Great post Ninjabait! Breaking Bad has five seasons however
Since I want to wash my mouth of the clusterfuck that Game of Thrones' final season was, which are some shows praised for their great writing? I understand that The Wire and Sons of Anarchy are highly rated through and through, any other series like Breaking Bad whose general consensus is "basically a masterpiece from beginning to end"?
Oops. Fixed it. Thanks for pointing that out.
And for your question. From what I've listed (although all of them will work):
Person of Interest has decently written first two seasons, but they do follow a typical "case of the week" format for the most part. The last three seasons are incredibly well written however, and there is not a wasted moment. Super serialized. It has several episodes with ratings above 9.5, and the average is well in the 9s. Very satisfying ending.
Broadchurch [UK] is short by Western TV standards, but it kept me on the edge of my seat consistently throughout both seasons. The finale for Season 1 has a 9.1/10 on IMDb, and most episodes are in the high 8s.
Attack on Titan is currently ongoing, but this current season has continuously topped itself and has been consistently praised for its storytelling, character, and writing. A lot of 9s, and it currently holds the slot for "
highest rated episode on IMDb".
Gravity Falls is a slow burn, but the first season is littered with clues that make rewatching it more fun. One of its episodes was the second highest rated episode of all time, just beyond Breaking Bad's Ozymandias. Extremely well written.
Steins;Gate (watch both the original season and Steins;Gate 0) is also well known for its great writing, storytelling, and characters. Every officially released episode in season 2 has at least an 8 on IMDb, there are several 9s in both seasons, and it averages somewhere in the high 8s.
Avatar the Last Airbender is...Avatar the Last Airbender. I'm just gonna assume you've seen it.
FMA: Brotherhood has a shaky first episode, but it is almost unanimously agreed to be the "best starter anime" and it's writing, characters, and story are all iconic.
Death Note is also a fantastic series that has been consistently praised for its writing, intriguing twists, and characters.
Scrubs is weird because it's a comedy/drama, but it does have several episodes with 9/10 or more on IMDb and gets surprisingly profound. If you wan't to watch something lighter with great writing (comedic and otherwise), this would be good.
And that last category is...something else. They're the kinds of shows you THINK you're ready to watch, but you're actually never ready to watch.
So just pick one that fits what you want to watch best lol.