(Photo by HBO)
2019 Spring/Summer TV Scorecard
We gathered a list of all the TV premieres from the spring and summer – series, miniseries, as well as TV movies – and ranked them by Tomatometer.
While we would normally expect Game of Thrones‘ epic final season to top the scorecard, it does not; the divisive final season ended its run with the series’ first-ever Rotten score. Instead, the second seasons of buzzy BBC America spy thriller Killing Eve and YouTube’s Karate Kid continuation Cobra Kai rank above it, as do acclaimed debuts including HBO miniseries Chernobyl, Hulu’s Ramy, FX miniseries Fosse/Verdon, and CBS All Access’ reboot of The Twilight Zone.
The list below tracks every new TV season or streaming movie from the beginning of spring — April 1 for organizational purposes — that got at least 10 critic reviews for TV shows and 20 critic reviews for TV movies.
Latest Update (7/1): Legion season 3, Fear the Walking Dead season 5, Jett, Los Espookys, City on a Hill, Euphoria, Grand Hotel, Dark season 2, Years and Years, The Rook, The Loudest Voice, The Tick season 2, Bonding.
If you’re wondering why your favorite show isn’t on here, it likely just didn’t have enough season reviews to qualify under our criteria.
Adjusted Score: 7.372%
Critics Consensus: A spin-off to nowhere, L.A.'s Finest operates on outdated sensibilities and wastes its talented leads' time -- especially unfortunate considering Gabriel Union's committed performance.
Synopsis: Former DEA agent Syd Burnett leaves Miami for Los Angeles to join the police department, where she's paired with working...
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#67
Adjusted Score: 29.44%
Critics Consensus: The Silence has nothing new to say with a derivative premise and placid pacing -- even a wasted Stanley Tucci is unable to elevate the stodgy material a decibel above dreadful.
Synopsis: When the world is under attack from terrifying creatures who hunt their human prey by sound, 16-year old Ally Andrews...
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Adjusted Score: 36.078%
Critics Consensus: Despite its pedigree, The Code does little to differentiate itself in a crowded field.
Synopsis: The military's top legal minds take on tough challenges....
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Adjusted Score: 31.274%
Critics Consensus: The Village commendably attempts to affirm the bonds between neighbors in an urban community, but the series' overeagerness to wring tears from viewers will most likely only prompt them to roll their eyes.
Synopsis: A unique Brooklyn apartment building's residents create a bonded family of friends and neighbors. Sarah's a nurse and single mom...
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Adjusted Score: 43.627%
Critics Consensus: Promising performances and an intriguing premise can't keep Chambers' meandering melodrama from getting lost in its own haunted hallways.
Synopsis: A young heart attack survivor becomes consumed by the mystery surrounding the heart that saved her life. However, the closer...
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Adjusted Score: 42.843%
Critics Consensus: A deliriously delicious performance from Renée Zellweger can't save What/If from its own mediocrity, but boy is she fun to watch.
Synopsis: Desperate to secure funding for her med tech startup, an idealistic scientist and her husband strike an outrageous deal with...
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Adjusted Score: 42.511%
Critics Consensus: Though it teases some appealingly pulpy puzzle pieces, The Rook's dour tone and convoluted machinations overshadow its intriguing premise.
Synopsis: "The Rook" is a supernatural spy thriller, which tells the story of Myfanwy Thomas, a woman who wakes up in...
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Adjusted Score: 45.078%
Critics Consensus: Blood & Treasure never finds the X that marks the sweet spot, but viewers who heed an undemanding call to adventure may find some charm in the series' concept.
Synopsis: An antiquities expert and an art thief chase a terrorist who funds attacks through stolen treasure....
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#60
Adjusted Score: 62.744%
Critics Consensus: Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile often transcends its narrative limitations through sheer force of Zac Efron's compulsively watchable performance.
Synopsis: Elizabeth Kloepfer refused for years to acknowledge that her boyfriend was a serial killer. Her partner, Ted Bundy, became famous...
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Adjusted Score: 56.84%
Critics Consensus: Game of Thrones' final season shortchanges the women of Westeros, sacrificing satisfying character arcs for spectacular set-pieces in its mad dash to the finish line.
Synopsis: An adaptation of author George R.R. Martin's "A Song of Ice and Fire" medieval fantasies about power struggles among the...
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#58
Adjusted Score: 62.08%
Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.
#57
Adjusted Score: 62.52%
Critics Consensus: Native Son's struggles with its problematic source material are uneven but overall compelling, thanks largely to Ashton Sanders' poised work in the central role.
Synopsis: Bigger "Big" Thomas, a young African American man, lives with his mother and siblings in Chicago. Half-heartedly involved with a...
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Adjusted Score: 64.078%
Critics Consensus: Though Bonding's juicy spin on friendship and sexuality boldly treads into uncharted territory, the show's writing too often teeters uncomfortably between bewitchingly funny and bewilderingly underwhelming to make it a truly satisfying experience.
Synopsis: A New York City grad student moonlighting as a dominatrix enlists her gay BFF from high school to be her...
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Adjusted Score: 67.843%
Critics Consensus: Grim and graphic, Too Old to Die Young is stylish, but its languid story does little to justify its violent tendencies-- though fans of Refn's may find enjoyment in its neon laden misery.
Synopsis: In one tragic night, Los Angeles County Sheriff's Deputy Martin Jones's life is blown apart, and he is forced into...
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#54
Adjusted Score: 66.115%
Critics Consensus: It'll be best enjoyed by audiences with a high tolerance for colorful whimsy, but Unicorn Store is easy to like -- and it suggests Brie Larson has a future behind the camera.
Synopsis: Kit (Brie Larson) is a lonely twenty-something dreamer who's reluctant to leave the comforts of childhood and fully embrace adulthood....
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#53
Adjusted Score: 69.115%
Critics Consensus: Wine Country's comedy might not be quite as robust as fans of this ensemble will expect, but it's got sweetness on the nose and a nicely balanced finish.
Synopsis: In honor of Rebecca (Rachel Dratch)'s 50th birthday, Abby (Amy Poehler) plans a scenic Napa getaway with their best, longtime...
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Adjusted Score: 69.45%
Critics Consensus: Though Nos2a2 strains to build the necessary atmosphere to pull off its ambitious premise, it does capture the spirit of Joe Hill's singular work and provide a new psychopath for Zachary Quinto to sink his teeth into.
Synopsis: Vic McQueen, a young working-class artist who discovers that she has a supernatural ability to track the seemingly immortal Charlie...
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Adjusted Score: 75.568%
Critics Consensus: Perry Mattfeld is compelling as an amateur sleuth In the Dark, although the series' recycling of mystery tropes and questionable treatment of physical handicaps may leave some viewers with a dim impression.
Synopsis: A blind woman believes she witnessed the murder of her drug-dealing friend and sets out with her dog, Pretzel, to...
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Adjusted Score: 75.626%
Critics Consensus: Even if it's not the most satisfying finale for an entire era of Marvel television, Jessica Jones' final chapter finishes strong by giving its complicated heroine the space to change -- and Krysten Ritter one last chance to work her sarcastic magic.
Synopsis: When Jessica (Krysten Ritter) crosses paths with a highly intelligent psychopath, she and Trish (Rachael Taylor) must repair their fractured...
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Adjusted Score: 72.764%
Critics Consensus: If not always graceful, The Red Line is never less than empathetic, effectively applying tried and true storytelling techniques in its attempts to untangle complicated cultural issues.
Synopsis: The fallout from a police shooting in which a white cop killed a black doctor is explored....
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Adjusted Score: 74.941%
Critics Consensus: Though City on a Hill's meandering story can't quite match its ambitions, it's entertaining -- and even occasionally riveting -- to watch Kevin Bacon and company take on bureaucracy.
Synopsis: A black District Attorney in Boston and a veteran FBI agent seek to end corruption in the city....
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#47
Adjusted Score: 76.166%
Critics Consensus: Led by a pair of compelling performances, The Perfection is a smart, gripping thriller that barbs its wild twists with cutting wit.
Synopsis: When troubled musical prodigy Charlotte (Allison Williams) seeks out Elizabeth (Logan Browning), the new star pupil of her former school,...
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Adjusted Score: 66.274%
Critics Consensus: Though it's pace has grown stiff, Fear the Walking Dead finds ghoulish innovations within its zombie formula while broadening the Walker universe.
Synopsis: In Season 5, the group's mission is clear: locate survivors and help make what's left of the world a slightly...
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Adjusted Score: 80.546%
Critics Consensus: The Twilight Zone explores the strangeness of the modern world through Rod Serling's winning formula, creating a thought-provoking -- if not always spine-tingling -- showcase for Jordan Peele and his exceptional crop of collaborators.
Synopsis: Viewers enter another dimension with Jordan Peele and Simon Kinberg's modern re-imagining of the classic. CBS All Access' The Twilight...
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Adjusted Score: 75.568%
Critics Consensus: Black Summer has enough undead carnage and a sinewy pace to please zombie fans, but the series suffers from scant characterization and doesn't add much storytelling meat to the genre's gnawed-on bone.
Synopsis: In the dark, early days of a zombie apocalypse, complete strangers band together to find the strength they need to...
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Adjusted Score: 84.333%
Critics Consensus: Like a pleasant visit to a place you used to live, Tales of the City provides ample nostalgic comforts, while maintaining the series' mission of celebrating the diversity of San Francisco on its own terms.
Synopsis: Middle-aged Mary Ann returns to San Francisco and the eccentric friends she left behind....
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Adjusted Score: 84.116%
Critics Consensus: With a stronger central mystery steeped in witchy world building, Chilling Adventures remains a deliciously dark, delightfully campy romp that pushes Sabrina deeper down the path of night -- if only she would get there a little faster.
Synopsis: A chilling new chapter begins as Sabrina dives deeper into the dark and daring world of teenage witchcraft....
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Adjusted Score: 87.742%
Critics Consensus: Though at times hard to watch, Euphoria balances its brutal honesty with an empathetic -- and visually gorgeous -- eye to create a uniquely challenging and illuminating series, held together by a powerfully understated performance from Zendaya.
Synopsis: Following a group of high school students as they navigate love and friendships in a world of drugs, sex, trauma...
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Adjusted Score: 75.176%
Critics Consensus: The Spanish Princess blends soapy melodrama with beautifully rendered historical set-pieces to paint a rounder -- if still not fully realized -- portrait of an often overlooked queen.
Synopsis: "The Spanish Princess" is a vivid and captivating story told uniquely from the point of view of the women, which...
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Adjusted Score: 82.078%
Critics Consensus: Well-written and endearingly down-home, Bless This Mess' greatest gift is the joy of seeing its hilarious and like-able ensemble all in one place.
Synopsis: Newlyweds flee New York City for a simpler existence in Nebraska, but their new surroundings don't necessarily make their lives...
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#38
Adjusted Score: 83.572%
Critics Consensus: What Someone Great lacks in originality it makes up for in relatability and charm, thanks in large part to the undeniable chemistry between its talented leads.
Synopsis: Aspiring music journalist Jenny (Gina Rodriguez) has just landed her dream job at an iconic magazine and is about to...
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Adjusted Score: 87.253%
Critics Consensus: Sam Rockwell and Michelle Williams give viewers plenty of razzle and dazzle in Fosse/Verdon -- a straightforward miniseries that is hampered by rote biographical tropes, but still shimmies with the requisite glitz, grit, and all that jazz audiences crave.
Synopsis: Based on Fosse, the biography written by Sam Wasson, this eight-part limited series tells the story of the singular romantic...
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Adjusted Score: 89.332%
Critics Consensus: A smörgåsbord of heavenly imagery and irreverent hilarity, Good Omens works thanks to to Michael Sheen and David Tennant's very-nearly-holy (or maybe unholy?) chemistry -- though, at only six episodes, it's a rare adaptation that may have benefitted from being a little less faithful to the good book.
Synopsis: In series 1, the year is 2018 and the Apocalypse is set to descend upon humanity. An angel and demon...
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Adjusted Score: 74.862%
Critics Consensus: Grand Hotel is a vivacious summer soap, gathering a glamorous ensemble of Latinx talent and letting them bounce off each other in delightfully sordid turns of betrayal.
Synopsis: Eva Longoria executive produces this bold, provocative drama set at the last family-owned hotel in multicultural Miami Beach. Charismatic Santiago...
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Adjusted Score: 87.235%
Critics Consensus: An intriguing tangle of mystery and melodrama, what The Society lacks in levity -- and at times clarity -- it makes up for with its surprisingly thoughtful exploration of community, culture, and what it means to grow up.
Synopsis: The Society follows a group of teenagers who are mysteriously transported to a facsimile of their wealthy New England town,...
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Adjusted Score: 84.999%
Critics Consensus: The Handmaid's Tale's third season reigns in its horrors and inspires hope that revolution really is possible -- if only the story would stop spinning its wheels and get to it already.
Synopsis: Adapted from the classic novel by Margaret Atwood, The Handmaid's Tale is the story of life in the dystopia of...
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Adjusted Score: 85.544%
Critics Consensus: Das Boot possesses the atmospheric pressure of its cinematic forebear while adding new depth to its compelling ensemble, making for a riveting international production.
Synopsis: During the Autumn of 1942, in occupied France, U-612 is now ready for its maiden voyage, preparing to head into...
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Adjusted Score: 88.431%
Critics Consensus: Luther returns in fine form from its extended exodus with a grizzly mystery and the welcome reappearance of Ruth Wilson's psychotic villain, Alice Morgan.
Synopsis: Idris Elba, known for playing drug dealer Stringer Bell on The Wire, is back in the fifth seies of Luther...
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Adjusted Score: 89.725%
Critics Consensus: Dead to Me doesn't always deliver on the gallows humor that it promises, but the sterling duo of Christina Applegate and Linda Cardellini elevates the series above its pulpier aspects -- offering a deeply moving relationship shaped by mutual grief.
Synopsis: Jen (Christina Applegate) is a sardonic widow determined to solve her husband?s recent hit-and-run murder. Judy (Linda Cardellini) is an...
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Adjusted Score: 92.665%
Critics Consensus: Though not quite as sharp as Joseph Heller's seminal novel, Catch-22's handsomely rendered, hilariously horrifying exploration of war still soars thanks to its stellar cast and reverent adherence to its source material.
Synopsis: Based on Joseph Heller's seminal novel of the same name, Catch-22 is the story of the incomparable, artful dodger, Yossarian...
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Adjusted Score: 89.352%
Critics Consensus: While Cobra Kai's subversive kick no longer carries the same gleeful impact of its inaugural season, its second round is still among the best around -- no amount of mid-life crisis and teenage ennui's ever gonna keep it down.
Synopsis: COBRA KAI returns, and a new rivalry between opposing dojos is born. What was once a personal feud between Daniel...
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Adjusted Score: 90.646%
Critics Consensus: An anxiety producing dramatization of real world events, The Hot Zone is a sobering reminder of exactly how deadly a disease can be.
Synopsis: Recounts the terrifying true story of the origins of the Ebola virus, a highly infectious deadly virus from the central...
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Adjusted Score: 92.313%
Critics Consensus: Suranne Jones' boundless charisma brings the indomitable Anne Lister to vivid life in Gentleman Jack, a gently revelatory series that mines terrific humor from the icon's unapologetic forward-thinkingness - although the series isn't as willing to ruffle feathers as she was.
Synopsis: Series 1 follows Anne Listers efforts to restore Shibden Hall to its former glory....
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Adjusted Score: 92.685%
Critics Consensus: Years and Years scathingly critiques the present with a nihilistic projection of the future, leavening the devastating satire with a buoyant sense of humor and characters who are easy to become invested in.
Synopsis: Series 1 follows a family from Manchester whose lives converge on one crucial night in 2019....
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#24
Adjusted Score: 92.269%
Critics Consensus: Carried by the infectious charms of Ali Wong and Randall Park, Always Be My Maybe takes familiar rom-com beats and cleverly layers in smart social commentary to find its own sweet groove.
Synopsis: Childhood sweethearts have a falling out and don't speak for 15 years. They reconnect as adults when Sasha, now a...
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Adjusted Score: 92.176%
Critics Consensus: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power continues to go from strength to strength with ebullient flair in a second season that will enrapture younger fans while reminding adult viewers about the virtues of friendship and kindness.
Synopsis: Adora and the Princess Alliance train to get stronger, but Catra and the Horde are on the move. As Hordak...
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Adjusted Score: 92.274%
Critics Consensus: Carla Gugino shines in JETT, a stylish -- if overtly violent -- noir that benefits from its willingness to crank its genre set-pieces up to eleven.
Synopsis: Fresh out of prison, retired professional thief Daisy (aka "Jett") Kowalski is reluctantly
drawn back into doing what she does best...
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Adjusted Score: 95.465%
Critics Consensus: By leaning into the horror of it all, Swamp Thing swims deep into the trenches of this strange world and returns with a scary good TV show.
Synopsis: When CDC researcher Abby Arcane returns to her childhood home of Houma, Louisiana, in order to investigate a deadly swamp-borne...
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Adjusted Score: 94.745%
Critics Consensus: A cornucopia of visual wonder and environmental advocacy, Our Planet's breathtaking cinematography explores more of this beautiful, blue marble while presenting an urgent call to action to its inhabitants.
Synopsis: The ambitious four-year project has been filmed in 50 countries across all the continents of the world, with crew capturing...
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Starring:
Adjusted Score: 97.685%
Critics Consensus: With the titillating cat-and-mouse game still rooted at its core, Killing Eve returns for an enthralling second season of considerably higher stakes, hilariously dark humor and a captivating dynamic between characters, solidifying its position as one of the best spy thrillers out.
Synopsis: Killing Eve is the story of two women, bound by a mutual obsession and one brutal act: Eve, an MI6...
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Adjusted Score: 93.96%
Critics Consensus: In its final season, Legion remains a singular piece of visually arresting, mind-bending television that never fails to surprise.
Synopsis: "Legion" focuses on "David Haller," a troubled young man who was diagnosed with schizophrenia as a child. Shuffled from one...
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Adjusted Score: 96.156%
Critics Consensus: Honest and genuinely affecting, Special lives up to its name with a funny -- if a bit too concise -- first season brightened by Ryan O'Connell's infectious charms.
Synopsis: A young gay man with cerebral palsy branches out from his insular existence in hopes of finally going after the...
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#16
Adjusted Score: 95.08%
Critics Consensus: Candid and compelling, Running with Beto is an illuminating exploration of an up-and-coming politician and the changing political landscape around him.
Synopsis: This behind-the-scenes documentary follows Beto O'Rourke's rise from virtual unknown to national political sensation through his bold attempt to unseat...
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#15
Adjusted Score: 95.903%
Critics Consensus: See You Yesterday marries a novel sci-fi premise with urgent social relevance and forges something excitedly new from the union -- providing an impressive showcase for star Eden Duncan-Smith and debut writer-director Stefon Bristol.
Synopsis: High school best friends and science prodigies C.J. and Sebastian spend every spare minute working on their latest homemade invention:...
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Adjusted Score: 101.861%
Critics Consensus: Ava DuVernay pulls no punches in When They See Us, laying out the harrowing events endured by the Central Park Five while adding a necessary layer of humanity to their story that challenges viewers to reconsider what it means to find justice in America.
Synopsis: Five teens from Harlem become trapped in a nightmare when they're falsely accused of a brutal attack in Central Park....
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Adjusted Score: 97.646%
Critics Consensus: A delightful, delicate dance of light and dark, Pose's second season achieves a striking balance between the grittiness of reality and the glamour of the runway.
Synopsis: Three years later, it's 1990 and the ball scene is being exposed to the mainstream for the first time, forcing...
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Adjusted Score: 102.743%
Critics Consensus: Chernobyl rivets with a creeping dread that never dissipates, dramatizing a national tragedy with sterling craft and an intelligent dissection of institutional rot.
Synopsis: CHERNOBYL dramatizes the 1986 nuclear accident, one of the worst human-made catastrophes in history, and tells the story of the...
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Adjusted Score: 99.137%
Critics Consensus: An insightful and hilarious glimpse into the life of a Muslim American family, Ramy perfectly articulates the precarious nature and nuances of identity and announces Ramy Youssef is a talent to watch.
Synopsis: Ramy Hassan is a first generation Egyptian-American who is on a spiritual journey in his politically-divided New Jersey neighborhood. RAMY...
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#10
Adjusted Score: 99.858%
Critics Consensus: A triumphant coda to a beloved series, Deadwood: The Movie will satisfy fans longing for a little f---ing closure.
Synopsis: In this original movie based on David Milch's acclaimed, Emmy (R)-winning HBO series of the same name which debuted 15...
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Adjusted Score: 95.508%
Critics Consensus: Gorgeous and gripping, Big Little Lies's second season doubles down on the dark humor and gives its impressive cast even more juicy drama to chew on -- especially an excellent Meryl Streep.
Synopsis: Based on Liane Moriarty's best seller, Big Little Lies is a dark comedy set in a town by the seaside...
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Adjusted Score: 98%
Synopsis: In its second season, Tick and Arthur have freed the City from The Terror -- now they must defend it...
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Adjusted Score: 100.078%
Critics Consensus: Of Mics and Men condenses the mythology surrounding the celebrated Wu-Tang Clan with finesse, honoring the hip hop collective's aura of legend while also delving into each member's earthy humanity.
Synopsis: Throughout the history of hip-hop, no single group changed the game in the same way the Wu-Tang Clan did. In...
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Adjusted Score: 100.274%
Critics Consensus: Smart, stylish, and fully realized thanks to show-runner Tanya Saracho and her talented crew, Vida's second season is a masterclass in crafting multidimensional characters.
Synopsis: "Vida" is a half-hour drama series focusing on two Mexican-American sisters from the Eastside of Los Angeles who couldn't be...
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Adjusted Score: 101.254%
Critics Consensus: Dark's sumptuous second season descends deeper into the show's meticulously-crafted mythos and cements the series as one of streaming's strongest and strangest science fiction stories.
Synopsis: Jonas finds himself trapped in the future and desperately tries to return to 2020. Meanwhile, his friends Martha, Magnus, and...
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Adjusted Score: 101.156%
Critics Consensus: Igualmente hilarante y horripilante, Los Espookys is an espooky good time.
Synopsis: From Julio Torres and Ana Fabrega, alongside Fred Armisen and Lorne Michaels of "Saturday Night Live," the primarily Spanish-language show...
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Adjusted Score: 101.941%
Critics Consensus: Tuca & Bertie skips right past Bojack Horseman's shadow with its chipper sensibility and madcap sight gags, bringing plenty of laughs as it addresses adulting anxiety and exalts the joys of friendship.
Synopsis: Tuca & Bertie is an animated comedy series about the friendship between two 30-year-old bird women who live in the...
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#2
Adjusted Score: 103.269%
Critics Consensus: A galvanizing glimpse behind the scenes of a pivotal election, Knock Down the House should prove engrossing for viewers of all political persuasions.
Synopsis: When tragedy struck her family in the midst of the financial crisis, Bronx-born Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez had to work double shifts...
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Adjusted Score: 106.645%
Critics Consensus: Fleabag jumps back into the fray with a bracing second season that upholds its predecessor's frenzied wit and delicate heart, replete with Phoebe Waller-Bridge's indefatigable charisma.
Synopsis: Fleabag (Phoebe Waller-Bridge) is back for a second bite, and this time she is going toe to toe with the...
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