The Athletic’s best TV shows of 2021

Turns out, the pandemic has never really stopped. It comes in waves. So when we start wondering if we’ll ever have time for all these shows that keep coming out and getting produced, the answer is yes and no. Last year, when the world stopped and we were stuck inside, streaming services and binge-fests became a much more massive part of society than ever previously conceived. If anything, people started wondering two things. (1) Would this ever end? (2) Will we run out of shows and get to the end of the internet?

Things eventually opened back up this past year, and we were able to start pulling back some of the normalcy we lost. But we still had all these great shows coming out and the propensity to watch whatever we can. A lot of good stuff still came out during 2021, and there are still hours in your week to fire up your preferred streaming services and keep consuming whatever great television magic you have yet to watch. Or maybe you start the rewatch of a show you really loved to see what you missed the first time.

As we prepare for what we hope is a much better 2022, I’m throwing down my 10 favorite shows of 2021 with a plethora of honorable mentions. I’m obviously going to miss some of your favorite shows in this space, so please add to the conversation in the comments and we can get a little streaming TV club going.

Here’s how the power rankings work:

• We’re trying to keep this to shows/seasons that were released in 2021, but that may not be the case across the board. That’s the goal unless something really just hit in 2021 as people started binging more.

• If I have a show ahead of another show, there’s no reason to ask why one is ranked ahead of the other. The answer is pretty simple: I think that show was better. If a show isn’t on the list at all, I simply haven’t started it or I didn’t like it.

• A big factor in this is not just whether I enjoyed the show but also whether I would rewatch it.

• This is supposed to be fun, so let’s have fun with it.

1. ‘I Think You Should Leave,’ Netflix

What’s the deal with it? The second season of this series was my favorite thing I watched in 2021. You can even include movies into that conversation. The brilliant mind of Tim Robinson has outdone himself and everybody else. If you’re not familiar with this show, both short seasons are available on Netflix. I was late to the party with the first season and regret not joining in on the conversation and the absurdity from the get-go. The second season has some truly iconic sketches that should be in everybody’s lexicon. I will never forget the moment I started watching the sketch in which there is court testimony about insider trading, and the text conversation keeps getting interrupted with comments about this co-worker’s new fedora and its safari flaps. The co-worker is in the courtroom as they weave in roasting this guy and stories about his hat and his insistence on wearing it.

They poke fun at shows where people dress up in disguise and mess with people in public settings and it leads to existential dread.  A man worrying about a baby not liking him because he somehow knows about the man’s past. A group of colleagues at dinner and one of them is so regretful about what he ordered for dinner, and he passive-aggressively wants someone else’s food. Wanting to get back at a magician for roasting him when he volunteers for a trick. These are just some of the ones that will leave you in stitches. If you’re not up on the first season, you can power through that quickly. We’re talking 12 episodes in total for the first two seasons, and we’re all waiting for Season 3 to pour out of the insane mind of Robinson.

Would I rewatch it? I throw this show on all the time. I will randomly just hunt out certain sketches when I think of them and start laughing to myself. Then I just end up watching the entire series from that sketch to the end.

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2. ‘South Side,’ HBO Max

What’s the deal with it? I don’t know why HBO Max doesn’t advertise “South Side” heavily. This is a brilliant comedy that has completed its second season, and I’ve laughed my ass off through all 20 episodes. We follow people in the South Side of Chicago, mostly working for a rent-to-own company. Hijinks happen constantly as they’re trying to figure out ways to make money and also get their own side hustles off the ground whenever they present themselves. There is also a cast of characters from the rent-to-own world who have to collect money or rented items from others, and these people sprinkled throughout this world will leave you howling in laughter. We mostly follow Simon (co-creator Sultan Salahuddin) and Kareme (Kareme Young) in their post-community-college journey into the real world.

Something really incredible happens with this show, though. When you have a cast of so many random characters in short, bit parts, it’s tough to make you care and be excited whenever someone else gets the spotlight. “The Office” did a great job of cultivating that kind of world throughout its nine-season run, during which you got enthusiastic whenever one of the side characters was focused on for a scene or two. “South Side” has managed to pull this off, too. Co-creator Diallo Riddle’s character does this brilliantly. Whenever the twins Kareme and Quincy are on the screen, it’s great. The side stories of officers Turner and/or Goodnight? So funny. All the random workers in the rent-to-own store? Every single one of them could have entire episodes spin off on them and it would be perfect television. The writing depth and the execution of this show are pretty unmatched this year.

HBO Max should be pumping this show constantly.

Would I rewatch it? Absolutely. It’s one of those shows where I’m sure I’ve missed so much during the first watch. It feels a little like “Arrested Development” in that way, where you could watch a second time and realize you missed so many little cues to what was coming.

3. ‘Ted Lasso,’ Apple TV+

What’s the deal with it? Season 2 of “Ted Lasso” came out this year, after the first season had been such a joy and a sneaky find during the first year of the pandemic. And what happened? The typical internet activity of trying to crap all over something that was good and everybody loved. The first couple of episodes of the second season of this show do feel a little disjointed. They feel like one-offs to what seemed to be a pretty great story and execution of a show. Some people said the show got a little too cute and tried too hard. In reality, by the end of the second season, the creators and writing team have crafted a great story. It’s woven all together in an incredible way, and yes, it took a bit of a strange pathway to get there. I understand why it didn’t feel like the first season to everybody, and that’s troubling or disappointing to some.

I actually appreciated that they didn’t just go with a cookie-cutter formula. All the actors on this show own their characters, and it’s hard to think of them in any other light. They deal with depression and anxiety and PTSD and even just the stress of finding a new partner in the world in very real ways. Talk of acceptance and moving on with your life in a new field and even couples therapy and the pitfalls of what that can feel like. All the while, they stayed true to the characters. Hannah Waddingham continues to crush this role. Nick Mohammed as Nate had such a great turn and evolution to his character and his relationship with Ted. I think you’re out of your mind if you don’t believe this show crushed it in Season 2.

Would I rewatch it? I’ve seen the first season all the way through in the double digits. I’ve watched the second season three times already, and I truly love the journey they take us on. Yes, this is so rewatchable.

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4. ‘Curb Your Enthusiasm,’ HBO Max

What’s the deal with it? Larry David has done it again. The 11th season of “Curb Your Enthusiasm” feels a lot like how we were talking about LeBron James in 2019-20 when he led the Los Angeles Lakers to a championship. We kept exclaiming “Year 17!” every time he defied physics, defied the aging process and did the spectacular. The premise of this season, as we continue to follow the infuriating yet enlightening world of Larry, is ridiculous. It all stems from a law in Santa Monica in which you have to have a protective fence around your pool. From there, Larry and everybody in his world unfold a storyline that never gets tired and never feels like a corny old guy complaining about the world today. Maybe that was happening a little bit in Season 10, but this season hits on every note.

There are two standout performances in this season that I can’t get over. Tracey Ullman as Irma Kostroski, the city councilperson Larry is trying to woo in order to repeal this pool fence law, shows why she’s been a legend of comedy for decades. She is so unredeemable and gross and just grating on even the ridiculousness of Larry as a person. She manages to sink into this character without it ever being cartoonish. It’s just real and disgusting and hilarious as she plays off everybody in each scene, stealing everything. But it’s Keyla Monterroso Mejia as Maria Sofia who truly has stolen this season.

She’s the horrible actress Larry has been blackmailed into including in his latest TV show creation, “Young Larry.” Keyla plays a character who is so uncomfortably bad at acting and auditioning and reading the tone of every single line of dialogue. Every instinct she has for acting is wrong. Flirtatious when it would never call for it. Shouting a line when it doesn’t make sense. Unnecessarily aggressive. Keyla deserves an Emmy for what she’s done in this role.

Would I rewatch it? Is there a season of “Curb” that isn’t rewatchable? I will absolutely rewatch this season multiple times. I can’t get enough of how cringe-worthy some of these performances are, in the best way.

5. ‘Mythic Quest,’ Apple TV+

What’s the deal with it? I was late to the party with “Mythic Quest,” but I’m already dying for the next season. Luckily, Season 3 is on the way. This is from the mind of Rob McElhenney, who co-created “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.” To get more into the mind of his vision with that show and show creation in general, he’s joined Glenn Howerton and Charlie Day from “It’s Always Sunny” in podcast form to rewatch and discuss every episode of that 15-season-and-growing series. This series is different but has a lot of the same tones of irredeemable characters whom you end up sort of rooting for anyway. This is set in the world of video game creation. There are a lot of similar vibes and tone to “Silicon Valley,” except this is about the open-world video game expansion hustle.

It’s about figuring out how to grow that world and be accepted by influencer children streaming the gaming experience and at the same time just being bratty and entitled. Competing egos within that creation world are trying to get as much credit as possible for a product that has hit stagnation. And then there’s a pivot halfway through Season 2 because the pandemic hit them, as well. If you like “Sunny,” you’ll like this show. If you like “Silicon Valley,” you’ll like this show. It’s another one of those Apple TV+ gems that nobody seems to know exist.

Would I rewatch it? I haven’t rewatched this show yet, but I will definitely do it. I’ve rewatched “Silicon Valley” a few times, and this has the same rewatch feel to it.

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6. ‘The Great British Bake Off,’ Netflix

What’s the deal with it? I will not apologize for loving the latest installment of “The Great British Bake-Off.” Yes, it’s a baking competition show. Yes, you should be watching it even if you don’t bake. The creativity of these bakers is impressive. The struggles of figuring out minimal instructions in the technical challenges are something everybody can relate to when they’re trying to follow the recipe for something they’ve probably never made before. It’s for people who have been bakers for decades and people who just picked it up a year ago but seem to be savants. Comedy is strewn throughout each challenge and presented in a way where you’ll choose favorites and root for the downfall of others. My most challenged opinion of this year didn’t exist in the NBA Power Rankings or any prediction I might have made. It was in realizing that contestant Jürgen is a villain displaying faux humility and that we should actually root against this seemingly innocent and humble German baker. Watch this show and you’ll pick a side. I just hope you’re on the right side of history.

Would I rewatch it? I don’t rewatch many seasons of “GBBO” because it kind of just exists as this moment in time. But this was a fun season, so I might consider it at some point.

7. ‘Squid Game,’ Netflix

What’s the deal with it? First and foremost, nothing infuriates me more than someone calling it “Squid Games.” It’s not plural at the end. Please stop calling it “Squid Games.” It makes you sound like an old person. I loved it. I thought the entire season was fantastic and nearly flawlessly executed. Korean television and cinema continue to just provide banger after banger. The vision and execution of Korean entertainment should set the tone for everything else coming out.

It’s shot and edited beautifully. The acting and the story are excellent. The world that is built entices everybody enough to want to learn more about it, sort of in the way “John Wick” did in its first installment. Lee Jung-jae is perfect in portraying just how endearing and yet revolting a character personality can be. He provides great depth to the character. Jung Hoyeon provided a smoldering quiet to her character that made me wonder if we should have an entire spin-off dedicated to her story. The old man Oh Yeong-su carried moments of heartwarming sentiments and tragic feelings of helplessness. This show was great from start to finish, and I can’t wait for Season 2.

Would I rewatch it? I think I’ll rewatch this season of “Squid Game” right before the second season comes out, but I don’t know after that.

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8. ‘Reservation Dogs,’ Hulu/FX

What’s the deal with it? I had never heard of this until a few group chats kept going on and on about how good this show is. I finally gave it a shot, and it turns out the praise and the hype are more than justified. The story follows a group of Native American teenagers in Oklahoma. They want to leave the reservation and find a new life in California, which isn’t anything new in terms of “young person wants to leave small hometown and go live in the presumed glitz and glamour of California.” However, this isn’t just some pull-yourself-up-by-your-bootstraps attempt to make it out.

These four teenagers attempt to gather the money through theft, scams and petty crimes. It’s hilarious, and it touches your heart. It’s another great experience from the brilliant mind of Taika Waititi. There is so much depth to the traditions of this culture and how heavily those weigh on every decision to ditch it for greener pastures while the characters also feel completely chained to it in good and bad ways. I don’t want to give too much away because it should just be experienced by going in fresh. Just know that this show is really good, and you probably haven’t seen the execution of this type of story in this way before.

Would I rewatch it? I think so. This is a smart show. It’s really well done. And I kind of dig the gritty vibe it has with the way it’s shot. I’ll want to experience this again.

9. ‘Succession,’ HBO Max

What’s the deal with it? I’ll fully admit that for a long time the latest installment of “Succession” wasn’t really hitting for me. It lingered on what felt like the same conversations over and over within the Roy empire about whom to pick in the battle for control over the company. I didn’t feel like Kendall Roy was actually doing much of anything, and everything felt like it was stuck in neutral. That also didn’t mean it wasn’t good. The way the show is written and presented is still brilliant. It still sucks you into the world. I just needed far more action and plot progression rather than so much setting the table for what was to come.

That said, the final three episodes of Season 3 were bangers. Once the ball started rolling downhill, the momentum couldn’t be stopped. Kendall’s posturing and hollow sense of accomplishment. Shiv and Tom’s bizarre marriage dynamic. Greg’s battle with … Greenpeace? One of the funniest moments in TV this year happened with an improperly delivered sexting picture from Roman and his reaction as he and others realize it was delivered to the wrong person. I couldn’t stop laughing at it, right up until the final episode, when the payoff for the entire slow build of the season hits beautifully.

Would I rewatch it? With all “Succession” seasons, I’ll rewatch this one right before the next one comes out.

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10. ‘Love Life,’ HBO Max

What’s the deal with it? Two seasons of “Love Life” brought two very different storylines. I’m new to this show, having just binged it in the past month, but I really enjoyed the two paths it took in trying to delve into the dating lives of two very different people. The first season follows a 20-something woman in New York played by Anna Kendrick. In the search for her person, we get several different looks, not only at people she’s dated over the years but also in how she handles the complicated relationships she has with her mom and her best friend. Flings that go nowhere. Flings that come back later on. Marriages that fall apart and random encounters that shape the future of someone. I’m not the biggest Anna Kendrick fan, but I did find the first season to be pretty good.

The second season attacks it from the man’s perspective. William Jackson Harper (of “The Good Place” fame) is a man with a failing marriage and a plunge back into the dating pool. The story of how he navigates the end of his marriage and tries to figure out the risks of doing this search all over again strikes a delicate but accurate balance into the psyche of getting back out there. Old flames light back up. Things move too fast in other explorations of relationships. There’s the one woman he can’t seem to escape and even a glamping experience gone wrong. Harper really shows out in this season, and his stardom feels undeniable. It’s a good show, even if you’re not typically the sappy sort. It feels pretty honest in approaching the inner dynamics of what finding love is for a lot of people.

Would I rewatch it? I don’t think I will, but that doesn’t really seem like a bad thing. This exists in its own world, like one of those holiday movies that are just a bunch of vignettes, only it’s good.

Honorable mention quick-hitters

• “Dopesick,” Hulu: This show took a bit for me to get into it, so if you give it a go, you might need to slog through some of the slow story-building. But it’s a pretty incredible and infuriating look into the story of opioids being peddled in the Appalachians. Michael Keaton is brilliant in this series, but it’s some pretty heavy material.

• “WandaVision,” Disney+: I’m not the biggest Marvel/comic book movie person. However, this show was clever in how it spun off with what I thought was an ancillary character. Elizabeth Olsen is fantastic in this, and Kathryn Hahn continues to be one of the most versatile, underrated actors in show business. If you’ve been on social media, you’ve seen Hahn with one of the most iconic wink memes ever created. It originated in the turn in this show.

• “Mare of Easttown,” HBO Max: Kate Winslet coming down from the mountaintops of the film industry to show out in a great performance in this limited series just reminds everybody how ridiculously talented she is. It’s a murder-mystery show, which feels like a dime a dozen these days, but this one kept me enthralled throughout its run.

• “Hacks,” HBO Max: Another admission here: I haven’t finished the season of “Hacks.” I got to it late, and didn’t get to the end by the time I needed to write this. But it’s great, and you can see why the awards season has swooned so hard for this show. Jean Smart (great actor) and Hannah Einbinder (fantastic standup comic) set up a fascinating working relationship between the outdated comic and the young up-and-comer.

• “Colin in Black and White,” Netflix: I wanted more of this show and more of the story outside of Colin Kaepernick’s high school days, but that was probably just greedy of me. “Colin in Black and White” gives us some great backstory on what he felt like as an adopted child figuring out his relationship and identity in his own race and culture, long before we ever got to his protesting police brutality and being used as a pawn in a political war to divide the country further. The way this is shot and displayed is different, and I just wanted to see more than six episodes.