Shows & Entertainment

The Tv Shows That Critics Are Raving About This Season

By Rachel WhitmanPublished: May 21, 2026

If your watchlist is already overflowing and you still feel like you're missing something, you're not wrong. This season has delivered some genuinely excellent television – the kind that critics can't stop writing about and viewers can't stop recommending to each other. Whether you're into prestige drama, dark comedy, or something that blurs the lines entirely, there's something on this list that deserves your attention.

Here's a breakdown of the shows getting the most serious critical attention right now, and why they're worth your time.

The Diplomat (Netflix)

The Diplomat came back for its second season and immediately reminded everyone why it became one of Netflix's most-watched series after its debut. Keri Russell plays Kate Wyler, a US Ambassador navigating international crises while her own marriage and political future unravel in parallel. What makes the show work isn't just the sharp diplomatic thriller plotting – it's the writing, which manages to be genuinely funny without ever undercutting the tension. Russell is commanding in the role, and the supporting cast, particularly Rufus Sewell, keeps every scene interesting. Critics praised the second season for deepening the political intrigue while keeping the character work grounded. If you haven't caught up yet, the good news is that both seasons are worth watching back to back.

Shogun (FX/Hulu)

Shogun arrived earlier in 2024 and hasn't stopped collecting praise since. The miniseries, based on James Clavell's novel and set in feudal Japan, is the kind of television that makes you wonder why there isn't more of it. It's visually stunning, historically immersive, and anchored by remarkable performances from Hiroyuki Sanada and Anna Sawai. Critics highlighted the show's willingness to let the Japanese dialogue breathe without rushing through subtitles, and the way it refuses to center its Western character at the expense of everyone else in the story. Shogun swept the Emmy Awards in a way that surprised almost no one who'd actually watched it, and it holds up just as well on rewatch. If you missed it during its initial run, now is a perfect time to start.

The Bear (FX/Hulu)

The Bear has become one of those rare shows that both critics and general audiences love with equal intensity, and the third season continued that streak. Set in a Chicago restaurant and following a talented chef trying to transform a failing family sandwich shop into something special, the show is relentlessly intense without ever losing its warmth. Each season finds new ways to push the format – episodes that feel like short films, moments of quiet that hit harder than anything louder would. The ensemble cast, led by Jeremy Allen White, has become one of the most celebrated on television, and the guest appearances throughout the run have been remarkable. Critics have called it one of the best dramas currently airing, full stop.

Slow Horses (Apple TV+)

Slow Horses doesn't get talked about as loudly as some other prestige dramas, but the people who watch it tend to be fiercely devoted – and the critics who cover it consistently place it among the best spy thrillers ever made for television. Gary Oldman plays Jackson Lamb, the brilliantly dysfunctional head of Slough House, the MI5 dumping ground for agents who've made career-ending mistakes. The show is funny in a way that sneaks up on you, and then it's suddenly tense and genuinely dangerous-feeling, and then it makes you care deeply about people you thought you were just tolerating. Each season adapts one of Mick Herron's novels, and the adaptations have only gotten stronger. If you haven't started it yet, the early seasons are all available and the show rewards bingewatching.

Baby Reindeer (Netflix)

Baby Reindeer was one of the most talked-about limited series of the year, and for good reason. Richard Gadd wrote and stars in this semi-autobiographical story about a struggling comedian being stalked by a woman he meets in a bar – a premise that sounds like a thriller but turns out to be something far more complicated and emotionally demanding. The series won major Emmy awards and sparked widespread conversation about the nature of truth in storytelling, consent, and mental health. Critics praised it as one of the bravest, most uncomfortable, and most necessary pieces of television in years. It's not easy watching, but it's the kind of show that stays with you long after the credits roll.

Only Murders in the Building (Hulu)

Now into its fourth season, Only Murders in the Building has figured out something a lot of long-running comedy-mysteries never manage: how to keep the formula feeling fresh without abandoning what made it work in the first place. Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez continue to be an improbably perfect comedy trio, and each season brings in guest stars who genuinely fit rather than simply showing up as a stunt. The fourth season has received some of the strongest reviews the show has earned, with critics noting that the writing has gotten sharper and the mystery plotting more inventive. It's the kind of show that's easy to recommend to almost anyone.

Why This Season Feels Different

There's a broader conversation happening in television criticism right now about what "prestige TV" means after a decade of defining itself against network norms. What's interesting about this particular batch of standouts is how varied they are – a feudal Japanese epic, a kitchen drama, a British spy comedy, a deeply personal limited series, a political thriller, and a cheerful murder mystery. The quality isn't clustered in one genre or on one platform. It's spread across FX, Netflix, Hulu, and Apple TV+, in formats ranging from 30-minute episodes to feature-length installments.

What the best shows this season share isn't a genre or a platform – it's a commitment to character work that earns the plot rather than the other way around. The stories work because the people in them feel real, and the performances are good enough to make you believe it. That's been true of great television in every era, but it's satisfying to see it alive and well in a landscape that could easily have defaulted to spectacle alone.

The Bottom Line

If you've been sleeping on any of these, pick one and start tonight. Shogun and The Bear are the safest recommendations for anyone who wants to understand what television criticism has been excited about for the past year. Baby Reindeer is essential if you can handle the emotional weight. And if you just want something that's reliably, consistently excellent without asking too much of you, Slow Horses is one of the great underrated pleasures on streaming right now.

Good television is genuinely not hard to find right now. The harder part is deciding where to start.