The Best TV Shows of 2023

Loki: Season Two (Disney+) -- after a bad start with the confusing and dull first season, Loki pulls it all together for this geninuely fascinating, gripping second (and final) season. Talk about glorious purpose, indeed.

One Piece (Netflix) -- I've never seen the original animated series, but I still really enjoyed this very well-done adaptation by Netflix. An extremely engrossing and charming tale that hooked me from the start till the very end.

Blue Eyed Samurai (Netflix) -- a beautifully imagined animated series that takes place in Japan back in the 1600s. It caught me completely off guard regarding just how good it is. Exquisitely drawn and very well written, this is an absorbing revenge thriller all the way to the end. (BF scenes)

Beef (Netflix) -- Steven Yeun and Ali Wong are fantastic as two strangers who meet during a road rage incident that creates a deadly feud between them that reaches horrific heights. The humor in this is as dark as a black hole, and it works wonderfully.

Bodies (Netflix) -- A murder mystery with the same body seemingly showing up at separate crime scenes across decades of time. This turns into a fascinating, twisty-bendy SF story about detectives from different eras working together across time. (BF scenes)

Reacher: Season Two (Amazon) -- Technically, the entire season hasn't aired at the time I'm writing this, but I already love it. Lee Child's Jack Reacher books are among my favorite reads, and this is one of my favorite TV shows. Alan Ritchson is perfect casting as the former military police investigator turned private crusader.

The Fall of the House of Usher (Netflix) -- a marvelous journey depicting the rise and fall of a billionaire family who made their money off of people's suffering. An imaginative thriller, based on Poe's work, that also effectively mixes in some Lovecraftian horrors, and Mark Hamil (Luke Skywalker himself) is great in a meaty role. (BF scenes)

Gen V (Amazon) -- more ultra-violent superheroic craziness from the universe of The Boys, and just as gripping and funny as its parent show. My favorite character here is Emma, aka Cricket. She's got me in her corner for the whole ride. (BF scenes)

Star Trek: Brave New Worlds: Season Two (Paramount+) -- I really wasn't crazy about the musical episode, but I still love this cast and was willing to forgive them one bad misstep. I still thouroughly enjoyed the further adventures of Pike and crew aboard the good ship Enterpise. Bring on season three.

Star Trek Picard: Season Three (Paramount+) -- The first two seasons are horrible, but the third season of this series is truly the charm. A loving tribute to the Next Generation that gets the band back together to face an impressive threat several decades after they rammed the Enterprise-E down the gullet of the Scimitar. The perfect ending for the Next Gen crew and just an outstanding season of television overall.