Hey everyone, the Emmy
nominations just came out. Big whoop. But that got me thinking about TV shows
that I love. So I decided to put out a list of my top 10 shows of all time. Now
this was really DIFFICULT! Oh my gosh. Sooooo HARD! There are just so many! But
while there are many shows I love, many of them are still on the air. So I
don't know how they will end. And a bad ending can ruin a great show (i.e. How
I Met Your Mother). So for my list, I chose shows I adore, that have already
ended. With a couple exceptions. But I'll get into that later. I also didn't go
with shows that had a great first season but then slowly but surely turned into
crap. So no: Once Upon a Time, Heroes, Lost, Prison Break, etc. Also if a show
was great for several season but then just kept going way too long, sorry no
list for you. So no: Supernatural (great first 5 seasons, but that's now less
than half the show), House M.D., Scrubs, Downton Abbey (so many ups and downs,
but had a good ending), etc.
Also this is a list of my
all time FAVORITE shows, so they may not necessarily be the "best shows
ever" whatever that means. Rewatchability was definitely a big factor. Plus
how excited the show made me when it was still airing played a factor. Because
yes, I watched some of these shows while they were still on the air. I know,
I'm so old. Also quick thing, there may be slight spoilers, so FYI.
So without further ado, my
list!
10. Stargate SG-1
Ah Stargate, what can I say
about you? I love this show. And you should know that I'm not a big Sci-Fi fan.
I don't like many shows that are set in space, with aliens and the like. But
Stargate was different. It had so many characters I loved. Jack O'Neill (played
by Richard Dean Anderson AKA MacGyver) with his quips and puns. I love you so.
Daniel Jackson, with his kindness and sweetness. I wanted to marry you. Teal'c,
with his "Indeeds". I think of you every time I say that word.
Samantha Carter, with your intelligence and grace. You gave girls everywhere a
badass female scientist to look up to. Vala Mal Doran, with your wit and flair.
I wanted to be your best friend. Plus you were what made the last 2 seasons watchable. Aside from the great characters, there was clever writing (the 100th
and 200th episodes are meta and fantastic!), great set pieces, and surprisingly
good CGI. It had a great series finale. And 2 more direct to DVD movies that
continued the story while wrapping up things nicely. I will miss you forever.
But all of you can watch the entire Stargate franchise on Amazon Prime! Get on
it!
Side note: I also love one
of the spin-off shows "Stargate Atlantis". But I felt like SG-1 just
barely edges it out.
9. Friends
One of the best sitcoms
ever! Mostly because unlike many other sitcoms, it remained funny all the way
through to the end. Most sitcoms lose their way and just phone it in after a
while (I'm looking at you Big Bang Theory). But Friends was different. It was
hilarious, quotable ("Something is wrong with the left phalange!"),
and interesting up until the very last episode. And most importantly it wasn't
afraid to let its characters grow and evolve. Chandler grew into an amazing
husband. Rachel became a mom. Phoebe realized she wanted a committed
relationship. And the list goes on and on. Such a great show. All the seasons
are on Netflix, so rewatch and enjoy!
8. Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Joss Whedon. He burst onto
the scene with this show and changed TV forever. Would there even be musical
episodes of shows without him? Who knows. But this show was amazing. Witty,
charming, at times very frightening (the gentlemen from the episode Hush still
give me nightmares), and also gut wrenchingly sad when it needed to be (Angel
season 2, Joyce season 5, need I say more?). This show broke so much ground
it's astonishing. It had a female lead who kicked ass and it was a show about
teenagers yet could be very adult with its themes at times. The characters are
fantastic (even if I was never a fan of Buffy). The development of Willow,
Spike, Cordelia, etc. was terrific. The writing was clever and hilarious. The
show wasn't afraid to take risks, like having an episode with almost no talking
(Hush). Or the musical episode? The list goes on and on. All the season are on
Netflix, if you haven't seen the show WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?!
Side note: I also love the spin-off
"Angel", but I went with Buffy instead because I felt like it was a
better show as a whole. But I really could have gone either way.
7. Gilmore Girls
Here is one of the
exceptions I mentioned earlier. This show did end. But is currently getting a
miniseries that will continue the story and will be on Netflix sometime this
year I believe. So the show is over and yet isn't over. Plus I have yet to
finish the final season. It was not a good season and I gave up when watching
it air originally. I am slowly but surely finishing it. But the reason the last
season is such a disappointment is that the show was SOOO good up till that
point. This is one of the funniest and most well written shows EVER. The writing
is SOOO good you guys! The fast talking Gilmore family and friends are always a
treat, no matter what mood you're in! This show had a simple premise, a mother
and daughter who are each other's best friends and the quirky small town they
live in. That's it. But it was so much more than that. The show was about
growing up and dealing with all the ups and downs that go along with it. Both
Lorelai and Rory change so much throughout the series. And so do the side
characters like Sookie (played by Melissa McCarthy long before she was
famous!), Lane, Kirk, etc. It was also a show about 2 sets of mothers and daughters,
Lorelai and Rory, and Lorelai and her mother (Emily). Lorelai and Rory are so
close, and Lorelai and Emily are so not. It's fascinating to watch. And
considering how many shows and movies out there explore the father son dynamic,
this is one of the few that deal with the other side. A side so many of us can
relate to. All the seasons are on Netflix. Watch this show!!!!
6. Psych
One of the funniest shows
EVER!! This show was incredible! Hilarious characters, clever writing, and yes
another musical episode! This is the show about a fake psychic detective (the
first one, not the rip-off The Mentalist). It's sooo funny and charming. Yet
can be dark when it needs to be, like the Mr. Yang episodes, or the one where
something bad happens to Henry. If you haven't seen this show, what's wrong
with you? Cary Elwes guest stars several times, it spoofs American Idol, and
has some of the funnies quotes EVER!! "Gus don't be this crevice in my
arm", "You hear about Pluto? That's messed up right?", and the
list goes on forever! All the seasons are on Netflix, do yourself a favor and
WATCH THIS!!
5. Sherlock
This is another one of my
exceptions. Sherlock is still on the air. If being on the air means it
occasionally comes on TV, sometimes. Years may go by but Sherlock comes back
when it wants to. So I don't know how this show will end, but if it ends
horribly then I will have to rethink this list. But for now it definitely makes
the cut. See, Sherlock on the BBC is a different kind of TV show. Even in the
U.K. where most of their seasons (or series as they call them) air 6 to 8
episodes on average. Compared to network TV here in America where 20 to 24 is
the norm. But Sherlock doesn't even do 6 episodes a season. It does 3. And each
episode is 90 minutes long. So every episode is essentially a movie. And there
are 3 of them each season. Yes it's weird. But it's also AWESOME. This show is
clever, funny, dark, and so many other things I can't even fit them all in this
list! Benedict Cumberbatch is INCREDIBLE as Sherlock Holmes. I have no idea how
he manages to memorize the insane monologues that Sherlock has, but he does and
it's amazing!!! And Martin Freeman is FANTASTIC as Dr. John Watson. Their
chemistry alone makes this show worth watching. But then there's the writing
and the side characters (Molly, Lestrade, Mycroft, etc.) and they are sooo
good! But then you also have one of the greatest TV villains ever: Moriarty
(played by Andrew Scott). He is chilling and unnerving, yet funny and
interesting. He's incredible!! The first time he appears is sooo good!! And he
just gets better and better with every scene. I can't recommend this show
enough! All the series are on Netflix. So what are you doing? Watch it!
4. Galavant
Oh Galavant, where did you
come from and where did you go? This show aired for 2 seasons on ABC. And I'm
sure none of you have seen it. Almost no one saw it, which is why it's second
season is a miracle! How do I describe this show? If the Princess Bride and
Monty Python had a baby, who was then raised on nothing but Disney animated
films, that child would be Galavant. It's a half-hour musical comedy
extravaganza! It's hilarious, clever, charming, and has some of the best
musical numbers ever put to screen! I can't even believe this show got made at
all, yet alone got 2 seasons. It's incredible! And it is now available to stream on Netflix!!! Huzzah!! The soundtrack alone is worth any price!! Watch
the clip below, it pretty much sums up the show!
3. Veronica Mars
What can I say? A long time
ago, we used to be friends. Which is totally a true statement. I watched this
show when it aired back when UPN was a network. Before it merged with the WB to
become the CW. Never did quite understand that name. But I digress. Anyway,
Veronica Mars is the teenage detective show we all never knew we needed. I know
that didn't make a whole lot of sense, but bear with me. This show was
basically a noir film set in high school with a grittier funnier version of
Nancy Drew. That's really the best way to describe it. It was dark, but funny,
complicated, yet simple. In other words, it was AMAZING! Heck my MOM likes this
show! Kirsten Bell was the perfect person to bring the character of Veronica
Mars to life. Veronica Mars was layered, complicated, funny, charming, damaged,
and I loved her. She was a 3 dimensional female character. Sad that that is so
rare in both TV and film. But it's true. I love this show. I loved it when it
aired. I bought the series on DVD and have rewatched it many times. The side
characters are also amazing! Keith, Logan, Wallace, Mac, the list goes on and
on. This show always made me laugh, often made me cry, and is the first time I
remember a scene making me gasp in shock. Insanely quotable: "You say
following. I say talking a walk with a friend", "This face? Right
here? My over-the-moon face", "Annoy, tiny blonde one. Annoy like the
wind!". I could go on forever, that's how many great quotes there are. This
show also crowd-funded a movie years later to wrap up the show and give us all
a little more Veronica Mars! If you have never seen this show, treat yourself!
It's on Amazon Prime! And the movie is also really great!
2. Firefly
Browncoats forever!! It
still hurts that this incredible show only got 1 season. Fox is the stupidest
of all the TV networks. And that's saying something when you exist in the same
universe as CBS. Firefly is yet another show from the genius Joss Whedon. It
was funny, well written, emotional, and so many other words I can't even
remember them all. The characters are fantastic! Malcolm Reynolds, River,
Simon, the man they call Jayne, Wash, etc.! So cleverly written and well acted,
this is a show that deserves it's fervent fan base. It also deserved more
seasons, but I can't cry about that anymore right now. Set in distant future
where humanity "used up" the earth and had to colonize other planets,
this show is basically a western in space. How did it not get more seasons?!
It's an amazing show that everyone should go out and watch right now! It's only
season (still chokes me up) is on Netflix. As is the follow up film, Serenity,
which was made to wrap up a lot of loose ends (and rip our hearts right out).
Something Whedon is all too good at! I don't know how you could not like this
show!
1. Pushing Daisies
Yet another show that was
taken far too soon. This is my favorite show EVER. And if you know how much TV
I watch, you'll understand what a big deal that is. What can I say about this
show? It's wonderful, amazing, and totally ineffable. It's about a man named
Ned (a pie maker) who has the ability to bring dead things (people, fruit,
animals, etc.) back to life with a single touch. But there's a catch: if he
touches them again, they're dead forever. Also if he keeps the dead thing alive
for more than a minute, something else has to die to take its place. Simple
premise, no? It has, in my humble opinion, the BEST cast on TV, EVER! Lee Pace
plays Ned, our loveable, socially inept pie maker. Kristin Chenoweth plays
Olive, the effervescent waitress who works at Ned's pie shop (the Pie Hole) and
who routinely bursts into song. Chi McBride plays Emerson Cod the hard-boiled
gum shoe who helps Ned solve murders. I can't even describe how quirky, weird,
and wonderful this show is. If Roald Dahl (if you don't know who that is, you
are dead to me) had been alive when this show came out, I would have sworn he
wrote it. That's how GOOD and ODD this show is!! Unfortunately it was cancelled
after its second season, most likely due to the writer's strike at the time.
And it is a total shame. But you can watch the show for free on the CW Seed,
look it up. You won't be sorry!
And there you have it! My
top 10 favorite shows of all time! This was so hard! Some shows that almost
made my list were: Smallville (I even watched the bad seasons, that's how much
I loved you!), I Love Lucy (still hilarious even today!), The Mary Tyler Moore
Show (I used to wake up at 7am every morning when I was younger because that's
when the reruns would air on TVLand!), Gilligan's Island (seen every episode
multiple times and loved all of them, way better show than Lost!), and Community
(I still haven't seen the last 2 seasons, because the last season was on Yahoo
and I haven't got around to buying it yet). Thanks for reading!
