We’ve been looking back at our favorite movies and video games of 2014 over the past few days, and we even enumerated our biggest disappointments of the year. Now, on the final day of 2014, the Fandomania staff lists our favorite TV shows that aired during the past 12 months. Check it out!
Arrow
“The CW drama improves every season. It has the whole package from top to bottom — directing, writing, acting, interesting story arcs, twists and turns, and exploding arrows! The creators have realized a complete, believable world for Starling City and Oliver Queen. Every episode is simply a good hour of television. It’s one of the best genre shows on TV. Marvel may be winning the movie war, but DC is rocking the television arena.” – Ava DiGioia
“Arrow‘s second season was even better and more intense than the first, a feat to be sure! The show continues to build itself a fresh but familiar foundation in a bigger DC universe that exceeds the quality of anything DC has done on the big screen.” – Jason Dorough
“I had no clue what shipping was until about a year ago but I’m all about it with Olicity. That aside, from the end of season two to the start of season three, 2014 was a great, shocking and exhilarating year for my babies in Starling City.” – Kendra Beltran
“Arrow is one of the best action shows on TV, comic book or otherwise. The latter half of Season 2 brought some of the most nail-biting and heartbreaking moments on the small screen all year, and the ever-evolving relationships make Team Arrow a force to be reckoned with.” – Celeste Monsour
Doctor Who
“Peter Capaldi has really brought his grumpy game to the show. The episodes have been up and down, but Capaldi’s performance hasn’t. Another good twist this season was The Master being a Mistress. I wasn’t expecting it. I am eager to see what else Capaldi will bring to the show.” – Mandi Harris Bowerman
“Peter Capaldi has injected some much-needed awesomeness into a show that I’d completely given up on. His take on The Doctor is gleeful yet grave, confused yet commanding, and his relationship with Clara illuminates the darker sides of the Doctor/Companion dynamic by allowing each to be flawed in relatable and realistic ways.” – Celeste Monsour
“I really like Peter Capaldi as The Doctor, and Clara’s character development has been interesting too. She’s no longer a mystery (thank goodness), and she’s turned out to be complex and more realistic. She makes good choices and bad choices in her dealings with Danny Pink and others, just like a normal human being.” – Ann Wells
Orange Is the New Black
“I don’t know of another show with as diverse and dimensional a group of female characters. Following their rivalries and often unlikely alliances as they get into — and out of — all kinds of schemes and manipulations evokes laughter and tears, sometimes at once. Meanwhile, the show examines the ways race, class, gender, sexuality, disability, and more play into people’s choices and fates, without being at all heavy-handed about it.” – Celeste Monsour
“As great as the first season of OITNB was, season two somehow is even better. This Netflix exclusive series embraces and develops a diverse ensemble cast, and the second season brings a fantastically diabolical villain into the mix.” – Jason Dorough
Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
“After a rocky start to season one, this show just got so much better. There’s been excellent character development, plus I love the integration into the whole MCU.” – Chad Walker
“Much like Season 1, Season 2 starts slow, but ends with a bang. I liked the build up towards Skye and her past. Kyle MacLachlan has been fabulous as Skye’s father. I can’t wait to see what is in store after the break.” – Nikki Day
The Flash
“The Flash is probably one of the best new shows all year. It’s funny, smart, and gives me a lot of feelings. The mystery of Harrison Wells is keeping me hooked. I love how The Flash embraces the weirdness of comic books with all the metahuman powers. I’m loving where the show is going and want more!” – Nikki Day
“Great graphics, upbeat storyline, and a cute lead action hero… what more could you ask for? As much as I love Arrow, The Flash is a good distraction from Arrow’s gritty storylines. A lot of effort was put into making the show look good and the CG team should be proud.” – Mandi Harris Bowerman
American Horror Story: Freak Show
“I seemed to drift away from the show after the first season, but made it a point to watch this year’s story arc. I’m glad I did, because there have been so many twists and psychological turns that I remember why I fell in love with the writing at the very start. Sometimes it’s hard to tell the monsters from the normal people, and that makes it all the more interesting.” – Kimberly Lynn Workman
Gotham
“Gotham is a show either people like or hate, and I like it. I like all the nods towards future characters. Alfred and Bruce are great — I like seeing how they connect after such a tragedy. Some of the tension is taken out when you know nothing serious can happen to Jim Gordon. However, it will be interesting to see what happens now that Jim has had a change of pace.” – Nikki Day
“The reimagining of Bruce Wayne’s childhood growing up in Gotham is surprisingly well done. The show does have its ups and downs, and there are parts that I don’t really like, but I can see potential for something much better.” – Chad Walker
Outlander
“This show was the fulfillment of a fangirl’s dream. I think Fandomania has heard a lot from me on this topic. They adapted Diana Gabaldon’s novel into an amazing series. Sam Heughan, Caitriona Balfe, and Tobias Menzies have brought the main characters to life. I am eager for the second half of the season.” – Mandi Harris Bowerman
“Okay, I’ve been a huge fan of the books for years. It’s long been a dream for fans to have a filmed version of the story. Ronald Moore outdid the fan expectations for the Starz series. The only word for the look and feel of this show is beautiful. It captures the time periods covered in a way that makes the viewer believe that’s the way it would have been to live then – from post-World War II Britain to the 1800s Scotland highlands. Book fans have long had their own ideals of what the main characters should be like, and the show delivers beautifully in the cast choices.” – Ava DiGioia
Hannibal
“With a season built around the fact that you knew the ending right from the start, how was it that the second season of this hit show kept us so intrigued? Because we, like many of the people who interacted with Hannibal, were often left to question our own sanity. Falling under the doctor’s lure was both dangerous and exciting, and I loved every minute of it.” – Kimberly Lynn Workman
“Thomas Harris’s books and the movies based on them are cornerstones of the modern suspense genre, and the idea that they should be adapted into a network TV show that plays fast and loose with some of their key plot points seems absurd. Bryan Fuller has managed exactly that with Hannibal, though, and in some cases he even has enhanced the source material with his own dark and quirky take on the stories.” – Jason Dorough
Hell on Wheels
“Likely the best show you’ve never heard of. The Western has been pulling solid ratings for AMC on Saturday nights, usually considered one of the ‘dead nights’ for television watching. The writing and acting are Emmy level, on a par with The Walking Dead and Mad Men. It’s a frank look at how the West was truly won, with the building of the transcontinental railroad. 2014 was the fourth season for this gem.” – Ava DiGioia
A to Z
“Yes, it’s not coming back but I don’t care. What I loved about this show, and what was probably its downfall, was that it wasn’t set up based on the Friends model that How I Met Your Mother and The Big Bang Theory are. There were only two central characters at the core of the show and everyone else was background noise instead of a colorful cast of six or seven to entertain us.” – Kendra Beltran
The Musketeers
“This show has so many things I love in it: History, action, and fiction all rolled into one. I love all the actors playing the Musketeers and the female leads were great as well. I’ve always loved the Musketeer stories and the show does Alexandre Dumas’s novels justice.” – Mandi Harris Bowerman
“This swashbuckling adventure show is simply fun to watch, and the diversity of the cast makes for a nice change from the typical Musketeers fare. It keeps a mostly lighthearted tone, but managed to surprise me with its clever twists and turns as the Musketeers tangle with the nefarious Cardinal Richelieu, petulant King Louis, and femme fatale Milady de Winter.” – Celeste Monsour
Supernatural
“We have seen the Winchesters go through death, loss, and visits to both Heaven and Hell. This year we got to see a shocking death turn into a shocking return as we said goodbye to Dean and hello to Demon!Dean, through the help of the Mark of Cain. We’re still witnessing the repercussions of that event, and I can’t wait to see where we go next.” – Kimberly Lynn Workman
Black-ish
“Do you know what I would’ve done to have a show like this as a kid? Finally! I think anyone who doesn’t identify with the stereotypes of their race can really identify with moments of this show, but my favorite thing is that it’s not always about race but focuses on other facets of family that are more universal.” – Kendra Beltran
How to Get Away with Murder
“I watched the first episode with some friends on a girls’ night, and we were all hooked. It has been interesting to see how they unfold the story and give more and more information each time. I am annoyed at ABC right now, though, for not finishing the series off — they’ve left us on a cliffhanger until the end of January!” – Ann Wells
Forever
“I included this one because it was my most pleasant surprise of the new gotta-check-out shows of the fall season. It was on the ‘not likely to stay on the list’ side, and it has turned into a ‘don’t miss’. The quirky show is like Quincy meets Castle with a side of immortality for good measure. It’s a fun show to watch.” – Ava DiGioia
The Blacklist
“With even more mystery growing around Red and Elizabeth, and twists and turns that keep leading me back to believing Agent Keen really is her father’s daughter, I am constantly engaged with the show. Even when Red’s being oh-so-bad, you just want to cheer him on. It’s why I keep watching, and why I keep wondering what other secrets we’re about to find out.” – Kimberly Lynn Workman
The Americans
“The Americans tackles a concept that seems like it should be impossible to pull off by making the audience unsure as to whether the Soviets or Americans are the protagonists or antagonists. FX’s Cold War spy drama manages that task with aplomb, and its second season turned an already fantastic show into must-see television.” – Jason Dorough
Constantine
“I didn’t think the show would be that good, but it really is. Matt Ryan does a great job at playing Constantine and I love the characters of Zed and Chas. The show does have scary moments, as it is based on a ‘dark’ comic, but they are appropriate for the episode and not gratuitous.” – Nikki Day
Star Wars Rebels
“If this first canonical content since Disney’s acquisition of the Star Wars franchise is any indication, everyone’s favorite galaxy far, far away is in good hands. Reminiscent of Firefly, the show follows a rag-tag group of rebels as they strike back against the Empire in any way they can. The primetime cartoon is appropriate for kids while maintaining the stakes and emotional ups-and-downs of the Star Wars movies. Cameos and references ranging from familiar to obscure tie it into the larger mythology, appealing to fans old and new.” – Celeste Monsour
White Collar
“This show has had its ups and downs, but as we say goodbye to Peter and Neal I feel like we should focus on all the good times. We’ve seen the two of them grow and change, influencing each other and becoming family. It’s been a wonderful adventure, and I was happy to see it through.” – Kimberly Lynn Workman
True Detective
“HBO’s crime show transcends the police procedural to be something almost mystical in its philosophical darkness. Performances by Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey cemented this as a serious show to keep an eye on.” – Jason Dorough
About a Boy
“Okay guys, most of you have been missing out on Parenthood for some time now but the creator of that went and made this show that can verge on strange since it focuses on the relationship between a grown man child and a kid, BUT it’s endearing, hilarious, and makes you actually really like Minnie Driver.” – Kendra Beltran
The Great British Bake Off
“Yes, this is a British reality baking show, but it’s fantastic. I recently got into it during the current series and it’s so different than reality shows here. The people seem genuinely nice and there is hardly any drama, but when there is, Britain blows up (Google “bingate” and see what shows up). Sue Perkins and Mel Giedroyc host with Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood judging. Mary and Paul do not pull punches when it comes to the baking, even spitting food out if it’s bad. People should definitely watch this if they can.” – Nikki Day
