Despite a global pandemic, 2020 delivered some fine binge-watching. These are my top 5 favourite watches of the year, and as always, these lists are subjective to my own tastes. It surprised me to have two shows focused on sports since I'm not much of a sports fan but when something really captures lightning in a bottle... well... who cares. There's still a plethora of shows I need to catch up on that would probably end up changing these listings but best-laid plans.

Ben Mendelsohn and Cynthia Erivo from The Outsider, the HBO series

5. The Outsider (Season 1)

HBO

Stephen King has had a massive resurgence in film and television as of late but The Outsider is mostly an A-grade King interpretation. And it's creepy as fuck. Annnnnd okay, so it doesn't entirely land its conclusion but with two fantastic central performances from Ben Mendelsohn and Cynthia Erivo and on the premium cable network, you know it's worth a binge. It's a bit of a shame season two was cancelled by HBO despite the huge viewer numbers but season one is a dark, scary, intriguing mystery that will keep you hooked from episode one.

Watch the trailer
Inside the Mandalorian's spaceship with Grogu

4. The Mandalorian (Season 2)

Disney+

The Mandalorian season one made its way into my Top 5 last year but I think season two improves upon it in every way. This season felt more action-packed yet still maintained that episodic comic-book sense of what made the original Star Wars trilogy so legendary. The pacing is spot on, the characters are interesting, and of course, that ending was incredible. I'm unsure how many spin-off's I'll watch from Disney but I'll be sticking with The Mandalorian indefinitely if it keeps this up.

Watch the trailer
The superheros of The Boys walking towards the camera

3. The Boys (Seasons 1 & 2)

Amazon Prime

Okay, so technically season two came out in 2020 but I hadn't seen season one so I did them back-to-back and this is completely my cup of tea. The superheroes in this universe are complete assholes and with its graphic depictions of pretty much everything, with huge doses of comedy thrown in, The Boys was a super fun watch, especially for those wanting something a bit different. Season one overall is better but season two had some seriously memorable set pieces and moments. Homelander is... something else...

Watch the trailer
Ted Lasso and his teammates watching a football game

2. Ted Lasso (Season 1)

AppleTV+

I really struggled to put this at number two because it was easily the most fun, uplifting show of 2020. I mean, if you needed a distraction from the doom and gloom, this was absolutely that show. It's full of heart, great comedic performances from the entire cast and I'm taking Ted's optimism with me in 2021. I'm so glad this show came out in 2020 because I binged the entire season in one sitting with a smile from ear-to-ear and the occasional man-tear here and there.

Watch the trailer
The Last Dance featuring Scotty Pippen and Michael Jordan sitting down

1. The Last Dance

Netflix

The way they put together this documentary on Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls is absolutely thrilling. It's a complete rollercoaster of ego, fame, talent, energy, and greatness. Again, I'm not a sports fan and my closest alliance to the game of basketball is playing NBA Jam back in the day on the Super Nintendo, but this documentary expertly demonstrates just how incredible of an athlete Michael Jordan was. I mean, there are great and then there is him. One of my other favourite all-time documentaries, funnily enough, is also about the game of basketball and all that surrounds it Hoop Dreams (1994) but The Last Dance is different and just as phenomenal.

Watch the trailer