Best Moments on TV of 2020... So Far

Come on! When we think of television in the year 2020, in the year of coronavirus, no doubt we'll think about Joe Exotic and the big hit of the quarantine times, that of Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness on Netflix. In general though, most of the TV shows that were most in the conversation were documentaries or docu-series like ESPN's The Last Dance or HBO's McMillions. Because of the recent developments in the news, Netflix's documentary on Jeffrey Epstein also proved timely. A documentary about a shocking case of sexual assault called Outcry premiered on Showtime. There was even the documentary about the alleged sexual abuse from rap mogul, Russell Simmons, called On the Record, which was one of the new shows that launched HBO Max.

Yes, HBO Max is the latest streaming service or video-on-demand, subscription service to launch on the Internet. Ever since Netflix has been such a success and a pioneer in the business model, we've seen so many video-on-demand or VOD services pop up. Within this past year, we've seen a great number appear and vie for American audiences. Last November, we had Apple TV+ and Disney+ both launch with some fanfare. Since then, we've had Quibi and HBO Max. Hulu even got a bit of a reworking. Yet, if that weren't enough, another will launch on July 15, that of Peacock, a service that comes from NBC-Universal.

It's funny because NBCUniversal has been leading the charge, as one of a few mainstream Hollywood companies that is pushing a lot of its content onto the Internet for rent or purchase. Some of the other companies are more hesitant, but with coronavirus forcing states to shutdown movie theaters, all entertainment is coming through apps on people's computers, mobile devices and televisions. Right now, we're at a point where everything can be seen as being TV shows.

At the same time, we've seen another string of horrific cases that has led one of the biggest and longest displays of protests, fueled by the Black Lives Matter movement. Those cases involved the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery. The protests have been so strong and effective that it has actually led to some changes to some police departments. Culturally, the way people look at police has even started to change with people questioning how police are depicted in the numerous cop shows that are and have been on television.

There are plenty of amazing shows out there, as we're still in a kind of golden age of TV. It can be hard to whittle it down to even a top ten. I've decided to split things up into separate categories.


Best TV Movie

WELCOME TO CHECHNYA (HBO)
ON THE RECORD (HBO Max)
UNBREAKABLE KIMMY SCHMIDT: KIMMY VS. THE REVEREND (Netflix)


Best New Series

FOR LIFE (FOX)
GENTEFIED (Netflix)
EMERGENCE (ABC)
I MAY DESTROY YOU (HBO)
TIGER KING: MURDER, MAYHEM AND MADNESS (Netflix)
JEFFREY EPSTEIN: FILTHY RICH (Netflix)
KARMA (HBO Max)


Best Returning Series

THE GOOD FIGHT: SEASON 4 (CBS All Access)
CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM: SEASON 10 (HBO)
HOMELAND: SEASON 8 (Showtime)
BLINDSPOT: SEASON 5 (NBC)
ALL AMERICAN: SEASON 2 (CW)
AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D.: SEASON 7 (ABC)
PATRIOT ACT WITH HASAN MINHAJ: VOLUME 6 (Netflix)


Best Individual Episode

"Whenever You're Ready" - THE GOOD PLACE: SEASON 4 (NBC)
"The Dinner and the Date" - THIS IS US: SEASON 4 (NBC)
"After the Fire" - THIS IS US: SEASON 4 (NBC)
"You Got It All" - MIXED-ISH (ABC)
"Saturday Night Live at Home" - SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE: SEASON  45 (NBC)

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