All the Outstanding Drama Series Emmy winners, ranked

A lot of the early winners for Outstanding Drama Series were merely televised plays. That was what was affordable to produce at the time as the medium began to grow. This was a one-off production of the famous play “Macbeth,” but it was also sort of a rerun. Maurice Evans (pictured here as The Puzzler on "Batman," because specific photos from this performance are not available) and Judith Anderson had performed this very play for this very show in 1954, and they were reprising their roles for a new broadcast. That gets it ranked last on this list.

This is a limited series from 1972, but apparently plays were able to still win this award in the ‘70s. Not to just crib from Wikipedia, but it sums up this show well when it notes that it’s “six 85-minute plays starring Glenda Jackson as Elizabeth I of England.” That description alone kind of makes you want to nod off.

Don’t worry: We’ll be done with plays soon enough. This was merely an anthology series of plays produced by National Educational Television. None of these performances has stood the test of time or has been mentioned at all in recent years. No photos from NET Playhouse performances seem to have stood the test of time either, so here is a photo of actor Stacy Keach, who appeared in several plays on the show as a younger man.

Hey, a scripted show that isn’t a play! “Marcus Welby, M.D” has the “honor” of being the first such show mentioned in our rankings. It was a medical drama, which is a well-worn genre in television. Robert Young starred as the titular doctor — a nice old man who was always right. Think of him as a warmer but also more boring Dr. House.

We are finally done with TV shows that just produced plays. Of those shows, though, “Playhouse 90” was the most famous, and most successful, of the bunch. It produced one of the first true major TV events with “Requiem for a Heavyweight,” an original script written by Rod Serling of “Twilight Zone” fame. That alone got it to this position in the rankings, which is to say it is above all the other play shows.

Do you remember “Downton Abbey?” This show was basically the original “Downton Abbey.” It was the story of rich British people and their servants from the years 1903 through 1930. The Emmys loved it, as it won three for Outstanding Drama Series. “Upstairs, Downstairs” was the kind of stuffy, hoity-toity period piece that award voters still seem to love to this day.

There are going to be a lot of cop shows on this list. “Police Story” was created by a former police officer, and it is credited for being quite realistic. You can see its influence on the Emmy-winning cop shows that came after it. However, it was also an anthology series that didn’t feature a cast of regular characters. That hinders the potential to get invested in the show, since you weren’t watching the same people week in and week out.

This is probably going to stir up some controversy, but we stand by it. Also, we aren’t merely overreacting to a final season that even die-hard fans seem to despise. In the end, “Game of Thrones” was a bunch of gratuitous sex and violence gussied up in fantasy lore and big budgets. Did a lot of the show look nice? Sure, but it was always style over substance.

“The Defenders” was the first juggernaut in this category, as it won three straight years from 1962 through 1964. It was a legal drama featuring father-and-son defense attorneys who took on all matter of cases. In classic old TV show fashion, 132 episodes were made in only four seasons. Also, the actor who played the son of the two? That would be Robert Reed, aka Mike Brady from “The Brady Bunch.”

The first season of “Homeland” was critically adored. However, then came the law of diminishing returns. People soured on “Homeland” awfully fast. It ended up airing eight seasons, but most people had stopped watching it after the first few. After all, Damian Lewis left the show after the fourth season, and he was only a guest on that one as well. In fact, did you know the show finally ended in 2020? No really. It's true.

Millennials, brace yourself for a second. This was a show about Baby Boomers in their 30s navigating life. Hey, you all seem to love watching the “thirtysomething” for Gen Xers, “Friends.” Maybe you’d like this show after all. Or maybe not. There’s a reason it ranks only 23rd.

The hook of “24” was pretty cool. It was a show telling a story in “real time.” Also, the stakes were often quite high. On the other hand, its depiction of various minorities, particularly Middle Eastern folks, was often icky, and it seems to validate, or at least accept, Jack Bauer’s interrogation tactics, which often veered into torture.

It’s kind of crazy to think that “L.A. Law” ran for eight seasons and 172 episodes and won a whopping four Outstanding Drama Series Emmys. Why is that crazy? Because when was the last time you heard anybody talk about “L.A. Law?” It’s a forgotten show despite being critically and commercially popular. The show ran until 1994! We aren’t saying it wasn’t solid, but the lack of long-term impact means something.

Funnily enough, “The Practice” was conceived as something of an answer to “L.A. Law.” Creator David E. Kelley felt like “L.A. Law” was too optimistic about the legal system. He wanted “The Practice” to be more realistic and to ask more questions about ethics. The show was also good about pulling out all the stops with guest stars. It holds the record for most wins in the Guest Actor and Guest Actress categories.

“The Handmaid’s Tale” winning was a major coup for Hulu, but the show is an acquired taste. Yes, it feels like it is fitting for these tumultuous times, but it’s also incredibly dark. If you can handle that, more power to you, but not everybody is up for a show this strikingly grim. Since we first made this list, "The Handmaid's Tale" has fallen out of the zeitgeist. It may end up further down the rankings at some point in the future.

“Lost” began life as a huge hit. It was extremely popular and had everybody buzzing. However, basically nobody thinks it stuck the landing. The final season was largely disliked, especially by die-hard fans. Had it finished stronger, it would have been higher up the rankings, but that last stretch of episodes, which got bogged down in mythology, knocked it down a few notches.

“The Bold Ones” was a series of drama shows that were unrelated but operated under the same banner. There was one season called “The Lawyers,” for example. This Emmy-winning series was focused on a senator, naturally, played by Hal Holbrook. Holbrook is a great actor, and fittingly enough he won Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series for this as well.

“Northern Exposure” was as much a comedy as it was a drama, but episodes were an hour long, which by Emmy standards deemed it a drama, an issue that still occurs in categorizing shows. It was a quirky and pretty fun show though. Rob Morrow starred as a doctor from New York who ends up in a small town in Alaska practicing medicine. Speaking of Morrow, he left during the middle of the last season due to a contract dispute, which hurt the ranking here a smidge.

“The Waltons” is one of the quintessential period pieces, and family dramas, in TV history. However, the ‘70s were certainly a different time for this category of shows. These days dramas are super serious and grim. “The Waltons” was a bit softer, and though serious things still happened, the show wasn’t action packed. The thing is that action and complicated characters tend to be good things.

It feels fitting that “Law & Order” has found itself right here in the middle of the rankings. The long (LONG) running procedural is perhaps the quintessential middle-of-the-road show. You knew the beats of every story. Every episode feels familiar. That was somewhat comforting, though, and it still managed to create some well-known characters. Jerry Orbach and Sam Waterston will forever be associated with “Law & Order” in the minds of many.

Even if you never watched the TV version of “The Fugitive,” as it aired from 1963 through 1967, you are likely familiar with the story. After all, it was the basis for the hit movie of the same name starring Harrison Ford and Tommy Lee Jones. You know how it goes. Dr. Richard Kimble was convicted for a murder he didn’t commit. He escapes and goes on a search for the one-armed man who is the real killer. It’s an intriguing tale of a man searching for another man, while a different man is searching for him.

“Cagney & Lacey” has lasted as a reference, but it’s worth so much more than that. It won Outstanding Drama Series twice, and it’s two lead actresses, Tyne Daly and Sharon Gless, were loved by the Emmys as well. In fact, either Daly or Gless won Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series for six straight years. There have been many cop procedurals, but “Cagney & Lacey” set itself apart by focusing on two women.

This was a weird show in a way that usually happens only with comedies, or perhaps a show like “The X-Files.” But “Picket Fences” wasn’t trying to be a supernatural show like the adventures of Mulder and Scully. It was about a small town in Wisconsin where crazy things happened. Cow udders exploded. A bank robber known as “The Dancing Bandit” becomes mayor. The quirk levels could get a little too high at times, but at least there was something inventive about it.

“Hill Street Blues” was a critical darling, winning four Outstanding Drama Series awards and receiving 98 total Emmy nominations. Beyond that, it’s maybe the most influential police drama ever. Some considered it too grim at the time, but the storytelling, and even the look of the show, proved successful. It also received credit for having a diverse ensemble at a time when that wasn’t necessarily commonplace just yet.

The character of Lou Grant, played by Ed Asner, began life on “The Mary Tyler Moore Show.” As you likely know, that was a sitcom. “It was funny, and Asner was really funny on the show. He even won an Emmy for Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series. Then, it was decided to spin off Lou with his own show, it was made into a drama…and it worked! People accepted Lou Grant as the editor of a newspaper taking on serious topics. In an unheard of turn of events, Asner would also win Outstanding Actor in a Drama Series for playing the same character.

Frankly, just for the theme song “Mission: Impossible” deserves a high spot on this list but also for giving us all those movies starring Tom Cruise as Ethan Hunt. The movies capture the spirit of the TV show, albeit with better special effects. For seven seasons, the spies of the Impossible Mission Force went on a series of crazy adventures where they had to pull out all the stops. Like all procedurals, the episodes could be hit or miss, but the good ones really killed.

Don’t just think of “NYPD Blue” as the show that brought swearing and nudity to network TV. Steven Bochco, who also created “Hill Street Blues” joined forces with legendary TV writer David Milch to create another gritty, realistic cop show that wasn't just concerned with the case of the week. It delved into the lives of the cops as well. If nothing else, you surely remember Dennis Franz’s turn as Detective Andy Sipowicz, an iconic TV character.

“ER” is the peak of the medical drama genre. So many other shows have thrown their hats in the ring, but “ER” won Outstanding Drama Series and also gave us so many future stars. That includes, of course, George Clooney. Quentin Tarantino agreed to direct an episode of “ER.” You don’t get that kind of cache if you don’t have a show that provides something to viewers. It was extremely intense at times, with enough interpersonal relationships to keep people invested in the characters.

“The West Wing” won Outstanding Drama Series for its first four seasons, and people still love Aaron Sorkin’s political drama. It’s the show that Sorkin will be forever remembered for. Unlike some of these dramas, which were good but didn’t really have staying power, people still talk about “The West Wing” and how good it was. The world of politics is quite messy these days, but that just makes some people want to jump back into “The West Wing” even more. Plus, few shows have put together better ensembles, especially since characters had to come and go as they do in politics.

“Mad Men” was one of the two shows that made AMC a network that people paid attention to. It was at the forefront of what many called “The Golden Age of Television,” and it made Jon Hamm a star. “Mad Men” began life as a show about ad executives in the 1950s. Does that sound like a riveting drama? Well, it turns out lots of people loved it, sticking with it as Don Draper and Co. aged through the years and watched the world change around them. Even when the story wasn’t maybe as gripping as you wanted, or that weird Glen kid was on screen, at least the show still looked beautiful almost all the time.

“The Rockford Files” is, in our humble opinion, the best procedural of all time. Of all the case-of-the week-shows, “The Rockford Files” is No. 1. James Garner, who was perfect for the role, stars as Jim Rockford, a private investigator from Los Angeles, who lives in a trailer and takes the occasional beating. He’s charismatic, smart and suave, but he’s no James Bond. Whatever case Jim was on in any given week, it was great to watch him figure it out.

“The Sopranos” changed TV drama. It wasn’t the first original program on HBO, but it turned the network into a juggernaut. Tony Soprano, as portrayed indelibly by James Gandolfini, helped turn the anti-hero into the primary protagonist in dramas, for better or worse. Unsparing in its violence, “The Sopranos” harkened in a new way of making television. We owe so much of what TV has become to “The Sopranos.” Also, basically everybody who watched it thinks it was a great show. The only quibble you ever hear about is that series finale, but even that has had people talking for literally years.

In the end, though, we had to go with “Breaking Bad” as the top drama to win this Emmy. In our minds that also makes it the best drama series ever. Bryan Cranston as Walter White gave the TV acting performance by which all future performances will be judged by. That being said, there were so many other great actors on this show. It was also beautifully shot and directed, making the most out of the Albuquerque setting. “Breaking Bad” could be hilarious, intense, horrifying and brutally emotional, all in one episode. Making crystal meth seems like a terrible idea. Watching “Breaking Bad,” though, is a great idea.