TV (the book) : two experts pick the greatest American shows of all time /

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

Is The Wire better than Breaking Bad ? Is Cheers better than Seinfeld ? What's the best high school show ever made? Why did Moonlighting really fall apart? Was the Arrested Development Netflix season brilliant or terrible?

For twenty years-since they shared a TV column at Tony Soprano's hometown newspaper-critics Alan Sepinwall and Matt Zoller Seitz have been debating these questions and many more, but it all ultimately boils down to this:

What's the greatest TV show ever?

That debate reaches an epic conclusion in TV (THE BOOK). Sepinwall and Seitz have identified and ranked the 100 greatest scripted shows in American TV history. Using a complex, obsessively all-encompassing scoring system, they've created a Pantheon of top TV shows, each accompanied by essays delving into what made these shows great. From vintage classics like The Twilight Zone and I Love Lucy to modern masterpieces like Mad Men and Friday Night Lights , from huge hits like All in the Family and ER to short-lived favorites like Firefly and Freaks and Geeks , TV (THE BOOK) will bring the triumphs of the small screen together in one amazing compendium.

Sepinwall and Seitz's argument has ended. Now it's time for yours to begin!

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

• TV (THE BOOK): The Introduction (p. ix)
• TV (THE BOOK): The Explanation (p. xiii)
• The Pantheon: The 100 Greatest Shows Ever
• The Great Debate: How Do You Pick the Best Show of All Time? (p. 3)
• 1-10: The Inner Circle
• The Simpsons (p. 21)
• The Sopranos (p. 31)
• The Wire (p. 37)
• Cheers (p. 42)
• Breaking Bad (p. 47)
• Mad Men (p. 52)
• Seinfeld (p. 59)
• I Love Lucy (p. 63)
• Deadwood (p. 69)
• All in the Family (p. 75)
• 11-50: No-Doubt-About-It Classics
• M*A*S*H (p. 79)
• Hill Street Blues (p. 85)
• The Shield (p. 87)
• The Twilight Zone (p. 90)
• Arrested Development (p. 96)
• The Larry Sanders Show (p. 99)
• The Honeymooners (p. 102)
• Louie (p. 105)
• The Mary Tyler Moore Show (p. 108)
• The X-Files (p. 110)
• Curb Your Enthusiasm (p. 116)
• SpongeBob SquarePants (p. 120)
• The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show (p. 120)
• Twin Peaks (p. 126)
• Lost (p. 129)
• Buffy the Vampire Slayer (p. 131)
• Freaks and Geeks (p. 134)
• My So-Called Life (p. 137)
• Oz (p. 140)
• The Dick Van Dyke Show (p. 142)
• Friday Nights Lights (p. 145)
• NYPD Blue (p. 148)
• Frasier (p. 151)
• Homicide: Life on the Street (p. 153)
• Battlestar Galactica (p. 155)
• In Treatment (p. 158)
• South Park (p. 160)
• The West Wing (p. 163)
• Mary Hartman, Mary Hart man (p. 167)
• It's Garry Shandling's Show (p. 167)
• The Jack Benny Program (p. 167)
• Soap (p. 167)
• The Andy Griffith Show (p. 172)
• The Cosby Show (p. 175)
• Moonlighting (p. 180)
• Taxi (p. 182)
• East Side/West Side (p. 184)
• Hannibal (p. 186)
• ER (p. 190)
• Parks and Recreation (p. 191)
• Roseanne (p. 194)
• 30 Rock (p. 196)
• The Bob Newhart Show (p. 198)
• Malcolm in the Middle (p. 199)
• 51-75: Groundbreakers and Workhorses
• Miami Vice (p. 205)
• The Office (p. 208)
• St. Elsewhere (p. 210)
• Community (p. 213)
• The Golden Girls (p. 215)
• Friends (p. 215)
• Police Squad! (p. 218)
• 24 (p. 219)
• The Defenders (p. 221)
• Gunsmoke (p. 222)
• Sex and the City (p. 224)
• Star Trek (p. 227)
• Firefly (p. 230)
• Law & Order (p. 231)
• Maude (p. 236)
• The Rockford Files (p. 237)
• China Beach (p. 238)
• Enlightened (p. 239)
• Everybody Loves Raymond (p. 241)
• The Wonder Years (p. 242)
• Barney Miller (p. 244)
• Frank's Place (p. 245)
• Justified (p. 246)
• 76-100: Outlier Classics
• Thirtysomething (p. 251)
• Columbo (p. 252)
• Futurama (p. 254)
• The Outer Limits (p. 256)
• Northern Exposure (p. 257)
• Batman (p. 259)
• King of the Hill (p. 261)
• Veronica Mars (p. 262)
• Cagney & Lacey (p. 263)
• EZ Streets (p. 264)
• Wiseguy (p. 264)
• Gilmore Girls (p. 266)
• Six Feet Under (p. 267)
• Sports Night (p. 270)
• Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (p. 271)
• Batman: The Animated Series (p. 271)
• Boardwalk Empire (p. 272)
• NewsRadio (p. 273)
• Picket Fences (p. 274)
• Scrubs (p. 275)
• WKRP in Cincinnati (p. 275)
• How I Met Your Mother (p. 277)
• Terriers (p. 278)
• Works in Progress (p. 280)
• A Certain Regard (p. 306)
• Miniseries (p. 351)
• TV-Movies (p. 372)
• Live Plays Made for Television (p. 380)
• Appendix (p. 385)
• Acknowledgments (p. 391)
• Index (p. 395)

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Library Journal Review

How does one choose the greatest American TV dramas and comedies of all time? Critics and authors Sepinwall (HitFix.com; The Revolution Was Televised) and Seitz (-RogerEbert.com; Mad Men -Carousel) attempt to do so in this compendium of their top 100 shows in history. They base their selection on a program's innovation, influence, consistency, acting, and storytelling, as well as the peak period of its run. Drawing from 60 years of programming, the authors conclude that The Simpsons, The Sopranos, The Wire, Cheers, and Breaking Bad are the best five shows. The subsequent list reflects their longtime knowledge of the TV industry and draws on the work they did together covering television for the Newark, NJ-based newspaper The Star-Ledger. They explain why each of the choices deserves to be included in this list, which they call "the Pantheon." All genres of dramas are considered, from police procedurals to sf to family-centered shows. Likewise, different types of comedies ranging from live-action sitcoms to sketch comedies to animated series are taken into account. Interspersed throughout the book are quirky "best of" lists, such as TV's greatest hairstyles, cars, spies, character names, teachers, and mustaches. VERDICT A fun read for TV fans and aspiring media critics alike.-Donna Marie Smith, Palm Beach Cty. Lib. Syst., FL © Copyright 2016. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Publishers Weekly Review

Two of today's best writers on television, Sepinwall (The Revolution Was Televised) and Seitz (Mad Men Carousel), join forces to rank the 100 greatest series in TV history. Within defined parameters (American shows, narrative fiction, complete runs-with minimal exceptions), both authors use a 10-point scale to score across six criteria (innovation, influence, consistency, performance, storytelling, peak) in order to determine ranking. They also include essays for each selected show (some essays cover multiple shows) and synopses highlighting themes, strengths, and weaknesses instead of linear plot points (though plot spoilers are sometimes included). The authors write as both incisive cultural critics and enthusiastic fans. Their essays will no doubt inspire debate and the reading equivalent of binge watching, with readers promising themselves to put the book down after just one more essay, but finding the lure of the next too attractive. Sepinwall and Seitz also include lists of great shows still running (therefore ineligible); of random TV bests (theme songs, cliffhangers, mustaches, etc.); of shows that they esteem, but that didn't make the cut; and of miniseries, made-for-TV movies, and filmed plays from TV's early days. The result is a treasure trove for TV fans. Agent: Amy Williams, the Williams Company. (Sept.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Booklist Review

Television critics Sepinwall (The Revolution Was Televised, 2013) and Seitz, who met in the 1990s while working for New Jersey's Star-Ledger, decided to produce a book on TV akin to the tomes about movies created by great film critics. The result is a lineup of the 100 shows Sepinwall and Seitz have deemed the greatest in the history of the medium. They grade the shows in six categories: innovation, influence, consistency, performance, storytelling, and how the show compared to other greats in its peak season. Score-wise, the authors end up with a five-way tie for first place: The Sopranos, Breaking Bad, Cheers, The Simpsons, and The Wire. This leads to a lengthy discussion about the challenges involved in ranking them. In addition to the top 100, the critics also devote a section to high-quality shows that are still airing new episodes, as well as sentimental favorites. TV lovers both serious and casual will have a blast agreeing with or debating the critics' choices, and these thoughtful assessments will inspire readers to revisit old favorites or find a new show to binge on.--Huntley, Kristine Copyright 2016 Booklist

Author notes provided by Syndetics

Alan Sepinwall is an American television reviewer and writer. He gre up in Pine Brook, N.J. He studied at the University of Pennsylvania, where he began writing television reviews during his sophomore year in 1993. Sepinwall began working as The Star-Ledger's television columnist in 1996. He spent 14 years there until leaving the newspaper in 2010 to work for the entertainment news website HitFix. He reviews as many as 15 television shows each week.

(Bowker Author Biography)