PEOPLE Picks the Top 10 TV Shows of 2023, from “Succession” to “Lessons in Chemistry ”to “The Bear”

See if your favorite made the list — or pick a new series to stream

Over the course of the past year there was lightly dispiriting speculation — something like a never-dissipating autumnal mist — that we’d moved beyond the so-called Golden Age of Television. The upcoming 25th anniversary of HBO’s landmark The Sopranos, which premiered in January 1999, possibly added to this sense that innovative greatness was retreating into the past.

But let’s hold our horses, at least for now. What else but a Golden Age could have brought forth The Golden Bachelor, ABC’s popular tweak of its reality-romance classic The Bachelor? Okay — a contentious proposal.

But the year also saw the satisfyingly ironic conclusion of HBO’s Succession after an economical four-season run; a strong second season of FX on Hulu’s uncompromisingly raw The Bear; and the premiere of Netflix’s ever-rising soufflé, the political soap opera The Diplomat.

And so onto a list of terrific programs—with these honorable mentions: Poker Face (Peacock), Jury Duty (Amazon Freevee), The Curse (Paramount+ with Showtime) and The Fall of the House of Usher (Netflix).

'The Diplomat,' Netflix

Returning to series television, Keri Russell brought along that intriguing facial expression of hers — a pinched look of intense scrutiny she perfected playing a spy on The Americans. (If she ever peered through a telescope, she’d probably discover new planets or galaxies.) Here she was Kate Wyler, the United States’ ambassador to the United Kingdom. Kate’s eyes routinely shot daggers, and with good reason. The British prime minister was itching to fight Iran, while Kate’s husband (Rufus Sewell), a fellow career diplomat and behind-the-scenes hustler, insisted on “helping” her by secretly outmaneuvering her. They were a bit like the Clintons, only you might describe these two as a basket of adorables. Ha ha. This giddy, splashy entertainment was like The Good Wife imagined by Scandal creator Shonda Rhimes.

'Beef,' Netflix

Road rage escalated into punishing fury on this jolting satire that explored issues of Asian American identity. Weren’t these enemies (Steven Yeun and Ali Wong) possibly at war with themselves, as well? Hm!

'Shrinking,' Apple TV+

This new comedy had a bit of Ted Lasso's DNA (Brett Goldstein was a co-creator) but the three therapists at its center — played masterfully by Harrison Ford, Jason Segel and Jessica Williams — had a way of making far worse decisions.

'Lessons in Chemistry,' Apple TV+

As a 1950s chemist turned feminist TV chef, Brie Larson reminded us why she’s an Oscar winner.

'Platonic,' Apple TV+

A rom-com about just friends? Is that even a thing? Yes, and it’s a wonderful thing, if it stars the fizzy, funny pair of Rose Byrne and Seth Rogen. Byrne, in particular, deserves praise for carrying off the year’s most challenging comedic scene. It involves partying too hard in middle age.

'The Bear,' FX on Hulu

The return of this series about the opening of a Chicago restaurant proved that a great dish can be even tastier on a second serving.

'The Last of Us,' HBO

Pedro Pascal, stoic and handsome, headed off into danger to save a world upended by a fungus parasite — although those two words don’t convey the pathogen’s freaky, apocalyptic awfulness. Bella Ramsey, as a kid with an intriguingly uncharacterizable personality (tough and — what?), gave one of the year’s breakout performances.

'Swarm,' Amazon

Dominique Fishback played the murderous fan of a Beyoncé-like star in an exhilaratingly funny-scary series about the loss of self — and sanity — in the age of social media. The ending could be interpreted as consoling, pathetic or alarming, depending on your level of cynicism.

'Succession,' HBO

The incendiary drama about siblings vying to inherit Daddy’s media company came to its end. No bang, no whimper — just a bitter licking of wounds. The show was a classic from the get-go, driven by a deep appreciation for character and motivation and a deep scorn for capitalistic swagger.

'Full Circle,' MAX

Director Steven Soderbergh’s thriller about a bungled kidnapping evolved into a panicked coming together of both the privileged and the exploited and — because Soderbergh relishes the out-of-left-field detail — postal inspectors and superstitious Guyanese mobsters. Intricate and bitingly ironic.

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