Doom Patrol Season 1: 8 Ups And 1 Down

Humor can be a strength, but it can also feel like a crutch when a show's afraid to be sincere/serious. This show is hilarious, but it'll break your heart in an instant and isn't afraid to do so. Better yet, it completely earns your tears. Since every episode serves as character development for one or several team members and each one has serious baggage and trauma to unpack, audiences are always in for an emotional ride.

Take Brendan Fraser's Cliff as an example of how the show exceeds at tonal balance. In many ways, he is DP's comedic relief. When there's a quip to be made, he's usually the first to take advantage. Yet, the show never lets him be just that. He's also someone who lost everything several decades ago with the only semblance of his humanity left being the brain that powers his rusty robot body. He may drop plenty of quips, but his suffering, as well as the suffering of the other members, is taken seriously.

The show doesn't shy away from humanizing its characters and making them feel real. Doesn't matter if it's a character like Flex Mentallo that feels like a silly comic creation from the 1940s, they're still treated with respect, and it does wonders for the audience's investment.