101 Best Written TV Shows of All Time

[Burke]

As voted for by the Writers Guild of America.

www.wgaeast.org/index.php?id=567

1. The Sopranos, HBO, Created by David Chase
2. Seinfeld, NBC, Created by Larry David & Jerry Seinfeld
3. The Twilight Zone (1959), CBS, Season One writers: Charles Beaumont, Richard Matheson, Robert Presnell, Jr., Rod Serling
4. All in the Family, CBS, Created by Johnny Speight
5. M*A*S*H, CBS, Developed for Television by Larry Gelbart
6. The Mary Tyler Moore Show, CBS, Created by James L. Brooks and Allan Burns
7. Mad Men, AMC, Created by Matthew Weiner
8. Cheers, NBC, Created by Glen Charles & Les Charles and James Burrows
9. The Wire, HBO, Created by David Simon
10. The West Wing, NBC, Created by Aaron Sorkin
11. The Simpsons, FOX, Created by Matt Groening, Developed by James L. Brooks and Matt Groening and Sam Simon
12. I Love Lucy, CBS, “Pilot,” Written by Jess Oppenheimer & Madelyn Pugh & Bob Carroll, Jr.
13. Breaking Bad, AMC, Created by Vince Gilligan
14. The Dick Van Dyke Show, CBS, Created by Carl Reiner
15. Hill Street Blues, NBC, Created by Michael Kozoll and Steven Bochco
16. Arrested Development, FOX, Created by Mitchell Hurwitz
17. The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, COMEDY CENTRAL, Created by Madeleine Smithberg, Lizz Winstead; Season One – Head Writer: Chris Kreski; Writers: Jim Earl, Daniel J. Goor, Charles Grandy, J.R. Havlan, Tom Johnson, Kent Jones, Paul Mercurio, Guy Nicolucci, Steve Rosenfield, Jon Stewart
18. Six Feet Under, HBO, Created by Alan Ball
19. Taxi, ABC, Created by James L. Brooks and Stan Daniels and David Davis and Ed Weinberger
20. The Larry Sanders Show, HBO, Created by Garry Shandling & Dennis Klein
21. 30 Rock, NBC, Created by Tina Fey
22. Friday Night Lights, NBC, Developed for Television by Peter Berg, Inspired by the Book by H.G. Bissinger
23. Frasier, NBC, Created by David Angell & Peter Casey & David Lee, Based on the Character “Frasier Crane” Created by Glen Charles & Les Charles
24. Friends, NBC, Created by Marta Kauffman & David Crane
25. Saturday Night Live, NBC, Season One: Writing Supervised by Walter Kempley, Harry Shearer; Written by: Ann Beatts, Chevy Chase, Tom Davis, Al Franken, Rosie Michaels, Garrett Morris, Michael O'Donoghue, Herb Sargent, Tom Schiller, Alan Zweibel
26. The X-Files, FOX, Created by Chris Carter
27. Lost, ABC, Created by Jeffrey Lieber and J.J. Abrams & Damon Lindelof
28. ER, NBC, Created Michael Crichton
29. The Cosby Show, NBC, Created by Ed Weinberger & Michael Leeson and William Cosby, Jr., Ed. D.
30. Curb Your Enthusiasm, HBO, Created by Larry David
31. The Honeymooners, CBS, Season One writers: Herbert Finn, Marvin Marx, A.J. Russell, Leonard Stern, Walter Stone, Sydney Zelinka
32. Deadwood, HBO, Created by David Milch
33. Star Trek, NBC, Created by Gene Roddenberry
34. Modern Family, ABC, Created by Steven Levitan & Christopher Lloyd
35. Twin Peaks, ABC, “Pilot,” Written by Mark Frost & David Lynch
36. NYPD Blue, ABC, Created by David Milch & Steven Bochco
37. The Carol Burnett Show, CBS, Season One: Written by Bill Angelos, Stan Burns, Don Hinkley, Buz Kohan, Mike Marmer, Gail Parent, Kenny Solms, Saul Turtletaub; Writing Supervised by Arnie Rosen
38. Battlestar Galactica (2005), SYFY, Developed by Ronald D. Moore, Based on the Series Battlestar Galactica Created by Glen A. Larson
39. Sex & the City, HBO, Created by Darren Star, Based on the Book by Candace Bushnell
40. Game of Thrones, HBO, Created by David Benioff & D. B. Weiss, Based on A Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin
41. The Bob Newhart Show, CBS, Created by David Davis and Lorenzo Music *TIE
Your Show of Shows, NBC, Season One: Written by Mel Tolkin, Lucille Kallen, Max Liebman *TIE
43. Downton Abbey, PBS, Created by Julian Fellowes *TIE
Law & Order, NBC, Created by Dick Wolf *TIE
thirtysomething, ABC, Created by Marshall Herskovitz & Edward Zwick *TIE
46. Homicide: Life on the Street, NBC, Created by Paul Attanasio, Based on the Book Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets by David Simon *TIE
St. Elsewhere, CBS, Created by Joshua Brand & John Falsey, Developed by Mark Tinker / John Masius *TIE
48. Homeland, SHOWTIME, Developed by Howard Gordon & Alex Gansa, Based on the Original Israeli Series Prisoners of War by Gideon Raff
49. Buffy the Vampire Slayer, WB, Created by Joss Whedon
50. The Colbert Report, COMEDY CENTRAL, Season One writers: Stephen Colbert, Rich Dahm, Eric Drysdale, Peter Gwinn, Jay Katsir, Laura Krafft, Allison Silverman *TIE
The Good Wife, CBS, Created by Robert King & Michelle King *TIE
The Office (UK), BBC, Created by Ricky Gervais & Stephen Merchant *TIE
53. Northern Exposure, CBS, Created by Joshua Brand & John Falsey
54. The Wonder Years, ABC, Created by Neal Marlens & Carol Black
55. L.A. Law, NBC, Created by Steven Bochco & Terry Louise Fisher
56. Sesame Street, PBS, Created by Joan Ganz Cooney
57. Columbo, NBC, Created by Richard Levinson & William Link
58. Fawlty Towers, BBC, Written by John Cleese & Connie Booth *TIE
The Rockford Files, NBC, Created by Roy Huggins and Stephen J. Cannell *TIE
60. Freaks and Geeks, NBC, Created by Paul Feig *TIE
Moonlighting, ABC, Created by Glenn Gordon Caron *TIE
62. Roots, ABC, Written by William Blinn, M. Charles Cohen, Ernest Kinoy, James Lee; Based on the Book by Alex Haley
63. Everybody Loves Raymond, CBS, Created by Philip Rosenthal *TIE
South Park, COMEDY CENTRAL, Created by Matt Stone & Trey Parker *TIE
65. Playhouse 90, CBS, Season One writers: Edna Anhalt, Edmund Beloin, Harold Jack Bloom, Marc Brandel, George Bruce, James P. Cavanagh, Whitfiled Cook, Helen Doss, Scott Fitzgerald, Devery Freeman, Frank D. Gilroy, Helen Howe, Speed Lamkin, Ernest Lehman, Herbert Little, Jr., Don Mankiewicz, Elick Moll, Paul Monash, Dean Reisner, Norman Retchin, Selma Robinson, William Sackheim, Rod Serling, Leonard Spigelgass, Leslie Stevens, Brandon Thomas, David Victor, Charles M. Warren, Hagar Wilde, Cornell Woolrich
66. Dexter, SHOWTIME, Developed for Television by James Manos, Jr., Based on the Novel Darkly Dreaming Dexter by Jeff Lindsay *TIE
The Office (US), NBC, Created by Ricky Gervais & Stephen Merchant, Developed by Greg Daniels, Based on the BBC Series The Office *TIE
68. My So-Called Life, ABC, Created by Winnie Holzman
69. The Golden Girls, NBC, Created by Susan Harris
70. The Andy Griffith Show, CBS, Episode 1, “The New Housekeeper,” Written by Jack Elinson and Charles Stewart
71. 24, FOX, Created by Joel Surnow & Robert Cochran *TIE
Roseanne, ABC, Created by Matt Williams, Based on a Character Created by Roseanne Barr *TIE
The Shield, FX, Created by Shawn Ryan *TIE
74. House, FOX, Created by David Shore *TIE
Murphy Brown, CBS, Created by Diane English *TIE
76. Barney Miller, ABC, Created by Danny Arnold & Theodore J. Flicker *TIE
I, Claudius, PBS, Written by Rupert Graves and Jack Pulman *TIE
78. The Odd Couple, ABC, Episode 1, “The Fight of the Felix,” Written by Peggy Elliott & Ed Scharlach
79. Alfred Hitchcock Presents, CBS, Season One writers – Gwen Bagni, Samuel Blas, Robert Blees, Ray Bradbury, Richard Carr, James Cavanagh, Eustace Cockrell, Francis Cockrell, Marian Cockrell, John Collier, Robert C. Dennis, Mel Dinelli, Stanley Ellin, Fred Freiberger, Irwin Gielgud, Gina Kaus, Terence Maples, Richard Pedicini, Louis Pollock, Joseph Ruscoll, A.J. Russell, Stirling Silliphant, Andrew Solt, Harold Swanton, Victor Wolfson, Cornell Woolrich *TIE
Monty Python’s Flying Circus, BBC, Conceived and Written by Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Neil Innes, Terry Jones, Michael Palin *TIE
Star Trek: The Next Generation, SYN, Created by Gene Roddenberry *TIE
Upstairs, Downstairs, PBS, Created by Jean Marsh and Eileen Atkins *TIE
83. Get Smart, NBC, “Pilot,” Written by Mel Brooks and Buck Henry
84. The Defenders, CBS, Created by Reginald Rose *TIE
Gunsmoke, CBS, Episode 1, “Matt Gets It,” Written by Charles Marquis Warren & John Meston *TIE
86. Justified, FX, Developed for Television by Graham Yost, Based on the Short Story “Fire in the Hole” by Elmore Leonard *TIE
Sgt. Bilko (The Phil Silvers Show), CBS, Created by Nat Hiken *TIE
88. Band of Brothers, HBO, Written by Erik Bork, E. Max Frye, Tom Hanks, Erik Jendresen, Bruce C. McKenna, John Orloff, Graham Yost; Based on the Book by Stephan E. Ambrose
89. Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In, NBC, Season One: Written by Chris Beard, Phil Hahn, John Hanrahan, Coslough Johnson, Paul Keyes, Marc London, Allan Manings, David Panich, Hugh Wedlock, Digby Wolfe
90. The Prisoner, CBS, Premiere Episode: Written by George Markstein and David Tomblin
91. Absolutely Fabulous (UK), BBC, Episode 1, “Fashion,” Written by Jennifer Saunders, Based on an Original Idea by Jennifer Saunders & Dawn French *TIE
The Muppet Show, SYN, Season One: Written by Jack Burns, Jim Henson, Jerry Juhl, Marc London *TIE
93. Boardwalk Empire, HBO, Created by Terence Winter, Based on the Book Boardwalk Empire by Nelson Johnson
94. Will & Grace, NBC, Created by David Kohan & Max Mutchnick
95. Family Ties, NBC, Created by Gary David Goldberg
96. Lonesome Dove, CBS, Teleplay by Bill Wittliff, Based on the Novel Lonesome Dove by Larry McMurtry *TIE
Soap, ABC, Created by Susan Harris *TIE
98. The Fugitive, ABC, Episode 1, “Where the Action Is,” Written by Harry Kronman *TIE
Late Night with David Letterman, CBS, Season One: Writing Supervised by Merrill Markoe, Writers: Andy Breckman, Tom Gammill, David Letterman, Richard Morris, Gerard Mulligan, Max Pross, Karl Tiedemann, Steve Winer *TIE
Louie, FX, Season One: Written and Directed by Louis C.K. *TIE
101. Oz, HBO, Created by Tom Fontana

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I've probably seen less than 20 of those shows. I've still never watched an episode of The Sopranos.

[Mutant Couch]

Fawlty Towers should be way higher. Also, how the hell did Father Ted get excluded, but Absolutely Fabulous made it? I like the show and the list is obviously American, but come on.

[Burke]

Father Ted is my favourite show that didn't make the list.

And yeah, as far as UK shows go, Only Fools and Horses, Blackadder and The Royle Family (and a lot of others I can't think of right now) would look better on that list than Absolutely Fabulous.

Community and King of the Hill should probably be on there somewhere too. I really haven't seen most of that list but I just can't imagine there being over 100 shows better written than those two at their best.

EDIT: And Chappelle's Show! They've included other sketch shows so it was eligible.