The Continuation of Television-Based Content on Films Fatale
Written by Andreas Babiolakis
Happy New Year (many days too late by the date that this is published)! Alright, let’s get right to it. A new year means new things, or the continuing development of ongoing things if you are taking on projects far too big for yourself (heh). As most of you know, Films Fatale has branched out to cover television-based content as well, starting the middle of last year. We have done this in a few miniature ways. Each Friday at the start of every month, I have released in-depth analyses of some of the greatest series of all time in my column titled Perfect Reception (on that note, here’s a teaser for this week: expect a deep dive of The Office (U.S.), which has been requested a. lot.). I have also covered a handful of series on my television review write-ups under the title Binge, Fringe, or Singe?, where I detail of latest seasons or miniseries (even special episodes) are worth watching, so-so, or worthy of being avoided as quickly as possible. We have our dear friends over at the TV Sessions podcast with their deep dive episodes, coverages of series like Succession on a weekly basis, and other great insights. I also released my top ten television series list a few days ago.
Of course, I like to take things too far, and so this is not enough. I have already prefaced my upcoming plans months ago. These include my final best-of lists for my decades project, especially since all of my film-related content of this nature is now finished. I have done some moving-around, though. This is what the next little while will look like.
February 7th: the release of my list of the top one hundred television episodes of all time
March 7th: the release of my list of fifty additional television series (more information below)
April 4th: the release of my list of the top one hundred television series of all time (not including the works featured in the bonus list, more information below).
The episodes list is self-explanatory. If it was a great episode of television, then it can apply to the list. Expect a few season and series finales, because a lot of shows know how to conclude well.
The bonus list probably needs more clarification. I have decided that it is far too difficult to amass every noteworthy television series into just one list, especially since the medium encompasses so many different versions of itself that are worthy of acclaim. I also don’t want to split up this coverage into each decade of television, because some eras just don’t have one hundred worthy entries, and even limiting the lists to fifty or twenty titles would thin some decades out just too much (whereas we would need one hundred for other decades, and it’s just too lopsided of a task to try and figure out). We are still in the midst of the New Golden Age of Television, so it feels much more daunting to cover all years of television in all of its many forms, especially with this consistency for groundbreaking TV that continues to air.
So I will be releasing an additional, preliminary list of fifty of the best television series of all time. These aren’t honourable mentions in any way. No. Instead, I have extracted these kinds of films from my top one hundred list so that they can enjoy their own company on another list. These are all non-narrative and/or non-fictional works, or sketch series that can’t be considered anthological in the strictest sense of the term. The bonus list will include news programs, talk shows, sketch series, educational works, a series of one-off specials that fall under one story or character (think Charlie Brown), and compilations of older works being shown under one ongoing television title. Again, some of the series here are without question some of the top shows I have ever seen, but they’ll still wind up here. This list will be presented in alphabetical order.
That leaves the best one hundred shows of all time. What’s left are narrative works, either in an episodic sense or in a serialized way. These include miniseries as well, as long as I haven’t already considered them films on other cinematic lists (like Berlin Alexanderplatz); I didn’t know I would branch out into television when I first started Films Fatale, so there’s going to be a bit of a weird grey area here, but it’s too late to backtrack now. This list will be ranked numerically, so from the one-hundredth selection all the way to first place.
Aside from that, the other series will go on. More reviews of contemporary TV shows (especially after the final best-of list airs). Perfect Reception will keep going. Each new episode of TV Sessions will be posted here. Hell, I intend on even covering the Emmy Awards (although not nearly as in-depth as I do the Oscars). There will be more editorials on television news, content, and history as well. All of that is coming in 2022. I thank everyone for their support during this transitional period. Don’t worry. We will continue to cover all things film as well. The Oscars are coming up, and you know how much we beat that dead horse around here. If not, expect a ton of Academy Award nomination rankings and hysteria soon.
Thank you. Here’s to my first love of film, and my growing obsession with television in the midst of its greatest era.
Andreas Babiolakis has a Masters degree in Film and Photography Preservation and Collections Management from Ryerson University, as well as a Bachelors degree in Cinema Studies from York University. His favourite times of year are the Criterion Collection flash sales and the annual Toronto International Film Festival.