The Best TV of 2016

Relive the best moments or catch up for the first time! We pick our favorite shows of the year. Plus: Where to watch them now

- Matt Roush

TOP 10? REALLY? Would you consider a Top 100? The quantity and quality of TV have never been greater, which is why we’ve added “honorable mentions”— many of which just missed my cut—from fellow writers and editors to this year’s celebration (see page 27).

I should note how weird it is not to include such past and current faves as Game of Thrones (if only for the epic “Battle of the Bastards,” capping an uneven season), Veep and Mr. Robot, and terrific limited series like The Night Of and The Night Manager. But the following are the top shows that truly defined TV in 2016 for me. Can’t wait to see what 2017 will bring.

#1 THIS IS US (NBC)

This feels like a miracle: a family drama that values emotion, warmth and humor over contrived melodrama, able to make the heart soar and break, usually at the same time. This is the sort of show critics often have to plead with viewers to watch, since it lacks a criminal, legal or medical procedural hook. A rare ray of light in an industry all too eager to go dark, This Is Us is the year’s most refreshingly unexpected and welcome instant success. It strikes a powerful chord with an offbeat structure that tells the affecting story of the Pearsons over two timelines: Jack (Milo Ventimiglia) and Rebecca (Mandy Moore) raise their three kids (one adopted at birth), while the adult versions of their offspring now in their thirties, still wrestle with skeletons and secrets of the past. Manipulative? Sure. Effective? Absolutely. Each episode should come with its own box of tissues.

#2 THE PEOPLE V. O. J. SIMPSON: AMERICAN CRIME STORY (FX) O.J.: MADE IN AMERICA (ESPN)