Top 100 TV shows ever (according to Rolling Stone)

[KevShmev]

https://www.rollingstone.com/tv-movies/tv-movie-lists/best-tv-shows-of-all-time-1234598313/

Great top 3, IMO, as my number 1 ended up at number 3, and my number 2 ended up at number 1. And their number 2 would be pretty high for me as well.

Disclaimer: yes, Rolling Stone is trash, but always fun to give these a read.

[Lonk]

Radio station I listen to on my way to work was talking about this. I have to admit, besides The Simpsons (not so much the past 15 years), and a few episodes of Seinfield here and there, I have not seen much of the top-10.

Weird they included Squid Game there, even if low on the list. I would've included Mr. Robot in there instead of Squid Game.

[soupytwist]

Wow the American bias is funny!

[SoundscapeMN]

I count 23 of the 100 shows premiered in the last 10 years.

'nuff said.

[Lonk]

I count 23 of the 100 shows premiered in the last 10 years.

'nuff said.

I don't think that's an issue. With the amount of content coming out in the last decade, some of those shows are bound to be better than older ones.

[soupytwist]

I count 23 of the 100 shows premiered in the last 10 years.

'nuff said.

Even then I think some modern omissions (ignoring the general lack of shows outside of the USA) are odd - (don't think I saw) Stranger Things, The Expanse, Chernobyl, Handmaiden Tale, Cobra Kai, Mr Robot, Black Mirror.  Yet Russian Doll makes the list?

[King Postwhore]

I count 23 of the 100 shows premiered in the last 10 years.

'nuff said.

Even then I think some modern omissions (ignoring the general lack of shows outside of the USA) are odd - (don't think I saw) Stranger Things, The Expanse, Chernobyl, Handmaiden Tale, Cobra Kai, Mr Robot, Black Mirror.  Yet Russian Doll makes the list?

I would think it would lean heavy on American shows since it is an American magazine.  If the list came from a European mag I'd expect it to lean more on European shows.

[pg1067]

Oh goodie!  A publication for which I have ZERO respect made a list about something subjective and personal.  I can't wait to read it.

I count 23 of the 100 shows premiered in the last 10 years.

'nuff said.

Is that too many or too few?  The history of TV is about 70 years, so you've got 23% of the content representing about 14% of the time.  However, the amount of content has increased pretty significantly, so 23% is probably pretty fair.

I would think it would lean heavy on American shows since it is an American magazine.  If the list came from a European mag I'd expect it to lean more on European shows.

Exactly.

[gmillerdrake]

Cool list.....you can argue placement of a few of those being how subjective it is.....but, it's just a reminder of how many good shows there have been out there.

[ProfessorPeart]

Well, if you look at the list of voters, it gives a bit more weight to the list.

https://www.rollingstone.com/tv-movies/tv-movie-features/best-tv-shows-all-time-voters-1234599937/

[KevShmev]

I would think it would lean heavy on American shows since it is an American magazine.  If the list came from a European mag I'd expect it to lean more on European shows.

Agreed x 1,000.

I count 23 of the 100 shows premiered in the last 10 years.

'nuff said.

Is that too many or too few?  The history of TV is about 70 years, so you've got 23% of the content representing about 14% of the time.  However, the amount of content has increased pretty significantly, so 23% is probably pretty fair.

Not to mention that the last 25 years (pretty much since the start of The Sopranos) has been the golden age of television when it comes to dramas. Sitcoms aren't what they used to be, but dramatic television is so far ahead of what it was back in the day.  I mean, Dallas was probably the most popular TV drama of the 80s. That says it all.

[HOF]

Don’t have time to read the whole list. Where did they rank Family Matters.

[soupytwist]

I count 23 of the 100 shows premiered in the last 10 years.

'nuff said.

Even then I think some modern omissions (ignoring the general lack of shows outside of the USA) are odd - (don't think I saw) Stranger Things, The Expanse, Chernobyl, Handmaiden Tale, Cobra Kai, Mr Robot, Black Mirror.  Yet Russian Doll makes the list?

I would think it would lean heavy on American shows since it is an American magazine.  If the list came from a European mag I'd expect it to lean more on European shows.

I think it'd have a better balance.

[King Postwhore]

Sure if the people who wrote this were worldly. Last year I found out that GB had a Law & Order show. I never knew that.

The more people more towards streaming services, the more world TV most will watch. 

[faizoff]

That's actually not a bad list, I get that it's all TV but lumping shows like SNL, Johnny Carson, Band of Brothers and some that are still airing would be very hard for me to rank them all together. Some are on my list to watch.

[T-ski]

No WKRP, not a valid list. 

[Lonk]

Don’t have time to read the whole list. Where did they rank Family Matters.

Did not rank.

[HOF]

Don’t have time to read the whole list. Where did they rank Family Matters.

Did not rank.

No Urkel? Invalid list IMO.

[Lonk]

Full list for refence:

1. The Sopranos
2. The Simpsons
3. Breaking Bad
4. The Wire
5. Fleabag
6. Seinfeld
7. Mad Men
8. Cheers
9. Atlanta
10. The Mary Tyler Moore Show
11. Succession
12. The Twilight Zone
13. Veep
14. The Americans
15. The Larry Sanders Show
16. Twin Peaks
17. The Leftovers
18. Saturday Night Live
19. I May Destroy You
20. 30 Rock
21. All in the Family
22. Star Trek
23. Watchmen
24. Freaks and Geeks
25. M*A*S*H
26. Sesame Street
27. Deadwood
28. Friday Night Lights
29. Roots
30. Parks and Recreation
31. Game of Thrones
32. Better Call Saul
33. Monty Python's Flying Circus
34. The Office (U.S.)
35. Lost
36. I Love Lucy
37. Arrested Development
38. Hill Street Blues
39. Curb Your Enthusiasm
40. The Good Place
41. BoJack Horseman
42. Battlestar Galactica
43. Insecure
44. Late Night With David Letterman
45. Columbo
46. The West Wing
47. My So-Called Life
48. The Shield
49. Friends
50. Jeopardy!
51. The X-Files
52. Barry
53. The Office (U.K.)
54. ER
55. Halt and Catch Fire
56. Community
57. Russian Doll
58. Six Feet Under
59. Key & Peele
60. Taxi
61. The Underground Railroad
62. The Dick Van Dyke Show
63. South Park
64. The Golden Girls
65. Girls
66. The Daily Show With Jon Stewart
67. NYPD Blue
68. Fawlty Towers
69. Chappelle's Show
70. SCTV
71. Better Things
72. Good Times
73. Buffy the Vampire Slayer
74. The Honeymooners
75. Frasier
76. Justified
77. The Jeffersons
78. Sex and the City
79. Mr. Show with Bob and David
80. Band of Brothers
81. It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
82. Party Down
83. I'm Alan Partridge
84. Fargo
85. Orange Is the New Black
86. The Bob Newhart Show
87. The Kids in the Hall
88. The Crown
89. The Carol Burnett Show
90. The Wonder Years
91. The Tonight Show With Johnny Carson
92. The Muppet Show
93. The Rockford Files
94. NewsRadio
95. Squid Game
96. Rick and Morty
97. The Odd Couple
98. The Good Fight
99. Oz
100. What We Do in the Shadows

[faizoff]

I've watched 32 of those shows start to finish. Several others where I've watched many episodes but haven't completed yet. Don't know if I would count any of the talk shows or comedy series like SNL as I've seen a bunch.

[Stadler]

Couple thoughts:

- Rolling Stone, so I go in assuming it's more hipster than accurate, and that has proved true.

- How can there be easily 10 shows I've not only not watched, but literally have NEVER even HEARD of.  I'm not TAC, I don't live under a rock... that's not possible.

- How are Fleabag and Atlanta in the top 10 -  TOP 10! - and All In The Family, M*A*S*H and Star Trek aren't even in the top 20?  Star Trek; as much as I'm not really that big a fan, the legacy and impact of that show is undeniable.  All In The Family; there's never been a show like it (as much as Roseanne tried).

- Which reminds me; whatever you think of her politics - and this IS Rolling Stone after all - doesn't the original Roseanne deserve a mention?

- Dragnet; that fucker started the whole procedural idea.

- Lawyers are shortshrifted here;  no Perry Mason? No LA Law?  No Ally McBeal?  C'mon. 

[soupytwist]

All In The Family; there's never been a show like it (as much as Roseanne tried).

Never heard of it.

Edit : Just wiki'ed it.  It's based on 'Till Death to us Part', I guess it never got shown in the  UK showing as we already had the original version.

[Stadler]

All In The Family; there's never been a show like it (as much as Roseanne tried).

Never heard of it.

Edit : Just wiki'ed it.  It's based on 'Till Death to us Part', I guess it never got shown in the  UK showing as we already had the original version.

Maybe that's why it's not higher on the list.  For better or worse, there were things on that show that have never been seen again on American TV (and won't ever be seen again given the climate for social issues in our country).

[soupytwist]

All In The Family; there's never been a show like it (as much as Roseanne tried).

Never heard of it.

Edit : Just wiki'ed it.  It's based on 'Till Death to us Part', I guess it never got shown in the  UK showing as we already had the original version.

Maybe that's why it's not higher on the list.  For better or worse, there were things on that show that have never been seen again on American TV (and won't ever be seen again given the climate for social issues in our country).

Till Death....is a show that hasn't been repeated for years, although hugly popular in the 60's and 70's it's got a reputation of being racist.

[Stadler]

All In The Family; there's never been a show like it (as much as Roseanne tried).

Never heard of it.

Edit : Just wiki'ed it.  It's based on 'Till Death to us Part', I guess it never got shown in the  UK showing as we already had the original version.

Maybe that's why it's not higher on the list.  For better or worse, there were things on that show that have never been seen again on American TV (and won't ever be seen again given the climate for social issues in our country).

Till Death....is a show that hasn't been repeated for years, although popular in the 60's and 70's it's got a reputation of being racist.

Well, that's the point; the CHARACTER of Archie Bunker - the main protagonist of AITF - is clearly a racist and a bigot.  But the SHOW wasn't; almost the entire supporting cast (except for Edith, his wife) was a counter weight to that, and the purpose of the show was to highlight the narrow-mindedness and illogicality of bigotry.   

We're going to devolve into P/R really quickly here, but that's the difference between 1974 and 2022.  It's not about the message or the intent anymore, it's about the perception and the sheen.   

[soupytwist]

All In The Family; there's never been a show like it (as much as Roseanne tried).

Never heard of it.

Edit : Just wiki'ed it.  It's based on 'Till Death to us Part', I guess it never got shown in the  UK showing as we already had the original version.

Maybe that's why it's not higher on the list.  For better or worse, there were things on that show that have never been seen again on American TV (and won't ever be seen again given the climate for social issues in our country).

Till Death....is a show that hasn't been repeated for years, although popular in the 60's and 70's it's got a reputation of being racist.

Well, that's the point; the CHARACTER of Archie Bunker - the main protagonist of AITF - is clearly a racist and a bigot.  But the SHOW wasn't; almost the entire supporting cast (except for Edith, his wife) was a counter weight to that, and the purpose of the show was to highlight the narrow-mindedness and illogicality of bigotry.   

Same but substitute Archie Bunker for Alf Garnett!

https://whatculture.com/tv/10-tv-shows-you-never-knew-were-blatant-rip-offs?page=4

[pg1067]

I would think it would lean heavy on American shows since it is an American magazine.  If the list came from a European mag I'd expect it to lean more on European shows.

Agreed x 1,000.

Also, and I don't have any numbers, but I'd bet a dollar that the volume of American content surpasses all other English speaking content combined.

Couple thoughts:

- How can there be easily 10 shows I've not only not watched, but literally have NEVER even HEARD of.  I'm not TAC, I don't live under a rock... that's not possible.

I don't even get a mention here?!   

19 shows (including 2 of the top 10) I've never heard of (including Watchmen, which I assume is based on the movie, which I've seen, but I didn't know there was a TV show; and Key & Peele, whom I know, but again didn't know about the TV show).  Another 34 (including 3 of the top 4) of which I've never seen a single episode (or, if I have, I don't recall).  On the other end of the spectrum, only 12-15 shows of which I've seen every episode (either for sure or reasonably confident).

lumping shows like SNL, Johnny Carson, Band of Brothers and some that are still airing would be very hard for me to rank them all together.

Yeah...you've got network sitcoms, network dramas, cable dramas, variety shows, talk shows, a couple miniseries and a game show.  I have no idea how to compare Jeopardy! to Roots or The Wire.

[ProfessorPeart]

Pushing back against the 'hipster' and 'Rolling Stone' factor since it seems my voter list post was ignored. Here's who voted. Some heavy hitters in the world of TV media.

Pamela Adlon, co-creator and actor, Better Things
Judd Apatow, showrunner, Freaks and Geeks
Tara Ariano, co-host, Extra Hot Great podcast
Betsy Beers, producer, Grey’s Anatomy, Bridgerton
Raphael Bob-Waksberg, creator, BoJack Horseman
Sarah D. Bunting, co-host, Extra Hot Great podcast
Lizzy Caplan, actor, Masters of Sex, Party Down
Chris Carter, creator, The X-Files
Jen Chaney, TV critic, Vulture
Sean T. Collins, TV journalist, The New York Times, Observer, Vulture
Carrie Coon, actor, The Gilded Age, The Leftovers, Fargo
David Cross, co-creator and actor, Mr. Show With Bob and David
Eric Deggans, TV critic, NPR
Paul Feig, creator, Freaks and Geeks
Daniel Fienberg, chief TV critic, The Hollywood Reporter
Maria Fontoura, deputy editor, Rolling Stone
Elisabeth Garber-Paul, culture editor, Rolling Stone
Roxana Hadadi, TV critic, Vulture
Tony Hale, actor, Veep, Arrested Development
Jon Hamm, actor, Mad Men
Aisha Harris, co-host, NPR Pop Culture Happy Hour
Brian Hiatt, senior writer, Rolling Stone
Linda Holmes, co-host, NPR Pop Culture Happy Hour
Michelle King, co-creator, The Good Wife, The Good Fight
Robert King, co creator, The Good Wife, The Good Fight
Kelly Lawler, TV critic, USA Today
Bill Lawrence, creator, Scrubs, co-creator, Ted Lasso
Tracy Letts, actor, Homeland, Winning Time; playwright, August Osage County
Damon Lindelof, co-creator, Lost, The Leftovers
Natasha Lyonne, co-creator and actor, Russian Doll
Glenn Mazzara, former showrunner, The Walking Dead
Soraya Nadia McDonald, senior critic, Andscape
Joel McHale, actor, Community, The Soup
Marti Noxon, producer, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Grey’s Anatomy
Richard Rushfield, columnist, The Ankler
Maureen Ryan, contributing editor, Vanity Fair
Shawn Ryan, co-creator, The Shield
Ray Romano, actor, Everybody Loves Raymond
Stephanie Savage, executive producer, Gossip Girl, The O.C.
Mike Schur, co-creator, Parks and Recreation; creator, The Good Place
Alan Sepinwall, chief TV critic, Rolling Stone
Rob Sheffield, contributing editor, Rolling Stone
Janine Sherman Barrois, executive producer, Claws
Doreen St. Felix, staff writer, The New Yorker
Ben Stiller, executive producer, Severance, The Ben Stiller Show
Rob Thomas, creator, Veronica Mars; co-creator, Party Down
Ben Travers, critic and deputy editor, IndieWire
Kathryn VanArendonk, critic, Vulture
Glen Weldon, co-host, NPR Pop Culture Happy Hour
Alison Weinflash, managing editor, Rolling Stone
Joe Weisberg, executive producer, The Americans, The Patient
Terrence Winter, creator, Boardwalk Empire; writer, The Sopranos
Sean Woods, executive editor, Rolling Stone

[KevShmev]

Well, that's the point; the CHARACTER of Archie Bunker - the main protagonist of AITF - is clearly a racist and a bigot.  But the SHOW wasn't; almost the entire supporting cast (except for Edith, his wife) was a counter weight to that, and the purpose of the show was to highlight the narrow-mindedness and illogicality of bigotry.   

We're going to devolve into P/R really quickly here, but that's the difference between 1974 and 2022.  It's not about the message or the intent anymore, it's about the perception and the sheen.

Bingo.  All in the Family is not racist by any stretch of the imagination, just like The Jeffersons wasn't either.  And I think they did a great job in both cases of showing that neither Archie nor George were bad or mean guys; they were just narrow-minded men who couldn't get past the deep-seeded ignorance ingrained in them for their entire lives. 

- Which reminds me; whatever you think of her politics - and this IS Rolling Stone after all - doesn't the original Roseanne deserve a mention?

I never liked Roseanne Barr or her show, so I will give an emphatic NO.

TV shows can be like music: just because something was hugely popular in its time doesn't mean it will necessarily age well.  I was talking to a friend about this, who insisted that The Beverly Hillbillies should have been on the list because it was apparently the most popular show on TV for x-number of years, but that feels like one of those shows you'd watch now and think, oof.

[The Realm]

It seems to be a pretty good list. I have seen about half of the shows listed. Before even looking at the list I would have guessed The Sopranos or Breaking Bad for number 1.
As a huge fan of the much of The Simpsons I am still a bit surprised to see this at number 2.
Fleabag is just a brilliant show but still surprised it ranked so high, same with Watchmen (also awesome but a surprise ranking) and also The Leftovers (awesome but a surprise ranking).
Six Feet Under and The West Wing are ranked too low for me and maybe even Deadwood.

[hefdaddy42]

I could certainly quibble with rankings of individual shows based on my personal tastes, but it's a good list of shows.

[Stadler]

Pushing back against the 'hipster' and 'Rolling Stone' factor since it seems my voter list post was ignored. Here's who voted. Some heavy hitters in the world of TV media.

Pamela Adlon, co-creator and actor, Better Things
Judd Apatow, showrunner, Freaks and Geeks
Tara Ariano, co-host, Extra Hot Great podcast
Betsy Beers, producer, Grey’s Anatomy, Bridgerton
Raphael Bob-Waksberg, creator, BoJack Horseman
Sarah D. Bunting, co-host, Extra Hot Great podcast
Lizzy Caplan, actor, Masters of Sex, Party Down
Chris Carter, creator, The X-Files
Jen Chaney, TV critic, Vulture
Sean T. Collins, TV journalist, The New York Times, Observer, Vulture
Carrie Coon, actor, The Gilded Age, The Leftovers, Fargo
David Cross, co-creator and actor, Mr. Show With Bob and David
Eric Deggans, TV critic, NPR
Paul Feig, creator, Freaks and Geeks
Daniel Fienberg, chief TV critic, The Hollywood Reporter
Maria Fontoura, deputy editor, Rolling Stone
Elisabeth Garber-Paul, culture editor, Rolling Stone
Roxana Hadadi, TV critic, Vulture
Tony Hale, actor, Veep, Arrested Development
Jon Hamm, actor, Mad Men
Aisha Harris, co-host, NPR Pop Culture Happy Hour
Brian Hiatt, senior writer, Rolling Stone
Linda Holmes, co-host, NPR Pop Culture Happy Hour
Michelle King, co-creator, The Good Wife, The Good Fight
Robert King, co creator, The Good Wife, The Good Fight
Kelly Lawler, TV critic, USA Today
Bill Lawrence, creator, Scrubs, co-creator, Ted Lasso
Tracy Letts, actor, Homeland, Winning Time; playwright, August Osage County
Damon Lindelof, co-creator, Lost, The Leftovers
Natasha Lyonne, co-creator and actor, Russian Doll
Glenn Mazzara, former showrunner, The Walking Dead
Soraya Nadia McDonald, senior critic, Andscape
Joel McHale, actor, Community, The Soup
Marti Noxon, producer, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Grey’s Anatomy
Richard Rushfield, columnist, The Ankler
Maureen Ryan, contributing editor, Vanity Fair
Shawn Ryan, co-creator, The Shield
Ray Romano, actor, Everybody Loves Raymond
Stephanie Savage, executive producer, Gossip Girl, The O.C.
Mike Schur, co-creator, Parks and Recreation; creator, The Good Place
Alan Sepinwall, chief TV critic, Rolling Stone
Rob Sheffield, contributing editor, Rolling Stone
Janine Sherman Barrois, executive producer, Claws
Doreen St. Felix, staff writer, The New Yorker
Ben Stiller, executive producer, Severance, The Ben Stiller Show
Rob Thomas, creator, Veronica Mars; co-creator, Party Down
Ben Travers, critic and deputy editor, IndieWire
Kathryn VanArendonk, critic, Vulture
Glen Weldon, co-host, NPR Pop Culture Happy Hour
Alison Weinflash, managing editor, Rolling Stone
Joe Weisberg, executive producer, The Americans, The Patient
Terrence Winter, creator, Boardwalk Empire; writer, The Sopranos
Sean Woods, executive editor, Rolling Stone

Respectfully, I didn't ignore the list; there are some real heavy hitters there, true, but there are a lot of people who are invested in the industry NOW, and invested in the current line of thinking in the industry. The first name; Pamela Adlon worked on "Louie" the show with Louis CK, and even though friends and co-workers with Louie for a decade, has addmittedly "not spoken to him at all" in the wake of the actuations against him, not coincidentally, in an article in Rolling Stone.   As much as I like her work, Lizzy Caplan, who I mentioned in a previous post about Hot Tub Time Machine, is the definition of hipster.    Rob Sheffield and Alan Sepinwall both WRITE for Rolling Stone and while I don't read it much anymore I did read it religiously for almost a decade and have read hundreds of articles that make their positional stance well known.   

I'm not going to go down each person - I don't know each person on that list - but in an age of pod-casts, in an age of "if you're not with us, you're against us", I'm sorry, but I'm skeptical of a list like that put out by a magazine like that.  I just am. Rolling Stone is as biased as Fox News, if not more so, because they are PROUD of it, and in fact, Jan Wenner has made it clear it's on purpose.

[Adami]

So it's their list. I don't agree with most of it, but luckily like any random list of opinions, I can simply look and move on.

[Stadler]

So it's their list. I don't agree with most of it, but luckily like any random list of opinions, I can simply look and move on.

As can I.  It's just conversation.  I'm not losing a minute's sleep on this (though it's a nice distraction from the things that ARE keeping me up at night).

[Adami]

So it's their list. I don't agree with most of it, but luckily like any random list of opinions, I can simply look and move on.

As can I.  It's just conversation.  I'm not losing a minute's sleep on this (though it's a nice distraction from the things that ARE keeping me up at night).

Oh don't lie, you've been up all night thinking about this!

I know....I've been watching.