50 Best TV Shows Countdown!

[GregMcduck]

34. Good Eats - (1999) - 18 points
(2 of 9 lists. Highest ranking - #11 rocket9)

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0344651/

Good Eats is a television cooking show created and hosted by Alton Brown. Likened to television science educators Mr. Wizard and Bill Nye, Brown explores the science and technique behind the cooking, the history of different foods, and the advantages of different kinds of cooking equipment. The show tends to focus on familiar dishes that can easily be made at home, and also features segments on choosing the right appliances, and getting the most out of inexpensive, multi-purpose tools. Each episode of Good Eats has a distinct theme, which is typically an ingredient or a certain cooking technique, but may also be a more generic theme such as Thanksgiving, or "man food."

The show has a distinctive visual style involving Dutch angles and shots from cameras placed inside and on various items in the kitchen, including the ovens, refrigerator, and microwave oven. In some episodes, Brown and other actors play various characters to tell the story of the food. For example, in the episode "The Big Chili," Brown played a cowboy trying to rustle up the ideal pot of chili. In the episode "Give Peas A Chance" (a parody of The Exorcist), Brown plays a Father Merrin-like character who tries to convince a "possessed" child to eat (and like) peas. In other episodes Brown is simply himself, but is surrounded by fictional characters such as his eggplant and tomato wielding neighbor Mr. McGregor, or a city councilman who refuses to eat fudge. He also uses various makeshift teaching aids to demonstrate scientific concepts.

Although it is his most prominent production, Brown says he makes no money from the broadcast of Good Eats. He spends the entire budget allocated by Food Network on producing the show and receives no residuals. Instead, all of his personal income comes from DVD sales, book royalties, speaking engagements, and corporate consulting.

[GregMcduck]

33. Black Books - (2000) - 19 points
(1 of 9 lists. Highest ranking - #7 TripeHoundRedux)

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0262150/

[GregMcduck]

32. The Late Show With David Letterman - (1993) - 19 points
(1 of 9 lists. Highest ranking - #7 Minnesota)

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0106053/

The Late Show with David Letterman is a multiple Emmy Award-winning hour-long weeknight comedy talk show broadcast from the Ed Sullivan Theater on Broadway in New York City. The Late Show is well known for its repeated absurdist segments, often taking the form of competitions or audience participation. The charm of these segments is often that they are completely pointless, yet are taken seriously by Letterman and all involved. Currently, the show's regularly scheduled segments consist of "Small Town News" on Mondays (coincidentally and possibly competing with Leno's similar segment, "Headlines") and "Fun Facts" on Fridays. Thursdays often feature a rotating set of three audience participation segments: "Know Your Current Events," "Stump the Band," and "Audience Show and Tell."

Every Halloween, Letterman stands in a house-like set on stage, where he answers a door and greets a series of trick-or-treaters dressed in elaborate, humorous costumes (a recent example being a gas station sign with changeable prices). The children are then given "treats" which have consisted of unusual items such as Lipitor, useless Yankees World Series tickets, and a Tonight Show tote bag. Every Thanksgiving, Letterman visits his mother at her Indiana home via satellite, and tries to guess the two pies she has baked for her family dinner. Letterman will also show footage of that year's company Thanksgiving party, which often includes a particular clip from a previous party in which Letterman serves food while dressed in a pilgrim costume. For Christmas, Letterman will often dedicate a segment to toy expert Shannon Ice, who demonstrates many of the newer toys that will be available during the upcoming season. The main appeal of the segment is Letterman's tendency to engage in horseplay with the various toys on display.

In a 1995 Late Show episode, as a birthday present, actress Drew Barrymore stood on Letterman's desk and flashed her breasts, as part of an erotic dance. (The cameras only showed her from the back, during the flash). The dance shocked the usually unflappable Letterman; it was reportedly a gift from Barrymore, for his birthday. Letterman later said, 'I couldn't have been more pleased.' A later skit on The Late Show entitled "The David Letterman Story" referenced the incident where Letterman claimed his most memorable and favorite moment on the show was "when Drew Barrymore got on the desk and took her shirt off."

No, Conan O'Brien is not on the list for some reason. But, hey, neither is Jay Leno.

[Sharktopus]

Anansi Boys

Good casting, although I don't see it ever happening. I always thought Brock Peters would be perfect for Mr Nancy in an American Gods movie. Unfortunately he died a couple years ago.

Uh-oh. I smell a fantasy casting thread coming on...

[Junkyard]

WTF?! (My first time using that abbreviation,)
How did Eureka make it on this list?! It's got a great little concept, but the actors only know how to express sarcasm! No other emotions! Scifi Channel acting talent killed this show, and people are trying to prop up it's rotting corpse as #35?
AAARRRRRRGGGGGHHHHHH!!!!!!

[Tripe]

Anansi Boys

Good casting, although I don't see it ever happening. I always thought Brock Peters would be perfect for Mr Nancy in an American Gods movie. Unfortunately he died a couple years ago.

Uh-oh. I smell a fantasy casting thread coming on...

I thought that was the same Sharktopus on the IMDB board. I'll continue this discussion in hmm Books 'n Readin' I think.

[GregMcduck]

How did Eureka make it on this list?!

Look at it this way. Scrubs was #51. Without Eureka, Scrubs would have made this list. That's a scary thought.

[AmazingThor]

Whats wrong with Scrubs?

And I can't believe Freaks and Geeks didn't make it higher. Come on, it had Joel and Trace!

[GregMcduck]

31. The Muppet Show - (1976) - 19 points
(2 of 9 lists. Highest ranking - #11 GregMcduck)

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0074028/

The Muppet Show was a television program featuring a cast of Muppets (diverse hand-operated puppets, typically with oversized eyes and large moving mouths) produced by Jim Henson and his team. The show stars Kermit the Frog, who was also a guest star on Sesame Street. Whereas Kermit was a happy, perky and somewhat avuncular character on Sesame Street. Here he is trying to keep control of the varied, outrageous, kinetic Muppet characters (and his temper), as well as keep the human guest stars happy and secure. The television show depicted a vaudeville or music hall style song-and-dance variety show, as well as the backstage antics involved in putting the show on.

The show was well-known for outrageous, highly physical (slapstick), sometimes absurdist comedy, and particularly for using its puppet characters to create uniquely humorous parodies. Each show also featured a human guest star; after the show became popular with audiences, many major celebrities were eager to perform with the Muppets on television and in film. The diverse roster of guests included Christopher Reeve, Johnny Cash, Twiggy, Sandy Duncan, Julie Andrews, Steve Martin, characters from Star Wars, Mummenschanz, Diana Ross, Ethel Merman, Paul Simon, John Denver, John Cleese, Gene Kelly, Alice Cooper, and over a hundred others.

According to the Guinness Book of Records, The Muppet Show was the most widely viewed program in the world, with an estimated audience of 235 million in 106 countries in August 1989.

[Tripe]

Whats wrong with Scrubs?

And I can't believe Freaks and Geeks didn't make it higher. Come on, it had Joel and Trace!

And apparently is set in the town where I live, sorta, never knew that.

 I live just down the road from Chippewa Valley HS

[Minnesota]

I also like Scrubs, not familiar with 'freaks and geeks' but high school drama/comedy crap doesn't usually rate very high on my radar.

[GregMcduck]

31. Blackadder - (1983) - 19 points
(2 of 9 lists. Highest ranking - #9 mrbasehart)

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0084988/

Blackadder is the generic name that encompasses four series of an acclaimed BBC One historical sitcom, along with several one-off installments. The first series was written by Richard Curtis and Rowan Atkinson, while subsequent episodes were written by Curtis and Ben Elton. The shows were produced by John Lloyd, and starred Rowan Atkinson as the eponymous anti-hero, Edmund Blackadder, and Tony Robinson as his sidekick/dogsbody, Baldrick.

Although each series is set in a different time era, all follow the fortunes (or rather, misfortunes) of Edmund Blackadder (played by Atkinson), who in each is a member of an English family dynasty present at many significant periods and places in British history. Although his intelligence levels rise over the course of the series (the character starts as being quite unintelligent in the first and gradually becomes smarter and more perceptive through each passing generation while ironically decreasing in social status), each Blackadder is similar in that they are all cynical cowardly opportunists concerned with maintaining and increasing their own status and fortunes in life, regardless of their surroundings. In each series, however, Blackadder is usually a cynical (almost modern) voice puncturing the pretensions and stupidity of those around him, and what might - through modern eyes - be seen as the more ludicrous and insane follies of history (from the cruel and unjust medieval religious witch-hunts and the petty whims and insanities of various British monarchs to the pointless bloodshed of World War I).

The first series, written by Curtis and Atkinson and without the involvement of Ben Elton, is the most different from the three others. It is noticeable that, as Blackadder is more cunning in series two, so Baldrick develops even further into a dimwit. It is clear that in the first series, the latter is smarter than his superior, saving the day on several occasions, whereas Edmund is despised by all and never accomplishes a thing. In the unaired pilot episode these relations were different, more like Series Two, where Blackadder is not completely successful, but not completely ridiculous either.

And frankly, I can't make heads or tails if Blackadder should count as one or four tv shows.

[Tripe]

And frankly, I can't make heads or tails if Blackadder should count as one or four tv shows.

it's four that's why I listed them in order of goodness rather than chronological order.

[GregMcduck]

29. Father Ted - (1995) - 20 points
(1 of 9 lists. Highest ranking - #6 TripeHoundRedux)

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0111958/

[Tripe]

Excellent, and that's one of the best pics from the show too.