The 20 Best New TV Shows of 2021

by Jason Dietz, Metacritic Features Editor – December 28, 2021

Above are the highest-scoring first-year TV series (including limited series) debuting in the United States between January 1, 2021 and December 31, 2021. Shows are ranked by Metascore (an average of grades from top professional critics on a 0-100 scale) prior to rounding based on scores as of December 24, 2021, and any programs with fewer than 7 reviews are excluded. One-off TV specials and made-for TV movies are ranked separately at the end of the gallery.

8 of 23 photo by Saima Khalid/Peacock

83 We Are Lady Parts (Peacock/Channel 4)

(#13) A co-production between Peacock and the UK's Channel 4, this six-episode comedy centers on an all-female Muslim punk band in London. Critics hailed the series as funny, fresh, and upbeat, and mainly had just one complaint: It was way too short. The good news is that the series was finally picked up for a second season a few weeks ago, so it could return in late 2022.

“It’s a lot sharper, and more humane and ambitious, than so many of the comedies that come across 'my desk.' ... The six half-hour episodes are a triumph of reach and representation as they make each of the band members, as well as their families and friends, into unpredictable characters who, like most of the real people I’ve met, are faceted and contradictory. You can’t easily pigeonhole any of them.” —Matthew Gilbert, Boston Globe

Watch it on Peacock (6 episodes)

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