Rolling Stone names greatest TV shows of all time

The magazine ranked TV shows and series of all sorts and genres – from talk shows to sitcoms and epic dramas – and made a list of 100 greatest TV works from the early days of television until today.

Television has probably never developed as fast as today. Series beat films in popularity, and many movies are being adapted for the small screen. It seems logical that the BBC’s ranking of 100 greatest movies of the 21st century was followed by Rolling Stone’s list of the best TV shows.

Rolling Stone conducted a poll among TV experts – actors, script writers, producers, critics, TV channel representatives. The magazine accepted any TV shows released in any period. Rolling Stone analysed the collected data and came up with the list where classics can be seen next to modern day series, psychological thrillers are shuffled with sitcoms, and police detectives and FBI agents are intermixed with animated characters and vampire hunters.

The list includes such famous series a Homeland — ranked 89th, Doctor Who — 87th, House of Cards — 83rd, Downtown Abbey — 66th, Sex and the City — 62nd, Fargo — 51st, ER — 50th, Columbo — 44th, The Americans — 43rd, Lost —39th, Buffy the Vampire Slayer — 38th, Orange Is the New Black — 37th, Law & Order — 36th, South Park — 33rd, The X-Files — 28th, Friends — 26th.

As any ranking, this one may seem controversial, where many won’t find their favourite series ranked as they would like or won’t find them at all. However, Rolling Stone’s list may become a useful guide for those who have missed something from the TV classics and look for a series for the weekend. Below is the top 20 series from Rolling Stone’s list of the greatest TV shows.

20. Cheers (1982-1993)
19. Curb Your Enthusiasm (2000-present)
18. Star Trek (1966-1969)
17. Twin Peaks (1990-1991)
16. M*A*S*H (1972-1983)
15. The West Wing (1999-2006)
14. The Larry Sanders Show (1992-1998)
13. Late Night With David Letterman (1982-2015)
12. Game of Thrones (2011-present)
11. Freaks and Geeks (1999-2000)
10. The Daily Show (1996-present)
9. All in the Family (1971-1979)
8. Saturday Night Live (1975-present)
7. The Twilight Zone (1959-1964)
6. The Simpsons (1989-present)
5. Seinfeld (1989-1998)
4. Mad Men (2007-2015)
3. Breaking Bad (2008-2013)
2. The Wire (2002-2008)
1. The Sopranos (1999-2007)