The Top 300 Greatest TV Shows of All Time: FBG Consensus: 50 Lists received. 2: Seinfeld 1: Breaking Bad (22 Viewers)

[krista4]

33 - Succession​

Yeah, this is just a big miss for me. I can't get into shows where I literally dislike everyone. And the business side of things was too absurd, too.

I'm curious how you felt about Breaking Bad. I am typically the same as you and it took me about three tries to make it through season 1 of Breaking Bad just because I hated just about everyone but Jesse. I ended up really enjoying BB. I think with Succession, it took me awhile to figure out that all of the characters were deplorable, so by the time I hated them all, I was already vested in the show. It was top 100 but didn't make my top 70 for whatever reason.

I think Breaking Bad is Top 10 all time for TV.
I liked many of the characters.
It was inventive and took so many unexpected turns.
Overall I thought it was great from beginning to end.

Well, I'll be shocked if it's not top 5 in this countdown. Legit contender for #1 overall.

I've thought that it will be #1.

I know I wasn't the only one, but

 

[Scoresman]

I dont think the Seinfeld/Breaking Bad top 2 is much of a surprise.

Seinfeld is probably the sitcom that ages the best (outside of some non-woke stuff that wouldnt fly today).

Breaking Bad is just a masterclass of suspense and interesting characters. Never came close to jumping the shark or overstaying its welcome.

 

[zamboni]

3 - The Sopranos​

Drama
Score: 2050
Average Rank: 12.4

New Jersey mob boss, Tony Soprano, deals with personal and professional issues in his home and business life.

List Breakdown

Keith R 1
Atomic Punk 1
Barry2 1
simey 1
Binky 1
UncleZen 1
Dr Octopus 1
Scoresman 2
Tau37 2
Yo Mama 2
Runkle 3
Dan Lambskin 3
AAABatteries 3
Frostillicus 3
McBokonon 4
krista4 5
zamboni 5
Sullie 6
timschochet 6
kupcho1 6
The Gator 7
Brutal Penquin 7
Chaos34 7
ilov80s 9
titusbramble 10
Todem 19
shuke 21
Maik Jeaunz 25
BlackCrowes 26
Nick Vermeil 28
Psychopav 33
Hastur 36
landrys hat 36
Don Quixote 54
Instinctive 60

I had Sopranos 3.

Fixed. I really thought I had all these fixed. No change to the rankings, just pickles.

More pickles there than you’ll find at Satriale’s.

But not as many as at the Bada Bing!

Driving to Jets games, I pass the real Bada Bing (called Satin Dolls).

 

[Andy Dufresne]

When I was younger, I didn't appreciate Seinfeld at all - I didn't grasp its real premise.

Now that I understand that it's bad things happening to BAD people - seriously, they're all pretty terrible people - I see it in a whole new light.

 

[krista4]

Scoresman gets the for running this massive countdown and not ever getting irritated at us annoying jerkfaces.

 

[steelerfan1]

Alrighty, shows that didn't make it from my list. Going to try to bucket them with descriptors that can make it easy to follow and maybe identify something you want to watch!



52. Sons of Anarchy - I love Charlie Hunnam. Great show, very similar vibes to Justified, Sopranos, Shield, etc. Biker Gang navigates its way through life.

i think this made it.

 

[Shaft41]

I love that this exercise has been all about personal preference. I don't love Mafia/mob stories, so The Sopranos never appealed to me. Fantasy stuff is not my thing either, so Game of Thrones was an autoskip. I think I might have given The Wire a shot, but didn't have access, but also drug-centered stories don't appeal to me either, so I've also never seen Breaking Bad, and he'll always be Tim Whatley to me.

Hmmm. I get that people don't necessarily dabble in some genres, like fantasy. That being said, while I'm not into fantasy shows, I ended up binging Game of Thrones and put it in my top 15. It's just that good.

I didn't realize it was such an issue that people wouldn't watch shows on a particular topic such as mafia/mob or what they perceive to be shows that are "drug-centered." To me, a story is a story, but I get what you're saying. I would not at all call The Wire "drug-centered" though there is drug trade in there. Breaking Bad is more drug-centered as a story. But at least you didn't say The Wire was about journalists.

It's also an issue that I rarely watch a show without my wife, and she has no interest in these types of shows unless they involve Pierce Brosnan.

Might I interest her in some Idris Elba, to get her to watch The Wire?

Might be worth a shot. Seriously, we just saw a new show on Paramount called Mobland. The trailer came on and for me it was take it or leave it. But since Pierce was in it, she was all like "That looks really good." Not sure if she was talking about the show or the headshot.

 

[the moops]

When I was younger, I didn't appreciate Seinfeld at all - I didn't grasp its real premise.

Now that I understand that it's bad things happening to BAD people - seriously, they're all pretty terrible people - I see it in a whole new light.

This is a Seinfeld thing right?

 

[zamboni]

I can’t say I’ve watched a ton of shows, but if there is a single better episode in TV history than “Ozymandias”, I’d like to know about it.

 

[Shaft41]

As I'm sure is the case with others in here, Seinfeld has been off the air for 27 years, and I will still put on an episode nearly every day that I've seen 75+ times, and I will still enjoy it fully and I'm not talking I put it on as background while I'm doing other things, I'm talking I'm actively watching it for the 82nd time.

 

[Instinctive]

Alrighty, shows that didn't make it from my list. Going to try to bucket them with descriptors that can make it easy to follow and maybe identify something you want to watch!



52. Sons of Anarchy - I love Charlie Hunnam. Great show, very similar vibes to Justified, Sopranos, Shield, etc. Biker Gang navigates its way through life.

i think this made it.

It did - weird, I must have typo'd my control f. Good catch!

 

[steelerfan1]

thanks for doing this scores!

 

[Shaft41]

I'm not posting all the shows I listed that didn't make the 300, as that post would be 2498 words long (what up, Herman's Head!), but the highest rated sitcom I had after Seinfeld, which I don't think I've seen mentioned in here, was The Middle. Maybe it's because I live in a middle class family in a small town in the Midwest, but I identified with that show a whole bunch, and it delivered the laughs for me, which few shows typically do.

 

[Scoresman]

When I was younger, I didn't appreciate Seinfeld at all - I didn't grasp its real premise.

Now that I understand that it's bad things happening to BAD people - seriously, they're all pretty terrible people - I see it in a whole new light.

I saw a clip just this morning that really demonstrates this. I forget what episode it is but Jerry is feeling upset about a woman and starts crying. He says "What is this salty discharge?" And him and Elaine were both shocked that he was actually having genuine feelings towards another person.

 

[Shaft41]

When I was younger, I didn't appreciate Seinfeld at all - I didn't grasp its real premise.

Now that I understand that it's bad things happening to BAD people - seriously, they're all pretty terrible people - I see it in a whole new light.

I saw a clip just this morning that really demonstrates this. I forget what episode it is but Jerry is feeling upset about a woman and starts crying. He says "What is this salty discharge?" And him and Elaine were both shocked that he was actually having genuine feelings towards another person.

La Caridad will do that to a person.

 

[Scoresman]

Google sheet is up with top 300 and everyone's individual lists.

FFA Top 300 TV Shows All Time

docs.google.com

 

[AAABatteries]

Not hyperbole - if I reranked this today I would put The Pitt in my top 10. Probably somewhere around 8-10. It's that outstanding - all of you people should be watching it.

Was the finale last night? Still need to watch that one

Yes, it was solid but obviously with what had just happened in previous episodes it wasn't as intense.

 

[AAABatteries]

23. Pokemon - built on the back of perhaps the most successful RPG video game of all time, certainly commercially. Kid goes on adventure collecting and battling pokemon and trying to be the very best. Initial character arc lasted 20+ years, they've recently started with a new protagonist. A goal when my kids are a bit older is to do a watch through of every episode ever in order.

And you want to be my latex salesman?

 

[zamboni]

Google sheet is up with top 300 and everyone's individual lists.

FFA Top 300 TV Shows All Time

docs.google.com

Thanks for doing this, GB. No doubt it was a ton of work and much appreciated.

 

[Scoresman]

One show that barely missed the mark for me that I regret is Somebody Feed Phil.

This is a show my wife and I have watched since back when it was a PBS show. We're all about travel and food and we've based several trips around places Phil has highlighted in his travels. That kind of effect on me should have counted.

 

[simey]

Scoresman gets the for running this massive countdown and not ever getting irritated at us annoying jerkfaces.

 

[AAABatteries]

I had BB and Seinfeld 1 and 2 respectively - I've rewatched BB I think 3 times after initial viewing and can't count the number of Seinfeld reruns I've watched. Totally worthy, IMO, of the top 2 spots.

 

[AAABatteries]

Would be interested in hearing what folks think was the biggest snub.

I'm still fairly shocked that with the demographics of this board that Everybody Loves Raymond didn't make the top 300. Astounded really.

 

[Andy Dufresne]

When I was younger, I didn't appreciate Seinfeld at all - I didn't grasp its real premise.

Now that I understand that it's bad things happening to BAD people - seriously, they're all pretty terrible people - I see it in a whole new light.

I saw a clip just this morning that really demonstrates this. I forget what episode it is but Jerry is feeling upset about a woman and starts crying. He says "What is this salty discharge?" And him and Elaine were both shocked that he was actually having genuine feelings towards another person.

And that's why the finale actually does work. They're essentially sent to jail for being the narcissists they are.

Or rather, on a show about nothing they're punished for doing...nothing. Rather meta when you think about it.

 

[Scoresman]

Would be interested in hearing what folks think was the biggest snub.

I'm still fairly shocked that with the demographics of this board that Everybody Loves Raymond didn't make the top 300. Astounded really.

From, by far. Especially with Lost doing so well. It's the same kind of sci-fi "WTF is going on" show, but with the promise of a much tighter resolution and plot.

 

[BlackCrowes]

I love that this exercise has been all about personal preference. I don't love Mafia/mob stories, so The Sopranos never appealed to me. Fantasy stuff is not my thing either, so Game of Thrones was an autoskip. I think I might have given The Wire a shot, but didn't have access, but also drug-centered stories don't appeal to me either, so I've also never seen Breaking Bad, and he'll always be Tim Whatley to me.

i don't like fantasy much either. GoT was awesome.

 

[Andy Dufresne]

Turn: Washington's Spies is excellent. I'd have ranked that too.

 

[BlackCrowes]

This was a major television event when I was in the 5th grade.

Speaking of, I didn't but curious if anyone ranked The Day After.

i thought made for tv movies were nixed

 

[Mr. Mojo]

I wholeheartedly agree with The Wire, BB and GOT in the top 5.
The Sopranos falls lower due to the weak final season.
Seinfeld was very good but there's a limit to how much self absorbed NYers I can watch, so it's a lot lower for me.

Great job to all!

 

[BlackCrowes]

I can’t say I’ve watched a ton of shows, but if there is a single better episode in TV history than “Ozymandias”, I’d like to know about it.

maybe "Two Cathedrals" from The West Wing. "33" from Battlestar Galactica

 

[BlackCrowes]

Would be interested in hearing what folks think was the biggest snub.

I'm still fairly shocked that with the demographics of this board that Everybody Loves Raymond didn't make the top 300. Astounded really.

i thought we'd already established it's Quincy, M.E.

 

[Leroy Hoard]

Looks like my future bet on the Bryan Cranston perfecta came through.

 

[Scoresman]

I can’t say I’ve watched a ton of shows, but if there is a single better episode in TV history than “Ozymandias”, I’d like to know about it.

maybe "Two Cathedrals" from The West Wing. "33" from Battlestar Galactica

I dont know about "better", but ones that are up there for me.

Finale of Mr. Robot
Finale of The Americans
The Marine Biologist
Red Wedding

 

[Anarchy99]

Trying to evaluate my level of "living under a rock" vs. other people. I have not seen the following of the Top 25: The Sopranos, Game of Thrones, The Office (either one), Band of Brothers, Mad Men, The Twilight Zone, Deadwood, Friends, The X-Files, Arrested Development, and Fargo. Pretty close to not at all. That's 11 shows (44%).

Of the remaining shows in the Top 25, I have seen all of BB, Seinfeld, Wire, BCS, Cheers, Curb, M*A*S*H, Ozark, and Lost. That's 9 shows (36%). Just curious how this compares to other folks. I'm guessing I have seen less than the average bear.

 

[FarFromHome]

No arguments from me on the top 3. All classics. I'll still watch Seinfeld clips on my YouTube feed and I've seen Breaking Bad and Sopranos both 4 plus times.

 

[zamboni]

I can’t say I’ve watched a ton of shows, but if there is a single better episode in TV history than “Ozymandias”, I’d like to know about it.

maybe "Two Cathedrals" from The West Wing. "33" from Battlestar Galactica

I dont know about "better", but ones that are up there for me.

Finale of The Americans

The finale of the Americans was fantastic as we discussed earlier, but not sure it’s in the rarified air of Ozymandias.

 

[CGRdrJoe]

I hate I didn't have time for this and even more that the Benny Hill show didn't make it on here

 

[FarFromHome]

Scanned the list again and didn't see Spartacus. Maybe because it was on a less popular streaming service? That first season with Andy, before he died, was marvelous. Blood, sex and violence. I actually enjoyed the later seasons also. Gannicus and Crixus.

 

[Psychopav]

More to come including a comprehensive list and some comments, but for now rounding out the top 2 RT ratings:

2. Seinfeld: 89/92
1. Breaking Bad: 96/97 (wow!)

Also I echo several comments already but to @Scoresman thank you, this has been an absolute blast. I don't participate or even read the "draft" threads, but this format is different, and even if I don't participate in future lists I can definitely see myself following along and participating in discussion. Thank you so much for running this and doing such a great job.

 

[Ilov80s]

Breaking Bad was very entertaining and well done. I had it ranked high but it’s a show I haven’t and never will go back to. It was a perfectly designed ride but I didn’t see any depth to it. It was pure entertainment which is great and I flew through it but it didn’t resonate with me the way many other great shows did. Once you know what happens, it stopped being so interesting. Also the Skylar problem was a real problem for me.

 

[zamboni]

Would be interested in hearing what folks think was the biggest snub.

I think The Honeymooners makes a case, although it likely wasn’t as ubiquitous in reruns for many of us compared to other syndicated shiws.

 

[AAABatteries]

Trying to evaluate my level of "living under a rock" vs. other people. I have not seen the following of the Top 25: The Sopranos, Game of Thrones, The Office (either one), Band of Brothers, Mad Men, The Twilight Zone, Deadwood, Friends, The X-Files, Arrested Development, and Fargo. Pretty close to not at all. That's 11 shows (44%).

Of the remaining shows in the Top 25, I have seen all of BB, Seinfeld, Wire, BCS, Cheers, Curb, M*A*S*H, Ozark, and Lost. That's 9 shows (36%). Just curious how this compares to other folks. I'm guessing I have seen less than the average bear.

Top 10 - I've watched all or a good bit of all of them. Hard to watch all of SNL over 50 years. I know I watched Cheers until the end but think I've missed a bunch. Already said I won't watch the non-book GoT, Simpsons I've not watched in years but still count it because I watched most of the first 15-20.

Top 25 - I've not watched any of Mad Men and X-Files; and only seen a handful of episodes of MASH; Curb (enough to rank it and working my way through it)

So, going by my own arbitrary guideline I'd say I've seen 22/25 in the top 25.

 

[Uruk-Hai]

Would be interested in hearing what folks think was the biggest snub.

Had I submitted a ranking, I'm sure I'd have regretted forgetting about:

Midnight Special
CBS Sunday Morning
American Bandstand
Soul Train
This Old House

I don't think they were "snubs" by any of the selectors. Just that these five (among others) would have me kicking myself for leaving them off of my list. I have spent hundreds of hours with those shows and have never not enjoyed one of them.

 

[AAABatteries]

Breaking Bad was very entertaining and well done. I had it ranked high but it’s a show I haven’t and never will go back to. It was a perfectly designed ride but I didn’t see any depth to it. It was pure entertainment which is great and I flew through it but it didn’t resonate with me the way many other great shows did. Once you know what happens, it stopped being so interesting. Also the Skylar problem was a real problem for me.

I have a solution to the Skylar and Marie problems - fast forward.

 

[Andy Dufresne]

Breaking Bad was very entertaining and well done. I had it ranked high but it’s a show I haven’t and never will go back to. It was a perfectly designed ride but I didn’t see any depth to it. It was pure entertainment which is great and I flew through it but it didn’t resonate with me the way many other great shows did. Once you know what happens, it stopped being so interesting. Also the Skylar problem was a real problem for me.

Shut up!!

 

[Ilov80s]

Breaking Bad was very entertaining and well done. I had it ranked high but it’s a show I haven’t and never will go back to. It was a perfectly designed ride but I didn’t see any depth to it. It was pure entertainment which is great and I flew through it but it didn’t resonate with me the way many other great shows did. Once you know what happens, it stopped being so interesting. Also the Skylar problem was a real problem for me.

I have a solution to the Skylar and Marie problems - fast forward.

Number 1 show of all time shouldn’t come with a just FF through one of the main characters suggestion.

 

[McBokonon]

So, I won, right?

 

[AAABatteries]

Breaking Bad was very entertaining and well done. I had it ranked high but it’s a show I haven’t and never will go back to. It was a perfectly designed ride but I didn’t see any depth to it. It was pure entertainment which is great and I flew through it but it didn’t resonate with me the way many other great shows did. Once you know what happens, it stopped being so interesting. Also the Skylar problem was a real problem for me.

I have a solution to the Skylar and Marie problems - fast forward.

Number 1 show of all time shouldn’t come with a just FF through one of the main characters suggestion.

I knew this would be somebody's reply but there's not a show on the list, IMO, that doesn't have the same issue when thinking about rewatching. And to be clear - I don't fast forward through all of Skylar but I'm probably about at 80-90% with Marie.

 

[Leroy Hoard]

Breaking Bad was very entertaining and well done. I had it ranked high but it’s a show I haven’t and never will go back to. It was a perfectly designed ride but I didn’t see any depth to it. It was pure entertainment which is great and I flew through it but it didn’t resonate with me the way many other great shows did. Once you know what happens, it stopped being so interesting. Also the Skylar problem was a real problem for me.

Shut up!!

I know Skylar wasn't exactly everyone's favorite, but I really enjoyed her telling the entitled klepto to shut the f up.

 

[Todem]

Now that it's over....and a huge shout out to @Scoresman for doing a wonderful job in this thread.....here is my Top 70 which I would easily change a few things after being involved in this thread and seeing so many I missed.

1. Band of Brothers
2. Game of Thrones
3. 24
4. Breaking Bad
5. Better Call Saul
6. Six Feet Under
7. Ozark
8. Seinfeld
9. Friends
10. The Twilight Zone - The Original
11. Cheers
12. Star Trek Next Generation
13. All In The Family
14. The Jeffersons
15. Threes Company
16. Emergency
17. Sex and the City
18. Homeland
19. The Sopranos
20. Black Mirror
21. Happy Days
22. Laverne and Shirley
23. Columbo
24. Quincy MD
25. ER
26. South Park
27. Law and Order SVU
28. Jeopardy
29. Wheel of Fortune
30. Family Feud (Richard Dawson)
31. Tonight Show Johnny Carson
32. Tonight Show Jimmy Fallon
33. I Love Lucy
34. Taxi
35. The Wonder Years
36. Mash
37. The Simpsons
38. The Muppet Show
39. Stranger Things
40. SNL
41. In Living Color
42. Greys Anatomy
43. Top Chef
44. Dallas
45. Dynasty
46. Fresh Prince of Bel Air
47. Different Strokes
48. Facts of Life
49. Star Trek Original
50. The Six Million Dollar Man (replaced Sesame Street)
51. The Flintstones
52. Vikings
53. Friday Night Lights
54. Supernatural
55. The X Files
56. Shogun 2024
57. Mindhunter
58. Curb Your Enthusiasm
59. Squid Game
60. Fauda
61. Battlestar Galactica 04-09
62. Beverly Hills 90210
63. Melrose Place
64. Chernobyl
65. The Mandalorian
66. The Offer
67. The Bachelor
68. Batman and Robin - Adam West
69. It - (Mini Series) Tim Curry
70. The Penguin