Alicia’s Top 10 TV Comedies of 2020

It’s the cruelest joke of all that 2020, one of the worst years in recent history, would produce some of television’s greatest comedies to date.

TV comedies have always been my go-to comfort watch and my coping mechanism in times of turmoil. So having a plethora of high-quality sitcoms and comedy-dramas to escape to for a few hours has been the greatest gift this year’s television could have given us.

The standards of comedy are changing, and many of the shows on this list are not present because they persevered through tired storylines. These shows are here because they never sacrificed quality over quantity. They never allowed harmful stereotypes to exist for the sake of landing a joke.

They didn’t just make us laugh this year — they reminded us of how good it feels to be unapologetically, problematically human.

In no particular order, here are the Top 10 TV Comedies that have made my laughter endless this year, and have proven that a sense of humour and a kind heart is all you need to succeed in life, and in storytelling.

1. Schitt’s Creek

In case you were doubting this Canadian comedy’s international acclaim and historical Emmy sweep, I’m here to clear things up. Schitt’s Creek is simply the best.

It’s better than all the rest.

Catherine O’Hara’s iconic Moira Rose and her collection of wigs cannot be outdone. Television will try but I’m afraid nothing can come close to besting that bonkers accent. Dan and Eugene Levy’s onscreen father-son relationship isn’t just a gimmick — it’s a full-blown power dynamic of catty banter and sincere frustration.

Alexis with her socialite stories, over-the-top personality, and heart of gold elevates this comedy even further. Annie Murphy’s beautifully articulated catchphrase, “Ew David” and electrifying performance of “A Little Bit Alexis” have helped cultivate this sitcom into the cult classic it was born to be.

Dan Levy’s idea to create a safe space free of homophobia, racism and judgment has given future comedies the motivation to transcend the toxic barriers they once considered indestructible while demonstrating that humour can be just as fluid as sexuality.

Schitt’s Creek has given us six perfect seasons of television that are as funny as they are heartfelt. This show never once sacrifices its message of love and laughter for success. The result is a flawless final season, a grand wedding for Patrick and David, and the happily-ever-after television’s funniest family deserves.

2. Brooklyn Nine-Nine

The glory days of The Office and Parks and Recreation are gone. But thanks to the Nine-Nine, gold-tier workplace comedies are not only alive — they are thriving!

Seven seasons and one cancellation later, Brooklyn Nine-Nine is still every bit the goofy office comedy we fell in love with; its merry crew of misfit cops still finding ways to elevate this high-energy comfort comedy to new heights.

This year, we witnessed very little fatigue from the long-running series as it introduced an epic year-long Halloween Heist, a Cheddar kidnapping that completely unhinges Captain Holt, and a Peraltiago baby with a name that would make Bruce Willis proud.

This and one hilarious Bird Box-style baby gender reveal builds to one of the series’ strongest season finales. Amy taking on a city power outage while in labour and Jake commandeering a horse to race to the birth of his child — the cool, cool, coolest of moments!

Few things bring me as much joy as Jake Peralta and the 99th precinct. Their family-like banter and long-running jokes still strike the perfect balance as this iconic series doubles down on its winning formula of laughter, quick rapport, and self-awareness.

It’s a comforting hug on a bad day, and it’s comedy at its funniest — it’s Brooklyn NINE-NINE!

3. Upload

On the surface, Upload is a bubbly afterlife adventure brimming with plenty of potential thanks to a virtual world with no limitations. But as we dig deeper into this charming comedy it becomes all too clear the humor is much more cynical, and the afterlife premise much darker too.

We finally get to see Robbie Amell in a leading role and with his likable charisma on full display, the jokes come easy and the banter between Nathan and Nora comes even easier.

For those that enjoy The Good Place’s gut-busting take on the afterlife but are looking for something with lovable qualities and bleak Black Mirror-esque drama, this is the grim sitcom for you.

Not only is this sci-fi comedy’s first season wicked smart in crafting a virtual reality with layers of humor, mystery, and vile capitalism, but the concept of a man-made afterlife being just as problematic as mankind is rather ironic. It occasionally drives its undead residents to the brink of insanity — and that is always fun to watch.

4. Ted Lasso

This year witnessed many comedies move away from the notion that for a concept to be funny it has to be at someone’s expense. No show seems to understand the renewed importance of good principals and a strong moral compass better than Ted Lasso.

An American football coach sent to England to coach a failed soccer team has plenty going for it in terms of laughs. However, it is Ted’s unwavering belief that a positive outlook on life can solve everything that gives this show its plucky sense of humor.

The comedy of Ted Lasso is smart. It comes at you in ways you never see coming and relies heavily on the relationship dynamics of its characters to ensure viewers care enough to laugh when tough-guy Roy knows the lyrics to “Let It Go” or Nate nearly faints at the sight of a job promotion.

People, by nature, are funny creators, and the premise taps into that, throwing us into the melting pot of cultures and personalities that clash at every turn. All while refusing to play into stereotyping or misogynistic trappings at the expense of a joke.

This brand of comedy could have easily been too much with Jason Sudeikis coming from an SNL background. Instead, Ted’s ray-of-sunshine attitude and ridiculous idioms never overpower the character’s sincerity. And for a male-dominated show, the women are written to be as witty, and as human, as their male counterparts.

This comedy holds itself accountable, and it’s ridiculously funny when it has no right to be. Ted Lasso is truly the great mystery of this year because, despite everything it seems to have sacrificed to set a better example, no freshman comedy has come close to matching this flawless first-season.

5. The Good Place

No comedy, in my opinion, will ever be able to execute its premise with the level of precision that The Good Place did across its four-season run — and still be so ridiculously funny!

Every insane twist and turn this final season delivered has kept us on our toes while clutching our gut from laughing too hard. It doesn’t matter if it’s Jason declaring his love to Janet in some extremely Jacksonville way, or Michael screaming things like, “I am returning my damn essence to the damn fabric of the damn universe!” — we have laughed with these dorks and boy, have we cried.

Michael Schur understands comedy, he’s created some of NBC’s best. But this brilliant take on the afterlife isn’t just a showcase of its bizarre comedy and talented actors (who are all too hot for their own good). It’s a reflection on the very fabric of humanity and what makes people fundamentally “good”.

It has tested viewers’ limits with philosophy lessons and played the smartest of us with plot twists that still sting. And in the end, we come away with hearts full of laughter and the idea that we can all be better people; deeply flawed but better.

Some comedies leave a legacy. The Good Place leaves us with hope and hundreds of alternate swear words. For that, we are forever in Team Cockroach’s debt.

6. What We Do in the Shadows

If this year has taught us anything, it’s that creatures of the undead are killing it — in the comedy department that is.

What We Do in the Shadows’ gothic-horror style mockumentary is a bloody masterpiece of physical comedy, satire, and playful silliness that directly contrasts the deadly vampire aesthetic these characters insist they exude.

These restless vampire roommates continue to impress us, not with their supernatural abilities but their inability to do anything right even with hundreds of years of practice. It’s the little things, like three bloodsuckers not believing in ghosts but believing a Superbowl party is actually a “Superb Owl” party.

This season also gives us elevated comedy in the form of wild-card human Guillermo, whose reluctance to accept his vampire-slaying skills is contrasted hilariously by a rising undead body count. The constant belligerence Guillermo endures from his master for his perceived weakness is a delightful dose of irony.

What We Do in the Shadows is the kind of comedy that starts with a very dumb idea and then takes that dumb idea very seriously — a combination I love deeply. These loveable monsters can’t figure out how to take the bus, but they have no problem running away with this undead comedy’s absurdity and erotic fantasies.

7. Julie and the Phantoms

In this year of uncertainty, we all craved familiarity. But who could have expected that familiarity to come in the form of a teen comedy-drama that instantly transports its viewers back to the days of Disney Original movies and High School Musical sing-alongs.

Kenny Ortega has always been brilliant at blending teen spirit and comedy to create hit franchises but Julie and the Phantoms is a different entity — one that transcends the confines of sexuality and toxic masculinity to bring us a beautiful balance of feel-good comedy, smart storytelling, and devastating drama.

The premise, which follows a nineties ghost band as they help musical prodigy Julie find her voice after her mother’s passing sounds laughable. But the plot is rock solid and the caliber of comedic timing these fresh new actors wield is no laughing matter.

Julie and our three ghosts are brilliantly fleshed out but they also share an inability to stay out of trouble. Thus ensues a season of ghostly shenanigans, bitter-sweet afterlife celebrations, and a smorgasbord of hilarious running jokes that never really lose their appeal.

Julie and the Phantoms is unapologetically and authentically good, bringing a newfound depth and wit to the nostalgic tween series that dominated my childhood like Wizards of Waverly Place and Jonas.

The story masterfully toes the line between laughter and heartache, never really allowing the audience to know if a hilarious punchline is next or an emotional punch to the gut.

This show, with its stellar soundtrack and uncanny comedic timing, is on the edge of something truly great.

8. Superstore

Few workplace comedies explore the authentic experience of an essential worker like Superstore has. From corporate greed to the poor handling of front-line worker safety during the pandemic, this long-running series has never shied away from mundane spectacles and the ridiculous interactions these employees have to endure to make a living.

And while the network may no longer see potential in this underdog comedy, I can’t help but notice that Superstore has done everything right in carving its mark on the genre.

Only this sitcom could accurately recount the great toilet paper shortage of 2020 in a way that allows us to wallow in society’s mutual pain while laughing out loud at the absurdity of people willing to assault others for a roll of toilet paper.

Superstore comforts essential workers with stories from the cruelest of battlefields — customer service. For that, I will miss the customer interstitials between scenes, they allowed us to bond over the worst of humanity knowing full well these incidents could have happened while we were on the job.

Most of all I will miss the characters. Amy and Jonah, who had a beautiful heartbreaking romance; our managers Dina and Glen who have an equally complicated dynamic; Sandra with her disturbing taste in music and her adopted son Tony; and Marcus, who I don’t know if I’ll miss so much as worry about.

This workplace comedy’s unwavering sense of humor deserves a proper sendoff. Nonetheless, the laughs we shared in the aisles of Cloud 9 will stay with us long after closing time.

9. Kim’s Convenience

Canadian comedies are in good company this year, what with Schitt’s Creek dominating the comedy category at the Emmys and Kim’s Convenience locking down on its own winning formula with equally loveable (and dysfunctional) family dynamics.

These Korean-Canadians are unapologetically themselves; too stubborn to admit when they are wrong and more than happy to point out when they are right. They have established a strong brand of comedy that compliments their convenience store clientele and the backdrop of Toronto ridiculously well.

This year the family dynamics are even more complicated with fan-favorites Jung and Shannon learning slow-burn romances are not easy to navigate, while patriarch Appa continues to garner laughs from behind the store counter. But it is Umma that consistently wins us over with her hilarious antics.

Kim’s Convenience’s effortless flow and natural delivery are elevated even further with a mixture of storylines that bring the family’s blended cultures to life in a refreshingly comedic way.

We may be saying goodbye to the Roses but we still have the Kims to make us feel that much better about our own dysfunctional family.

10. Never Have I Ever

Comedy has never been the same since The Office’s great customer service representative uttered the words, “Who am I? I’m Kelly Kapoor, the business bitch.”

It seems only right that Mindy Kaling would one day revisit that legacy to grace us with the next great teen comedy. A comedy brimming with youthful angst and attitude Kelly Kapoor would surely approve of.

Never Have I Ever gives us a perfect storm of high-scale teenage shenanigans in the form of our protagonist Devi, whose life as a first-generation Indian-American teenager is kind of a hot mess thanks to her dad’s sudden passing and her all-consuming crush on Paxton Hall‑Yoshida (which, girl same).

Devi’s problematic ways of dealing with life’s adversities and her unshakeable desire to have the authentic teenage dream drives this premise’s sharp wit and absolute chaotic comedy. The cultural adversities Devi faces are often met with one big teenage eye-roll and the brilliant choice to have tennis legend John McEnroe narrate this teenage girl’s life is played for optimal laughs.

Kaling doesn’t stop there, though. She uses Riverdale as a means for these teens to connect with their elders and finds greater meaning in her premise through a truly depthless teen drama — which is never not funny.

Devi’s friends have their own brand of comedy to keep us laughing when our protagonist’s uglier traits threaten the fun. And while a particular shirtless Paxton scene may have nothing to do with comedy, it has everything to do with elevating the blindingly-bright fever dream of chaos that is this hilarious teenage rom-com.

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With comedy this good, it seems things can only get better (and funnier) from here on out.

What TV comedies top your list this year? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

 

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