Hitting 100 episodes of tv looks like crossing the end line solely to right away begin working one other marathon. It is uncommon for even the best shows of all time to even attain that milestone, and it is even rarer for the longest-running shows to take care of high quality once they do. Most sequence are inclined to burn vivid after which simply fade away, or typically they drag on lengthy after the unique artistic spark has disappeared.
However the ones that stick round, maintaining their integrity, humor, and coronary heart intact, actually earn a form of respect that manages to transcend easy cultural tendencies. These 20 sequence, spanning completely different genres, networks, and even many years, confirmed everybody that artistic longevity requires critical craft.
Arrow (2012–2020)
8 Seasons. 170 Episodes
Arrow started with a grounded ambition that basically drew individuals in. Its first two seasons had been gritty, emotional, and extremely well-writte, It felt like DC’s critical, street-level response to what Christopher Nolan completed with The Darkish Knight trilogy, and Stephen Amell introduced an surprising quantity of emotional depth to the character of Oliver Queen.
Nevertheless, as extra Arrowverse shows expanded, Arrow sadly turned a sufferer of its personal main success. The heavy reliance on crossovers typically bloated the primary storylines, and admittedly, the later seasons had a troublesome time discovering compelling methods to justify their longer narrative arcs.
No matter these pacing points, the cultural influence of the present is completely plain. With out Arrow, we would not have The Flash, Legends of Tomorrow, or Superman & Lois. Regardless that the general high quality noticed a noticeable dip in these center seasons, the legacy it created stays extremely essential.
The Strolling Useless (2010–2022)
11 Seasons, 177 Episodes
When The Strolling Useless was hitting its stride, it actually felt like a cultural phenomenon. These early seasons gave us gut-wrenching rigidity, advanced character arcs, and a form of bleak magnificence that managed to raise customary zombie horror proper into the territory of status drama.
Sadly, by the later seasons, ignoring the Walking Dead spinoff shows, the standard began to drop off noticeably. Countless bottle episodes, conflicts that felt utterly recycled, and a few critically uneven pacing started to put on down even probably the most loyal viewers.
Whereas the present spinoffs are carrying the torch and persevering with the story, the primary TWD sequence simply couldn’t keep that early brilliance. Nonetheless, for a big stretch of time, no different present made the apocalypse really feel fairly so intense and alive.
Pals (1994–2004)
10 Seasons, 236 Episodes (+1 Particular)
Pals was the defining present of the ‘90s as a result of it by no means tried to be something greater than what it was: six adults, who had been fairly messy, stumbling via life. For many of its run, the humor stayed persistently robust, the forged chemistry by no means cracked, and actually, even the worst Friends episodes had been by no means really terrible.
Nonetheless, by season 9, you possibly can inform the vitality had shifted. The storytelling felt broader and the particular character quirks began getting exaggerated. Regardless of that, Pals by no means utterly fell aside the best way long-running sitcoms normally do once they attain their last years. It managed to finish on a excessive notice, which was extra comforting than groundbreaking, however was impressively intact.
Scrubs (2001–2010)
9 Seasons, 182 Episodes
When Scrubs hit screens in 2001, it utterly redefined what a medical comedy may seem like by mixing surreal humor with genuinely sharp modifying, and that uncooked emotional deaths in Scrubs broke our heart, making it really feel alive in a means you not often see in a sitcom. For eight strong seasons, it managed to ship heartfelt storytelling via each laughter and loss, and it by no means as soon as sacrificed its sincerity.
Most followers agree that the season eight finale, “My Finale,” serves because the present’s true ending. It was an ideal emotional curtain name for JD and Sacred Coronary heart Hospital. The transient Scrubs: Med Faculty reboot that adopted in 2010 is admittedly only a curious footnote, and lots of—myself included—do not contemplate it canon in any respect.
ER (1994–2009)
15 Seasons, 331 Episodes
ER utterly modified what was anticipated from a community drama within the ’90s. Michael Crichton (Jurassic Park) made one thing quick, intense, and genuinely cinematic, and it felt such as you had been truly in that emergency room. It felt actual, chaotic, and deeply human abruptly.
After some huge names left (George Clooney, Julianna Margulies, and Anthony Edwards) there are some harsh realities to accept while rewatching ER, however the total high quality undoubtedly wavered, however what’s outstanding is that the present by no means utterly collapsed.
Even throughout these later years, ER nonetheless managed to ship some standout arcs and intense, high-stakes emotional moments. The finale in 2009 actually felt earned, bringing a near what was considered one of tv’s most constant and positively most influential runs.
30 Rock (2006–2013)
7 Seasons, 138 Episodes
After Tina Fey exited SNL, 30 Rock felt like a present that had been beamed in from a a lot sharper dimension. Fey’s meta-sitcom, which was concerning the chaos of constructing dwell sketch comedy tv, achieved absurdist perfection because of its razor-sharp writing and unrelenting tempo, and 30 Rock saved up an virtually unimaginable stage of wit inside its personal slice of New York Metropolis.
Though some 30 Rock jokes aged poorly, the sequence by no means really misplaced its spark, and its experimental moments like the 2 dwell episodes stay memorable. The chaotic chemistry between Fey and Alec Baldwin was all the time the anchor, holding collectively even the present’s strangest narrative arcs. It’s loopy to assume that what began as a unusual behind the scenes have a look at SNL turned its personal unusual mythology.
The Simpsons (1989–Current)
37 Seasons, 794+ Episodes
For its first decade, The Simpsons wasn’t simply nice tv—it felt like the usual for tv. The best seasons of The Simpsons exist from seasons 3 via 8 stay one of the crucial constant comedic runs in historical past, and it is easy to see why. They had been socially sharp, emotionally grounded, and endlessly quotable, defining satire for a complete era whereas nonetheless feeling extremely heat and human.
As soon as the millennium hit, you possibly can really feel that a few of the present’s magic dimmed a bit. The sequence began leaning closely on movie star cameos and far broader humor, dropping the subtlety that made its early years really feel so revolutionary.
Even previous its prime, The Simpsons endures as this large pop-culture establishment. It really is a residing document of American life and a type of uncommon exhibits that has genuinely earned the appropriate to maintain going.
Legislation & Order: SVU (1999–Current)
27 Seasons, 578+ Episodes
Debuting again in 1999, Legislation & Order: SVU took the unique franchise’s acquainted procedural engine and actually cranked up the emotional depth. Mariska Hargitay’s Olivia Benson shortly turned the plain coronary heart of the sequence—she’s steadfast, deeply empathetic, and simply endlessly resilient. For its first decade, SVU delivered persistently gripping, character-driven storytelling, managing to completely stability sensitivity with real shock worth.
Later years undoubtedly began leaning heavier on the melodrama and people intense ripped-from-the-headlines instances, however even at its most formulaic, Law & Order: SVU‘s lowest-ranked episodes someway by no means collapsed underneath its large longevity. Benson’s personal evolution, shifting from detective all the best way as much as captain, completely mirrored the present’s journey: it’s harder, wiser, and nonetheless preventing for victims even when different tales have lengthy since moved on.
Misplaced (2004–2010)
6 Seasons, 121 Episodes
Misplaced, above most any drama, did not simply change tv, it redefined what serialized storytelling was able to. From that unimaginable, jaw-dropping pilot episode onward, the present mixed thriller, delusion, and uncooked emotion in a means community TV had genuinely by no means tried earlier than. The best Lost seasons early on had been a masterclass in world-building and character exploration, balancing the speedy survival drama with a a lot bigger philosophical scope.
It is true that the mythology typically sprawled past the writers’ attain, however I all the time felt that wasn’t actually the central level. The later seasons consciously selected coronary heart and emotion over strict logic, and that call grounded all of the chaos in highly effective themes of religion, forgiveness, and human connection.
I am going to all the time facet with the characters of Misplaced over making an attempt to resolve all of the island’s mysteries, and although the finale was polarizing for lots of people, it stays considered one of tv’s most soulful goodbyes.
The Workplace (U.S.) (2005–2013)
9 Seasons, 201 Episodes
Few individuals anticipated a remake of the British cult comedy to truly succeed. However by season 2, the present had completely discovered its rhythm, managing to rework office monotony into one thing genuinely hilarious and, oddly sufficient, profound.
Steve Carell’s Michael Scott advanced completely from being utterly cringeworthy to surprisingly compassionate, and the stellar supporting forged delivered hilarious scenes in The Office that never get old, whereas giving the complete sequence an emotional depth that the majority sitcoms simply by no means get near reaching.
After Carell left in season 7, the sequence undoubtedly wobbled, which is comprehensible, however it by no means utterly fell aside. The ultimate season introduced the complete journey full circle, feeling heartfelt, humorous, and unexpectedly shifting abruptly. Even twenty years later, The Workplace nonetheless feels extremely present and alive.
