This year may account for the biggest loss of brain cells in human history.
You can't really blame everyone for just mindlessly staring at their television screens in 2015. "Game of Thrones" had one of the most-talked about scenes in TV history with Jon Snow in its Season 5 finale, we all freaked out over a huge "Walking Dead" fake-out, the twist in "Leftovers" Season 2 completely blew our minds and the force finally awakened for Sheldon on "The Big Bang Theory."
Sadly, we lost a lot of our favorite shows, too. "Mad Men," "Two and a Half Men," "Parks and Rec," "The Mentalist," "Glee" and more aired their series finales in 2015. Here's to you, Don Draper.
But to quote everyone's favorite '90s band, Semisonic, "every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end."
The bodies of those shows weren't even cold before we replaced them with new ones. Netflix rolled out a number of hits, including "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt," "Narcos" and "Jessica Jones"; USA gave the surprise of the year with "Mr. Robot"; Fox brought Cookie Lyon into our lives with "Empire"; and Amazon added another powerful season of "Transparent" along with its most streamed show, newcomer "The Man in the High Castle."
There were plenty of new shows to enjoy in 2015, but it turns out a lot of your favorites didn't even make it into the top 10. According to IMDb ratings and votes, here are the best TV newcomers of 2015:
10. "The Man in the High Castle" (Amazon)
Synopsis:
"Based on Philip K. Dick's award-winning novel, and executive produced by Ridley Scott and Frank Spotnitz, 'The Man in the High Castle' explores what it would be like if the Allied Powers had lost WWII, and Japan and Germany ruled the United States." (via Amazon)
Our take:
"The Man in the High Castle" should have everything going for it. Unfortunately, unlike alt-reality movie "Inglourious Basterds," there is no Lt. Aldo Raine or Bear Jew and Mike Myers doesn't randomly show up, either. Yep. No Shrek at all. There's just this conflicted guy named Joe (Luke Kleintank). And, no offense to Joe, but Shrek is like an onion. He's got layers. Joe's not an onion. He's just a Joe.
IMDb rating: 8.3, Our rating: 7.4
9. "Bloodline" (Netflix)
Synopsis:
"When the black sheep son (Ben Mendelsohn) of a respected family threatens to expose dark secrets from their past, sibling loyalties are put to the test." (via Netflix)
Our take:
Look, will you fall asleep during this show? Uh, yeah. It's pretty likely. It's not that the Rayburn family's deep, dark secrets aren't entertaining, or that the payoff at the end isn't worth it, but the show's slow burn can sometimes make it like a lullaby. The first episode even opens with family black sheep Danny passed out on a bus. He can't even stay awake, and his dang show is starting. Is this dude even alive?
"Bloodline" is pretty much the reason Netflix asks, "Are you still watching?" or more like, "You dead, bruh?"
IMDb rating: 8.3, Our rating: 7.2
8. "Sense8" (Netflix)
Synopsis:
"One moment links 8 minds in disparate parts of the world, putting 8 strangers in each other's lives, each other's secrets, and in terrible danger." (via Netflix)
Our take:
Don't watch this when your mom is around. It doesn't matter that it's actually a cool (sometimes confusing) concept from the people who brought us "The Matrix." Mom doesn't care about that. She just cares about the big orgy scene. That's it. It's Season 1, Episode 6, and she's guaranteed to walk in right in the middle of it. Even if you don't live with your parents, it's going to happen.
IMDb rating: 8.4, Our rating: 8.0
7. "Master of None" (Netflix)
Synopsis:
"Meet Dev (Aziz Ansari), a 30-year-old actor in New York who has trouble deciding what he wants to eat, much less the pathway for the rest of his life." (via Netflix)
Our take:
"Master of None" is basically 10 episodes of Aziz Ansari's stand-up act. We get to follow Ansari Dev as he goes on auditions, looks for love and tries to find the best tacos. Sign. Us. Up.
If anything, it'll give you good ideas about where to eat in New York and open your eyes to how diverse Home Depot -- eh ... "Garden Depot" -- commercials are. Racial equality: That's the power of the Home Depot.
IMDb rating: 8.5, Our rating: 8.9
6. "Jessica Jones" (Netflix)
Synopsis:
"After a tragic ending to her short-lived Super Hero stint, Jessica Jones (Krysten Ritter) is rebuilding her personal life and career as a private detective in Hell's Kitchen. It's time the world knew her name..." (via Netflix)
Our take:
Between a conflicted superhero struggling to rebuild her life (and get her front door fixed) and a depraved antagonist (David Tennant) who will likely charm your pants off, there's a good chance "Jessica Jones" is Marvel's best TV show yet. So why isn't it even higher on the list? Well, it's probably because some people's roommates said they were going to watch it and then fell asleep and didn't get back to it.
Y'all know who you are. Also, we need more milk.
IMDb rating: 8.5, Our rating: 8.8
5. "Better Call Saul" (AMC)
Synopsis:
"Set six years before he became Walter White’s lawyer, Saul Goodman (Bob Odenkirk) is known as Jimmy McGill, a small-time lawyer searching for his destiny." (via AMC)
Our take:
Is "Better Call Saul" the one who knocks? Not really. "Better Call Saul" is more like the one who knocks, runs away, laughs behind the bushes and then knocks again. And you keep answering the door because you think, "Hmmm ... maybe Heisenberg will be there this time." But it's gripping enough that we're ready to do it all again for Season 2.
IMDb rating; 8.8, Our rating: 8.0
4. "Daredevil" (Netflix)
Synopsis:
"Lawyer by day, street-level hero by night, Matt Murdock (Charlie Cox) (who was blinded in an accident) is on a mission to make his city a better place against an underground terror within the city." (via Netflix)
Our take:
Just watch the hallway fight scene from Episode 2. If it doesn't hook you from that, there's no helping you. Sorry.
IMDb rating: 8.8, Our rating: 8.5
3. "Mr. Robot" (USA)
Synopsis:
"'Mr. Robot' is a psychological thriller that follows Elliot (Rami Malek), a young programmer, who works as a cyber security engineer by day and a vigilante hacker by night. Elliot finds himself at a crossroads when the mysterious leader of an underground hacker group recruits him to destroy the corporation he is paid to protect. Compelled by his personal beliefs, Elliot struggles to resist the chance to take down the multinational CEOs he believes are running (and ruining) the world." (via "Mr. Robot" YouTube)
Our take:
Purely based on the amount of moments that make you say, "Whaaaaaat!" this is our pick for new show of the year. It's kind of like "Fight Club" meets "The Social Network." Plus, show creator Sam Esmail already told HuffPost that Season 1 is just the setup for the real story, which "begins next season."
Damn. Whaaaaaat? This show is crazy.
IMDb rating: 8.9, Our rating: 9.5
2. "Ash vs Evil Dead" (Starz)
Synopsis:
"'Ash vs Evil Dead' follows Ash (Bruce Campbell), the stock boy, aging lothario and chainsaw-handed monster hunter who has spent the last 30 years avoiding responsibility, maturity and the terrors of the Evil Dead. When a Deadite plague threatens to destroy all of mankind, Ash is finally forced to face his demons --personal and literal. Destiny, it turns out, has no plans to release the unlikely hero from its 'Evil' grip." (Via Starz)
Our take:
OK, "Ash vs. Evil Dead" is great, but is it really the second best show this year? If you're a fan of the original movies, it's amazing. Ash is back! (Gotta catch 'em all, right, Ash!)
Meh, wrong Ash.
If you weren't into the movies, well, you're probably not a person who gave it a 9.0 rating. Still, Bruce Campbell's performance is pretty, you know ...
Image: Uproxx
IMDb rating: 9.0, Our rating: 8.1
1. "Narcos" (Netflix)
Synopsis:
"Based on the true story of the Medellin cartel -- the most violent, ruthless and wealthy criminal organization in the history of modern crime. And the one man who lorded over them all ... Pablo Escobar (Wagner Moura)." (via Netflix)
Our take:
You don't get a Golden Globe nomination for Best Drama by being mediocre. Wagner Moura also landed a nom for Best Actor, and Pedro Pascal pretty much plays his "Game of Thrones" character, Prince Oberyn, if he were a DEA agent. (Why didn't you just stab that guy, Oberyn? Why? Why? Why?)
It's solid all around. And graphic enough to leave you totally hooked and slightly disturbed. We don't necessarily agree it should be the best new show of the year, but, still, "Narcos" is pretty dope. Pun very intended.
IMDb rating: 9.0, Our rating: 8.6
IMDb ratings based on number of votes (at least 10,000) of 12/21. If shows have similar ratings, the show with more total votes is listed above.
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