Welcome to part 2. Today we’ll be starting in our top 60 and getting all the way through #36 on the list.
60. Eastbound & Down
Seasons 2-4, 2010-2013
Full Show: 4 seasons, 2009-2013
I can tell you right now this show would rank a lot higher if the note-perfect season 1 could be included in this writeup. While the show never reached those heights again, Kenny Powers is such a singular character that I certainly couldn’t exclude this show from the list. Kenny’s journey after season 1 takes him out of his hometown to Mexico, back to try to get by in the minor leagues and prepare for a comeback, and finally in season 4 to what must always have been his destiny, talking head on a Sports Shouting show. While the strength of the comedy and the pathos of season 1 never returned, there was always something special about this force of nature and the absurd misadventures he led (and the strange characters who joined him).
59. Archer
Season 1, Episode 2 through “Somewhere in Season 6”
Full Show: 10 seasons, 2009-
FX / FXX
I have to admit I tired of the Archer formula after a few seasons, although it took a few more to admit it to myself. Still, those early episodes remain riotously funny to me, even though I rarely rewatch them anymore. Just had a little too much “Archer is an asshole who learns nothing and creates more problems than he solves but always saves the day again” / “esoteric reference seemingly for the sake of its obscurity” after three seasons or so, let alone ten. (Oh, and I did watch the pilot; it’s just the only episode that aired in 2009.)
58. Veronica Mars
Season 4, 2019-
Full show: 4 seasons, 2004-2007, 2019-
Hulu (season 4)
Fondness goes a long way, I suppose. Sure, I’m rating this based on just season 4, but if I didn’t know and love classic Veronica Mars, would I rate it as highly? Maybe not– but then, maybe part of this rating is because I have the knowledge to state that this show feels very much of a piece with classic Veronica Mars in both quality and tone. (Honestly, it’s probably better than season 3.)
With only eight episodes, the show focuses on an overarching case (albeit one with multiple angles) rather than mixing in cases of the week with the season-long plot. I never minded that about the show previously, but the storytelling works and is tight here. Much of the classic cast is back and still playing at a high level, and of course we get a handful of notable guest stars as well, including Clifton Collins Jr. and Frank Gallegos as two hitmen, and Patton Oswalt, who’s possibly never been better.
57. BoJack Horseman
6 seasons, 2014-2019
Full show: 7 seasons, 2014-2020
Netflix
This is where rankings get tough. I loved BoJack season 2 enough to call it my top show of 2015. But even though I’ve generally liked the show since, it suffered from an ailment quite a few shows (even shows on this list) have; namely, trying to tell a longer story but one without too much progress that often leaves characters back where they started or close to it. The show was at its best when it was optimistic (seasons 2 and 4 work best in this regard), but it’s also a show that often tries the same tricks or makes the same points to increasingly diminishing returns. Season 6 started to turn this around, and I really enjoyed that, but then I felt like the season closed pretty flat, repeating some of the same mistakes it made previously. (This continued in season 7, which I technically can’t consider for this list, but it’s hard not to factor it into my mental evaluation.) In the end, I liked it, but on the whole I didn’t love it enough to consider it higher.
56. Trial & Error
2 seasons, 2017-2018
NBC
Delightfully quirky little mockumentary sitcom about the sensational murder trials of a small southern town and the “New York Lawyer” (this is the kind of town where that means “Jewish”) hired to take the case, who ultimately falls in love with the setting and the people. That setting is East Peck, the sort of strange southern town where women have only been recently allowed to drive; those people include Steven Boyer and Sherri Shepherd as his crack legal team, and Jayma Mays as the ADA who radiates the kind of sexuality that makes a will-they-won’t-they flirtation inevitable. John Lithgow and Kristin Chenoweth play the locally-famous suspects Josh Segal (Nicholas D’Agostino) has to defend; each season covers one case, and they’re full of both intriguing plot twists and the kind of delightful comedy that really makes me wish this show had gotten to run longer.
55. Stranger Things
3 seasons, 2016-
Netflix
A phenomenon in part due to an 80s nostalgia I admittedly find a bit suffocating, Stranger Things works so well largely due to its cast, both the adults (Winona Ryder is amazing; everyone loves David Harbour now) and the kids (stay away from Millie Bobby Brown, Drake!). I’ve always liked Stranger Things less for its 80s-ness than for its real sense of outsiders in a community banding together to take on a common threat. Season 3 slipped somewhat for me as I didn’t like some of the writing decisions on a character level (Hopper) or a plot level (more Sovietphobia, just what America needed in 2019!), but the show has a way of remaining compelling enough to keep watching the whole way through. Season 4 is due sometime this year; here’s hoping the weaker points are shored up and the show returns to realizing its potential.
54. Cougar Town
Season 1, Episode 11 to end, 2010-2015
Full Show: 6 seasons, 2009-2015
ABC / TBS
This is probably the show that suffers the least from losing its early episodes, as the first six or so focus on the premise that gave the show its title, before moving into a hangout show of mostly forty-somethings at various stages of life (mostly divorced). It’s pretty great after that, though, and even if it was never groundbreaking, it’s a fun enough show with a specific hangout vibe that I appreciate more the older I get. Easy to revisit, fun and low stakes.
53. The Mick
2 seasons, 2016-2018
FOX
It’s a Kaitlin Olson starring vehicle! This one has a great cast on the whole; the three kids Mickey is charged to care for after her sister and her husband are arrested for white-collar crimes are all delightful, from popular mean girl Sabrina (Sofia Black-D’Elia) to snotty, whiny aspiring Young Republican Chip (Thomas Barbusca) to innocent yet occasionally terrifying Ben (Jack Stanton). Add in Carla Jimenez as Alba, the Pemberton’s maid who’s thrilled to have someone to cut loose and act like a normal person with, and Scott MacArthur as Jimmy, Mickey’s on-again-off-again boyfriend, a real dirtbag occasionally capable of pearls of wisdom, and you have a great cast and formula for a show about culture-clash misadventures; The Mick consistently delivered on that formula.
Sadly, The Mick was canceled after two seasons, although I thought it was doing well enough creatively and in the ratings to get a third. Alas.
52. The Thick of It
Season 4, 2012
BBC Two
After premiering in 2005 and running for three series through 2009, Armando Iannucci’s British political satire came back for one more year (after Americanized detour In the Loop) before he headed off to Veep. The walls come crumbling down in season 4; Nicola Murray (Rebecca Front) is the new leader of the opposition, largely in over her head as scandal brews. That scandal takes the series to its end, as Malcolm Tucker finally runs into a crisis he can’t talk, scheme, or bully his way out of. A fitting send-off for one of the best political satires of the 21st century, even if only that fourth season was considered for this list.
51. Brockmire
3 seasons, 2017-
IFC
Brockmire will finish with its fourth season in 2020 (premiering tonight, in fact!), and if early reports are to be believed, the premise is a doozy. In the meantime, we have the story of Jim Brockmire, former baseball play-by-play announcer whose meltdown after discovering his wife cheating on him leads him to a decade-long bender across the globe’s seediest spots, before deciding to get his career (and eventually life) back on track with an opportunity to call games for the Morristown, WV minor league team, the Frackers.
In season 1, Jim falls for Frackers owner Jules (Amanda Peet) and continues to engage in outrageous behavior both off the mic and on it (inciting the riot at the game against the Butler Barons); in season 2, getting a callup, Jim and producer Charles move to New Orleans to call games for their AAA team. Season 3 involves Jim getting a chance to break back into the majors by calling spring games for the Oakland A’s in Florida; he does this while trying to hold onto his newfound sobriety, deal with having a co-host (Tawny Newsome) for the first time in his career, and manage a rivalry with retiring / dying broadcaster Matt Hardesty (J.K. Simmons).
Throughout the series, Jim’s dark and acerbic sense of humor never lets up; this show understands that the extremity of Jim’s behavior is just part of life for certain people. At the same time, Jim’s growth is real and earned and in fact leads to one of the most graceful scenes I saw on TV in all of 2019. Brockmire is a dark comedy, but it’s a dark comedy about people and their humanity, even at its most extreme; that it manages to find light in the darkness while still remaining very funny is quite an accomplishment, a tricky task few works can pull off well.
50. GLOW
3 seasons, 2017-
Netflix
Netflix loves the 80s, and this time it’s the Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling that are highlighted. While I would have liked to see more, well, wrestling productions in this show, what we do get is a strong story about the creative process, of underdogs coming together, and of the personal dramas that unfold as a result of the process of making a wrestling show and of the journeys these characters are all undergoing. The writing combined with a great cast makes me care about those character dramas in a way that’s often not easy to achieve.
The cast is led by Alison Brie as Ruth, Betty Gilpin as the show’s star Debbie, and Chris Lowell as enthusiastic producer / closeted trust-fund kid Bash; the real highlight, however, is Marc Maron in perhaps the best role of his career as director Sam Sylvia, channeling his natural gruffness, grumpiness and misanthropy into a character with a strong sense of professionalism and commitment, one that not only affects his charges but also his attempts to be a better man and father. The rare “comedy that’s actually a half-hour drama” that succeeds on both ends.
49. Tacoma FD
1 season, 2019-
TruTV
Maybe I’m overrating it a little, but I found Tacoma FD quite delightful, and few shows are doing its particular brand of just-trying-to-be-funny comedy. (There aren’t too many such recent one-season shows I can say I’ve already watched twice through.) Even more particular is the Broken Lizard brand; it’s a twist on the Super Troopers formula, replacing bored highway patrol with bored firefighters (Tacoma is the United States’ rainiest city), and keeping that same lived-in, goofy energy of colleagues who have known each other a long time and have their own language and ways of passing the time. Kevin Heffernan (Farva) plays the chief; Steve Lemme (Mac) plays the captain; among the remaining firefighters is Eugene Cordero, who might actually show up in more shows than anyone on this list, given this, Other Space, and a number of guest or featured roles that have already appeared (Silicon Valley, Brooklyn Nine-Nine) or are yet to come. Season 2 premieres March 26!
48. Better Off Ted
Season 2, Episode 5 to end, 2010
Full Show: 2 seasons, 2009-2010
ABC
Can I really separate nine of this short-lived Victor Fresco (Andy Richter Controls the Universe, Santa Clarita Diet) show from the rest? Probably not, and even if this was arguably the weakest stretch of Ted episodes, it’s still a fun corporate satire with lots of zaniness and a very game cast. Portia de Rossi found arguably her best role ever here; Andrea Anders has been bafflingly underused in the decade since a performance I thought should have turned her into a comedy mainstay.
The highlight of these episodes is “The Impertinence of Communicationizing,” wherein a typo in a corporate memo leads the office to start using offensive language and insulting each other. (The outtakes are arguably the funniest part of all.) Also great: “Beating a Dead Workforce,” in particular Veronica’s eulogy for Gordon Jenkins (or “Carl Gordon Jenkins Gordon Jenkins”) and Veronica in the Key of Love. The entire series is now on Hulu, so if you missed it the first time, consider this your recommendation to go see it now.
47. Curb Your Enthusiasm
Seasons 8 and 9, 2011-
Full Show: 9 seasons, 2000-
HBO
How do you rate a show that’s run so long yet so sporadically? And what can I tell you about Curb that you don’t already know? It stays funny; the sporadic schedule means Larry David and crew only make new episodes when they have new ideas; and even if these weren’t the show’s best two seasons, they deliver lots of standout comedy in their own right. (“Palestinian Chicken,” from season 8, is still regularly cited as one of the show’s very best, and one of the best comedy episodes of the decade.)
I can’t tell you anything about Curb you don’t already know, but I can tell you that Larry David’s still got it and it’s still worth watching. (Season 10 is airing as of this writing.)
46. Kroll Show
3 seasons, 2013-2015
Comedy Central
Weird, funny sketch show that worked in mostly sort-of-reality-TV-satire territory, but in particular its strength was in its great and memorable recurring characters and sketches: Bobby Bottleservice and Peter Paparazzo; PubLIZity; Pawnsylvania; Wheels, Ontario.
It rates this highly, though, primarily for the particular set of characters pictured here: John Mulaney’s George St. Geegland and Nick Kroll’s Gil Faison, two elderly, snarky, ridiculous Upper West Side men who mostly operate a public-access “prank” show called “Too Much Tuna” (the premise: invite a guest out for lunch, then order them a preposterous amount of tuna salad without their knowledge), but whose ridiculous personas and banter grew to such popularity that the two spun off into their own touring show that eventually appeared on Broadway (and Netflix), named after their memorable introductory catchphrase, delivered in unison: Oh, Hello.
45. The Nightly Show
2 seasons, 2015-2016
Comedy Central
My favorite of all the post-Jon Stewart / Daily Show-alum late-night politics shows, The Nightly Show works in large part because it provides a diversity of perspective those shows don’t have, an explicitly Black American take on current events you won’t get from Last Week Tonight or Full Frontal or even The Daily Show with Trevor Noah. With Larry Wilmore in the host’s chair and regular panelists and writers like Robin Thede and Grace Parra, The Nightly Show offered a refreshing diversity of perspective from the white-led shows (even if that diversity of perspective was necessarily limited by the corporate constraints of cable TV and the relative affluence of the participants) and an excellent array of guests to boot.
Sadly, the show was canceled in 2016– less than three months before Donald Trump was elected, and oh, to have The Nightly Show‘s take on him now– supposedly for low ratings, but probably for what Wilmore called Barack Obama in his White House Correspondents’ Dinner sign-off.
44. The Good Place
4 seasons, 2016-2019
Full Show: 4 seasons, 2016-2020
NBC
This show gave us two dynamite seasons, although, honestly, I don’t think it’s lived up to its promise since then. (While I’m not considering the final few episodes that aired in 2020 as part of this ranking, they might have moved the show down if I had, and I suspect it will be even lower with time.) Still, the speed at which the show ran through plot, blew up its status quo, and came up with endlessly inventive scenarios and twists while still being funny in those two seasons would merit its inclusion on this list all its own. The pace settled down and the show spun its wheels a bit more in seasons 3 and 4, but it was still must-watch TV for its sheer potential, that we never really knew what was coming next. Killer cast too.
43. Mad Men
Season 4 to end, 2010-2015
Full Show: 7 seasons, 2007-2015
AMC
Full disclosure: I don’t love Mad Men as much as the general consensus. I fell behind for a while on seasons 5-7, especially the more apparent it became that Don was spinning the drain and making the same mistakes. (He was hardly alone in that regard.) To add to that, my favorite episode is still “Shut the Door, Have a Seat” (look, I always want to do cunning plans and crazy capers), which aired in 2009.
But the show is impeccably set and impeccably acted, with the whole cast making their characters feel real and lived-in, and the ending, capitalist though it may be, was very true to Don’s character. I’ve said before that Matt Weiner loves his characters and David Chase hates his; we saw that clearly as this show wound down and everyone really got a chance to grow into or accept who they really are. Many of these people aren’t great people, but they’re growing, and also they aren’t murderous gangsters. Perhaps most impressive still is Pete Campbell, a man who spent most of his life trying to imitate other successful men before finally deciding to find success on the terms he wants for himself.
42. American Vandal
2 seasons, 2017-2018
Netflix
When I finally saw this mockumentary series, I was immediately hooked by its premise and sense of humor, applying the breathless style of true-crime fare like Serial and Making a Murderer to… a high school where someone graffitied a bunch of dicks onto the teachers’ cars. American Vandal season 1 was gangbusters, hilarious for its absurdity in contrasting the seriousness of the genre it satirized with the juvenilia of the actual subject matter, but while also managing to accurately capture the feel of high school social dynamics and providing a central mystery that was actually compelling.
Season 2 wasn’t quite on the same level, but the case was perhaps even more intriguing for how it analyzed power structures in a school with a deeply unequal socioeconomic stratification and how the power of the Internet and its insular communities ferments ordinary resentment until it curdles into truly destructive behavior. (And also, because poop is funny.)
Sadly, Netflix canceled the show after two seasons, but this hilarious, compulsively watchable take on true crime is well worth your time.
41. Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
4 seasons, 2015-2019
Netflix
The post-30 Rock outing by Tina Fey and Robert Carlock exists in an even more exaggerated reality than that one. Almost certainly inspired by the Ariel Castro case, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt tells the story of the titular woman, one of four who were kidnapped and kept in a bunker for over a decade by a predatory “reverend” who convinced them the apocalypse had arrived and they were only safe there. Kimmy moves to New York to try to start a new life and acclimate to society; her boundless enthusiasm and naivete initially grate on the new people in her life, but eventually her commitment to friendship and strength of character win them over.
I just realized that sounds like a drama. Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt is actually an extremely funny sitcom, thanks to that 30 Rock-style absurdist zinger writing and a terrific cast: Ellie Kemper as Kimmy, Carol Kane as Lillian, Jane Krakowski as Jacqueline, but perhaps most of all, the breakout performance of 30 Rock‘s D’Fwan, Tituss Burgess as the outsized, self-absorbed, unforgettable Titus Andromedon.
40. W/Bob and David
1 season, 2015
Netflix
Netflix reunited the Mr. Show team for four episodes (my friend Marc calls this Dr. Show), and while it wasn’t quite at the level of the original show (it certainly would have ranked a lot higher if so, even if for only four episodes), it still delivered that signature Mr. Show sensibility along with some classic sketches. “Prilovac,” “All I Need,” and “Heaven Is Totes 4 Realz” all remain in regular rotation on my playlist. “Salesmen” is another classic in short-film vein, of a piece with Mr. Show’s “Recruiters,” and “Interrogation” stands as a sketch that would have fit right in with the classic Mr. Show, thanks in part to its timeless premise. A recent rewatch confirmed that this rating isn’t just nostalgia; the show is genuinely funny and holds up upon revisiting.
39. Fleabag
2 seasons, 2016-2019
BBC Three
There may be a bit of recency bias in these rankings, or perhaps I’ve just been affected by the hype. Again, rare is the comedy-drama that works for me on both levels, but Fleabag is just that, especially season two. It made me laugh, it broke my heart, it made me root for Fleabag over and over even while she screwed up. It helps that Phoebe Waller-Bridge is such a winning presence, making Fleabag’s good-heartedness too obvious to dislike her, and making her blunt honesty seem like a virtue rather than a problem of impoliteness. It may not be as good as you’ve heard, but it is, indeed, very good.
38. Terriers
1 season, 2011
FX
I wanted to rank this higher, but I don’t think I ever went back to watch it, and it’s been almost nine years, so it’s very tough for me to say it deserves better placement without seeing it again. Like many, though, I loved this little private-eye drama about a couple of fuckups trying to do right. Donal Logue and Michael Raymond James have terrific chemistry as the ex-cop and ex-thief in a private eye partnership, unraveling a real-estate conspiracy (of course) in Ocean Beach (part of San Diego in real life; a separate city on the show) while also navigating their personal lives and day-to-day bills to pay and just trying not to fuck it all up again. Just a really damn enjoyable series; its only real drawback is that ridiculously undescriptive title.
37. Parks and Recreation
Season 2, Episode 13 to end, 2010-2015
Full Show: 7 seasons, 2009-2015
NBC
Yes, I snark on this show as much as anybody, but seasons 2 and 3 are impeccable and remain in heavy rotation even at the Cohlchez compound. Enough words have been spilled on this show that I won’t keep you for long, so I’ll just say, even as much as it devolved and disappointed (and gave in to Michael Schur’s troubling worldview) by the end, any show that makes even two seasons as good and rewatchable as Parks 2 and 3 deserves high praise.
36. Suburgatory
3 seasons, 2011-2014
ABC
Another underloved show, but one that at least managed to last three seasons, Suburgatory stars Jane Levy as the intelligent, rebellious teen and Jeremy Sisto as the single dad who freaks out about his maturing daughter and moves out of New York City to the suburbs. The fictional Chatswin and the neighborhood the Altmans move to are vividly drawn, thanks in large part to the specificity of its supporting characters. Speaking of, this show had an absolutely stacked cast, with terrific performances all around– George’s (Sisto) best friend Noah (Alan Tudyk); the Shays, ever-controlling Sheila (Ana Gasteyer) and ever-acquiescing Fred (Chris Parnell); and the always-put-together icon of suburban housewife fashion, Dallas Royce (Cheryl Hines).
But it’s the kids who really shine, from Levy as Tessa, to what should have been huge breakout roles for Carly Chaikin as the mean-girl-yet-surprisingly-insightful deadpan Dalia Royce and Parker Young as dumb-jock-BMOC-but-lovable-and-surprisingly-soulful Ryan Shay, to possibly my most favorite, surprisingly enough, Allie Grant. (I say “surprisingly” because I wasn’t that familiar with her, and it took a little while, but once she starts showing the shy and awkward Lisa Shay’s hidden reserves of strength and confidence, the character became outstanding.)
I’ve told you nothing about the comedy, but that cast alone should tell you something about just how good it is. I’ve found it to remain very good and rewatchable over the years, the kind of show that would have been discovered as comfort food on a streaming service after its cancellation… if it were available anywhere. It was underviewed in its three years, but if you can find it, it’s a real gem.
The top 35 kicks off tomorrow at the same time.