The Daily – Sunday Special: The Best TV of 2025
Date: December 21, 2025
Host: Gilbert Cruz (with NYT TV critic James Poniewozik and culture reporter Alexis Soloski)
Overview
In this Sunday Special episode, Gilbert Cruz and his New York Times colleagues reflect on television in 2025, reviewing standout shows, major trends, and hidden gems from the year. Through critical discussion and playful banter, they explore what defined TV in 2025—from the conspiracy-laden thrillers to inventive comedies, the ongoing power of prestige dramas, and the joyous embrace of hangout comedies and romantic adventures.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
Was 2025 a Good Year for TV?
- Mild Improvement & Variety:
- Jim Poniewozik: “It was a year of mild improvement, I think—beautiful from my standpoint.” (01:32)
- 2024 was underwhelming (TV-wise); 2025 saw a more competitive, diverse best-of list.
- Alexis Soloski:
- “Fine... It was fine. It was fine. It was fine. When you are out and about socializing with people and they say, what should I watch? I Occasionally had some things to tell them.” (02:38)
Trend #1: Conspiracies & Mystery-Driven Shows
- Notable Shows: Severance (S2), Common Side Effects, The Chair Company, The Lowdown, Pluribus
- Jim: “A lot of the best shows that I watched this year ... involved ... a lone or close to lone protagonist trying to unravel something that went way, way beyond them...There was a lot of it in the water.” (03:41)
Deep Dive: Severance (Season 2)
- Jim: “Severance is one of those streaming shows that comes around like Halley's Comet, and you need to do a refresher course whenever it comes back around... not as stellar as season one, but like a welcome payoff that made me want more, hopefully in fewer than three years.” (04:58)
- Alexis: “Any show that makes such a place for goats is okay with me.” (06:16)
- Critique: The ongoing ‘mystery box’ structure grew less compelling, but the relationships and quirky elements (including goats!) sustained interest.
Common Side Effects (Animated, Adult Swim)
- Jim: “There's a mushroom in the rainforest that is discovered by this kind of kooky amateur scientist ... it can cure anything, which sounds fantastic, except for pharmaceutical companies who see a tremendous threat to their business and decide to shut this down.” (08:04)
- The show combines realism with a hallucinatory tone, offbeat humor, and timely social commentary. (09:43)
Trend #2: Reviving the Romantic Comedy
- Alexis: “There have been romantic comedies on television...but romantic comedies have been filmic because there’s an end point...I think we’re in a place where people are trying again. And I love to see it. Like all I want. I love love. I want to think it’s possible. Not for me, but for others.” (10:45)
Examples:
- Too Much (Netflix, Lena Dunham)
- Alexis on Megan Stalter’s star performance: “She plays an American who moves to England with all kinds of crazy romantic ideas ... but falls in love.” (11:59)
- Focuses on contemporary struggles, mainly the emotional baggage characters bring into relationships rather than external barriers.
- Nobody Wants This (Netflix S2)
- Explores interfaith relationships: Rabbi (Adam Brody) and non-Jewish podcaster girlfriend (Kristen Bell).
- Alexis: “It now has different showrunners and ... eased up on its depiction of Jewish women ... slutty blonde Jews do exist. You know, like, we are a manifold. We are manifold people. Like, we're not all shrill brunettes.” (15:16)
Sex, Death, and Playfulness in Drama
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Dying for Sex (Limited series, miniseries)
- Woman with terminal cancer seeks to experience an orgasm before dying.
- Jim: “It was an example ... that funny is not the opposite of serious. ... sex and death didn't get much more deep and powerful than.” (17:55)
- Alexis (sample dialogue): “Can you make sure that my mouth isn't open when I die? Okay, just don't bite me.” (17:19)
- Blends frank, funny, and cathartic explorations of mortality and desire through standout performances.
-
The Hunting Wives (Netflix)
- Described as not “good” but “fun”; about wealthy suburban Texas women who party, shoot guns, and have affairs.
- Alexis: “Anytime Malin Ackerman is on screen, you know ... her rapaciousness, her sense of pleasure, her sense of fun is radical. And I would love to see more of that.” (21:17)
- Reflects a trend of “rich people with secrets,” sometimes in great coats; praised for embracing entertainment and enjoyment.
Prestige Drama: Continuing Sagas and Social Commentary
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White Lotus (Season 3, Thailand)
- Alexis: “It is nice to see attractive people in beautiful locations behaving badly and being absolutely miserable.” (22:52)
- Jim: “I loved the first season...but I don’t like its trend lines. ... But it does have this sort of Love Boat aspect...” (23:29)
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Dr. Odyssey (Ryan Murphy, cruise ship medical procedural)
- Wild and campy: “The Love Boat with grotesque medical procedures added on.”
- Alexis: “But it was so stupid ... My brain was a beaten bag chair as I watched Dr. Odyssey and let the parade of images go by.” (24:10)
Lightning Round: More Critic Favorites
Long Story Short (Animated Dramedy, from BoJack Horseman creator)
- Jim (27:37): “My absolute favorite this year ... an animated family dramedy ... about a Jewish family ... It is detailed and specific. This is so Jewish. Manischewitz could, like, pickle it and sell it in a jar.”
- Recounts family history across generations, blending absurd humor and heartfelt moments.
Heated Rivalry (HBO)
- Alexis: “I am here to talk about butts, and I am here to talk about a specific kinds of butts, and those are hockey butts. ... its commitment to the male backside is sincere and unparalleled in recent television.” (32:25)
- A “steamy” drama about two rival, closeted hockey players—applauded for treating sex as text, not gratuitous.
Andor (Disney+, S2)
- Gilbert Cruz: “As someone who grew up a Star Wars fan, this was an actual moment when for one brief shining moment, Star Wars was a grown up thing. ... It’s about rebellion and autocracy and sacrifice and death ... that, to me, was rare.” (34:46)
- Jim: “Andor ... was just a great work in its own, with its own ideas. ... It’s about sacrifice and tragedy and ... the stories of the people who do not end up getting a medal draped around them.” (36:42)
The Lowdown (Ethan Hawke, political noir)
- Jim: “A political, journalistic, historical noir ... about Ethan Hawke’s character, Lee Raybo, who is a self styled, he calls himself a truthstorian.” (38:31)
- Includes memorable side characters and a strong sense of Tulsa specificity.
Friendship / Hangout Comedies
- I Love LA (sexy, slick) and Adult (goofy, squirmy) — new shows about millennial/Gen Z friendships in LA and NY.
- Platonic (Rose Byrne, Seth Rogen): “Rose Byrne is fricking fantastic. ... in terms of delivery, in terms often of physical comedy, comedic actress.” (43:45)
Pluribus (Sci-fi/social comment)
- Jim: “An alien RNA virus arrives on Earth ... causes them to become united in a joyous collective mind. One of them is our heroine, Carol Sturka, played by the great Rhea Seehorn ... who ends up being kind of the perfect foil for this new collective of alien juiced, beatific humanity.” (45:08)
- Examines collectivism vs. individualism, happiness vs. agency.
Others in Quick Succession
- The Pit (hospital procedural) — “improves on ER”; “just a hospital show done well.” (49:13)
- Adolescence (Netflix mini): “About an adolescent who is arrested on suspicion of murder ... the result or a consequence of online bullying and social media pressures ... what are the little screens in our pockets doing to our kids?” (50:08)
- Noted for being technically accomplished, shot in single takes.
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
- Jim Poniewozik:
- “Common Side Effects ... It’s really kind of a show that like, you know, started head a little bit for Luigi Mangione and a little bit for RFK Jr. There was this kind of element of, you know, these sickness of society that I also thought made it intellectually interesting.” (10:11)
- Alexis Soloski:
- “Slutty blonde Jews do exist. ... Like, we're not all shrill brunettes.” (15:16)
- “Anytime Malin Ackerman is on screen, you know ... her rapaciousness, her sense of pleasure, her sense of fun is radical. And I would love to see more of that.” (21:17)
- “I am here to talk about butts, and I am here to talk about a specific kinds of butts, and those are hockey butts.” (32:25)
- Gilbert Cruz:
- “I thought that when I got older, Star Wars would age with me, would grow up with me, and it never did. And I felt like this was an actual moment when for one brief shining moment, Star Wars was a grown up thing.” (34:46)
Timestamps for Important Segments
| Timestamp | Segment/Topic | |-----------|--------------| | 00:38 | Introduction: Framing 2025’s TV landscape | | 03:07 | Major trends: Conspiracy stories | | 04:37 | Severance S2 discussion | | 08:04 | Common Side Effects (animated, Adult Swim) | | 10:45 | The resurgence of the romantic comedy | | 13:39 | Faith and relationships: Nobody Wants This | | 16:27 | Dying for Sex — humor on terminal illness and sexuality | | 19:07 | The Hunting Wives — enjoying ‘fun’ TV again | | 22:45 | White Lotus S3 and the ‘rich-people-with-secrets’ genre | | 24:08 | Dr. Odyssey — Ryan Murphy’s cruise ship medical drama | | 27:37 | Best-of highlights: Long Story Short (animated dramedy) | | 32:25 | Heated Rivalry — steamy hockey romance | | 34:39 | Andor S2 — grown-up Star Wars and the limits of IP storytelling | | 38:31 | The Lowdown — political-conspiracy noir | | 42:05 | Hangout comedies: I Love L.A., Adult, Platonic | | 45:08 | Pluribus — “collectivism vs. individualism” sci-fi | | 49:13 | Lightning round: The Pit (hospital drama), Adolescence (Netflix) | | 53:21-62:46 | TV games & quiz segment (theme songs, fan theories, Andor trivia) |
Final Thoughts
Through wit and depth, the panelists argue that despite some fatigue with IP-heavy content and certain recycled genres, 2025 showcased a healthy mix of creativity, experimentation, and simple pleasures in television. Animated series, romantic comedies, emotionally complex dramas, and plain old fun all found room to thrive—leaving enough “best of” contenders to provide something for every kind of TV lover.