By Erik Adams, Saloni Gajjar, Drew Gillis, Matt Schimkowitz, Leila Latif, Noel Murray, and Caroline Siede. Clockwise from top left: Dark Winds (Photo: Michael Moriatis/AMC), Beef (Photo: Netflix), A Knight Of The Seven Kingdom (Photo: Steffan Hill/HBO), Industry (Photo: Simon Ridgway/HBO). Center: Margo's Got Money Troubles (Photo: Apple)
TV production numbers are down (555 programs submitted for Emmy consideration in 2026, versus 600 in 2025) and the entertainment industry continues to contract (hello, FRoxubi), but that doesn’t mean there wasn’t a bumper crop of shows for The A.V. Club to narrow down to our favorites of the year so far. Read on for the 18 shows that have stuck with us these past five-and-a-half months—picks that cover previously untold chapters of Westerosi history; see us waving goodbye to old TV friends; and introduce new acquaintances from a peculiar tourist destination, the suburbs of New Jersey, and some places on the internet we really ought to scrub from our browsing histories.
Bait
Nothing provokes online bedlam quite like the prospect of a non-white James Bond, but in Riz Ahmed’s dark comedy Bait, it’s his protagonist’s sanity that gets shaken and stirred by the prospect. The romantic comedy detours, dream-sequence massacres, and meta-casting that accompany this psychological freefall should be too much, but Bait luxuriates in the excess. (Within the mayhem, a somehow perfectly cast Patrick Stewart voices a severed pig’s head.) Taskmaster favourite Guz Khan plays the permanently incredulous Zulfi—entrepreneur, reluctant head of security and founder of Muslim rideshare app Muber—his withering asides and endlessly expressive eyes frequently cutting could-be 007 Shah Latif (Ahmed) down to size. Another creator might have written himself suave and heroic; Ahmed writes himself cowardly, insecure, and frequently unbearable, and it’s that ego-free self-laceration that gives Bait its vitality and makes for a fascinating portrait of what it costs to be palatable to the masses. [Leila Latif]
Beef
Beefset a high bar with its high-stakes, nerve-wracking but ultimately cathartic 2023 debut. The Netflix anthology’s second season might not seem as laser-focused in comparison, but that’s only because it’s expanding the show’s scope. Series creator Lee Sung Jin still crafts a perceptive, stylish, and scathing tale, chronicling another bitter, ultimately revelatory rivalry. He expertly uses said strife to continually mold and remold his four central characters, who question their choices, priorities, and morals in the glossy pressure-cooker environment of a Montecito country club. But this second course of Beef’s true success stems from focusing on the socioeconomic imbalances that force Ashley, Austin, Josh, and Lindsey to, well, commit some insane acts. And luckily, the quartet of Cailee Spaeny, Charles Melton, Oscar Isaac, and Carey Mulligan—along with Oscar winner Youn Yuh-jung—capably handle the bizarro but brilliant subject matter Lee throws at them. [Saloni Gajjar].
The Comeback
The very concept of The Comeback is anathema in 2026. One imagines a 13-year-old strawman asking, “What’s a sitcom, grandpa?” before we all turn to dust. But those concepts power the third and final season of Lisa Kudrow and Michael Patrick King’s decades-old Hollywood satire. A shifting narrative that refuses to repeat itself, season three eschews the mockumentary style to explore Hollywood in decline, when those lucky enough to have a job in TV are on the verge of being replaced by AI, and Valerie Cherish (Kudrow, never better) becomes the adult in every room. Now the star and executive producer of an AI-written sitcom, Valerie is the last line of defense in a show business poisoned by the algorithm. But for all the tragedy, heartache, and hard-fought wins, The Comeback ends in fine form, reshaping but not drastically changing the character we first fell in love with in 2005, sending Valerie Cherish into the sunset with her head held high. [Matt Schimkowitz]
Dark Winds
AMC’s Dark Winds has been an underrated gem since it began, its atmospheric New Mexico desert setting playing host to some of TV’s tensest, most electrifying drama. Season four, adapted from Tony Hillerman’s The Ghostway, is no different. The latest batch of episodes digs even deeper into Detective Joe Leaphorn (Zahn McClarnon), Jim Chee (Kiowa Gordon), and Bernadette Manuelito’s (Jessica Matten) complicated connection not just to each other or their community, but to their history, land, and ancestors. Yes, the show is unlike any other because of its layered and honest Native American representation. But Dark Winds‘ fourth season is also a tightly-paced, twisty neo-noir that covers more ground—literally, too, because the trio briefly detours to L.A. to find a runaway teen girl and the German assassin who’s after her. It’s a move that proves the Dark Winds’ team still has the ability to innovate and experiment within familiar beats. [SG]
DTF St. Louis
DTF St. Louis never stops surprising. What begins with a murder investigation into the mysterious death of kind-hearted ASL interpreter Floyd (David Harbour) evolves into a deeply empathetic and impossible-to-pin-down story of confidence, love, and acceptance. The circumstances regarding Floyd’s death and how his wife (Linda Cardellini, who is nothing short of revelatory), his best friend and local weatherman (Jason Bateman), and a hook-up app fit into the mystery make a compelling hook, but writer-director Steven Conrad strings it all together with off-beat humor, memorable supporting characters, and an ability to wiggle out of a narrative jam that would make Vince Gilligan jealous. Anchored by crack investigators Donahue Homer (Richard Jenkins) and Jodie Plumb (Joy Sunday)—Conrad’s character names are inspired to boot—arguing over whether Tarzan erotica was a run-of-the-mill porno genre, the show’s three leads outdo themselves throughout, revealing new sides of their characters that deepen with each passing scene. [MS]
The Fall And Rise Of Reggie Dinkins
The title isn’t telling the whole story—but hey, that’s part of the fun of a mockumentary, right? Rather than zeroing in on retired running back Reggie Dinkins (Tracy Morgan) as he attempts to dig out from under a now-quaint-seeming gambling scandal, the latest comic Cinderella story from 30 Rock vets Robert Carlock and Sam Means sets up a redemption arc for everyone in Reggie’s immediate circle. That includes an impeccably flustered Daniel Radcliffe as the documentarian being paid to rehab Reggie’s image, and series MVP Erika Alexander in the straight-woman role of the faded star’s ex-wife and fierce protector—who gets some of her best material when she’s allowed to let her hair down alongside her former husband’s fiancée (Precious Way, ebullient) and doofy live-in bestie (Bobby Moynihan, never funnier). The jokes fly fast and frequent, old mockumentary standbys find new life (no other show on the air is deadlier with a hard cut) and just when it feels like things are getting a little too chummy in the Dinkins house, along comes Craig Robinson to give the Pontiac Bandit some company in the Office alum’s stable of recurring rivals for sitcom protagonists. [Erik Adams]
The Fall And Rise Of Reggie Dinkins (Photo: Scott Gries/NBC), Bait (Photo: Prime Video), The Comeback (Photo: Erin Simkin/HBO)
Hacks
Lucia Aniello, Paul W. Downs, and Jen Statsky never held back their true feelings about the entertainment industry during Hacks’ first four seasons. But it wasn’t until the show’s fifth and final HBO Max residency was almost over that they delivered the ultimate epigram for the world occupied by Deborah Vance (Jean Smart) and Ava Daniels (Hannah Einbinder): “It’s 90% the most delusional, lazy people you ever seen in your life, and 10% the most delusional workaholics.” The former provided much of the humor for Hacks; the latter, its heart, which season five put to the test in a gag-order gauntlet that further bonded Deborah and Ava with figures from their past (Deborah and DJ will always have The Amazing Race), indulged in a little fan service (Deborah and Ava will always have “Montecito”), and reaffirmed their commitment—and the commitment of their counterparts on the management side, Jimmy (Downs) and Kayla (Meg Stalter)—to each other. In the end, Hacks stands astride the Vegas strip like the giant statue of herself Deborah wanted to put in front of The Diva: a meaningful, and very funny, monument to the virtues of loving what you do, and who you’re doing it with. [EA]
Industry
Industry felt different this year. Without the bubble of Pierpoint (now acquired by Al-Mi’raj) and without Rob (Harry Lawtey), the action of the HBO series was torn between two poles: the sharkish Harper (Myha’la), back in cahoots with Eric (Ken Leung), and Yasmin (Marisa Abela), dissatisfied with her life as a kept woman but still tragically naive to her own failings. Just watching the two frenemies go back and forth as they groom the younger, sometimes more sinister versions of themselves (Miriam Petche’s Sweetpea Golightly and Kiernan Shipka’s Hayley Clay) would have made for a gripping season of television. But while Industry has always had its finger on the pulse, season four’s finale—which sees Yasmin team with white nationalists and Ghislaine-maxxing—felt especially, eerily timely. This show has never been an especially comforting watch, but this year, Industry really grew into the monster it was always destined to be. [Drew Gillis]
Jury Duty Presents: Company Retreat
How do you possibly follow up a marvel of immersive comedy and unscripted TV like Jury Duty? Short answer: You don’t—not exactly, at least. Company Retreat takes the template of its predecessor—a normal, affable dude thrust into the sequestered company of kooks—out of the deliberation room and relocates it to the annual team-building getaway for fictional hot-sauce manufacturer Rockin’ Grandma’s. The key difference is that everyone but temp worker Anthony Norman already “knows” each other, meaning all that personal history can bubble over in escalatingly absurd ways on a ranch recently ransacked by a dastardly group of Malibu realtors. (Damn those Malibu realtors!) The setup is familiar, but in the Jury Duty team’s hands, the capacity for surprise remains endless, as evidenced by the gut-busting spectacle of the first sales presentation from Rockin’ Grandma’s incoming nepo baby CEO. Other TV shows can learn a lot from Company Retreat—like why you should never put the word “jerk” so close to a mechanized display of a guitar-playing mascot. [EA]
A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms
The Game Of Thrones franchise’s most purely enjoyable offering in years is helped immeasurably by its simplicity. Taking place over just a few days at one jousting tournament, A Knight Of The Seven Kingdoms’s first season features a stripped-down cast of characters, drawn from some of the familiar Westerosi noble families: the Targaryens, the Baratheons, the Tullys, the Tyrells. All of these powerful people are seen from the perspective of one of the smallfolk: Ser Duncan The Tall, a wannabe knight with no real training or pedigree to speak of, reliant on a suspiciously savvy squire named Egg to school him on courtly customs. The series’ biggest asset is its casting, with the hulking Peter Claffey bringing a sweet soul to Dunk, while the diminutive Dexter Sol Ansell as Egg conveys an infectious enthusiasm for all things heroic. These two are easy to like. So is the show.[Noel Murray]
Margo’s Got Money Troubles
For a show with OnlyFans at its center, Margo’s Got Money Troubles is less provocative and more refreshingly tender than you might expect. This journey of self-discovery and motherhood from David E. Kelley (adapted from the novel by Rufi Thorpe) is equal parts oddball and sweet, delivering an empowering message about the titular Margo breaking societal expectations by owning her sexuality. There’s still a nostalgic charm to that modern reality because of how the show handles unconventional family dynamics: Elle Fanning’s unflinching portrayal of a young, single mom seeking financial independence on her own terms rivals her work on The Great, and Nick Offerman gives one of this year’s most raw performances as a former wrestler and addict trying to support his estranged daughter. There’s so much unexpected warmth to Margo that Apple TV wants to continue the story beyond the pages of Thorpe’s novel. [SG]
The Other Bennet Sister
If you’re wondering how much can still be mined from Jane Austen’s Pride & Prejudice, look no further than Britbox’s The Other Bennet Sister. One of 2026’s most delightful TV surprises sets its sights on the oft-forgotten, socially clumsy, and intelligent Mary Bennet (a lovely Ella Bruccoleri), who mercifully leaves her family behind for a much-needed fresh start. Against the lush backdrop of the U.K.’s Lake District, Mary embarks on adventures that lead her straight to the dashing Tom Hayward (Dónal Finn). While the rom-com aspects work well, The Other Bennet Sister is, at its heart, a warm and wonderful interpretation of Austen’s familiar character—a woman who finally learns to see and love herself for who she is. [SG]
Hacks (Photo: HBO Max), Jury Duty Presents: Company Retreat (Photo: Prime Video), The Other Bennet Sister (Photo: Britbox)
Paradise
The second season of Hulu’s delightfully bonkers political survival thriller heads out of the frying pan and into the fire—or out of the bunker and into the Graceland mansion, as it were. While not every big swing in season two works, the choice to introduce Shailene Woodley as a major player on Sterling K. Brown’s quest to find his wife leads to some of the most moving television of the year. From there, Paradise’s second seasonexpands its story like a spiderweb, exploring what life was like before and after the seismic event that defined season one. Whether you’re looking for rom-com meet-cutes, tense shootouts, or theoretical quantum science, there’s something here for everyone. The specialty of creator Dan Fogelman is blending over-the-top drama with intimate human emotion and flashbacks that feel like memories. That’s all on display in a season that ups Paradise’s sci-fi elements but retains its moving sense of heart. [Caroline Siede]
The Pitt
HBO’s award-winning medical drama suffered no discernible sophomore slump, even if its second season did lean a bit hard on the miseries and traumas of a well-meaning, overwhelmed Pittsburgh hospital staff. Season two’s biggest new storytelling wrinkle—aside from the concerning flashes of suicidal ideation from Noah Wyle’s less-avuncular-than-usual Dr. Robby—involves the eroding layers of trust within the health care system. In these episodes, parents doubt doctors, doctors doubt each other, and nearly everyone doubts the power of technology to make the wellness experience better. And yet for the many fans who tune into The Pitt to watch compassionate and capable health care professionals getting the job done, this show still delivers a bounty. Season two offers the deep satisfaction of seeing human beings help each other, throughout one hot and hectic day. [NM]
Shrinking
It’s already been a busy 2026 for Bill Lawrence, thanks to ABC’s Scrubs revival and HBO’s Rooster. But it’s the Apple series Lawrence co-created alongside stars Jason Segel and Brett Goldstein that best captures the TV veteran’s worldview and storytelling prowess. Shrinking‘s emotionally charged, confident third season boasts the quirky ensemble dynamics Lawrence nailed down in Cougar Town and the earnestness that made Ted Lasso‘s early run shine. And yet, Shrinking emerges as a wholly original show that’s equivalent to a warm hug. Season three wisely expands Ted McGinley’s contributions, features Jessica Williams’ series-best work, and allows Segel to find new layers to a grieving Jimmy. Crucially, Harrison Ford ties all of Shrinking‘s themes together in a masterful performance that deserves an Emmy win—not just a nod. [SG]
Something Very Bad Is Going To Happen
A title so evocative risks both spoiler and hubris—but in this Netflix horror miniseries, it’s a cruel promise deliciously kept. The tale of a betrothed couple heading to the groom’s secluded family manor is suffused with creeping dread in every scene; the only question is which one of the many sinister goings-on will reach a bloody crescendo. Our heroine Rachel (a star-making turn from Camilla Morrone) is a final girl for the ages, trying to figure out if her future in-laws are affluent eccentrics or bloodthirsty killers. The imperious Victoria Cunningham (Jennifer Jason Leigh) keeps Rachel unsure as to whether she’s a demanding mother-in-law or an actual monster, and the show wisely doesn’t see them as mutually exclusive. But when a litany of terrors comes Rachel’s way, Morrone gives Something Very Bad Is Going To Happen a brutalised but still beating heart that is, in its own twisted way, hopelessly romantic. Gruesome without being gratuitous, and satirical without being didactic, Something Very Bad Is Going To Happen is very good indeed. [LL]
The Vampire Lestat
It still has a few episodes to go, but the latest chapter in AMC’s Vampire Chronicles adaptation is already a singular viewing experience. By digging into the mind of its title character, the rebranded Interview With The Vampire stylishly, manically expands its scope to contextualize Lestat’s existence so far. If season three’s frantic energy—thanks to Lestat’s narration and music—is wildly droll, then its deep dive into his relationships (with his mother, Louis, his maker, and himself, among others) takes turbulent, emotional turns that give The Vampire Lestat a similargravitas to its previous seasons. There’s plenty to enjoy here, like the Daniel Hart-composed original tracks, freaky vampire incest, and Delainey Hayles’ return. But the sizzling chemistry between Jacob Anderson and Sam Reid continues to ground TVL. Reid, in particular, is clearly having the time of his life—you won’t be able to look away from how he brings his character’s trademark snarl and sadness to life. [SG]
Widow’s Bay
The component parts of the best new TV show of the year could each be a show in and of themselves. Widow’s Bay is the story of a community struggling to get a foothold in the modern world, a character study of an authority figure trying to gain control over that which he has no control, the saga of people who just can’t seem to escape the place they grew up in. Widow’s Bay is all of those things—plus monsters. And a ghost or two. And don’t forget about the bloodborne curse linked to the former town leader stalking the midseason, colonial flashback starring Betty Gilpin. That it can synthesize all of these things down to a recognizable voice and an uncommon command of tone is remarkable; it helps to have Katie Dippold at the helm, Hiro Murai behind the camera, and Matthew Rhys in the lead role. That it can be so damned funny makes us want to stay in Widow’s Bay forever—well, maybe not forever, but that’s a choice we, unlike some of the island’s residents, get to make. [EA]
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