5. “The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story”
For a show containing an outcome presumably everyone knows, this FX limited series has a surprising amount of tension, particularly in light of how the drama reflects current issues with race, the justice system and gender. There’s little emphasis on O.J. Simpson himself, which is probably for the better given the casting of Cuba Gooding Jr. Instead, “The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story” divides its time between the prosecution and defense. Simpson’s attorneys seemed to be constantly at war, giving an opportunity to Courtney B. Vance’s Johnny Cochran and John Travolta’s Robert Shapiro to shine as they square off, while David Schwimmer’s Robert Kardashian reveals depth and humanity. But dual MVP status should go to prosecutors Marcia Clark (Sarah Paulson, a surefire Emmy bet) and Christopher Darden (Sterling K. Brown). Clark’s storyline is revelatory in its power to change the negative public perception of the lawyer, especially with respect to evolving ideas about feminism in the 2 decades interim. With all the controversy the show covers, FX has still produced a restrained drama, but it doesn’t pull any punches.
4. “Togetherness”
Though “Togetherness” was disappointingly canceled by HBO before its second season had even finished airing, perhaps we should take a solace in the fact that its probably a minor miracle that Mark and Jay Duplass’ tender dramedy even made it to air in the first place. It may have been that the premise of “four middle aged people having marital and career problems” isn’t hugely compelling in light of other shows. But all you need is one episode to be fully invested in the lives of Brett (Mark Duplass), Michelle (Melanie Lynskey), Alex (Steve Zissis), and Tina (Amanda Peet). And what emerged as a far more complex than expected show in the first season only got richer in season two. But outside the performances, including a standout turn from Lynskey and career best work from Peet, the truly remarkable feat was the economy of storytelling. Eight episodes packed more development and emotional impact than shows running three times that length. Funny, moving, and threaded with humanity and care for its characters, “Togetherness” is an extraordinary achievement wrapped in the most ordinary package.
3. “Girls”
It’s not like “Girls” ever got bad —across four earlier seasons, Lena Dunham and Jenni Konner’s millennial dramedy has maintained a remarkably consistent level. But it’s undoubtedly reached a new peak with its fifth run, and has been almost universally praised as the show’s best, and rightly so. There haven’t been radical changes —it’s more or less the same show as it’s ever been, with Dunham’s Hannah and the rest of the cast remaining maddening but curiously empathetic, and the families and various romantic partners are still beautifully drawn and consistently surprising. But as Dunham approaches her 30s, the show’s become less concerned with post-grad angst and shifted into the hard, difficult process of actually getting your shit together, and from Hannah finding her way back to writing and Shoshanna’s abortive Japanese adventure, to Jessa and Adam’s relationship and Marnie’s break-up, the characters are still making catastrophic mistakes, but they’re at least making them in the right direction. Better written and directed and more cohesive than ever, the only downside is that there’s only a single season left. God, we’ll miss it when it’s gone.
2. “The Americans”
No show on TV does more with a single look than “The Americans.” A drama about Soviet spies Elizabeth (Keri Russell) and Philip Jennings (Matthew Rhys), and the complex relationships with their family, Cold War tension and the truth the fourth season adds depth to the arcs of daughter Paige (Holly Taylor), Nina (Annet Mahendru), Oleg (Costa Ronin), Pastor Tim (Kelly AuCoin) and especially Martha (Alison Wright), but also explores new characters and subplots. The addition of William (Dylan Baker), a scientist with access to terrifying infectious diseases, brings intrigue, but the introduction of Young Hee (Ruthie Ann Miles), as a real friend for Elizabeth, is both funny and heartbreaking. “The Americans” has always been an intricately plotted show, but character —particularly the evolution of Elizabeth and Philip— is ultimately what drives it forward and makes it so substantial. With Joe Weisberg and Joel Fields at the helm, this isn’t a drama that you can half-watch while browsing Instagram, and the season finale is yet to air, but if previous year-end episodes for the show are any indication, it’ll only earn more of our affection and leave us counting down to its two remaining seasons.
1. “The Girlfriend Experience”
Steven Soderbergh‘s 2009 low-budget slip of a film might have been among the least enticing prospects for a long-form adaptation in his back catalogue, short of “Schizopolis: The Show” or “The Good German Weekly.” And yet, handing the wafer-thin premise over to proteges Amy Seimetz (“Sun Don’t Shine“) and Lodge Kerrigan (“Clean, Shaven“) has proved an inspired move, with the co-writers and directors taking the TV version of the show into vastly expanded and infinitely more interesting territory. Hugely helped by an indelible, star-making turn from Riley Keough as the ultimate self-motivated femme fatale antihero, the show follows law firm intern Christine as her borderline sociopathy and apocalyptic moral relativism sees her inducted into the world of the high-class escort. Also starring Kate Lyn Sheil, Mary Lynn Rajskub, Paul Sparks and Seimetz herself, scored by Shane Carruth and David Paterson and shot by Steven Meizler with a kind of teflon-coated remove through reflecting windows and doors left ajar, the show is willfully low-key. But it builds to a towering portrait of the terrifyingly alone, preternaturally self-sufficient Christine and as a result emerges as one of the most audaciously feminist, effortlessly progressive and intellectually compelling shows of our modern television age.
As ever, there are a few near-misses: our biggest collective blind spot is probably season 2 of the heavily Emmy-nominated ABC drama “American Crime” from John Ridley, which has been by all accounts even stronger and more soberingly intelligent than the first; Season 3 of “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” was a lot of fun but feels just a touch familiar; we’ve never quite got on board with “Penny Dreadful” despite Eva Green‘s fabulousness; Stephen King adaptation “11.22.63” starring James Franco didn’t hook us; two British imports “Happy Valley,” a terrific showcase for lead Sarah Lancashire, and Steven Knight‘s “Peaky Blinders,” probably built in strength on their previous seasons, but quietly; we liked but didn’t quite love Hulu‘s “The Path” with Aaron Paul, Hugh Dancy and Michelle Monaghan; same goes for cancelled Fox comedy “The Grinder” which starred Rob Lowe as an actor who believes he can practice law having played a lawyer so long on TV (something we can relate to, being fairly sure we could pass the Chicago Bar Exam having watched every episode of “The Good Wife“); and speaking of, the final season of “The Good Wife” might have made it onto the list proper had it ended even a single shade better —but we’re not quite ready to forgive the disappointment of that final episode after such a consistently brilliant run.
Elsewhere, like many others we were let down by Terence Winter‘s “Vinyl” which, shepherded by Martin Scorsese and Mick Jagger, seemed such a sure bet on paper; Judd Apatow‘s “Love” with Gillian Jacobs is fine but suffers by comparison with more adventurous relationship comedies; “Daredevil” season 2 marked a step back both from season 1 and from Marvel’s better “Jessica Jones“; “House of Cards” still has its vocal defenders, but too many of us have fallen by the wayside to make a really strong case for it; “The Walking Dead” s6 seems a long time ago now (the new season bows in October) and s2 of “Fear The Walking Dead” didn’t really grab us; and the ongoing allure of “Last Man On Earth,” “Bates Motel,” and “Outlander” continues to evade us. And we’ve yet to be convinced by any of “War & Peace,” “Line of Duty,” “Colony,” “Mad Dogs” “Animal, “Angie Tribeca,” “Dice,” “Confirmation” or “Idiotsitter” but are ready to hear impassioned defenses of these or any other TV gems from the first half of 2016 that we’ve overlooked in the comments below.