Variety's Top 10 TV Shows of All Time

Variety

Variety counts down the Top 10 TV Shows of all time. From prestige dramas to groundbreaking sitcoms, see what we chose as the very best.

Transcript

00:00 [MUSIC]

00:04 I'm here to introduce our top ten television shows of all time.

00:08 At number ten is Roots, the mini series that 100 million Americans stayed home

00:13 night after night to watch in 1977.

00:15 >> [FOREIGN]

00:18 >> The incredible performances and

00:20 the sweep of American history keep Roots in the conversation to this day.

00:25 Number nine is the Mary Tyler Moore show, which pushed our culture forward,

00:29 depicting a single working woman in the newsroom.

00:31 It also brought Mary Tyler Moore herself to the fore as a defining creative force

00:35 in Hollywood.

00:36 Its ensemble of kooky characters remain beloved to this day.

00:39 Number eight is Seinfeld.

00:42 The show takes its very simple premise of four friends hanging out and

00:46 pushes it in untold, strange, and innovative directions.

00:49 The show introduced countless phrases into the lexicon.

00:52 >> [FOREIGN]

00:53 >> Had four perfect comic performances, and

00:56 even nailed its finale.

00:58 At number seven is The Wire, which we can now recognize as one of the signature

01:01 works of art about the war on drugs.

01:04 Focusing each season on a single aspect of the drug trade in Baltimore,

01:08 it's an urgently watchable drama and one of HBO's very best.

01:12 Number six is Sex and the City.

01:14 >> Why do I think living in Manhattan is so fantastic?

01:17 >> Because it is.

01:18 >> This show is a sweetly romantic time capsule of turn of the century New York,

01:22 but it's also a story of friendship.

01:24 With its four central characters supporting each other through the ups and

01:27 downs of life and love.

01:29 Number five is Breaking Bad, which defines the anti-hero drama.

01:33 Millions of people were thrilled by the story of Walter White's fall

01:37 from family man to drug kingpin.

01:40 >> I am the one who knocks.

01:42 >> Breaking Bad built a compelling world and used it to take huge narrative swings,

01:47 with Bryan Cranston's carefully calibrated performance holding everything together.

01:51 Coming in at number four is The Simpsons,

01:53 which has been flipping the family comedy on its head since 1989.

01:57 Delivering social commentary and elegant wordplay through the mouths of its five

02:01 central yellow characters, The Simpsons is ultimately a story of family love.

02:06 After all their adventures, Homer, Marge, and

02:09 their three kids end up right back on the couch every time.

02:12 At number three is The Sopranos, which kicked off the modern golden age of

02:16 television by exploring the rich inner life of a mobster, his family, and

02:20 his associates.

02:22 >> Are you in the mafia?

02:23 [MUSIC]

02:26 >> Am I in the what?

02:27 >> Tony Soprano goes to therapy,

02:28 even as day after day he's committing violent crimes.

02:32 This contrast has kept people binging for 25 years.

02:36 Number two is Mad Men,

02:38 probably the defining series of the aughts prestige cable boom.

02:42 The rich 60s period look of the show from its sets to its costumes

02:46 is complimented by performances that are across the board brilliant.

02:49 Especially John Hamm as the ad executive Don Draper and

02:53 Elizabeth Moss as the ambitious secretary Peggy Olsen.

02:56 This show is unafraid to push deep into its characters and

02:59 to question what it is that Don, Peggy, and

03:02 the rest of their social world all really want.

03:05 And the show Variety has named the greatest of all time, set the template for

03:08 its entire genre, and television has been chasing its success ever since.

03:13 Number one is I Love Lucy.

03:15 >> Wait till you take a look at this front page of Variety.

03:17 >> Even as the show dates back to the earliest days of television,

03:22 it still works beautifully today.

03:24 From Lucille Ball's elastic physical comedy to the inventive and

03:28 tightly written scripts, just about everyone remembers at least one iconic

03:33 Lucy bit, from stomping grapes into wine to working the conveyor belt at

03:36 the chocolate factory, and it hasn't aged a day.

03:39 No wonder this show effectively invented the sitcom.

03:42 Did your favorite show make the list?

03:44 Let us know in the comments below.

03:45 [MUSIC]

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