Thu, June 16, 2005
Top Ten TV Shows, All-Time
Those rat bastards from the List Brigade are at it again. They forced me to list my top ten TV shows, all-time, and since I had to work for hours on it, I decided I might as well leverage that into some free onebee content as well. Herewith:
Futurama (1999-2003)
There are a lot of shows I've loved and I find it very difficult to rank them since obviously the newer ones are fresher in my mind. It's an imperfect system, but I chose to weight them according to excellence over the course of their run. Shows that stayed excellent longer stayed closer to the top. (Yes, this unfairly advantages shows that died quickly; it's an imperfect system.) Futurama didn't actually win me over at first, but it was still 98% always excellent over the course of its run because if I watch the early episodes now, I like them as much as any. This was a very well planned show with hilarious characters and mind-bending situations that managed to be funny at the same time. Bender will be remembered as TV's ultimate comic foil. (Plus, Kristin Gore, easily the hottest TV writer ever.)NewsRadio (1995-1999)
These guys simply never did anything wrong. If it weren't for Brynn Hartman, the show might still be going today. It was simultaneously the perfect ensemble comedy, an absurd commentary on workplace politics, and a scathing critique of sitcom clichés. Nobody in the cast was less than fantastic - even Jon Lovitz was great, he just had the deck stacked against him. Khandi Alexander was less funny than the rest, but provided a useful straight character in some situations, then left once those situations ran out.Seinfeld (1990-1998)
Excellent characters, hilarious stories, deliciously twisted plots. Went through some interesting changes and survived them well. (Before season 2, when the show's style changed a great deal; after season 7, when Larry David left - as Brandon has aptly put it in the past, Jerry Seinfeld was the silly voice of the show, and without David's balancing influence, "the show got progressively more goofy and absurd (a period that gets looked down upon a lot, but I enjoyed it)." Me too.) Incorporated recurring guest characters intelligently. Always funny.Ed (2000-2004)
Very funny show which wisely straddled humor and drama, and handled the "will they/won't they" romance angle as deftly as NewsRadio, which is to say as deftly as any show I've seen.Grand (1990)
I'm sure my memory of this show's brilliance wildly exceeds its actual brilliance, but we won't know until someone releases some frickin' DVDs! (I refuse to do a TV top ten that excludes Bonnie Hunt.)Curb Your Enthusiasm (2000-present)
Side-splittingly funny and impossible to look away from no matter how uncomfortable it is to watch. This show is probably the best argument for the existence of HBO. I refuse to believe that TV is improved by cursing and nudity (as much as I love cursing and nudity), but Larry David is much funnier when he can be extraordinarily inappropriate.Veronica Mars (2004-present)
The best first season of any show ever. The best currently running example of what a TV show creator should do, vis a vis laying out a season arc and a series arc and following them from the start without giving too much away. This show is packed with nothing but potential. I've ranted about all of this plenty already, so I'll stop now.The Daily Show (1996-present)
I very much enjoyed the Kilborn years and I very, very much enjoy the show now. It's my primary source for national news, and I like it that way. It had a rocky period reinventing itself when the hosts switched, but it's unstoppable now and I'm very proud of the show it's grown up to be. I agree with its politics most of the time, but I always agree with its critique of the media culture.Alias (2001-present)
Tight, well paced, and beautiful to watch. Folds intrigue, character, and humor into the mix nicely. Despite some wrong turns story-wise (by writers and network execs alike), always a thrill ride.Cheers (1982-1993)
Weathered change well, always funny. For all intents and purposes, this show introduced me to what a sitcom is. Which was lucky, because it was unlike most sitcoms of its age, and most since. Dick van Dyke, the Bob Newhart shows, and maybe a handful of others had elevated sitcoms to such an art before Cheers came along.
Honorable mention, in no particular order: (Two of these were on the list before I added the numbers and realized I'd accidentally done 12!) Sports Night, Family Guy, Arrested Development, The Simpsons, The Office (BBC), Letterman, The X-Files, The West Wing, The Kids in the Hall, Everybody Loves Raymond, Fawlty Towers, Soap, Friends. (And, as mentioned before, The Dick van Dyke Show, The Bob Newhart Show, and Newhart.)
(By the way, they also conned me out of my top ten shows this season, which were the following.)
- Veronica Mars
- Arrested Development
- The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
- Huff
- Celebrity Poker Showdown
- Boston Legal
- Everybody Loves Raymond
- Alias
- Scrubs
- NUMB3RS
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Anonymous Coward — Thu, 6/16/05 7:15pm
Arrested Development over ED - totally
Sports Night over Grand
Family Guy over Futurama
Fawlty Towers, Friends & Soap over Alias, Veronica Mars and Cheers
Okay, your honorable mentions are the winners, granted I haven't seen all of the "winners" but ignorance is bliss
Bee Boy — Thu, 6/16/05 10:53pm
Ignorance is bliss, except in the case of Veronica, where it's stubborn wrong-headedness. I'm fanatical about supporting that show for a reason, people!
I'll admit Ed was a sentimental pick and over time Arrested Development will probably prove its worthiness to move much higher onto the list. I got caught up in the moment.
But Futurama I stand by. Family Guy is more outrageous and often features more laughs per minute, but this isn't the top ten funniest shows. (I did that earlier, and look – Family Guy over Futurama.)
Futurama broke the boundaries of comedy, animation, and sci-fi. It was very funny (employing many different styles of humor, which is key) and deftly covered physics, philosophy, and spirituality without becoming geeky. "Godfellas" (Season 4) is the closest I've ever come to believing in a higher power – and my exuberant fascination with "The Why of Fry" (Season 5) has already been documented. Episodes of Family Guy may be funnier, but as a series Futurama was more ambitious and more impressive.
"Clarissa" — Mon, 6/20/05 7:45pm
I totally agree about Veronica Mars – that had to be one of the best single seasons of a tv show I've ever seen, let alone a debut season. By the end of the year, VM was easily the best drama on network TV, far more satisfying than Lost or Despearate Housewives, and better than 24 and Alias also. I think VM may be on my list of top 10 shows ever also, but I hate to rank it after just one season. I just can't imagine how it could get better next year.
Joe Mulder — Tue, 6/21/05 9:34am
I can. Boobs.
Anonymous Coward — Tue, 6/28/05 4:01pm
not to be mean but your top 10 sucked
Brandon — Tue, 6/28/05 4:22pm
Okay, so who had June 28th at 4:01pm in the Proving Brandon's Point Pool? (My apologies for an inside joke that's only going to be funny to Jameson, Joe and Mike, but I couldn't resist)
Bee Boy — Tue, 6/28/05 5:11pm
haha! Clarissa's comment more than makes up for it – except, she forgot to leave her phone number. Planning our elopement is going to be a lot more challenging without that information.
But, I'd rather have an open forum in which everyone disagrees with me than no forum at all. (I was re-reading the Fahrenheit 9/11 debate just yesterday – what fun!)
I don't take it personally. Nobody said I sucked, just those shows. Which, frankly... six of them aren't even on the air any more. They really haven't been pulling their weight lately.
"Toby" — Sun, 8/21/05 2:44am
I'd agree with futurama over family guy. I own all the seasons of both and both are funny, but the humour in family guy isn't as clever or unexpected as it is in futurama... and some FG episodes just plain suck whereas futurama is almost impecably consistent.
Arrested Development SHOULD have made the list as well!!!
Anonymous Coward — Wed, 1/31/07 8:22am
Funny, how you left out so many classic shows which blow away all of your top ten shows. You need to educate yourself on good tv programing.
Joe Mulder — Wed, 1/31/07 12:59pm
I love the idea that there are at least ten shows that would "blow away" "Cheers," "Seinfeld" and "Curb Your Enthusiasm."
I think some anonymous poster needs to educate himself on not getting crapped on by his alcoholic father and having that make him grow up to be angry at the world.
And, just to cut Anonymous Coward's legs out from under him: Hitler!
Headed him off at the pass, there, didn't I?
"Mike" — Wed, 1/31/07 1:39pm
Here's my take on our Anonymous Coward's "Educated Good TV Programming Top 10"
"Farmall" — Wed, 8/22/07 9:30am
I Think The Dukes Of Hazzard Schould Be In the Top Ten Tv. Shows.