Comic books have been an endless well of stories over the years. We’ve seen adaptations expand beyond the silver screen of the theater as studios play more and more with television iterations of their favorite tales, giving them the opportunity to dive deeper into rich narratives with the power of long-form storytelling. And while superhero adaptations certainly aren’t new to television, the past 12 months have been another banner year for Supes on the small screen.
Whether you like to keep it gritty and full of rage or are looking for a fresh, female-forward heroic comedy, our 2022 Best Comic Book TV Series nominees have something for you! Check out our winner below!
The Boys
The Boys continues its streak of excellence with a third season even more violent, depraved, and gut-wrenching than what’s come before. And we can’t get enough of it. The series shows just how far the Boys are willing to go to take out Homelander, aligning themselves with the despicable Soldier Boy and becoming that which they hate the most at the cost of their own lives. It’s all incredibly entertaining to watch, with something making us laugh, cry, or want to vomit every week, from the oh-no-they-didn’t Herogasm episode to an absolutely brutal super-powered brawl where any character can meet their end, or worse. Even better, the series pulls no punches with its absolutely scathing commentary on our superhero-dominated pop culture and isn’t afraid to hold a mirror up to our society to show us how ugly it is.
We have our winner, but these were our nominees for the Best Comic Book TV Series of 2022...
Moon Knight
While the spectacle we've come to expect from Disney+ shows was definitely there in Moon Knight, what really stood out with this particular entry is the extremely human story behind Marc Spector and the series’ ability to stand on its own without ending up too entangled in the rest of the MCU. Oscar Isaac expertly portrays both Steven Grant and the aforementioned Spector, with performances in episodes like Moon Knight’s penultimate receiving well-earned praise from mental health experts. Isaac’s not alone in his stellar performance, either. Ethan Hawke kills it in his second forray into villainy as the wicked Arthur Harrow and May Calamawy’s Layla is layered, capable, and given the opportunity to be a hero in her own right.
Ms. Marvel
An interesting side-effect of the MCU’s move to Disney+ is how it has reimagined the traditional superhero origin story. The six-episode format gives Ms. Marvel space to explore a variety of facets of its new heroine, from life as a first-generation Pakistani-American high schooler to the traumatic partition of India and Pakistan. What makes it special is Iman Vellani, who instantly establishes herself as one of the MCU’s newest stars with her effervescent performance as Avengers fangirl Kamala Khan. Her journey to becoming Ms. Marvel is wrapped in a moving family drama that touches on all aspects of the immigrant family experience, from trips to the local mosque to the unique challenges of dating. Add in some tremendous art design, and you get one of Phase 4’s major highlights.
Peacemaker
If HBO Max’s Peacemaker is a taste of what’s to come from the DC movie and TV universe now that James Gunn is running the show (alongside Peacemaker executive producer Peter Safran), then it looks like the denizens of the DCEU are in good if goofy and iconoclastic hands. Who would've thought that adapting John Cena's sociopathic vigilante from Gunn's The Suicide Squad movie would've made any sense? And yet here we are with a series that is both hilarious and heartfelt, and one that fully embraces the universe of the comics (yes, Bat-Mite exists!) while still managing to very much be its own thing. Cena rises above standard wrestler-actor line reads to imbibe the title character with real pathos (and frequent idiocy), while the extensive supporting cast are all pretty memorable too. Besides, what’s not to like about a show that introduces the concept that Jason Momoa’s Aquaman likes to f#@k fish?
She-Hulk: Attorney At Law
If there’s one upside to how massive and sprawling the MCU has grown, it’s that there’s more room to get weird in the margins, and She-Hulk is a shining example of how much fun that can be. Forgoing epic, high-stakes world-saving for a screwball sitcom approach, She-Hulk: Attorney At Law’s monster-of-the-week take on D-list superheroes felt more like Venture Bros than Avengers: Endgame. There’s no shortage of humor in the MCU (much to the chagrin of certain individuals who are undoubtedly a blast at parties) but She-Hulk was the first time a Marvel project has leaned fully into comedy, shattering the fourth wall and thoroughly skewering exactly the sort of people who hated the show the most.
The Boys
The Boys continues its streak of excellence with a third season even more violent, depraved, and gut-wrenching than what’s come before. And we can’t get enough of it. The series shows just how far the Boys are willing to go to take out Homelander, aligning themselves with the despicable Soldier Boy and becoming that which they hate the most at the cost of their own lives. It’s all incredibly entertaining to watch, with something making us laugh, cry, or want to vomit every week, from the oh-no-they-didn’t Herogasm episode to an absolutely brutal super-powered brawl where any character can meet their end, or worse. Even better, the series pulls no punches with its absolutely scathing commentary on our superhero-dominated pop culture and isn’t afraid to hold a mirror up to our society to show us how ugly it is.
All IGN Best of Entertainment 2022 Categories
- Best Movie of 2022
- Best Performance in a Movie in 2022
- Best Director of a Movie in 2022
- Best Horror Movie of 2022
- Best Sci-Fi/Fantasy Movie of 2022
- Best Comic Book Series or Original Graphic Novel of 2022
- Best Anime Series of 2022
- Best TV Series of 2022
- Best Performance in a TV Series in 2022
- Best Comic Book TV Series of 2022
- Best Animated TV Series of 2022
- Best New TV Series of 2022
- Best TV Episode of 2022
- Best Streaming Service of 2022
