Screen Rant’s Top 10 Favorite TV Shows of 2018

Here are the best TV shows of 2018, as voted for by Screen Rant editors (as well as our own, personal top 10s).

We’re firmly in the era of Peak TV now, where the volume of quality content is the remarkable thing. Networks and cable channels stepped up their game, Netflix released more new content than ever before, and Facebook and Apple made clear they’re getting into the game. This means there truly is something for everyone, but also leads to a fracturing of viewership, with all but the most popular of shows earning considerably lower ratings than they would have in years’ past.

Related: Screen Rant’s Top 10 Favorite Movies of 2018

This makes for more diverse watchlists, and is reflected in Screen Rant‘s Best TV shows of 2018. There’s reality shows, superheroes, comedies, horror and more. The only real constant is the dominance of streaming – six of our top 10 are Netflix Originals (seven if you count one’s international handling).

• This Page: Best 2018 TV Shows #10-#6
• Page 2: Best 2018 TV Shows #5-#1
• Page 3: Screen Rant Editors Personal Top 10 TV Shows

10. Doctor Who

The new season of Doctor Who wasn’t perfect nor the show’s best, but it was consistently good and a major step up on what we’ve had for the past few years. I was actively sitting down on a Sunday evening to watch it live, in stark contrast to season 8 where I was on the brink of quitting. Jodie Whittaker is a wonderful distillation of Doctor ideals, Bradley Walsh is better than I ever hoped, and the move into moral education gives the whole show more importance. Next season, let’s just try and get a grander overarching story to sink our teeth into. – Alex Leadbeater

Read More: Doctor Who Season 11 Saved The Show From Steven Moffat’s Mistakes

9. American Vandal

American Vandal is a show so good it essentially broke Making A Murderer – it so effortlessly speared the true crime doc that to not consider the observer’s role is fruitless – and it did it with a teenage comedy. Season 2 is an unexpectedly smart continuation, with a whole set of well-rounded characters and a clear purpose of exploring Gen-Z’s social media reliance. I can’t see this being canceled for long. – AL

In my opinion, American Vandal season 2 wasn’t quite as strong as its freshman season, but this show portrays high school life in a way that’s so much more accurate than any other teen drama/reality show. I think it’s a crime the show was canceled. – Molly Freeman

8. GLOW

The characters in GLOW may be some of the most likable characters on TV right now. That said, they’re also some of the most defeated, broken, and, by extension, relatable. Season 2 doubles down on the creative flair inside the ring, continues being a commentary on how some of the worst parts of the ‘80s are still very much embedded in our culture today, and satisfies on so many painful levels how far the relationship between Ruth and Debbie can bend before it breaks (literally and figuratively in their case). – Danny Salemme

7. Queer Eye

I was a little late to Netflix’s Queer Eye reboot because I never watched the original, but I quickly fell in love with the Fab Five and how much they genuinely care about each person they’re making over. It’s a positive show about how it’s never to late to improve your life and yourself, which is an uplifting message that’s kind of refreshing to see on TV. – MF

It’s kind of impossible to not watch an episode of Queer Eye without crying, and yet it’s still one of the happiest, optimistic shows on Netflix. Sure, tugging on heartstrings is easy in a show like this (a grown man breaking down because he’s so happy is my emotional Kryptonite), but who’s complaining? Honestly, the biggest issue I’ve had with Queer Eye over the past year is how I can’t maintain a favorite member of the Fab 5, seeing as my choice is always changing (right now it’s Tan). – DS

There is no show on television (streaming or otherwise) that is more positive or uplifting than Queer Eye. Watching as the Fab Five help a complete stranger improve on their self image, emphasizing not just hygiene and style but emotional wellness, is an instant mood-lifter. Not too mention, who doesn’t love a good design tip? – Sarah Moran

6. Barry

Bill Hader is a hit man who dreams of being an actor. Has any show ever had a better hook? Both absurd and insightful, Barry is a show that sees its premise to its most hilarious end. Hader couldn’t be more suited for the role, and when you add in Steven Root as Barry‘s handler and Henry Winkler as his acting coach, you’ve got a show that is just a masterclass in comedy. – SM

If ever there was a character actor, it’s Bill Hader. And, if ever there was a perfect actor to play the title character in HBO’s Barry, it’s Bill Hader. His typical over-the-top comedy most people associate him with is significantly played down, and it’s replaced with a tired, desperate, hopeful, passionate, frustrated, confused, introverted presence, allowing all of his co-stars to play the over-the-top card instead. The comedy is gold, the darker, bloody bits are surprisingly bleak, and Henry Winkler has somehow found a character that can stand toe-to-toe with Barry Zuckerkorn in Arrested Development. – DS

Page 2 of 3: Screen Rant’s Top 5 TV Shows of 2018

5. Daredevil

It’s regrettable that Daredevil was canceled, but it certainly went out on a high note. In addition to introducing yet another terrific villain in Bullseye, Daredevil season 3 proves Charlie Cox is the definitive Daredevil and Vincent D’Onofrio is the definitive Kingpin, if not the best MCU villain to date. – Mansoor Mithaiwala

Read More: Why Daredevil Was Canceled By Netflix

4. The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina

This is how reboots should be done. Sure, there’s magic and witchcraft, but the real magic lies in the cast, the crew, the production design, the story, and the horror. It just shouldn’t work… but it does; it really does. – MM

Chilling Adventures of Sabrina is the wicked love child of Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Harry Potter if said love child was adopted by Riverdale. With fun (albeit morbid) Satanic mythology, amusing tongue-in-cheek horror, a Halloween-inspired ambiance, and the occasional murder, this series is for American Horror Story fans seeking levity and Sabrina the Teenage Witch fans seeking heightened stakes. – DS

Gothic and moody, The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina was the perfect series for getting in the Halloween spirit. However, it quickly proved to be so much more than a show about spooky witches, exploring themes of self-discovery, female empowerment, and friendship. Even more so than Riverdale, Sabrina feels like the show teens should be obsessing over. Assuming, of course, they don’t take the Satanism too seriously. – SM

3. Sharp Objects

At its core a murder mystery that gets blindsided by family drama, Sharp Objects is full of transcendent moments – the “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You” drug skate was a particular highlight – and has one of the most haunting, subversive endings of all time (can’t believe we’re saying this for a TV show, but stay through the credits), but it’s no specific scene or episode that makes it great. The entire show, its slow-burn approach to storytelling, its wounded Amy Adam performance, the suffocating heat of Wind Gap, Missouri. Don’t binge it, the wait makes it all the better. – Alex Leadbeater

Sharp Objects shines a light on how dark truths from the past resurface in the present through an intriguing noir mystery that plays with the fractured nature of memory in fascinating ways. – Sandy Schaefer

Sharp Objects is a show I came to a little later, but it’s an incredibly strong series. I loved it for a lot of the same reasons I loved Big Little Lies in 2017 – it tells the stories of complicated women. In the case of Sharp Objects, it also delves into the ways in which women, particularly mothers and daughters, can cause each other trauma and how they deal with it. – MF

Related: Sharp Objects’ Ending: The Real Killer & Post-Credits Scenes Explained

2. The Good Place

The Good Place has been one of my favorite TV shows since it premiere and although season 3 isn’t as strong as its first two seasons, it’s still developing its world and characters in truly fascinating and entertaining ways. I’m always excited to see where this show goes next. – MF

When it comes to TV shows that bring me sheer joy, The Good Place is #1 with a bullet. I continue to be amazed at the quality of the writing and acting, and the ability of the overall enterprise to continually reinvent itself, yet somehow still feel internally consistent. No pop culture announcement this year made me happier than The Good Place getting renewed for season 4. – Michael Kennedy

The Good Place will forever be stuck in the shadow of its redefining season 1 twist, but it’s handled that in an admiral way: by continuing to reshape the show on a weekly basis. This has made the end of season 2 and start of season 3 feel scattered at times, but always exciting (hence its high placement here). “Janet(s)” pretty much justifies its placement alone. – AL

1. The Haunting of Hill House

Mike Flanagan’s been a favorite of mine for a few years, consistently delivering horror movies that scare but then uppercut you with cathartic emotional payoff. The Haunting of Hill House is that storytelling method on a much grander scale. This is a meticulously made show, from the astute cross-generational casting to the ghosts snuck in the background of far too shots many shots, but it’s always in service of the relatable, metaphorical story of the Crane’s. “The Bent Neck Lady” is one of the best episodes of TV, with a final twist that left me distraught. – AL

For me, Hill House was a reassurance that I still am as much a fan of horror as I thought I was. Granted, that was before the genre turned mainly into a predictable mystery punctuated by one gross-out jump scare after another. Give me gloom. Give me a constant sense of dread. Throw disturbing visuals at a cast of interesting, distinct characters and make me question which parts of it are even real. Most of all, it’s clear from the first episode that The Haunting of Hill House has a story to tell – not just a quota to fill. – Andrew Dyce

Hill House and Sharp Objects both wrestle with generational trauma, albeit in very different ways. Hill House explores how past, present, and future impact one another through the lens of a scary, yet poignant, ghost story. – SS

In an amazing way, The Haunting of Hill House manages to both subvert the horror TV genre and pay homage to haunting house stories of the past, all the while giving viewers a captivating story they can’t get enough of. – MM

Page 3 of 3: Screen Rant Editors Personal Top 10 TV Shows

In the grand tradition of Screen Rant‘s annual “Best TV Shows of the Year” lists, here are each editors’ individual picks (with a maximum of 10 choices, although some went fewer).

Chris Agar (News Editor):

1. Better Call Saul

Alicia D’Aversa (List Editor):

1. The Haunting Of Hill House
2. Bodyguard
3. Daredevil
4. Shadowhunters
5. Supernatural
6. Queer Eye for the Straight Guy
7. Shameless
8. The 100
9. The Walking Dead
10. Black Lightning

Andrew Dyce (Comics Editor):

1. The Haunting of Hill House
2. Life in Pieces

Molly Freeman (Lead News Editor):

1. The Good Place
2. The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
3. Sharp Objects
4. She-Ra and the Princesses of Power
5. Steven Universe
6. Brooklyn Nine-Nine
7. On My Block
8. Killing Eve
9. Elite
10. American Vandal

Ben Kendrick (Editorial Director):

1. The Haunting of Hill House
2. Titans
3. The Expanse
4. Travelers
5. The Good Place
6. Barry
7. Westworld
8. Glow
9. Doctor Who
10. Queer Eye for the Straight Guy

Michael Kennedy (News Editor):

1. The Good Place
2. Channel Zero
3. Ash vs. Evil Dead
4. The X-Files
5. Supernatural

Rob Keyes (Editorial Director):

1. Final Space
2. Voltron
3. Daredevil
4. Atlanta
5. Luke Cage
6. Big Mouth

Alex Leadbeater (Lead Features Editor):

1. Sharp Objects
2. American Crime Story
3. The Haunting of Hill House
4. Big Mouth
5. Better Call Saul
6. American Vandal
7. Inside No. 9
8. Black Mirror: Bandersnatch
9. The Good Place
10. Doctor Who

Emily Manuel (List Editor):

1. Killing Eve
2. The Little Drummer Girl
3. Homecoming
4. Sharp Objects
5. Atlanta
6. The Good Place
7. Anne with an E
8. The Magicians
9. The Haunting of Hill House
10. Maniac

Mansoor Mithaiwala (Features Editor):

1. The Americans
2. The Haunting of Hill House
3. The Magicians
4. The First
5. Daredevil
6. The Man in the High Castle
7. The Expanse
8. Silicon Valley
9. The Walking Dead
10. The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina

Sarah Moran (News Editor):

1. The End Of The F—ing World
2. The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina
3. Last Week Tonight
4. The Marvelous Ms. Maisel
5. She-Ra and the Princesses of Power
6. Doctor Who
7. Barry
8. Legends of Tomorrow
9. Voltron
10. Queer Eye for the Straight Guy

Danny Salemme (News Editor):

1. The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina
2. The Haunting of Hill House
3. GLOW
4. Barry
5. American Horror Story: Apocalypse
6. Queer Eye for the Straight Guy
7. The Good Place

Sandy Schaefer (News Editor):

1. Pose
2. Dear White People
3. The Good Place
4. Brooklyn Nine-Nine
5. The Haunting of Hill House
6. Legends of Tomorrow
7. Sharp Objects
8. Riverdale
9. The Terror
10. Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Hannah Shaw-Williams (Features Editor):

1. The Haunting of Hill House
2. The Good Place
3. Channel Zero
4. The Handmaid’s Tale
5. GLOW
6. American Vandal
7. Daredevil
8. Maniac
9. The Terror
10. The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina

Kevin Yeoman (TV Editor):

1. Patriot
2. Succession
3. Counterpart
4. The Americans
5. Babylon Berlin
6. The Little Drummer Girl
7. Mr. Inbetween
8. Homecoming
9. Barry
10. Collateral

Next: The Best New TV Shows Of 2018