Variety counts down the Top 10 TV Shows of all time. From prestige dramas to groundbreaking sitcoms, see what we chose as the very best.
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00:00 [MUSIC]
00:04 I'm here to introduce our top ten television shows of all time.
00:08 At number ten is Roots, the mini series that 100 million Americans stayed home
00:13 night after night to watch in 1977.
00:15 >> [FOREIGN]
00:18 >> The incredible performances and
00:20 the sweep of American history keep Roots in the conversation to this day.
00:25 Number nine is the Mary Tyler Moore show, which pushed our culture forward,
00:29 depicting a single working woman in the newsroom.
00:31 It also brought Mary Tyler Moore herself to the fore as a defining creative force
00:35 in Hollywood.
00:36 Its ensemble of kooky characters remain beloved to this day.
00:39 Number eight is Seinfeld.
00:42 The show takes its very simple premise of four friends hanging out and
00:46 pushes it in untold, strange, and innovative directions.
00:49 The show introduced countless phrases into the lexicon.
00:52 >> [FOREIGN]
00:53 >> Had four perfect comic performances, and
00:56 even nailed its finale.
00:58 At number seven is The Wire, which we can now recognize as one of the signature
01:01 works of art about the war on drugs.
01:04 Focusing each season on a single aspect of the drug trade in Baltimore,
01:08 it's an urgently watchable drama and one of HBO's very best.
01:12 Number six is Sex and the City.
01:14 >> Why do I think living in Manhattan is so fantastic?
01:17 >> Because it is.
01:18 >> This show is a sweetly romantic time capsule of turn of the century New York,
01:22 but it's also a story of friendship.
01:24 With its four central characters supporting each other through the ups and
01:27 downs of life and love.
01:29 Number five is Breaking Bad, which defines the anti-hero drama.
01:33 Millions of people were thrilled by the story of Walter White's fall
01:37 from family man to drug kingpin.
01:40 >> I am the one who knocks.
01:42 >> Breaking Bad built a compelling world and used it to take huge narrative swings,
01:47 with Bryan Cranston's carefully calibrated performance holding everything together.
01:51 Coming in at number four is The Simpsons,
01:53 which has been flipping the family comedy on its head since 1989.
01:57 Delivering social commentary and elegant wordplay through the mouths of its five
02:01 central yellow characters, The Simpsons is ultimately a story of family love.
02:06 After all their adventures, Homer, Marge, and
02:09 their three kids end up right back on the couch every time.
02:12 At number three is The Sopranos, which kicked off the modern golden age of
02:16 television by exploring the rich inner life of a mobster, his family, and
02:20 his associates.
02:22 >> Are you in the mafia?
02:23 [MUSIC]
02:26 >> Am I in the what?
02:27 >> Tony Soprano goes to therapy,
02:28 even as day after day he's committing violent crimes.
02:32 This contrast has kept people binging for 25 years.
02:36 Number two is Mad Men,
02:38 probably the defining series of the aughts prestige cable boom.
02:42 The rich 60s period look of the show from its sets to its costumes
02:46 is complimented by performances that are across the board brilliant.
02:49 Especially John Hamm as the ad executive Don Draper and
02:53 Elizabeth Moss as the ambitious secretary Peggy Olsen.
02:56 This show is unafraid to push deep into its characters and
02:59 to question what it is that Don, Peggy, and
03:02 the rest of their social world all really want.
03:05 And the show Variety has named the greatest of all time, set the template for
03:08 its entire genre, and television has been chasing its success ever since.
03:13 Number one is I Love Lucy.
03:15 >> Wait till you take a look at this front page of Variety.
03:17 >> Even as the show dates back to the earliest days of television,
03:22 it still works beautifully today.
03:24 From Lucille Ball's elastic physical comedy to the inventive and
03:28 tightly written scripts, just about everyone remembers at least one iconic
03:33 Lucy bit, from stomping grapes into wine to working the conveyor belt at
03:36 the chocolate factory, and it hasn't aged a day.
03:39 No wonder this show effectively invented the sitcom.
03:42 Did your favorite show make the list?
03:44 Let us know in the comments below.
03:45 [MUSIC]