Whenever someone comes out with a list of the best this or that, arguments follow.
That's a major part of making such a list, after all. The fun part. I know. I've made plenty of them
. I argue with myself over my own picks. (Whether this is a sign of a deeper-seated problem is another story.) So when the New York Times makes a list of, say, its 50 favorite restaurants and names Durant's as its Arizona pick, there is going to be some pushback.So when, over the course of a few days, the New York Times incrementally published its list of the top 100 TV shows of the 21st century, I was ready for a fight. The Times "polled hundreds of stars, showrunners, craftspeople, executives and other industry experts and asked them to vote for the 10 best series
that have premiered since Jan. 1, 2000." From all those votes, they picked the top 100.
How cumbersome. How inexact.
How ... correct?
The New York Times list is really good. But it's not mine
Pretty much. Not perfect. But it's a pretty good list. Here is their top 10, in order: "Breaking Bad," "The Wire," "Mad Men," "Succession," "Fleabag," "Game of Thrones," "Veep," "30 Rock," "Curb Your Enthusiasm" and "Atlanta."
Not bad, huh? I'd move some things around, and I believe some shows are ranked way too low. But it's a good list. It's just not ... my list.
I'll play by the same rules. The show has to have premiered in the 2000s. So "The Sopranos" isn't eligible. Neither is "Freaks and Geeks." Also, a caveat. I spent a sizable chunk of the eligible time as the chief film critic for the USA Today Co., then called Gannett. I mostly watched movies. I've been playing catch-up ever since. (I got so into streaming "Breaking Bad" I took two days off from work just to finish it.)
So no "Game of Thrones." No "Mad Men." I know, I know. Sorry. Can't be helped.
Also, there is not a lot of space between these shows. They're all great, and on any given day the list would be different. I love TV, and I love writing about TV, so here's my list. How about yours?
10. 'Six Feet Under'
The Fisher family's floridly dysfunctional funeral home family was a source of endless drama. Frances Conroy, Peter Krause, Michael C. Hall and Lauren Ambrose were never quite happy. The proximity to all that death may have had something to do with it. Richard Jenkins as the patriarch killed off in the first episode, but who returned in flashbacks and spectral visits, was the secret weapon. And one of the great final episodes. (No. 15 on the Times list.)
How to watch: Streaming on HBO Max.
9. 'Justified'
Some recency bias here, no doubt ― I recently streamed it, start to finish. And loved it. Feds and hillbillies shooting it out in the hollers of Kentucky? Sign me up. Timothy Olyphant carries the show as the U.S. Marshal sent back among his people (many of whom he shoots), but Walton Goggins is the standout as Olyphant's alter ego, the person he might have become if things had gone differently. The second season ― the one with Margo Martindale, whose Emmy win was more than, ahem, justified ― is the best, but they're all so good. (No. 83 on the Times list.)
How to watch: Streaming on Hulu.
8. 'Reservation Dogs'
I was late to the party on this one, but what a pleasure it was to catch up. Sterlin Harjo's brilliant show, about Native American teenagers desperately wanting to leave their home on an Oklahoma reservation while loving it intensely, was genuinely like nothing else on TV. I know people say that about everything, but in this case it's true. Devery Jacobs, D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai, Lane Factor and Paulina Alexis would make you laugh and break your heart, often in the same episode. Genuine magic (sometimes literally). (No. 87 on the Times list.)
How to watch: Streaming on Hulu.
7. 'The Leftovers'
In "The Sudden Departure," 140 million people, or 2% of the world's population, simply disappear. Poof. Gone without a trace. Lucky for viewers, Justin Theroux, Carrie Coon and Ann Dowd were among the ones who remained. I'm in the minority of people who liked Season 1 as much as Season 2, but both were mind-bending explorations of grief, loss, religious zealotry and, sometimes, love. How do you keep going on? With great difficulty, it seems. (No. 25 on the Times list.)
How to watch: Streaming on HBO Max.
6. 'Deadwood'
The Old West as you've never seen it before. Or, more accurately, never heard it before. Ian McShane, brilliant as town boss Al Swearengen, explored new frontiers in profanity in every episode. David Milch, a true TV genius, chronicled the real-life birth of the town of Deadwood, South Dakota, and its extreme growing pains. The cast includes Timothy Olyphant, Robin Weigert, Molly Parker, John Hawkes, Keith Carradine and too many more to list. A modern take that holds up to revisits. (No. 24 on the Times list.)
How to watch: Streaming on HBO Max.
5. 'Bob's Burgers'
Yes, animated shows count. (I think the first few seasons of "The Simpsons" make it the greatest show in the history of TV, as a matter of fact.) The members of the Belcher family, not unlike the Simpsons, fight, make horrendous mistakes, act in selfish and hurtful ways, ignore the obvious red flags in their everyday life and, most importantly, love each other a lot. And no one on TV says, "Oh my god" better than Bob Belcher. (And, given his life, he says it a lot.) (Not on the Times list.)
How to watch: Streaming on Hulu.
4. 'Fleabag'
In two seasons, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, who created and stars in the show, created a kind of TV miracle. You cringe at more than half of what she says and does, but you root for her all the same. That's how good Waller-Bridge's writing and performance are. The first season is great, but the second season ― the Hot Priest season ― is truly one of the best things that has ever been on TV. (No. 5 on the Times list.)
How to watch: Streaming on Prime Video.
3. 'The Wire'
David Simon, who created the show, is a former newspaper reporter, so he's got that going for him. Which is nice. Each season looks at different aspects of life in Baltimore ― law enforcement, schools, government, the media, etc. Usually when people say a show is more like a novel than TV, they are either a) pretentious or b) wrong. In this case, they're right. A monumental achievement. (No. 2 on the Times list.)
How to watch: Streaming on HBO Max.
2. 'Breaking Bad'
Vince Gilligan, who created the show, has said he wanted Walter White, the cancer-stricken chemistry teacher turned drug lord, to make the transition from Mr. Chips to Scarface. Mission accomplished, and then some. Bryan Cranston's indelible performance as the teacher in question is one of the great TV achievements. Ah, but Aaron Paul, Dean Norris, Giancarlo Esposito, Anna Gunn and so many more were also great. And, of course, Bob Odenkirk as sleazy lawyer Saul Goodman starred in "Better Call Saul," one of the best spinoff series ever, and a show that easily could have made this list. (Lists are hard!) (No. 1 on the Times list.)
How to watch: Streaming on Netflix.
1. 'Arrested Development'
Aside from "The Sopranos" and "Freaks and Geeks" (see omission explained, above), I don't know that any show has brought me this much pleasure. A cracked comedy, unlike any other before it, with rapid-fire absurdity, callback jokes that creator Mitchell Hurwitz was willing to wait several episodes for a payoff, performances that were completely dialed in (play comedy like you're acting in a drama, they say, and man, did it work here). And the jokes. So great. Just so great. So many quotable lines, useful in so many situations. Such as: If the New York Times list is good, why make another? I don't understand the question and I won't respond to it. (No. 12 on the Times list.)
How to watch: Streaming on Netflix.
Reach Goodykoontz at bill.goodykoontz@arizonarepublic.com. Facebook: facebook.com/GoodyOnFilm. Media commentary with a side of snark? Sign up for The Watchlist newsletter with Bill Goodykoontz.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: NYT 100 best TV shows list got a lot right. Especially these
