20 Best TV Shows Of 2022
The best of this year's eclectic small screen offerings.
It seems to have taken both forever and no time at all, but 2022 is finally coming to an end, and it's left many great TV shows worth celebrating in its wake.
Though there's a lingering sense of trepidation regarding the future of television -- the increased popularity of streaming services making it difficult to watch many new shows, and big studios such as AMC and Disney grappling with major behind-the-scenes changes -- 2022 has still given us enough to fill us with hope for the future.
From dystopian dramas to familiar workplace comedies and viral hits that proved to be much more than met the eye, the following shows each represent the best of the small screen, and prove that everything from long-running franchises to new, daring literary adaptations are still capable of being produced in inventive, unique ways.
With that in mind, considering great shows returning for another season to new series that seem poised to run for many more years to come, here are the 20 best TV shows of 2022. But first, some honourable mentions...
21. Honourable Mentions
Because there's been so much TV this year -- more of it good than bad -- it's worth shouting out the shows that didn't make it past the shortlist.
Over on Amazon Prime, The Rings of Power mostly overcomes clunky storytelling with gorgeous visuals and a powerful finale to become an ambitious, promising feast, a review that's also true of Netflix's too-twisty fantasy series 1899, and Apple's For All Mankind, which remains a wonderous treat three seasons in.
The big world of comedy hasn't do too poorly, either, with returning gems Hacks, Starstruck, Russian Doll and Girls5eva proving their well-received first seasons weren't flukes. Archer, meanwhile, returning for its landmark thirteenth year, goes back to basics and is all the better for it.
We've also been treated to a whole host of miniseries worth seeking out, including the controversial mystery-drama Under the Banner of Heaven, starring a typically resounding Andrew Garfield, the political drama Gaslit, and The Dropout, which stars a devious Amanda Seyfried as convicted fraudster Elizabeth Holmes.
There are other gems, including the emotional final seasons of both The Walking Dead and Better Things, and the long-awaited returns of Love, Death + Robots and Atlanta, but these shows didn't quite make the top 20...