List Whoring: Top 20 TV Shows off the 00's

Top 20 Shows of the 00's

Yup. It's that time of the year again. Or, well, decade as it may be. The one thing that really defined the decade in terms of film was something blown off by many a skeptic through the years: TV. When the history books are written about the dead art of TV (which will be replaced by the Super-Internet), it will be noted that the 00's was possibly the greatest decade of television. Yes, even eclipsing the late 1950's and early 60's, the time of such classics as "The Twilight Zone" and "Studio One". To look at the 00's in perspective, the groundwork was laid in the '90s with a lot of serialized dramas on HBO and Fox/WB/UPN basically giving a blank check to a lot of original creations like "The Simpsons" and "Buffy the Vampire Slayer".

Some ground rules first. Actually, just one rule to level the playing field. Sadly, shows that ended their run in the 00's will not be included. Shows like Buffy, Angel, Futurama, Freaks and Geeks, etc. However, these should be especially noted on how these shows really changed the landscape of television. Okay, note over. Now on to the good stuff. A controversial list that everyone can yell at me about later.

Honorable Mentions: Dead Like Me, Dexter, The Office (US), Chappelle's Show, Kitchen Nightmares, How I Met Your Mother, Sealab 2021, Samurai Jack, 24 (pre-Season 6), Extras, Frisky Dingo

20) Spectacular Spider-Man

As I said in a previous column, this is THE Spider-Man show. If you want to know who Spider-Man is and what makes him such an indelible character, look no further than here. It's also a very brave show. It tackles with a lot of difficult issues like drug addiction and, yet, it still plays every Saturday morning for an audience much younger than what the producers of the shows intend. This is truly the mark of a lot of the animated shows that will come up on the list. Not only that, but this show actually puts every Spider-Man reboot to shame. Ultimate Spider-Man, the films, every last one of them.

19) It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia

The theme of most great comedy shows of the 00's is that mean people are awesome. This is no different. In fact, one of the great attributes of this show is that it deals with real, controversial issues like abortion and the mortgage crisis and basically says "Why so fucking serious?"

18) Curb Your Enthusiasm

Again, mean people=awesome. If "It's Always Sunny..." deals with the big issues, Curb deals with the little ones. Those little awkward social fopas that are so common place that, when Larry David puts a magnifying glass to them, they become even more insignificant.

17) Jericho

Great sci-fi comes from social commentary. I'll elaborate more later-on but one of the genres that flourished in the 00's was the post-apocalypse genre. Spearheaded most likely from 9/11, this once niche genre has come into its own with the 00's. Though Jericho ended up failing, it did inspire a helluva fan uprising each time it got canceled. It even gave it a great second season. What starts out as "Battlestar Galactica" on the American frontier really, just like the genre itself, comes into its own as the episodes go on.

16) Dollhouse

Yeah, it kinda started off crappily but we really can't blame Whedon for that (*cough*Fox*cough*). After episode 6, the show really picked up and showed where it could go with its fascinating if frustrating-at-times concept. However, unlike some other shows on this list, even though this show got canceled, at least Fox gave it some time to end things. Here's hoping the series finale cements this show's legacy.

15) Aqua Teen Hunger Force

Adult Swim ushered in a new era of surrealistic comedy. Too long has the fascist chains of the sitcom burdened the televised comedy. With Aqua Teen Hunger Force, it broke those chains...with a glorious chainsaw of the proletariat. Yeah, a bit of a Marxist reading but, what the hell. It's a show so weird that you just have to see it to believe it. It even created an amazing niche genre: the surreal horror comedy. Check out the movie when you have a chance, especially the opening sequence.

14) Harvey Birdman: Attorney At Law

Colbert. Cole. Black. What are all these sublime comedians doing on an Adult Swim show? Because. A show that got better like a fine wine and ended just as well, "Harvey Birdman" is what parodies should do nowadays. Instead of just showing pre-existing characters in a scene like some other shows do (*cough*Family Guy*cough*), it actually expands and skews them so much that it's hard to watch the originals ever again.

13) Veronica Mars

The only detective show on television that has, by far, the best twists I have ever seen on television or film. Though the third season ended up being a bit predictable, Seasons 1 and 2 are the gold standard of what a procedural show can do. It's sad to think that this show got canceled in favor of "Gossip Girl" but it's great to relive the memories on DVD. Hell, sometimes the show still surprises me in how well structured it is.

12) Doctor Who

Maybe it's my love of Brits or maybe it's my love of good TV, but Doctor Who has it all. Adventure. High-Stakes. Characterization. Frankly, it's refreshing to find a series where the protagonist is actually the character you want to see on screen every week. It's so often the case with hour-longs that the protagonist is dull and tries too hard to be the every man. Not so with the Doctor. The only downside to this show has got to be the trailers or it can be an upside. Though they make every episode look boring, it's actually very strategic. None of them giveaway what actually happens in the episode, which makes the more surprising when things do happen. The only real low point of this series would have to be its Daleks in New York episodes. If you just ignore those two, you have one fantastic series.

11) American Dad

Though the final nail in the traditional sitcom coffin will have to wait a little longer (stupid "How I Met Your Mother"), there's at least "American Dad" to parody what has become a rather stale genre. This show goes places where a normal sitcom would say "Wait, wait I think we've gone too far" and it just rolls with it. Not only that, it has become the greatest show on what was once one of the greatest nights on TV: Sunday. It's sad to watch "The Simpsons" and "Family Guy" (though this is somewhat on the rebound as of late) go down the tubes, but at least I know that "American Dad" will be there to consistently bring the funny every week.

10) Avatar

If you judged this show based on its art style, you'll be missing out. Big time. It's faux-anime look presumes that this is just going to be another goofy series much like "Teen Titans" or "The Jackie Chan Adventures." What we have here is an epic three season long series that becomes the television equivalent of "Star Wars" (the original trilogy). Everything in this series feels right and incredibly well planned as if the showrunners planned, specifically, that this will last three seasons and no more. If you don't believe me, watch the second season and tell me that nothing got you.

9) The Venture Bros.

On the surface, the show could be considered a parody of old cartoon shows just like "Harvey Birdman". As the series progressed, it became increasingly clear that these characters are by no means mere caricatures of older creations just for shits and giggles. This is an incredibly astute look into failure. Almost every character has failed in life somehow and it really builds into an incredible tragic comedy about how dreams may never come true. Oh, and the Scooby-Doo parody episode is awesome.

8) The Office (UK)

Speaking of failure, this is possibly the bleakest "sitcom" ever and it's amazing for doing that. Where the American version is mostly smiles and sunshine, the UK version is set in a place where there is no hope. The series finale gives it but the entire series is about how many times it can be dashed away. David Brent has got to be one of the funniest characters ever created for television because of how not funny he is.

7) Firefly

Space-western. No wonder it was canceled in its first season. However, like "Avatar" and "The Venture Bros.", it's all in the details. This show defines "Bad-Ass." I think the show can speak for itself. Not because I'm lazy and I don't want to write a short write-up of it (yeah, also that) but what hasn't been said about this series?

6) Lost

After sputtering around in its second season, the third season cemented this show in #6. Heck, even parts of the second season were just incredible. Taking the best of the minds of Whedon and HBO series, what makes this show isn't the crazy ass island but the characters. The brilliant concoction of the dueling plots in each episode, where the B-plot explains something concerning the A-plot, is what makes this series shoot up so high on the list. It's crazy to think that no one thought of this sooner.

5) Supernatural

The award for this program is: the show that you should be watching but aren't. Bed Edlund, creator of "The Tick" and writer of a couple of episodes of "The Venture Bros.", is a godsend to television. He didn't create the series but, ever since he's been a part of it, it has sent the show flying off the radar. The mythology may not be as deep as "Lost" or "Battlestar Galactica" but every episode has something that shows sometimes forget to include: fun. It doesn't take itself so seriously even if deals with incredibly bleak issues. It looks like everyone is having a blast making these episodes and it shows on the screen.

4) Justice League

Bruce Timm's magnum opus, this show is what all of his previous shows lead up to. It may not be as good as "Batman" but what it lacks in grit it makes up in epic. The second season finale is at times heart-wrenching yet also gigantic. The ongoing Cadmus storyline just ties everything in the Timm-verse in a nice little bow. What's interesting about this series is that Bruce Timm (rightly) thought that each season would be the show's last. So every season ends with the appropriate fireworks.

3) Battlestar Galactica

A lot of people may say they were disappointed in the finale (I was, slightly) but if you take the whole instead of the sum of its parts, "Battlestar Galactica" is THE way to make a post-apocalyptic drama. From the mini-series on, the show feels like a roller-coaster that never lets go. And, like every great sci-fi piece, its social commentary is never laid on thick but hits you right in the gut.

2) Arrested Development

Could there have been a funnier series than "The Simpsons" in its glory days? No, but this show comes pretty darn close. Even with a cast of the most unlikeable characters ever, there is something that makes you want to watch what crazy thing they're going to get into next. Not only is each episode a testament to brilliant episode writing, but the running gags from episode-to-episode only get funnier the more times you watch them.

1) The Wire

When anyone talks about the platinum standard of television, "The Wire" is usually up there. There's a reason for that. HBO was still going strong with its Tiffany line of series well into the 00's but its "The Wire" that really showed what these shows can do. No bones about it, this show is angry. It's angry about how unfair life can be and how a lot of things in society will never be fixed. Like most of the shows on this list, it rewards the viewer for paying attention. However, this show says "Well, maybe you weren't paying close enough attention." From beginning to end, "The Wire" will go down in the history books as a show as grand as many of the classics told today. Think that's hyperbole? Just watch and prove me wrong. I dare ya.