MediaVillage's Editorial Director and Chief Content Critic Names Top 25 Programs of 2021

NEW YORK, Dec. 21, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Ed Martin, MediaVillage's Editorial Director, Television Editor and Chief Content Critic, has once again compiled the best programs of the year, for the media industry's go to business-to-business education and knowledge platform. For the complete list of the veteran broadcast journalist's Top 25 Programs for 2021 on ABC, Apple TV+, CBS, Disney+, Fox, FX on Hulu, HBO, HBO Max, NBC, Netflix, Paramount+, Prime Video, and even Instagram, visit Part 1 here and Part 2 here.

"The ongoing Covid pandemic continues to impact the entertainment community, but you wouldn't know it from the wealth of quality programming on broadcast, cable and streaming," Martin said. "Even under these circumstances it was a challenge to narrow my annual list of notable shows down to 25."

Excerpts of Martin's commentary are below:

Ghosts (CBS) -- So why is CBS' scary smart supernatural treat here? Because in addition to ticking all my boxes (clever dialogue, marvelous multi-tiered storytelling, great eccentric characters, a genuinely original concept, top-notch production values, fine acting by a terrific new ensemble) it also assumes a basic level of intelligence on the part of its audience.  

Dancing with the Stars (ABC) -- Why is a 16-year-old broadcast competition series sitting in the second spot on my list? Because DWTS roared excitingly back to life this fall even with a cast largely devoid of true "stars." The production values for every single dance were dazzling, and every episode felt like a grand achievement in live television.  

Real Time with Bill Maher (HBO) -- Even without the many ugly urgencies of 2020 fueling his humor, and his conversations with guests, Bill Maher continued to offer the only televised commentaries and insights worth watching about our increasingly trying times. He can deconstruct conservative crap and liberal lunacy with equal aplomb, a singular and stunning achievement that keeps him above the quagmire of cable "news" and a few hyper-opinionated broadcast personalities, too. And he's not afraid to defy the cancel culture and tell the woke mob to "Shut the fu*k up." My hero!

Reservation Dogs (FX on Hulu) -- Leave it to FX (on Hulu or anywhere else) to deliver the most important new series of 2021: A comedy about indigenous teens striving (like most kids in their age range) to extract themselves from the confines of the lives they were born into and get someplace better (in this case, Los Angeles). There is nothing I can say here about Dogs that my colleague Juan Ayala hasn't expressed in his review of the show or in his Multicultural TV Talk podcasts with series stars D'Pharoah Woon-a-tai and Devery Jacobs. Follow those links and be enlightened.

Succession (HBO) -- The two-year stretch between its powerful pre-pandemic season two cliffhanger and its triumphant return this fall was certainly worth the wait as the power-mad Roys resumed their family fight club without missing a beat. Not since the days of Dallas and Dynasty has it been so much fun to watch members of an obscenely wealthy family suffer their own slings and arrows, eagerly cutting each other down at every turn.  

Acapulco (Apple TV+) -- Chances are you haven't watched this show yet, so let me introduce you to another charming and disarming series brought to us by Apple TV+, the home of Ted Lasso and Schmigadoon! By way of flashbacks to the '80s, Acapulco tells the story of a Mexican teenager's slow climb from a working-class background to (in adulthood) a position of tremendous wealth, beginning with an entry-level position at the fabulous ocean-front resort Las Colinas. Come for the natural beauty and the man-made luxuries stay for the sweet humor and heart-tugging romantic drama. Also worth noting: Acapulco is, I believe, the first truly bilingual television series. A genuine gem.

Schmigadoon! (Apple TV +) -- It's hard to select one new show this year that was arguably more original than the rest (WandaVision? Ghosts? Squid Game? Yellowjackets?) but I'll go with Schmigadoon!, a six-part musical on Apple TV+ that came along after more than one year without Broadway musicals – or any musicals, for that matter.

The White Lotus (HBO) -- After more than a year in lockdown we all needed a soothing warm-weather vacation -- or at least a tropical diversion – and HBO more than delivered with Mike White's miniseries (filmed at the Four Seasons Resort Maui) about rich people trying to forget their problems by enjoying some fun in the sun, with tumultuous results.

Hacks (HBO Max) -- Jean Smart gave what I believe to have been the performance of the year as Deborah Vance, a tough, tireless, brittle and ballsy legendary Las Vegas comedienne who worked her way to the top no matter the cost and seeks to remain there with the help of an entitled, self-involved, recently humbled young comedy writer named Ava (nifty newcomer Hannah Einbinder). Filled with support, conflict, suspicion and admiration, their relationship is a fascinating mess that somehow bridges the widest generation gap we've seen in years.

Squid Game (Netflix) -- Just as the South Korean thriller Parasite took the U.S. movie industry by surprise in 2019 (winning the Academy Award for Best Picture, among other accolades), the South Korean television series Squid Game this year came out of nowhere (via Netflix) to become what has arguably been the most talked about TV program of 2021.

The rest are:

Evil (Paramount+) -- This scary, sexy, funny and fascinating drama is a true horror show (in the best sense of the term).  

The Good Fight (Paramount+) -- It was hardly the first time that this show reflected what was happening in our country, but its reflection this season of the January 6 madness was priceless.  

Mare of Easttown (HBO) -- HBO's 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 must-see event.  

The Underground Railroad (Prime Video) -- Director and executive producer Barry Jenkins' searing ten-part adaptation of Colson Whitehead's Pulitzer Prize-winning 2016 novel about a woman's valiant efforts to escape slavery deserved more attention than it got.

Pose (FX) -- The abbreviated final season of this emotionally charged gem about the challenges faced by New York City's LGBTQ+ community in the '80s brought out the best in its cast -- especially Billy Porter, MJ Rodriguez, Angel Bismarck Curiel and Dyllon Burnside.  

WandaVision (Disney+) -- Part a continuation of stories from the MCU, part nostalgic love note to timeless TV classics from the distant past, part thrilling action-adventure and at all times an engaging mystery, WandaVision generated huge interest in established and forgotten Marvel characters alike, especially sorceress Agatha Harkness. . . Can't wait for the recently announced WandaVision spin-off, Agatha: House of Harkness.

It's 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 early-Eighties London when they are struck down by HIV and AIDS -- even before they know or fully understand what they are up against.

This Is Us (NBC) -- Many shows returned from pandemic postponements with a determination to reflect the harsh realities of this nasty new decade, including black-ish, Grey's 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.

Midnight Mass (Netflix) -- Eerie and unforgettable, this well-produced 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.

911 and 911: Lone Star (Fox) -- Fox's twin action shows continued to dazzle with episode after episode featuring epic disasters once seen only in big-budget disaster movies. (Seriously, how do they do it so often and do it so well?)

The 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 I'm adding the Insta feeds of @CristinaZenato, who removes hooks from the mouths of sharks.

Invincible (Prime Video) -- It's based on a long-running 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.

Days of Our Lives (NBC, Peacock) -- After years of denigration by the broadcast networks, it's amazing that we still have four daily soap operas. 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.

America's Got Talent (NBC) -- This outsized competition show has always been a favorite of mine, but there was something extraordinary about its 16th season.

The retro commercials spaced throughout "Live in Front of a Studio Audience" (ABC) -- With only a couple weeks left of 2021 ABC did one of those things broadcast networks should do more often, but somehow don't -- it presented a fun special. . .This was 90 minutes of television made with the television audience in mind. That's not as common as you might think.

"Ed Martin is among the media's best-known and most respected commentators on television programming," said leading media ecologist Jack Myers, founder of MediaVillage.com and AdvancingDiversity.org. "His access to industry leaders assures our readers unique insights into the behind-the-scenes influences that impact network programming." 

Prior to joining MediaVillage, Martin was a television critic and reporter for USA Today and senior editor and television critic at Inside Media. He has written features for Variety, TV Line, Advertising Age, Television Week, Broadcasting & Cable and TV Guide. Earlier in his career, Martin was publicity director for Vestron Pictures, where he orchestrated campaigns for dozens of movies, including the Academy Award-winning classic Dirty Dancing. Follow Ed Martin @PlanetEd and read his commentary at Ed Martin Report. 

For press inquiries, contact Diane Stefani at [email protected]. Follow @MediaVillageCom, @PlanetEd, @JackMyersBiz.

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