5. ""30 Rock""
Quick: think of your favorite sitcom. Is the protagonist a woman? If you answered ""yes,"" then your favorite sitcom is likely ""30 Rock."" Maybe ""Parks and Recreation.""
Now before I go all Gloria Steinem on this, let me say the dearth of female-centered TV shows is no surprise, nor is it necessarily a bad thing. There are reasons Kathy Griffin and Chelsea Handler are not on prime time. The simple fact that ""30 Rock"" is one of the rare woman-led sitcoms on TV doesn't make it one of the best. It is the show's wonky, smart-aleck humor that carries it to acclaim.
And although her lukewarm feminism usually elicits groans from her coworkers, Liz Lemon's stalwart girl-power attitude is part of what makes her endearing. Still, one can only wish there were more Tina Feys on television. As Liz so eloquently put it in a recent episode, ""This is gender inequity out the yang.""
—Emma Roller
4. ""Mad Men""
If ""Lost"" upped the ante for the production values of TV action, ""Mad Men"" did the same for period dramas. Each episode of the skirt-chasing 1960s ad men tableau is mapped to a designated day in history, right down to what the characters would be seeing on TV and reading in the papers. Characters wear clothes actually donned during the period (many of them are actually donated from former Madison Avenue notables), details that aren't necessarily just for show. The characters of ""Mad Men"" are all very concerned with keeping up appearances in one way or another, and the detailed suits and dresses compliment the theme. Creator Matthew Weiner uses all this detail to craft the world of Don Draper, the womanizing ad man who may or may not be a genius, but still manages to win our hearts despite cheating on his insane wife and relentlessly abusing copy writers.
—Mark Riechers
3. ""The Wire""
Without hyperbole, ""The Wire"" is the only show on this list that matters. None of our lives are as brilliantly quirky as depicted in ""Arrested Development;"" none of us are living out of 1960s ad offices; hell, I don't even know if the characters in ""Lost"" exist in their own show. But in ""The Wire,"" David Simon painted a chilling portrait of urban poverty and the hauntingly garish ways the urban elites handle it.
Most of what you read about ""The Wire"" will talk about how its depictions of under-the-table courtroom infidelities (both figurative and literal), journalism ethics (or lack thereof), police myopia and public schools' Sisyphean efforts to reform society's forgotten children are painstakingly accurate. I honestly couldn't add to it: I never made it past the packed-like-sardines plotlines, deathly grim aesthetics and devastatingly acute characters. No other television show this decade combined such deliberate reality with such engrossing drama, and it seems sacrilegious that enough people neglected it for the show to drop to third place. But, as the urbanized Robin Hood, Omar, would say, ""It's all in the game, yo.""
—Kyle Sparks
2. ""Lost""
Despite the frequent claims that ""Lost"" is a one-of-a-kind indescribable show, many of the supposedly unique elements had been done by other shows. Like ""The Sopranos,"" the show pushed complex storytelling and cinematic-quality filming to a level not seen on television before this decade. Like ""The Wire,"" the show's creators had a time-specific storyline in mind, and negotiated the end to the show three years in advance to insure its quality. Yet neither of these critically acclaimed shows offered a completely transformative and immersive experience the way ""Lost"" did.
Keeping audiences interested in around 30 characters and their backstories was a challenge; pushing audiences to scour episodes and do background research on the show's literary references for clues to the island's greater mysteries was unheard of; expecting audiences to spend hours watching web-exclusive content, trading theories on one of the hundreds of ""Lost"" fan sites and attempting to draw intricate timelines and diagrams to explain said theories was ludicrous. But it worked.
When ""Lost"" airs its finale in less than three weeks, some viewers may leave disappointed, their questions left unanswered. But ""Lost"" has never, and will never, be just about answering questions. It's about treating audiences used to crime procedurals and half-hour sitcoms to the most complex narrative ever presented on network television. It's about introducing an entire generation to the world of sci-fi, even if they don't realize it. And it's about creating the ultimate water-cooler show in an era when Twitter and Facebook function as water coolers for the Internet generation.
—Kevin Slane
1. ""Arrested Development""
The title cleverly says it all: All nine main characters fail to mature socially and professionally while Michael (Jason Bateman) tries to resurrect a halted company. Everyone and everything is stuck in arrested development. From there, the show never lets up, as jokes lacking a similarly clever depth of meaning are noticeable in their rareness.
It's not only the incessant cleverness, which often takes great familiarity with the characters to understand, as the writing's punch also works its way into everyday context even more seamlessly than ""Seinfeld's."" Talking about a poorly run company? ""It's a gaming ship."" Given more responsibility? ""That's right, I'm Mr. Manager now."" Tripping over your own words? Just recite: ""The Bob Loblaw Law Blog. You, sir, are a mouthful.""
Accompanying the writing's intense consistency are the specific verbal and emotional caricatures each character possesses: Tobias' inability to avoid puns suggesting he's gay (""I'm afraid I prematurely shot my wad on what was supposed to be something of a dry run""), George Michael representing what is now Michael Cera's well-defined acting niche, Maeby's ability to run her life more successfully than her parents while they drop hints that she may be an illegitimate child (hence her indecisive name), GOB's illusions (""tricks are what whores do for money"") both on and off the stage, and on it goes, even including richly constructed side characters like Ron Howard and Henry Winkler, who are spot on as the smartass narrator (even the narrator gets a clever personality) and inept lawyer.
Considering the number of Emmy nominations and wins in its short stint on air, it's bold to say that in hindsight, given the intensely complex relationships, puns and themes, the show was better off being cut after two and a half seasons of the most fruitful TV comedy ever made. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go return a dead dove.
—Justin Stephani
