TOP 10 tv shows OF 2018
BEST OF 2018
While 2018 saw the return of a lot of our favourite shows, what most surprised us most was the brand news shows grabbing us, particularly on the streaming platform Netflix who in 2018 spread into new genres.
The following Top 10 list was compiled by Dylan Blight, Cherie Henriques, Ashley Hobley, and Nicholas Prior.
10.) orange is the new black Season 6 (netflix)
Season 6 of Orange is the New Black has a different feel, setting and formula following on from previous seasons. The show has always had good laughs, addictive characters and enjoyable stories and this season was no different. It continues to be a binge-worthy series highlighting many larger issues as we got to finalise many of the characters’ stories in this season.
It is disappointing that we will all be released from prison and see the end of the series in Season 7 next year.
9.) nailed it! Season 1 (netflix)
There are no words to describe how much this show makes us laugh. It’s Pinterest baking fails at its best and it’s an absolute riot. We never knew people could be so hopeless and hilarious in the kitchen and although the contestants do surprise you sometimes, Nicole Byer – the host of the show – will be quick to highlight their ridiculous oversights in a way that will always put a smile on your face. A must binge.
8.) sharp objects (HBO, showtime)
Directed by Jean-Marc Vallée, who in 2017 directed the fantastic ensemble series Big Little Lies, this new HBO series based on the book by Gone Girl author Gillian Flynn is dark, twisted and features very complex characters with as complicated performances.
Amy Adams portrayal of Camille Preaker is haunting as a reporter returning to her hometown to investigate a recent brutal murder of a young girl. Returning, she not only uncovers the dark and twisted story slowly behind the girls’ death, but also has to tackle her past in the small town, and her Mother, played by quite terrifying Patricia Clarkson.
Sharp Objects isn’t an easy watch, but it was one of the most complicated and deep shows of 2018.
7.) preacher season 3 (Stan)
Another off the wall, batshit insane 10 episodes. The already fantastic cast was joined by some great actors for the third season including, Betty Buckley, Jeremy Childs, Colin Cunningham and Jonny Coyne.
The third season dove deeper into the Heaven/Hell mythos and it only gets more violent, weird and hectic as Jesse Custer comes face-to-face with several adversaries without the use of his power to control anyone.
Don’t sleep on this show; catch up before what could possibly be the final season in 2019.
6.) brooklyn nine-nine season 5 (NBC, universal channel)
You only needed to look at Twitter in the hours following the cancellation announcement from FOX was to see how much love people have for it. So much love, by so many, that it was picked for another season by NBC within 24 hours.
Brooklyn Nine-Nine continues to be one of the best comedies on television with an incredible ensemble cast that is sensationally led by Andy Samberg and Andre Braugher.
Season 5 pushed the show in more serious directions with Rosa come out as bisexual and an episode with the squad dealing with Rosa being involved in an active shooter situation. Jake also proposed and then married Amy in a beautiful season finale and this season also had ‘The Box’, one of the best half hours of television this year.
5.) wild wild country (netflix)
This six-episode documentary series looks into a weird event that happened in the early 1980s in Antelope, Oregon, USA when Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, a guru from India moves onto a giant area of land in Antelope with his followers seemingly overnight and begins building a town there.
What starts as a very odd and legally interesting story soon dissolves into one of terror, espionage and violence as the tensions between the followers of Rajneesh and the local small town build and more authorities throughout U.S government become involved in the ever-growing and building town.
This series also features Ma Anand Sheela, the woman who famously appeared on Australian television and uttered the phrase ‘tough titties’ which quickly become, possibly, Australia’s first meme.
It’s six episodes that absolutely grip you from start to finish. One of the most interesting and odd stories to be told in a docu-series in some time and it’s told with near-perfect pacing and great storytelling.
4.) better call saul season 4(stan)
Season 4 saw Jimmy McGill dealing with the death of his brother Chuck from the finale of the previous season in a manner those around him didn’t find too appropriate, while “Slippin’ Jimmy” seems to make a return as Jimmy struggles not being able to practice law.
This season also saw the most Breaking Bad connections in the show so far as Nacho got deeper involved in Gus Fring’s affairs with Hector Salamanca and we even see the appearance of The Twins. Mike as well dives deeper and deeper into the underground world with Gus and things start taking place for what we know them to be when Breaking Bad’s Walt shows up in several years.
What makes this season a standout, however, is the story of Jimmy and his partner Kim, who as much as she may try to help and love Jimmy; there appears to be no escape from the path Jimmy’s life is set on and the one we know he’ll end up on, as Saul Goodman.
3.) The good place season 3 (netflix)
The Good Place continues to be one of the most creative pieces of television being produced and it is a minor miracle it is still being made by a major network in America. Too many times we have seen great, out-of-the-square TV shows meet a swift end on a major commercial channel, but The Good Place is now assured of a 4th season. And the best part, is we have no idea what that season is going to look like because this show has an uncanny knack of surprising you and heading in a totally different direction than you were expecting.
Kristen Bell continues to be the glue that holds this show together, Manny Jacinto steals scenes as the naive and oblivious Jason Mendoza while D’Arcy Camden delivered an Emmy worthy performance in ‘Janet(s).’
The only gripe we have with the show is the bad Australian accents that feature this season which are made worthwhile by the appearance of Larry Hemsworth, the insecure and often forgotten fourth Hemsworth brother.
2.) queer eye season 2 (netflix)
Easily the most feel-good television produced in 2018. If Season 1 didn’t hook you and get you totally emotional, Season 2 certainly will. Queer Eye is the embodiment of putting positivity into the world, with themes including self-love and acceptance, making positive changes in your life and a fresh outlook on life which are given to each lucky soul to meet the Fab 5.
The strength of the show is that it isn’t just about making people better on the outside, they also look to make everyone, the Fab Five included, better on the inside. Whether it’s a gay man coming out to his Stepmother, a Christian woman revealing how she chose to choose her gay son over her beliefs or a transgender man talking about how difficult his transition has been.
The Fab 5 are going to hit you right in the heart with Season 2 as they help all kinds of different people from various backgrounds, race, gender and sexual orientation self improve not just on the outside but on the inside too. Some of the best episodes of the show are in Season 2 and the Fab 5’s individual personalities and talents shine even more as they get to meet and help some truly unique individuals make better changes in their lives, all while making us grab the tissue box.
1.) The Haunting of hill house (netflix)
From Mike Flanagan and based on the book by Shirley Jackson comes this 10 episode series that is equal parts horror and family drama.
The Crain family moves into Hill House with the prospect of living there for a few years and fixing it up before being able to sell it off for a profit. Of course, soon freaky things start happening to everyone in the home and just as the audience begins wandering what is going to happen we flash forward to the current day. The family, now all mostly estranged, and living very different lives, don’t really talk about Hill House, or what happened to them that forces them to abruptly leave one night. An event though causes all of the family to have to get together for the first time in a long time and they’ll have to come head-to-head with their problems not only as a divided family but what thing is still haunting them from Hill House all these years later.
The Haunting of Hill House is a fantastically made horror show that builds the tension constantly, but at its heart is a family drama and the show knows that, using that as the driving force for the scares, tension and moment-to-moment building of the story and lore surrounding Hill House. From episode one to ten, it’s impossible to turn away.
TOP 5: THE BEST TV SHOWS OF 2018
Join Dylan and Ashley as they dive deeper into the top 5 winners from the Explosion Network’s Top 10 TV Shows of 2018 list and explain what makes each one unique in this special podcast.
