Top 50 Must Watch TV Shows
by Taz_Tyler | created - 07 Jun 2019 | updated - 24 Jun 2019 | PublicSort of a mixed bag here - contains mostly shows that are no longer on the air, but TOTALLY worth your time.
- Instant Watch Options
- Genres
- Movies or TV
- IMDb Rating
- In Theaters
- Release Year
- Keywords
1. Lost (2004–2010)
TV-14 | 5,445 min | Adventure, Drama, Fantasy
The survivors of a plane crash are forced to work together in order to survive on a seemingly deserted tropical island.
Stars: Jorge Garcia, Josh Holloway, Yunjin Kim, Evangeline Lilly
Votes: 595,372
2. Battlestar Galactica (2004–2009)
TV-14 | 45 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
When an old enemy, the Cylons, resurface and obliterate the 12 colonies, the crew of the aged Galactica protect a small civilian fleet - the last of humanity - as they journey toward the fabled 13th colony, Earth.
Stars: Edward James Olmos, Mary McDonnell, Jamie Bamber, James Callis
Votes: 175,616
3. Breaking Bad (2008–2013)
TV-MA | 45 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
A chemistry teacher diagnosed with inoperable lung cancer turns to manufacturing and selling methamphetamine with a former student in order to secure his family's future.
Stars: Bryan Cranston, Aaron Paul, Anna Gunn, Betsy Brandt
Votes: 2,137,328
4. Twin Peaks (1990–1991)
TV-MA | 50 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
An idiosyncratic FBI agent investigates the murder of a young woman in the even more idiosyncratic town of Twin Peaks.
Stars: Kyle MacLachlan, Michael Ontkean, Mädchen Amick, Dana Ashbrook
Votes: 215,477
5. Banshee (2013–2016)
TV-MA | 60 min | Action, Crime, Drama
An ex-con assumes the identity of a murdered sheriff in the small town of Banshee, Pennsylvania, where he has some unfinished business.
Stars: Antony Starr, Ivana Milicevic, Ulrich Thomsen, Frankie Faison
Votes: 123,606
6. The Killing (2011–2014)
TV-14 | 45 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
A police investigation, the saga of a grieving family, and a Seattle mayoral campaign all interlock after the body of 17-year-old Rosie Larsen is found in the trunk of a submerged car.
Stars: Mireille Enos, Joel Kinnaman, Billy Campbell, Liam James
Votes: 123,419
7. The Leftovers (2014–2017)
TV-MA | 60 min | Drama, Fantasy, Mystery
Three years after the disappearance of 2% of the global human population, a group of people in a small New York community try to continue their lives while coping with the tragedy of the unexplained nature of the event.
Stars: Justin Theroux, Amy Brenneman, Christopher Eccleston, Liv Tyler
Votes: 112,370
8. Game of Thrones (2011–2019)
TV-MA | 60 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
Nine noble families fight for control over the lands of Westeros, while an ancient enemy returns after being dormant for millennia.
Stars: Emilia Clarke, Peter Dinklage, Kit Harington, Lena Headey
Votes: 2,285,225
9. Fringe (2008–2013)
TV-14 | 46 min | Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi
An F.B.I. agent is forced to work with an institutionalized scientist and his son in order to rationalize a brewing storm of unexplained phenomena.
Stars: Anna Torv, Joshua Jackson, John Noble, Jasika Nicole
Votes: 257,539
10. Twin Peaks (2017)
TV-MA | 60 min | Crime, Drama, Horror
Picks up 25 years after the inhabitants of a quaint northwestern town are stunned when their homecoming queen is murdered.
Stars: Kyle MacLachlan, Sheryl Lee, Michael Horse, Chrysta Bell
Votes: 75,922
11. The Persuaders! (1971–1972)
60 min | Action, Adventure, Comedy
Two worlds collide when Lord Brett Sinclair, a titled British man, and Danny Wilde, a Bronx-raised, self-made American, reluctantly join forces to right wrongs and protect the innocent.
Stars: Tony Curtis, Roger Moore, Laurence Naismith, Juliet Harmer
Votes: 5,901
12. Prison Break (2005–2017)
TV-14 | 44 min | Action, Crime, Drama
A structural engineer installs himself in a prison he helped design, in order to save his falsely accused brother from a death sentence by breaking themselves out from the inside.
Stars: Dominic Purcell, Wentworth Miller, Amaury Nolasco, Robert Knepper
Votes: 579,537
13. Firefly (2002–2003)
TV-14 | 45 min | Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi
Five hundred years in the future, a renegade crew aboard a small spacecraft tries to survive as they travel the unknown parts of the galaxy and evade warring factions as well as authority agents out to get them.
Stars: Nathan Fillion, Gina Torres, Alan Tudyk, Morena Baccarin
Votes: 281,750
14. One Tree Hill (2003–2012)
TV-14 | 60 min | Drama, Romance, Sport
Half-brothers Lucas and Nathan Scott trade between kinship and rivalry both on the basketball court and in the hearts of their friends in the small, but not so quiet town of Tree Hill, North Carolina.
Stars: Chad Michael Murray, James Lafferty, Hilarie Burton Morgan, Bethany Joy Lenz
Votes: 87,199
15. The Vampire Diaries (2009–2017)
TV-14 | 43 min | Drama, Fantasy, Horror
The lives, loves, dangers and disasters in the town, Mystic Falls, Virginia. Creatures of unspeakable horror lurk beneath this town as a teenage girl is suddenly torn between two vampire brothers.
Stars: Nina Dobrev, Paul Wesley, Ian Somerhalder, Kat Graham
Votes: 349,881
16. Autumn in My Heart (2000)
53 min | Drama, Romance
The story is about two childhood friends, Joon-suh and Eun-suh, who grew up together but were forced to part ways when Eun-suh's family moved away. Many years later, they meet again by chance and rekindle their friendship.
Stars: Kim Hae-sook, Song Seung-heon, Song Hye-kyo, Won Bin
Votes: 1,427
17. Masters of Sex (2013–2016)
TV-MA | 60 min | Drama, Romance
Drama about the pioneers of the science of human sexuality whose research touched off the sexual revolution.
Stars: Michael Sheen, Lizzy Caplan, Caitlin FitzGerald, Teddy Sears
Votes: 38,525
18. Chuck (2007–2012)
TV-14 | 43 min | Action, Comedy, Drama
When a computer geek inadvertently downloads critical government secrets into his brain, both the CIA and the NSA assign an agent to protect him and exploit his newfound skills.
Stars: Zachary Levi, Yvonne Strahovski, Joshua Gomez, Vik Sahay
Votes: 146,871
19. Pretty Little Liars (2010–2017)
TV-14 | 44 min | Drama, Mystery, Romance
Four friends band together against an anonymous foe who threatens to reveal their darkest secrets, while also investigating the disappearance of their best friend.
Stars: Troian Bellisario, Ashley Benson, Lucy Hale, Shay Mitchell
Votes: 178,390
20. Harper's Island (2009)
TV-14 | 40 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery
Harper's Island was once the scene of a gruesome series of murders. Seven years later, family and friends gather on the island for a wedding, but one by one they begin to die.
Stars: Elaine Cassidy, Christopher Gorham, Matt Barr, Gina Holden
Votes: 27,462
21. True Blood (2008–2014)
TV-MA | 55 min | Drama, Fantasy, Mystery
Telepathic waitress Sookie Stackhouse encounters a strange new supernatural world when she meets the mysterious Bill Compton, a southern Louisiana gentleman and vampire.
Stars: Anna Paquin, Stephen Moyer, Sam Trammell, Ryan Kwanten
Votes: 260,137
22. Broadchurch (2013–2017)
TV-MA | 1,143 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
The murder of a young boy in a small coastal town brings a media frenzy, which threatens to tear the community apart.
Stars: David Tennant, Olivia Colman, Jodie Whittaker, Andrew Buchan
Votes: 127,325
23. The Returned (2012–2015)
TV-MA | 418 min | Drama, Fantasy, Horror
In a small French mountain town where everyone knows each other, the dead begin to inexplicably return as if their death never happened. Forcing the townsfolk to confront their difficult past as they seek to understand this phenomenon.
Stars: Anne Consigny, Clotilde Hesme, Frédéric Pierrot, Céline Sallette
Votes: 21,322
24. Scrubs (2001–2010)
TV-14 | 22 min | Comedy, Drama
In the unreal world of Sacred Heart Hospital, intern John "J.D." Dorian learns the ways of medicine, friendship and life.
Stars: Zach Braff, Donald Faison, Sarah Chalke, John C. McGinley
Votes: 270,685
25. Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles (2008–2009)
TV-PG | 60 min | Action, Drama, Fantasy
Set after the events in Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), Sarah Connor and her son, John, try to stay under-the-radar from the government, as they plot to destroy the computer network, Skynet, in hopes of preventing Armageddon.
Stars: Lena Headey, Thomas Dekker, Summer Glau, Richard T. Jones
Votes: 62,835
26. Revenge (2011–2015)
TV-14 | 44 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
An emotionally troubled young woman sets out to exact revenge against the people who wronged her father.
Stars: Madeleine Stowe, Emily VanCamp, Gabriel Mann, Nick Wechsler
Votes: 125,100
27. October Road (2007–2008)
TV-PG | 43 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
Best-selling author Nick Garrett hopes to get over his writer's block by going back to his hometown of Knights Ridge, Mass. There, he realizes he's got to finally face the people he wrote about unfavorably in his novel.
Stars: Bryan Greenberg, Laura Prepon, Warren Christie, Brad William Henke
Votes: 4,924
28. Melrose Place (2009–2010)
TV-14 | 60 min | Drama, Romance
A new generation of young professionals living at the infamous Melrose complex deal with obtaining their own personal goals, drives, and desires, both amongst themselves and others.
Stars: Katie Cassidy, Stephany Jacobsen, Jessica Lucas, Michael Rady
Votes: 4,374
29. Nikita (2010–2013)
TV-14 | 60 min | Action, Crime, Drama
A rogue assassin returns to take down the secret organization that trained her.
Stars: Maggie Q, Shane West, Lyndsy Fonseca, Aaron Stanford
Votes: 53,907
30. Dollhouse (2009–2010)
TV-14 | 44 min | Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi
A top secret organization erases the identities of attractive young people, turning them into blank "dolls" ready for imprints of temporary identities they need to fulfill assignments for clients.
Stars: Eliza Dushku, Harry Lennix, Fran Kranz, Tahmoh Penikett
Votes: 51,808
31. Happy Endings (2011–2020)
TV-14 | 22 min | Comedy, Romance
This Chicago-set sitcom follows the intertwined lives of six young urbanites trying to learn the ropes of adulthood. Through breakups and whatever other curve-balls life throws them, the pals stick together.
Stars: Eliza Coupe, Elisha Cuthbert, Zachary Knighton, Adam Pally
Votes: 40,119
32. Flashforward (2009–2010)
TV-14 | 42 min | Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi
A special task force in the FBI investigates after every person on Earth simultaneously blacks out and awakens with a short vision of their future.
Stars: Courtney B. Vance, Joseph Fiennes, Jack Davenport, Zachary Knighton
Votes: 62,104
33. Last Resort (I) (2012–2013)
TV-14 | 60 min | Action, Drama, Mystery
A U.S. sub picks up Navy SEALs and receives an order for a nuke launch. Due to the circumstances of the order, the Captain refuses to fire. After escaping an attack from another U.S. sub, the crew and SEALs take refuge on a small island.
Stars: Andre Braugher, Scott Speedman, Daisy Betts, Camille De Pazzis
Votes: 22,179
34. The 4400 (2004–2007)
TV-14 | 43 min | Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi
As the reappearance of 4,400 missing persons on a single day confounds the global community, federal agents on the case slowly discover the ways in which the victims have been changed.
Stars: Jacqueline McKenzie, Joel Gretsch, Patrick John Flueger, Conchita Campbell
Votes: 46,886
35. Ringer (2011–2012)
TV-14 | 44 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
Six-months-sober Bridget is key witness to a murder but flees, visiting her identical twin, who "suicides". Bridget takes over her rich, glamorous, married life in New York City. Out of the ashes and into the fire?
Stars: Sarah Michelle Gellar, Kristoffer Polaha, Ioan Gruffudd, Nestor Carbonell
Votes: 21,159
36. Dark Angel (2000–2002)
TV-14 | 60 min | Action, Drama, Mystery
A group of genetically-enhanced children escape from a lab project. Years later we meet Max, one of the escapees who now works for a messenger service in the post-apocalyptic Pacific Northwest.
Stars: Jessica Alba, Michael Weatherly, Richard Gunn, J.C. MacKenzie
Votes: 34,599
37. Tell Me You Love Me (2007)
TV-MA | 60 min | Drama, Romance
A drama about three couples and the therapist they share.
Stars: Michelle Borth, Tim DeKay, Aislinn Paul, Adam Scott
Votes: 4,297
38. Busujima Yuriko no Sekirara Nikki (2016)
TV-14 | 30 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
"Busujima Yuriko no Sekirara Nikki" is a late-night drama, starring Atsuko Maeda (former member from AKB48), which is one of the most provocative roles of her career by interpreting Yuriko ... See full summary »
Stars: Atsuko Maeda, Hirofumi Arai, Daichi Watanabe, Shizuka Nakamura
Votes: 22
39. Hidden Palms (2007)
TV-14 | 335 min | Drama, Mystery, Romance
A rebellious teenager moves with his family to Palm Springs.
Stars: Michael Cassidy, Taylor Handley, Amber Heard, Sharon Lawrence
Votes: 3,537
40. Ravenswood (2013–2014)
TV-14 | 43 min | Drama, Fantasy, Horror
Five strangers are connected by the curse that has plagued Ravenswood for generations.
Stars: Nicole Gale Anderson, Tyler Blackburn, Steven Cabral, Brett Dier
Votes: 9,295
41. Stacked (2005–2006)
TV-PG | 30 min | Comedy
A party girl starts a new life as an employee at a family-run bookstore.
Stars: Pamela Anderson, Brian Scolaro, Christopher Lloyd, Elon Gold
Votes: 1,975
42. Alcatraz (2012)
TV-14 | 60 min | Action, Crime, Drama
In 1963, all the prisoners and guards mysteriously disappear from Alcatraz. In the present day, they resurface and a secret agency are tasked with re-capturing them.
Stars: Sarah Jones, Jorge Garcia, Jonny Coyne, Parminder Nagra
Votes: 40,284
43. Undercovers (2010)
TV-14 | 60 min | Action, Thriller
Several years into their retirement, a husband and wife team are re-activated as C.I.A. Agents.
Stars: Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Boris Kodjoe, Ben Schwartz, Gerald McRaney
Votes: 2,276
44. The River (2012)
TV-14 | 44 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
The crew of a research vessel are on a quest to find a missing TV explorer in the Amazon.
Stars: Bruce Greenwood, Joe Anderson, Leslie Hope, Eloise Mumford
Votes: 17,061
45. Colony (2016–2018)
TV-14 | 42 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
In the wake of a mysterious alien invasion, a family fights to stay together in a new world order.
Stars: Josh Holloway, Sarah Wayne Callies, Peter Jacobson, Tory Kittles
Votes: 39,377
46. Night Stalker (2005–2006)
TV-PG | 60 min | Crime, Drama, Fantasy
Investigative reporter Carl Kolchak, who's after his wife's killer, teams up with Perri Reed, Jain McManus, and their boss Tony Vincenzo to investigate strange crimes in Los Angeles that may contain dark supernatural elements.
Stars: Stuart Townsend, Gabrielle Union, Eric Jungmann, Cotter Smith
Votes: 1,607
47. Hemlock Grove (2013–2015)
TV-MA | 46 min | Drama, Fantasy, Horror
Secrets are just part of daily life in the small Pennsylvania town of Hemlock Grove, where the darkest evils hide in plain sight.
Stars: Famke Janssen, Bill Skarsgård, Landon Liboiron, Joel de la Fuente
Votes: 42,622
48. Terra Nova (2011)
TV-14 | 46 min | Adventure, Drama, Mystery
Centers on the Shannons, an ordinary family from 2149 when the planet is dying, who are transported back 85 million years to prehistoric Earth where they join Terra Nova, a colony of humans with a second chance to build a civilization.
Stars: Jason O'Mara, Shelley Conn, Christine Adams, Allison Miller
Votes: 86,079
Tell Your Friends