Fun
Frisky
Nostalgic
Intense
Adventurous
Choked Up
Curious
Romantic
Weird
Was April the best month of TV ever? At the very least, American television reached a critical mass of content between the returns of Game of Thrones and Killing Eve, as well as the final run of Veep and Hulu’s runaway hit The Act that meant there was so many good series to watch it was overwhelming. Luckily, there was no massive end to a culture-shifting movie series to worry about, that would have sucked a lot of the air out of the room!
Regardless, there was a lot to love on the small screen this month, and as usual culling it down to the 10 best shows aired between April 1 and 30 was a tricky prospect. The crack TV reviewers at Decider decider-ed to tackle this task once again (check out our rankings from March) in order to make it a little easier for you, the regular TV viewer. The criteria are simple: had to air at least one episode this month; had to be a TV show (not a movie); and had to be good, of course.
From there, the team ranked their favorites and reached an uneasy truce, one that will surely break apart once May rolls around. Until then, let’s count down the 10 best TV shows of April, 2019.
'RuPaul's Drag Race' (VH1)
April was the month that RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 11 went from good to gorgeous and from great to gag-worthy. From the inaugural Draglympics to a history-making Snatch Game and a buckwild improv challenge, this month’s gave us the best stretch of Drag Race episodes we’ve had in a minute. But even if all the episodes were on the level of early Season 7 snoozefests, this month would still go down in herstory solely because of Brooke Lynn Hytes and Yvie Oddly’s ferocious lip sync for the ages. Drag Race Season 11 is on a winning streak. — Brett White
'The Act' (Hulu)
Hulu’s anthology series about one of the most insane true crime cases in recent history has quietly become one of the year’s most watchable dramas. Both Joey King and Patricia Arquette throw themselves into their roles as they depict this horrifying story about a daughter who was poisoned and manipulated her entire life, eventually murdering mother who held her hostage. The Handmaid’s Tale may have be Hulu’s huge critical hit, but with The Act it’s found a pulpy mainstream hit. — Kayla Cobb
'Cobra Kai' (YouTube Premium)
The first season of Cobra Kai was the surprise streaming hit of 2018, earning an immaculate 100% on Rotten Tomatoes. Last week, YouTube Premium’s Karate Kid revival returned for Season 2, and while the the latest installment didn’t quite reach the rarified air of universal acclaim, it’s still one of the best TV shows around. Anchored by an Emmy-worthy performance from William “Johnny Lawrence” Zabka, the second season of Cobra Kai is a fun, tragic journey that’ll leave you wanting more. If you’re looking for a well-told story filled with humor, pathos, and a youth karate war, Cobra Kai is the show for you. — Josh Sorokach
'Chilling Adventures Of Sabrina' (Netflix)
While the first part of Chilling Adventures of Sabrina‘s freshman season was a spooky delight, Part 2 was on another level entirely. Free to explore the witch side of Sabrina’s (Kiernan Shipka) world, the series got darker, more emotional and more creative with every episode, building to a climax that expertly brought all the threads of Season 1 together in an emotionally satisfying way. Add in brilliant performances by the whole cast — though Lucy Davis’ no longer mousey Aunt Hilda, Miranda Otto’s sardonic Aunt Zelda, and Michelle Gomez’s delightfully wicked Madam Satan deserve particular shout-outs — a sexy Satan, and a phenomenally funny dual performance by Shipka, and you have an addition to the pantheon of perfect first seasons. Bring on the delicious treats of Season 2, please. — Alex Zalben
'Black Summer' (Netflix)
Bored to death by The Walking Dead? Me too. Don’t let that stop you from sampling Black Summer on Netflix, though; this is a zombie show for people who are totally over zombies. It reminds me a lot of the chaotic opening minutes of Zack Snyder’s Dawn Of The Dead in the way that it drops viewers into a zombie plague that’s still in its infancy. The characters in Black Summer are (understandably) freaked the fuck out and reacting in more or less real time to the collapse of society, and the show’s pacing mirrors the sense of urgency its characters are feeling. — Mark Graham
'The Magicians' (SYFY)
Look, anyone who knows me knows that I hated the Season 4 finale of The Magicians, which had its entire fandom up in arms over the death of a major character. But you cannot deny the #impact that finale had on TV world this month, and that’s what makes The Magicians one of the best shows of April (I don’t watch Game of Thrones). The episode in question was as beautifully crafted as it was heart-wrenching. I highly doubt the show will ever be good again, now the writers have done what they did, but hey! At least we had that! — Anna Menta
'Barry' (HBO)
Barry is killin’ it this season, pun intended. The second season of the HBO series has been even sharper and sillier than the first. Not only have Bill Hader and company perfected the tone of this show, they’ve figured out a way to leave viewers laughing one minute and utterly horrified the next — it’s a true skill. This show is doing things no other has attempted before (see the brilliant and bonkers Episode 5!) and even when you’re not sure if you should be enjoying it, you can’t help but do so. — Lea Palmieri
'Game of Thrones' (HBO)
Besides being a monumental moment in pop culture history, Game of Thrones‘s final season has already delivered one of its most heartbreaking episodes to date. “A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms” was more than just table setting; it was a love letter to our favorite characters. Plus, Season 8, Episode 3 will go down in history of one of the most brutal 80 minutes of television ever. A truly major TV event. — Meghan O’Keefe
'Killing Eve' (BBC America)
There were a lot of question marks going into Killing Eve Season 2. Could new showrunner Emerald Fennel match the delicate balance of humor and drama that Phoebe Waller-Bridge perfected in Season 1? Would Sandra Oh, as MI6 agent Eve, and Jodie Comer, as assassin Villanelle, be able to sustain their chemistry across additional episodes? Could the cat-and-mouse thriller cut through the clutter of a packed April TV slate? As the season premiere made clear, all those worries were for naught. Thanks to Fennell’s snappy writing, Oh and Comer continue to shine in the second installment, which sees their characters’ obsession deepen into something almost unmanageable. Killing Eve Season 2 manages to raise the stakes while staying true to Eve and Villanelle’s true passions: chasing each other around Europe in fabulous outfits. Truly, we are so lucky to have this show in our lives. — Claire Spellberg
'Veep' (HBO)
We all knew that Veep‘s final season was going to be one for the ages, but god did we miss its hilarious brand of endless hostility. Veep‘s final season isn’t bitter or angry. It’s rabid. Everyone from Julia Louis-Dreyfus’ conniving Selina and Timothy Simons’ massively incompetent Jonah to Anna Chlumsky’s ever-expressive Amy and Sam Richardson’s disarmingly cheery Richard are giving it their all. Sure, some of the heel turns Veep has made this season have been jarring. But just having it back on the air to ruthlessly tear apart our political system feels right. — Kayla Cobb
