Best 2026 TV Shows for character development

#1

The strongest praise centers on how Clark, Floyd, and Carol gain layers as new perspectives expose their loneliness, contradictions, and hidden needs. Reviews often describe the shift from pity or...

#2

Growth is one of the season’s clearest strengths: Bobby matures into a principled adult, Hank adapts without losing himself, and supporting characters gain surprising new dimensions.

#3

The time jump and scripts give the characters room to change in surprising ways while preserving the dynamics that made them recognizable.

#4

Returning characters are pushed into new emotional and professional territory, with River’s grief and old relationships receiving particular attention. Reviewers generally welcomed the way the season develops familiar people without...

#5

The final season pays off years of growth, especially Deborah and Ava moving from combative codependence toward a more mature partnership. Supporting characters also get meaningful progress without losing their...

#6

Season 2 is widely praised for giving the ensemble clearer wants, more vulnerability, and deeper individual arcs, with Anton and Paul Baker receiving especially noticeable growth.

#7

Character growth is one of the clearest areas of agreement: Russ becomes more considerate, Ricky gains agency, and the supporting cast receives fuller arcs. Even mixed reviews often credit the...

#8

Reviewers consistently prefer the show when it focuses on grief, guilt, identity, and damaged family relationships rather than puzzle-box mystery. Sarah, Ian, Henry, and Donald are often highlighted as richer...

#9

Character development is one of Season 2’s clearest strengths, especially as returning rookies mature and Robby’s trauma becomes more complicated. Some complaints focus on supporting characters who still feel underused...

#10

Reviewers see a satisfying arc from manufactured pop figure to self-directed artist, with key relationships helping her grow in confidence and creative control.

#11

Leo and Clive emerge as flawed, layered people rather than simple symbols. Clive’s flashes of vulnerability and Leo’s warmth, carelessness, anger, and fear make the tragedy more persuasive.

#12

Margo, Shyanne, and Jinx are widely praised as flawed people whose motives remain clear. Some supporting figures, especially Susie, KC, and Rose, are criticized for existing mainly to help Margo.

#13

The series is praised for keeping Mica at the center through her voice, journals, footage, and loved ones’ accounts, helping her register as a full person rather than only a...

#14

The characters deepen substantially as the season unfolds, with Alice, Catherine, Nora, and Alden repeatedly singled out for messy, contradictory humanity. Some critics still found Catherine underdeveloped or overcomplicated in...

#15

Eddie’s evolution from reluctant participant to ambitious crime boss is one of the most consistently praised elements. Reviewers also note stronger growth for several supporting characters.

#16

Character work is a major strength, with Mark’s changing morality, Nolan’s difficult redemption, Oliver’s growth, and Eve’s vulnerability all receiving attention. Reviewers repeatedly describe the arcs as nuanced, compelling, and...

#17

Kara’s growth from uncertain apprentice to morally tested leader is widely considered a major strength, and later episodes deepen several key figures. Supporting arcs receive less time, but the central...

#18

Character growth is a major strength, especially Sydney stepping forward, Carmy finding a healthier relationship to cooking, and Richie reaching a more hopeful place. Reviewers repeatedly describe the ensemble as...

#19

This is the most consistently praised part of the season. Reviews like the deeper look at Neagley’s past, haphephobia, father relationship, and gradual willingness to let other people into her...

#20

Character growth is a major strength, especially Annie and Ramona learning from each other and building a family bond. A few side arcs feel incomplete or compressed.

#21

Michael’s gradual openness and his growing friendship provide meaningful movement. Kacey’s backstory is less fully developed, and some narrative layers remain thin.

#22

The strongest notices praise Ben and the reworked supporting characters for gaining new dimensions in this alternate world. A few negative reviews argue the characters remain stock noir types, but...

#23

The season finds fresh facets in familiar characters without fundamentally reforming them, a balance one reviewer considered a creative strength.

#24

Character work is one of the season’s biggest strengths, especially as the show spreads emotional and professional consequences across the ensemble. The dissenting view is that some development pushes Martian...

#25

The season’s strongest praise centers on deeper character work, grief, marriage strain, regret, and the way alternate lives reshape familiar people.

#26

The strongest arcs deepen parenthood, resilience and community bonds, with Mel, Jack, Lizzie and Denny receiving meaningful growth. Supporting characters often evolve more convincingly than the central romance.

#27

Character growth is a major strength, especially as archetypes gain layers and Deborah develops beyond her impulsive first impression. The rushed season sometimes limits how fully that growth can land.

#28

The season earns praise as a patient dual character study, giving Simon subtle growth and Trevor an unexpectedly affecting redemption arc.

#29

Character work is widely praised, especially for Jubilee, Cyclops, Rogue, Polaris, and Apocalypse, though rushed transitions leave some arcs underexplored.

#30

The girls’ gradual awakening, friendships, and small acts of rebellion are among the season’s strongest elements. Daisy’s depth and Aunt Lydia’s shifting motives are less consistently convincing.

#31

Character development is one of the clearest strengths, especially for Chee, Joe, and Bernadette. Most reviewers praise the deeper personal arcs, though one critic argues the arcs ultimately stall.

#32

The adult friends are given meaningful midlife frustrations, old wounds, and evolving self-understanding, with Saoirse especially well developed. Some reviewers wanted more depth for Dara, Greta, and a few supporting...

#33

The leads become more assured as detectives and more emotionally defined as the season progresses, with their flaws and evolving relationship adding depth.

#34

The strongest arcs deepen Greg, Katie, Sunny and the wider ensemble beyond their initial comic types. Several reviewers praise the way later episodes let wounded, messy characters grow without losing...

#35

Brian, Ellen, Julia and several supporting characters gain meaningful new dimensions, especially around leadership and agency. A minority view argues that some arcs regress or turn in odd directions to...

#36

Fred and Tony are generally seen as well developed, with layered motives and internal conflict. Supporting characters can be compelling too, though several critics felt the scripts do not always...

#37

Carrie, Margaret, and Chris gain meaningful motives and emotional complexity. Dissenting voices find Carrie too uniformly innocent and the supporting stories unevenly developed.

#38

Rupert, Monica, Maud, Taggie, Sarah, and several supporting women receive richer, more mature arcs. The season is strongest when it lets the glamorous surface give way to vulnerability and consequence.

#39

Lucie's expanded agency and Sydney's richer arc earn repeated praise, though one harsh review finds the characterizations thin and another notes some relationships and arcs remain underdeveloped.

#40

Reviewers liked small signs of growth within familiar dynamics, including Cartman using a softer manipulation tactic with Liane and Stan buying bikes for his friends.

#41

Emma’s transformation is widely praised, especially when Jessica Reynolds tracks her shift from vulnerable servant to hardened striver. A few side characters also benefit from added dimension.

#42

The second half earns praise for giving Benedict, Sophie, Violet, Francesca and several supporting characters more growth and emotional dimension.

#43

The season substantially deepens Lestat and gives several returning characters meaningful emotional turns. Criticism centers on newer or secondary characters whose arcs feel compressed or insufficiently explained.

#44

Character work is one of the season’s biggest strengths, especially for Morty, Evil Morty, and the evolving Smith family. The main caveat is that Rick’s introspection can feel familiar and...

#45

Supporters like the added vulnerability in Reacher and Jacob’s movement from grief toward restraint, while skeptics call Reacher’s guilt manufactured. The season gives its core characters more emotional movement than...

#46

Season 2 generally earns praise for pushing its damaged characters through grief, recovery, ambition, and consequence. A few reviews still find some arcs underdeveloped or too functional.

#47

Isla’s leadership, Ali’s professional self-worth, and several sibling arcs gain meaningful depth. Other takes argue that crowded plotting flattens Jackie and leaves some promising characters underdeveloped.

#48

Sybylla and many supporting characters gain meaningful nuance, although a few critics find the suitors comparatively shallow or wish the heroine’s internal insecurity were explored more deeply.

#49

Alex and André’s relationship gives the season its clearest arc, moving through grief, resentment, rebellion, and eventual understanding. The main pair are well developed, though one critic felt the secondary...

#50

Several reviewers found the characters lived-in, compelling, and well introduced, especially Wanda and Lamar. Others criticized underdeveloped figures such as Artillery and DG, making this an uneven area overall.