While another rough time in my life has curtailed my enthusiasm for review writing I have managed to assemble enough motivation to keep my streak of yearly Top 10s going! I think more than any other category I’m always wondering if I’ve even watched enough new TV to make a top 10, but each year I just about manage it, almost entirely due to my love of animation to be fair… so let’s take a look!
I’ll admit if I’d watched one more half-decent new series/season this year I’m pretty sure Doctor Who would’ve been bumped out, sadly. The series this year had one standout episode and a few decent ones but also had a pretty naff two-part finale. Oh well, sadly I won’t have to worry about if the new series of Doctor Who is going to place next year or not, given there isn’t going to be one… (My reviews for each episode can be found in the “Fifteenth Doctor” page found in the tabs above!)
I didn’t really know what to expect from this My Hero Academia spin-off, it seemed like an odd time to adapt it as the main show was heading into its big finale, but by the time it ended I realised I had really enjoyed myself. It’s not going to blow you away but it was good fun with a very likeable main cast. (My review of the season can be found HERE)
I wasn’t expecting much from this going in, in fact I’d paid so little attention that I had no idea it was going to be rated older and contain the kind of gore that it did. It was all the better for it though, and some of the ideas for situations that could happen with a zombie outbreak in a superhero world were really fun, as was the focus on some of the lesser featured heroes from the main MCU continuity. (My review of the season can be found HERE)
I almost completely forgot Nocturne’s second and seemingly final season was this year. It was good fun, with some good set up and a really well animated final battle too. I wish more people would’ve paid attention to it, but the shadow cast from the original series is hard to escape from… (My review of the season can be found HERE)
The annoyingly titled Mobile Suit Gundam G-Quuuuux is hard to judge, as the finale was a bit too odd and definitely felt rushed but the series as a whole was really fun, part original Gundam series callback, part new ideas from the Evagenlion creator and his team… it made for an unique experience, that’s for sure, and one I won’t soon forget one way or another! (My review of the show can be found HERE)
I was initially excited for more Daredevil, then worried when I heard it wasn’t continuing the amazing run from Netflix, and then excited again when they did a 180 and made it a direct follow up and doubled down on the former Netflix-exclusive shows being MCU canon. While I could’ve done with less Donald Trump analogy given that whole nightmare is still going on I can’t deny that more of Charlie Cox’s Daredevil going up against Vincent D’Onofrio’s Wilson Fisk is still top tier entertainment, not to mention a good chunk more of Jon Bernthal as The Punisher! (My review of the season can be found HERE)
My Hero Academia’s Final Season didn’t disappoint! The high quality animation, voice work and OST held true all the way through the final fight and all the post-arc wrap up episodes. The pace it kept with the manga adaptation and its seasonal schedule should be the golden example all future Shonen adaptations that follow (and seemingly will, thankfully!) (My review of the season is coming soon, hopefully…)
Technically I haven’t watched the final episode yet, given it’s not going out until tonight in the US, meaning really New Year’s Day for us here in the UK. Still the strength of the other episodes made this an easy three, hell if the finale really sticks the landing it might belong above #2, whose landing didn’t quite stick, but given I have no way of knowing that I think #3 is fine for the end of Stranger Things. (My review of this season will be unlikely to appear any time soon… I’ve reviewed Season 2 only so far on this website, so it feels odd to jump forward…)
I think in anyone else’s hands a TV series in the Alien universe, and on Earth no less, could’ve been a disaster but thankfully Noah Hawley just doesn’t miss, at least in my experience, and sure enough Alien Earth is damn near perfect. I say damn near because the finale fell a little flat, though now a Season 2 is confirmed I feel a bit better knowing the plot threads will be followed up on, whenever it begins filming… (My review of the season can be found HERE)
Okay, who didn’t see this coming? I was pretty sure it would be #1 at the start of the year given the strength of its first season and by the time the eighth episode ended I knew nothing would beat it to the top spot. Top class TV, the fact its also in the Star Wars universe is just the icing on the cake. (My review can be found by clicking HERE)
Hogan Reviews 
