Dave's Dozen: The Twelve Best Television Shows of All Time

The Golden Age of Science Fiction happened from the late 1930's through the 1950's. Authors such as Arthur C. Clarke, Ray Bradbury, Isaac Asimov, Robert Heinlen, Clifford Simak, and L Sprague de Camp pushed the genre beyond its pulp roots, and created all the tropes that are still being used today. It seems unfair that such a short period of time gets all the glory, but that's the way art works: Shakespeare was brilliant, but he was also born at the right time and the right place. There was no TV, the theater business was thriving, and-- finally-- entertainment didn't have to have a moral message. And so The Bard was off to the races.

In case you weren't aware . . . The Golden Age of Television is now. I really thought Night Court was funny when I was a kid, but looking back, maybe I was retarded.




Night Court could never hold its own against Curb Your Enthusiasm. Devoted sister, beloved . . . even thinking of that episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm makes me laugh. I'd put up the clip, but this is a family blog.

So put aside your nostalgia for a moment-- not that I don't fondly remember Mork and Mindy . . . but my memory is distorted by some sort of demented rose-colored glasses-- and actually watch an episode of one of these old shows that you love to reminisce about. Land of the Lost or Fantasy Island or Dallas or Love Boat or Get A Life or my favorite, WKRP in Cincinnati. You'll see.  They have no chance against the shows of today. Unlike sports, where it's impossible to ever see how Mohammad Ali would fare against Mike Tyson, or if Babe Ruth could hit as many home runs in the era of relief pitching, it's relatively easy to pit one television show against another. Simply watch them in succession. Try an episode of The Commish and then watch the pilot of The Shield. You'll see. You will then say to yourself: Dave is right . . . we are living in the Golden Age of Television.

Some perfect storm of cable, TIVO, product placement and advertisement money, streaming video, viral marketing, DVD purchases, and a wide ranging captive audience have created a market for shows as stupid and trashy as you want (Real Housewives of X, Dancing with the Stars, Temptation Island, Jersey Shore, etc.) and as smart and clever as you need. So my list is going to be top-heavy with recent shows. That's on purpose and that's correct.

Steven Johnson explains part of this phenomenon in his book Everything Bad is Good For You: How Today's Popular Culture is Actually Making Us Smarter; in the past, before digital media and TIVO, even before the widespread use of the VCR, a television show had to be immediately accessible. When you turned on the TV, even if it was the middle of an episode in the middle of a season, the show had to explain itself because there was the possibility of a new viewer, and they had no way to access previous shows. So each episode was usually insular, with limited running jokes, and the plot threads were simple and easy to sort out. But with the advent of digital media, writers stopped needing to place those "flashing arrows" any longer . . . some shows, like The Shield are nice enough to have a "previously on The Shield" segment at the start, but at the beginning of a new season of Breaking Bad, I need to consult Wikipedia to remember all that has happened. And it's in the best interest of the show to be as clever and complicated and dense as possible, because then people want want to watch it several more times, and so they'll stream it or buy it or watch clips of it, all adding revenue to the industry. It's The Golden Age.

So MASH doesn't make the list-- not that it would ever make my list. Cheers almost made it, until I replaced it with 30 Rock. Arrested Development should be on the list but it got canceled because it was ahead of its time. The money is in the banana stand, indeed. Same goes for Freaks and Geeks. I am loving True Blood and Bored to Death but I haven't watched them all, so maybe they'll make the list some day. Big Love is another contender. And it sounds like Game of Thrones is as good as the book.

Please note: I've avoided animated shows and sketch comedy and mini-series and stuff like that because it opens a crazy can of worms that is beyond my scope . . . maybe Chuck Klosterman will take over where I've left off. Monty Python's Flying Circus would make any list that included those genres.

So here is my definitive list. And if you don't like it, then get to work on my other list (this goes for you, Whitney).

1. The Wire-- meticulous, plodding, realistic, dramatic, and funny . . . and the main character is the city of Baltimore itself.  Sets the bar.

2. The Shield-- the exact opposite of The Wire. Forest Whitaker and Glenn Close are the best season long cameos in TV history and pilot to finale, The Shield has the best plot arc ever made. Unlike Lost, the ending satisfies.

3. Deadwood-- Al Swearengen is more fun than Tony Soprano.

4. Curb Your Enthusiasm-- Larry David is a national treasure and should be forced by the government to produce comedy until he dies.

5. Seinfeld--  the only show with a laugh track on the list: see above.

6. Battlestar Galactica-- you've got to see it to believe it. This has nothing to do with the original. Even my wife watched every episode.

7. 30 Rock-- as many jokes as you can stuff into 30 minutes, plus Alec Baldwin and Tracy Morgan. This traditional sitcom just edges out It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia.


8. The Office-- this is probably illegal, but this slot goes for both the British and American versions.

9. Madmen-- nothing happens, but nothing happens with style. And "the carousel" scene rules.

10. The Sopranos-- arguably the show that began The Golden Age.


11. Breaking Bad-- Weeds is good, but Breaking Bad is great.

12. Saxondale-- I had to get Steve Coogan on the list . . . I also love his Alan Partridge character, but this slot could be for any comedian who's been given carte blanche to make something weird and autonomous . . . Louis C.K.'s show Louie also fits, but I've only seen one season.