It’s been another year for fascinating TV shows — here’s six we’ve enjoyed in 2023
Despite a slowdown towards the end of the year (due to a mix of strikes and tapering of spending in some streamers), there have been many new shows released this year. Sadly some of those only managed one season before cancellation, but in this post we’ll be looking at the shows either already renewed or always destined to be a single season (so-called limited series).
Inevitably we’ve had to be strict to make a list of six, but we feel we’ve picked a range to represent most tastes.
The shows we enjoyed in 2023
Beyond Paradise
The BBC’s Death in Paradise spin-off brought Kris Marshall back to our screens as DI Humphrey Goodman and Sally Bretton as fiancée Martha Lloyd. Beyond Paradise proves the police don’t just deal with tropical island murders, but are capable of solving other crimes in Devon. The show allows both main characters plenty of space to grow, references back to Death in Paradise without overdoing it, and manages to entertain while exploring some more gritty interpersonal issues.
The series ended with a cameo trip back to the Caribbean, avoided a crossover episode and convinced the BBC to bring us a Christmas special and a second series. Until then, you can still watch season 1 via iPlayer.
Bodies
Staying with the detective theme, welcome to Bodies — four detectives find the same body in the same part of London in four different periods of history. Adapted (and considerably changed) from Si Spencers original comic series, this is a show you may find it very easy to binge. There’s time travel, Victorian London, World War II, the possible destruction of London and strange happenings in the future. Add in a manipulative cult, and excellent performances all round and there’s all the ingredients of a classic cult show.
The strong cast includes Stephen Graham, Kyle Soller, Jacob-Fortune Lloyd, Amaka Okafor and Shira Haas. At eight episodes, there’s still plenty of time to watch before the end of the year. Will there be a second season? The show is billed as a limited series and the original comics go no further. That said there are several threads left dangling and this is one show we’d certainly watch more of.
Extraordinary
Of all the comedies new to our screens in 2023, Disney+ show Extraordinary is the most… extraordinary. It’s already been renewed for season 2, and what’s more is also coming to ITVX in 2024, great if you don’t have a Disney+ subscription.
What’s it about? Well:
Welcome to a world where everybody over the age of 18 develops a superpower. Everyone except for 25-year old Jen, who feels like she’s being left behind. Luckily, Jen’s flatmates — Carrie, Cash and a mysterious stray — keep her from falling into a well of self-pity. Adrift in a big, confusing world, and armed with nothing but hope and a lot of desperation, Jen begins her journey to find her maybe-superpower. But in doing so, she might discover the joy of being just kind of ok.
It stars Máiréad Tyers as Jen along with Sofia Oxenham, Bilal Hasna, Luke Rollason, Siobhán McSweeney and Patricia Allison. It really is laugh out loud, and we’re waiting season 2 with bated breath.
Gen V
This much anticipated spin-off from The Boys pulled no punches in terms of sex, gore, language, more gore and layers of surreal twists. High School drama may not be to everyone’s taste, but as we saw with 2022’s Wednesday, when it works it really works.
Conscious of its ties back to The Boys, Gen V was careful to keep a distance between the two for the first few episodes, allowing new characters to grow clear identities. One by one major characters did make appearances (even in a classic end credits scene), but Gen V is clearly its own show. The premise is simple — take the amoral, arrogant supes we’ve come to know already and add adolescence in all its hormonal glory. A conspiracy or two and several slaughters and there you have it. If you were missing The Boys, this is the show you should have already watched.
ONE PIECE
Netflix hit the audience jackpot with live action anime ONE PIECE, raking impressive audience figures from day one. Records were broken, though we note the show has yet to break into the all time top 10. None of this stopped it from scoring an early renewal for season 2. There’s been a manga and an anime, but this time Netflix has managed a live action adaptation both fans are creator are happy with.
It’s a fantasy adventure in the realm of pirates, surreal characters (and creatures), and the legend of a lost treasure (the ONE PEICE). Sailing into this is Monkey D Luffy and his straw hat pirates. It’s a great feel good story, there’s a strong sense of summertime (we watched during a heatwave) and the cast of Iñaki Godoy, Emily Rudd, Mackenyu, Jacob Romero Gibson, and Taz Skylar all have interesting depths to their characters. Even if you aren’t a fan of manga / anime, we strongly suggest this is worth your time.
Queen Charlotte
We may not have had season 3 of Bridgerton this year, but Queen Charlotte went a long way to filling the gap. We particularly like how Shonda Rhimes’s story not only told a story for the young King (Corey Mylchreest) and Queen (India Amarteifio) but also built intriguing connections between central Bridgerton characters as well, leaving plenty of threads we’d like to be picked up in either another spin-off or Bridgerton itself.
The other unexpected development was the idea of the Great Experiment. It gave an explanation for the racially mixed society shown centre stage in Bridgerton and a far cry from the traditional casting we’d see in a Regency romance. There’s even touches of comedy as present day Queen Charlotte tries desperately to get her own offspring to marry and produce heirs.
If you’re a Bridgerton fan and yet to watch this excellent prequel, now might just be the time.