RLLMUK's Top TV Series from 2000 Results; 77-70

[Azrael]

So after a long delay prepare to wait even longer for the full results because of course I'm dragging this out for as long as it takes. Firstly thanks to all those that voted in the original thread.

 

I'll pre-warn you all that my posts here and the write ups are going to be nowhere near as good,in-depth, interesting or amusing as the writing found in Benny's Top 100 Games thread or in the previous Top 100 TV shows thread done by Treble. Because I don't do writings well. And have seen a lot less television since 2000 than I thought I had. No spoilers but from the final top "100" I've seen less than half of them. So at least I'm going to have plenty of recommendations to check out after this which will be good. 

 

Before we get to the list proper here are a few honourable mentions that didn't quite make it but I felt should be mentioned for one reason or another.

 

Honourable Mentions

 

 

Bob's Burgers

Original Release Year - 2011

 

 

Missing out by a single point is this amazing, and always hilarious, animated sitcom featuring some of the best voice talent around; H. Jon Benjamin and Kristen Schaal being my personal favourites. Never seemed to get as much recognition or fame as The Simpson's, Family Guy or American Dad but is up there with Golden Era Simpsons and better than all of MacFarlane's output and the last 20-odd years of whatever The Simpsons has become. 

 

Our very own Nick R is likewise a big fan:

"Apart from the odd YouTube clip, I didn't discover Bob's Burgers until three years ago, when I noticed it had all been added to Amazon Prime shortly before my subscription was due to expire; I extended my subscription for another year, and blitzed my way through nine seasons in three months. And then I felt bereft because (at the time) there wasn't any more left.
Parks and Rec may have the reputation of being a warm comfort blanket of a comedy, but for me that description applies even more so to Bob's Burgers. This is a risky thing to say, and it may be recency bias, but I think it might have surpassed Futurama as my favourite animated comedy since golden age Simpsons." - Nick R

 

15 Storeys High
Original Release Year - 2002

 

 

Starring the late great Sean Lock and current Marvel Magic Monk Benedict Wong this show went criminally unnoticed at the time by most (myself included) but is very highly rated by those that have seen it. Well worth seeking out. 

 

The Corner
Original Release Year - 2000

 

 

There's a certain other Baltimore based HBO show created and written by David Simon that will likely feature on the Top 100 at some point. The Corner however is what came before that. Following the life of a family living in poverty in West Baltimore this never got the same reception and critical acclaim as The Wire but to some is every bit as good. 

"David Simon's first effort for HBO and it covers another facet of the situation in Baltimore. It's also criminally overlooked by HBO as they've seem to forgotten it even exists. Renaming it to The Wire: Series Zero wouldn't be entirely inaccurate, it's easily of that quality." - mushashi

 

The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance
Original Release Year - 2019

 

 

I've had this on my Netflix watchlist for years but haven't got around to checking it out yet. And I've not even seen the 1982 original film this is a prequel to. Benny rates it highly though;

"Cancelled by Netflix, because Netflix are bastards. This managed to in some ways even surpass the film it was based on, if not in consistency of vision, but just in sheer wondrous, heartfelt and loving craft. An absolute feast for the eyes and senses." - Benny

 

It's a Sin
Original Release Year - 2021

 

 

A very recent miniseries which I've not actually seen but have heard a lot of praise about from people I know so one that I've been meaning to watch.

"The mini-series is an underused format, given how stories can be told without dilution. C4 hit gold with It’s A Sin, a joyous, eye-opening, tragic, heartbreaking drama centred on the AIDs epidemic. Beautifully written, beautifully acted. La!" - glb

 

Only Connect
Original Release Year - 2008

 

 

You'll soon see quiz shows are pretty much absent from the top 100 as a whole which, while understandable considering the amount of top tier shows nominated, is a little bit disappointing. I'm personally a big fan of quiz shows (and quizzes in general) and while Only Connect is by no means my favourite I do find it one of the better ones. Although admittedly I very rarely get many of the answers without having to pause the show and spend a long time on, but on the occasions I do get an answer correct I feel like a fucking genius. 

"OK, the connecting wall doesn't really work for viewers at home, and the missing vowels round doesn't go on long enough. And I wish Victoria would stop telling the contestants to sing.
But the first two rounds are an absolutely inspired quiz format." - Nick R

 

Samurai Jack

Original Release Year - 2001

 

 

I remember watching this as a youngster and just thinking it was cool as fuck and looked amazing. Sadly I never stuck with it for the full original run but seeing as it was revived in 2017 to conclude the story maybe I will return to it. 

"The episodes have a masterful balance of slow-paced atmosphere-building and relentlessly intense action, making excellent use of aspect ratio changes and split-screen shots, and I love the outline-less visual style. Like most of the best villains, Aku achieves the perfect combination of comedy and genuine threat.

As for the Adult Swim revival in 2017: it ultimately petered out somewhat, but its first few episodes were absolutely glorious."  - Nick R

 

 

 

First entry of the main list countdown will be soon.... ish. 
 

 

 

[Azrael]

Reserved for laters... 

[Azrael]

So the top 100 will actually be a top 103 because the last spot had 3 shows all on the same points and no way to separate them. 

 

Also just to make it more fun for me it's 3 shows I've never seen. 

 

 

=100 Patriot 
Orignal Release Year  - 2015 

 

 

An Amazon Prime original that seemingly appears to have sneaked by rather unnoticed by most, myself included, but those that have seen it highly recommend it. Some choice quotes from the thread I've found on here about it:

"This series is the best thing on Prime and deserves more recognition, it's a really great dark comedy, it's hard to describe but if you like Wes Anderson I think you'll appreciate this tv series." - Minion 

"It’s the best show that I can’t seem to convince anyone to watch." - Faded

"It's a crying shame that this isn't getting much attention on here (or anywhere else by the looks of things), it's one of the most original things I've seen in ages and has brought me some genuine belly laughs among all the melancholy." - multi

"This show is wonderful. It's the best show I've watched in years. People talk about "prestige TV" all the time, but this show actually gets there without blatently trying to." - frmallyhuman

Starring Michael Dorman, Locke from Lost and Red Forman from RoboCop among others. One I'll need to add to my to-watch list then. 
 

 

 

=100 Utopia
Orignal Release Year  - 2013

 

 

This one I had heard of, I remember when this was originally advertised as it reminded me in look to Misfits which I hadn't seen at the time but have since and liked. Judging by the thread here it seemed to divide opinion but has its fans and a somewhat cult following according to the internet. And apparently had a US remake starring John Cusack, I can only assume that wasn't very well received. Anyway, Silent Runner was a fan at least. Dug this up from him from the original thread:
 

"I watched the first episode on Sunday and finished season 1 last night. Bloody hell it’s a bit good. I love a good conspiracy thriller and this kept me guessing right to the end.... The photography and the music were also top class 

 

Season 2 is pretty good but without the mystery that drove season 1 it's not as compelling." - Silent Runner

 

 

 

=100 JoJo's Bizarre Adventure
Original Release Year - 2012

 

 

My non-bizarre adventure into Anime TV pretty much starts and ends with Cowboy Bebop and Pokemon. I have heard of plenty others, including this, but just haven't got around to watching them. An adaption of the Manga series this show is about the Joestar family, a family whose various members discover they are destined to take down supernatural foes using powers that they possess. Fortunately for me Benny had some words and stuff to explain why this is worth your time seeking out:
 

"No other show has made me run the gamut of emotions so much, so frequently, and with such tonal whiplash and wilful disregard for conventions that it's honestly quite, quite brilliant. An endless source of memes, mirth, wholesomeness, joy, pathos and just sheer nonsense." - Benny

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Benny]

[Azrael]

 

99. The Chase
Original Release Year  - 2009

 

l

 

Something I've seen! I love quizzes and TV quiz shows, however you'll soon see this list is very much lacking in them. While The Chase is by no means my favourite of the hundreds of TV quiz shows (mostly pumped out for daytime viewing) it is certainly one of the better ones. The premise is pretty simple and easy to understand; team of contestants first individually try to amass money for a prize pot by answering questions, then in the final round work as a team to win it, all while a professional quizzer - the Chaser - tries to prevent this by also answering questions. It's hosted by Bradley Walsh which is likely one of the reasons it's so popular as he brings some entertainment to the format - even if it's just from him misreading questions or finding them amusing. The cast of Chasers has grew over time and each have their own wee gimmick or character traits. Maybe just gloss over the casual racism surrounding Shaun Wallace's nickname though. 

Anyway the show is immensely popular with millions of viewers which has lead to a bunch of international versions and numerous spin-offs including the also pretty good "Beat the Chasers". Still waiting for that Chasers Vs Eggheads battle though. 

However I feel my thoughts on the Celebrity Specials bears repeating:

"I've never understood why they do a celebrity Chase show for charity.  Like people playing have collected £80k+ for charity which is great, but then the chaser wins and basically steals from the charities and they get like a grand consolation prize instead.  Aye, nice one Chaser, ya cunt, not as if it's your own money up for grabs. "
 

 

98. Schitt's Creek
Original Release Year  - 2015

 

 

My enthusiasm and desire to watch this show instantly died when I was quickly informed this wasn't a spin-off of Dawson's Creek, however it seems I've missed out on a real gem of a show. Created by, and starring, Dan and Eugene Levy the show is based on the Rose family who lose their fortune and have to relocate and rebuild their lives in the small rural town of Schitt's Creek. 

From what I've read it seems that while it may not start off great it is well worth sticking with, a few choice quotes found from around the forum would suggest the same and that there's a very rewarding, feelgood show there for those that stick with it.

"Schitt’s Creek is awesome. I bounced off the first few episodes hard and took a few months to remember to try and watch it again, but it’s a very heartwarming and generally kind show that I ended up binging and made me feel better about 2020." - GwiDan

"definitely carry on with Schitt's Creek. It either gets much better or you get more used to the characters (I did try rewatching the first couple of eps of series 1 again and they seemed a lot funnier than before, although Moira is still too much at that point!). I'm on season 4 now and the show's an absolute joy. Has made me cry a couple of times, too!" - Eighthours

"We finished Schitt’s Creek last night - what a lovely, feelgood series, absolutely bursting with positivity without ever being cheesy, and extremely funny throughout. I think it just loses out to The Good Place for my favourite Netflix comedy as that was just so clever and bonkers as well, but I’m so glad people here persuaded me to stick with it after the first few episodes. I don’t know how they managed to turn such initially hateful characters into such sympathetic ones but somehow they did and that character development all felt very natural. A masterpiece." - Darren

"What I liked most about Schitt’s Creek is that being gay was so totally normal it was never even commented on or questioned, especially when you consider the Podunk backward rural America it’s set in. David being openly gay and in a relationship is never commented on in the same way as you wouldn’t question or comment a relationship between a man and a woman. I know it’s co-written by Daniel Levy who is obviously gay in real life, but the way he normalises it rather than use it as a platform or to belittle people he thinks are inferior (I mean he does that a lot, it’s kind of his thing but not about them being prejudice). It’s such a lovely, sweet show for it. " - Doctor Shark

 

 

97. Veep
Original Release Year  - 2012

 

 

Basically The Thick of It but Elaine from Seinfeld is the Vice President of the United States.

 

 

I don't know if that's accurate at all as I've not actually seen this despite my love for Julia Louis-Dreyfus and enjoyment of Armando Iannucci's output. He created this political satire comedy as an adaptation of The Thick of It after a disastrous US remake ABC pilot (produced by Mitch Hurwitz and Richard Day) was fortunately not picked up. This allowed Iannucci to have much more creative control over Veep which likely contributed to its success. 

Words from the forum:

"I'm rewatching Veep at the moment, the first four seasons are phenomenally good." - PK

"Get yourself on the Veep train for some proper snortingly funny writing." Dr Nookie 

 

 

96. The Trip
Original Release Year - 2010

 

 

There's 4 series of this?! I remember watching the first series and enjoying it. Now I see there has been another 3 series. I don't know if that's good or not, as while I did enjoy series one it was already starting to get a bit samey and repetitive within those 6 episodes. 

Here's what MarkN had to say in the nominations thread: 

"The Trip was all sorts of things mixed up, but I loved the basic "banter" aspect of it." - MarkN

And here's a few thoughts from back when the first series aired originally:

"I thought it was utterly excellent. Beautiful to look at and perfect for watching in bed." - cleandemon

"I like this. I like Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon together - they don't need to do much. Just really funny and entertaining to watch. I've always thought Rob Brydon was excellent since the first series of Marion and Geoff." - Monkeyspill

"Well I think this is the funniest thing Coogan and Brydon have done together. There's at least one moment each episode that gets me in hysterics and last nights was no different, except it was even funnier." - cassidy

"I think this is wonderful in just about every way and I'm going to be sad when it finishes." - Rudderless
 

[Azrael]

95. Entourage
Original Release Year - 2004

 

 

Entourage follows the story of Vincent Chase, a young movie star, and the group of friends that make up his entourage. Loosely based on executive producer Mark Wahlberg's experiences as an up and coming actor, but minus the hate crimes against black children and racially motivated attempted murder of a Vietnamese man.

 

If you can look beyond Marky Mark's involvement though you can find a thoroughly enjoyable show with some standout characters; Kevin Dillon basically playing himself as Johnny "Drama" Chase and Jeremy Piven's  Ari Gold. Plus a load of guest roles and cameos that mostly work well. The later seasons dipped in quality somewhat and there was a feautre film released once it was over that I've not actually got around to watching.

 

With all the sleazy and horrendous stories emerging about Hollywood in recent years I'm not sure how well this would hold up today but could make for an interesting or uncomfortable re-visit. 

 

 

 

94. Dexter
Original Release Year - 2006

 

 

This show started off brilliantly and Michael C. Hall was fantastic as the titular Dexter. I never got around to watching the (original) last season and had been put off doing so by what seemed to be a lot of negativity towards the finale. Likewise I've not seen the revival series from 2021 or even heard if it's any good or not. 

There was a lot to like about the show and it was always compelling to watch. Dark and pretty grotesque at times but also had comedic moments and some great characters and cast members. The first 4 seasons are the best, with a particular shout out to Season 4 and the excellence of John Lithgow who is undoubtedly the most disturbing and scary villain to feature.

 

 

93. The Blue Planet
Original Release Year - 2001

 

 

Summed up perfectly by mishashi:

"The BBC do epic nature documentary series better than anybody else and this is one of their finest efforts."

Focused on the world's oceans this 8 part series seemed to be the first in a new wave (pun originally unintended) of big budget style nature documentary series. Needless to say covering a subject matter that itself covers about 70% of the world required a lot of work, hence taking close to five years to make and nearly 200 filming locations visited. And the resulting images and discoveries from the dedicated film crews were outstanding, all narrated of course by  David Attenborough. A lot of great nature documentaries followed and Blue Planet II eventually arrived in 2017 to universal praise. 

 

Big water proper scares me though.

 

 

 

92. Forbrydelsen
Original Release Year - 2007

 

 

Or "The Killing" if you want its English name.

 

This wasn't the first foreign drama to be aired in the UK but it did appear to open up the floodgates following its critical success and viewership. Originally airing in 2007 it wasn't until a few years later that this Danish Whodunit Crime Drama hit the UK but it was well worth waiting for.

 

A tight plot, great performances, twists, captivating cliffhangers, superb pacing, some fantastic knitted jumpers and an actual conclusion to the season-long story-line made series one a massive hit. Two series followed which I've not actually seen but believe were still well received. Then there was the US remake, the first season I did watch and enjoyed right up until the finale which was awful. Maybe they fixed that in the seasons that followed but I didn't stick around to find out. 

 

91. Chappelle's Show
Original Release Year - 2003

 

 

I don't know much about Dave Chappelle, thought he was a fairly recent famous-y person but apparently he's been around for ages, was in The Nutty Professor and Con Air apparently. I had only really seen some of his Netflix special and can't even remember much of that. Only that, as per the norm these days, I recall some bashing of the trans community. 

Chappelle's Show ran from 2003 to 2006 before abruptly ending when he quit during season 3, walking away from a $50m contract with Comedy Central in doing so. 
I've searched out some of the "best bits" on Youtube from the show, and to be honest it's a bit hit and miss. I did find the "Racial Draft" sketch fairly amusing and enjoyed the Wu-Tang cameo - the Wu can improve anything though, and audibly laughed during the "World Series of Dice" sketch. So I think there's probably some decent stuff to be found in there. 

 

Limmy's Show is much better though. 
 

 

[Benny]

 

Some weird picks, Rllmuk

[Benny]

Bet we're all going to regret not rating Better Call Saul higher now.

[Bazjam]

1 hour ago, Benny said:

Bet we're all going to regret not rating Better Call Saul higher now.

Absolutely. I’ve also watched Band Of Brothers for the first time since doing my list.

[the_debaser]

Surprised the Chase came so low, there aren’t many better quiz shows made. 

[Azrael]

On 20/08/2022 at 12:39, the_debaser said:

Surprised the Chase came so low, there aren’t many better quiz shows made. 

 

Guess quiz shows aren't as important to people as dramas/comedies. 

 

Sorry this is taking so long to get through, trying to watch some of the shows/catch up with others on the list before getting to the entries. 

[Azrael]

90. Silicon Valley
Original Release Year - 2014

 

 

 

Unfortunately this isn't based on the beloved-but-forgotten robotic animal 90's platormer game; Space Station Silicon Valley.

Instead this is a sitcom parodying Silicon Valley culture as it follows a programmer founding and running a software startup company and tackling the struggles and challenges that comes with it. Well that's the general gist I got from skimming the Wikipedia entry. I've not actually seen it and have only just discovered it's a Mike Judge (co-)creation so my interest has significantly increased. I've tried finding some quotes from the forum to put here but to be honest I think I want to watch this now and don't want to risk running into spoilers. Sorry. Some familiar looking people in that pic up there though.

 

 

89. Scrubs
Original Release Year - 2001

 

 

 

I always liked Scrubs, strangely it was never a show I properly watched though. Like I'm sure there's a lot of it I haven't seen - mostly the latter seasons - but everything I did see I enjoyed. It was funny, often a bit silly, had some great chemistry between the different characters and then at times it would stop being a sitcom and hit you right in the guts with some big ol' drama that makes you go "oh fuck". 

 

Special shout out to the soundtrack as always remember the music selection complimenting the scenes and stories very well. 

"Surreal and heartfelt, not often easy bedfellows but Scrubs could veer from moments of silliness to stop-you-in-your-tracks episodes like My Screw Up." - glb 

"And that's season 9 of Scrubs done. You know what, I fucking enjoyed that, and would happily have watched more. I think it got panned way back for what it wasn't, rather than being appreciated for what it was. Though I have to admit, they did tread old ground a little too often, and the absolute nadir wasn't anything to do with the new cast, it was Turk's awkward homophobia with the lesbian patient - they got that all wrong, Turk was always better than that.

The end of season 8 is clearly the real "goodbye" for the main cast, but I did enjoy this last season." - Thor 
 

 

 

88. The Staircase
Original Release Year - 2004

 

 

 

Not to be confused with the recent dramatic adaptation starring Colin Firth, this is the original documentary series looking into the death of Kathleen Peterson and trial of her husband accused of her killing. Once again I've not seen this, nor had heard about it or the incident until seeing the aforementioned Colin Firth show advertised. However my girlfriend is a big fan of all these true-crime and murdery documentary shows and so I asked her about it; "Aye, that the wan wi the deid wife? Was very weird... Ah'm no sure if ah finished it." brilliant, thanks for that, and now it's been added to the list of shows "we should watch".

 

Here's some views from people that have watched it;

"For me The Staircase is the ultimate court room documentary. I watched it after Making a Murderer and while I loved that I started to think the makers of The Staircase had been a bit cheeky in stealing the tone and style. Of course, The Staircase actually predates it by some margin and the stealing (or tribute if you want to be kinder) went the other way." - Mawdlin

"I'm watching The Staircase on Netflix. Currently up to episode 6 and can't believe my eyes so far." - Thwomp

"It’s an incredibly interesting case. As I said in the Netflix thread, I’ve watched the whole thing a few times and it’s always fascinating." - Mystacon
 

Sounds alright. 

 

[Azrael]

 

87. This is England
Original Release Year - 2010

 

 

 

A spin-off and continuation of the fantastic Shane Meadows' film of the same name, these three mini-series - set in 1986, '88 and '90 - are all outstanding pieces of media with some proper powerful gut punching moments that leave you an emotional mess. 

But don't just take my words for that;

"Shane Meadows is one of the finest British directors of his generation, and these mini-series echo the kitchen sink dramas British cinema used to make so well. Vicky McClure, Joe Gilgun and Stephen Graham are the standout performers but there are no weak links in a series of episodes that meld comedy and tragedy artfully. Sublime" - glb

"I saw the movie years ago and as shocking as it was I wasn't that taken with it. Then recently I decided to watch the lot, and was just blown away. It flips between being laugh out loud hilarious, to touching, to incredibly emotionally charged, with complete success. One of the most striking things for me was how I thought each series was better than the last." - Timmo

 "Well that was bloody amazing telly. Can't remember the last TV show that had me choking up a bit. Truly stunning acting and wonderful characters.
As has been said, the dinner was a powerhouse sequence, but the little bits with Lol, Woody and Combo were staggeringly good. So real. So much going on inside each of those characters and performances. Deserves every award they can throw at Meadows and the team." - jonamok

"Superb TV, the best thing I've seen in absolutely ages. Real compelling viewing and hard to watch at times. Bleak sums it up." - Chewylegs

"I found the original 2006 film to be a great combination of setting, dark humour and drama, with the latter two often mixed together incongruously and deftly. That continues with this series which follows most of the characters three years after the events of the film. It starts off like a slice-of-life drama, light-hearted, before events turn very dark. Difficult to be specific but it was a proper gut-punch, very hard watch at times." - Vimster
 

 

 

86. Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
Original Release Year - 2004

 

 

 

To my utter shame I've still not seen this... is what I wrote when I started this write up last week. However I have since corrected this massive error and, thanks to All 4, watched all 6 episodes of this series over a couple of nights. And what an absolute treat it was.

 

The show-within-a-show is wonderfully absurd and the intentional shoddiness of the production is executed perfectly; blatant continuity errors, flimsy set designs, mismatched audio, ridiculous plots and awful acting. The attention to detail in getting things wrong is top class and Richard Ayoade in particular is just brilliant at playing a lousy actor. 

Sadly there may only be six episodes but that's six episodes of comedy perfection. I feel this is definitely something I'll need to watch a few more times to truly appreciate as each hilarious and mad episode seems to be full of a lot more subtle jokes and details that will benefit from repeated viewings.

Even the fairly brief on-screen appearances of human-shitstain Graham Lineham couldn't ruin this belter of a show. 
 

 

 

[Benny]

Low place for Darkplace!

[kthxbliz]

Where’s the rest of this? Did I miss it?

[Benny]

Can we get posthumous points in for Andor?

[Azrael]

Holiday and new job got in the way a bit but am still working on this... 

 

 

85. This Country
Original Release Year - 2017

 

 

Another show I hadn't watched prior to this thread but have since binged. And again this is instantly going on my faves list. Off the back of my viewing of Darkplace this has a far more relaxed feel to it, yet is just as hilarious as the aforementioned show. The humour can be subtle and there's just a genuine nice feeling about the programme. The chemistry between the leads (real life brother and sister) is fantastic and the characters bounce off each other so well that it feels authentic.

 

There's a great cast of characters that all add to the humour and the whole thing is written and acted brilliantly. Feel this is quite an underappreciated work of genius. A real comedic delight. 

I've also just discovered this has been remade in the US under the name of "Welcome to Flatch" and having just watched the trailer for that they appear to have missed everything that made the original so good. And for some reason included Stifler as the vicar.

 

 

84. The Americans
Original Release Year - 2013

 

 

I have not seen this. I've not even heard of this. I assumed it was some very recent 1 or 2 season show. Having looked it up I see that's not quite the case. 6 Seasons, 75 episodes, that ran from 2013 to 2018. 8.4/10 IMDb rating and even higher on Rotten Tomatoes. Not sure how this completely passed me by but I'm definitely interested in watching this. Despite the very unhelpful-for-forum-searches name I managed to track down the thread for some comments from people that have heard of this and actually seen it; 

"Probably my favourite thing out there at the moment. First two series were fantastic, and this one has started just as well." - Sirloin

"Yes it's great. Goes about its business quietly without feeling the need to show off with fast cars and explosions. The every day threat of capture provides all the tension needed and is all the more believable and enjoyable for it. I love the sheer toughness of the main characters also." - Blue

"Such a great, underrated show. The last season has been fantastic." - mdn2

 

 

83. Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
Original Release Year - 2002

 

 

Ah ffs, another anime that isn't Pokemon or Cowboy Bebop so obviously I've not seen it. One day I'll maybe rectify that. 

Thankfully Benny nominated this so can always rely on that wordsmith to have something to say for me to nick; 

"One of the few anime series where I will happily watch it with the English dubbed cast, as they fit their characters extremely well. The film of Ghost in the Shell is of course a classic, but this series explored transhumanism and cyberpunk ideas much more broadly, and despite sometimes disappearing up its own arse, is occasionally quite profound. The Major's clothing at times though, yeesh." - Benny

Yeah, probably wasn't best to Google Image search that while in work. 

"The series is better than the films. One of the best anime series ever, basically (at least the first season)." - Comrade

 

 

82. Charlie Brooker's Screenwipe
Original Release Year - 2006

 

 

 

The humourous takes on TV programming and typical Brooker reviews would likely be enough on its own to make this very much worth watching. But the deeper analyses of TV as a whole, from the making of a show to the impact and effects on society it can have, makes this a fascinating must-see for anyone with an interest in the medium. While Screenwipe was the first and probably the best, the spinoffs that followed; Newswipe, Gameswipe and Weekly Wipe, are worth a mention too.

"I fell in love with Screenwipe because it felt like, in addition to the scathing TV reviews, Brooker was letting us in on the arcane secrets of TV production." - Nick R
 

 

 

[Azrael]

81. Devs
Original Release Year - 2020

 

 

 

"Devs is an American science fiction thriller television miniseries" according to Wikipedia. Which was news to me, I'd never seen it and for some reason assumed it was a comedy along the same lines as that Silicon Valley one we had earlier.Again I don't really want to read up too much about it because of potential spoilers. Luckily a couple of people left some comments about it;

"I loved the chin-stroking of Devs, regardless how much sense it made. Another beautiful looking and sounding show" - Sabreman

"What if Determinism, the show. It’s honestly much more interesting than that, but it’s something that is very easy to spoil if you’ve not seen it. But suffice to say, for me it is a story about Purgatory. Both real and that which we create for ourselves." - Benny

 

 

80. Mindhunter
Original Release Year - 2017

 

 

Created by Joe Penhall with the help of Charlize Theron and David Fincher this Netflix crime thriller set in the late 70s takes a look at the start of criminal profiling and the use of it by the FBI. Despite starting off with some subpar acting and bad writing in episode one it proved to be hugely popular with audiences and enjoyed 2 good seasons before Fincher decided to do something else resulting in a potential third season getting put on hold. 

"Alright, finished season one. The show is good, and I cant wait for season two. I almost wish I didn't binge it because I want more." - Stevie

"I decided to stay up all night binging this and thought it was absolutely superb throughout. The performances of the various subjects in particular were mesmerising" - Sabreman

"I had initially given up on this but did just finish it recently. The whole thing is a weird paradox. At once the characters are straight from central casting and also compelling to watch. The idea of a maverick genius being misunderstood by the system has been done to death, but was actually done really well. A profiler seeing themselves in the killer and parallels with their own lives is one of the most hackneyed themes in film and television. And yet, and yet it was still really good. It feels like the force of will to get the atmosphere and the actors and direction and scene setting to be exceptional manages to drag along about 50 dreadfully realised plot threads. It feels like incredibly expensive television and they didn't have enough episodes to let anything breathe as a result. Would definitely watch more though." - Art Vandelay
 

 

79. 30 Rock
Original Release Year - 2006

 

 

 

Created by and starring Tina Fey this satircal sitcom was describe as "a live-action cartoon" and with its surreal humour, cast of eccentric characters and heavy use of comedic cutaways it's easy to see why. To be honest though this wasn't a show I ever properly watched, was one I'd see random episodes of from time to time but never set out to watch it all. I might one day as I always liked what I did see, then again I only just got around to properly watching all of Seinfeld in order during lockdown so might need to wait for another global pandemic. 

"Can't believe this passed me by originally, excellent TV." - bradigor

 

 

78. What We Do In the Shadows

Original Release Year - 2019

 

 

 

Note; At the time of writing I've not yet seen Season 4. The 2014 film of the same name was great and one of my favourite comedies so when it was announced we were getting a TV series set in the United States I feared the worst. But, for me, the TV series stepped it up a few notches and is even better. The ensemble of vampires - and friends - is just superb, it's difficult to pick a favourite as literally all of them are fantastic, largely thanks to the brilliant cast involved. Outside of the core characters there's a slew of brilliant recurring and guest characters throughout that gel so well. I can't really think of a bad episode and only ever remember laughing a lot at most episodes. I genuinely believe it's one of the funniest shows I've seen and just hope Season 4 continues to be as good. 

"Been excellent all around in my opinion. Latest episode was a belter! I was creased from beginning to end." - Zero9X

"I love this thing! It's amazing how much they were allowed to just go to town with all the horror special effects stuff, and I love how little throwaway gags in some episodes turn up/are referenced again to provide a sense of continuity, like the possessed doll. It doesn't hurt that the entire cast are just perfect." - Professor Puzzles

"Excellent. Each episode had me cackling like a loon. Matt Berry on top form, especially." - Jamie John
 

 

 

[Azrael]

77. The Last Kingdom

Original Release Year - 2015

 

 

"The Last Kingdom is a British historical fiction television series based on Bernard Cornwell's The Saxon Stories series of novels. The series was developed for television by Stephen Butchard, premiering on the 10 October 2015 on the BBC. In 2018 the show was acquired by Netflix. The series lasted for a total of five seasons, with the final season airing on 9 March 2022. A feature-length sequel, titled Seven Kings Must Die, has been filmed for Netflix."

Imma be honest, I don't think I've ever heard of this. Which is odd as I assume it would be all over Netflix if they bought it. Seems fairly interesting and must have its fans so I guess another to add to my long list of shit to watch one day.

"I'm more entertained by this than anything else on TV right now." - Timbuktu

"This is moving up my all time favourite show list with every episode I watch. Uhtred and Ragnar are just fucking awesome characters and everything is so well shot. I have epsiode 5 of Season 2 to watch tonight and I am proper excited about it. 
It's also genuinely funny in parts because the characters relationships are so well established that you know how each of them is reacting to things. The main selling point though is Uhtred himself. Alexander Dreymon is fantastic and should really be getting some big gigs on the back of this. " - MardiganX

"I'd never seen any of this until about a month ago.  I've now binge watched all of the first 4 seasons and I'm approaching the end of season 5.
It's superb - tremendous characters, fight scenes are great, the plot twists are excellent and whenever a key character gets offed, it's always a proper punch in the guts (sometimes, quite literally).
Love it." - Boothjan

"The Last Kingdom. Binge watched it all in the last couple weeks. Loved it. Looking forward to the film next." - Ry

 

 

76. Legion
Original Release Year - 2017

 

 

It's very odd for me to not have seen this as I pretty much watch, and enjoy to some extent, pretty much any Marvel associated TV series - including Iron Fist! Yet this is one I never did watch, I think at the time I was too burnt out on superhero TV because of the Netflix Marvel shows and the never-ending intertwining Arrowverse. 

I've been meaning to watch Legion though as from what I've been told it's a bit different from your usual Superhero gubbins and heads down some more psychological paths which makes sense if you know a bit about the titular antihero. At only 27 episodes across 3 seasons it shouldn't take too long to get through either. 

...

And since originally writing the above I have gone and watched all 3 seasons on Disney+. The first season was so captivating I couldn't stop watching. It was strange, beautiful and a little bit scary at times. Season 2 did start to lose me a bit, felt like it was being too obtuse for the sake of it but onwards I powered through and so glad I did as season three was back to being great and it really stuck the landing. However one thing of note about the whole show is how David, the lead, very often seems to turn into Dennis from It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, he'll look like him, sound like him and have many of the same mannerisms as Dennis. It made some for very unintentional comedic moments to me. On the intentional comedic moments side of things a big shout-out goes to the always excellent Jemaine Clement, his performance and delivery had me laughing many a time. 

"Legion is the best thing on TV that no-one seems to be watching. " - Gloomy Andy

"Best thing with Marvel's name on it, easily." - Death's Head

"I just binged the first season of this, thanks to a recommendation in the Wandavision thread. It's... absolutely superb, easily the most impressive comic book TV show I've seen in terms of artistry and imagination, and its boldness in giving zero fucks about holding the hand of the audience" - Sabreman

 

 

75. Hannibal
Original Release Year - 2017

 

 

The A-Team is a group of ex-United States Army Special Forces soldiers who, near the end of the Vietnam War, were arrested for a crime they did not commit and managed to escape from the Military Police. As fugitives, the A-Team works as soldiers of fortune, using their military training to fight oppression or injustice. And the leader of this crack team of heroes is the always suave, cigar-smoking, master of disguises and super strategist John "Hannibal" Smith. So like I assume this show is the prequel that explains where he picked up all those skills and pair of fetching black leather gloves. 

Or it's a show about that other Hannibal, the bloke that eats people. Sorry, not seen it. 

"hammed it up sometimes, but it was so dedicated to using the visual medium of TV, and Mads was just perfection." - Sabreman
 

 

 

[Azrael]

74. Generation Kill
Original Release Year - 2002

 

 

 

I watched this at the time of release and have a shitty memory so can barely remember anything about this. However I do remember really liking it and despite my fuzzy memory I still recommend it to people. At only 7 episodes long I have no excuse not to re-watch it really. 

 

 

75. Still Game
Original Release Year - 2002

 

Now this is a show I have re-watched a lot of times, and every time I laugh just as much as I ever have. For me ,Still Game, is more than just a silly Scottish sitcom, it's a warm nostalgic feeling. It brought joy into my life when I was going through a pretty rough time and that's partly why I hold it in such high regard. But also because it's just fucking great. It's Scottish - well, more accurately Glaswegian - through and through which obviously instantly makes it better than most and there's real heart to the show. It's full of wonderful characters, quotable lines and hilarious moments. But then it can get very poignant or oddly relatable. 

 

"Still Game really doesn't get the recognition it deserves because it is so heavily grounded in Glaswegian humour, tradition and lifestyles but its one of the greatest comedy shows of all time for me." - MardiganX

"If your style of humour comes from your upbringing then this is what I think of when I think of my home town. Great jokes and friends that do nothing but rip the utter piss out of each other. The TV equivalent of comfort food for me." - JohnnyNolan

 

 

74. Dopesick
Original Release Year - 2021

 

 

 

Another show I hadn't seen before going through these results. But at only 8 episodes and available on Disney+ this was easy to rectify. It's very compelling and I very much enjoyed the structure and how they told the different stories and how addiction effects people. Not sure how much of it is true and haven't really checked because honestly a lot of what happened just angers me. I already have a lot of hate towards the massively wealthy, corrupt businesses, politicians, America and major corporations that it'll likely be bad for my health to look into more of this kind of stuff. But still, very much glad I watched this and enjoyed the fantastic performances throughout. 

 

 

 

71. The IT Crowd
Original Release Year - 2006

 

 

Sadly this might be slightly tainted now after the downward spiral into insanity and hateful bile that Graham Linehan, creator/writer/directer, has decided to slide down.

Despite that the show was, for the most parts, very entertaining and laugh out loud funny. The core cast were all great and involved in some highly memorable and quotable scenes that still make me laugh to this day. Richard Ayoade's Moss may have become the breakout character of the show but that's meant in no disrespect to the rest of the acting team. While it wasn't as consistantly good as Father Ted there were moments where it was up there, and either way it's a hell of a lot better than whatever hate-fuelled shite Linehan is currently writing.

" The IT Crowd incredibly funny - it honestly makes me sad that the guy who created it is a grade A twat" - MarkN

"Fucking great show. Really enjoyed it. It straddles a perfect line of Sitcom, Geek and Bizarre." - Dimahoo

 

 

 

70. Treme
Original Release Year - 2010

 

Another from my pile of shame that I've yet to actually watch. I know I should because it's from the makers of The Wire, but on the other hand it stars Steve Zahn in a regular role. I kid, don't really have an issue with Zahn. 

"Opinion seems to be split on Treme, but I really liked that too. Even just spending time with the characters not necessarily doing anything, just taking in the atmosphere or whatever." - JohnC

"Ah man, was getting total Wire vibes from the pilot. Grab it in HD if you can, it looks stupendously good. And the music...
Fucking brilliant, it was like having old friends back." - sammy

"And now I'm completely up to date with Treme for some reason I want to move to New Orleans. Wonderful wonderful television." - Naysonymous

"I stormed through five episodes of season two in one go, and I bloody loved it. I loved every single plotline and I loved watching every single character. It's as good as The Wire for me, albeit in a totally different way. The character arcs are so much more realistic and believable than any other show. No simple fixes and easy solutions." - Moz