The 2018 ComicBook.com Golden Issue Awards Nominations for TV

Welcome to the 2018 ComicBook.com Golden Issue Awards, where we here at ComicBook.com take a look back at the year that was and choose the best of the best in comics and related media.

Looking back, 2018 has been a massive year for TV, especially in our corner of the industry. From horror, to sci-fi, to everything related to comic books, there was a ton to take in on the small screen.

Netflix brought the thunder with a total of four new Marvel seasons, then turned right around and cancelled three of them. In the midst of that chaos, the same studio produced breakout horror hit The Haunting of Hill House, which became an instant binging obsession around the country.

Speaking of streaming, DC Universe finally arrived this year, bringing with it Titans, a gritty action series that has quickly taken off with the fans. Ahead of its premiere, the show already got a second season!

There have been shocking twists, tragic deaths, and plenty of new shows that have made 2018 another massive year for TV, and we’re going to take a look at some of the best it’s had to offer. Without further ado, here’s the complete list of TV nominees for the 2018 ComicBook.com Golden Issue Awards!

Best Returning TV Series

While many people will talk about the new shows that arrived in 2018, some of the best individual seasons came from those that returned for an additional installment. Projects like Gotham and Legends of Tomorrow took massive leaps in new and absurd directions while shows like Westworld and Luke Cage took what fans loved about their first seasons and improved in their sophomore efforts. And then, of course, there is Daredevil, which took superhero TV to new heights in its recently released third season. 

The nominees are:

• Daredevil (Netflix)
• Gotham (FOX)
• Legends of Tomorrow (The CW)
• Luke Cage (Netflix)
• Westworld (HBO)

Best New Series

As we mentioned in the previously, the superhero genre in 2018 will likely be remembered by its huge slate of brand-new series. The CW and Freeform took a social, real-world approach to heroes and delivered hidden gems. Netflix blended horror and family drama to create a binging experience like no other. Syfy made sure we would never forget where Superman came from, while the newly launched DC Universe rebranded a team of heroes for a much more mature audience. 

The nominees are:

• Black Lightning (The CW)
• Cloak & Dagger (Freeform)
• The Haunting of Hill House (Netflix)
• Krypton (Syfy)
• Titans (DC Universe)

Best Animated TV Series

More and more production companies are looking to animation as a viable, and ultra-successful way to tell unique and important stories. It’s also a great format for being as silly as possible without spending too much money. From kid-centered entertainment to much more vulgar, adult fare, there were a ton of great animated TV series this year. Honestly, we had a hard time narrowing it down to just five. (And before you potentially think about complaining about its absence, Rick and Morty did not air in 2018.)

The nominees are:

• Adventure Time (Cartoon Network)
• BoJack Horseman (Netflix)
• South Park (Comedy Central)
• Steven Universe (Cartoon Network)
• Voltron: Legendary Defender (Netflix)

Best TV Actor

A show wouldn’t be great without a fantastic performance from its leading cast members. Sometimes that comes in the form of a heroic sheriff, saying goodbye to a show that he’s led for nearly a decade. Sometimes that comes in the form a villain, who rules New York’s underbelly with an iron fist.

The nominees are:

• Aubrey Joseph as Tyrone Johnson – Cloak & Dagger
• Andrew Lincoln as Rick Grimes – The Walking Dead
• Cameron Monaghan as Jeremiah Valeska – Gotham
• Cress Williams as Jefferson Pierce – Black Lightning
• Vincent D’Onofrio as Wilson Fisk – Daredevil

Best TV Actress

Women absolutely ruled television this year; there’s no two ways around it. Jodie Whittaker took over one of the biggest TV roles in the world, turning the beloved Doctor into a woman for the very first time. This year also had some incredible performances that led already strong ensemble casts to even greater heights. Whether their characters were evil, heroic, or somewhere in between, these women seriously kicked ass.

The nominees are:

• Alfre Woodard as Mariah Dillard – Luke Cage
• Jodie Whittaker as The Doctor – Doctor Who
• Olivia Holt as Tandy Bowen – Cloak & Dagger
• Tala Ashe as Zari Tomaz – Legends of Tomorrow
• Victoria Pedretti as Nell Crain – The Haunting of Hill House

Best Ensemble Cast

Some shows can survive with one or two stellar performers, a hero or villain who can carry the weight of an entire project. However, some of the best series out there are ones that feature a slew of fantastic actors and actresses working together to make a series the best it can possibly be. 

The nominees are:

• Daredevil (Netflix)
• Fear the Walking Dead (AMC)
• The Haunting of Hill House (Netflix)
• Legends of Tomorrow (The CW)
• Luke Cage (Netflix)

Best TV Hero

Every great superhero show needs a good hero, right? Even if that hero is part of a group, or didn’t take over as the titular character until the very end of the show. In some cases, great heroes come in pairs and it’s impossible to recognize one without the other.

The nominees are:

• Black Lightning (Cress Williams) – Black Lightning
• Daredevil (Charlie Cox) – Daredevil
• Cloak and Dagger (Aubrey Joseph and Olivia Holt) – Cloak & Dagger
• Colleen Wing (Jessica Henwick) – Iron Fist
• Sarah Lance (Caity Lotz) – Legends of Tomorrow

Best TV Villain

Heroes usually get mentioned in the title, but a great villain is what takes a show to the next level. Each of the five villains nominated this year brought fear to the fans in all sorts of unique ways. Some of them did so together on the same show, while another had the chance to do it as two completely different characters in the same season. 

The nominees are:

• Bullseye (Wilson Bethel) – Daredevil
• Bushmaster (Mustafa Shakir) – Luke Cage
• Jeremiah Valeska (Cameron Monaghan) – Gotham
• Regin (Odette Annable) – Supergirl
• Wilson Fisk (Vincent D’Onofrio) – Daredevil

Best TV Guest Appearance

While they may not be the actors performing on a show day in and day out, guest appearances can totally make thr difference for a show if handled the right way. The five nominees in this category did just that, bringing huge laughs or waterfalls of tears when they arrived on screen. 

The nominees are:

• Beebo as Itself – Legends of Tomorrow
• John Noble as Himself – Legends of Tomorrow
• Jon Bernthal as Shane Walsh – The Walking Dead
• Paul Rudd as Himself – iZombie
• Scott Wilson as Hershel Greene – The Walking Dead

Best TV Ship

What’s a good TV show without a great ship? Some great relationships in TV this year have just gotten started, while others represent the gold standard of marriage in a superhero world. There are others that may even be in a relationship at all, but the fans are trying their hardest to get them together. These nominees represent all ends of that spectrum, and we love each and every one of them.

The nominees are:

• AvaLance (Sarah Lance and Ava Sharpe) – Legends of Tomorrow
• Carzekiel (Carol Peletier and King Ezekiel) – The Walking Dead
• Cloak and Dagger (Tyrone Johnson and Tandy Bowen) – Cloak & Dagger
• Garnet (Ruby and Sapphire) – Steven Universe
• WestAllen (Barry Allen and Iris West-Allen) – The Flash

Most Shocking TV Moment

So many great TV series are marked by a couple of moments that completely flip the script on fan expectations and change the story into something even more compelling. In the case of Gotham, it was Jeremiah revealing himself to be the true Valeska villain, similar to Mayhem’s coming-out party in the post-credits scene of Cloak & Dagger‘s freshman season. In a completely different kind of twist, viewers were shocked to learn that Rick Grimes wouldn’t die when making his Walking Dead exit. Twists come in all shapes and sizes, and this year definitely proved that to be true.

The nominees are:

• Bent-Neck Lady – The Haunting of Hill House
• “Joker” Reveal – Gotham
• Man in Black Killing His Daughter – Westworld
• Mayhem Reveal – Cloak & Dagger
• Rick’s Survival – The Walking Dead

Most Tragic TV Death

We had to say goodbye to a lot of TV characters over the course of 2018, most of which were played by extras who never got more than a few seconds of screen time in a given show. Then again, there were also those deaths that made us cry, and stuck with us long after the episode had ended. These nominees represent the most tragic of the TV deaths in 2018.

The nominees are:

• Adam – Voltron: Legendary Defender
• Carl Grimes – The Walking Dead
• Hugh Culber – Star Trek: Discovery
• Leo Fitz – Agents of SHIELD
• Nell Crain – The Haunting of Hill House

Best TV Episode

Last, but certainly not least, we want to recognize the best individual TV episode of the year, and there are some seriously strong contenders. Gotham‘s Season Four finale turned the entire show on its head and set up a breathtaking final season. Legends of Tomorrow‘s “Here I Go Again” was a breathtaking character study, and perhaps the best version of Groundhog Day since Bill Murray. Doctor Who broke down barriers in its gut-wrenching look at Rosa Parks. The Haunting of Hill House delivered one of the most technical achievements of the last decade with “Two Storms” and The Walking Dead‘s “What Comes After” bid a lengthy and heartfelt goodbye to leading man Andrew Lincoln.

The nominees are:

• “A Dark Knight: No Man’s Land” – Gotham
• “Here I Go Again” – Legends of Tomorrow
• “Rosa” – Doctor Who
• “Two Storms” – The Haunting of Hill House
• “What Comes After” – The Walking Dead