Drama series is this year’s glamour category, with perhaps the five most talked-about shows of the season. Initial polling finds a near-dead heat at the top between “Severance” and “The Pitt,” with “The Last of Us,” “The White Lotus” and “Andor” all very much in the mix.
Only two points separate “Severance” and “The Pitt,” shows that couldn’t be more different. One elevates form to the nth degree, with some of TV’s most beautifully designed (and icily metaphorical) images; the other is a gritty, grimy drama stripped of bells and whistles, including the soapy subplots common to the medical genre.
“This category feels like a toss-up between ‘The Pitt’ and ‘Severance,’ with the former leading the ‘heart’ brigade and the latter the ‘mind’ trust,” says Matt Roush, who also advocates for CBS’ “Matlock” reboot to get a rare nod for a broadcast drama. Count Lorraine Ali in the “mind” camp: “There’s nothing smarter than ‘Severance,’” she writes. “Season 2 offers a chilling, darkly hilarious and oddly liberating spin on a bad day at the office. Praise Kier.”
Glenn Whipp, meanwhile, suffers from “Pitt” withdrawal: “What are they doing now? Is Nurse Dana coming back? Are roomies Santos and Whitaker about to kill each other? I need answers. I can’t wait until January.”
“The Last of Us” burned up the internet with its shocking character death — a feat of secret-keeping among fans of its source material on the level of “Game of Thrones’” Red Wedding. “The White Lotus,” with its, er, family plot, widely praised performances and “SNL” mini-controversy, also got plenty of attention, and the recently concluded “Andor” is getting talked up as the best “Star Wars” incarnation since, well, its source movie, “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.”
Citing its street-level, human examination of how authoritarianism can radicalize average people, Tracy Brown says, “‘Andor’ is not only one of the best ‘Star Wars’ stories but one of the best TV shows around.”
“The Pitt” isn’t the only freshman series Trey Mangum shouts out: “Two other new standouts for me are Netflix’s YA romance ‘Forever’ and its light procedural drama, ‘High Potential.’”
Among the notables left off the Round 1 list: the ballyhooed return of the Man Without Fear in “Daredevil: Born Again”; the sophomore season of “House of the Dragon” (its first landed eight noms); the highly pedigreed “The Agency” and “MobLand”; and the final season of onetime Emmy darling “The Handmaid’s Tale” and the wildly popular “Yellowstone.”
And Kristen Baldwin laments, it’s a shame “that Emmy voters almost certainly will continue to snub one of the best shows on TV, ‘Pachinko’!”
More predictions: Drama actor | Drama actress
1. “Severance”
2. “The Pitt”
3. “The Last of Us”
4. “Andor”
5. “Slow Horses”
6. “The White Lotus”
7. “Paradise”
8. “Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light”
9. “Forever”
10. (tie) “Bad Sisters”
10. (tie) “Dark Winds”
Los Angeles Times
Lorraine Ali
1. “Severance”
2. (tie) “Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light”
2. (tie) “Bad Sisters”
4. “The Pitt”
5. “Andor”
6. (tie) “Dark Winds”
6. (tie) “Yellowjackets”
8. “The Last of Us”
“There’s nothing smarter than ‘Severance,’ a dystopian thriller where employees of the secretive Lumon Industries undergo a surgical procedure that mentally severs their work memories from their personal life. Season 2 offers a chilling, darkly hilarious and oddly liberating spin on a bad day at the office. Praise Kier.”
Entertainment Weekly
Kristen Baldwin
1.“Severance”
2. “The White Lotus”
3. “The Pitt”
4. “The Last of Us”
5. “Slow Horses”
6. “Andor”
7. “The Diplomat”
8. “Squid Game”
“It’s possible that ‘Squid Game’— which had a solid but not spectacular second season — could get bumped out for Hulu’s ‘Paradise,’ Peacock’s ‘The Day of the Jackal’ or HBO’s ‘House of the Dragon.’ That would be a shame. Also a shame: that Emmy voters almost certainly will continue to snub one of the best shows on TV, ‘Pachinko’! (It doesn’t help that Apple TV+ still hasn’t renewed it for a third season.)”
Los Angeles Times
Tracy Brown
1. “Andor”
2. “The Last of Us”
3. “Severance”
4. “The Pitt”
5. “Dark Winds”
6. “Yellowjackets”
7. “Squid Game”
8. “Matlock”
“‘Andor’ is not only one of the best ‘Star Wars’ stories but one of the best TV shows around. This grounded look at a galaxy far, far away shows how the actions (and inactions) of ordinary people ultimately determine whether an authoritarian regime will thrive or be thwarted.”
Shadow and Act
Trey Mangum
1. “The Pitt”
2. “Forever”
3. “Severance”
4. “Paradise”
5. “The Last of Us”
6. “High Potential”
7. “The Day of the Jackal”
8. “The White Lotus”
“It’s all about the newbies this year. Freshman drama ‘The Pitt’ seems like the one to beat, perhaps being able to upset the sophomore season of ‘Severance.’ Two other new standouts for me are Netflix’s YA romance ‘Forever’ and its light procedural drama ‘High Potential.’”
TV Guide
Matt Roush
1. “The Pitt”
2. “Severance”
3. “The Last of Us”
4. “Slow Horses”
5. “The Diplomat”
6. “Andor”
7. “Matlock”
8. “The White Lotus”
“This category feels like a toss-up between ‘The Pitt’ and ‘Severance,’ with the former leading the ‘heart’ brigade and the latter the ‘mind’ trust. I’m also holding out hope that Emmy voters shed their broadcast-TV blinders and give ‘Matlock’ a nod, which would be the first since ‘This Is Us’ in 2021.”
Los Angeles Times
Glenn Whipp
1. “The Pitt”
2. “Severance”
3. “Slow Horses”
4. “The Last of Us”
5. “Paradise”
6. “The White Lotus”
7. “Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light”
8. “Andor”
“Spending 15 hours with the emergency room crew in ‘The Pitt’ forged an emotional connection that remains potent weeks later. What are they doing now? Is Nurse Dana coming back? Are roomies Santos and Whitaker about to kill each other? I need answers. I can’t wait until January.”
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