Snarf Zagyg
Notorious Liquefactionist
Huh. I haven't done one of these in a while, have I? Well, for once you are not subject to the slings and arrows of my arbitrary and capricious rules, because ... it's not my list!
www.hollywoodreporter.com
That's right, I stumbled across the Best 50 TV Shows of this Century ... as determined by the critics of the Hollywood Reporter. Now, let me start by saying that I don't necessarily agree with every selection, or with the placement of every show, but I think that you could do a lot worse than just watching the shows on this list that you haven't seen yet.
All that said, what were the arbitrary and capricious rules that they used?
1. Any show that had any episodes that aired after Dec. 31, 1999, was eligible. But only for the episodes that aired after that date. Which meant that Buffy would lose the first 3 1/2 seasons. Yeah.
2. Only English-language shows.
What are my thoughts?
Shows I Would Have Found A Way to Include:
Arrested Development
Curb Your Enthusiasm
The Good Place
Hannibal
Harley Quinn
Justified
Legion
Mr. Robot
Watchmen
What We Do In The Shadows
Shows That I Was Somewhat Puzzled by the Inclusion (not that these are bad shows ... at all! Just that I would have chosen other shows):
48. South Side
47. Vida
46. The Underground Railroad
34. Jane The Virgin. Eh.
23. Survivor. This show is super popular. And other than that, I have been told that if you have nothing nice to say, say nothing.
22. Better Things. It's a good show. Sometimes really good. Just not a top 50 for me.
18. Friday Night Lights. Unpopular opinion. The show is fine. But a wee bit overrated.
13. 30 for 30. It's fine! It's not one of my 50 best.
11. The Daily Show. Nope. If I had made the list, it would have been fiction only. Suck it, reality TV and faux news programs.
Other Comments:
44. The Leftovers. At least 40 spots too low.
42. Station Eleven. Happy to see it here, happy to see it properly recognized.
39. The Deuce. Weirdly, I was shocked to see it, but it's also ... not wrong.
35. Chernobyl. So many good HBO miniseries. But this one really lingers.
27. Parks and Recreation. Fun fact ... The Office isn't on the list. Suck it, Michael/Creed 'shippers.
25. Review. YES YES YES YES! Admit, you haven't seen this. And you need to.
20. Peep Show. Was I surprised this was here in a sea ofmediocrity American TV? Yes. Does it belong here? Oh yeah.
19, Rectify. Shocked it placed higher than The Leftovers; my quick review of it is that it has all depression of that show, but none of the magical realism.
17, Halt and Catch Fire. Watch Brother Day in a tour de force about the rise of the computer industry.
15. Atlanta. What a great show. Deserving of the rank.
The Top 10, with brief notes-
10. Bojack Horseman. No notes. Perfect show.
9. Freaks and Geeks. OBJECTION! It had one season, and one third of its one season aired before the cutoff. It's a great show, but rules are rules. Shouldn't be on the list.
8. Girls. Totally should be on the list; question if it should be in the top 10.
7. Better Call Saul. Can't argue with this. For reference, Breaking Bad is 16. Argue amongst yourselves as to whether this is an outrage, or This Is The Way.
6. Reservation Dogs. Love it. Surprised and gratified to see it in the top 10.
5. The Wire. Perfect. No notes.
4. 30 Rock. Top 50 show, sure. Not top 10.
3. Succession. Oooh ..... okay. Number 3? Top 10, probably. But 3?
2. The Sopranos. Rules mean you lose Season 1. So ... still, can't argue.
1. Mad Men. Seems fair.
So, how does this compare to my personal top 10 list of the 21st century? Well, here it is. It's not in an ordinal order, and it's restricted to American shows. And no Buffy, because no first 3 1/2 seasons.
The Leftovers
The Americans
Better Call Saul
The Wire
Halt and Catch Fire
Mad Men
Reservation Dogs
BoJack Horseman
Rectify... but sure, I could see The Sopranos here. Still, Rectify is really really good. Or The Good Place.
Hollywood Reporter Critics Pick the 50 Best TV Shows of the 21st Century (So Far)
Over the course of a few months, several Zoom meetings, lots of emails and countless Excel spreadsheets, three THR TV critics joined forces to hash out, and rank, what they consider the greatest shows since 2000.
www.hollywoodreporter.com
That's right, I stumbled across the Best 50 TV Shows of this Century ... as determined by the critics of the Hollywood Reporter. Now, let me start by saying that I don't necessarily agree with every selection, or with the placement of every show, but I think that you could do a lot worse than just watching the shows on this list that you haven't seen yet.
All that said, what were the arbitrary and capricious rules that they used?
1. Any show that had any episodes that aired after Dec. 31, 1999, was eligible. But only for the episodes that aired after that date. Which meant that Buffy would lose the first 3 1/2 seasons. Yeah.
2. Only English-language shows.
What are my thoughts?
Shows I Would Have Found A Way to Include:
Arrested Development
Curb Your Enthusiasm
The Good Place
Hannibal
Harley Quinn
Justified
Legion
Mr. Robot
Watchmen
What We Do In The Shadows
Shows That I Was Somewhat Puzzled by the Inclusion (not that these are bad shows ... at all! Just that I would have chosen other shows):
48. South Side
47. Vida
46. The Underground Railroad
34. Jane The Virgin. Eh.
23. Survivor. This show is super popular. And other than that, I have been told that if you have nothing nice to say, say nothing.
22. Better Things. It's a good show. Sometimes really good. Just not a top 50 for me.
18. Friday Night Lights. Unpopular opinion. The show is fine. But a wee bit overrated.
13. 30 for 30. It's fine! It's not one of my 50 best.
11. The Daily Show. Nope. If I had made the list, it would have been fiction only. Suck it, reality TV and faux news programs.
Other Comments:
44. The Leftovers. At least 40 spots too low.
42. Station Eleven. Happy to see it here, happy to see it properly recognized.
39. The Deuce. Weirdly, I was shocked to see it, but it's also ... not wrong.
35. Chernobyl. So many good HBO miniseries. But this one really lingers.
27. Parks and Recreation. Fun fact ... The Office isn't on the list. Suck it, Michael/Creed 'shippers.
25. Review. YES YES YES YES! Admit, you haven't seen this. And you need to.
20. Peep Show. Was I surprised this was here in a sea of
19, Rectify. Shocked it placed higher than The Leftovers; my quick review of it is that it has all depression of that show, but none of the magical realism.
17, Halt and Catch Fire. Watch Brother Day in a tour de force about the rise of the computer industry.
15. Atlanta. What a great show. Deserving of the rank.
The Top 10, with brief notes-
10. Bojack Horseman. No notes. Perfect show.
9. Freaks and Geeks. OBJECTION! It had one season, and one third of its one season aired before the cutoff. It's a great show, but rules are rules. Shouldn't be on the list.
8. Girls. Totally should be on the list; question if it should be in the top 10.
7. Better Call Saul. Can't argue with this. For reference, Breaking Bad is 16. Argue amongst yourselves as to whether this is an outrage, or This Is The Way.
6. Reservation Dogs. Love it. Surprised and gratified to see it in the top 10.
5. The Wire. Perfect. No notes.
4. 30 Rock. Top 50 show, sure. Not top 10.
3. Succession. Oooh ..... okay. Number 3? Top 10, probably. But 3?
2. The Sopranos. Rules mean you lose Season 1. So ... still, can't argue.
1. Mad Men. Seems fair.
So, how does this compare to my personal top 10 list of the 21st century? Well, here it is. It's not in an ordinal order, and it's restricted to American shows. And no Buffy, because no first 3 1/2 seasons.
The Leftovers
The Americans
Better Call Saul
The Wire
Halt and Catch Fire
Mad Men
Reservation Dogs
BoJack Horseman
Rectify... but sure, I could see The Sopranos here. Still, Rectify is really really good. Or The Good Place.
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