The Best TV Shows of 2022 So Far, Along With the Most Anticipated Series
You're never going to leave the couch.
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Going outside? So overrated. What's the point of ever leaving the house when there's so much good entertainment to soak in right from your living room? The proliferation of streaming services is only good for TV fans (except, you know, for their wallets). With so many services out there competing for our attention, that only means show creators are jumping through bigger hoops, courting the best actors, finding the best scripts and generally trying to out-do each other, creating more must-watch series than ever before.
The best TV shows of 2022 are a mix of returning favorites and original debuts. Some are continuations of the biggest franchises out there, including the Marvel MCU, Star Wars, Game of Thrones and even Lord of the Rings' Middle-earth. Others create their own worlds, with sci-fi, horror and other mind-bending realities. Some are escapist reality shows you can put on when you want to have some mindless fun, while some make you pay attention and scour every frame for clues. And a huge trend this year? Turning real-life news scandals into limited series, like the infamous Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee tape, the Anna Delvey scammer story or the corporate malfeasance at big companies like Theranos, Uber and WeWork. Here are some shows catching the biggest buzz this year. (Looking for all the great films coming out this year? We have a release schedule of the best movies of 2022, along with the best kids' movies coming out this year.)
Station Eleven (HBO Max)
Based on the best-selling book by Emily St. John Mandel, Station Eleven takes place after a flu pandemic has devastated the Earth. (So, maybe not the best one to watch after checking the day's COVID-19 news.) The series follows groups of survivors, including a troupe of traveling performers.
Abbot Elementary (ABC)
This sitcom takes place in a Philadelphia public school, where a dedicated group of teachers tries to help students, despite all the craziness of the world around them. The show is done in a mockumentary style, so think of it as The Office for primary school.
And Just Like That (HBO Max)
Check in with the ladies of Sex and the City a decade after their last cinematic adventure. Together, Carrie, Miranda and Charlotte demonstrate what's different about New York City in middle age (parenting, dating) and what stays the same (amazing fashion, brunch).
Stay Close (Netflix)
From the creators of The Stranger comes another tale where people's hidden lives come back to haunt them. When two men go missing exactly 17 years apart, the case starts to dredge up old secrets that shock a suburban community.
Euphoria (HBO)
Sam Levinson's drama returns for its second season, continuing the story of teens struggling with addiction and depression. Zendaya stars as Rue, a girl trying to battle her drug dependence while balancing her relationship to her girlfriend, Jules.
Wolf Like Me (Peacock)
Isla Fisher and Josh Gad star in this dramedy about two people who want to be together despite their emotional baggage. He is still mourning the loss of his wife while trying to raise a daughter. She, well, turns into a werewolf when the moon is full.
Peacemaker (HBO Max)
DC Comics fans who watched The Suicide Squad got a sneak peek at Peacemaker in action; now, he has his own, irreverent spin-off series starring John Cena.
Archive 81 (Netflix)
It starts simple enough: An archivist is hired to restore a collection of damaged video tapes. But what he finds on those recordings sends him down a secretive, dark, possibly demonic path.
How I Met Your Father (Hulu)
A gender-flipped version of How I Met Your Mother, this sitcom stars Hilary Duff stars as Sophie, a woman with a close-knit group of friends searching for love in the big city.
RELATED: The 'How I Met Your Mother' Spinoff' Has the Best Cast Ever and We're Beyond Excited
The Gilded Age
If you watch TV for period costumes and ornate interiors, The Gilded Age is the the drama for you. It's set in 1882, when a young girl moves from rural Pennsylvania to New York City, and has to learn how to move about the upper rungs of society.
The Afterparty (Apple TV+)
It's Yellowjackets meets Grosse Point Blank when a pop star is murdered at an after-party for a high school reunion. Tiffany Haddish stars as the detective trying to break the case, and each episode takes place from a different character's point of view.
In From the Cold (Netflix)
Jenny Franklin is a typical, single soccer mom — or is she? Someone from her past arrives and says she was a Russian spy known as "The Whisper," and that someone is out there copying her old moves.
Pam & Tommy (Hulu)
Everyone has heard of the infamous Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee tape, but this series explores the pop-cultural climate that allowed the scandal to explode, including the changing attitudes towards celebrity and the burgeoning ubiquity of the internet.
Reacher (Amazon Prime Video)
Fans of the Jack Reacher book series wil be thrilled to see the Lee Child hero brought to the small screen. The first season follows the case of Reacher's brother, which has ties to many people in a small, southern town.
Suspicion (Apple TV+)
Based on the overseas thriller False Flag, this drama follows five people who were examined by police as possible suspects in the kidnapping of a media mogul's son. Uma Thurman stars as the mogul.
Murderville (Netflix)
Murderville is less notable for what it's about than how it's set up: Each episode, there's a murder, and a detective played by Will Arnett has to solve it. But time out, he also gets a new celebrity helper — an assistant who doesn't get a script — and the case unfolds as a hilarious blend of planned and improv comedy.
Snowdrop (Disney+)
Disney+ has picked up a drama from South Korea. The serious follows the forbidden love between a college student and a North Korean spy, set against Korea's pro-democracy movement in the '80s. And, for K-Pop fans, it stars Jisoo of BLACKPINK.
Inventing Anna (Netflix)
In 2018, the story of Anna Delvey — or is it Anna Sorokin? — made its way into the annals of the all-time famous grifter stories. She conned the elite into thinking she was a socialite, and swindled hundreds of thousands of dollars for others. Netflix will put all the dishy details on screen, with Ozark's Julia Garner in the lead role.
Love Is Blind (Netflix)
File this away in under guilty pleasure: Love Is Blind is a reality series that challenges participants to make connections with others — without having any idea what they look like. Can the relationships survive when the new couples leave their "pods" and meet face-to-face?
Bel-Air (Peacock)
We'd like to take a minute, just sit right there, and tell you how this show's a reboot of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. Only instead of a straight sitcom, this series plans on having a darker, more grounded tone as a one-hour drama.
Marisa (she/her) has covered all things parenting, from the postpartum period through the empty nest, for Good Housekeeping since 2018; she previously wrote about parents and families at Parents and Working Mother. She lives with her husband and daughter in Brooklyn, where she can be found dominating the audio round at her local bar trivia night or tweeting about movies.
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