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Top 100 TV Shows of All-Time Countdown

I'm going to count down my top 100 songs of all-time, and better yet, I'm going
to write a little blurb about each song, and if applicable, give credit to the person
who introduced me to it.  Thanks to amazon.com for "letting" me steal these album
images.  I'll also help jog your memory by including a lyric sample from each song.

#21-40 #41-60 #61-80  #81-100

 

#1-20 May 2, 2007
	1. Seinfeld, NBC, 1989-1998 Was there ever really any doubt?  I've based my life on the things that I've seen on this show.  I am certain I've seen every episode a minimum of ten times and they never get old.  Well, okay, a handful of episodes from season one are weak, but otherwise it's "gold, Jerry, gold," as Kenny Bania would say.  I can't even begin to estimate how many hundreds and thousands of hours I've sat in front of the TV watching Seinfeld.  And the greatest part is its rewatchability.  I may never get tired of it!
	2. "Freaks and Geeks," NBC, 1999-2000 The worst cancellation in the history of TV--with all due respect to Arrested Development--was NBC giving up after one season of Freaks and Geeks in 2000.  The one-hour drama about high schoolers in 1980 Michigan was so good.  Any show that is so spot-on that it makes you reevaluate your own life has to get its due.  Plus Linda Cardellini as Lindsay, well, that certainly doesn't hurt the show's status.
	3. "The Office," BBC, 2001-2003 Loyal fans of the American Office, there is a better version of the show.  As awesome at the US version is, the original British version is far superior.  Ricky Gervais played a much worse boss than Steve Carell does.  And by worse, I mean the character.  Once in a while Michael Scott shows a tender moment where you care about him.  David Brent was just awful from start to finish... well, until the absolute final minute of the final episode, anyway.  The show also boasts my favorite single episode of a TV show, with its 2003 two-part Christmas special.
	4. "Arrested Development," FOX, 2003-2006 The second worst cancellation of a show in TV history--by the narrowest of margins--had to be FOX dumping Arrested Development after just 2 1/2 seasons.  It was the funniest show on TV at the time, and possibly the one show ever that you had to pay close attention to every second or you'd be lost.  And the fact that virtually every friend I had was a huge fan of this show speaks volumes.
	5. "The Wonder Years," ABC, 1988-1993 One of the greatest comedy/dramas ever was The Wonder Years, a show that my entire graduating class seemed to be obsessed with.  I watched the show in its final season, then saw the other episodes in reruns on Nick at Nite and later, TNN.  In fact, I had my own little commercial that aired on TNN in between episodes of the show, which thanked TNN for its excellent broadcasting.
	6. "Scrubs," NBC, 2001-present Not a bad spot on the chart for a show I had never seen prior to November 2006.  But now, mere months later, I've seen every episode and can't wait for the new ones Thursday nights.  I appreciate nothing more than a hilarious comedy with plenty of off-the-wall moments, brilliant writing, and the occasional emotional moment.
	7. "The Office," NBC, 2004-present To be fair, it's a virtual toss-up between Scrubs and The Office as the best current show on TV.  But, given Scrubs tenure, The Office will have to take a backseat for now.  The acting is phenomenal, especially considering most of the minor characters had almost no acting experience prior to the show.  The one plus US's office has over UK's would be the receptionist--Pam over Dawn--although I know Jason would argue that to the death.
	8. "Little House on the Prairie," NBC, 1975-1983 Perhaps I got so into this show because the real-life Little House stories took place in our own backyard.  Or maybe it was the way NBC manipulated Laura Ingalls' stories to be fit for TV.  Or maybe there was nothing better to do from 7am-9am on weekday mornings in the summer.  Whatever the reason, LHOTP is still as great of a drama as TV has seen.  I know Brad Gausman has my back.
	9. "Curb Your Enthusiasm," HBO, 2000-present If Seinfeld is #1, then surely a show about the creator of Seinfeld with cameo appearances by the Seinfeld actors must also be great... and it is.  When I first saw Curb, I instantly declared it to be my favorite show at the time.  Of course its lack of episodes (ten per season) and gaps between season (almost two years since the last season) keep it in check.  And the fact that I don't get HBO.
	10. "The Simpsons," FOX, 1989-present There was a time when the Glanzer family made a point to sit down as a family and watch The Simpsons every Sunday night at 7:00.  If we were out somewhere, we had to stop what we were doing and take off that half hour to watch.  If the show would have stopped once it began its decline around the tenth season, I don't doubt it would be #2 on the chart.  But the last nine or ten seasons have been absolute garbage to the point where I make a point not to watch.
	11. "Frasier," NBC, 1993-2004 Give Chris Ahrendt full credit for getting me into Frasier back in college.  It was one of those critically-acclaimed comedies that I never got into.  But once I gave the show a chance, I quickly grew into a fan.  Kelsey Grammer played that character for 20 years between Cheers and Frasier, and never lost a beat.  The best season, I believe, was the final season, showing some shows do go out on top.
	12. "Three's Company," ABC, 1977-1984 See, shows number 2 through 12 are so close that Three's Company, which was originally listed at #2, eventually dropped ten places.  John Ritter excelled at physical comedy.  The writers of the show were terrible, though.  Watch every episode and tell me the theme of each.  They're identical!  Someone hears something they weren't meant to hear, they misinterpret it, and jump to ridiculous conclusions.  Yet Ritter kept it all fresh and hilarious.
	13. "American Idol," FOX, 2001-present Season 6  is awful, but you never really know what you'll get with a reality show like this.  Season 4 was the first time I really paid close attention, and I really got swept up in the show in the final weeks when Constantine, Carrie, Bo, Vonzell, Scott, and Anthony dueled to a photo finish.  And Season 5 was even better when any of the 12 finalists probably could have won it all this season.
	14. "Family Guy," FOX, 1999-2003, 2005-present When I first started watching Family Guy in 1999, I laughed till I cried.  It was so original; there had never been a show like it on TV ever before.  Everything Peter Griffin did just mocked the show's title.  He was a terrible father and husband.  When the show was cancelled, we were all devastated at college.  But then it came back and its first new season rubbed me the wrong way.
	15. "Friends," NBC, 1994-2004 I never really even got into Friends that much.  If nothing else was on, I'd watch it.  I certainly haven't seen much more than half the episodes, and I've still never seen the finale.  And that's weird, because just about every time I do watch it, I find it hysterical.
	16. "Saved by the Bell," NBC, 1987-1993 What do you get with below average actors, shoddy sets, piss-poor writing, and a Saturday morning time slot?  One of the greatest shows ever, apparently.  Saved by the Bell, in hindsight, was not a very good show.  Yet it entertained me and my friends so many times, and still does to this day.  It's nice to have a show that sorta relates to teens, only with off-the-wall results.  That, and the fact that your brain can kinda drift off and you don't have to think about anything.
	17. "Reno 911," Comedy Central, 2003-present As long as the show keeps at its current pace of hilarity, it can only get higher on the chart.  The Reno 911 movie was awesome, just like the show.  The funniest moments usually involve cutoff-wearing lieutenant Dangle and his sexuality, or one of the cops not paying attention and driving into a parked car or something.
	18. "Jeopardy!" syndicated series, 1984-present It's a shame this show only comes on when I'm at work, because during college it was a daily ritual to watch the show.  I like to think it made me smarter as well, at least for the few hours I could retain the knowledge I had just been made aware of.  Especially during the big Ken Jennings run of 2004-05, Jeopardy was one show I refused to miss.
	19. "Full House," ABC, 1987-1994 One of the best shows of my grade school days had to be Full House, based loosely on the events of the movie Three Men and a Baby.  I think John Stamos really kept the show together.  Without Uncle Jesse, you just had an annoying Danny Tanner as the dad and an equally annoying Uncle Joey as a lame comedian.  The Olsen Twins got big and then the show revolved around Michelle, which I wasn't too happy about.
	20. "Heroes," NBC, 2006-present Heroes may have been higher on the chart if not for NBC's lackluster scheduling of the show.  I just get caught up in the suspense, and they decide to take a six week break.  Then finally, they come back for a couple new episodes, and then take five more weeks off.  Nevertheless, it's a great show.  I just hope they can figure out a way to make it last more than one season!

#21-40 #41-60 #61-80  #81-100