The Best Television Shows of All Time

(In my rarely-if-ever-humble opinion)

I almost didn’t write this article. While I watch TV more than I watch movies or read plays, I found those lists much easier to write. Movies are much more finite than TV. Take even some of the longest-running movie series, and they won’t compare to long-running tv series (If you wanted to watch all of the James Bond movies, you’d need about 53 hours. If you wanted to watch all 9 seasons of The Office, you’d need about 74 hours).

So, how can I say which shows are the “best”, when I haven’t even finished most of them?

The answer is simple: I can’t. So, instead, I’m simply ranking these shows based on how they are at their optimal levels. For example, Family Guy is my favorite show of all time. However, out of its 19 seasons, I’d really only say seasons 1–6 are “prime” Family Guy. This helped fix my dilemma of judging shows I hadn’t seen in their entirety. Is it totally accurate? Maybe not. But hey, it’s my show list, and I’ll cry if I want to!

Enough with the opening credits. Like HBO, this article is brought to you with no commercial interruptions!

Favorite Overall: Family Guy

This show was my comedy “textbook” growing up. The way my brain works now when it’s thinking comedically, I attribute largely to this show. Any success I have in comedic acting or writing in the future, I will also have to largely attribute to this show. Seth MacFarlane is a genius, and everyone aspiring to work in adult animation would be silly to not study this show as I have!

Best Overall: Breaking Bad

While I’d rather watch Family Guy (thus crowning it my “Favorite”), nothing beats Breaking Bad. Could it have been trimmed here and there? Sure. Is it hard to find another show as gripping, culturally relevant, or phenomenal? Also yes.

Best Drama: When They See Us

Heartbreaking. Necessary. Difficult to watch. The most important TV I’ve ever seen.

Best Dramedy: Entourage

I used to hate reading TV descriptions of this show that listed it as a “Comedy”. It’s hysterical, and funnier than most standard comedies. But it really is just a drama that happens to be really funny. Or a comedy with a really intriguing storyline. Either way, a beautiful blend of Comedy and Drama. Dare I say it… Johnny Drama.

Best Sitcom: Seinfeld

I don’t know about you, but I only consider it a sitcom if it has a live studio audience/laugh track. Otherwise…every comedy would be considered a “sitcom”. After all, Sitcom stands for “Situational Comedy”…and what comedy doesn’t have situations in it? What drama for that matter? But anyway, most comedies make me chuckle maybe two or three times per episode. Seinfeld never fails to make me crack up multiple times per scene. It’s just that much funnier than everything else, and so dang quotable.

Best Single Camera Comedy: Scrubs

Few shows are as funny, and few comedies are as poignant. Also the Best Ensemble in a tv show, comedic or otherwise.

Best Action: The Walking Dead

While it may have lost its way after a while, this show was the absolute best thing on tv for its first few seasons. It may have been focused on the dead, but it was really all about the living!

Best Docuseries: Last Chance U: Basketball

Whether you’re a basketball fan or not, it’s hard to not quickly grow to care deeply about the personal and professional development of these young men. And of course, Coach Mo always has something zany up his sleeve!

Best Horror: The Haunting of Hill House

Certainly not perfect, and I haven’t seen too many shows (or movies) in the horror genre (so my basis for comparison is very thin). But this one has a lot of heart in it, and could almost be classified not so much as horror, but as a really scary family drama.

Most Unique: Six Feet Under

Never before or since have I seen a show quite like this one. Weird. Moving. Funny. Disturbing. You name it, this show’s got it!

Best Musical Show: Galavant

Step aside, Glee! A wonderful show that was cancelled far too soon. Fun, funny, and totally original songs! A hidden gem of a show, and one of the freshest ideas I’ve seen in a long time.

Best Live-Action Disney: That’s So Raven

Back in my day, you had 2 options for live-action TV: Disney Channel or Nickelodeon. I was always a Disney kid, and this show really set the bar for how good a kids show can and should be.

Best Live-Action Nickelodeon: Drake & Josh

Maybe some of the jokes didn’t age well. But if you grew up in the early 2000s, nothing was as funny!

Best Disney Animation: Mickey’s House of Mouse

Not to be confused with Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, this show was so creative in having our favorite Disney characters watching themselves in short films!

Best Nickelodeon Animation: Jimmy Neutron

Such a weird, odd, wacky show. But so good.

Most Consistently-Funny Adult Animation: American Dad!

I know, I know: I’m kind of cheating by including this separately from Family Guy, as they’re practically the same show if looked at from a bird’s eye view. But where Family Guy succeeds in its cutaway gags, this show is superb in its use of random, out-of-the-box humor. And while I’d still take Family Guy at its best, American Dad! is actually much more consistent in terms of quality.

Best-Written Adult Animation: Futurama

I know, I know, I KNOW: I’m definitely cheating by including yet ANOTHER category for Adult Animation. So, to further clarify: Family Guy is my favorite show of all time, American Dad! is the most consistently-funny, but…GOOD NEWS, EVERYONE! When it comes to the craft of writing, Futurama is truly unparalleled. It just so happens to also be hysterical.

Best Action Animation: Avatar the Last Airbender

This show has zero bad episodes, making it the most consistently great show of all time. And while most popular shows have their fans as well as their haters, I have never met anyone who has watched this show that hasn’t absolutely adored it. P.S., if I had to choose, I’d totally want to be a Waterbender…but let’s be real…I’m a Firebender all day!

Best Comedic Anime: One-Punch Man

Admittedly, I have not seen much Anime. But from what I have seen, this one packs the best…punch…man.

Best Dramatic Anime: Death Note

What an epic feat this show was. Riveting from start to finish, with a gripping story that constantly tops itself and brings an intriguing commentary on what it means to play God.

The Rest of the Pack

These beauties may not be the best in any specific way within their given genres, but they are still some of the best tv shows of all time (in not too particular of an order). Also, all of their respective seasons may not be great, but at least one season was strong enough to earn a spot on these lists:

Drama:

1. Unorthodox

2. Away

3. Dexter

4. The Morning Show

5. Daisy Jones and the Six

6. Maid

7. Designated Survivor

8. A Small Light

9. We Were the Lucky Ones

Dramedy/Other:

1. Barry

2. Succession

3. The Good Place

4. Master of None

5. Wilfred

6. Beef

7. How to Make It in America

8. Shameless

Comedy:

1. New Girl

2. Malcolm in the Middle

3. Everybody Hates Chris

4. The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel

5. Blue Mountain State

6. Freaks and Geeks

7. Undeclared

8. Friends

9. How I Met Your Mother

10. That ’70s Show

11. Modern Family

12. Reno 911!

13. Tosh.0

14. Key and Peele

15. Arrested Development

16. Glee

17. The Kominsky Method

18. Workaholics

19. The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air

20. The Jeselnik Offensive

21. The Big Bang Theory

22. The Addams Family

23. Curb Your Enthusiasm

24. Full House

25. The IT Crowd

26. Community

27. Jury Duty

28. The Other Two

Kids:

1. Boy Meets World

2. Sister, Sister

3. Lizzie McGuire

4. Phil of the Future

5. Even Stevens

6. Suite Life of Zack and Cody

Action:

1. The Boys

2. The Mandalorian

3. Game of Thrones

5. Terra Nova

6. Stranger Things

7. True Blood

Documentaries:

1. CNN’s The 70s

2. Disney Gallery: Star Wars the Mandalorian

3. Encore!

4. The Shop: Uninterrupted

5. Untold: Malice at the Palace

6. Untold: The Rise and Fall of And1

7. 30 for 30: Without Bias

8. 30 for 30: Winning Time: Reggie Miller v New York Knicks

9. 30 for 30: Bad Boys

10. 30 for 30: Benji

11. 30 for 30: The Announcement

12. Oprah Winfrey Presents: When They See Us Now

13. Disney Gallery: Star Wars The Book of Boba Fett

14. Untold: Swamp Kings

15. Muscles and Mayhem: An Unauthorized Story of American Gladiators

16. Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV

17. The Playbook: A Coach’s Rules for Life

18. The Most Hated Man on the Internet

Animated:

Adult:

1. Big Mouth

2. The Boondocks

3. Teen Titans Go!

4. BoJack horseman

5. Harley Quinn

Kids:

1. Recess

2. Rugrats

3. Hey Arnold!

4. The Proud Family

5. Kim Possible

6. Gravity Falls

Action:

1. Avatar: The Legend of Korra

2. Star Wars: Clone Wars

3. Batman: The Animated Series

4. Teen Titans

5. Batman Beyond

6. Star Wars: Rebels

7. Star Wars: The Clone Wars (not to be confused with Star Wars: Clone Wars without the “the”)

8. Superman: The Animated Series

What are you thoughts? What did I miss? What did I get just right? Let me know! And if you liked this, check out all my other Best of All Time lists!

And for more things Datz, check out eddiedatz.com!

Note: This is an ongoing list that will continue to be edited as I see more tv shows and find new favorites!