Hey all,
Something that our annual Show Competition does really well is find the fan favourite show amongst those on the site. And while this is all well and good, the competition is, like every poll on the internet ever, a popularity contest. As such, we cannot use the results to determine quality. In light of this, I thought I'd pitch it to the SpoilerTV team to voice their opinions on what they thought were the best shows ever made.
Note: Nominations were restricted to two per person plus honourable mentions.
LOST
DarkUFO (1): Pretty much everything LOST got me hooked... the mystery, the acting, the locations, the soundtrack. They all just combined perfectly into something magical.
In addition to the above it sparked my interest in tracking the many of LOST mysteries, which in turned led me to start the site DarkUFO, and as a result when LOST ended, SpoilerTV.
So LOST holds a very special place in my heart.
I don't think any other show will ever have that impact or influence on me.
Robert Fruin (2): Lost’s element of storytelling is the greatest reason why this show was so amazing, how it was able to take so many characters and develop, and examine each and every one of them in depth. The uses of flashbacks to tell each characters story was perfectly integrated into each episode. Whenever the next episode would start it had me wondering each, and everytime which character the episode would focus on. Also its sense of mystery, once you seemed to figure out one of the shows many mysteries it took you further down a rabbit hole, it always kept me hooked in the hope that I would uncover anything about the island.
It never failed to keep me coming back to watch each week.
Bradley Adams (2): Choosing between LOST and Person of Interest was hard, but I had to go with LOST. All of the mind-bending mysteries it set up were great to watch, but what I loved is that eventually, I stopped caring about the minor things (the kind of things that people still say were unsolved) because the show became so much more about the character development, which was superb. There were so many characters that I loved - Daniel, Sawyer, even Ben (they managed to redeem Ben despite how much the character deserved hatred - that's brilliant) You always expected something to happen at any and every moment. LOST was a truly great show.
Breaking Bad
Also picked as an honourable mention by Laura Markus
The Walking Dead
Samy (1): I love many shows, but whenever I get asked about my favorite show of all time, ""The Walking Dead"" will always be the answer.
To me, it's really well written, there are NO love triangles (THANK GOD)
the actors are amazing and it's the only show that has ever made me cry!
The zombies are amazing and awesome CGI. I love it that the writers are not afraid to kill off one of the main characters, several show just kill off a character that may have been here since the beginning but who's not that important.
I just don't know why I waited that long to start watching this show.
Also picked as an honourable mention by Gavin Hetherington
Game of Thrones
Samy (2): Actors are all very talented, the landscapes are amazing, every time I watch an episode I'm like ""mhm I wouldn't mind going there for my next vacation."" The CGI team is really amazing, the dragons.... oh my! Also picked as an honourable mention by Pablozky
House M.D.
Laura Markus (1): This Fox show demonstrates how good Hugh Laurie is at concealing his native accent. House is a show that truly has it all - phenomenal acting, outstanding writing, wonderful cinematography, a great soundtrack, and plenty more. Each episode brings you a different medical mystery that House and his excellent team of doctors must diagnose. With gripping story arcs that keep you glued to your chair, House can truly force a wide array of emotions upon you. From watching the team intubate a dying patient, to hiding out in Cuddy's office, it's never a dull moment when you're watching this show. Despite the fact that some fans think that the show declined in quality post-season six, this is just up to interpretation. I believe that the show stayed true to itself up until the finale, and it was definitely one of the most satisfying finales for a show I have ever seen. There is no doubt in my mind that people with agree with me; after all, it won the Guinness World Record in 2012 for Most Watched TV Show and Hugh Laurie won Most Paid Actor. Well, you can't say it wasn't well deserved. In all honesty, "Everybody Lies" except for people who say they love this show.
Psych
Laura Markus (2): This is a terrible show - PSYCH! Did I fool you? Hopefully not, because it is impossible to make a joke like that about this show and actually mean it. Psych has some of the most creative writing I have ever experienced in my life. Each episode seems to be based on some pop culture reference of sorts, for example "Tuesday the 17th" and "Heeeeere's Lassie". No matter what episode you choose to watch, you're in for a wild ride with a psychic detective named Shawn Spencer, who isn't actually a psychic, but he does have an idea memory and crazy good skills of perception and deception. If that doesn't sell the show for you, I don't know what will. Maybe the fact that they change the theme song often to relate to the episode you're watching (Halloween, Christmas, Superhero, Bollywood etc.), the amazing soundtrack, the wonderful acting that can have you laughing your butt off one minute and then crying in a corner the next, or its humour will convince you. Steve Franks sought out to create a show that "just makes you feel good, no matter what episode you watch or when you watch it". This is definitely true - no matter how many seasons this show had, each season became better than the last. I wholeheartedly believe that a Psych Movie would be highly entertaining and it would have an amazing plot, much like every episode of the show had. Psych being my second nomination? "You know that's right." Fringe
Pushing Daisies
Pablozky (2): Beautiful aesthetic, amazing comedy, outstanding cast and as a whole one of the most creative and unique comedy series ever created. A modern fairy tale that ended way sooner than it should have. Still, one of the best shows ever made.
Charmed
Gavin Hetherington (1): Charmed' was the first show I ever got obsessed with. I was young when I started watching it and I've always had a fascination with witches (I had been a fan of The Worst Witch and Sabrina the Teenage Witch) and to have a show where three kick-ass sisters vanquished demons and monsters week in and week out was incredible. The first few seasons were so magical and was filled with different kinds of bad guys and spells and potions. The later seasons kind of lost its touch and didn't feel as creative and magical as the Original years, but I still enjoyed the later seasons nonetheless. The show also has some truly standout episodes that remain part of my all-time favourite episodes of any show. Its series finale was near enough to perfection as it could have been and so ended an incredible 8 years on a very high note. The show is so rewatchable and I've probably seen every episode more times than I can count so I can see myself still watching odd episodes when I'm old and wrinkly.Desperate Housewives
Gavin Hetherington (2): I was torn between this show and Buffy but I had to pick Desperate Housewives for the sheer fact that while Buffy was ground-breaking, it had some huge stinkers of episodes whereas Desperate Housewives never entered that territory. When Desperate Housewives did a season right, it was an incredible thing to watch and quality was pretty consistant. Rarely did the show produce any outright bad episodes and I can't really think of any off the top of my head. Desperate Housewives opened with a fantastic episode, one of my all-time favourite Pilots, and continued that quality through its first season. Season 2 was still very enjoyable (especially when rewatching without breaks), and Seasons 3 and 4 are among my favourite TV show seasons of all-time. Seasons 5 and 7 were entertaining though not great, and Season 6 wasn't that enjoyable to me, but Season 8 returned the show to a good place. I'll miss the characters - Susan, Gabby, Bree, Lynette and Edie - as they are some of the best female characters to ever grace television. The writing was phenomenal when it wanted to be and the show had some amazing big episodes, including the supermarket hostage and the tornado. Desperate Housewives just oozed juicy drama.Star Trek: The Next Generation
Christopher DeBono (1): One of my favorite Science Fiction shows. The characters were absolutely amazing and the lasting impact of the many cliffhangers are still burnt in my memory today.Queer As Folk
Christopher DeBono (2): No other LGBT show has really pushed the barrier further then Queer As Folk did when it first aired. Due to its frank portrayal of various aspects of the LGBT community, it really led for some memorable and heart-wrenching moments that I'll never forget.
The X-FilesDarkUFO (2): Being a part time UFO researcher at an early age I came to love this show as it covered many of the aspects of the UFO lore and brought to life many of the real-live UFO stories.
Still one of the greatest shows I've ever seen. Only beaten by LOST.
Sons Of Anarchy
Robert Fruin (1): The show itself is a big cliff hanger. Every episode ends with that montage of music and characters that makes you desperately want to watch the next episode. Combine that with the fact that there are so many different storylines going on at once makes the entertainment endless. The writing for the show is phenomenal, and the acting is even better,especially season 7.
Sons of Anarchy will never be replicated, it was good to the very end.
Various other honourable mentions: American Horror Story (Samy); Dexter, Criminal Minds, The Listener, Boy Meets World, Arrested Development (Laura Markus); Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Grey's Anatomy, Once Upon a Time, Revenge, Scandal, True Blood, Witches of East End (Gavin Hetherington); Friends (Gavin Hetherington and Bradley Adams); Supernatural (Christopher DeBono); Fawlty Towers (DarkUFO and Bradley Adams); Person of Interest (Robert Fruin and Bradley Adams); 24 (Bradley Adams).
.JPG)
