I didn't watch "Succession" or "Barry" and probably won't in the future. I keep meaning to start "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel," but it didn't happen this year. Nonetheless, I watched a lot of television - more than enough to have come up with a Top Ten episodes list for the year.
A quick reminder before we start that I'm a big genre nerd, don't watch enough comedies, and have a neverending "To Watch" list. I use the Emmy rules for cutoff dates, which means that this list covers everything from the summer of 2022 to the spring of 2023. Entries are unranked, and I'm limiting myself to one episode per show or miniseries. I'll try to keep spoilers to a minimum.
And here we go:
The Sandman, "The Sound of Her Wings" - This is not the version of this story that I had been imagining in my head for twenty years, but it's the one that was right for 2022. I couldn't have asked for a better Death in Kirby Howell Baptiste, and my biggest complaint about the season is that she only appeared in one episode. I like the second half, with the adaptation of "Men of Good Fortune" even better, thanks to the new tweaks to the ending, and Ferdinand Kingsley's Hob Gadling.
House of the Dragon, "The Lord of the Tides" - Paddy Considine's King Viserys only grew more compelling as he became more decrepit over time, finally making his most memorable appearance during a fight over the legitimacy of Rhaenyra's children. It's a fantastic reminder of how fragile the peace of Westeros is, and how much Viserys cares about his family. The episode represents the calm before the storm - and gave a great character a memorable sendoff.
Beef, "The Great Fabricator" - The show's penultimate episode is where our protagonists finally hit bottom. All the tensions between Danny and Amy have finally boiled over, and both characters are fully committed to destroying each other. The situation keeps escalating and escalating, resulting in the show's most elaborate action sequences. The whole series sometimes feels like rubbernecking a car crash, and at this point it's impossible to look away.
Andor, "One Way Out" - Jailbreak episodes are so much fun, and "Andor" has one of the best in recent memory. The show did a great job of setting up the oppressive world of the prison, and building up the stakes over the previous episodes, so I was expecting something special. I wasn't disappointed. The production quality is fantastic, Andy Serkis gives one of the best performances of his career, and I completely forgot I was watching a "Star Wars" show.
The Bear, "Review" - This one shot, incredibly tense real time episode sees a nightmare shift unfold at the Beef, where everything falls apart. Several ongoing storylines come to a head, there's violence, there's truth telling, and several characters hit their limits. This was the first episode of "The Bear" I saw, and it convinced me to watch the rest of the series. And the second time I watched it, with all the context of the other episodes, was an entirely different experience.
Documentary Now! "Trouver Frisson" - I only started watching "Documentary Now!" this past year, and found it to be one of the most delightful and most niche comedies of all time. And who is going to appreciate the show's recent, spot-on Agnes Varda spoof if not me? "Trouver Frisson" nails Varda's filmmaking style, her whimsical sense of humor, and her endless Gallic charms. They even go so far as to create a parody of her Cine Tamaris production logo!
Interview With the Vampire, "...The Ruthless Pursuit of Blood with All a Child's Demanding" - They aged up the child vampire, Claudia, into a teenager, along with changing her race and circumstances, but to very good effect. Bailey Bass is wonderfully unnerving as this episode introduces her - a spoiled, reckless brat who is denied maturity, pushing her to rebel in the most destructive ways she can. So much of the story hinges on Claudia, and this new version of her couldn't be more perfect.
Rick and Morty, "Bethic Twinstinct" - Beth and Jerry's screwed up relationship is one of my favorite parts of the show, and it's been far too long since it's gotten the spotlight. This episode throws Space Beth into the mix, who visits for Thanksgiving and ends up in a relationship with herself. How the situation resolves with Jerry is one of the most delightfully awful things that the show has ever done, reaching a level of depravity that will have the Smith kids in therapy for decades.
Fleishman is in Trouble, "God, What an Idiot He Was!" - I had some trouble picking an episode for this miniseries, but in the end I decided on the formally playful episode where Toby realizes that Rachel is in a relationship with someone else, as told through twelve individually labeled vignettes. He goes through multiple coping mechanisms, fantasies, deflections, and finally unhappy acceptance of reality. It's probably not the best episode, but the one I feel best exemplifies the show.
Better Call Saul, " Saul Gone" - Finally, my favorite series finale of the last year belonged to "Better Call Saul." The cameos weren't the best idea, and I didn't need all the flashbacks, but Saul's final appearance in court to answer for his crimes, and the final meeting between him and Kim remain near and dear to my heart. I'm very sorry to see this series - and this universe - come to an end.
Honorable Mentions:
Star Trek: Picard - Finally, it's pandering, it's repetitive, and it takes the easy way out, but it was so good to get a proper goodbye to the whole crew of the USS Enterprise D. "Star Trek" still has the best shared universe of any of the current franchises, and this reunion was seriously overdue.
Saturday Night Live, "Pedro Pascal" - 10/10. No notes.
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