#61

Friends

“How you doin’?”

I have to say that I did really enjoy Friends. It does not seem like my kind of show, but I found it extremely funny and there is no doubt that this cast has insane chemistry together.

David Schwimmer, Courtney Cox, Jennifer Aniston, Matthew Perry, Lisa Kudrow and Matt LeBlanc were the reason this show became one of the top comedies of the recent days. They each totally grasped their characters and their characters’ intricacies and quirks in ways that were consistently hilarious.

There are so many awesome moments from Friends including when Chandler and Joey took on Monica and Rachel for the apartment, “PIVOT!”, Joey with the turkey on his head, among many others.

A who’s who of actors cameoed and guest starred on Friends over the years, from Bruce Willis to Paul Rudd to Kathleen Turner to Brad Pitt to Brooke Shields to Gary Oldman to Tom Selleck. The list is way too long to list here, but it is some of the most iconic actors in Hollywood.

The Ross-Rachel relationship carried over the entire run of the series, in all of its ups and downs and “We were on a break!”s. I do think that Chandler and Monica’s out of nowhere relationship reignited the heart of the series, though.

What, exactly, was Chandler’s job?

#62

This never should have worked.

This show took the villain of the first Karate Kid movie and made him the protagonist and switched the POV of the show. It debuted on the fledgling YouTube Red. This was never going to work.

Then it did.

After a couple of seasons on YouTube Red, Cobra Kai moved to Netflix and became a sensation.

William Zabka led the cast of the show as Johnny Lawrence. Ralph Macchio resumed his role of Daniel LaRusso from the Karate Kid movies. The show not only focused on that rivalry between old foes, but also the new karate students. Other cast members included  Xolo Maridueña, Tanner Buchanan, Payton List, Jacob Bertrand, Mary Mouser, Courtney Henggeler, Vanessa Rubio, Dallas Dupree Young, and Gianni DeCenzo.

The show brought back several of the other villains from the Karate Kid movies including Martin Kove’s John Kreese, Thomas Ian Griffith’s Terry Silver, Yuji Okumoto’s Chozen, and Sean Kanan’s Mike Barnes. The continuity of the show with the films was excellent.

The show was ridiculous, but in the very best ways. The fifth seaosn finale was some of the best karate action you will see. Cobra Kai ran for six seasons and was surprisingly exceptional.

#63

The Mandalorian

Star Wars has had several Disney + shows, but few have reached the heights popularity-wise as The Mandalorian.

There is one major reason why the show became such a massive hit. It was the sudden appearance of a little creature who became known as Baby Yoda.

Baby Yoda was a phenomenon and you could not turn around without seeing the little character.

The relationship between Din Djarin, our titular character, and Baby Yoda, whose name was revealed to be Grogu, is the central heartbeat of this show. Grogu is more than just cute (though that is clearly a superpower). He has a real emotional entanglement with Din and it has provided three seasons of Star Wars goodness.

Jon Favreau created this space Western and will be directing the feature film that will serve to continue the story of the Mandalorian and his little buddy.

The show has had some major memorable moments including the return of Luke Skywalker, the live-action Ahsoka, and appearance of the other major Mandalorian, Boba Fett.

“This is the way.”

#64

Cheers

NORM!

Eleven seasons on NBC. Cheers was iconic. Low ratings in its early seasons could not stop it. It became one of the staples for NBC’s comedy lineup in the 1980s-1990s.

Glen Charles & Les Charles and James Burrows created the show about a former baseball relief pitcher who now runs a Boston bar. Sam Malone was a womanizer and admired by all until Diane Chambers walked through the door.

The show was able to survive one of its main leads leaving. In fact, after Shelley Long departed the show, Cheers took off critically and successfully.

The cast was an absolute gem with Ted Danson, Shelley Long, George Wendt, Woody Harrelson, John Ratzenberger, Kelsey Grammar, Kirstie Alley, Nicholas Colasanto, Rhea Perlman, Bebe Neuwirth, and Paul Wilson.

Cheers had a spin off entitled Fraiser, which was perhaps even more successful. It had young magician/comedian Harry Anderson who, while not a direct spinoff, took his basic character to a show called Night Court.

Cheers was always funny. It showed us the lives of a group of characters that we cared about and that we were entertained by. It also had one of the best themes around.

#65

Coach

The Minnesota State Screaming Eagles is the fictional college football team led by Hayden Fox. This is the basis for the ABC sitcom Coach.

Craig T. Nelson played Hayden Fox, a character based somewhat on the Univeristy of Iowa football coach Hayden Fry. The comedic pairing of Nelson and Jerry Van Dyke, who played Fox’s assistant coach Luther, was sensational. Nelson was more the straight man, but they worked together so well.

Along with Nelson and Van Dyke, the cast included Shelley Fabares, Clare Carey, Bill Fagerbakke, Kenneth Kimmins, Pam Stone, Georgia Engel, and Kris Kamm.

Coach went 9 seasons on ABC and fit in with some great comedy blocks.

#66

The Bear

Yes, Chef.

The show that the Emmys think is a comedy is the next show up on the list. The Bear has had four seasons of intense drama and a few laughs as we follow a chef trying to start up his own fancy restaurant.

Carmy returned to his family sandwich shop after his brother committed suicide with a dream of turning the restaurant into a four-star eatery. He is surrounded by a crew of eccentric characters who both help and hinder the process. Carmy deals with his own anger issues over family, friends and the pitfalls of being a small business owners.

Lots of laughs there, right Emmys?

The cast of The Bear is fire. Jeremy Allen White, Ayo Edebiri, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Jon Bernthal, Jamie Lee Curtis, Oliver Platt, Matty Matheson, Lionel Boyce, Abby Elliott, Edwin Lee Gibson, Liza Colón-Zayas and Molly Gordon are among the great ensemble.

The show is also well known for famous actors doing small roles and cameos. Some of these actors include Will Poulter, Rob Reiner, Joel McHale, Olivia Colman, Robert Townsend, Bob Odenkirk, John Mulaney, and Alex Moffat.

For me, the first two seasons were remarkable. Season three was a bit of a step back, but season four recaptured a lot of what made this series special.

#67

Moon Knight

Oscar Isaac starred in this six-episode Marvel Studios show on Disney +.

I’m going to be honest here. Moon Knight receives way more hate than it deserves. I will admit that the finale may not have been as great as it could have been, but it wasn’t bad either, and the fifth episode of the series is, perhaps, one of the best episodes of TV Marvel Studios ever produced (definitely in the top 10 episodes from the studio so far).

The design of the Moon Knight costume is amazing and the use of Mr. Knight as the form of Moon Knight when Steven was in control is genius.

Oscar Isaac provided a brilliant performance as Marc Specter and his multiple personalities. I will say that I think Ethan Hawke’s Arthur Harrow was not the best antagonist available, but Hawke surely gives it his all.

I don’t know if we will ever get any more Moon Knight in the MCU, but, for one, would be down for that. Oscar Isaac was epic in the role and I do believe that there are stories to be told with Marc, Steven, Jake and the rest of the crew.

#68

MacGyver

Who knew what you could do with some duct tape, a Swiss army knife and some paper clips?

Richard Dean Anderson starred as MacGyver, the action hero who did not use guns, but who preferred science and his amazing intelligence to deal with any situation he found himself stuck in.

MacGyverisms became a fan favorite term for MacGyver’s ability to create something from nothing. Every week, he would find the most unexpected way to work his way out of trouble.

The original series ran from 1985-1992. There was a new version of the show, but I never watched it. To me, there could never be another MacGyver than Richard Dean Anderson.

It has been such a cultural icon that even the term “MacGyver” made it into the Oxford online dictionary as a verb meaning “make or repair (an object) in an improvised or inventive way, making use of whatever items are at hand.”

#69

The Jinx

 “What the hell did I do? Killed them all, of course.”

With those words, the HBO true crime documentary went from being a fascinating story of a man and his narcissim to an absolute epic show.

The Jinx, which added a sequel recently, is the story of Robert Durst, an eccentric New York businessman who was believed to have murdered his wife. Durst spoke his story, in his own words, throughout the six first season episodes. Andrew Jarecki was the driving force behind the doc and had built a relationship with Durst through interviews.

The final episode of the first season had Jarecki confronting Durst with evidence that they had uncovered that pointed directly at him. Durst and Jarecki ended the interview and Durst went into the bathroom. While in there, he did not realize that the microphone was still on his person and he uttered the infamous words that implicated him.

The sequel season followed the arrest and subsequent trial of Robert Durst. There is no denying thta this case had so many bizarre twists as we learned more about the odd behavior of Robert Durst.

Those final words from Durst’s own mouth were chilling. It was as close to a confession as you are ever going to get in a documentary. It made for amazing TV.

#70

Match Game

Another childhood fav is the “game show” where yu tried to match your favorite “celebrities” with answers that start off “Dumb Dora was so dumb….”

HOW DUMB WAS SHE???

Ah, good times.

The Match Game was a show that survived way longer than one would guess. Hosted by EYG Hall of Famer Gene Rayburn, The Match Game lasted for years in the 1970s to the 1980s. It has returned to TV several times, formerly with Alec Baldwin, and, most recently, with Martin Short as hosts.

The celebrities had rotating appearances. In the first iteration of the show, the regular celebrities included Charles Nelson Reilly, Brett Somers, and Richard Dawson. The other slots were filled regularly by Betty White, Gary Burghoff, Nipsy Russell, Fannie Flagg, Jack Klugman, Bert Convey, Tom Poston, Ava Gabor, Bill Daily, Joyce Bulifant, Marcia Wallace, Patti Deutsch, and Avery Schreiber.

There were times when the show went off the rails and those moments were gold. Richard Dawson staging a giant riot over the rejection of an answer, Brett and Charles’ constant bickering and interactions, Betty White and then McLean Stevenson taking over hosting duties midway through the show, to many more.

While this was dumb, there is no denying that it was funny. The cast always had great chemistry with each other and Gene, and it was cleverer than you think. Admittedly, if you answered BOOB, then you had a pretty good chance of matching.

BLANK

#71

Yellowjackets

I did not have Showtime when this show first came out, so I waited until it was available on Netflix to watch season one. Before the end of the series, I had purchased Showtime on Prime to be able to watch seaosn two.

Yellowjackets tells the story of a girls soccer team on their way to the playoffs. However, they never made it there. Their plane crashed in the wilderness and it became the story of survival.

But it was more than that.

We see the survivors in present day, years after their struggles in the woods, dealing with the long-trm fallout of the trauma they went through during their time in the wilderness. Mysteries about exactlywhat was happening combined in the story and the pain and frightening situations and choices stuck with them.

I found this show to be veyr much like LOST, which I absolutley loved, so this show appealed to me. The characters were fascinating and deeply flawed. The mystery surrounding everything was amazing.

The huge ensemble cast does a great job with their characters. What is even mor impressive is the fact that two actresses play the same character, as a youth and as an adult… at least those who survived.

Two major standouts in the cast include the absolutely crazy Melanie Lynskey as Shauna and Christina Ricci as the manipulative Misty, both of whom played present day versions of their characters.

The show is not averse to shocking surprises or twists either as one main character died at the end of season two.

Season three was a little less than the first two, but still offered some big reveals. Yellowjackets provide some riddles and some horror and always keeps you guessing.

#72

Firefly

You can’t take the sky from me

This was another one season wonder that found its following after it was canceled. Firefly was created by Joss Whedon and it was a space opera/Western that followed the crew of the Serenity, a “Firefly” class ship.

Captain Malcolm Reynolds led his merry band of thieves across the galaxy in search of wealth and happiness.

Firefly starred Nathan Fillion, Summer Glau, Alan Tudyk, Gina Torres, Adam Bladwin, Jewel Staite, Ron Glass, Sean Maher and Morena Baccarin.

The interaction among the talented cast is really the strength of the series. The dialogue stood out as always in a Joss Whedon scripted show.

The show was canceled after airing 11 of 14 first season episodes. The final three episodes did air on DVD. The show became such a cult hit, inspiring a desire to resurrect the show, that a wide released film came out called Serenity.

Every time the cast members are involved in any fan events, it seems inevitable that there would be questions about Firefly. Nathan Fillion even dressed up as a “space cowboy” and donned his Captain Malcolm Reynolds outfit on a Halloween episode of his next show, Castle.

“I aim to misbehave”

#73

Once Upon A Time

What happens when all of the fairy tale creatures livd together in today’s world? We get ABC’s Once Upon A Time.

Featuring everyone from Pinocchio to teh Evil Queen, Once Upon A Time ran for seven successful seasons on ABC. The show’s main protagonist was Emma Swan, played by Jennifer Morrison, who was, unbeknownst to her, the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming. Emma, and her son Henry, whom she gave up years before, but had found her, came to a small town called Storybrooke, Maine.

In Storybrooke, the fantasy/fairy tale creatures lived normal lives, but Henry figured out the truth.

Over the years, new characters were intorduced, but few with the impact of Captain Hook, played by the charming Colin O’Donoghue. Emma and Hook became the “it” couple of the show, as the hero and villain showed sparks.

The show also featured an awesome couple of antagonists. The Evil Queen was portrayed by Lana Parrilla and was basicaly running Storybrooke as the mayor, and Rumplestilkstin, also known as Mr. Gold, played by character actor Robert Carlyle. The key with these characters was they were multi-dimensional characters, unlike their fairy tale counterparts. These characters were real people with real desires and even the “evil” ones had motives that you could understand. No one was evil for the sake of evil.

The musical episode of the show that aired in the sixth season was right up there with “Once More with Feeling” from Buffy as the great musical episodes of all time.

The show had a very LOST feel to it, which makes sense since  Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz, both writers on LOST, were the creative forces behind the show.

#74

Seinfeld

One of the most successful comedies on network TV, Seinfeld finds its way onto the list at number 74.

I may not have loved this show as much as many others, but I did watch it regularly. It was clever and funny, with a group of some of the most eccentric characters on TV.

To this day, I will use lines like “NO SOUP FOR YOU” or “Hell-oooo Newman” in my life. Seinfeld has a place in the zeitgeist of American culture, unlike few shows of its generation.

Jerry Seinfeld, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Jason Alexander and Michael Richards made one of the best foursomes in TV history. The show worked because of these four characters, as unlikable as they may be to the on show world, were beloved by the public.

Though the show reviled in the idea that it was a “show about nothing,” it was actually about life. Life with these four characters and their desperate needs to find something more than what they had.

#75

American Horror Story

This is a very interesting spot on the list for this show.

American Horror Story has 12 seasons. It is an anthology show that changes characters every season. Ryan Murphy is the creator of the series that has a regular list of performers who play someone new every season.

The problem with AHS is that, while some of the seasons were so fantastic and should be higher up this list, but there are too many seasons that are average to downright bad that it limited the shows ranking on my list.

I absolutely LOVED Murder House (season 1), Asylum (season two), Freak Show (season 4), and Roanoke (season 6). I hated Delicate (season 12). The remainder of the seasons fall somewhere between these. Many of the others are fine to blah.

Some of the top repeated actors include Jessica Lange, Evan Peters, Denis O’Hare, Zachary Quinto, Sarah Paulson, Lily Rabe, Frances Conroy, Kathy Bates, Emma Roberts, and Angela Bassett.

I could have seen a world that if this list was made after season 4, AHS would be way up this list, probably top 20, maybe even higher. However, the rest of the seasons place it at #75.