15 Best Drama TV Shows Of 2023

2023 has been a fantastic TV year, with some unbelievable seasons of drama shows. With so many services competing for their stake in the streaming game, more platforms are vying for prestigious quality shows to embellish their libraries. While HBO can always be relied on for hit dramas, newer platforms like Apple TV+ and Peacock delivered some of the year’s best series. Netflix, Prime Video, and Hulu also developed exciting original dramas.

Drama is a broad term for television, and many of the year’s best can also fit into other categories. The stakes in a drama series are typically centered around emotionally-driven character narratives. Great dramas are serious and often emotional, even if they bleed into other genres like Western or science fiction. Dramas can make for highly addicting TV, with characters audiences grow attached to despite their flaws and often moral ambiguity.

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15 The Morning Show (Season 3)

Streaming on Apple TV+

Seasons 2 and 3 of The Morning Show haven’t lived up to the bar of the first as the series continues to grow more far-fetched. Still, with the cast involved, headlined by Jennifer Anniston and Reese Witherspoon, even unabashed melodrama makes for wildly entertaining television. Season 3 is chaotic but still enthralling due to its movie star cast. It continues to explore real-world issues through a fictional lens with a commentary on modern journalistic practices and cancel culture. Jon Hamm is a splendid addition to season 3, playing an eccentric tech billionaire villain.

14 1923

Streaming on Paramount+

Expanding on Taylor Sheridan’s franchise, 1923 offered one of the best TV seasons in the Yellowstone universe. Starring legends Harrison Ford and Helen Mirren, the prequel series had a strong foundation for an excellent Western prestige drama and didn’t disappoint. Taylor Sheridan is a master of the modern Western, and though 1923 isn’t his best work, it’s still fantastic TV. While it is connected to other shows, the narrative doesn’t require seeing Yellowstone or 1883 to enjoy it. Unlike 1883, the series will return for another season.

13 Lessons In Chemistry

Streaming on Apple TV+

Apple TV+ has quickly risen as a source of prestige television, with the miniseries Lessons in Chemistry the most recent example. Based on the best-selling novel by Bonnie Garmus, the period drama follows a chemist who starts a cooking show to teach housewives about important scientific topics. Lessons in Chemistry touches on pertinent themes of feminism, misogyny, and gender inequality. Brie Larson is charming and empowering as the show’s lead.

12 The Diplomat

Streaming on Netflix

One of Netflix’s biggest hits of the year was The Diplomat, a series centered around a fictional United States ambassador to the United Kingdom. Keri Russell stars as the lead, Kate Wyler, for which she’s been nominated for an Outstanding Lead Actress Emmy. Amid a thrilling political crisis, Kate tries to manage her struggling marriage to Rufus Sewell’s Hal Wyler. The two stars deliver some of the best performances of their careers with dialogue akin to shows like The West Wing.

11 Gen V

Streaming on Prime Video

The Boys has become one of Prime Video’s most popular titles as an edgy superhero show that breaks the mold. Gen V is the first spin-off to the series, exploring the education system for super-powered individuals. It’s as exciting and provocative as the main show, with compelling performances from its young stars. For fans of violent, raunchy, comic-book-style drama, Gen V is a must-watch series that can still be enjoyed without seeing The Boys.

10 Top Boy (Season 5)

Streaming on Netflix

The British crime series Top Boy has one of the most fascinating behind-the-scenes stories of ongoing shows, as it was initially canceled after two seasons in 2013. Netflix revived the show for season 3 in 2019 after Drake took an interest. Four years later, the series delivered its fifth and final season in September 2023, offering a rewarding conclusion worth bringing the show back for. Top Boy is a top-notch, realistic depiction of crime that deserves more recognition.

9 Silo

Streaming on Apple TV+

Apple TV+ has already developed some fantastic sci-fi shows like Foundation and For All Mankind, with Silo offering an exciting new dystopian premise. The cast is exceptional, led by Rebecca Ferguson, Common, and Tim Robbins, who all play characters set in an underground silo who are led to believe the outside world is toxic and uninhabitable. Silo takes its time to find its footing, but season 1 was auspicious with enthralling mysteries surrounding an ensemble of characters and science fiction concepts.

8 Winning Time (Season 2)

Streaming on Max

Though it was sadly canceled afterward, Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty shined in its sophomore season. The HBO series perfectly captures the glamor and swagger of showtime-era basketball, and its period aesthetic offers a welcoming gateway for non-sports fans. Also produced by Adam McKay, the show’s writing bares a similar cadence to that of Succession or movies like The Big Short. With a terrific ensemble cast, including a stellar performance from Adrien Brody as NBA coaching legend Pat Riley, Winning Time was the best sports show of 2023.

7 Beef

Streaming on Netflix

Netflix has been hit-or-miss with its original shows, primarily due to the vast amount of content it releases yearly compared to other services. The limited series Beef was certainly a hit, with the reliable Steven Yuen delivering a phenomenal performance. It’s a series about people getting absurdly angry over a road incident, leading to petty, destructive behavior by both parties as a prolonged feud breaks out. Beef is chaotic, absurd, and one of the most thrilling new series of the year, with one of 2023’s most heartbreaking TV moments.

6 Poker Face

Streaming on Peacock

Natasha Lyonne is at her best in the Peacock original, Poker Face, as Charlie, a woman who can tell when someone is lying. Her gift gets her into some trouble with a powerful casino owner, and Charlie goes on the run solving mysteries and strange crimes. Created by Knives Out director Rian Johnson, Poker Face is jam-packed with celebrity guest stars like Adrien Brody, Chloë Sevigny, Charles Melton, and many more. It’s an exciting mystery drama powered by star performances and one of the most fun new series of 2023.

5 Fargo (Season 5)

Streaming on Hulu

Aside from a dicey season 4, Fargo has consistently been one of TV’s unsung masterpieces since its premiere in 2014. Loosely based on the film Fargo and the worlds and characters of the Coen Brothers’ filmography, each season tells a different story of absurd fictional crime in the Midwest. The ongoing season 5, which stars Juno Temple and Jon Hamm, has been one of the most engaging seasons, with impeccable dialogue, thrilling action, and sensational performances from its ensemble cast.

4 Daisy Jones And The Six

Streaming on Prime Video

Amazon Prime Video’s miniseries based on the novel of the same name was a smash hit about the erratic relationship at the center of the titular fictional band. Daisy Jones and the Six is a series built on star power and chemistry, and Riley Keough and Sam Claflin are electric as the troubled leads. The show is told in the style of a documentary, where characters reflect on the events and decisions of a tumultuous period of sex, drugs, and rock ‘n’ roll, exploring themes of regret, love, addiction, and more.

3 The Bear (Season 2)

Streaming on Hulu

The Bear continues to be one of the most celebrated dramas on TV in its second season. While the series is often categorized as comedy by awards shows, it’s one of the most authentic, sensitive, and character-driven stories available on streaming. The Bear boasts stellar performances from its terrific ensemble cast, each bringing a distinct, life-like personality to their roles. Jeremy Allen White, Ayo Edebiri, and Ebon Moss-Bacharach are the standout performers, but the greatness of The Bear comes from its array of personalities.

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2 Succession (Season 4)

Streaming on Max

Following the lives of the morally complex, ultra-wealthy Roy family, Succession season 4 saw the future of Waystar Royco finally revealed. Succession had the most shocking television moment of the year in the episode “Connor’s Wedding,” which was followed up with great drama as the series advanced toward its heartbreaking finale. The final episode, “With Open Eyes,” is one that will linger with TV fans for ages, much like the finales of The Sopranos or Breaking Bad before it. Succession is one of the greatest TV dramas ever, with unbelievable writing and performances to cap it off.

1 The Last Of Us

Streaming on Max

HBO proved that a video game adaptation could make an outstanding prestige drama with The Last of Us, which achieved award-worthy acclaim and widespread cultural success. Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey’s emotionally contrived performances are the series’ heart, which uses its post-apocalyptic premise to tell a story about humanity, guilt, and morality. The first season lived up to the expectations of The Last of Us game fans and TV lovers alike, with heartbreak, humor, and earned moments of intense action and horror that make it such a unique drama. HBO continues to deliver inventive and addicting television, as The Last of Us was the best TV drama of 2023.