10 Most Underrated TV Shows Of 2020 (So Far)
8. The Politician
With the revelation that is Ben Platt leading a troupe of both promising young stars and esteemed veterans, the first season of Netflix's The Politician was full of potential, but it only occasionally lived up to it. Whether it was the over-reliance on its eccentricities or the muddled misdirection halfway through, the show's enjoyability factor was undermined by its overall lack of substance.
The second season of the Ryan Murphy series dropped on Netflix recently and, much to the surprise of fans, it was a refreshing soft reboot for the show. Yes, its tone was still exaggerated and some of the characters really did beggar belief, but the New York State Senate political race between Platt's Payton Hobart and Judith Light's Dede Standish imbued the show with the maturity it was lacking in the first season.
The response to the original offering made some potential viewers less willing to watch the second, but that's a fate this season doesn't deserve. The show transformed into the political satire that it should have been from the beginning and, furthermore, it finally allowed Murphy to quash the notorious middle misdirection that plagues a number of his shows.
It was very witty (even charming at times) and a much, much easier-watch than its predecessor. And it's worth it alone for the show-stealing performances from Light and Bette Midler.