Greatest cop shows

From a standpoint of richly drawn complex characters, Southland is tops for me.

Other thoughts:
Equating Andy Griffith to police dramas is like equating Gomer Pyle to Full Metal Jacket.
The L&O mothership is the gold standard for that franchise, with Criminal Intent a close second and SVU, like, in fifth place (I realize it was three shows). And CSI ahead of L&O is a joke.
Columbo started the trend of leaving a room but turning around and saying, "Just one more thing ..." that's so prevalent in shows today.
Hill Street Blues was groundbreaing in its day, but it's incredibly dated.
Reno 911! is not a cops show. Nor is 24.
If Streets of SF is on there, so should be Police Woman.

The Wire is the best, but that last season came off the rails.

 

There was at least a fourth L&O. I think Bebe Neuwerth was in it.

 

I appreciate that they went with some offbeat choices like Sledge Hammer! and Police Squad!, as well as some old shows like Naked City and Columbo. For the most part, it wasn't a, "Ooh, look at me and the awesome shows I've seen that you never have" type of list.
But, again, no Dragnet?
Not just too low, but omitted altogether?
How does that happen? That's an iconic show that should've been in the Top 5. It's like making a list of greatest sci-fi movies and forgetting to put Star Wars and Star Trek on there.
Adam-12 is also a glaring omission. Between Dragnet, Adam-12 and Emergency!, Jack Webb helped inspire an entire generation of kids to become cops and firefighters.

 

Law & Order: Trial by Jury

 

Emergency! was my favorite show as a kid. Nothing better than watching that and CHiPs back to back.

 

Damn right.

 

I'm hooked on "Blue Bloods." But the Bridget Moynahan factor might be a key reason.

 

You carried all of them, Abe. Well, all of them except Jack Soo.

 

This is the best cop show of the past decade:

 

Hill Street Blues.
Still remember the line after everyone was dismissed...
"Let's be careful out there"

 

Uttered by the estimable Sgt. Phil Esterhaus (Michael Conrad):

 

Love this show and am now trying to get my hands on the Swedish series which friends say is even better. Unfortunately, it has been removed from Canadian Netflix.