Our 13 favourite television shows of 2021: 'Squid Game' to 'Mare of Easttown'

The year was filled with strong programming thanks to brilliant acting and creative storylines

'Mare of Easttown'. HBO via AP

'Squid Game'. Photo: Netflix

'WandaVision'. Photo: Disney+

'Hellbound'. Photo: Netflix

'Ted Lasso'. Photo: Apple TV+

'Money Heist'. Photo: Netflix

'Nine Perfect Strangers'. Photo: Hulu

'Succession'. Photo: HBO

'Clickbait'. Photo: Netflix

'Only Murders In The Building'. Photo: Hulu

'Midnight Mass'. Photo: Netflix

'The White Lotus'. Photo: HBO

'The Great'. Photo: Hulu

As 2021 comes to a close, we look back at all the television shows that have kept us entertained and binge-watching through the night.

From a record-breaking dystopian South Korean drama to Kate Winslet’s turn as a small-town detective, the year proved to be another strong one in television, thanks to brilliant acting and great storylines as well as creative original content.

‘Mare of Easttown’

The crime drama limited series focuses on Easttown detective sergeant Mare Sheehan (Winslet), who is investigating the murder of a young girl and the disappearance of another in a small Pennsylvanian town. The show also delves into how she’s trying to keep her personal life together after the death of her son, her divorce and a custody battle with her former daughter-in-law.

‘The White Lotus’

Jolene Purdy, left, and Murray Bartlett are the Maui hotel staff charged with being 'mommies' to their rich, pampered guests, as one meanders unwittingly towards the grave in 'The White Lotus'. Photo: HBO

The American satirical comedy-drama takes place at the luxurious White Lotus resort in Maui. It follows the exploits of various employees and guests at an exclusive Hawaiian resort over the span of one highly transformative week. The first episode opens up with the reveal that someone staying at the hotel has died and then flashes back to a week earlier to find out how and who it is.

‘Squid Game’

The first Netflix original from South Korea follows Seong Gi-hun (Lee Jung-jae), a divorced father and gambling addict who lives with his mother and struggles to financially support his young daughter. He takes part in Squid Game with a group of other debt-ridden contestants – 456 of them to be precise. They are placed in an arena where they must compete in a series of challenges adapted from popular children’s games, until one emerges as the sole winner of a $38.5 million prize.

‘WandaVision’

The first television series from the Marvel Cinematic Universe has Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany returning as Avengers superheroes Wanda Maximoff and Vision and takes place after the events of Avengers: Endgame. Using different sitcom styles to move through the decades, the series focuses predominantly on Wanda and the ways she’s learnt to deal with her heartache and grief following the events of Endgame.

‘Hellbound’

In 'Hellbound', Yang Ik-june plays detective Jin Kyung-hoon, who is struggling to reconcile with his teenage daughter after the murder of his wife. All photos: Netflix

The show is set in an alternative universe where an apparition randomly appears to pronounce the impending death of people who've committed some form of crime.

Death sentences are carried out on a specific date and time by three smoky Hulk-like beings who appear out of nowhere, tearing apart the damned and sending them to 'hell'.

Religious group New Truth, whose leader claims to have intimate knowledge of the beings, insist it's God's way of meting out judgment.

'Hellbound' is receiving rave reviews after it was released on November 19, and has a 100 per cent 'fresh' rating on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes.

Kim Hyun-joo plays lawyer Min Hye-jin who tries to help a damned woman and becomes the target of New Truth and Arrowheads.

Park Jungja in the show.

The puzzling appearance of the supernatural beings soon leads to conspiracy theories as large-scale pandemonium ensues.

Vigilantes are egged on by a masked internet star who pronounces his own witch-hunts from a gaming chair.

Critics are praising the show for its philosophical tone, while presenting it in a Marvel-style action flick, albeit a more violent and bloodier version.

The South Korean drama from Yeon Sang-ho is set in an alternative universe in the near future where people can be summoned to hell by an apparition that randomly appears to pronounce the impending death date of people who've purportedly committed some form of crime. The sentence is then carried out on a specific date and time by three smokey Hulk-like beings who appear out of nowhere, literally tearing apart the damned and torching them to a crisp, sending them to "hell". However, things get complicated when a newborn baby gets condemned.

‘Ted Lasso’

The second season of the comedy-drama returned, picking up where the first season ended, with football team AFC Richmond relegated from the English Premier League. The show was once again met with critical acclaim despite a focus on heavier themes including the mental health of various characters, including titular Ted Lasso, thanks to a new sports psychologist brought on to help the team.

‘Money Heist’

The Spanish series reached cult status once it began showing on Netflix in 2017. Although it was initially supposed to be a limited series, after massive success on the streaming platform, Netflix decided to renew the show with an increased budget. This year marked the beginning of the end, as the fifth and final season shown, with the last five episodes out in December. After wondering for more than two years how the group would escape their second heist at the Royal Mint of Spain, all was revealed with a satisfying end to the beloved show.

‘Nine Perfect Strangers’

Nicole Kidman in a scene from the series 'Nine Perfect Strangers'. Photo: Hulu via AP

This American mini-series is based on the 2018 novel of the same name by Liane Moriarty. It’s about nine strangers who gather for 10-day retreat at a mysterious health and wellness resort and, one by one, spill their secrets. Featuring a strong cast, including Nicole Kidman, Melissa McCarthy, Luke Evans and Regina Hall, Nine Perfect Strangers has you guessing throughout – mostly about what genre it falls under. Is it a drama? A thriller? Science fiction? The answer to this is not particularly clear by the end, and it leaves you with plenty more questions about love, life and happiness – in a good way.

‘Succession’

Alan Ruck, Brian Cox, Jesse Armstrong, Sarah Snook, Kieran Culkin and Jeremy Strong poseswhile attending the premiere of the third season of 'Succession' in New York, US on October 12, 2021. Reuters

The American satirical comedy show explores the themes of power, politics and family through the eyes of an ageing, ultra-wealthy media mogul and his four grown children. In its third season, the series centres on the Roy family, who are dysfunctional owners of Waystar Royco and fight for control of the company amid uncertainty over the health of the family’s patriarch, Logan Roy.

‘Clickbait’

The eight-episode limited series tells the story of Nick Brewer, a family man who gets kidnapped and held hostage as a video of him surfaces online saying he will die if it gets five million views. As the view count climbs and the video goes viral, his sister and wife try to piece together how to save him. Every episode focuses on a new character and the show keeps you on your toes until the very end.

‘Only Murders in the Building’

Charles (Steve Martin), Jan (Amy Ryan) and Mabel (Selena Gomez) in a scene from 'Only Murders In The Building'. Photo: Hulu

This comedy crime drama boasts a fantastic star cast – Steve Martin, Selena Gomez and Martin Short – and keeps you hooked right until the end. The show is about three neighbours in New York who are obsessed with true crime. After a suspicious death takes place in their affluential apartment building, they decide to investigate and record a podcast of their own to document it. The whodunnit has hilarious quips, quirky characters, chemistry between the protagonists and guest appearances.

‘Midnight Mass’

Netflix horror fans will be familiar with Mike Flanagan thanks to his previous works The Haunting of Hill House and The Haunting of Bly Manor. This year, he returned to the streaming platform with Midnight Mass. The limited series centres around the return of Riley Flynn to Crockett Island to live with his family after serving time in jail. At the same time, a mysterious new priest appears in town to replace the old one after he disappears, and mysterious occurrences start to happen. The show deals with many themes, such as religion and immortality.

'The Great'

Brutal and beautiful, the "occasionally true" drama-comedy The Great centres around Catherine the Great (Elle Fanning) and returned for its second season. The show picks up four months since the coup against her husband Peter the Great (Nicholas Hoult) and both sides are at a standstill. In the first season, viewers watched as Catherine adapted and adjusted her views to the ways of Russia and now we see that she is more determined than ever to rule, having been unable to convince Peter to abdicate.

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