My Top 10 for 2016, Part 2

5.Mr. Robot (USA)

I was really slow to jump on board one of the greatest series on TV. Maybe it was because it comes from a network mostly known for playful, lowbrow stuff. But watching the repercussions of the 7/9 hack that laid devastation to the financial structure was actually second tier to watch the struggles that were going on within the mind of the ultimate unreliable narrator Eliot (Rami Malek). There were more twists and turns in this series that kept one critical character from last year offscreen almost all season. Add in some of the best opening teasers since the days of The Good Wife and you have the latest masterpiece from the golden age of TV.

4. This is Us (NBC)

Exhausted from watching police procedurals and costumed crimefighters? Here's the ultimate exhibit to show that the network television hit is far from dead. This is a series about a family that is far from typical and yet more human than anything you see anywhere. This is a show that features some of the most brilliant use of flashbacks than maybe any drama in history. This is a show that has some of the most qualified understated acting from undervalued and unknown performers. This is a show with Emmy nominations in its future. When it comes back in January, watch, and feel hope again.

3.The Americans (FX)

Proof that the Emmys is finally starting to redeem itself after years of ignoring FX.  As the Jennings' long cons start to fall apart, you'd think the series was running out of steam. Instead, seeing how great the cost has become to Philip and Elizabeth, and watching the body count pile up in away that Game of Thrones would be shocked at, we are witnessing a series that, as it begins to reach its endgame, has revealed itself one of the greatest series on TV since the passing of Breaking Bad. The fact that we are now living in an age where its becoming increasingly clear that Russia still has undercurrents in the very same areas that Jennings were trying to exploit during the Cold War just shows how much relevant it is. Come for the intrigue. Stay for the brilliant acting from (I'm so glad I can say this) Emmy nominees Matthew Rhys and Keri Russell. And like everything else in this series, they're just the tip of the iceberg.

2. The People Vs. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story  (FX)

Even with Fargo out of service til next year, this was a great season for FX. But even having witnessed their work for over a decade could not have prepared you for the towering majesty of their latest anthology series. Never in my life could I have expected Ryan Murphy to create a show completely devoid of his exploitative nature. Nor could I have expected that an event the entire world seemed to be glued to twenty years ago, could still reveal anything new. I've never been so glad to be proven wrong. This was a triumph from practically beginning to end. Watching some of the greatest actors I've ever seen (Courtney B. Vance and John Travolta) and some I'd never heard of (man, has Sterling Brown had a great year), they created a show about the original media circus. And from the beginning it drew new pictures about the people at the center of the trial who, we the unfeeling viewing public, had reduced to caricatures.  The only flaw this series had was not making us care about the victims enough. In a way, though, that's only just - that's what happened in the real trial too.

1.American Crime (ABC)

Sophomore slump, my ass. This series is only ahead of People V. O.J Simpson for one reason: it looks at the world of a criminal act, and sees nothing but victims. Not just the people who suffered, but the people accused, the people responsible, the people who try to fix it, and even the people who try to cover it up. Some of the greatest actors in any medium have gathered in this anthology play some greatly flawed characters dealing with issues that have become far too timely: rape, racial problems, internet shaming, school shootings, and just the problem of being a teenager. From Felicity Huffman to Regina King, this series harkens back to the origins of the anthology series, and delivers them in a way that few TV shows would dare to try, even now, and especially not on network television. It is perhaps the closest any network show will come to The Wire, when it comes to measuring acting, writing, and scope. Series like this give me hope, not only as a TV critic, but as a human being.