes that mission seriously. As it unravels two parallel timelines, each dealing with the fallout from a horrific plane crash, Ashley Lyle and Bart Nickerson’s series becomes an intoxicating mix of grounded tension and disorienting surrealism. (By all rights, the deeply unnerving and effective pilot should land director Karyn Kusama her first Emmy nomination.) In the present day, Melanie Lynskey, Christina Ricci, Tawny Cypress and Juliette Lewis bring their A-games, and are rightly getting notice for it. But the younger generation of actors portraying the characters in the immediate aftermath of the crash — especially Samantha Hanratty, Ella Purnell and Sophie Thatcher — also deserve a closer second look. — C.F.