best TV shows ever

The Best TV Shows of All-Time

The best TV shows of all-time. According to me. Welcome! Shows within a tier are arranged alphabetically. If something isn’t on the list, it will be someday. Leave your comments and we’ll talk. I give a lot of weight to scope, scale, and depth. If a show is higher than you expect, it probably did one or all of those things very well. If it’s lower, well, it probably frustrated me.

Rankings: updated 4/8/25

Latest additions: White Lotus (1-3) | Severance (2) | Scrubs | Cobra Kai (complete) | Agatha All Along

Note: Shows within a tier are in alphabetical order

My Favorites

  1. Arcane
  2. Better Call Saul
  3. Curb Your Enthusiasm
  4. It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia (1-16)
  5. Seinfeld
  6. The Leftovers
  7. The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
  8. The Other Two
  9. The Shield
  10. The Wire
  11. Veep

Wow

  1. Atlanta
  2. Boardwalk Empire
  3. Breaking Bad
  4. Mare of Easttown
  5. Modern Family
  6. The Penguin (1)
  7. Sharp Objects
  8. The Office
  9. The Sopranos
  10. Succession
  11. White Lotus (1-3) 

Impressive

  1. Abbott Elementary (1-3)
  2. Arrested Development
  3. Frasier [new]
  4. Hacks (1-3)
  5. House of the Dragon (1-2)
  6. Industry (1-3)
  7. Letterkenny
  8. Perry Mason
  9. Severance (1-2) 
  10. Shogun
  11. Shrinking (1-2)
  12. The Last of Us (1)

Really Good

  1. Baby Reindeer
  2. Cobra Kai
  3. Crashing
  4. Fallout (1)
  5. Fleabag
  6. Normal People
  7. Nobody Wants This (1)
  8. Oz
  9. Parks and Recreation
  10. Queen’s Gambit
  11. Silicon Valley

Positives 

  1. Beef
  2. Boston Legal
  3. Dave (1-3)
  4. Frasier [og]
  5. His Dark Materials
  6. Mad Men
  7. Mr. Robot 
  8. Mythic Quest (1-3)
  9. Night Of
  10. Presumed Innocent
  11. Reboot
  12. Scrubs (1-4)
  13. Six Feet Under
  14. Stranger Things (1-4)
  15. The Americans
  16. The Boys (1-4)
  17. Watchmen

Neutral 

  1. The Falcon and the Winter Soldier
  2. Fargo
  3. Game of Thrones

Negatives 

  1. Gen V
  2. Ted Lasso
  3. The Bear (1-3)

Almost 

  1. Agatha All Along
  2. Ballers

Not For Me 

  1. The Haunting of Hill House  
  2. Yellowjackets (1-2)

Really Not For Me

Chris Lambert
Chris Lambert

Chris Lambert is the co-founder and lead writer of Film Colossus. He specializes in film interpretation, narrative structure, and explaining how movies use story, imagery, and technique to create meaning. His work on Film Colossus has reached millions of readers, with more than 500 articles covering films ranging from Fight Club and Black Swan to Perfect Blue and The Odyssey.

Articles: 591

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5 Comments

I do agree with most of your ranking but Mr Robot should be few tiers higher imo. But hey taste is subjective 😉

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Am guessing Chris is going to wait until season 2 to talk about hbo’s dune prophecy

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I’m disappointed to see Mad Men (which IMO is better than Breaking Bad) so low on your list; as well as Stranger Things.

I’m looking forward to where Community and Happy Endings land.

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How is Battlestar Galactica (2000’s version) not on your list?!

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What’s your issue with The Bear? I’ll admit it’s overrated, but what warrants a negative?

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