Daniel's Best Television of 2025
- Daniel Woodiwiss
- 4 days ago
- 7 min read
Ever since spring 2023, which saw a slew of acclaimed shows including a handful of my favorites come to an end, I've felt like I don't have a finger on the pulse of the TV landscape any more. The closing of many favorite shows meant that I was required to actually seek out new shows, new series, and different programs the last couple years, but I've felt just as inclined to return to my tried and true favorites when I have the time, so when I sat down to draft this piece, I was pessimistic that I even had enough to formulate a Top 10 ranking.
But I surprised myself again this year! When I actually put pen to paper (okay, finger to keyboard) and listed out all the television shows, miniseries, awards shows and other programs I watched over 2025, I realized I in fact had enough to draft a full two-deep depth chart.
So! All that being said, here's my opinion on the best shows, programs, and events TV and streaming had to offer in the year 2025. First, some honorable mentions (alphabetical, not ranked):
67th Annual Grammy Awards (CBS)
Abbott Elementary, Seasons 4-5 (ABC)
Death by Lightning (Netflix)
The Four Seasons, Season 1 (Netflix)
Stranger Things, Season 5 (Netflix)
Now, to my Top 10:
10. The White Lotus, Season 3 (HBO)
I've seen every season of The White Lotus thus far, but Season 3 was the first time I actually watched live and not many months after it aired. So maybe it's just the bias of actually being involved in the zeitgeist this time around, but I actually enjoyed the show's third season a good deal more than the masses and critics did. Sure, the action was more slow-developing than usual. Sure, more than one storyline was sloppily wrapped up. But Season 3 retained all the mystery of its predecessors, as well as the themes of hedonism, self-growth, and the interpersonal effects of money and privilege. It also was by far the most introspective series thus far, drilling down on the individuals' moral and ethical dilemmas, questions of responsibility to each other, beliefs in a power higher than themselves; all were buoyed by some phenomenal acting performances as well.
9. Love Island UK, Season 12 (ITV/Hulu)
I fell back in love with the British Love Island a few years back after 3 or 4 summers away from it, but last year's season was so unenjoyable and uneventful that at times I wondered why I even bothered watching the program. It didn't help that although I do not watch the American version, I was hearing that that one was subsequently enjoying its best season ever, provoking discussion on whether the British one was officially washed. One summer later? The O.G. snatched the crown back: this was such a wild and entertaining season of Love Island that it not only reminded me why I enjoy watching it, it convinced me to stop feeling any level of shame about enjoying it. Drama! Fights! Illicit smooches! Competitions! Twists and turns! Heroes! Villains! Americans! Irish! This series had it all, including an abnormally mature and likable winning couple.
8. English Teacher, Season 2 (FX)
Hearing that this show was cancelled shortly after the conclusion of its second season was a huge buzzkill, not just because the season had just ended on a big cliffhanger, but also because 2 years into its run, it was one of the freshest and funniest new comedies in some time. Year 2 lost a tiny bit of the novelty and consistency the terrific first season had, but was another terrific ride with a cast of characters that were hilarious top to bottom. The very last line of the season (and, by default, the show) had me laughing so hard that I had to rewatch it multiple times.
7. SNL50 Anniversary Special (NBC)
I wrote a full review of this special back in February! That SNL even happens every week is close to a television miracle, and the fact that everyone involved with this show could pull together a 3-hour spectacle that was mostly very funny, very heartfelt, and not over-the-top in its self-aggrandizing was one of the program's most impressive feats to date.
6. The Bear, Season 4 (FX)
Critics were pretty down and out on The Bear's third season last year, and I agreed: apart from a couple great one-off episodes, the show simultaneously got a little too self-serious and unbelievable in 2024. Critics remained sharply divided about Season 4 this year, though, and I'll confess I was very surprised. I thought Christopher Storer and co. fully rediscovered the magic this season, re-centering the dynamic between the prodigious chefs in the kitchen, revealing additional context for numerous beloved side characters, and re-establishing the balance between humor and emotional intensity.
5. The Studio, Season 1 (Apple TV+)
No show was buzzier this year than the debut of Seth Rogen's Apple TV+ comedy, in which he plays the main character, an oft-bumbling but passionate movie studio exec. I'll preface my praise with this: the hype for this show was over the top. I saw numerous reviews saying it was literally the funniest show they had ever seen, and other comments along those hyperbolic lines. It will not be the funniest show you've ever watched, and more than that, it's easy to be dazzled when you're sprinkling in numerous celebrity cameos in every episode! That being said, it is a raucous delight, and it's a technical masterclass as well. The brilliant interplay between the core cast and the frequent use of the continuous shot glues you to the screen each episode.
4. Super Bowl LIX Halftime Show (Fox)
That people found Kendrick Lamar's halftime show divisive was as predictable as it was silly. Despite howls to the contrary, there was nothing anti-American-- nor even explicitly political --about Kendrick's set, and as for the performance? Well, it basically boils down to: if you're a fan of his or of hip-hop in general, you loved it, and if you're not, you didn't like it. But what is undeniable, if people are being of clear mind, is how good of a production the halftime show was. Kendrick was undoubtedly keenly aware of the stage he held, both in the stadium and on television. This was Rap gone expansive: a troupe of backup dancers forming a mobile American flag. Multiple stages forming a mega-sized video game console. A field-spanning "road" with streetlights, so big that Lamar traveled more yards than the hapless Kansas City Chiefs offense on the night. All emceed by a grinning Samuel L. Jackson, brilliant in his satirical 'Uncle Sam' role. This was artistry of the highest level from one of the most-acclaimed artists of his generation, tied together with brilliant choreography and masterful cinematography. Of personal enjoyment to me: this served as a launching point for his and guest SZA's joint stadium tour, which I got to see in person.
3. The Chair Company, Season 1 (HBO Max)
An unabashed Tim Robinson fan, I was poised to like this anyway, but I was absolutely not prepared for what kind of a show it would be. If you haven't watched it yet and are expecting me to extrapolate on what kind of a show it is, think again. I wouldn't know how to describe it if I tried. What I can say is it definitely, tonally and thematically, bears a much closer resemblance to Robinson's feature film Friendship than to his famous Netflix show I Think You Should Leave, which makes sense given that Chair Company is from the same writer-director as the 2024 movie. It may be even more unhinged, though, and Tim Robinson, while still unmistakably himself, actually deserves some real Emmy attention next year for his versatile acting in this one. The whole cast is hilarious in this part workplace comedy, part domestic drama, part true-crime thriller. Most exciting new show in a long time.
2. Severance, Season 2 (Apple TV+)
As uncool as it was to be left with on cliff's edge with the finale of a perfect Season 1 for 3 YEARS while Severance navigated studio disputes and then actor-writer strikes, it was very cool that the most-anticipated return of any show more than justified the excitement 3 years later. Severance had the culture in a chokehold from January through March, as we slowly learned a little-- and then suddenly, a lot --more about the menacing Lumon Industries and the band of severed employees. Not since Lost ended in 2010 have we seen a show so committed to both consistent mystery and intrigue, and meticulous world-building. Given how much Lost confounded people in its day, and continues to hold a divisive legacy (everyone who watched falls into 1 of 2 camps: "Lost is one of the greatest shows ever," or "Lost was great until it totally lost the plot), it's no surprise that this season started to lose some people. But given how much I fall into that former camp, it's also no surprise that this season only reinforced how highly I think of this show, and how firm my belief is that this is the best show on TV right now.
1. Adolescence (Netflix)
I was late to this one, and I mean really late. I mean "may or may not have watched it all in the last week" late. But, wow was it worth the wait. Every award, every bit of breathless acclaim (it nearly completed a clean sweep of the Limited Series awards at September's Emmys) was wholly warranted. Creator, writer, and lead actor Stephen Graham's limited series centers around a 13-year old boy charged with murder in a Northern English town, but tells. Each episode is shot in one continuous take, occurring during one hour periods on four completely different days, in completely different settings, and all of it feels so real and in fact often routine, and yet, you can't take your eyes off it. To an actor, every single acting performance in this one is brilliant; you feel these are all real people doing their real jobs. But no question that young Owen Cooper was the main story here: a stunning performance from the young lad in his first-ever onscreen role. I don't want to speak more on the content of the show in case you haven't seen it, but it's so gripping and so tenderly handled. I can't think of the last time I've watched something like this, nor the last time I finished a series and thought "I have no notes."
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