20 Best TV Comedies of 2021

You can try to deny it, but everyone loves to laugh.

Whether it’s at ourselves, our loved ones, or fictional characters, laughing is what makes us connect, it’s what makes us human. What better way to kick off the new year than to highlight the things that made us laugh most in 2021?

In a time where laughter and smiles are needed the most, these 20 comedies did that for us in 2021. Let’s hope 2022 will be filled with even more laughs.

In no particular order, here are Tell-Tale TV’s best TV comedies of 2021:

1. Home Economics (ABC)

Home Economics welcomes us into the world of three siblings in very different positions financially. The chemistry between the three main actors — Topher Grace, Caitlin McGee, and Jimmy Tatro — is a lot of what makes the show so enjoyable.

Including important LGBTQ+ representation, Home Economics shows families at their core, accepting love and favors, and doling them back as necessary.

Each episode finds the Hayworth family involved in some kind of shenanigans, whether it is fighting over Halloween costumes and plans or a night out at a club. You can always expect a lot of laughs and heartwarming moments from this crew.

2. The Other Two (HBO Max)

Families are messy. They’re chaotic, they come in all sizes, and sometimes they’re not blood.

The family on The Other Two, featuring Cary and Brooke, the older siblings of new pop star Chase Dreams, and their mom, Pat Dubek.

The Other Two exudes confidence in its writing through its nonconfident characters. It’s a feel-good show about a family trying to learn, grow, and be better. 

Plus, the comedy never works too hard. The jokes land every time, no matter who’s saying them, and the show is fantastic at making you gasp-laugh at something completely unexpected. 

If you’re not watching The Other Two while simultaneously texting your sibling about The Other Two, what are you even doing?

3. Ted Lasso (Apple TV+)

By now, we at Tell-Tale TV have made it very clear that we, as a whole, love Ted Lasso. 

With the happiness resting in your gut during an episode and the laughs it pulls out of us at the most random of times, Ted Lasso is simply an utter delight.

In addition to bringing us joy, the series also discusses the highly important topics of mental health in international sports, going to therapy, and allowing yourself to become whole again after a divorce.

In 2021, and frankly, in 2020, Ted Lasso brings the kind of serene elation that the world needs. It’s uplifting and necessary in a world where kindness doesn’t always come first. 

4. Girls5Eva (Peacock)

Imagine, if you will, releasing a one-hit-wonder in what you think is your prime, only to realize years later that you’ve been given a second chance, and you still have a lot of music left in you.

Let me introduce you to Girls5eva. 

With an absolutely iconic cast and guest stars including Tina Fey as, wait for it, Dolly Parton, Girls5eva was sure to be a fast hit, and then everyone realized it was actually good. 

The acting, the music, the friendship within the show… it all makes the show so much better. And really, who thought you could get better than Sara Bareilles, Paula Pell, Busy Philipps, and Renée Elise Goldsberry as besties. 

5. Feel Good (Netflix)

This show makes you feel, and that’s good, but, it doesn’t exactly make you feel good.

The powerful second season of the Netflix comedy leaves you breathless. For one because you’re laughing, and the second reason is because it is a square gut punch.

Feel Good strikes a tender chord as it follows Mae and George as they unpack their trauma responses. Whether laying under a bed or Saving the Bees, the characters of the show are achingly specific. This is a comedy that comes from the reluctant hope in the power of love to heal. And the surprise twist is that it’s actually funny.

6. Genera+ion (HBO)

Genera+ion allows a new generation of queer kids to step into the spotlight. Despite them being fictional, it’s the kind of show you watch as a queer person and wish you had it when you were growing up. 

With no hate to the show I’m about to unintentionally shade, it’s a relief to watch some teenaged kids get together to smoke after a rough week instead of trying to make it believable that not just one but several 16-year-olds are cocaine users. 

The show is wonderful because it was just that: queer kids being queer or adjusting to being queer. 

7. The Great (Hulu)

A satirical comedy about the old Russian government doesn’t seem like something that would work, but The Great found its groove and it paid off. 

With a killer cast and even better writing, it’s impossible for the show to be bad, and it’s worth noting that it never really is. 

In a rare feat, Season 2 is (to some) better than the first. With an even more broad guest cast, the show gets wittier and smarter, and we’re extremely appreciative of it when we desperately need to laugh. 

8. Young Sheldon (CBS)

A comfortable spot to fill the hole in our hearts after The Big Bang Theory ended, Young Sheldon has given us insight into one of our favorite TV characters: Sheldon Cooper. Getting to watch Sheldon grow up, played by the tremendously talented Iain Armitage, is a connection to a TV show within a TV show.

It’s wonderful. 

Sheldon may not be like every other person out there, but he still faces struggles that most high schoolers go through, and he’s relatable through it all. 

Narrated by the OG Sheldon himself, Jim Parsons makes it clear as a narrator and an executive producer that he’s in this show with his heart, and we’re so glad for it. 

9. We Are Lady Parts (Peacock)

We Are Lady Parts is a delightful underdog story about a group of Muslim women in a Punk band called Lady Parts.
With a fantastic cast and sharp writing, We Are Lady Parts explores themes of anxiety, community, and identity. It tells a beautiful story about owning your narrative and finding your voice.

We Are Lady Parts subverts stereotypes and offers viewers multiple Muslim characters, each specific and multifaceted.

No one character is asked to represent the entirety of the Muslim experience, as is often the case in TV and Film. Instead, they are individuals whose relationships to their communities and religion are unique and intersectional.

Whether it’s the writing, cast, music, or excellent representation, We Are Lady Parts is a breath of fresh air that you don’t want to miss.

10. Schmigadoon! (Apple TV+)

Schmigadoon! is a musical show about a fictitious city that housed performers and tropes of characters, and it quickly became beloved by viewers.

Between Cecily Strong and Keegan-Michael Key, the show, through metaphors and songs, reintroduces the idea of loving the person you’re with despite their flaws, maybe in spite of them. The musical numbers alone make this TV series as memorable as it is hilarious.

It’s a fairy tale inside of a Broadway musical inside of a rom-com. It’s Schmigadoon!

11. A Black Lady Sketch Show (HBO)

A Black Lady Sketch Show is the very essence of delight. The show goes there with its humor and also steps back and allows for the general jokes to fly. A Black Lady Sketch Show is fearless, and that’s why we love it.

The cast is electric amongst each other, and when there are guest stars, it almost makes the show better. After all, an unfunny show doesn’t become the first Black women-led sketch show to win an Emmy. 

Despite a delayed season due to COVID, Season 2 proves to be even stronger than Season 1. And now, we can’t wait for Season 3.

12. Only Murders in the Building (Hulu)

Steve Martin, Selena Gomez, Martin Short are a trio that a lot of people — including myself — didn’t think would pan out. Instead, the three of them became our favorite group of friends (and crime-solvers) this year.

But in probably the most shockingly good comedy of the year, Only Murders in the Building brought something new to the genre of murder mystery: fun. 

There’s also a surprising amount of realness in the show, as it discusses loneliness, grief, and getting past the things that made you who you are, and it does so while making us laugh. Now, we’re anxiously awaiting Season 2.

13. Shrill (Hulu)

Loving yourself is hard. Inside of Shrill as a comedy comes a love story. Love for your best friends, love for yourself, for your past self, your future self. 

It’s a show about a woman learning to come to terms with the fact that yeah, she’s fat, and there’s nothing wrong with that so long as she finds herself beautiful. 

Shrill‘s comedy isn’t something typical — it’s not in your face fart jokes or people getting injured in strange ways — it’s unique and smart with incredulity. 

14. Insecure (HBO)

Issa Rae, with powerhouses like Natasha Rothwell, Kerry Washington, shaped Insecure to be a show about a modern Black woman becoming comfortable about where she is in her life.

Sometimes she feels lost, sometimes she fights with her friends, sometimes she goes back to her ex. She makes all the mistakes you shouldn’t, but that you learn from, and it is so fun to watch, especially given that the entire cast of Insecure seems to get along, or is great at acting as if they do. 

Everyone on the show is a scene-stealer, which is a reason why the comedy is so great — they feed off of each other wonderfully. As upsetting as it is to see Insecure leave us this year, I know I can’t wait to see what other projects the cast has up their sleeves.

15. Never Have I Ever (Netflix)

Never Have I Ever follows Devi Vishwakumar and her family as Devi navigates what it means to be a first-generation Indian American teenager who just lost her dad.

With typical teenaged antics, the show’s physical comedy is hilarious, but the mistakes Devi and her friends make are genuine and honest. 

They try to solve the problems themselves, and sometimes they call in reinforcements, but at the end of the day, the show is about being there for your family and your found family.

16. Ghosts (CBS)

Ghosts is a laugh-out-loud genuine show, and none of us were expecting to fall so in love with it.

Rose McIver and Utkarsh Ambudkar have chemistry with every single person in the cast, and Utkarsh’s character can’t even see the ghosts he’s interacting with!

The two of them make the show, with no shortage of talent from the ghosts, either. 

Ghosts contains one-liners that will make you laugh for days after, but there’s also the sharp humor that you can’t miss when you watch. It’s feel-good and actually good. 

17. Reservation Dogs (FX)

Reservation Dogs, a show completely written and directed by Indigenous talent, is about several Ingidenous kids living in their (they think anyway) run-down town.

With almost their entire production team being Indigenous as well, Reservation Dogs presents representation in a way that should be more popularized: just showing it.

The characters’ lives involve them being Indigenous, of course, but that’s not their entire life. The other parts of their lives, the parts where they’re just teenagers hating where they live, is a universally felt emotion amongst teenagers. 

18. Saved by the Bell (Peacock)

Saved by the Bell Season 2 leans heavily on nostalgia while also addressing topical issues. The reboot of the iconic series brings back original cast members in fun ways, with plenty of callbacks to the original teen comedy — and some references that only the most dedicated fans will notice.

With its witty writing and the ability to poke fun of its former self while telling stories that truly matter, the new Saved by the Bell is something special.

19. Sex Education (Netflix)

Sex Education uses common humor to be funny, but with the characters they’ve shaped, the comedy is so unique to the characters that it feels like it comes directly from them, not a writer’s room. 

The show is important because of its humor, yeah, but also because it takes a taboo subject — sex — and makes it so that you’re able to freely discuss the topic without fearing what people may say or think. 

Sex Education doesn’t ask for too much from its high school students, and it doesn’t give too little with their grown cast. Everyone has issues, of course, but none are meant to be more important than others. 

20. Hacks (HBO)

Jean Smart grabs Hacks by the horns and makes it almost entirely her own. 

Redefining the washed-up mom act given to any woman over 45 in Hollywood, Smart, paired with Hannah Einbinder, bring joy to a miserable typecast. 

Hacks is a comedy about remembering where you came from and how you can pass down your knowledge to your friends, family, coworkers. It’s about learning and growing and progressing at any age, every age. 

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What shows make your list? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Additional Contributions by Janelle Ureta and Sarah Fields

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