The Top 25 Programs of 2021 -- Part Two

WandaVision Disney The MCU had a banner year on Disney with The Falcon and the Winter Soldier Hawkeye Loki the animated What If and WandaVision which became a genuine popculture phenomenon that engrossed even those who have never seen a Marvel movie Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany are pictured at topamp160Part a continuation of stories from the MCU part nostalgic love note to timeless TV classics from the distant past part thrilling actionadventure and at all times an engaging mystery WandaVision generated huge interest in established and forgotten Marvel characters alike especially sorceress Agatha Harkness And speaking of Agatha who was spinning the plot all along what a year it has been for Kathryn Hahn It began with her playing an ancient allpowerful witch who came and went years ago in the pages of the Fantastic Four and ended with her profoundly convincing portrayal of teenager Jo on ABC39s live presentation of the beloved 3980s hit The Facts of Life Can39t wait for the recently announced WandaVision spinoff Agatha House of HarknessMare of Easttown HBO If ever there was a time when people wanted lighthearted entertainment it was during 2021 as the bad news about the pandemic and other problems kept on coming And yet HBO39s unrelentingly grim and relentlessly depressing limited series about a female detective somehow moving forward through one town crisis or personal tragedy after another was a mustsee event Then again with yet another magnificent performance by Kate Winslet at its center how could it lose Julianne Nicholson Evan Peters and Jean Smart were pretty spectacular tooThe Underground Railroad Prime Video Director and executive producer Barry Jenkins39 searing tenpart adaptation of Colson Whitehead39s Pulitzer Prizewinning 2016 novel about a woman39s valiant efforts to escape slavery deserved more attention than it got Maybe dropping all ten episodes of a dense historical drama at the start of the summer wasn39t the right way to go no matter the artistry Regardless I think Railroad will be one of those longtail programs that continuously builds its audience as the years go by in part because I think smart history teachers will assign it to their students as homework As Ainsley Andrade often points out in his columns for MediaVillage certain essential subject matter isn39t taught from all perspectives if at all in our school system Thuso Mbdeu is unforgettable in the central role of Cora an escaped slave who goes to hell and back in her quest for freedomPose FX The abbreviated final season of this emotionally charged gem about the challenges faced by New York City39s LGBTQ community in the 3980s brought out the best in its cast especially Billy Porter MJ Rodriguez Angel Bismarck Curiel and Dyllon Burnside It also reminded us as the COVID19 pandemic continues that another virus remains with us after more than 40 years having taken approximately 35 million lives and currently infecting more than 38 million people worldwideIt39s a Sin HBO Russell T Davies was already one of the finest writers ever to work in television before he created this amazing drama about vibrant young gay men who are only beginning to explore their sexuality in earlyEighties London when they are struck down by HIV and AIDS even before they know or fully understand what they are up against Credit Davies and his cast especially lead Olly Alexander for a production that somehow managed to be uplifting and devastating all at onceThis Is Us NBC Many shows returned from pandemic postponements with a determination to reflect the harsh realities of this nasty new decade including blackish Grey39s Anatomy and various medical and procedural dramas But This Is Us went dangerously deep as we witnessed the escalating racial tensions of 2020 tear our beloved Pearson family apart with such ferocity that we feared they could never put the pieces back together The blistering conflict between Randall Sterling K Brown and Kevin Justin Hartley was particularly upsetting to see As a viewer I felt like I was right there with them during their confrontation wanting nothing more than to be anywhere else kind of like when Tony and Carmela Soprano had their epic blowout in the season four finale of The Sopranos Yes it was that well doneMidnight Mass Netflix Eerie and unforgettable this wellproduced limited series told the story of a relatively isolated and deeply religious island community imperiled by the arrival of a mysterious priest Hamish Linklater a troubled young man Zach Gilford and a bloodthirsty angel Midnight Mass is largely a scary supernatural thriller with more than a few genuine frights and surprising jolts but the ending in which a mortally wounded character named Erin Kate Siegel gives voice to a soulful internal monologue about the meaning of life and the possibilities brought on by death was uplifting and enlightening despite the horror all around her What a beautiful piece of writing911 and 911 Lone Star Fox Fox39s twin action shows continued to dazzle with episode after episode featuring epic disasters once seen only in bigbudget disaster movies Seriously how do they do it so often and do it so well And there is more to love here At a time when diversity and inclusion among television casts and characters doesn39t always result in meaningful representation 911 and its spinoff never hit a false note For example there is no sweeter love story on television right now than the swoony romance of Ronen Rubenstein39s TK Strand and Rafael Silva39s Carlos Reyes The pair is known online as quotTarlosquot And there is no better night of broadcast television than Fox39s Monday when these two shows are playing back to backThe Dodo and Cristina Zenato Instagram I have included the Instagram feed for The Dodo on my Top Programs of the Year list for quite a while now simply because it continues to give me life on even the worst of days reminding me with video evidence that there are many good selfless people in the world who will stop whatever they are doing to help a fellow creature in need be it a dog a cat a squirrel a snake or a bee This year I39m adding the Insta feedamp160of CristinaZenato who removes hooks from the mouths of sharks that later visit her and bring along other sharks in need of help Check these out and learn new things about the world around youInvincible Prime Video I39m not sure if this is the most violent animated program I have ever seen but it is certainly the most surprising And perhaps the most engaging at least in terms of longform storytelling It39s based on a longrunning comic book about a teenager learning to cope with his emerging superpowers while beginning to question what he knows about his dad who happens to be the most powerful superhero on Earth I think OmniMan as his father is known could take out half of the MCU The vocal performaners include Sandra Oh Steven Yeun and JK SimmonsDays of Our Lives NBC Peacock After years of denigration by the broadcast networks it39s amazing that we still have four daily soap operas It39s even more amazing that they remain the only program genre that broadcasters do better than anyone else So three cheers for NBCUniversal and its unwavering support of Days of Our Lives first with a side story on the DOOL app then with a limited series and a standalone movie on Peacock And how about head writer Ron Carlivati continuing a storyline from more than 25 years ago when Satan first came to Salem and possessed compassionate Dr Marlena Evans the invaluable Deidre Hall Ol39 Beelzebub is back in residence waiting for Ciara and reformed serial killer Ben to have their baby Good timesAmerica39s Got Talent NBC This outsized competition show has always been a favorite of mine but there was something extraordinary about its 16th season Collectively the talent was even more impressive than usual especially magician Dustin Travella the winner aerialist Aidan Bryant a marvel and singers Storm Large Jimmie Herrod and Jane Marczewski also known as Nightbirde who has been battling multiple bouts of breast cancer since 2017 Nightbirde ultimately left the competition to focus on her health but she wasn39t forgotten Her moving performance her strength and her courage were an inspiration to anyone who has been touched by cancer and the terrible challenges it bringsThe Retro Commercials Spaced Throughout quotLive in Front of a Studio Audiencequot ABC With only a couple weeks left of 2021 ABC did one of those things broadcast networks should do more often but somehow don39t it presented a fun special live at that that tapped into the nostalgia most of us increasingly crave with another of those Live in Front of a Studio Audience doublebills executive produced by Jimmy Kimmel and Norman Lear So we all tuned in for an episode of The Facts of Life with middleaged people playing adolescents and somehow nailing it especially Kathryn Hahn as Jo followed by a less successful Different Strokes But there was an unexpected bonus Commercials for sponsors and other ABC shows scattered throughout that were made to look like spots from the late 3970searly 3980s when broadcast television ruled the media world This was 90 minutes of television made with the television audience in mind That39s not as common as you might thinkClick the social buttons to share this content with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated writers

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The Top 25 Programs of 2021 -- Part Two

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Ed Martin

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The Top 25 Programs of 2021 -- Part Two

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