The 20 Best New TV Shows of 2022 So Far

by Jason Dietz, Metacritic Features Editor – July 1, 2022

Which newcomers on the small screen have impressed reviewers the most during the first half of the year? In the gallery on this page, we rank the highest-scoring first-year TV shows (including limited series and specials) debuting between January 1, 2022 and June 30, 2022. Only shows with at least 7 reviews from professional critics are included.

18 of 21 photo by FX

88 #3: The Bear: Season 1

Apparently, we can't use the phrase "FX on Hulu" anymore, so let us coin the term "FX Produced Series That Doesn't Actually Air on FX But Does Stream Only on Hulu." (Hmmm—that one might not stick, either.) However you classify it, The Bear is the latest critically acclaimed series from a network with a long history of such shows. The dark comedy finds Jeremy Allen White (Shameless) playing a fine dining chef who returns home to Chicago to run his family's sandwich shop ("The Original Beef of Chicagoland") following the sudden death of his brother. Frenetic, intense, and realistic, The Bear comes from writer-director-producer Christopher Storer (Ramy, Dickinson) and also counts Atlanta's Hiro Murai and BoJack Horseman's Joanna Calo among its producers.

“Shows like The Bear—with its fully formed tone, presentation, and performances—don’t come around often. Make sure you tune in: it’s a chef’s kiss.” —Radhika Menon, Paste

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