None of those shows are anywhere even close to twenty-five years old.

It's worth mentioning hill street blues, this show done alot for raising the quility of tv drama.

I'v been watching re-runs lately and it's aged pretty well.

@Hailinel said:

None of those shows are anywhere even close to twenty-five years old.

They don't need to be. They are from the last 25 years. The reason this time period was picked was because Vulture.com did a March-Madness type thing to find the best TV drama of the last 24. The 4 in the poll hereare the 4 that made the semi-final. All this info is in the OP.

I voted The Wire because I'm more than happy to call it the greatest TV show of the entire history of the television. Nothing is nearly as compelling, & I'd call myself a fan of a lot of TV shows, including the other 3 finalists here (well, I've only seen about the first 1.5 seasons of Breaking Bad so I guess I let the side down on that front)

Happy to see the Wire is so popular.

Breaking bad for me. That show is amazing.

Those are all great shows, but I kind of love 6 Feet Under as well.

Where is Jersey Shore? It's the clear victor here.

25 years, and you only go back 10 at most? For me, its 24, hands down.

I would put Battlestar Galactica above all of those except Breaking Bad.

But anyway, yes Breaking Bad, easily. Mad Men is great, but not on the same level. The Wire is okay. And I never really cared for The Sopranos.

@forkboy said:

@Hailinel said:

None of those shows are anywhere even close to twenty-five years old.

They don't need to be. They are from the last 25 years. The reason this time period was picked was because Vulture.com did a March-Madness type thing to find the best TV drama of the last 24. The 4 in the poll hereare the 4 that made the semi-final. All this info is in the OP.

I voted The Wire because I'm more than happy to call it the greatest TV show of the entire history of the television. Nothing is nearly as compelling, & I'd call myself a fan of a lot of TV shows, including the other 3 finalists here (well, I've only seen about the first 1.5 seasons of Breaking Bad so I guess I let the side down on that front)

Somehow, that March Madness-style bracket doesn't seem entirely fair given that I expect most people that voted in it aren't old enough to remember TV shows from twenty-five years ago, so of course they go with shows that barely reach back a decade.

Season 4 of The Wire is peerless.

Boo. No Deadwood or Six Feet Under makes that list null for me. Out of the given choices though, I'd have to say The Wire. Shit got crazy in the latter seasons.

It just has to be The Wire. I admit I have not seen all of Breaking Bad (only the first two seasons, which were very good) but The Wire is one of the finest modern social commentaries. It has a point, in addition to being very entertaining. The show made me think we should indeed legalize all drugs for example.

Even just as a show though, so many amazing characters, such a great sense of realism, outstanding writing. Best TV show ever IMO.

I love all those shows, but as mentioned by a few others, Six Feet Under is my number one. I really need to bite the bullet and purchase it.

@MattyFTM said: 

I haven't seen any of those. Does that make me a bad person?

Let me get on a little tangent here:   

Never watched The Wire. Breaking Bad however, now that's a show.

either Twin Peaks or The Wire.

I actually haven't seen The Wire, I never cared for Sopranos. I love me some Mad Men, but it's got to be Breaking Bad.

The Wire. I'll reevaluate when Breaking Bad ends whether it takes the top spot or not.

Mad Men and Breaking Bad shouldn't even be on this list because they haven't concluded. You must look at the entire scope of a series; I mean Sopranos went to utter shit after season 2, and never recovered its former glory.

@joshthebear said:

Boo. No Deadwood or Six Feet Under makes that list null for me. Out of the given choices though, I'd have to say The Wire. Shit got crazy in the latter seasons.

Deadwood would be strong, but the series ended unresolved. The same could be said of The Sopranos, but it's cliffhanger nature was intentional.

Six Feet Under? I'm sure you and the 7 other people who watched that show can argue about its merits elsewhere.

I havent watched three of them so by default I vote for Mad Men. Though I want to vote for Babylon 5...

All of these are too new. China Beach kills all of these.

The Wire.

Breaking Bad is a SUPER close second, and that might change if season 5 ends up as good as season 4. But right now, The Wire.

Breaking Bad is awesome.

I just started watching Mad Men on Netflix and it's good so far, but nothing amazing.

I haven't watched any of those. : (

@Sweep said:

Not enough love for Mad Men happening here. That show does such a flawless job of portraying life in 60's America. It manages to make mundane issues actually interesting through excellent writing and acting across the board.

Don Draper is my hero.

My mom started watching that a while back; a couple times I sat down and watched with her. At one point I was like "I know I've missed a lot of what's going on, but everyone seems kinda weird, it's oddly paced and nothing really seems to be happening." She just sort of sighed and was like "Yeah, that's basically how it is. But they have nice clothes." It just seems like that show puts all its efforts into aesthetics, and not enough into anything else. Besides...

That show does such a flawless job of portraying life in 60's America.

This may be true, but I don't know I can believe that unless someone who actually lived then says it, and most old people I've talked to don't get what all the fuss is about.

Also, Deadwood FTW, but the Wire comes a close second.

The same could be said of The Sopranos, but it's cliffhanger nature was intentional.

@Soapy86 said:

I would put Battlestar Galactica above all of those except Breaking Bad.

But anyway, yes Breaking Bad, easily. Mad Men is great, but not on the same level. The Wire is okay. And I never really cared for The Sopranos.

I'd deffo put it at the top alongside "the wire" and "breaking bad".

Deep Space 9 was also a great show (from the makers of BSG).

If it's the last 25 years, why are all these shows like a decade old at most?

It's Twin Peaks anyway, that can't be argued. It's the best soap, the best drama and the best mystery on TV.

^ deep space 9 is the only star trek i can watch and truly enjoy, great show

wire > breaking bad > mad men > sopranos

All four of those shows are excellent, but The Wire's gonna have to take it. Those are definitely the best TV dramas out there, though.

@MikkaQ said:

It's Twin Peaks anyway, that can't be argued. It's the best soap, the best drama and the best mystery on TV.

Of course it cant, it's your opinion.

I've said it before, and I'll keep saying it until something changes my mind, but The Wire is the greatest piece of fiction that has ever been filmed.

@whyareyoucrouchingspock said:

@MikkaQ said:

It's Twin Peaks anyway, that can't be argued. It's the best soap, the best drama and the best mystery on TV.

Of course it cant, it's your opinion.

Nope, it's science.

Six Feet Under? I'm sure you and the 7 other people who watched that show can argue about its merits elsewhere.

@MikkaQ said:

@whyareyoucrouchingspock said:

@MikkaQ said:

It's Twin Peaks anyway, that can't be argued. It's the best soap, the best drama and the best mystery on TV.

Of course it cant, it's your opinion.

Nope, it's science.

Maths!

@Sweep said:

@MikkaQ said:

@whyareyoucrouchingspock said:

@MikkaQ said:

It's Twin Peaks anyway, that can't be argued. It's the best soap, the best drama and the best mystery on TV.

Of course it cant, it's your opinion.

Nope, it's science.

Maths!

Mathhhhhhh. Repeat it together, now: Mathhhh. NO! Don't use an S, it's Maaaatthhhhh.

Sorry, that's always been one of the funnier US English, UK English differences. That and Kerb. What the hell? Cuuuuuuurb.

@ninjakiller said:

Six Feet Under? I'm sure you and the 7 other people who watched that show can argue about its merits elsewhere.

Jesus H Christ, man. 
 
Six Feet Under received widespread critical acclaim, particularly for its writing and acting, and consistently drew high ratings for the HBO network. Six Feet Under has frequently been described by critics as one of the greatest television series of all time as well as having one of the greatest series finales of all time. It won numerous awards, including nine Emmy Awards, three Screen Actors Guild Awards, three Golden Globe Awards, and a Peabody Award.

@whyareyoucrouchingspock said:

@Soapy86 said:

I would put Battlestar Galactica above all of those except Breaking Bad.

I'd deffo put it at the top alongside "the wire" and "breaking bad".

Deep Space 9 was also a great show (from the makers of BSG).

Well, the category is Drama, not sci fi. Otherwise BSG would clearly win. Or maybe X Files.

@MikkaQ said:

If it's the last 25 years, why are all these shows like a decade old at most?

It's Twin Peaks anyway, that can't be argued. It's the best soap, the best drama and the best mystery on TV.

I think the problem is, anything before 1995 - hell, 2000 - just seems really dated nowadays. And it's not as likely that anyone's gonna be going back to watch all seasons of NYPD Blue as they are the Wire. Twin Peaks did some interesting shit, but it's more than a little awkward, and very 90's - that soap element you mentioned - so it's hard to watch and take completely seriously these days.

Personally torn between Twin Peaks & Carnivale. Not into too much tv drama & that's all I can think of as everything else tends to fall in other categories.

Six Feet Under had a good ending but it kinda became abit blotchy towards the end. Lost interest.

Also, not that i'm a homophobe but it seemed outright obsessed with waving gayness around. I swear to fuck every episode two dudes would kiss and wriggle tongues or get it on.

The creator of the show is gay, so thats probably the reason why.

Torchwood has the same problem, creator gay, so forces gay aspects in every episode. It doesn't come across as something natural, it comes across as forced

pro-gay agenda.

Sopranos > Braking Bad > The Wire > Mad Men

Breaking Bad. The Wire just isn't as entertaining, unique, stylistic, or gripping as Breaking Bad. I felt I could have stopped watching The Wire at any time, but with Breaking Bad I NEED to see what happens next and it has so many scenes that just stay with me whereas there aren't as many memorable scenes in The Wire (not to say there aren't memorable scenes).

The Wire's still great, but I appreciated it more after I watched it all rather than during it. Sometimes it could just be...boring and I didn't feel connected to most of the characters.

And don't get me started on Mad Men...I've given that show so many chances, but it is as dull as can be.

The Sopranos is great though...but Breaking Bad's on a whole other level.

@Lobster_Ear said:

I felt I could have stopped watching The Wire at any time

Unlike most of the shows listed, The Wire actually requires you to stick with it for an extended period of time to get something out of it.

I do love Breaking Bad but no way I could pick anything but Mad Men. So good.

@MarkWahlberg said:

@MikkaQ said:

If it's the last 25 years, why are all these shows like a decade old at most?

It's Twin Peaks anyway, that can't be argued. It's the best soap, the best drama and the best mystery on TV.

I think the problem is, anything before 1995 - hell, 2000 - just seems really dated nowadays. And it's not as likely that anyone's gonna be going back to watch all seasons of NYPD Blue as they are the Wire. Twin Peaks did some interesting shit, but it's more than a little awkward, and very 90's - that soap element you mentioned - so it's hard to watch and take completely seriously these days.

It's more than 90s, they were doing a 50s throwback, so it dates itself even more. But that's why I liked it. That show had balls. It was weird, yeah, awkward, yeah but the fact that it was all that, and still worked somehow kinda stands to the quality of the show overall. Even if the 2nd season got wacky.

But I'm also more receptive to older TV than most people, I almost prefer it in a way. It worked to distinguish itself from film, now they all go for the cinematic style, and that's cool, I do enjoy modern shows a fair bit... but there's something to the weird TV formula that gave us classics like the A-Team. They're charming. Not a lot of TV dramas at the time though, outside of soaps which I typically don't watch (unless it is TP, cause that almost seemed to mock soaps a little).

Breaking Bad because it's the only one of those I've seen.

It's Twin Peaks anyway, that can't be argued. It's the best soap, the best drama and the best mystery on TV.

Macguyver.

Im on episode 2 season 2 of Breaking Bad. Im enjoying it quite a bit but I really dont see what all the fuss is about. It's well written/acted sure, but so far it's not in same league as Sopranos/Wire/Deadwood