My Favorite New Shows of 2015

It is that time of year again to look back at all the new shows I discussed in 2015 and pick some of my favorites.  I found that I reviewed more than 125 shows last year, which made for quite a bit of television viewing.  Of course, I dropped most shows after an episode or two, but it kept me busy.  And while I could probably provide a list of 25 shows that I liked, I am trying to keep it to six categories and less than 15 shows (in no particular order).

So, without further discussion, here are my favorites new shows in the various categories:   

-- Drama:  I have to put Amazon's HBO's Togetherness and Ballers at the top of my favorites in drama.  I know that both half-hour shows are technically comedies, but not to me.  Togetherness is an odd yet endearing mix of family and career struggles by the Duplass brothers that exceeded even the craziness of Transparent.  Maybe the family in Togetherness was simply more likable, or the particulars of the struggles were more universal, but the series remains with me and I look forward to season two.  Ballers simply bowled me over with the solid story and excellent acting by the duo of Dwayne Johnson and Rob Corrdry. 

Finally, I would like to add Netflix's Master of None to this list.  Aziz Ansari has taken Louie one step further with an indepth look at the human condition.  Where else as we asking for the Al Sharpton of the Indian community to adjust the inequality of Indian representation in entertainment?  Only Netflix could put two Indian actors together in a series who go on to complain there are no shows with two Indian actors.  And this is just the tip of the iceberg as Anaari studies relationships, children, society, and more.  Brilliant!

-- Comedy: This has been a great year for comedy.  Netflix's Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt introduced us to Titus Andromedon and we will never be the same again.  The CW's Crazy Ex-Girlfriend brought back TV musicals (not that there was a past of TV musicals) and encouraged us to sing along.  And Fox's The Grinder brought Rob Lowe back to television in fine form after some great seasons on Parks and Recreation. 

 -- Family Shows:  My favorites were Netflix's Grace and Frankie and AMC's Humans, both of which showed the results of changing family structures and building new families.  Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin had to deal with their husbands marrying one another in Grace and Frankie, while the Hawkins family in Humans dealt with the consequences of bringing a "synth," or robotic servant, into their living room while other "synths" were trying to create their own family.

-- Miniseries:  Selecting shows for this category was easy thanks to PBS, which had a great year of drama.  Wolf Hall and Poldark were excellent series that brought the past alive and educated us at the same time, be it the machinations of Henry VIII or the coal-mining industry in England.  Beautifully filmed and superbly acted, these jewels will shines for many years to come. 

-- Sci Fi/Fantasy:  Mr. Robot has received much praise, and it is worthy of all of it.  I recently watched the series' star Rami Malik in the 2012 movie The Master, where he played a small roll at the shy son-in-law of the main character.  Who knew this quiet, well-behaved may was destined for such dark greatness as he takes down a corrupt corporation.  It is a must see for everyone.  And I also enjoyed SyFy's The Expanse - a shows that illustrates one potential future as we expand into the solar system.  Sadly, the problem with human expansion is that you have to bring humans along with all of our baggage and propensity for war.

-- Historical Fiction: In this category my favorites are Amazon's The Man in the High Castle and BBC America's The Last Kingdom.  The Man in the High Castle shows us a terrifying past that could have been, whereas The Last Kingdom shows us how terrifying the past really was as England created itself out of blood and conquest.  While Philip K. Dick's creations would normally fall under the sci fi category, I put his new series under historical fiction only because we are now looking back at a recreated American past with some truly ugly pieces that operated successfully for a while in other parts of the world.  

And now off we go into 2016.  Am I up to another 125 new shows?  I think I am.  Are you ready?