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Genres

Drama Comedy Animation Action Crime Adventure Romance Reality-TV More genres →

Decades

2020s 2010s 2000s 1990s 1980s 1970s 1960s 1950s 1940s 1930s 1920s 1900s

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Genres

Drama Comedy Animation Action Crime Adventure Romance Reality-TV More genres →

Decades

2020s 2010s 2000s 1990s 1980s 1970s 1960s 1950s 1940s 1930s 1920s 1900s

Tags Search My ratings Sign in

Best Documentary TV Series of 2012

Top 500 most popular Documentary series that started in 2012

All Documentary series All series from 2012

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Genres

Genres as assigned by IMDb. Selecting several means a show must match all of them.

Action 3 Adult 0 Adventure 9 Animation 2 Biography 19 Comedy 16 Crime 34 Documentary 574 Drama 12 Family 11 Fantasy 0 Game-Show 2 History 51 Horror 2 Music 13 Musical 2 Mystery 4 News 7 Reality-TV 40 Romance 2 Sci-Fi 2 Short 6 Sport 6 Talk-Show 6 Thriller 1 War 6 Western 0

Decades

By first-air year. Several selections widen the range; a specific year narrows within its decade.

2020s 6241 2010s 6789 2000s 3216 1990s 1037 1980s 361 1970s 168 1960s 123 1950s 45 1940s 5 1930s 2 1920s 0 1900s 0

Specific year

2026 333 2025 783 2024 946 2023 998 2022 1128 2021 1075 2020 978 2019 897 2018 849 2017 809 2016 752 2015 715 2014 612 2013 612 2012 574 2011 536 2010 433 2009 389 2008 388 2007 385 2006 369 2005 361 2004 360 2003 305 2002 250 2001 228 2000 181 1999 177 1998 157 1997 117 1996 116 1995 102 1994 83 1993 88 1992 76 1991 74 1990 47 1989 49 1988 55 1987 37 1986 32 1985 34 1984 32 1983 42 1982 39 1981 17 1980 24 1979 16 1978 29 1977 16 1976 23 1975 15 1974 14 1973 15 1972 18 1971 16 1970 6 1969 16 1968 14 1967 13 1966 10 1965 12 1964 17 1963 12 1962 4 1961 13 1960 12 1959 8 1958 4 1957 4 1956 5 1955 8 1954 7 1953 4 1952 2 1951 2 1950 1 1949 1 1948 1 1947 1 1941 1 1940 1 1939 1 1937 1

Tags

Rating patterns, computed from IMDb episode-rating trajectories. Deliberately strict: only shows with an unmistakable pattern carry one, so expect small numbers.

Rating patterns

Fumbled the Finale 0 Stuck the Landing 0 Grew the Beard 0 Rock Solid 0 Past Its Prime 0 Roller Coaster 0

Taste tags, judged by our AI taste model. They cover the 5,000 most-rated shows.

Tone & mood

Bleak 0 Gritty 0 Dark tone 0 Feel-good 0 Cozy 0 Wholesome 0 Melancholic 0 Tense 0 Unsettling 0 Whimsical 0 Campy 0 Cynical 1 Hopeful 0 Sentimental 0 Nostalgic 0 Bittersweet 0 Chaotic energy 0 Deadpan cool 0

Pacing & structure

Slow burn 0 Fast-paced 0 Episodic 0 Serialized 0 Procedural 0 Mystery box 0 Anthology 0 Cliffhanger-driven 0 Sprawling saga 0 Tight limited run 1 Puzzle plot 0 Vignette style 0

Humor style

Dry humor 0 Absurdist 0 Satirical 0 Cringe comedy 0 Slapstick 0 Witty banter 0 Dark comedy 0 Warm humor 0 Raunchy 0 Parody 0 Ironic & meta 0

Themes & subject matter

Criminal underworld 0 Detective mystery 0 True crime 0 Heists & cons 0 Legal 0 Medical 0 Political intrigue 1 Espionage 0 War & military 1 Family saga 0 Coming of age 0 Workplace 0 School & campus 0 Love story 0 Friendship 0 Found family 0 Survival 0 Post-apocalyptic 0 Dystopia 0 Supernatural 0 Space & sci-fi 0 Near-future tech 0 Time travel 0 High fantasy 0 Urban fantasy 0 Monster horror 0 Psychological horror 0 Addiction & vice 0 Mental health 0 Faith & religion 0 Sports 0 Music scene 0 Food & cooking 0 Nature & science 0 Real history 2 Royalty & aristocracy 0 Small town 0 Big city life 0 Rural & frontier 0 Suburban underbelly 0 Class divide 0 Immigrant experience 0 Queer stories 0 Female perspective 0 Social commentary 2 Philosophical 0 Existential dread 0 Revenge 0 Redemption 0 Secrets & lies 0

Characters & perspective

Antihero lead 0 Morally gray 0 Villain's POV 0 Ensemble cast 0 Central duo 0 Strong female lead 0 Child's perspective 0 Outsider lead 0 Genius lead 0 Working class 0 Elites & privilege 1 Unreliable narrator 0 Character study 0 Banter chemistry 0

Emotional payoff

Tearjerker 0 Adrenaline 0 Intellectual challenge 1 Comfort rewatch 0 Romantic yearning 0 Cathartic 0 Wonder & awe 0 Mounting dread 0 Warm glow 0 Gut punch 0

Craft & style

Dialogue-driven 0 Visually striking 0 Stylized direction 0 Naturalistic 0 Big-budget spectacle 0 Lo-fi charm 0 Atmospheric 0 Distinctive score 0 Experimental 0 Deep worldbuilding 0 Tight writing 0

Format & audience

Sitcom 0 Adult animation 0 Anime 0 Kids & family 0 Young adult 0 Soap & telenovela 0 Event miniseries 0 Reality competition 0 Lifestyle reality 0 Docuseries 3 Sketch & variety 0 Game & quiz show 0 Talk & panel 1 Period piece 1 Contemporary life 1 Long-runner 0 Built to binge 0

Viewing-culture clusters

British TV 0 Nordic noir 0 K-drama 0 Turkish drama 0 Indian TV 1

Intensity & content character

Graphic violence 0 Disturbing 0 Sexually explicit 0 Family-safe 0 Emotionally heavy 1 Easy watching 0

Sort

500 series (top 500 shown)

Great Barrier Reef

788 3 2012–2012

Bering Sea Gold: Under the Ice

699 22 2012–2014

Adventure · Documentary · Reality-TV

NASA's Unexplained Files

685 59 2012–present

Wild Things with Dominic Monaghan

670 34 2012–2016

Dawkins: Sex, Death and the Meaning of Life

635 3 2012–present

A Bite of China

626 30 2012–2012

Culture in Decline

623 6 2012–2013

Attenborough: 60 Years in the Wild

601 3 2012–2012

How to Grow a Planet

569 3 2012–present

The Dark Charisma of Adolf Hitler

550 3 2012–2012

Biography · Documentary · History

She-Wolves: England's Early Queens

543 3 2012–2012

Biography · Documentary · History

Gordon Behind Bars

524 4 2012–2012

Did You Know Gaming?

517 570 2012–present

Documentary · Short

Deadly Sins

492 57 2012–present

Crime · Documentary

Survivorman Ten Days

470 5 2012–present

Wartime Farm

452 9 2012–2012

Great Continental Railway Journeys

439 72 2012–present

Order & Disorder

420 2 2012–2012

Brazil with Michael Palin

415 4 2012–2012

Derren Brown: Fear and Faith

414 2 2012–present

Documentary · Reality-TV

Gordon Ramsay's Ultimate Cookery Course

413 20 2012–2012

Blood Relatives

411 65 2012–2017

Crime · Documentary

Food Factory

386 145 2012–present

Yamashita Tomohisa: Route 66

379 2012–present

Adventure · Documentary · Reality-TV

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Action Adult Adventure Animation Biography Comedy Crime Documentary Drama Family Fantasy Game-Show History Horror Music Musical Mystery News Reality-TV Romance Sci-Fi Short Sport Talk-Show Thriller War Western

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