I found my TV habits changing in 2025. I met the fall season with a Gen-Z-style “meh,” and I was fine delaying viewings of even my favorite shows, knowing they’ll be there when I’m ready. The era of appointment TV is over, but streamers are somewhat bringing back the water-cooler era. Whole-season-at-once dumps of episodes are gradually ceding to the old weekly release style. While excitement over new shows is in flux, it’s hard to argue with the medium’s quantity, or the quality at the top. These were my 10 favorite shows of 2025:
10. “Severance” (Season 2, Apple TV Plus)
Expanding its twisted commentary of work-life balance (imbalance?), the Innies (the mental halves of our protagonists who only experience cubicle work) further explore the weird sci-fi aspects of the Lumon corporation and its labyrinthine underground office corridors. Through the story of Dylan G. (Zach Cherry), we see how the Outie (living a life of leisure) and the Innie can diverge into an Evil Twin and a Good Twin. Treading water less than other post-“Lost” prestige TV, “Severance” begins to give us the backstory and social-engineering theory behind the company. Whether you’re Innie or Outie with this show, you can’t deny it is original. (Full review.)
9. “The Irrational” (Season 2, NBC)
Yes, this canceled series was merely a network procedural, but it had an unusually great hook: Professor Alec Mercer (Jesse L. Martin, his warmth not compromising his authority) is an expert at predicting criminals’ behavior, even though that behavior would be categorized as irrational. A team of grad students – I’m partial to Molly Kunz’s anxiety-riddled Phoebe – assists Alec while he himself assists the FBI. The 2025 episodes are a nice mix of fun (mysteries at a magicians’ show and a community theater) and international commentary (if you’re a non-celebrity political prisoner, your government is less likely to make a deal for you).
8. “Mike Judge’s Beavis and Butt-head” (Season 3, Comedy Central)
In the third season of the relaunch (the 11th season overall), Judge’s batting average is impressive, and we get nice mix of classic B&B, Old B&B and Smart B&B (from another dimension where everyone has giant brains). Among Butt-head’s highlights: Sans braces, he fancies himself a ladies’ man; he has a heart attack and is at the mercy of Beavis’ incompetence; and he purposely becomes fatter so he can’t be evicted. Beavis, meanwhile, is annoyed by a nut allergy, a “Dumbass” tattoo (which he can’t read) and a popular new student who shares his name. If the jokes write themselves, that doesn’t make them less funny.
7. “Cobra Kai” (Season 6, Part 3, Netflix)
The final five episodes of “Karate Kid’s” legacy continuation wrap Johnny’s (William Zabka) satisfying transformation from a manchild stuck in the Eighties into a responsible adult who the next gen can count on. The elite fight choreography returns for the final round of the Sekai Taikai, where we see our favorites from Miyagi-Do go up against international villains, notably Zara (elite martial artist Rayna Vallandingham) of the Iron Dragons. While some storylines fizzle – Mary Mouser’s Sam bails on her teammates because she has decided she’s done with karate – the writers balance everyone’s storylines and skill sets. (Full review.)
6. “Daredevil: Born Again” (Season 1, Disney Plus)
The fight choreography is a step down from “Daredevil” Seasons 1-3 (2015-18) and we get less of Karen and Foggy. Yet the drop-off doesn’t feel extreme because it’s so refreshing to see Charlie Cox return as arguably the best actor of the screen superhero era; note the convincing nuances of his movements as blind lawyer Matt Murdock. Far from a case of starting from scratch, “Born Again” also brings back Frank/The Punisher (John Bernthal) and Wilson Fisk/Kingpin (Vincent D’Onofrio, who had eased back into the role in “Hawkeye” and “Echo”). Kingpin’s dictatorial approach to the Mayor’s office is a smaller scale answer to Trump, as we see smart (and sometimes shocking) maneuverings in New York City’s halls of power. (Full review.)
5. “Poker Face” (Season 2, Peacock)
Occasionally there comes a show that I don’t necessarily think of as elite, but I take its presence for granted and miss it when its gone. Of course, no show is truly dead anymore, but Natasha Lyonne has said she is done in the role of human lie detector Charlie as of the cancellation. She goes out with a fun season loaded with guest stars who seem happy to get in on Rian Johnson’s appealing blend of quirky criminals and “Columbo”-style mysteries. The season starts with Cynthia Erivo playing five (!) characters, and later memorable turns come from Kumail Nanjiani, Melanie Lynskey, John Cho and Alia Shawkat.
4. “Only Murders in the Building” (Season 5, Hulu)
The mystery-comedy bounces back from a weak Season 4 with a satisfying case of two murders, newly revealed architectural corners of the Arconia (which solidifies its spot at a fourth “lead character”), and of course the banter we treasure between boomers Steve Martin and Martin Short and (f***ing) millennial Selena Gomez. In a year of TV shows commenting on the state of investigative journalism, even “Only Murders” gets in on it: The trio makes the mistake of signing on with a corporation, which – due to its interlocking business connections – immediately quashes their podcast. Luckily, it can’t stop them from being amateur sleuths.
3. “The Paper” (Season 1, Peacock)
“The Office” (2005-13) spins off its distinct brand of awkward workplace comedy to a 2025 newspaper. The question for me as a newspaper worker was “How accurate will it be with the specifics?” The answer is “Often hilariously on-point in its details,” starting when the staff’s lone designer (Chelsea Frei) demonstrates her daily tasks and her computer freezes. Domhnall Gleeson’s earnestness as the editor is grounded compared the over-the-top nature of Michael Scott. But I also welcome the Scott-ishness of Sabrina Impacciatore as managing editor Esmeralda Grand, whose glamorous self-view does not reflect her absurd self – but we suspect she knows the sad truth deep down. (Full review.)
2. “Peacemaker” (Season 2, HBO Max)
Though the narrative doesn’t make a big deal of it, besides the Justice League being replaced with the Justice Gang in the “previously on” segment, Season 2 moves from the grim DCEU to the lighter DCU. Though it still has bursts of violence, James Gunn’s show earns its footing as a makeshift-family piece about former workers for a corrupt agency who are now outside of it. It uses the multiverse idea in a different way, as John Cena’s title character sees a chance at a fresh start in a similar dimension. The twist on the “too good to be true” theme – when we learn the truth of the other world – is funny while also illustrating that darkness can lurk below any glossy surface. (Full review.)
1. “Murdaugh: Death in the Family” (miniseries, Hulu)
In chronicling a deadly 2019 South Carolina boat crash that inextricably leads up to a 2021 double homicide, these eight episodes bring humanity (mostly its dark side, granted) to the horror. Particularly mesmerizing performances come from Patricia Arquette as a woman who has chosen a rich lifestyle that’s now a cage, and Jason Clarke as a man whose life is a show but whose façade occasionally crumbles. With Island Packet (Bluffton, S.C.) reporters Mandy Matney and Liz Farrell (played by Brittany Snow and Alicia Kelley) being supporting characters, the series also illustrates the scary fact that investigative journalists are sometimes the last best chance for the truth getting out there, and yet it is a dying profession. (Full review.)