The Best TV Shows of the 2010s Manage to Stand Out in the Greatest Decade of Television
The Best TV Shows of the 2010s Manage to Stand Out in the Greatest Decade of Television
The term "Peak TV" might have been coined almost exactly halfway through the 2010s, but the groundwork had been set long before the decade began. The origin of this era of prestige television is marked by the phenomena that was The Sopranos, which began in the waining days of the 20th century and ended in June of 2007. That same year The Sopranos ended, it passed the baton to Mad Men, AMC's '60s drama that carried Peak TV into the 2010s where it exploded across cable and streaming services. Mad Men ended in 2015, the same year the term Peak TV originated when we were two years into the next era of streaming originals, past the stunning conclusion of Breaking Bad, and well into the cultural fascination with the swords and dragons and fantasy that was Game of Thrones.
In just the last half of this decade, we've been overwhelmed with so much big-budget, high-concept content that it's almost impossible to pick just 10 stand-out TV shows that define these years. And for the purposes of this thought experiment, we stuck with shows that aired a majority of its seasons this decade. Since the influence of Mad Men and Breaking Bad resoundingly echoed throughout the 2010s, they couldn't be left off this list of the best TV shows of the decade. Though those shows are behind us, the future of television beyond this decade is even more promising, with talents like Donald Glover and Phoebe Waller-Bridge just getting started. We go into the 2020s with TV in a more intellectual, diverse place, which has produced a fundamental shift in what we watch and how we watch it. —Matt Miller
Game of Thrones
Though the quality has substantially dipped in its final two seasons, Game of Thrones remains the biggest TV event of our lifetime. This will likely be the last time a television show is experienced in this specific way—with viewers all tuning in simultaneously for a can’t-miss broadcast. And, despite some of the many writing failures, the show continues to provide some groundbreaking moments of television raising elevating the medium to unprecedented levels that only Hollywood has pulled off. Of course not everyone is going to be happy with how things shape up in the end, but this is Game of Thrones we’re talking about, it’s been nothing but pain from the beginning. —Matt Miller
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Veep
In season two of Armando Iannucci’s critically-adored Veep, Vice President Selina Meyer, played by the incomparable Julia Louis Dreyfus, asks the show’s resident douchebag, Jonah, to weigh in on a debate. “Settle something for me,” she says. “You like to have sex and you like to travel?” Jonah, unsure of what the VP is getting at, cautiously replies. “Yes, ma’am.” “Well, then you can fuck off!" she says, shoving him out of her office. It’s just one of the hundreds of crude insults that get hurled between the shameless characters in this outrageous show, which was meant to satirize American politics, but ended up reflecting them. Despite ending in 2019 after a brilliant seven-year run, Veep will likely stay relevant for decades, especially if our politics continue to trend towards the surreal. -Abigail Covington
8. Parks and Recreation (2009-2015)
Before everything went to shit, we had one lone beacon of government-employed optimism, deep inside in the endlessly bureaucratic, fictional town of Pawnee, Indiana: Leslie Knope. Even with its grouchiest character—the mustached, steak-shoveling Ron Swanson—Parks and Recreation showed what can be won when there’s a little heart buried in our windowless government offices. —Brady Langmann
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Bob's Burgers
In an oceanside vacation town, Bob Belcher runs a family restaurant with the help of his outgoing wife and three oddball children, where his best efforts to sling one-of-a-kind burgers are often foiled by family hijinks, local health inspectors, and hilarious disasters. Where other comedies mock their quirky characters, Bob’s Burgers celebrates them, returning inexorably to a celebration of the weirdnesses that make them wonderful. This long-running stalwart is available in full on Hulu, so stream it to your heart’s content.
6. Black Mirror (2011-)
As damning of humanity as it is haunting, Black Mirror spent most of the decade theorizing how our greatest technological advances could be our demise. Whether predicting headlines (“The National Anthem”), producing the most endearing love story of the decade (“San Junipero"), or changing the way we interact with film (“Bandersnatch”), Black Mirror led the charge on innovative storytelling. —Justin Kirkland
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Fleabag
Like Schitt’s Creek, Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s Fleabag is a recent addition to the comedy canon, but its impact on the genre is undeniable. The Amazon series has rejiggered the idea of what we deem comedy, leaning into the emotional complexity of the awkward and trying moments that can only be remedied by a laugh. While Fleabag may not leave you with an out and out chuckle every episode, its sly use of comedy will undoubtedly help you see the world through a different lens. -JK
The Americans
This is probably the one everyone’s told you to watch. Keri Russell and Mathew Rhys star as the Jennings, a seemingly normal American couple who are, in reality, Russian spies sent to D.C. In the height of the 1980s cold war, the Jennings go about their business without anyone—even their children—being aware of their real identities. While we’re talking Emmys, this how has had 18 nominations.
Mad Men
In 1960s New York City, Don Draper struggles to stay on top of Manhattan's competitive advertising industry. This show nabbed several Emmys and is acclaimed by many as one of the best drama series of all time.
3) Breaking Bad
Though it's easy to forget amidst Walter White and Jesse Pinkman's epic escapades, at the heart of Breaking Bad is a story about taking risks to support your family. And, in that respect, the story of Walter White—a chemistry teacher turned drug dealer—is a whole lot like the wild life of John Dutton.
Atlanta
After an impressive career in as a musician and actor, Donald Glover added Emmy and Golden Globe-winning showrunner to his astounding resume with Atlanta. With incredible clarity of vision and finely crafted, deeply human characters, Atlanta examines race in America like no other show on TV. It also brought mainstream success to a cast of some of the most promising young character actors in Brian Tyree Henry, Lakeith Stanfield, and Zazie Beetz. -MM
The era of "Peak TV" marked a fundamental shift in what we watch, where we watch it, and what the medium is capable of intellectually.