WhoBob's Top 10 Best TV Shows of 2023

[WhoBibbles]

Wait what?

Why the fuck is this happening when 2024 is about to close in the next 3 months?

Well, I wanted to make this list for quite sometime due to my annual tradition of best tv lists but this year and the last year, I was slacking hard on certain shows to make it feel complete. Now that I caught up on a few, I can finally keep up with this project. Without further ado, here it is!

WHOBOB'S TOP 10 BEST TV SHOWS OF 2023

Now before I get to my top 10, I wanna start with some honorable mentions:

Spoiler

 

- Harley Quinn (Max): This show is still pretty good and I'm enjoying a bunch. I love that this season tested Harley and Ivy's relationship to the max cuz they were seperated with different goals throughout the season and I found it very compelling to watch. And animation got back to its charming s1-2 roots and not choppy s3 stuff. I do have two major issues though. How the writers deal with Nightwing left a bad taste in my mouth. Particularly because he gets objectified in a way that removes any of Dick's agency. I'm all for male characters being sex symbols and Nightwing is the biggest example in big two comics but how it's portrayed in this season is pretty much not it. And my other issue was that Lex Luthor, despite being a fitting villain for this season, kinda got grating towards the end and I'm all for moving on from him. I'm both excited and nervous about this season because of what it was set up at the end and i hope the next season is the final cuz the hype for the show died and I can't see it sustain itself much longer before Max chopping block comes to get it.

- Star Wars: The Bad Batch (Disney+): I'm only gonna be talking about season 2 and not season 3 (that's for 2024 list). I was pretty lukewarm towards season 1 of this show. It started off strong but other than it and the finale and a few more exceptional eps, they didn't bring their A-Game which was disappointing. Season 2, while not amazing, got to do much more than season 1 due to developing underutilized characters and giving them their own arc throughout and this season feeling less fillery and more exciting eps coming through. Even the mission of the week eps advanced the plot or developed the characters. The new villain they introduced at back half of the season was incredibly menacing and scary. And how the season ends is quite strong. season finale is one of the best eps of the show, truly emotional experience and one of my fav eps of any star wars tv. I'm so glad they improved their game this season and you can bet your ass season 3 is even much better which you'll see in the next list.

- The Other Two (Max): This show was never one of my favorites but it made me laugh all the way from the start to finish. It's not high on the list cuz I don't have too much strong feelings about it but last season was def their best and even if it got cancelled, they managed to do a satisfying conclusion. The journey Dubek family took was fascinating to see and I was happy with how their arcs ended.

- Helluva Boss (Youtube): First half of s2 wasn't always the best but when it was good, it was so damn good. Particularly whenever it focused on Blitzo and Stolas' relationship. And bonus points goes to how much they developed Fizzarolli in s2e6 and s2e7. I totally get why people are turned off by Vivzie's shows but I really get a kick out of them and I hope second half of the season will be even better than first half.

- Our Flag Means Death (Max): I praised s1 so much, so it is disappointing to see s2 not living up the higher standard s1 was. It's not 100% the crew's fault cuz the execs shortened the season which was resulted in less character dynamics throughout. And I was particularly upset by one of the decisions in the finale which I don't think fit the character or the narrative. But as my distaste for Taika Waititi grows stronger, relationship between Rhys Darby's Stede and Waititi's Ed was just as powerful as the first season was. I love their chemistry in this show and I'm forever thankful for David Jenkins to give me a great queer pirate show, even if it got cancelled before it could reach its final season.

- Star Wars: Visions (Disney+): Season 2 of this show was just as great as the first season was. I don't have too much to say, other than that please make more of this. I love the idea of season 2 giving more countries' animation studios to create their own unique sandboxes, so I hope to see more of it.

- My Adventures With Superman (Adult Swim): I'm only gonna focus on season 1 of this show as season 2 aired this year but first season, pretty damn great! I love this show's version of Clark, Lois and Jimmy so much. This was the kind of Superman adaptation I was looking for. Action packed and heartfelt Superman show without making Superman a dull character. He is a character people often fuck up but this show proves why we should root for Clark. I never like whenever people say Superman is the best of us. I think he should be allowed to be flawed and deeply human just like us and the show makes him a three dimensional character without losing the core of what makes Superman tick.

Now let's do the TOP 10.

#10: The Patrick Star Show (Nickelodeon)

A NICKELODEON SHOW FINALLY CRACKING THIS LIST? I'll be damned. Yes I have been championing this show early on and I'm very happy to include this on my list. The show became one of my new favorite shows and the best SpongeBob content (besides Cosmic Shake game) in years and I'm not shitting. Somehow Patrick and his colorful family have lots of stories to tell and I'm in love with it 100%. The season this got a bump on the list is because they changed the show from script driven to storyboard driven and my god, there is such a significant improvement here. Also the fact that the show has new people working on it that makes it feel refreshing in a way the main show cannot be anymore. Animation is stellar, the show's wackiness and cartoony vibes are a whole different league, the humor makes me laugh throughout and they make such imaginative episodes like parodying dumb youtube media critics and shows being overmerchandized in real life. Patrick for a long time was my least favorite character because of how writers dumbed him down to extreme in the main show but his own show did an excellent job making him as loveable as he was in those first three seasons and giving him a family he can bounce off with who are their own unique characters and not Patrick clones. Please give this show another chance, I was very pleased with how this turned out overall.

#9: Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake (Max)

Here I thought i was done with Adventure Time franchise but they just keep rolling me back in. This show was a pleasant surprise given it had two concepts that have outgrown their welcome: Fionna & Cake and multiverse. But despite all, the show gave its own unique twist on both of those concepts. Expanding on the lore and making me give crap about the duo for the first time since the first episode. I love that this franchise gives wonderful DLCs with Distant Lands and now this, especially with how much it developed Simon as a character in ways I did not expect. The first season was a great time with incredible visuals and worlds, exciting action and an intriguing story. And I love that this franchise growing with its audience is shown even clearer with making this show mature without making it feel edgy. Please just give us more Adventure Time franchise stories, I'll eat it up and it only gets better and better as opposed to growing stale.

#8: Loki (Disney+)

I wasn't gonna give another season of this show a chance, despite loving the first season because I have gotten tired of MCU but enough convincing, i gave it a go and my god, It's even better. If we cannot include Agents of SHIELD as a canon MCU show (which is fine by me), this show takes the cake for being the best MCU show ever made. I love that despite this being a different version of Loki, they ended up giving him an excellent redemption arc like the main universe Loki got. Only this time, it was even more impactful. I love this show fleshing out its cast even further, giving characters like Mobius and Hunter B-15 more to do as well as giving us new additions like OB. I only have a small issue that I wish Sylvie did more this season but I think it was good to see where her character ended up after the effects of s1 finale. I hope this is the end for Loki cuz this season ended Loki's arc on a high note that I cannot see revisiting him and it's clear Tom Hiddelston wants to move onto other projects which is reasonable. So yeah, thanks for giving us this stellar show.

#7: Doom Patrol (Max)

I'm so fucking glad Zaslav did not write off the second half of the final season of this show cuz the wait at the time was painful to sit through and we weren't sure we'd see the end of it but here we are. One of the best superhero shows of all-time reaching its excellent conclusion. I can see some people not being into the big bad of this season but i thought they were a great antagonist for the character to deal with while they had to deal with their own mortality throughout the season. I can safely say that I'm satisfied with how these characters' arcs ended. It really fit with them overcoming their traumas and improving as human beings. And I love that the show got to keep being just as insane and mindblowing as it was before. The humor was on point all the way to the end as well. I'm sad that the standalone live-action dc era is coming to an end soon with gunnverse is approaching soon (with only superman & lois is left in chopping block) but at least I'm thankful to DC for giving us this wonderful show.

#6: The Last of Us (HBO)

Adding this show to the list is tough now given what comes next for it is the inevitable pro-zionist messages because TLOU part 2 featuring them and Druckmann being zionist himself as well. So I really don't know If I'm gonna watch next seasons with the current genocide to Palestinians going on. But I decided I'll keep this show on my 2023 list because at the time, It really was a show I loved watching. With first season adapting the first game, they did a great job with it. I loved the journey Joel and Ellie took in the first season and what obstacles they had to deal with. It's such a cool show with scary monsters and violent action sequences. And I'll always be grateful for giving us an excellent Old Man Yaoi story in episode 3 which is perhaps one of my favorite episodes of any TV and It made me cry so much. And how this season ends is so satisfying that I really do not need to see what comes next for these characters even though I think Part 2 game gets too much heat for wrong reasons imo. So I'm good with my endpoint being here.

#5: Doctor Who (BBC One/Disney+)

I can't believe I'm putting this show on my list again! I really really disliked Chris Chibnall era of Doctor Who and i think it wasted Jodie Whittaker's Doctor and her companions hard here. I was worried for the inevitable Chibnall writing the 60th anniversary special but surprise, Russel T. Davies came back to the show with giving us not just one 60th year anniversary special but THREE. And each are wonderful on their own merit. As someone whose favorite companion is Donna Noble, these specials gave me not just great fanservice of her and David Tennant returning to play the Doctor again but also further recontextualizing these characters' chemistry and further developint them without making it feel like a nostalgia bait. It really felt like it was carrying on Steven Moffat era Who's themes and making something gold out of Chibnall's shit concepts. As a fan, I was furfilled for the first time since the end of Moffat's run. And without spoiling much, 2023 of Doctor Who gave us incredible Ncuti Gatwa as The Doctor and his performance was so lovely in his introduction as well as his first episode which was a cute xmas story wiith the new companion Ruby Sunday. Unfortunately Ncuti's first season, despite having great standalone episodes, did not live up to my full expectations because of how RTD made a mess out of the season finale and not developing Ncuti Doctor and Ruby's dynamic enough because of just 8 episodes. So don't expect it to make the 2024 list but 2023 Doctor Who? Stellar baby.

#4: Succession (HBO):

Having finally finished the show this year, the rumors are true, It really DID live up the hype. I wish I got into it sooner because my god, what a stellar TV. I have a soft spot for characters who are truly the worst and the show gave us an entire cast of shitbags who are trying to backstab each other on more than one occassion. Don't be scared by this show being entirely about a corporation drama of Logan Roy's children trying to take the mantle the become the next CEO. It's much more fun that it looks. We have 4 seasons of characters saying and doing truly wild shit that keeps you entertained while being on the edge of what moves they do next. I just love the mess of the Roy family empire. Kendall Roy is the face of depression, Roman Roy is a total disgusting nutjob, Shiv Roy is manipulative and degrading . Logan Roy is the most hateable CEO and father to his kids. So on and so on. Their antics never get old. You love to despise them. And the final season of this show was particularly strong for giving us an excellent foil for the kids to deal with. And it had one of the best episodes of any TV ever, Connor's Wedding which deserves every bit of praise it can get. And I was so satisfied with how the show concluded with a stellar 1.5 hour finale. I'm gonna cherish the final moments of this excellent job as long as I can.

#3: Barry (HBO):

HBO cannot stop giving brilliant shows, can it? Final season of Barry went into directions I couldn't expect at all. Truly blowing my mind with every decision it could get while being arguably the darkest season the show had without losing its sense of humor. I love that this show was a great companion piece to Succession, both running their final seasons on the same day of the week and even having their finales back to back, further complimenting each other. Like Succession, this show had an excellent finale and even more surprising twists you could come up for the ending of these characters. Bill Hader came a long way from being one of the core writers or actors of SNL to delivering a beautiful show that tackles trauma, morality and the cycle of violence. And I'm excited to follow him wherever he goes, especially now developing another comedy show to HBO. Please give this show a shot, its an easy binge and every single thing it goes is rock solid.

#2: The Owl House (Disney Channel):

Fuck It has been more than a year since the show ended? Thats crazy. Despite airing two episodes in 2023 (and both being final episodes of the show), I'm putting it high on the list cuz the finale was one of the best experiences I have had with this community ever. It was truly an eventful hour of TV (yep, 55 minutes!) that gave satisfying conclusion to these characters despite the crew having their biggest challenge yet because of Disney shortening the final season to 3 oversized episodes which is insane. Kickass action scenes, marvelous animation, beautiful voice acting, humor stilll being on point, being such a heartfelt story? What else to be said that hasn't been said? Luz is one of the greatest characters of TV ever and I'm happy to see how her journey concluded here. As well as her weirdo cast. So that's it. Thank you Dana Terrace and co. for this beautiful show.

 

and now the moment you have been waiting for...

 

#1: Fellow Travelers (Showtime):

It took me a while to finish this show but when I finished it, I realized this had to be the #1. This miniseries is perfect. Just perfect. A heartwrenching period story about two gay men that tackles McCarthyism, segregation, war and AIDS crisis alongside. It's a heavy show as you can tell, so it wasn't easy to digest it all but my god, the journey was worth it in the end. You root so much for these characters despite fucking up their relationship and themselves in ways more than one because their relationship is so strong and unbreakle no matter how the world tells otherwise. Matt Bomer and Jonathan Bailey deliver brilliant performances and have so much chemistry with each other. Despite the show being heavy, it's also a very hot and sensational queer tale to watch. I'm in the mindset that the shows and the movies should be allowed to be horny because it adds so much to the characters' emotional state and the chemistry they bring. And I don't just say that because this is a queer show made for a queer person like me. This was one of the best and the most emotional shows I have ever seen in my life. It impacted me so much.

 

And there you go, 2023 was such a strong year for TV and I can't wait to see you guys on my 2024 list!