Jamie Ending a nine-year, five-season sci-fi saga turned cultural phenomenon was a Herculean task, but the Duffer Brothers sparked belief in more ways than one for the “Stranger Things” finale.

While the series dragged out to absurdity thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, writers and actors' strikes and just timing, fans finally got their fitting end to beloved characters as this long Dungeons & Dragons-inspired campaign came to a close.

The phrase “I believe,” something The Party — Mike Wheeler (Finn Wolfhard), Dustin Henderson (Gaten Matarazzo), Lucas Sinclair (Caleb McLaughlin), Will Byers (Noah Schnapp) and Max Mayfield (Sadie Sink) – says at the end of the finale which premiered Dec. 31, 2025, was the mantra for this season, written and directed by show founders Matt and Ross Duffer, and in the larger context, the series.

From the first episode, Joyce Byers (Winona Ryder) always believed that her son Will was alive and would be found. It kicked off a story of death, destruction and chaos that would culminate in a finale of hope.

The task was simple in concept — kill Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower). But the path there was dangerous and unclear.

The Party, along with the other key players Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown), Steve Harrington (Joe Keery), Nancy Wheeler (Natalia Dyer), Jonathan Byers (Charlie Heaton), Robin Buckley (Maya Hawke), Jim Hopper (David Harbour), Joyce and, oddly, Murray Bauman (Brett Gelman), have to breach the Upside Down through the military base opening, climb the radio tower and climb up into the Abyss before that world collides the Upside Down and eventually Hawkins.

To achieve this, El must go into the water tank one more time in Hawkins Lab in the Upside Down and telepathically find Vecna, bringing her sister Kali (Linnea Berthelsen), and it turns out Max (who had some residual powers thanks to her extended vacation in Vecna’s mind). The three do find him, and the Abyss screeches to a halt just before killing the whole crew waiting on the radio tower. The Duffer Brothers gave viewers the biggest scare when beloved Steve almost falls to his death, only for Jonathan to save his life.

Things, of course, go sideways when Vecna tricks Hopper into thinking he’s accidentally shot and killed El and prematurely pulls her from the tank. It’s a serious misstep that sets things in motion:

-Holly Wheeler (Nell Fisher) truly becomes Holly the Heroic by helping her 11 friends escape to the cave in Vecna’s mind.

-The military breaches Hawkins Lab, killing Kali, but sparing Hopper and Eleven thanks to Murray’s quick MacGyver skills by taking down a helicopter with a grenade.

-The rest of the crew has climbed up in the Abyss and discovered Godzilla, the spider-monster, the Mind Flayer.

-Vecna faces his biggest fear by going into the cave and relives the memory where this all started for him as a child.

Despite the reality that Vecna is what Henry Creel has become, it’s hard not to feel sorry for him in that cave. Will taps into the mind hive to see just how scared Henry is and tries to convince him to leave the Mind Flayer behind to help them. It’s a selfless moment for Will, especially knowing how much Vecna has tormented him for years. He sees that it was never really who he wanted to be.

But Henry stays Vecna. And he’ll die with that choice.  

In an epic battle, Eleven kills Vecna, and the friends help by debilitating the Mind Flayer. What was never on my bingo card for his finale was Joyce being the one to officially end Vecna. While he’s already been impaled, he lifts his head as if he’s going to come back from this somehow. Joyce calmly grabs her ax, looks at him, and says, “You fucked with the wrong family,” before chopping at his neck as his head eventually tumbles off.

During this gruesome moment, flashbacks of all the people they’ve cared about who have died by Vecna via the Mind Flayer play for us to see in the minds of those watching. It’s a bloody, but poignant moment of good defeating evil, a catharsis for every character and viewer.

While it feels over, it’s just not that simple. Eleven is the soul of “Stranger Things,” and her life as a prized military weapon isn’t something she can just walk away from. Kali put it in her mind that they must stay in the Upside Down as the world is destroyed, to make sure the military can never weaponize anyone again, via their blood. Though Kali dies before, it’s a choice Eleven decides to make in the end.

As the group travels out of the Upside Down, they’re promptly captured by the military. El taps into Mike’s mind, telling him she has to stay behind. It’s the only way to stop the cycle.

And while we see El disappear as the Upside Down disintegrates, it’s still not that simple.

The end of the episode flashes forward 18 months, the day of The Party’s graduation. We see each of them moving on with their lives in different ways: Steve is a coach, Robin and Jonathan are in college, Nancy drops out to work at a newspaper and Hopper proposes to Joyce. I guess we’re all just suspending belief here that the military let all of them go, especially Hopper, who just goes back to being the police chief after murdering several members of the military. 

Dustin, the valedictorian, gives the ultimate salute to their fallen friend, Eddie Munson (Joseph Quinn), in his epic graduation speech that has all the vibes of a John Hughes movie. It’s bizarre to see them living everyday lives, but it’s also such a gift.

The series ended just as it began — with a game of D&D in Mike’s basement. The Party visited their childhood one last time, playing a game of fictional monsters after conquering the real ones. It’s here that we learn Mike, the Dungeon Master and storyteller, has a theory about the love of his life, El, as the “mage.” The military’s frequencies had disrupted her powers and debilitated her. But not the last time they saw her, meaning, Kali, before she died, assisted her with illusionary powers to help Eleven disappear instead of die in the Upside Down.

Mike weaves the tale of where he thinks each of his friends will end up. The most touching story is how El is alive in a remote area, staring at the most beautiful waterfalls. Giving the characters (and fans) a viable theory that El is alive was a beautiful sendoff for the group, as each of The Party says, “I believe.” I agree with The Party — Eleven is alive somewhere, but I would have loved to see a little more of a wink that it’s true. But that’s where faith comes in. 

The friends leave the basement and their childhood behind as Holly and her friends try their hand at D&D.

I believe the Duffer Brothers did it. They created a twisted, heartbreaking and hopeful tale full of uniqueness, nostalgia and nerd culture that cannot be replicated. While it was not the best episode of the series, the finale closed the chapter well on an iconic show. The Duffer Brothers are genius storytellers — the ultimate Dungeon Masters. 

by Julian Spivey & Tyler Glover
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Many of our favorite television series are returning in January, ensuring we kick off 2026 in fine pop-culture fashion. 
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Will Trent: Season 4 (ABC) - Tuesday, January 6
ABC’s Will Trent has been the best drama on network television for the majority of its run. The series that stars Ramon Rodriguez as the titular detective premieres Tuesday, January 6. Season three was particularly tough on Will Trent with a breakup, the accidental shooting death of a teenage boy and another breakup, so hopefully he’ll be able to catch a break in the fourth season, while still providing us with entertaining cases of the week. 
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The Pitt: Season 2 (HBO Max) - Thursday, January 8
HBO Max’s medical drama “The Pitt,” which recently ranked as the No. 1 TV show of 2025 on this website, returns for its second season on Thursday, January 8. The reigning Outstanding Drama Series Emmy winner sees a time jump of more than half a year to a hectic July 4th weekend for the Pittsburgh emergency room, and its incredible staff (and the show’s cast). Once again, the show will follow a singular day at the hospital told in hour-long increments. Let’s see if the magic of season one remains. 

All Creatures Great & Small: Season 6 (PBS) - Sunday, January 11 
“All Creatures Great & Small,” which airs in the U.K. in the fall and as part of the PBS “Masterpiece” series in the U.S. every winter, debuts its sixth season on Sunday, January 11. The series, which follows a small-town veterinary practice in 1940s Northern England, is TV comfort food. We’ll see what Siegfried, James Herriot and company have in store for us in season six, with World War II surely still raging.  

Shrinking: Season 3 (Apple TV) - Wednesday, January 28
Apple TV’s “Shrinking” is very likely the single funniest comedy on television, and yet it also contains a whole lot of heart, making it one of the best overall shows. It was disappointing we didn’t get season three at the end of 2025, but at least it wasn’t pushed too far into 2026. Season three of the show will follow the incredible ensemble cast, led by Jason Segel, Harrison Ford, and Jessica Williams, and will see Michael J. Fox return to acting in a much-anticipated guest role. There’s a good chance this one will end up in our year-end top 10. 
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Bridgerton: Season 4 (Netflix) - Thursday, January 29 
Dearest gentle reader, the wait is almost over! Soon, Lady Whistledown will return to give us the latest delicious gossip on the members of the ‘ton in Netflix’s hit series, “Bridgerton.” Every season, we get to see a different member of the Bridgerton family find love during the social season. This time, it is Benedict’s turn. “Bridgerton” fans are in for a treat as this season promises to be a Cinderella-like story. The first four episodes will premiere on Thursday, January 29th, followed by the final four on Thursday, February 26th, 2026.

As “Stranger Things” takes its final crawl after a nine-year, five-season run, I’ve ranked the show’s top 10 characters: 
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10. Robin 
Robin Buckley (Maya Hawke) made her debut in Season 3 as Steve Harrington’s coworker at Scoops Ahoy in Starcourt Mall. Initially, Robin had a cool persona, but her character evolved — likely due to the trauma of fighting off monsters — into a quirky bestie who fit right into the group. She might be the comic relief this season, but she’s also the heart. Her story of accepting herself was a big reason why Will was starting to feel safe enough to reveal that he is gay. I’m reserving my judgment until the finale of whether Will actually came out to everyone, or if that was Vecna incognito. But regardless, Robin’s friendship with Will was crucial this season. 

9. Will 
Will “Badass” Byers (Noah Schnapp), as I now refer to him after he became a freaking sorcerer, has undoubtedly changed from a timid kid to a whiny teenager to a courageous, determined one. His feat of strength in the final season’s “Chapter Four: Sorcerer” was one of the best moments of the entire series. He’s always been a key piece of this story and will no doubt be a significant part of the finale. 

8. Joyce 
I went back and watched the first episode of “Stranger Things,” and seeing all of these characters before their lives got uprooted was a bit like opening a time capsule. I felt nostalgic for them. Joyce (Winona Ryder) was just a single mom trying to do her best. This season, she’s learning to trust her son’s abilities, despite every instinct that’s telling her to run away and keep him safe. She knows Vecna has to be destroyed, and watching the character balance her own fears with what she knows has to be done is captivating. 

7. Nancy 
I’ve always had a soft spot for the brilliant student-later-turned-journalist, Nancy Wheeler (Natalia Dyer). She’s grown from a naive teenager into a tough woman who is fully prepared to take out Vecna on her own if she has to. Even though she’s somewhat caught up in a love triangle, I think she’ll wind up on her own — in life or death. 

6. Vecna/Henry Creel/Mr. Whatsit 
Vecna (Jamie Campbell Bower) might be one of the greatest TV villains of all time because of his multifaceted personality. His backstory as the young Henry Creel (Maksim Blatt/Raphael Luce) is tragic, and you absolutely can sympathize with a child who was victimized into an experiment. At the same time, he’s made some serious evil choices as the monster Vecna. And then you have the creepy Mr. Whatsit, who is kidnapping children. It’s a fascinating character who might just get freed from his prison of darkness in the end, one way or another. 

5. Max 
I can see where it’d be hard for a character to enter the friend group of Eleven, Mike, Dustin and Lucas and fit in so effortlessly. While fans were still getting to know this group, Max entered the scene in season two. As cool as Eleven is because of her unique powers, Max Mayfield (Sadie Sink) is honestly cooler. At this point, I care more about the love story between her and Lucas than even Eleven and Mike (in the end, I do want them together, though). Aside from Eleven and possibly Nancy, there aren’t many characters out of this bunch who could have wandered around in Vecna’s mind that long and still kept it together so well. Holly needed her, Lucas needed her, and she did her absolute best for them while saving herself. 

4. Steve 
Oh, Steve Harrington (Joe Keery) — you beautiful young man. Vecna better not mess with Steve, or fans will weep. It’s been a running joke on social media to the tune of “Mr. Sandman,” singing, “Mr. Vecna, please don’t kill Steve,” but we all mean it. Don’t kill him, please. It’s a true testament to this character’s evolution that he’s the one fans are most worried about, especially when you go back to episode one, where all he wants is to get in Nancy’s pants. I’m so glad the Duffer Brothers saw the potential of this character because he went from a stereotypical ’80s popular jerk to the mother hen of the characters. His relationship with Dustin is one of the best on the show. He was marked for death in season one, until the Duffer Brothers realized they wanted him to stick around. Hopefully, they continue to show him that mercy. 

3. Dustin 
Dustin Henderson (Gaten Matarazzo) is the most interesting out of the original friend group. He’s nerdy, super smart and known by fans as the “glue” for all of them. From being the bridge between Mike and Lucas when Eleven showed up, to raising a Demogorgon to his grief over Eddie’s death, you can’t help but root for him. From the beginning, he’s been one of my favorite characters. I’ve long believed that if they do kill Steve in the finale, it’ll be because he is saving Dustin. “You die, I die,” as those two said, but let’s have neither of you die, OK? Please and thanks. 

2. Hopper 
Seems like eons ago that the character wasn’t just simply “Hopper,” but Hawkins Chief of Police Jim Hopper, Jr. (David Harbour), a Vietnam veteran, divorced and an alcoholic, grieving the loss of his only daughter, Sara, to cancer. Fast forward to season five and he’s father to Eleven, boyfriend to Joyce, a former Russian POW and the leader trying to keep all these young people from going completely off the rails into danger. Despite her resistance, he’ll continue to be Eleven’s protector and the north star of the show. 

1. Eleven 
“Stranger Things” may have originated with the disappearance of Will Byers, but Eleven/Jane (Millie Bobby Brown) has always been at the center of what makes this show unique. She is the protagonist to Vecna’s antagonist, showing what love and kindness can create despite the horrors they both experienced. Her relationship with Mike was precious as children, adorable when they were teens and now, I’m so curious to see what happens to them as they make this final push to finally end the suffering. Will El get her happy ending — with Mike, Hopper, the chance to live a normal life without the military hunting her? Eleven is the soul of “Stranger Things,” and while I care about all of these characters — please, again, not Steve! — what happens to Eleven will matter the most in the finale. 

Mike Franks was a character I really enjoyed on the CBS crime procedural “NCIS” whenever he would pop up in the first half of that show’s much-too-long run, as played by Muse Watson. Franks was the mentor to the show’s hero Leroy Jethro Gibbs (Mark Harmon), and somehow an even more old-school, grizzled federal agent than Gibbs. When a prequel to “NCIS” was announced, I knew they had to get two things right – they had to get younger Gibbs right (I’m still learning to live with Austin Stowell in the role) and they had to get younger Franks right, and Kyle Schmid, an actor I wasn’t familiar with before his role as Franks, is terrific. Schmid has the intensity you’d expect from the character, but you also get many glimpses at a softer side, thanks to the series being able to delve deeper into this character. I wasn’t sure I’d even want to continue another “NCIS” series, but Schmid’s performance has gone a long way in making me glad I gave it a shot. 

Bryan Cranston only appeared in three episodes of Apple TV’s “The Studio” as Continental Studios CEO Griffin Mill, but he absolutely stole every scene he was in, leading to his well-deserved Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actor in a Comedy Series. Cranston steals every scene he’s in, especially in the final two episodes of the season, in which his old school studio head honcho was slammed out of his mind on mushrooms, leading up to a big presentation. This role showed Cranston can and will do just about anything for a laugh and plays slapstick as well as anyone in the business. 

Last year's list had Hannah Einbinder’s Ava Daniels at No. 1. In the fourth season of “Hacks,” it was Einbinder’s fellow Emmy-winning cohort on the show, Jean Smart as Deborah Vance, that had time to shine – although, after winning an Emmy for each of the show’s four seasons, you could argue she’s been shining the entire time. Season four sees Deborah living the apex of her career’s dream, hosting a late-night television talk show, which she once had ripped from her hands. It’s a struggle at first, and she’s warring with Ava, who blackmailed her way into the head writer gig on the show, but eventually things start to click for the show within a show. Then something happens that forces Deborah to make a hard decision – she can either fire Ava or keep her TV show. After years of having Deborah and Ava stab each other in the back, usually Deborah doing it to Ava, the decision Deborah makes is one viewers have been waiting for, and it’ll be an interesting way to see the show enter its fifth and final season. 

Honestly, I could’ve picked every member of the five main “English Teacher” characters/cast members for this list, as the show, which probably had the most laughs per episode of any comedy on TV this year, other than “The Studio,” had a perfect ensemble. I settled on Markie, played by Sean Patton, the gym teacher and football coach of the show’s high school setting, for the remarkable way he plays off each of the show’s characters, but primarily providing a conservative, masculine foil to Brian Jordan Alvarez’s English teacher Evan. In the hands of another actor, and definitely another set of writers, this character would’ve been stereotypical and unlikable, but Patton and the show’s writing staff make him this giant teddy bear of a character, who you might not always agree with, and he certainly doesn’t always share your feelings or opinions, but he still loves you like a brother.  

​It is always hard to portray real people, but I suppose it helps when few people know a lot about a real person, even if that person was Vice President and later President of the United States. Nick Offerman is also really good at playing different variations of Nick Offerman – loud, brash, masculine, tough, but with a bit of a soft side. His performance as politician Chester Arthur, who goes from political bouncer to President in a short time, in the Netflix four-episode limited series “Death by Lightning,” was one of the most fun on television all year. I remarked after the show’s run that everybody in the cast – Michael Shannon, Matthew Macfadyen, Bradley Whitford and Shea Whigham – was terrific, and Offerman’s performance still blew every other one out of the water. 

What would you do if you were one of the last true people on earth? That’s what romance novelist and all-around pessimist Carol Sturka is forced to reckon with in writer/producer Vince Gilligan’s latest TV series “Pluribus.” Rhea Seehorn, who blew away audiences in Gilligan’s previous TV series “Better Call Saul,” plays Carol, a woman who has lost everything but refuses to give up her humanity. It’s an incredible performance, filled with evident anger and a bubbling-under sadness that feels perfect for this year.  

I’m not sure anybody had a more complicated acting job than Britt Lower’s Emmy Award-winning performance as both Helly R. and Helena Eagan on the second season of Apple TV’s “Severance.” All of the cast's performances as the innie and outie versions of their characters are fascinating. Still, Lower’s performance is the only one that changes so drastically. More importantly, at times we don’t precisely know which character she is – is she Helly R., is she Helena Eagan, or is she Helena Eagan impersonating Helly R.? Lower’s little intricacies while playing each character were one of the highlights of the show’s second season. 

We knew Noah Wyle could play a doctor well. Hell, more than 30 years into his acting career, that’s the thing we knew about him the best. He spent a decade playing the young John Carter on NBC’s “ER,” a role that earned him Emmy Award nominations. All these years later, Wyle put on the scrubs and stethoscope again, to play a senior attending physician in a busy Pittsburgh emergency room, while suffering from PTSD brought on from treating COVID-19 and losing loved ones to it. Wyle gives a remarkable performance as a doctor on his last legs, trying to save lives and teach young doctors how to save lives, all the while reeling from mental anguish. It was a well-earned Emmy Award win for Wyle. 

There wasn’t a more heartbreaking performance on television this year than Tom Pelphrey as Robby Prendergrast in the HBO crime drama “Task.” Predergrast is a good guy, just trying to provide for his family – two young kids and a grown niece – after his brother is murdered and his wife has run off. The way to do this is to take revenge on the biker gang that killed his brother by robbing their drug stash houses. A good guy forced to do bad things to survive is always going to be an interesting character for me as a viewer, and Pelphrey’s performance as Prendergrast makes you care so much for this character, who needs to catch a break. 

Typically, we don’t include actual people in this list, but we have made an exception before (Amber Ruffin made the cut in 2017 for her hilarious appearances on NBC’s “Late Night with Seth Meyers”). Few people had a more challenging year in the television industry than late-night hosts Stephen Colbert of CBS’s ‘Late Show’ and Jimmy Kimmel of ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live.” In May, it was announced that Colbert and the entire ‘Late Show’ would be canceled after the current season, which ends in May 2026, despite being the most-watched late-night show on network television. It was seen by many as a political firing to appease the Trump administration, so that Paramount, which owns CBS, could be sold. Essentially, many viewed it as a bribe. Then, in September, ABC kowtowed to threats from FCC commissioner Brendan Carr and being yanked by affiliates of media groups Nexstar and Sinclair, and pulled Jimmy Kimmel’s show for what it said was an “indefinite” period, after the host made comments about the death of political activist Charlie Kirk on his show. A protest of ABC and Disney (which owns ABC) in the aftermath of Kimmel’s show being pulled led to his reinstatement the next week, and he’s since been given a contract extension (which I’m not sure would’ve happened, had it not been for the backlash to him being pulled). Colbert and Kimmel both handled their respective controversies with hilarity and grace, and neither refused to give in to or back down from censorship and fascism. 

​10. "Saturday Night Live" 50th Anniversary Documentaries (Peacock/NBC)
“Saturday Night Live” celebrated its 50th season from the fall of 2024 through the spring of 2025, and with the celebration came several documentaries about the show that were an absolute delight for an ‘SNL’ superfan like me. A four-episode docuseries called “SNL50: Beyond Saturday Night” featured episodes on the show’s writing process, audition process, the “More Cowbell” sketch, which I and many consider to be the greatest sketch in ‘SNL’ history, and a documentary about the show’s eleventh season, which it almost didn’t survive. There was also the remarkable nearly three-hour ‘SNL’ music documentary, “Ladies & Gentlemen … 50 Years of SNL Music,” co-directed by The Roots drummer Amir “Questlove” Thompson and Oz Rodriguez, that featured a much-talked about opening supercut of some of the show’s most incredible performances that dropped jaws, and truly was one of the most fantastic TV scenes of the year. 
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​9. "Marc Maron: Panicked" (HBO/HBO Max)
Few people had a better year in entertainment than comedian/actor/podcaster Marc Maron. Maron ended his landmark podcast “WTF” in late 2025 after 16 years and more than 1600 episodes, his AppleTV comedy series “Stick” with Owen Wilson debuted and was picked up for a second season – and would appear on this list if we included 20 shows and his most recent comedy special, “Panicked,” which aired on HBO, was one of the year’s best received stand-up hours. “Panicked” was my favorite stand-up special of the year, and one of my all-time favorites. I dig Maron’s neurotic, witty, and let’s face it, liberal-leaning comedy. I enjoyed him poking fun at liberals, though, like how he joked that we being annoying led to people voting for fascism. But I also loved his jabs at conservative dumbass podcasters like Theo Vonn, musing about whether or not they would’ve interviewed Adolf Hitler. However, my absolute favorite bit from his special was about trying to flee a forest fire with his multiple cats. Any cat lover will understand and nearly pass out laughing from that story. 
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​8. "The Studio" (Apple TV)
One of 2025’s best and most exciting television series was about the film industry. Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg’s “The Studio” finds Rogen playing studio executive Matt Remick, who’s just been placed in charge of a fledgling studio and tasked with turning things around. The show is played for laughs, with Remick stumbling his way through his first year on the job and struggling to turn a profit while also trying to maintain his artistic integrity. “The Studio” was one of the year’s funniest TV shows and was awarded with a massive haul on Emmy night, including the coveted Outstanding Comedy Series honor. 

​7. "Pluribus" (Apple TV)
I didn’t know anything about Vince Gilligan’s Apple TV show “Pluribus” until I started watching. It seems nobody really did. The promotion for the show didn’t give away much – I guess when you have Gilligan’s first series since “Better Call Saul,” you figure folks will tune in. I don’t really want to elaborate much on the show, but I will say that it’s a science fiction series and Rhea Seehorn gives one of the year’s best performances as Carol Sturka, a romance novelist who experiences a worldwide change and must work her way through it. That should be enough to get you excited. 
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​6. Hacks (HBO Max)
“Hacks” is the only series on this list to have appeared last season – of course, it’s one of only two on the list that aired a season in 2024 – but it’s found a home on our best TV of the year list every season it’s aired. It was our No. 1 show last year, it was No. 3 for its second season and No. 2 for its first season. While this might be the first time it’s been out of the top three, it’s still clicking along just as well as ever. In season four, Deborah Vance (the excellent Jean Smart, who has won an Emmy for all four seasons) has reached the pinnacle of her career – she’s finally a late-night TV host. Unfortunately, it doesn’t go as planned, and by the season’s end, she’s forced to decide between her show or Ava (Hannah Einbinder, who I’m thrilled finally won an Emmy Award for her performance), and after years of doing wrong by Ava, Deborah finally makes the right decision. It’ll be interesting to see where that takes us for next year’s final season. 
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​5. "The Last of Us" (HBO)
The second season of HBO’s apocalyptic-horror drama “The Last of Us” was the most unfairly maligned season of television in 2025. The biggest reason is that a good portion of the audience was obviously unaware of the source material – the video games – and didn’t know that a very popular character was going to meet their end in the season. I’m one of the show’s viewers who are unfamiliar with the source material, but I’m fine with the show’s creators sticking to artistic integrity and sticking with the story as it was meant to be told. Bella Ramsey’s portrayal of Ellie, which came to the forefront in season two, was powerful (though many online have it out for Ramsey for reasons not necessarily related to the show). The addition of Isabela Merced, Kaitlyn Dever and Jeffrey Wright to the cast added to the show’s already great history of plugging in actors in more minor, yet important roles. 
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4. The Bear (Hulu)
The first two seasons of “The Bear,” an FX production on Hulu, were perfect television – both seasons topped this very list. Then came season three, a slower, more meandering season that didn’t really go anywhere, and it seemed the magic vanished into thin air (and I didn’t even dislike the season, as many did). Showrunner Christopher Storer righted the ship in season four, which saw the gang of lovable restaurant workers back in gear, working together to make a struggling restaurant succeed against all odds. The show is truly magical when clicking on all cylinders, and that came through brilliantly in one of my favorite single episodes of TV in 2025, “Bears,” with every single person on screen performing flawlessly. 
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3. "Task" (HBO)
Brad Inglesby’s HBO limited crime series “Mare of Easttown” was one of my favorite shows of 2021, and ranked No. 6 on this very list from that year. Thus, I was super pumped to hear Inglesby had another crime series coming to HBO this fall called “Task,” which starred Mark Ruffalo and Tom Pelphrey. “Task” was every bit as good as “Mare of Easttown,” if not even better. Pelphrey plays a sanitation worker who robs drug houses of a local biker gang, against whom he holds a grudge. Ruffalo is the FBI agent tasked with solving the crime. The performances from Pelphrey and Ruffalo are among the best on TV all year, and the show features another fantastic performance by Emilia Jones, who plays the 21-year-old niece of Pelphrey’s Robbie Prendergrast. The final three episodes of the seven-episode first season are damn near perfect, especially scenes between Ruffalo and Pelphrey in the fifth episode, “Vagrants.” 
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2. "Adolescence" (Netflix)
​“Adolescence,” a four-part Netflix limited series about the murder of a young girl and the case surrounding it, was a remarkable bit of storytelling, the kind we rarely see on television, as each episode was told in one long take. The series, created and written by Steven Graham and Jack Thorne, was a remarkable take on what a crime drama can be, after viewers figure they’ve seen them all. The English series featured incredible acting that matched the excellent filming and writing that led to Emmy wins for Graham, who also portrayed the father of the killer, Owen Cooper, a young man in his first acting role, and Erin Doherty, as a child psychologist in one of the year’s most riveting single episodes. Ashley Walters and Christine Tremarco (also nominated for Emmys) and Faye Marsay were also remarkable. 

​1. "The Pitt" (HBO Max)
I never would have guessed HBO Max’s medical series “The Pitt” to be the best television show of 2025. I had heard it was coming, and it sounded like a lesser version of “ER,” and even may have had origins as an “ER” spinoff that damn near got the whole thing shut down before it even started. What the show wound up being was the most realistic portrayal of emergency room doctors, nurses and staff ever shown on television, and done so in a not new, but well-chosen method of telling a story in real-time with every episode being an hour during the shift of the medical staff. The writing and performances by a cast led by Noah Wyle and featuring a bunch of mostly unknown faces – both young and veteran – gave us the most interesting group of characters on television all year. “The Pitt,” which aired 15 episodes in its first season and aired weekly, brought an old-fashioned type of television most of us grew up watching into the streaming era, and we ate it up. 

My Next Guest Needs No Introduction with David Letterman: Adam Sandler (Netflix) – Monday, December 1
David Letterman’s Netflix interview show, “My Next Guest Needs No Introduction,” has seemingly dropped the season format of releasing multiple episodes at once and gone to one-off episodes. His latest features comedian and actor Adam Sandler, and is perfectly timed for Monday, December 1, just a few days before Sandler’s latest film, “Jay Kelly,” which is receiving potential Oscar buzz for Sandler, premieres on the streamer on Friday, December 5. Sandler was always a fun interview on Letterman’s ‘Late Show,’ and a longer interview should provide many laughs and insight into Sandler’s life and career.

The Abandons (Netflix) – Thursday, December 4
“The Abandons,” which premieres on Netflix on Thursday, December 4, sees creator Kurt Sutter trading in the outlaws of “Sons of Anarchy” for a different kind of outlaw: the American West's in the 1850s. “The Abandons” sees Lena Headey as Fiona Nolan, an Irish woman unable to conceive, who builds her own family by adopting four orphans, only to see English aristocrats, led by Gillian Anderson’s Constance Van Ness, claim her Oregon home.  
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Jay Kelly (Netflix) – Friday, December 5
Writer/director Noah Baumbach’s latest film, “Jay Kelly,” premiering on Netflix on Friday, December 5, is garnering potential Oscar buzz in multiple categories, including Best Picture. “Jay Kelly” sees Oscar-winner George Clooney as the titular character, an aging movie star, who embarks on a European trip with his longtime manager, played by Adam Sandler (also drawing Oscar buzz), and contemplating choices they have made throughout their career. 
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Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery (Netflix) – Friday, December 12
“Wake Up Dead Man,” the latest in writer/director Rian Johnson’s ‘Knives Out’ mystery series featuring Daniel Craig’s glorious Benoit Blanc character, finds Blanc trying to solve the murder of a Catholic Monsignor, with a former boxer, turned Catholic priest, as the main suspect. Josh O’Connor is getting rave reviews as said priest, and the supporting cast – as in the other ‘Knives Out’ whodunnits – is amazing with Glenn Close, Josh Brolin, Jeremy Renner, Kerry Washington, Andrew Scott, Mila Kunis and Jeffrey Wright. 
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Taylor Swift: The End of an Era (Disney+) – Friday, December 12
To be frank, I have zero interest in Disney+’s “Taylor Swift: The End of an Era” documentary, which follows the massive pop star behind the scenes of her Eras Tour over six episodes. Many of us are Swifted out, especially when it comes to that tour, but the pop sensation knows how to keep her large and loyal fanbase happy with constant content. This docuseries will undoubtedly be one of the biggest pop culture moments of the year as it comes to an end. The first two episodes drop on Friday, December 12, with two more coming each subsequent Friday. 
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Sarah Squirm: Live + In The Flesh (HBO/HBO Max) – Friday, December 12
Sarah Sherman has been one of the most unique cast members in “Saturday Night Live” history with her humor, including wild, wacky and out there aspects, largely featuring body horror. It has made her a bit of a “love her or hate her” cast member among fans of that show. But for those who love her, her HBO special “Sarah Squirm: Live + In The Flesh,” premiering on Friday, December 12, should be disgustingly hilarious.

Breakdown: 1975 (Netflix) – Friday, December 19
Netflix’s documentary “Breakdown: 1975,” directed by Morgan Neville, will be a “can’t miss” for film buffs, as it focuses on how the social and political upheaval of the early to mid-1970s led to films like Martin Scorsese’s “Taxi Driver,” Sidney Lumet’s “Network” and Milos Forman’s “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.” The documentary, narrated by Oscar-winner Jodie Foster, features interviews with Albert Brooks, Ellen Burstyn, Josh Brolin, Scorsese, Oliver Stone, Seth Rogen and more.

Stranger Things: Part 2 & Finale (Netflix) – Thursday, December 25 & Wednesday, December 31
The first four episodes of the “Stranger Things” fifth and final season dropped on Netflix over Thanksgiving week and immediately became the talk of the pop culture and television world. After a decade, a ridiculously prolonged decade, the story of Eleven, Mike, Hopper, and all of our favorite Hawkins, Ind., characters comes to an end, first with three episodes coming on Christmas Day, and the nearly two-hour-long series finale dropping on New Year’s Eve. So, ring in the New Year by seeing if Vecna can be defeated! 

The standoff between YouTube TV and Disney over television/streaming rights has entered its second week, with YouTube TV users being without Disney channels, like the popular ABC and ESPN networks.

The dispute centers on carriage fees, the per-subscriber rates distributors pay to carry broadcast and cable networks.  Disney’s networks, which also include FX, Disney Channel, Nat Geo, and more, have been dark on YouTube TV since late Thursday, October 30.

YouTube TV, owned by Google, has been involved in multiple carriage disputes this year, but most deals are struck before channels are removed from the platform, or within a day or two of being removed. A carriage dispute of this length, especially with a company owning some of the most-watched channels on television, is rare.

According to Variety, a recent survey by market research firm Drive Research found that 24% of YouTube TV subscribers had already canceled or plan to cancel the service in response to the Google/Disney standoff. Thirty percent of those surveyed say they planned to subscribe directly to Hulu + Live TV or ESPN Unlimited to ensure they have access to the sporting events and networks they want to watch.

I completely understand being pissed off by the Google/Disney dispute. As a YouTube TV subscriber myself, I have been, too, though I’m more upset about losing the opportunity to DVR ABC dramas and comedies I watch than about not being able to see select college football games or Monday Night Football.

But one thing I absolutely will not do is cancel YouTube TV— at least anytime soon —to switch to Hulu + Live TV.

This is a fight between billionaire conglomerates, but it also feels like a dirty plot by Disney to make more money and kill off a competitor.

You see, Disney owns Hulu, just as it does ABC, ESPN, etc., and if it can piss off enough YouTube TV subscribers to cancel and switch to Hulu + Live TV, it’s a win-win for the company.  

We’ve never lived in a time when media conglomerates were so obviously trying to buy up so many companies and essentially hold a monopoly, and when the government seemed OK with it.  

Yes, Google/YouTube aren’t faultless in this standoff, but without ABC, ESPN, etc., YouTube TV’s product probably dies off in the future, and that would make Hulu + Live TV the biggest live television streamer. As it stands, YouTube TV has roughly 10 million subscribers, whereas Hulu + Live TV has around 4 million. Can’t you see why Disney might want to keep ABC, ESPN, etc., away from YouTube TV for an extended period of time?

Eventually, Google and Disney will come to a deal. It has to. Otherwise, as I said, YouTube TV is kaput. But what we absolutely should not do is kowtow to Disney by forking over more money to the company.

I understand you want to watch football. But it’s not worth giving in to Disney by subscribing to one of their streamers in the meantime. Try to ride out this dispute like I am.  

I Love L.A. (HBO/HBO Max) – Sunday, November 2
Rachel Sennott plays the kind of characters who would probably annoy the hell out of me in real life – but the ones I’ve seen from her on film, like in “Shiva Baby” and “Bottoms,” have entertained the hell out of me instead. She frequently plays self-obsessed, trainwreck late millennials, but the messiness is funny and sometimes endearing. Sennott brings her first leading television role in “I Love L.A.” to HBO (streaming on HBO Max), in which she plays an ambitious young woman aspiring to be a talent agent and reunites with friends who have spent time apart. “I Love L.A.” premieres on HBO and HBO Max on Sunday, November 2.

All Her Fault (Peacock) – Thursday, November 6
The Peacock thriller “All Her Fault” sees Sarah Snook’s return to television following her career-changing, Emmy-winning role as Shiv Roy on HBO’s “Succession.” “All Her Fault” features Snook as a mother who arrives at a location to pick her son up from a play date only to find that he’s no longer there. Based on a novel by Andrea Mara, the series features Jake Lacy, Sophia Lillis, Michael Pena and Dakota Fanning in supporting roles. “All Her Fault” premieres on Peacock on Thursday, November 6. 

Pluribus (AppleTV) – Friday, November 7
AppleTV’s “Pluribus” sees the return of “Breaking Bad” and “Better Call Saul” creator Vince Gilligan to television, but this time with science fiction as the genre. He re-teams with actress Rhea Seehorn, from “Better Call Saul,” who plays a woman immune to an unexplained virus that transforms the world’s population into happy, optimistic people. The show, which was picked up for two seasons from the start, should be one of the year’s most anticipated TV premieres simply based on the Gilligan/Seehorn collaboration. “Pluribus” premieres on Apple TV on Friday, November 7. 

Frankenstein (Netflix) – Friday, November 7
Director Guillermo del Toro’s lifelong inspiration has been author Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein,” and according to a recent interview for CBS’s “Sunday Morning,” aspects of the story have appeared in every one of the director’s films. He finally got the chance to take on the mother of all monster tales himself via Netflix, with his telling of the classic premiering on Friday, November 7. This version features Oscar Isaac as Dr. Frankenstein and Jacob Elordi as his monstrous masterpiece. 

The Beast in Me (Netflix) – Thursday, November 13
Netflix’s dramatic miniseries “The Beast in Me” sees Emmy-winner Claire Danes as a grieving mother and acclaimed author who has taken a step back from public life following the death of her son, until an interesting subject falls into her lap when a real estate mogul, played by Emmy-winner Matthew Rhys, who was the prime suspect in his wife’s disappearance, moves in next door. “The Beast in Me,” which features eight episodes, co-stars Brittany Snow and Natalie Morales, and premieres on Netflix on Thursday, November 13. 

Stranger Things: The Final Season Part 1 (Netflix) – Wednesday, November 26
“Stranger Things,” possibly the greatest original series Netflix has ever produced, finally returns for its final season over the long Thanksgiving weekend, when part one of the three-part final season, featuring four feature-length episodes, drops. The Duffer Brothers, who created and oversee the series, should absolutely be embarrassed by how long it has taken to get this final season out. It has been almost three and a half years since the fourth season and taking nearly a full decade to produce 42 episodes is asinine and everything people hate about television in the modern world. Now that the admonishment is out of the way, all will be forgiven if the Duffer Bros. can finish this story in the amazing fashion it deserves. Let’s return to Hawkins one final time with our favorite teenagers, even if some might be drawing retirement checks by now.  

Abbott Elementary (ABC) – Wednesday, October 1
The fifth season of ABC’s “Abbott Elementary,” i.e., the only network comedy that the awards folks care about, premieres Wednesday, Oct. 1. The fourth season of the series righted the ship a bit after a disappointing third season, and I look forward to seeing how our favorite TV teachers are doing at the beginning of season five. Is there much left for showrunner/lead star Quinta Brunson to do on the series that hasn’t already been done? Part of the fun in sticking with an ongoing series is finding out the answer to that question.

Saturday Night Live (NBC) – Saturday, October 4
“Saturday Night Live” returns to a bit of normalcy in its 51st season on NBC, following a star-studded anniversary season that coincided with a presidential election year. The season premieres on October 4 with singer Bad Bunny, hot off the announcement that he will be the Super Bowl 60 halftime show headliner, making his second hosting appearance on the show. However, he will not be the musical guest this time around, with Doja Cat taking over those duties, making her ‘SNL’ debut. This season has me more concerned than any I can remember (in my 20-plus years watching), as two of the show's longest-running cast members, Heidi Gardner and Ego Nwodim, are not returning for this season. It’s especially concerning that the cast of 17 once again finds itself without a single black female cast member.

DMV (CBS) – Monday, October 13
You simply don’t get many new sitcoms on network television anymore, but “DMV,” premiering on CBS on Monday, Oct. 13, has a promising cast and a humorous trailer. Created by Dana Klein, “DMV” is a workplace mockumentary following workers at a DMV and stars Harriet Dyer, who’s very good on the Australian comedy “Colin from Accounts,” the always funny “Saturday Night Live” alum Tim Meadows, and Molly Kearney, who entertained me on their short ‘SNL’ stint.
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NCIS: Origins (CBS) – Tuesday, October 14
The first season of the CBS crime procedural “NCIS: Origins,” the sixth series in the “NCIS” franchise, was the biggest surprise for me on network TV last year. I didn’t expect much from a prequel following the original series’ character, Leroy Jethro Gibbs, and it wound up being my favorite new drama of the year, and one of the best dramas on network TV, outright. The second season, premiering Tuesday, Oct. 14, is my most anticipated returning series premiere, as the first season ended with the potential death of one of its main characters. It'll be interesting to see how “NCIS: Origins” handles the storyline.

NBA on NBC (NBC & Peacock) – Tuesday, October 21
The NBA returns to NBC for the first time since 2002, with the 2025-26 season set to tip off on Tuesday, October 21. The network will feature a doubleheader, including the Houston Rockets against the reigning champion Oklahoma City Thunder, followed by the Golden State Warriors against the Los Angeles Lakers. I was a big fan of the NBA on TNT, which the NBC package is replacing, so I have mixed feelings about the league’s return to network television. However, I’m also excited to see what kind of product the network provides for its fans.   

Nobody Wants This (Netflix) – Thursday, October 23
One of the most pleasant surprises on television in 2024 was the debut of the Netflix comedy “Nobody Wants This,” which saw the budding relationship between a relationship/sex podcaster, played by Kristen Bell, and a rabbi, played by Adam Brody. The chemistry between Bell and Brody was palpable and hilarious, and both received Emmy Award nominations for their performances. Featuring a great supporting cast of Timothy Simons, Justine Lupe and Jackie Tohn, I can’t wait to see what the show, created by Erin Foster, is up to in its second season. 

 
For the second time in the last few months, I find myself at a loss for words over something that happened regarding a late-night talk show.
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I probably shouldn’t have been shocked by the news that “Jimmy Kimmel Live” has been pulled “indefinitely” from ABC after all, when the news broke a few months ago that CBS would be ending “Late Show with Stephen Colbert” in May of 2026, I said I felt like ABC would do the same with Kimmel’s show (his contract, like Colbert’s, ends then).

But it was the reason why Kimmel’s show has been, at least temporarily, suspended that surprised me. It was for comments he made on his Monday night (September 15) show about the way the conservative press, politicians, etc., had handled the reveal of Charlie Kirk’s murderer – essentially hoping that the killer would be anybody who didn’t resemble them.

Kimmel said: “We hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it.”

That was it. That inoffensive, and accurate in my assessment, statement, which had nothing to do with Kirk in itself, was enough to start the ball rolling to get Kimmel’s show removed from the air.

On Wednesday (Sept. 17), the Nexstar Media Group Inc. said that it would stop airing “Jimmy Kimmel Live” on its 32 ABC affiliates.

Andrew Alford, the president of Nexstar’s broadcasting division, said: “Mr. Kimmel’s comments about the death of Mr. Kirk are offensive and insensitive at a critical time in our national discourse.”
Sure, Andrew. Sounds like bullshit to me.

Later in the day, Brendan Carr, the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, appeared on a YouTube episode hosted by commentator Benny Johnson, and seemingly threatened ABC and Disney to decide on Kimmel’s show.

He said, “We can do this the easy way or the hard way. There’s calls for Kimmel to be fired. I think you could certainly see a path forward for suspension over this.”

The “we can do this the easy way or the hard way” is clearly a “the ball is in your court” type threat to ABC/Disney, and ABC/Disney cowardly made the decision to sideline the show “indefinitely.”

After the decision to sideline “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” the Sinclair Broadcast Group decided to get in on the fun, too. Sinclair has decided to use Kimmel’s timeslot on Friday to air a tribute special to Kirk on its ABC affiliates, which includes my local one in Little Rock, Ark. And, furthermore, Sinclair stated its affiliates wouldn’t resume airing “Jimmy Kimmel Live” until “we are confident that appropriate steps have been taken to uphold the standards expected of a national broadcast platform.” The company has also called for Kimmel to issue a direct apology to Kirk’s family and to make a personal donation to both the family and Kirk’s organization, Turning Point USA. That seems an awful lot like an ultimatum Kimmel must follow to get back on Sinclair’s affiliate stations.

So, it seems the FCC, Nexstar and Sinclair have done what they can to force Kimmel off of television, and ABC/Disney cowardly accepted the demands for fear of being fined or losing money with the show not airing on many of its affiliates.

If something as innocuous as what Kimmel said, which drew the ire of the FCC and these media companies, can get him removed from television, we are fucked as a country. If we’re not allowed to differ in our opinions on what’s going on in this country without the threat of losing our jobs, we are simply fucked.

It’ll be interesting to see what happens with Kimmel and “Jimmy Kimmel Live” going forward, but I have a bad feeling we have seen the last of him and his show on ABC, and honestly, at this point, it may be of his own decision to walk away from a company that didn’t stand up for him when it should have.