The best shows of the 2000s

Star Ledger TV critic Alan Sepinwall mentioned a while ago that Vanity Fair is listing the best TV shows of the decade. In that spirit, I was curious where people on the board stood on the best of the decade. I've ranked my top 10, with no distinction for comedy or drama. Unlike Vanity Fair, though, I'm only considering scripted, non-variety shows. No matter how much I love The Daily Show or Colbert, I'm looking at episodic television.

Here's my list:

1. The Sopranos
2. Lost (This could change depending on how next season plays out)
3. The Wire
4. Arrested Development
5. The Office
6. 30 Rock
7. Freaks and Geeks
8. Mad Men
9. Curb Your Enthusiasm
10. Buffy the Vampire Slayer

 

Off the top of my head (and I won't count ER or Friends, which are 1990s shows, or pay cable channel shows, which have such an unfair edge with nudity and cussing):

--House
--The Shield
--How I Met Your Mother
--CSI
--Simpsons
--The Closer
--Monk
--NCIS
--Gilmore Girls
--My Boys
--24

 

Love the love for Freaks and Geeks, but I'm surprised Sepinwall--a huge Scrubs fan--didn't rank Scrubs among his top 10.

 

Prison Break should be on the list.

 

Of the shows that I have watched often, the best comedy is Arrested Development by miles. Second and third would be 30 Rock and the Office.

Top dramas that I watch would be Rescue Me and Friday Night Lights.

 

"west wing" inelegible 'cause it began in '99? i mean, it ran through '06. aforementioned and much loved "freaks and geeks" started in '99, too, but lasted just one season 'cause of the network knuckleheads, right?

i'm fine with all the suggestions thus far.

 

Every one but Buffy.

 

'Buffy the Vampire Slayer,' which I enjoyed, started in 1997.
'The Daily Show' started in 1996.
And didn't 'The Sopranos' start in the 1990s?

 

"sopranos," like "ww" and "f&g," began in '99. so it can't make the cut, correct?

 

1. The Wire
2. The Sopranos (probably No. 2 simply because of the ridiculous lack of betting knowledge in episodes)
3. Freaks and Geeks
4. The Office (Gervais)
5. The West Wing
6. Six Feet Under
7. Curb Your Enthusiasm
8. CSI
9. 30 Rock
10. Lost

 

I know it's hard to judge, because shows span decades like that. I'm considering any show that had at least half of its run this decade, which includes shows like The Sopranos, ER, and The West Wing. That's how Vanity Fair seems to be doing it, at least; their list was:

BEST DRAMAS
Friday Night Lights
Lost
Mad Men
The Sopranos
The West Wing
The Wire

BEST COMEDY
30 Rock
Arrested Development
Curb Your Enthusiasm
The Daily Show
Everybody Loves Raymond
The Office.

They also have categories for actors and actresses in comedy and drama.