The Most Twisted Dark Comedy TV Shows, Ranked
25. Baby Reindeer
‘Baby Reindeer’ isn’t your standard "based on a true story" drama, it’s raw, nerve-wracking, and deeply personal. Richard Gadd plays a version of himself as he recounts his terrifying experience with a stalker (a disturbingly brilliant Jessica Gunning). What starts as darkly awkward quickly becomes unsettling, heartbreaking, and almost too real. Tackling heavy themes like trauma, grooming, and shame, this is a gut punch with a black comedy grin.
24. Dead to Me
At first glance, ‘Dead to Me’ is a quirky odd-couple story. Then it grabs you by the throat with emotional twists, trauma bonding and never lets go. Christina Applegate and Linda Cardellini bring powerhouse performances to a series that juggles grief, guilt, friendship, and murder with biting wit and just enough wine-soaked chaos. Yeah, it’s both hilarious and devastating buddy comedy.
23. The Great
‘The Great’ is “occasionally true,” but this is a show that laughs in the face of historical accuracy and spins the Russian monarchy into a savage, sexy, blood-spattered satire. Elle Fanning and Nicholas Hoult are brilliant as the ambitious Catherine and her petulant man-child of a husband, Emperor Peter III. You will not forget this absurdist comedy that dissects patriarchy and power dynamics with a wink, and a sword. Think ‘Bridgerton’ meets ‘Succession,' but everyone’s drunk and dangerous.
22. Bad Sisters
A pitch-black murder mystery wrapped in sisterhood, ‘Bad Sisters’ delivers Irish wit, domestic tension, and one hell of a villain. The story follows five fiercely loyal sisters, one abusive brother-in-law, and a not-so-accidental death. Cue the cover-up, the insurance fraud, and plenty of sharp-edged banter. It’s hilarious and harrowing, capturing the desperation of women pushed to the edge. Dark comedy with a beating heart, and well, a dead body.
21. Wednesday
Jenna Ortega’s gloriously deadpan turn as Wednesday Addams turned this ‘Addams Family’ spin-off into a cultural juggernaut. She’s a gothic icon navigating teen angst, murder mysteries, and school dances at Nevermore Academy. Netflix’s ‘Wednesday’ expertly blends coming-of-age tropes with pitch-black humor and macabre charm. Whether she’s playing cello in a cemetery or casually dismantling her enemies with scathing one-liners, Wednesday proves that teen dramas are much more fun when they are dark.
20. Our Flag Means Death
Who knew pirates could be this emotionally complex, or this gay? ‘Our Flag Means Death’ sails into uncharted waters with its unique blend of swashbuckling comedy, queer romance, and historical ridiculousness. Rhys Darby’s well-meaning aristocrat-turned-pirate captain is a delight, and Taika Waititi as the brooding Blackbeard is legendary. Equal parts silly and sincere, this show flips genre tropes on their heads while exploring identity, masculinity, and the search for connection. A treasure of a series.
19. Killing Eve
Sexy, stylish, and dripping in sardonic wit, ‘Killing Eve’ redefined the cat-and-mouse thriller. Sandra Oh’s intelligence agent becomes obsessed with Jodie Comer’s fashion-forward assassin, and the line between hunter and hunted blurs deliciously. While it spirals into chaos in later seasons, its early episodes are masterclasses in character-driven black comedy and psychological tension. The fashion is killer. The murder? Also killer. But it’s the chemistry that keeps you hooked, and slightly disturbed.
18. Beef
When a petty road rage incident turns into an escalating war between two broken strangers, ‘Beef’ steers hard into emotional pandemonium. Steven Yeun and Ali Wong give career-best performances as two people unraveling in real time. The show is equal parts satire, psychodrama, and spiritual crisis—served with a thick glaze of existential humor. Here, discomfort meets laugh-out-loud absurdity. ‘Beef’ is about grudges, class rage, and the illusion of control—and it’s damn near perfect.
17. Rick and Morty
Behind the fart jokes and sci-fi insanity, ‘Rick and Morty’ is one of TV’s most cynical shows…and that’s saying something. Rick Sanchez is a genius, an addict, and a walking existential nightmare who drags his grandson through multiverse mayhem. No other show dares to explore the meaninglessness of life with such nihilistic glee. It’s animated anarchy at its smartest and darkest, often pausing mid-chaos for a surprisingly emotional gut-punch. Interdimensional dysfunction has never looked so good.
16. Mr Inbetween
This Australian gem doesn’t shout; it snarls. ‘Mr Inbetween’ follows Ray, a hitman who’s just trying to keep his criminal side hustle from wrecking his relationships. The dead-eyed Ray is both terrifying and unexpectedly likable. It’s minimalist, emotionally grounded, and brutally funny. A show about a killer trying to be a better dad, brother, and friend, while still beating people senseless? That’s dark comedy done right.
15. Atlanta
‘Atlanta’ is what happens when Donald Glover decides to reinvent television. Equal parts surreal, hilarious, and haunting, it’s a genre-defying masterpiece. One episode feels like a sitcom, the next like a horror movie. It skewers race, poverty, fame, and identity with a wink and a gut-punch.
14. Derry Girls
Imagine ‘Mean Girls’ in 1990s Northern Ireland—but with Catholic school uniforms, a touch of The Troubles, and a whole lot of teenage angst. ‘Derry Girls’ is razor-sharp and riotously funny, tackling historical trauma and adolescent awkwardness without skipping a beat.
13. The Bear
You thought a sandwich shop couldn’t give you anxiety? Think again. ‘The Bear’ throws you into the boiling heat of a Chicago kitchen, where grief, burnout, and perfectionism are served raw. Jeremy Allen White is magnetic, the ensemble is electric, and the humor is as dry as the overcooked risotto. It’s brutal, brilliant, and deeply human.
12. What We Do In The Shadows
Ever wondered what centuries-old vampires would be like as Staten Island roommates? Taika Waititi and Jemaine Clement deliver the answer in mockumentary form, and it’s gloriously absurd. ‘What We Do In The Shadows’ is a love letter to both horror and comedy, and somehow makes blood-sucking endearing.
11. BoJack Horseman
A washed-up sitcom star who's also... a horse! What? Don’t let the animation fool you—‘BoJack Horseman’ goes deep. Underneath its anthropomorphic absurdity lies a cutting, raw, and often devastating look at addiction, fame, self-sabotage, and redemption. It's the funniest existential crisis you’ll ever watch.
10. You’re the Worst
Take a rom-com, inject it with cynicism, add two toxic narcissists, and voilà - ‘You're the Worst.’ This show dares to ask: Can two emotionally broken people find love? Surprisingly sincere under its snarky exterior, it tackles PTSD, depression, and co-dependency with both irreverence and heart.
9. Shameless
Frank Gallagher is TV’s most charming trainwreck—a drunken disaster wrapped in Chicago grit. ‘Shameless’ juggles poverty, addiction, and dysfunction with laugh-out-loud moments and devastating realism. It’s messy, chaotic, and strangely comforting — like family.
8. Barry
A hitman walks into an acting class… and suddenly wants a second chance at life. Bill Hader is phenomenal in ‘Barry,’ a show blends shootouts and Shakespeare. It’s a pitch-black meditation on identity, violence, and redemption…just with the occasional acting exercise gone very, very wrong.
7. It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia
Meet the Gang: five of the worst people on Earth. Over the seasons, 'It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia’ has pushed boundaries, broken taboos, and somehow remained wildly hilarious through it all. No topic is off-limits, no scheme too idiotic. It’s chaos incarnate, and we love it for that.
6. The White Lotus
Luxury resort, beautiful people, and bad, bad decisions. ‘The White Lotus’ takes aim at the rich, the clueless, and the morally bankrupt. With biting satire and lush aesthetics, every episode is a slow-burn pressure cooker that ends in delicious catastrophe. Bonus points for that theme song.
5. After Life
This is Ricky Gervais is at his bleakest and best. In 'After Life,’ the British comedy genius plays a grieving widower with zero filter and zero patience for life’s BS. It’s crude, cruel, and heartbreakingly tender. Bring tissues… and maybe avoid watching it on a bad day. Or do—it might just help.
4. The Boys
Superheroes, but make them terrible people. ‘The Boys’ tears into modern society’s obsession with celebrity, power, and blind idol worship. With its no-holds-barred violence and scathing satire, it’s like Marvel took a hard left into moral decay and it’s wildly entertaining.
3. Fleabag
No show has ever broken the fourth wall or our heart quite like ‘Fleabag.’ Phoebe Waller-Bridge created a once-in-a-generation gem: brutally honest, painfully funny, and devastatingly beautiful. From hot priests to guinea pig cafés, it’s chaos, and somehow, healing.
2. Fargo
Inspired by the Coen brothers’ cult classic, ‘Fargo’ is an anthology of small-town murder, big consequences, and deliciously weird characters. Each season is its own snow-dusted crime saga, blending pitch-black humor with violence, irony, and moral collapse. It’s TV noir at its most stylish.
1. Succession
What happens when Shakespeare meets corporate America? ‘Succession.’ It’s a dark comedy dressed as a prestige drama, or maybe it’s the other way around. Either way, every line is a dagger, every moment laced with dysfunction. The Roys are monsters, and we can't stop watching.
