• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Manhattan Digest

All you need to know about Manhattan culture and so much more...

  • LIFESTYLE
  • ENTERTAINMENT
  • LGBT
  • OPINION
  • TECHNOLOGY

Best of 2013

2013 in Review: Best New Shows of 2013

by Michael Tyminski

Mads Mikkelsen is Hannibal (Source: NBC)

2013 felt like a weak year, particularly for the big four networks. However, there were a handful of shows that debuted this year that felt like they moved television forward, especially on the drama side of the ledger. Without further ado, here are the shows that debuted this year that shined the brightest.

 

5 – Getting On (HBO)

 

I just reviewed this show a couple of weeks ago, and until that time this fifth slot was very much in play. I was particularly amazed at the strength with which it blended its’ dramatic and comedic elements and how the cast seemed to do an excellent job playing off type in comparison to the roles they became best known for. While it may not be the sort of series that’s for everyone due to its’ extreme darkness, it is the sort of show that could fit a niche in the HBO lineup for years to come.

 

4 – Brooklyn Nine-Nine (Fox)

 

This was not a banner year for the sitcom, as the big four debuted a large number of series, the vast majority of which will not or should not see a second season. However, standing head and shoulders above that pile of mediocrity was Brooklyn Nine-Nine, which mixes up sitcom elements with procedural elements and is already miles ahead of where Michael Schur predecessors The Office and Parks and Recreation were after nine episodes. Brooklyn Nine-Nine is consistently funny and much like Parks and Rec has a surprising amount of heart.

 

3 – Hannibal (NBC)

 

I spend a decent amount of time pointing out every horrendous decision the peacock makes, so when something goes right over at NBC I feel compelled to throw them a bone. If Cult was the bottom of the serial killer trend we saw this year, than Hannibal stands hands and shoulders above the rest. Bryan Fuller has done the impossible with this show, which is to make a Hannibal Lecter that is different from, but not inferior to the Anthony Hopkins version from the films. The show also benefits from strong performances by Hugh Dancy and Laurence Fishburne as Will Graham and Jack Crawford respectively. However, to me, where Hannibal truly set itself apart was in it’s visuals. For a morbid show, it’s actually downright beautiful, a trend that establishes itself from minute one when Will is dissecting the first murder scene in his head. Here’s hoping this one makes it to season four, when Fuller will finally decide to tackle Red Dragon.

 

2 – Broadchurch (BBC America)

 

Bringing the single focus Twin Peaks vibe into the new generation, we get this new mystery from the BBC. Already optioned to be produced in America by Fox, the miniseries revolves around the death and disappearance of an 11 year old child, with the investigation being impeded by an irresponsible media and the closeness of inspector Ellie Miller to the family, her son’s wholesale destruction of evidence, and the new lead inspector’s questionable past. David Tennant and Olivia Colman get particular kudos as the lead inspector pairing, and quaint resort setting provides the perfect eerie backdrop for this case.

 

1 – The Americans (FX)

 

The best new show of the year was one that FX hyped a ton in 2012, including ads during all of its’ major shows and a website takeover. The Americans lived up to that hype, providing a throwback spy thriller about two Russian sleeper agents who happen to have their lives deconstructed, down to their marriage which exists solely for appearances. Matthew Rhys and Keri Russell shined in the lead role, with Russell playing ideologically tilted wife Elizabeth Jennings, while Rhys drew the harder task as conflicted husband Philip. Throw in a mix of visuals that seem simultaneously cutting edge and historically accurate while having feeling like an homage to the Beastie Boys “Sabotage” video, and it becomes clear how The Americans came to be the best of 2013.

Next Time: Friday we look at the biggest stories of the year in what seems to have been the beginning of a long term paradigm shift for television.

Filed Under: ENTERTAINMENT, OPINION, TELEVISION Tagged With: Best of 2013, Broadchurch, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Getting On, Hannibal, opinion, The Americans, TV

2013 In Review: Shows that Dominated the Pop Culture Landscape

by Michael Tyminski

Source: Wikipedia

With no new premieres between now and the end of the year, I’m taking this opportunity to look back on 2013. 2013 in many ways felt like a transitional year on television with old standbys leaving the air (30 Rock, Breaking Bad, How I Met Your Mother), surprise returns (Arrested Development)and new shows looking to fill those spots in the public consciousness (The Bridge, The Americans).

Speaking of that public consciousness, it always seems like a handful of shows have a tendency to get the most ink spilled about them, the most mentions on people’s twitters and Facebook walls, and the most water cooler talk. Needless to say, the shows below are the ones I think tended to come up in conversations the most this year.

 

Honorable Mentions: The Walking Dead (AMC), Dexter (Showtime), Under the Dome (CBS)

 

The Walking Dead and Dexter seem to always generate a lot of chatter, but it seems like both really lacked the visceral punch that episodes of many of the shows above it seemed to possess. Under the Dome conversely, was the most hyped new summer premiere for the major networks, but seemed to lose a lot of it’s steam over the course of the season for reasons both internally and externally.

 

5 – Game of Thrones (HBO)

 

Game of Thrones is the sort of show that I feel typically gets lumped in with the honorable mention category with the other genre shows I mentioned above. The key difference is, while it was an overall slow season for GoT, the Red Wedding episode generated an unbelievable amount of buzz. Toss in the usual string of Emmy buzz, and you have a genre show that managed to garner a lot of attention over the course of the year.

 

4 – The Following (Fox)

 

The Following makes the list this year solely on the hype it received prior to it’s January debut. During the 2012-13 Winter lull, there were a surprisingly high amount of people who were excited because Kevin. Bacon. Is Doing. TV. While the show itself ended up tapering off over time due to ludicrous plot twists and the fact that the show’s main allure came from it’s star, the initial hype was staggering during what was a relatively quiet winter season.

 

3 – Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (ABC)

 

While Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. has taken a fairly sizable hit in the ratings since it’s debut, it also happens to be the single most hyped show of the fall. This is in part because it hit all of the hype check marks: fits with the movie universe (check), super showrunner Joss Whedon had a heavy hand in it (check), and ABC burned it’s entire Tuesday to the ground to rebuild around it (check). While the show itself is dangerously close to flopping, I can think of a decent number of my close friends who had this date circled on their calendar since may.

 

2 – Arrested Development (Netflix)

 

2013 was a truly brutal year for the sitcom, and one of the few bright spots on the year was the return of Arrested Development. While House of Cards may have been Netflix’s first show, it was pretty clear from minute one that the streaming giant’s future (and credibility) was built around betting big on something the show’s cult following has demanded for years: new Arrested Development. The show itself delivered fairly well even if it’s new structure felt uneven at times and Netflix ended up receiving a lot of new subscribers.

 

1 – Cult (CW)

 

No series had it’s fans going as far to protect it in the ratings as Cult. The CW had a massive hit on their …just kidding.

 

 

The show that dominated pop culture the most in 2013 was very clearly:

1 – Breaking Bad (AMC)

 

This was truly Breaking Bad’s year. Vince Gilligan and crew managed to do a difficult task that numerous other pantheon shows failed to do: stick the landing. This season was so well executed and so strongly hyped that Facebook would essentially go dark on Sunday nights and spoilers would often draw the ire of most (if not all) of your friends, neighbors, and family. The execution and hype were so strong that it single-handedly killed Dexter’s mojo (numerous articles were posted about how Dexter so thoroughly blew it’s last season compared to Breaking Bad) and the comparison even leeched out to broadcast TV, where the only peep heard about Under the Dome after it’s mid season run was the fact that Dean Norris had two characters die within a week. It won Best Drama at the Emmys, it drew the most attention online (three months later and Peter Foy’s reviews here still trickle into our top posts), and it generated the most buzz at the viewer level. The pop culture landscape has a huge hole to fill in 2014 without it.

Next Time: Later this week we look at the new shows this year that made my stomach turn the most as we look back at the worst of 2013.

Filed Under: ENTERTAINMENT, OPINION, TELEVISION Tagged With: Agents of Shield, Arrested Development, Best of 2013, Breaking Bad, game of thrones, opinion, The Following, TV

Primary Sidebar

Navigation

  • HOME
  • OPINION
    • REVIEWS
  • BUSINESS
  • LGBT
  • ENTERTAINMENT
    • ARTS
    • MOVIES
    • MUSIC
    • TELEVISION
    • THEATRE
  • LIFESTYLE
    • TRAVEL
    • FASHION
    • HEALTH
    • FOODIE
    • STYLE
  • POLITICS
  • SCIENCE
  • SPORTS
  • TECHNOLOGY
  • U.S.
    • NEW YORK

Footer

  • ADVERTISE
  • TERMS OF SERVICE
  • CAREERS
  • ENTERTAINMENT
  • Home
  • Contact
  • Legal

Copyright © 2023 · ManhattanDigest.com is run by Fun & Joy, LLC an Ohio company · Log in