10. Family Guy
The best comedy family since The Simpsons
Sharp, witty, irreverent. Family Guy is, if nothing else, hilariously funny. It may lack the charm of The Simpsons but its aimed a far older and more mature audience. If you don't like it, you probably don't have a funny bone.
9. The Office
It's funny cos its true
The british comedy phenomenon, giving us the writing talent of Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant, Th Office broke with traditional sitcom conventions (laugh track, jokes) to create one of the most inspired, brilliant and observant comedies of recent years. In a decade which became overwhelmed with reality TV, and the desire to become famous, The Office managed in 12 episodes and a Christmas special to connect with a generation of viewers like nothing else.
8. Generation Kill
From the creators of The Wire. Need I Say More
Telling the true story of the recon marines who were the first American soldiers to cross into Iraq. Across 7 episodes we grow to love, hate, admire and respect the soldiers as we also see how American arrogance and poor decision making constantly put the men in danger. One of the few TV or Film's to actually capture the conflict in Iraq effectively, and its achieved mainly by finding the human story behind the conflict. Unflinchingly brilliant TV.
7. South Park
Crude, rude and Lewd. What more could you want
When South Park started at the end of the last decade it felt a little like a one trick pony. Yet, as the years have gone by the writing as become wittier, cleverer, and more culturally relevant. That it takes only two weeks to make an episode demonstrates the genius at work, and Parker and Stone are wise enough to never present a polemic, instead taking shots at both sides of the argument and showing the hypocrisy of both.
6. Peep Show
This is what men reallt think. And it's brilliant
This is the funniest, wittiest and unashamedly honest comedy on TV. A unique, original style and content which felt as if it might not last, is, in its 6th season going as strong as ever. The show may be on the wane, but Jez and Mark are two of comedies great creations and even if the quality is beginning to dip, its still head and shoulders above anything else.
5. 24
Addictive, intense, brilliant. It's Jack
There has never been a better endorsement of DVD boxsets. The most addictive, compulsive TV around. It may be highly unbelievable and utterly preposterous, but like a drug, once your jack in, its very difficult to give it up. The show has also managed to deal with some of the most crucial issues affecting the world in the 00s and for this reason 24 is in many ways the most important show of the past decade. Season 6 may have felt as though the novelty had worn off, but 7 saw a return to form and 4 and 5 are two of the best seasons of TV ever created.
4. Six Feet Under
Death as never been this good
Pitching a show about a family who run a funeral home must have been a tough sell, but then it was created by Alan "American Beauty" Ball. Therefore it is one of the most interesting, engaging and emotionally resonant TV show of all time. A great range of complex, lovable characters trying to navigate the right path in life, whilst simultaneously having to face the prospect of death of a daily basis. What makes this so beautiful is how real the characters feel. If you don't shed a tear during the extended final episode you are probably already dead.
3. Lost
The greatest mystery in Television history.
Love or hate it, Lost is the big phenomenon of the 21st century. It's also probably the last great mytharc show. For a time it seemed like it was going nowhere, but the one constant in Lost is that no-one can second guess the creators, and each answer spawns a question more compelling. It's also a show you spend infinitely more time thinking about that watching. Quintessential complusive TV, by the time it ends, it could be one of the few truly exceptional works of TV ever created.
2. Battlestat Galactica
Sci-Fi you can takr seriously
If someone had told me that a reimagining of a awful TV show which clung to the coat tails of the success of Star Wars would become the finest science fiction show of all time I would have laughed. But Battlestar Galactica isn't your average sci-fi. Addressing issues of what it means to be human, terrorism, mythology, whether we as a race deserve our existence - its as good at being personal drama as at sci-fi epic battles. The truly great thing though is that characters you love are forced make decisions which turn them into monsters, and yet you know, deep down that you would make the same choice.
1. The Wire
The single greatest TV show ever created.
As Charlie Brooker wrote, I’m jealous of anyone who hasn’t seen The Wire because they have it all to come. I watched The Wire over about four months, long after it initially aired and shortly before it was re-broadcast on BBC2. Over the course of 5 seasons, the creators developed and introduced us to nearly 100 characters, all of whom felt real, but not just real; they felt as though they had always existed and as if their lives continued after the scene, episode or series ended. The show contained great moments of comedy, wit, heartbreak, drama, fear, tension, action and mystery, and managed to do all of it with more authority, authenticity and style than any other show in existence. Yes it might be bleak, but there is always hope in The Wire. Hope in the people who want to stop the game, to break the system and improve the lives of those caught in its web. But most of all The Wire is the great human drama of our age. It is the closest we have to modern Dickens. FACT!
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