Marissa’s Top 10 TV Shows of 2021

After a less than conventional season of television in 2020, it was nice to get back in a normal cadence of new seasons, series, and episodes.

While some of my favorite series got delayed to 2022 (I’m looking at you Killing Eve), there were a ton of great new and returning shows and limited series that I had the pleasure of viewing this year. In preparation for a “Favorites” list, I made sure to keep better track of what I watched, just so I wouldn’t forget anything.

And even though there are a few days left in 2021, and there’s always a chance of an under-the-wire entry (perhaps The Witcher, Amazon’s new With Love, or the guilty pleasure Emily in Paris), I’ve narrowed down my favorites of the year.

In no particular order, here are my top 10 TV shows of 2021:

1.  WandaVision

WandaVision was an absolute phenomenon that transcended beyond the screen at the beginning of this year. Maybe it was because it was the first MCU Disney+ series, or maybe it was because it premiered at the beginning of 2021 and everyone was stir crazy after 2020, but you couldn’t go online without hearing about it somehow.

When Marvel announced the project I think it took some fans by surprise, myself included — a whole show dedicated to two of the (at the time) less popular members of Team Avengers? And the premise was odd — they’re recreating old TV sitcom tropes?

I was weary from the start.

What WandaVision turned into completely blew my mind. The story went from cheesy I Love Lucy cliches to a tale of how trauma reverberates through our life. Elizabeth Olsen had a stunning performance, showcasing her character’s grief in a way I didn’t think possible from a Marvel project.

Even though it broke the mold of what we think of as a “superhero show,” it still found a way to tie itself back into the greater Marvel Phase 4 storyline. New characters were introduced, some exciting faces were brought back, and the Kathryn Hahn-aissance began.

If you had asked me in 2020 if I was looking forward to WandaVision I wouldn’t have had an opinion either way — it looked silly. Now I’m a ride-or-die Scarlett Witch fan.

2. Dickinson

Kris Jenner works hard but Hailee Steinfeld works harder. Somehow, when tons of shows were trying to get back on track after a COVID interrupted season, Steinfeld’s Dickinson dropped TWO seasons of television this year.

I’ve said it before, but Dickinson is doing something that no other show on TV/streaming is at the moment. Its concept is one that’s so utterly unique, something so out of left field that it sounds bizarre — and yet it works brilliantly. Its whole premise is anachronistic, which is what makes it so delightful to watch.

Dickinson Season 2 dropped in early 2021, giving us a look at Emily Dickinson’s conflicted feelings towards fame. Dickinson Season 3 (the final season) is wrapping up December 2021, but has so far, expanded Emily’s worldview amidst the American Civil War.

I admittedly knew little of Emily Dickinson going into Dickinson Season 1 back in 2019, and now I’m oddly enchanted by the poet and the legacy she’s left. She’s known for being “America’s first sad girl” though she didn’t achieve much fame until after her death, and scholars say much of her work was destroyed besides the poems her sister fought to have published posthumously.

Speaking of her sister — the entire cast of Dickinson deserves to be recognized for their amazing work. Anna Baryshnikov in particular, who plays sister Lavinia Dickinson, is an absolute scene-stealer. They’ve done well to make 1800s American Literature fun.

If you haven’t watched the series I highly recommend it — it’s not overbound by literary analysis. It’s almost… campy? Wiz Khalifa plays Death personified, that should really be enough to convince you.

3. The Sex Lives of College Girls

I will watch anything that Mindy Kaling has signed off on. Ever since The Mindy Project aired (I was late to The Office game) it’s been a joy to watch a female comedian/producer/writer carve out a space in the entertainment industry and produce just good, funny, wholesome content.

The Sex Lives of College Girls (SLOGC) is exactly that.

There’s a wealth of content out there, geared towards twenty-somethings and young adults, but as high school series grow they tend to skip right over the college years and force a time jump to bring characters back to one setting. We almost never get to see a show just set at University.

I fell in love with the four main leads from The Sex Lives of College Girls right off the bat. Randomly assigned roommates, the quad each have their own quirks and unique backgrounds so that each young woman brings something different to the show.

The characters all just felt very real. I think what’s nice about SLOGC is that the core four had relatively normal background stories (aside from Whitney’s senator mother) and genuinely felt like they could just be girls you’d sit next to in your freshman seminar class.

The show is also going past just the social aspect of college, instead, focusing on some of those conversations you inevitably have with the people you surround yourself with when you’re out on your own for the first time. I mean the number of times I found my friends crying in the student center or we had a deep convo on someone’s bed at like 3 AM? 

There are just so many experiences that are unique to the college setting that I feel like we haven’t seen much of on TV in a while. And as a (fairly) recent grad, I’m glad that there are characters more relatable than the 14/15/16-year-olds in most high school-set series.

The Sex Lives of College Girls Season 2 has already been announced, so while the Season 1 finale didn’t feel wrapped up in a nice little bow, I’m excited for what’s to come.

4. Hacks

I’ll be totally honest, I watched the first episodes of Hacks on HBO Max because I couldn’t find anything else to watch. It turned out to be one of my top recommendations all year.

Why did this show work so well? For one, the writing is top-notch. It follows the life of a stand-up comedian who is a “washed-up hack” and is trying to infuse herself with a youthful spirit into her Las Vegas residency by hiring a young writer to help liven her set.

The pair is an unlikely duo. Ava, the typically millennial, is trying to carve out a space for herself in the entertainment industry. Deborah Vance, the seasoned comedian, is like everyone’s favorite (often drunk) aunt, recycling the same jokes at every family get-together.

The friendship that blossoms over the course of Hacks Season 1 is the shining star of the series, and though it has its ups and downs, their chemistry is off the charts. They’re two strong female characters that are actually both kind of just bad people, which makes them all the more entertaining.

Hacks Season 2 has already been announced, and with the tentative truce that Hacks Season 1 left us with, I’m excited to see what the next installment has in for us.

5. Sex Education

I was late to the Sex Education game, I’ll admit. I started in on the binge-watch when Sex Education Season 2 dropped, so I was able to get two seasons in on one watch. The two-year gap between seasons made this year’s Sex Education Season 3 all the sweeter.

Coming into the lastest episodes, I was team Otis and Maeve all the way. Slowburn friends to lovers, especially after the confessions that dropped last season? The chemistry between Emma Mackey and Asa Butterfield has been jumping off the screen, just begging for a relationship to happen.

Sex Education Season 3 opened the series way up, exploring character storylines that hadn’t had their chance to shine yet, which made it even more exciting to watch.

One such character? Ruby Matthews. The HBIC type in the previous seasons of Sex Education, she hadn’t really had a chance to shine, typically just playing as the aloof stereotype.

When this latest season opened, she had a much more significant role as Otis’s fling-turned-girlfriend. Along with Raheem, we were able to dive deeper into characters that we’ve loved peripherally. And as much as I was team Otis and Maeve all the way, I enjoyed Otis and Ruby much more than I thought I ever would.

And even though — SPOILER ALERT — Otis and Maeve do get a short moment in the sun in the back half of Sex Education Season 3, only for Maeve to leave on a study abroad semester in America, with Ruby around I don’t even mind that maybe that means they aren’t endgame.

That’s what we call character growth my friends.

6. Only Murders in the Building

I have a soft spot for Steve Martin, it’s fine. Cheaper By the Dozen is one of my all-time favorite feel-good movies. Martin Short’s character in Father of the Bride is so iconic, I can’t help but watch each time it’s on TV. 

Selena Gomez, a much more age-appropriate fave, has continued to carve out her own space on the screen since her days as Alex Russo on the Disney Channel. She’s produced a number of projects since the Disney days, but Only Murders in the Building is a standout that appeals to all generations.

It even passed the “Dad Test,” a litmus test of sorts that I use to gauge whether or not something is funny beyond my TikTok-informed sense of humor. If my dad finds something funny — and he has like, no sense of humor — then it must be good.

So congrats to Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez for creating a hit. I’m not a true-crime person myself, nor do I listen to podcasts regularly besides the little 10-minute short ones that sometimes creep into my feed and take more energy to skip than to passively listen.

But the concept of Only Murders in the Building is uniquely 21st century, which makes it so engaging. The fact that Martin and Short play out of touch old men — essentially themselves — and Sel G brings the Millenial quips makes the unlikely trio’s dynamic the gem of the series. 

Yes, there is a murder mystery playing out in real-time, but in hindsight, the murderer isn’t really that hard to guess. The series finale threw the predictability of Season 1 out the window though, so I’m thrilled that Only Murders in the Building Season 2 has been announced and already seems to be in production.

7. Ted Lasso

Okay, not to be that person, but I was on the Ted Lasso train way before it blew up in the zeitgeist. Back in Summer of 2020, when the country was really in the heat of the pandemic and lockdowns, this little show popped up on my AppleTV+ recommendations and, because I was bored, I was like “sure, why not?”

Ted Lasso Season 1 was one of my favorite series debuts of all time, and a perfect season of television all on its own. Did Ted Lasso Season 2 live up to its predecessor? I thought it was slightly edged out by the first installment, probably just due to the novelty of the storyline, but was overall a great sophomore outing.

I was particularly charmed by the storylines that we had the chance to dive deeper into, and the storylines that widened with the extra episodes. Roy and Keeley had a lovely arc, growing in their relationship and their own personal lives. Rebecca’s fling with Sam was definitely a surprise, but one that grew on me in the end. 

Sure, I’m rooting for Ted and Rebecca, but I do think that it’ll be a much more rewarding relationship if we have to sweat it out for a few seasons.

As a soccer fan myself, I was glad to see AFC Richmond find their groove this season and ultimately resolve some of the issues that they had as a team in Ted Lasso Season 1. It was an added bonus that the introduction of Dr. Sharon led to a serious discussion of mental health in sports.

Timed with this year’s Summer Olympics, there couldn’t have been a more relevant storyline on TV this year.

And as for the Nate of it all? My opinion is that if a series is doing enough to make you have strong feelings, either way, it’s doing something right. I think as watchers, we’re more likely to want to like characters than hate them. 

Nate’s fall from grace this year put him at the top of my “Do Not Like” list. So kudos to both the Ted Lasso writing staff and Mr. Nick Mohammad himself for putting enough into this storyline to provoke that response from the crowd. I can’t wait to see AFC Richmond (hopefully) annihilate Tottenham next season. 

8. Mare of Easttown

Kate Winslet had this country in a chokehold for the better part of two months, myself included. As a fan of the limited series format, Mare of Easttown checked all of my boxes. 

From the jump, Mare drew me in with its gritty setting and characters. Couple that with the murder that happens and you have me hooked. I said I wasn’t really a fan of true crime, and that’s no lie. But a murder mystery that wraps up in 6-10 episodes? Sign me right up.

Was Kate Winslet’s Philly accent the star of this show? Maybe. But don’t discredit Evan Peters, Julianne Nicholson, and Jean Smart. The performances in this limited series were so incredible that I didn’t even bat an eye when the series took home 3 of the 4 main acting awards at the 2021 Primetime Emmys.

Sometimes murder mysteries of this nature turn out a final explanation that leaves much to be desired. This one had a perfect conclusion. There were so many red herrings, twists, and turns that I left feeling gratifyingly shocked by the reveal of the murderer in the end.

And I’ve said it when the series wrapped up this summer, but it still holds true at the end of the year — I wouldn’t say no to more Mare or more Eastown.

9. Hawkeye

Hailee Steinfeld stays booked and busy. Though Hawkeye is just finishing up, and it’s not really clear if it’s billed as a Season 1 or a Limited Series (fingers crossed for the former), the most recent installment in the MCU television canon is a win.

If WandaVision changed my perception of an avenger we already knew, then Hawkeye has thrust us into the future of the MCU with young, fresh characters. Oh, and Clint Barton is there too.

That’s not to say Clint Barton’s alter-ego Hawkeye isn’t interesting. If anything, the six-episode series has made his backstory even more intriguing. Before, Clint was most interesting because of his relationship with Natasha, the Avengers’ Black Widow.

Now, there seems to be something going on with his wife Laura (the illustrious Linda Cardellini), that may hint at a deeper involvement with the lore of the Marvel canon.

The shining stars of Hawkeye, at least through the first five episodes, have been the women. Hailee Steinfeld’s Kate Bishop has the perfect energy to liven up the next generation of Marvel superheroes. 

One of Hawkeye‘s antagonists, Echo, brings a brand new element of representation to the MCU. Echo (Alaqua Cox in her debut role) is a girlboss in the most literal sense of the word. Though she’s deaf and has one prosthetic leg, neither of those define her character. She’s a badass, even if she’s the bad guy.

And my personal favorite part of Hawkeye — Florence Pugh herself. When Yelena Belova was introduced in the Black Widow film, she instantly became a fan-favorite character. When Disney announced she would reappear in the Hawkeye series, everyone (myself included) was very excited to see that dynamic play out.

While her storyline seems like it won’t come to its head until the final episode of Hawkeye, she’s already given us plenty of gems with her few interactions with Kate Bishop. The two are the definition of chaotic duo, and I hope if Marvel learns anything from audience feedback, they put them together in as many projects as possible.

10. The Bold Type

The Bold Type came to the silver screen at the perfect time for me, personally. When it premiered, I was in my last couple of semesters of school, about to become a working gal. It became a favorite of mine, not only because it was relevant, but because the core trio was written (and performed!) so genuinely it felt like real friends.

Kat, Sutton, and Jane started from the bottom of Scarlet Magazine’s hierarchy and worked their way up — and while the kind of career growth the characters realized isn’t that realistic, the show was still aspirational.

We’re used to seeing shows centered around middle-aged characters, with drama and conflict that’s more indicative of different life stages. At least for a twenty-something myself, I felt more seen by and related more to The Bold Type than I have to a lot of the more YA-skewing shows.

The final season of The Bold Type premiered earlier this year, and though it felt rushed at times, I was genuinely sad to see it go. There aren’t many shows out there right now catered to the Zillennial woman.

Kate, Jane, and Sutton are definitely some of my favorite characters from recently television, and certainly one of my favorite friendships, and I’m sad to have to leave them behind in 2021.

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I’d have to give myself a pat on the back for the breadth of television I watched this year — I think I tried more new shows this year than I have in the last few. From the new to the old (yes, I watched all 12 seasons of Modern Family in order this year), 2021 had a ton of great content.

And like I mentioned earlier, there’s a lot of favorites returning in 2022 that we didn’t get to see in 2021, plus what is sure to be even more great new shows to fall in love with. 

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What were your favorite shows of 2021? Let us know in the comments below!

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