As we approach the end of the year, December marks a fitting time to reflect on the standout television offerings of 2023. Our list of “31 Best TV Shows and Limited Series to Premiere in 2023” compiles a selection of noteworthy productions that have defined the small screen landscape throughout the year. And all shows included had at least one Black lead or a diverse cast because you can’t be the best if there is no diversity.
From gripping dramas to thought-provoking limited series, this list encapsulates the cream of the crop, carefully curated to cater As we conclude 2023, take a moment to explore the television highlights that have resonated with audiences and critics alike. Whether you’re a dedicated viewer or looking for something new, this compilation aims to provide a concise overview of the standout television content of the year. Grab a seat, press play, and delve into the television highlights of 2023.
Survival of the Thickest
Michelle Buteau’s Netflix show Survival of the Thickest is about loving yourself, learning from your experiences, and not letting rejection break you.
Stream on Netflix
Gen V
Gen V explores a new narrative within “The Boys” universe, focusing on a generation of superpowered individuals aware that their abilities stem from a childhood drug injection. It takes place at Godolkin University, a college for young adult superheroes that’s run by Vought International.
Stream on Prime Video
Swarm
It’s about Dre, a young Black woman who is obsessed with a fictional pop star named Ni’Jah, who is modeled after Beyoncé. When Dre encounters people who don’t show her enough respect, she dispenses swift justice using heavy objects like sledgehammers, cast-iron frying pans, or kettlebells.
Stream on Prime Video
Lawman: Bass Reeves
The eight-episode season focuses on the lawman who was born into slavery, escaped enslavement, and eventually became the first Black deputy U.S. Marshal west of the Mississippi River. Reeves’ storied career spanned over 30 years, and he arrested thousands of outlaws and felons without ever sustaining a serious injury
Stream on Paramount+
Lessons in Chemistry
It tells the story of Elizabeth Zott, a brilliant chemist who becomes a television chef in the 1960s. The book explores women’s lives, careers, and empowerment in the late 1950s and early 1960s.
Stream on Apple TV+
Queen Charlotte: A Bridgeton Story
The series is about the love story between Queen Charlotte and King George III, and how their marriage sparks a societal shift. The story takes place in two different time periods, from the early beginnings of their marriage to the Regency era.
Stream on Netflix
Fall of the House of Usher
the horror drama follows Roderick Usher (Bruce Greenwood), the CEO of a corrupt pharmaceutical company, who must face his shady past when each of his children begin to die in mysterious and brutal fashion.
Stream on Netflix
Painkiller
Netflix’s “Painkiller” delves into pivotal moments fueling the opioid epidemic, exposing missed opportunities to prevent it.
Stream on Netflix
Black Cake
Siblings set aside their differences to deal with their mother’s death–and her hidden past, an odyssey of discovery that takes them from the Caribbean to London to California and ends with her famous black cake.
Stream on Hulu
Unprisoned
Follows a therapist and single mom whose life is turned right-side-up when her dad gets out of prison and moves to her house to live with her and her teenage son.
Stream on Hulu
Average Joe
Joe, a blue-collar plumber, learns his recently deceased father lived a secret life and stole millions of dollars from dangerous people. Now those people think Joe has the money. Joe must race against time to find the truth and the money.
Stream on BET Plus
Found
It follows Gabi Mosely (Shanola Hampton), a public relations and crisis management specialist who specializes in finding missing people who are often overlooked by the system. Gabi is also a former missing person herself who has a dark secret.
Stream on NBC
The Last of Us
After a global pandemic destroys civilization, a hardened survivor takes charge of a 14-year-old girl who may be humanity’s last hope.
Stream on Max
Jury Duty
A comedy series that follows Ronald Gladden, a solar contractor from San Diego, as he prepares to serve as a juror in a fictional trial. Gladden is unaware that the case is fake, and that everyone else in the courtroom is an actor.
Stream on
Justified: City Primeval
Fifteen years after Raylan Givens left the hollers of Kentucky, a chance encounter in the Florida swamps sends him to Detroit and places him on a collision course with a violent sociopath and a formidable defense attorney.
Stream on Hulu
The Big Door Prize
The series is about a small town called Deerfield where a mysterious machine called the MORPHO appears in the grocery store. The machine promises to reveal each resident’s “Life Potential” in exchange for money, fingerprints, and social security numbers.
Stream on Apple TV+
I’m a Virgo
The coming-of-age joyride of Cootie, a 13-foot-tall man who escapes to experience the beauty and contradictions of the real world. He forms friendships, finds love, navigates awkward situations, and encounters his idol, The Hero.
Stream on Prime Video
Ahsoka
Ahsoka Tano, the former Jedi apprentice of Anakin Skywalker during the Clone Wars, seeks to prevent the return of Grand Admiral Thrawn following the fall of the Empire.
Stream on Disney+
Monarch: Legacy of Monsters
It follows two siblings, Cate and Kentaro Randa, as they investigate their father’s connection to Monarch, a secretive organization that monitors giant monsters.
Stream on Apple TV+
The Other Black Girl
It centers on two Black women, Nella and Hazel, who work at a New York City publishing house. Nella is the only Black woman at the company and feels lonely and undervalued. She’s excited when Wagner hires Hazel, another Black woman, and the two quickly bond. However, a series of uncomfortable events elevate Hazel to office darling, leaving Nella in the dust.
Stream on Hulu
Hijack
It’s about a plane that takes off for a seven-hour journey from Dubai to London. But things take a turn for the worst when a group of hijackers wielding guns reveal themselves. Now Sam, a talented business negotiator, must use his skills to broker a peaceful end.
Stream on Apple TV+
The Changeling
Apollo and Emma’s love story is a fairy tale, until Emma mysteriously vanishes; bereft, Apollo finds himself on a death-defying odyssey through a New York City he didn’t know existed.
Stream on Apple TV+
Silo
In a ruined and toxic future, a community exists in a giant underground silo that plunges hundreds of stories deep; there, people live in a society full of regulations they believe are meant to protect them.
Stream on Apple TV+
The Diplomat
Amid an international crisis, a career diplomat juggles her new high-profile job as ambassador to the United Kingdom and her turbulent marriage to a political star.
Stream on Netflix
Act Your Age
Follows three girls in the prime of their lives. The will show a world where individually they shine but they also show support for one another.
Stream on Bounce TV
Shrinking
The show is about a group of therapists who are dealing with their personal lives while also helping their patients.
Stream on Apple TV+
Bookie
A bookie struggles to survive the impending legalization of sports gambling and his increasingly unstable clients, family and co-workers.
Stream on Max