Starz’s Breathtaking ‘Counterpart’ Needs To Be A Best Drama Emmys Contender

Emmy season is nigh. The streets (in LA and NYC) at least, are lined with For Your Consideration ads, and the trades are organizing riveting round tables with frontrunners and stars. Experts and pundits are weighing in on likely contenders, and that means the race is already tightening around a few odds-on favorites. That means that some profoundly great shows are already being left just on the outside edge of the Emmy conversation.

Case in point: Starz’s Counterpart. The spectacular sci-fi spy caper might be one of the best new shows of 2018, and yet it’s getting squeezed out of the Best Drama Emmy race by the indefatigable buzz of bigger hits like Stranger Things and Westworld. Counterpart should be in the Emmy conversation, though. It’s smart and moving and spectacularly mature. Moreover, it’s a stealthy show that consistently unravels itself to show just how carefully constructed it really is.

In many ways, Counterpart is the show people think Westworld is. By that, I mean, it’s a technically dazzling piece of drama structured around a high concept puzzle box conceit — and the puzzle box actually connects, and moreover works. I enjoy Westworld well enough, but don’t tell me that show doesn’t routinely infuriate viewers by fudging its reality and crafting confusing narratives that seem to rewrite the timeline. As I was explaining to a colleague today, Westworld is designed in such a way that there’s always a way for the showrunners to wiggle out of any choice. They can bring characters back, rewrite the timeline, and just lean on uncertainly.

Counterpart, on the other hand, is a delectable masterpiece of television drama. Sure, it hooks you on the unknown, but each episode commits to the reality and expands upon it. The world feels as solid as the rock foundation that links the two worlds. Singular episodes will be devoted to one new twist — often personified by a new character that we’re finally learning more about. Every new bit of data feels true because it has been meticulously planned. Because of this, where Westworld can feel like a maddening scavenger hunt for Easter Eggs, Counterpart feels like an exciting journey into a new world.

But Counterpart isn’t just a well-written and spectacularly executed show. It’s a showcase for one of the best ensembles working on TV today. Counterpart‘s cast feels like a who’s who of scene stealers and low-key titans. Besides the always great J.K. Simmons and Olivia Williams, you have brilliant turns from Harry Lloyd (whose final scene of the season made me laugh in anxious dread), Nazanin Boniadi, Sara Serraiocco, Liv Lisa Fries, Stephen Rea, and Lotte Verbeek. All of the performances feel grounded, lived in, and nuanced to perfection. It’s these pitch perfect turns that sell the reality of Counterpart‘s otherworldly premise.

When I think back on the year in TV so far, I can think of a lot of great hours of TV, but no singular season impressed me more than Counterpart‘s brilliant first season. It was a show that not only left me craving more, but made me feel connected to the reality of each and every character. It’s the rare show that has as much heart as it has brains. Counterpart is a thoroughly great show that insiders shouldn’t discount as Emmy nominations approach.

Where to Stream Counterpart