“The Nerdies” are the end-of-year awards from Nerds on Earth. They are only awarded to the most excellent of things, and are selected by Nerds on Earth writers and editors, with input from readers via our social media.
Our category today is “Best Genre Television Series,” and what a year for nerdy television it has been with 400+ live action shows being available.
This year’s slate was super impressive (pun totally intended), but we narrowed it down to four before opening the vote to determine the winner of the Best Genre Television Series.
2018 Nerdie Award for Best Genre TV Series
Daredevil Season 3
Television is a tough business, folks. With 400+ live action shows available in 2018, the competition among them was fierce. Layer on a rapidly changing landscape where cord cutting has hit the tipping point and the fact that the financial factors at play are above nerds’ pay grade, regardless of how much we huff and stomp our feet on Twitter (RIP Firefly). My point: Daredevil has been cancelled on Netflix. Yet, rather than mope about what we’ve lost, let’s celebrate season 3, the last look at Daredevil us nerds are going to get on Netflix.
Daredevil Season 3 was excellent, doing what few shows do, which is improve in their final season. The acting has always been great. Charlie Cox, Elden Henson, and Deborah Ann Woll have always killed it as Matt Murdock, Foggy Nelson, and Karen Page, respectively. But season 3 ratchets up the strong suit of Marvel on Netflix, which is to provide the show with engaging and evocative side characters that factor prominently in the story.
As always with Daredevil, the fight choreography is unparalleled, with season 3 giving a slick nod to the famous hall fights of the show. And the themes explored are thoughtful and gripping, such as Matt’s struggle with his faith.
The fact that I’m coming to the end of my effervescent praise of Daredevil Season 3 and I haven’t even mentioned Vincent D’Onofrio’s incredible depiction of the Kingpin or the fact that this season debuted Bullseye is another testament to how great Daredevil Season 3 was. For those reasons and more, Daredevil Season 3 wins our 2018 Nerdie Award for Best Genre Television Show. – Clave