Gilby Santos

It started small. Really small. Back in 2009, a guy named Paddy Cosgrave rounded up about 150 people in Dublin for a little tech gathering. Nothing fancy. Just some folks who wanted to talk about the future of the internet and maybe grab a drink afterward. Fast forward to now, and that little get-together has turned into something massive. We're talking: over a million business people have walked through its doors over the years. And the main event? That happens in Lisbon every November.

Look, I’ll be honest. We’re only a couple of months into the year, and somehow, we’ve already been spoiled. We’ve got returning heavy-hitters that somehow got even better, and a couple of brand-new shows that came out of absolute nowhere to steal my whole heart. I’ve got you. Here are the five best shows of early 2026, counting down to the absolute best thing I’ve seen so far. Okay, I need you to trust me on this one.

While I'm normally not a fan of franchises and legacy sequels, and 2026 is full of them, the year's slate feels like a coordinated statement from Hollywood. Having not enjoyed any of the so-called blockbusters in 2025, I suspect 2026 will offer more of the same. Yet, I’m morbidly curious about the fate of these massive budget endeavors. They represent a clear, high-stakes effort by traditional studios to reclaim relevance, seemingly driven by market analysis more than creative necessity.