In
June the Writer’s Guild of America released their list of the 101 best written TV
shows ever. Their top ten were…
10. The
West Wing
9. The Wire
8. Cheers
7. Mad Men
9. The Wire
8. Cheers
7. Mad Men
6. The
Mary Tyler Moore Show
5. M*A*S*H
4. All in the Family
3. The Twilight Zone
2. Seinfeld
1. The Sopranos
5. M*A*S*H
4. All in the Family
3. The Twilight Zone
2. Seinfeld
1. The Sopranos
To which I say to some of them- mehh….
First of all I would add a few to the list (not
in the top 10)
Rome (HBO), SCTV(Canadian), Intelligence (CBC), Bored
to Death (HBO), Sherlock (BBC) and The Hour (BBC).
My top ten would be… 10. Corner Gas
9. MI-5 (Spooks- BBC)
8. Star Trek (original)
7. X-Files (seasons 1-5)
6. Fawlty Towers
5. I Love Lucy
4. Cheers
3. M*A*S*H
2. Mad Men
1. Key West
I've told you about Key West before- the show was intelligent, funny, and filled with literary allusion and elements of magical realism- something that has never been done well on American television. It was compared to Northern Exposure at the time but that was to misunderstand what the show was really about. With just 13 episodes in the can before it was cancelled it barely made a dent in television history.
So what would your top ten be?
In no particular Order:
ReplyDelete1. X-Files
2. Six Feet Under
3. Battlestar Galactica
4. Deadwood
5. Star Trek - original & Next Gen
6. Lost
7. Walking Dead
8. Mash (I agree, one of the best shows ever)
9. Hill Street Blues
10. Sherlock (new)
of course there's more but these came to mind right off.
I find it bizarre that in the full list you have to scroll half way down before a non-American show gets a grudging look-in!
ReplyDeleteSeeing some of those offerings featured in the 100 list, I would have expected to see appearances somewhere for shows like: Porridge, Open All Hours, Only Fools & Horses, Coupling (the UK version), Dad's Army, The Vicar of Dibley...
I had the same and thought, Ian. Fawlty Towers was highly underrated- should have been higher. And where was Black Adder? That is a classic! I would also put Coupling on the list- but haven't seen many of the rest you mentioned. I wonder if they're available here. I'll have to check. Also Inspector Morse...
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