Television What's been the best TV show of the decade?

[Prometheus]

Looking back, what's been the best TV show of the decade?

Criteria: it must have had at least one season air within this decade.


Personally I think it's The Americans.

For a while I thought The Americans was another Homeland or one of those shows. It was only after I've heard about the story that inspired it that I thought I should give it a watch. I was blown away. My 'holy trinity' of TV shows was Sopranos, The Wire and Breaking Bad. After finishing The Americans I think it's Sopranos, The Wire, and The Americans. I remember when Breaking Bad came out, the hype was everywhere. Unless it was just me sleeping on it, no one I know mentioned how good The Americans was. It's strange because unlike Breaking Bad it actually aired in the UK.

My list of elite shows that have had at least one season air within this decade are:

1. The Americans
2. Breaking Bad
3. Fargo
4. Better Call Saul
5. True Detective
6. Line of Duty
7. Justified

I tried to make a top ten, but honestly nothing else that I have seen fits in that tier.

Some 'apparently' good shows that I can't rank as I haven't seen them are:

Mad Men, Orphan Black, The Leftovers, and Boardwalk Empire.

 

[SteveJ]

I still find myself chilled by Sharp Objects.

 

[Massive Spanner]

Don't think Mad Men and Breaking Bad can really be disputed as the best two shows to air this decade, the former is probably in my top 3 ever alongside The Wire and The Sopranos and Breaking Bad is probably a top 5-7 show too.

After them I'd say shows like Games of Thrones (despite the awful final two seasons), The Leftovers, Mr. Robot (the final season has really elevated it up there), Black Mirror, Rick & Morty, Fleabag, Parks and Recreation are ones that instantly spring to mind.

As a single series of TV I'd say Chernobyl and then the first season of True Detective (or at least the first six episodes). Oh and When They See Us was exceptional too.

 

[SalfordRed18]

It should have been Game of thrones.

 

[RobinLFC]

Game Of Thrones deserves to be on any list of the decade based on their first few seasons imo.

Extra points for longevity as well since it stretched out all the way from 2011 until 2019. I think it might not be the "best" but it's certainly up there as one of the "greatest".

 

[do.ob]

Mad Men by a distance for me. True Detective (2nd season aside), Westworld and BB deserve honorary mentions.

 

[Prometheus]

I still find myself chilled by Sharp Objects.

I haven't seen this. Is it a one off/mini-series?

The BBC had two really good miniseries that aren't very well known: Priest and The Shadow Line.

 

[Redplane]

It should have been Game of thrones.

Yup - but even despite the shite that was season 8 I think one could still argue its the best from the mere perspective of cultural impact alone. I've seldom seen a show permeate society as much as that one did.

 

[11101]

True Detective Season 1 and Better Call Saul.

Mad Men should have been there but i found myself willing it to end in the latter seasons.

Mindhunter could be in with a shout too.

 

[Wumminator]

True Detective series 1
Watchmen series 1
Mad men
Breaking Bad

 

[Prometheus]

Don't think Mad Men and Breaking Bad can really be disputed as the best two shows to air this decade, the former is probably in my top 3 ever alongside The Wire and The Sopranos and Breaking Bad is probably a top 5-7 show too.

After them I'd say shows like Games of Thrones (despite the awful final two seasons), The Leftovers, Mr. Robot (the final season has really elevated it up there), Black Mirror, Rick & Morty, Fleabag, Parks and Recreation are ones that instantly spring to mind.

As a single series of TV I'd say Chernobyl and then the first season of True Detective (or at least the first six episodes). Oh and When They See Us was exceptional too.

Interesting to hear that the final season of Mr. Robot has been great. I'm really looking forward to Mad Men.

But I must be the only person in the world that didn't get Fleabag (I've seen season 1).

 

[CassiusClaymore]

I think Breaking Bad. Or Chernobyl if that counts.

True Detective and GoT blew the landing.

I probably should watch The Leftovers.

 

[Samid]

This decade will be remembered for GoT no matter how shite the ending was.

 

[DWelbz19]

Mad Men, easily. Though I personally think that’s cheating.

The Leftovers
——
Fargo
Breaking Bad*
Twin Peaks: The Return (I think it can count as a separate entity)
——
Watchmen
Better Call Saul
Game of Thrones
——
True Detective
Black Mirror

* also think that’s cheating. I know the OP put his criteria but I think it should be shows that solely aired in this decade. In which case, The Leftovers is a clean sweep for that criteria.

 

[Edgar Allan Pillow]

Stranger Things?

 

[Oldyella]

Stranger Things?

Not for me. It was good fun but doesn't compare to the other shows mentioned further up. Watchmen is in with a shout to make a top 5 if the last episode is good. For my number 1 it would be either Fargo or True Detectives first season.

 

[robinamicrowave]

As much as I love Game of Thrones (as you all know) and as much as it'll go down as my personal favourite of the decade, I'm not sure I'd say it was the best show we've had since 2010. I'm happy to see people mentioning it in their lists and I'm glad we all remember it fondly enough to mention it here, but I'm not sure it can really be ranked alongside some of the other shows being brought up in this discussion. If every season had been delivered like seasons 1-4 were then we'd be seriously talking about it among the likes of Mad Men, Breaking Bad, etc. as the best drama of this particularly brilliant era for TV. That's not to say S1-S4 was "better" than S5-S8 (I mostly think that's true but I prefer S6 to S2), but from S5 onwards it was shooting for something beyond televsion, and when they made that decision it was always going to become too preposterous and bombastic to be considered among the very, very best, and that its slightly pulpy soap-opera nature, mixed with the increasing fantasy elements, was always going to prevent it from being the consensus pick for the very best of 2010s TV.

I don't love it like a "guilty pleasure" as such. I think it was fantastic from start to finish in all its forms and I'm happy to admit that. It enraptured me and immersed me and it stopped me chucking myself out of my bedroom window, so you know. I've watched it through more times than I can count and I'll defend the latter seasons from almost all criticism. But still, I'm not sure a show can aim to be that much of a widespread cultural spectacle and still be fairly compared to other shows like Breaking Bad and Mad Men, who had to fight tooth and nail to stay on the air during their middle seasons despite their obvious quality. Game of Thrones was onto something with its two S1 cliffhangers (one involving Ned, the other involving Daenerys), and by the S4 cliffhanger it was too big to fail. From that moment on it tried go beyond TV and bridge the gap between home viewing and the cinema experience, and when it was finally given the budget to do so it went off in a completely different direction. It often succeeded and occasionally stumbled when trying to match its own ambitions.

There's absolutely no doubt that it was the most popular drama of the decade, and I'm not sure we'll ever again see a TV show like it ever again (the size of the cast, the size of the budget, the depth and richness of the fictional world it was in, the appointment viewing culture it kept alive in an age of streaming), but save the shouts of "best TV" for the shows that remained TV shows from beginning to end.

 

[Siorac]

My personal favourite has been and remains The Expanse. "Objectively", if that's possible, it's probably nowhere near but I highly recommend it to anyone who is even remotely interested in sci-fi or shows depicting political and social tension.

The Americans, Breaking Bad, Mad Men, Parks and Rec were all series with outstanding quality and quite remarkable consistency - their lowest points were still pretty fecking great. Original Black Mirror, too - I'm not too much of a fan of it since the revive.

 

[harms]

Mad Men
Game of Thrones
Breaking Bad

Standouts in no particular order:

Rick & Morty
Bojack Horseman
Fleabag
Atlanta
Narcos
Adventure Time
Chernobyl
Community
Boardwalk Empire
Billions
The Young Pope
Broen/Bron

I stopped watching The Americans at some point. I quite enjoyed it at the beginning, but it never was a competitor for one of the best shows of the decade for me. Perhaps it's different when you're actually Russian and you see all the goofy mistakes that they make despite, clearly, trying their best to be quite accurate. You just never get the sense of immersion that you're supposed to have in a thriller (let's call it that). Chernobyl is a great example of how to do it, even if it's unfair to compare fiction with fiction/history series — they had made some mistakes, but they've invested so much to get every little detail right that you don't see their mistakes.

The Black Mirror was always too blunt for me, never got the hype. The premises are great and inventive, the series itself are a bit meh.

 

[Redplane]

In a way this should be divided into categories. I. E. most comedies aren't high production value shows but it's hard to argue with the success of the likes of Parks & and Rec, The Office, How I Met Your Mother and Modern Family. But would I consider any of them the greatest show of all? No, because there are shinier things out there.

 

[Oldyella]

My personal favourite has been and remains The Expanse. "Objectively", if that's possible, it's probably nowhere near but I highly recommend it to anyone who is even remotely interested in sci-fi or shows depicting political and social tension.

The Americans, Breaking Bad, Mad Men, Parks and Rec were all series with outstanding quality and quite remarkable consistency - their lowest points were still pretty fecking great. Original Black Mirror, too - I'm not too much of a fan of it since the revive.

The Expanse is a good shout!

 

[SteveJ]

I haven't seen this. Is it a one off/mini-series?

I believe it is, yeah.
Available secondhand from CeX for £3.50.

 

[robinamicrowave]

Some favourites based on shows that aired episodes this decade, in no particular order.

Game of Thrones, Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul, BoJack Horseman, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Fargo, Barry, Mad Men (only done two seasons, but wow), Catastrophe, Rick & Morty, Community, The Good Place, Twin Peaks: The Return, Atlanta, Fleabag.

 

[Massive Spanner]

In a way this should be divided into categories. I. E. most comedies aren't high production value shows but it's hard to argue with the success of the likes of Parks & and Rec, The Office, How I Met Your Mother and Modern Family. But would I consider any of them the greatest show of all? No, because there are shinier things out there.

Don't think that matters really.

Parks & Rec was laugh out loud funny for a good five years, which is basically the main component of a comedy show. It also had a lot of great characters who you really rooted for. I think it deserves to be up there among the best rated shows of the decade.

I wouldn't put something like HIMYM or Modern Family anywhere near it in terms of quality.

 

[Siorac]

Some favourites based on shows that aired episodes this decade, in no particular order.

Game of Thrones, Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul, BoJack Horseman, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Fargo, Barry, Mad Men (only done two seasons, but wow), Catastrophe, Rick & Morty, Community, The Good Place, Twin Peaks: The Return, Atlanta, Fleabag.

Shit, how could I forget BoJack! One of the most creative and funny things ever on TV.

 

[do.ob]

Don't think that matters really.

Parks & Rec was laugh out loud funny for a good five years, which is basically the main component of a comedy show. It also had a lot of great characters who you really rooted for. I think it deserves to be up there among the best rated shows of the decade.

I wouldn't put something like HIMYM or Modern Family anywhere near it in terms of quality.

There are some very good comedies out there (P&R, IASIP for example), but I don't think you can put up a 20 minute plot comedy up against a 45-60 minute drama show. If done proper the latter is just infinitely more complex, challenging and engaging.

 

[Mrs Smoker]

Community for me.

 

[0le]

I really enjoyed Merlin on the BBC. The special effects were rubbish but the chemistry between the two main leads, arthur and merlin, was fantastic.

 

[ThinkTank@Cafe]

1. Peaky Blinders.
2. GoT.
3. Billions.
4. Ozark.
5. Suits.

 

[adexkola]

Looking back, what's been the best TV show of the decade?

Criteria: it must have had at least one season air within this decade.


Personally I think it's The Americans.

For a while I thought The Americans was another Homeland or one of those shows. It was only after I've heard about the story that inspired it that I thought I should give it a watch. I was blown away. My 'holy trinity' of TV shows was Sopranos, The Wire and Breaking Bad. After finishing The Americans I think it's Sopranos, The Wire, and The Americans. I remember when Breaking Bad came out, the hype was everywhere. Unless it was just me sleeping on it, no one I know mentioned how good The Americans was. It's strange because unlike Breaking Bad it actually aired in the UK.

My list of elite shows that have had at least one season air within this decade are:

1. The Americans
2. Breaking Bad
3. Fargo
4. Better Call Saul
5. True Detective
6. Line of Duty
7. Justified

I tried to make a top ten, but honestly nothing else that I have seen fits in that tier.

Some 'apparently' good shows that I can't rank as I haven't seen them are:

Mad Men, Orphan Black, The Leftovers, and Boardwalk Empire.

Let's elope

 

[Yagami]

Breaking Bad

 

[Vato]

Breaking Bad for me too I think.

 

[Volumiza]

Breaking bad, GOT obviously but I’d also add TopBoy Summerhouse to that and also I think the Crown is as good as anything I’ve seen in a long time.

edit: forgot Chernobyl and the This is England series.

 

[Eckers99]

There's been a lot of great TV, almost all of which has already been discussed but I'd single out The Leftovers, Mad Men, Bojack Horseman, Breaking Bad and The Americans as the best 5.

That said, nothing came close to THAT episode of Twin Peaks: The Return for sheer - and horrific - intensity. That was TV elevated from entertainment to art.

Gotta light?

 

[Annihilate Now!]

Some that haven't been mentioned...

Friday Night Lights (though most of it was in the 00's)
The Night Manager
Haunting at Hill House
Master of None

My vote might also go for Parks and Rec though.

 

[duffer]

Downton Abbey obviously.

 

[Simbo]

There are plenty shows I've not watched and my list is just based on the most memorable for me and what I'm most likely to re-watch personally, only way I can judge them.

GoT - Seasons 1-4 really were some of the best TV ever made, the following seasons don't take away from that.
Black Sails - Season 1 was meh but all the rest was top tier. Great story telling, character progression done right, epic scenes.
Banshee - Pure entertainment. Not one single bad/boring/filler episode in 4 seasons of TV is quite an achievement.
edit: Forgot True Detective S1 - Perhaps the best, I watched almost every episode twice in the same week and that felt normal.

 

[Snow]

Don't think Mad Men and Breaking Bad can really be disputed as the best two shows to air this decade, the former is probably in my top 3 ever alongside The Wire and The Sopranos and Breaking Bad is probably a top 5-7 show too.

After them I'd say shows like Games of Thrones (despite the awful final two seasons), The Leftovers, Mr. Robot (the final season has really elevated it up there), Black Mirror, Rick & Morty, Fleabag, Parks and Recreation are ones that instantly spring to mind.

As a single series of TV I'd say Chernobyl and then the first season of True Detective (or at least the first six episodes). Oh and When They See Us was exceptional too.

Yes they can, they aired last decade. We're into season 4 of Mad Men this decade and season 3 of Breaking Bad.

 

[Snow]

Fargo
Rick & Morty
The Leftovers
Atlanta
30 Rock (I too can name a show from the last decade and play it off as this decade)

 

[harms]

There are some very good comedies out there (P&R, IASIP for example), but I don't think you can put up a 20 minute plot comedy up against a 45-60 minute drama show. If done proper the latter is just infinitely more complex, challenging and engaging.

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