20 shows that were good from beginning to end and stuck the landing

Though The Wheel of Time was canceled after three seasons, during its run, it still managed to be a surprisingly thorough adaptation of Robert Jordan’s sprawling fantasy series. That it accomplished this despite the restrictions of COVID, which afflicted the first season, is a testament to the skills of its creative team. The first season was entertaining, if not brilliant, fantasy TV, but once it found its footing in the second season, The Wheel of Time became the sort of fantasy TV that fans had been waiting for. It remains to be seen whether the show will perhaps find a different streaming home.

From its very first episode, Veep  eviscerated the sacred cows and sanctity of American politics. Featuring a career-best performance from Julia Louis-Dreyfus, it focuses on Selina Meyer, the titular Vice President, as she attempts to claw her way to the top while also dealing with her inept staff. The series was side-splittingly funny from the beginning, but it also managed to make some incisive commentary about the nature of American politics and society, often holding up an unflattering mirror for viewers and politicians alike.

With Downton Abbey, Julian Fellowes demonstrated once again that he has a true knack for creating compelling and deeply poignant period dramas. In this case, the series focuses on the various members of the aristocratic Crawley family and their servants as they navigate the changes of the early 20th century. The series maintained its sumptuous production values from start to finish, and although several cast members notably departed, it consistently managed to keep viewers invested in both the upstairs and downstairs characters.

Few satires have been quite as biting and acidic as Succession, which focuses on the various children of media mogul Logan Roy as they scheme, manipulate, and betray in an effort to become his heir. The series maintained its unique balance of corporate drama and bitingly black comedy from its first episode to its last. Unlike many other high-profile dramas of the 21st century, it also managed to stick the landing, and the finale has some of the bleakest and most heartbreaking moments in recent television.

Modern Family is one of those sitcoms that makes for a perfect escape from the chaos of the real world. It is, at its core, a fundamentally optimistic show that, as its title suggests, explores the various forms that family takes in the 21st century. Though it wasn’t afraid to dip its toes into some political issues, it never lost sight of the fact that it was a show designed to make people laugh. It managed to do this from its first season to its last, and it more than deserved its many Emmy wins.

Reservation Dogs skillfully blends comedy, drama, surrealism, and numerous other genres and sensibilities besides. By turns deeply funny and wrenchingly poignant, it offers a fascinating look at Indigenous life in the 21st century, particularly as experienced by young people. It manages to be a strong show from beginning to end, and the fact that many fans wanted it to continue for a fourth season or more speaks to how beloved it became during its relatively short run.

Chernobyl is one of those series that demonstrates the continuing power of a miniseries with high production values. As its title suggests, it focuses on the infamous Chernobyl disaster and the Soviet government’s failure to either contain it or adequately contend with the consequences. There’s not a single episode of this series that’s wasted, and it also features terrific performances from every single member of its cast, though both Jared Harris and Stellan Skarsgård are particularly strong. The series stands as an indictment of governments that fail their people in times of crisis.

The Wire is one of those rare series that can truly lay claim to the title of greatest show ever made. It’s hard-hitting and gritty, grappling with some major issues, particularly those revolving around crime, drugs, and the realities of urban life. It also features some remarkable performances from the entire cast, which was an embarrassment of riches. Among the standouts are Dominic West, Idris Elba, Lance Reddick, and Michael J. Williams. Small wonder that many critics hailed it as the television equivalent of a novel.

Somebody Somewhere is one of those hidden gems that tends to slip through the cracks, but it is still one of the best comedies HBO has produced in recent years. Bridget Everett stars as Sam, a middle-aged woman who moves back to her Kansas town to contend with the loss of her sister, where she reconnects with her old friend Joel. The show is a sweet and comforting testament to small-town queer life and friendships, remaining poignant and funny from its first episode to its last.

Both Jason Bateman and Laura Linney  deliver terrific performances throughout the entire run of Ozark, in which they portray the Byrdes, a couple who become increasingly ruthless as they become entangled in the world of drugs and money laundering. Though it begins as a bit of a rip-off of Breaking Bad, by the end of its first season, Ozark had shown that it had more than enough dramatic heft to stand on its own. It also featured some truly devastating moments and deaths, and it established itself as one of the best dramas ever made by Netflix.

Rami Malek has delivered numerous fine performances, but his portrayal of hacker Elliot Anderson in the USA series Mr. Robot is arguably one of his best. The series has more than a few twists and turns in its four seasons, but Malek always helps to keep it grounded. It’s also a show that manages to be very much of its time, with its story about uncertainty and outcasts trying to take down a corrupt system. It’s also a visually striking show, and it’s a testament to what TV can achieve in the hands of a truly gifted creative team.

There’s no question that Schitt’s Creek got better and better with each season, but it was also very funny right out of the gate. What began as another fish-out-of-water story, however, quickly became something richer and more meaningful as the Roses slowly became key parts of the Schitt’s Creek community. All of the characters grew and changed and became better people as the seasons went on, and so it’s easy to see why the show remains so beloved by both old and new fans alike, particularly since it offers such an optimistic escape from the real world.

MASH is one of those rare series that managed to survive numerous cast changes throughout its run without ever losing its essential blend of comedy and drama. From the very beginning, it was a show that offered biting commentary on the Vietnam War, and it kept this consciousness until the very end. At the same time, it also never lost sight of the fact that it was also supposed to make audiences laugh, and, no matter who was in the central cast, it always succeeded. 

The 2010s were something of a golden age of hard-hitting dramas featuring morally ambiguous characters. The Americans, for example, asked the audience to spend several seasons with a group of Russian spies masquerading as Americans during the Cold War. It’s a remarkably sophisticated and nuanced show, and its finale was widely acclaimed. It’s the kind of show that forces one to rethink what they think they know, and it added a much-needed layer of complexity to the nuances of the Cold War and those involved in it on both sides.

Starz’s Spartacus was very much a product of its time, and it remains one of the most visually stylish series produced by the premium cable channel. It might have been schlocky at times, but there was more than enough genuine human drama to qualify it as a strong show in its own right. It’s also one of those series that managed to survive the recasting of its main character, allowing viewers to gain a renewed appreciation for one of the most famous freedom fighters of the ancient world.

Breaking Bad is arguably one of the most important series to emerge from the late 2000s and early 2010s. It certainly marked a high point in the career of Bryan Cranston, who gave audiences a fully realized and deeply unsettling portrait of a man and his descent into criminality and darkness. And, thanks to a remarkable number of supporting performances, including those from Anna Gunn and Aaron Paul, the series also maintained its own strange form of a moral compass.

The Golden Girls aired from 1985 to 1992, and in that time, it managed to be well-written, superbly acted, and timely, often engaging with some of the most fraught political issues of the day. It’s also one of those rare series that managed to hang onto its humor and good writing from the first season to the last. While the last season or two are a bit more zany than their predecessors, they are also extremely funny, and there’s no question that all members of the cast gave it their all until the very last minutes of the finale. 

It’s no exaggeration to say that Cheers was one of the most beloved sitcoms of the 1980s, which helps to explain why it lasted for eleven seasons. In part, this is because the cast is universally excellent, and the show even managed to survive a few major changes in its central line-up. However, it also featured some very strong writing, and its creative team knew exactly how to make the most out of the sitcom form, creating a show that audiences wanted to return to week after week, to spend some time in a place where everyone knew everyone’s name.

It’s a rare sitcom that manages to change and grow with the times while staying true to its origins. Brooklyn Nine-Nine did just that, however, and although the members of the precinct grew, changed, and developed as the series progressed, they also remained true to who they were. The series also managed to take account of the various calls for criminal justice reform that emerged during its later seasons. It always knew how to make its viewers laugh, but it was also willing to make them think. Though it never became a ratings powerhouse, it still managed to become a cult favorite and remains so to this day.

Michael Schur is undoubtedly a bit of a genius when it comes to crafting compelling and thought-provoking sitcoms. In The Good Place, for example, he gave viewers a series about several bad people who, after ending up in the Bad Place, ultimately change for the better and bring the rest of the cosmos along with them. The series uses the conventions and formulae of the sitcom to ask deep questions about human nature and morality, and it managed to be funny, thought-provoking, and emotionally resonant throughout its run.