20 Best TV Shows Of 2019

Yep, Russian Doll came out in 2019. It’s been a long old year, hasn’t it?

Led by the immensely talented Natasha Lyonne, it’s easy to read the synopsis of Russian Doll (a woman continuously dying and returning to her party night after night) and dismiss it as a Groundhog Day rip-off. However, it’s so much more than it’s deceptively complex premise.

Co-created by Lyonne with Amy Poehler and Leslye Headland, Russian Doll isn’t afraid to go dark. While Groundhog Day was a story which fully explored the possibilities of the premise, Russian Doll focuses much more on a character level.

There’s comedy, sure, but also bleak patches, maddening sequences and such loneliness at the heart of it. A clash of tones is usually a huge criticism of TV shows, but with Russian Doll the clash works out brilliantly and plays perfectly into the core themes.