100 Best Sitcoms of All Time

[WhatTheBuck 28,788]

There was the episode of All in the Family where Sammy Davis Jr. kissed Archie. There was also the episode where Archie wanted to get Maude out of his chair and he said, “This country was ruined by Franklin Delano Roosevelt,” and Maude just looked at him and said, “You’re fat!”

Any episode of NewsRadio that involved Bill McNeal and smoking was gold. The episode where Dave made a deal that he’d give up coffee if Bill gave up cigarettes was hysterical. So much greatness in that show that it’s hard to pick a favorite.

The episode of Two and a Half Men where Chris O’Donnell appears as Charlie’s transsexual former girlfriend and starts dating his mom was hysterical.

The first time Bob Newhart appeared as “Professor Proton” on The Big Bang Theory was gold. He always killed on his guest appearances. 

[WhatTheBuck 28,788]

Phil Hartman ruled. RIP.

(In case you didn’t know, in the last clip Bill is reading text written for him by Catherine, played by the lovely Khandi Alexander, that he thinks is making him sound more authentically black.)

Edited May 9, 2021 by WhatTheBuck

[RPM 26,322]

1 minute ago, WhatTheBuck said:

Any episode of NewsRadio that involved Bill McNeal

You can stop right there.

[BrickHorn 18,237]

3 minutes ago, RPM said:

You can stop right there.

Adequatchelance.

Edited May 9, 2021 by BrickHorn

[WhatTheBuck 28,788]

Solid gold.

 

[Bender Bending Rodriguez 1,688]

Damn those first five seasons were greatness. The Dave/Bill dynamic was so great. 

[ztejas 43,467]

4 hours ago, Beantown Express 2.0 said:

Summer of 4ft 2”

This is a great one. Homer buying the fireworks then blowing up the dishwasher kills me.

[pied 252]

20 hours ago, Underdog said:

Depending on which episode, can barely watch Happy Days anymore.  It was a great show when it was about Ritchie and the Cunninghams sprinkled a bit with Ralph, Potsie and Fonzie.  Three's Company is still a good watch, Ritter was just a GD brilliant performer.  

Did you see the one where something happened and Janet or Chrissie thought Jack was involved with the other one and Mr. Roper almost found out he was straight? That one was good. 

[956 Worldwide 34,715]

From the cartoons, objectively The Simpsons belongs up top but KoTH should be knocking on the top ten together with South Park. I’ll sneak KoTH ahead because it will make me laugh out loud and I can have my six year old in the room.  Rick and Monty should be higher.  I am fine without family guy, it’s kind of one-note. Beavis and Butthead can’t really be a sitcom, it’s set piece gags and music video voiceovers— that are legitimately hilarious and evergreen. Friends, How I Met Your Mother, and Big Bang Theory are awful, just turrble. 
 

Glad to see News Radio getting love.

[BurntOrange&White 39,934]

Are cartoons actually sitcoms?

 

If you took out The Simpsons I wouldn’t disagree with the next 5 as a top 5 

[billfromlaketravis 11,511]

7 minutes ago, 956 Worldwide said:

From the cartoons, objectively The Simpsons belongs up top but KoTH should be knocking on the top ten together with South Park. I’ll sneak KoTH ahead because it will make me laugh out loud and I can have my six year old in the room.  Rick and Monty should be higher.  I am fine without family guy, it’s kind of one-note. Beavis and Butthead can’t really be a sitcom, it’s set piece gags and music video voiceovers— that are legitimately hilarious and evergreen. Friends, How I Met Your Mother, and Big Bang Theory are awful, just turrble. 
 

Glad to see News Radio getting love.

There are two season of NewsRadio on Crackle and something called Plex. 

[HornOnTheBayou 8,931]

6 hours ago, WhatTheBuck said:

Probably have to put Seinfeld “The Contest” at the top of the list. 

Greatest episode ever is a tough one, but you might be right. It at least has the funniest moment in sitcom history when Kramer walks out of the room then comes back in two minutes later:

That and:

"We have to do it. It's part of our lifestyle. It's like shaving."
"Oh, that is such bologna. I shave my legs."
"Not everyday."

[WhatTheBuck 28,788]

13 minutes ago, HornOnTheBayou said:

Greatest episode ever is a tough one, but you might be right. It at least has the funniest moment in sitcom history when Kramer walks out of the room then comes back in two minutes later:

That and:

"We have to do it. It's part of our lifestyle. It's like shaving."
"Oh, that is such bologna. I shave my legs."
"Not everyday."

That episode was a landmark moment. I watched Jerry’s development during his appearances on Carson. Before cable tv that’s the only place I got exposed to stand-up comedy. I watched Seinfeld from the first episode. I never knew if anyone else was watching. Maybe I talked about it with a friend or two. I can’t recall. But the day after The Contest was like water cooler talk had just been invented. EVERYBODY was talking about it. I don’t know how the ratings went but in my world that’s when Seinfeld exploded into the stratosphere.

Oh, and it was funny as hell and you couldn’t believe that they were doing an episode about masturbation, and the female lead was in on the bet. And Kramer instantly dropping out was hysterical but so was his line, “Not every day.”

Edited May 9, 2021 by WhatTheBuck

[Beantown Express 2.0 6,559]

1 hour ago, ztejas said:

This is a great one. Homer buying the fireworks then blowing up the dishwasher kills me.

Homer buying the fireworks and asking for other stuff so it doesn’t seem like he is just wanting illegal fireworks is genius.  “Let me have one of those porno magazines, large box of condoms, a bottle of Old Harper, a couple of those panty shields and some illegal fireworks AND one of those disposable enemas, no make it two.  Then Marge unloading the bag of stuff and saying to Homer, “ I don’t know what you have planned for tonight but count me out”.   Greatness.

[Deej 76,820]

Playing Mystery Date and someone gets The Dud.

Homer to Milhouse, "Hey! He looks just like you, poindexter!"

[Wulaw Horn 19,077]

10 hours ago, BrickHorn said:

#1 is “Advanced Dungeons & Dragons.”

Right show wrong episode. Remedial chaos theory. 

[Underdog 28,709]

8 hours ago, WhatTheBuck said:

The episode of the Mary Tyler Moore show where Chuckles the Clown dies. 

I was always partial to the Carson episode where he was to go to Mary's apartment but then they have a blackout and all you hear are voices for the majority of the show, Sue Anne killed in that one, on the floor with the bartender, licking Johnny's face:  Mary, do you own a dog? 

[BrickHorn 18,237]

7 minutes ago, Wulaw Horn said:

Right show wrong episode. Remedial chaos theory. 

Meh. That episode was clever, but not nearly as funny as AD&D.

[Wulaw Horn 19,077]

Just now, BrickHorn said:

Meh. That episode was clever, but not nearly as funny as AD&D.

Ad&d was great- but it also had a point and humanized pierce- which isn’t my favorite community.  My favorite community is pointless absurdity.  

[Beau Vine 54,247]

12 hours ago, WhatTheBuck said:

The episode of the Mary Tyler Moore show where Chuckles the Clown dies. 

Absolutely.  Also, the Bob Newhart Show episode where Emily goes to Seattle for Thanksgiving, leaving Bob at home by himself and Jerry, Carlin, Howard, and Peterson come over and get drunk and order Chinese food.  

[DalTxHornFan 3,106]

27 minutes ago, Beau Vine said:

Absolutely.  Also, the Bob Newhart Show episode where Emily goes to Seattle for Thanksgiving, leaving Bob at home by himself and Jerry, Carlin, Howard, and Peterson come over and get drunk and order Chinese food.  

More Moo Goo Gai Pan!

[Wade 464]

On 5/8/2021 at 2:27 PM, Onboard 2.0 said:

Sanford and Son is still got a good edge to it. 

I still remember an episode where Lamont wanted to invite a kid to stay for fried chicken dinner.  Fred wanted nothing to do with it because they only had "four necks and three backs" to split amongst them.

[Baboontyme 2,812]

Bart Carny might be tops for me. The Tooth Chipper gets me every time. 
 

 

[irishtexan 11,521]

A few random observations:

Very surprised that Freaks & Geeks didn't make the list, especially with the list being curated by Sepinwal and other pop culture critics. I suppose it could be argued that they didn't have a long enough run with only one season and 18 episodes (a few of which never even aired on network TV, and were only accessible via the DVDs or through streaming services a little later on), but it had six more episodes than Fleabag. 

I love Fleabag. Thought it was incredible. But at 12 total half-hour episodes, there's not enough meat on that bone to justify coming in at 21. 

I loved Arrested Development, but 15 feels too high.

Bojack Horseman cracking the top 20 is also surprising and hard to justify, imo. 

I've literally never heard of "Review" until now. I guess I have to check it out. 

[ztejas 43,467]

Watched it last night- Selma's Choice" is another all time contender from the Simpsons. Featuring Homer eating the expired party sub and the kids going to Duff Gardens.

[ztejas 43,467]

13 minutes ago, irishtexan said:

I loved Arrested Development, but 15 feels too high.

Eh. Not sure what exactly the criteria was (as AD only has 3 great original seasons) but to me it's one of the funniest shows ever made. And was hugely influential.

[WhatTheBuck 28,788]

Another all time great.

[Cheeseweasel 26,438]

How I Met Your Mother is better than Soap?

Get the fuck outta here.

 

And Barney Miller is tragically underrated. 

[WhatTheBuck 28,788]

On 5/6/2021 at 8:44 PM, Post Oak said:

Some of the best 90 seconds in sitcom history

 

Damnit. Not sure how I missed this when it first got posted. I probably looked kind of foolish when I referenced it later on. Oh well. 

[Apep 645]

26 minutes ago, irishtexan said:

A few random observations:

Very surprised that Freaks & Geeks didn't make the list, especially with the list being curated by Sepinwal and other pop culture critics. I suppose it could be argued that they didn't have a long enough run with only one season and 18 episodes (a few of which never even aired on network TV, and were only accessible via the DVDs or through streaming services a little later on), but it had six more episodes than Fleabag. 

I love Fleabag. Thought it was incredible. But at 12 total half-hour episodes, there's not enough meat on that bone to justify coming in at 21. 

I loved Arrested Development, but 15 feels too high.

Bojack Horseman cracking the top 20 is also surprising and hard to justify, imo. 

I've literally never heard of "Review" until now. I guess I have to check it out. 

Fleabag actually did what Seinfeld purported to do: Go out on top. Seinfeld had been coasting for a year or two before the end, maybe not for ratings, but definitely in terms of content. It wasn't as egregious as some sitcoms, (Modern Family or even Parks & Rec), but there was a downward trend.

[Michael Knight 12,988]

43 minutes ago, irishtexan said:

A few random observations:

Very surprised that Freaks & Geeks didn't make the list, especially with the list being curated by Sepinwal and other pop culture critics. I suppose it could be argued that they didn't have a long enough run with only one season and 18 episodes (a few of which never even aired on network TV, and were only accessible via the DVDs or through streaming services a little later on), but it had six more episodes than Fleabag. 

I love Fleabag. Thought it was incredible. But at 12 total half-hour episodes, there's not enough meat on that bone to justify coming in at 21. 

I loved Arrested Development, but 15 feels too high.

Bojack Horseman cracking the top 20 is also surprising and hard to justify, imo. 

I've literally never heard of "Review" until now. I guess I have to check it out. 

explains it at the beginning

 

To choose the 100 greatest sitcoms ever, we first had to decide how to define the term. Sketch comedies were out, from the explicit, like Saturday Night Live and The Muppet Show, to the more ambiguous, such as The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show. Ditto comedy-drama hybrids that ran around an hour — Freaks and Geeks, say, or Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. 

[irishtexan 11,521]

1 minute ago, Michael Knight said:

explains it at the beginning

 

To choose the 100 greatest sitcoms ever, we first had to decide how to define the term. Sketch comedies were out, from the explicit, like Saturday Night Live and The Muppet Show, to the more ambiguous, such as The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show. Ditto comedy-drama hybrids that ran around an hour — Freaks and Geeks, say, or Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. 

Well there ya go. Guess I should have, you know, read the damn intro. Thanks.

[WhatTheBuck 28,788]

15 minutes ago, Cheeseweasel said:

How I Met Your Mother is better than Soap?

I remember a thread on shaggy where people said they were surprised by the ending of How I Met Your Mother. The way that was going to end was obvious after the first episode.

Also, that show sucked. 

[Onboard 2.0 9,083]

20 minutes ago, Cheeseweasel said:

How I Met Your Mother is better than Soap?

Get the fuck outta here.

 

And Barney Miller is tragically underrated. 

Soap, gott damn genius, and BB was one of my favorites as a kid in jr high.

[Underdog 28,709]

2 hours ago, Cheeseweasel said:

How I Met Your Mother is better than Soap?

Get the fuck outta here.

 

And Barney Miller is tragically underrated. 

you'regoddamnright.gif

[Knoxtnhorn 6,054]

I didn't watch a single Seinfeld episode until about 1996.  The only reason I even gave it a shot is because I was stuck @ my grandmother's house for several months while trying to get myself settled in TN.  (Basic cable.)

One thing that applies to me re: my ranking of Seinfeld as 1 is that it's the only sitcom I know that I can turn on any episode at any point and be content.  I can say that about very few shows, comedy or not.

If Arrested Development had stopped after season 3, I might add that to the list.  As it is, my wife and I can't even make it through the last two seasons on Netflix.  It would have been unfathomable to think this would be the case during its initial run.

Edited May 11, 2021 by Knoxtnhorn

[ztejas 43,467]

2 hours ago, Apep said:

Fleabag actually did what Seinfeld purported to do: Go out on top.

Shame then that it doesn't lick Seinfeld's jockstrap in overall quality. 

[Deej 76,820]

Seinfeld is even better after 10 seasons of Curb. It's impossible to not hear Larry David's voice driving that show.

[Bender Bending Rodriguez 1,688]

On 5/9/2021 at 5:16 PM, HornOnTheBayou said:

Greatest episode ever is a tough one, but you might be right. It at least has the funniest moment in sitcom history when Kramer walks out of the room then comes back in two minutes later:

I just counted on the YouTube clip.. it’s just under a minute!

[Deej 76,820]

2 minutes ago, Bender Bending Rodriguez said:

I just counted on the YouTube clip.. it’s just under a minute!

You set him straight. 

[WhatTheBuck 28,788]

1 hour ago, longhornmatt said:

HIMYM’s ending was pretty damn surprising.

No it wasn’t. It was obvious after episode one. Maybe you were surprised when Ross and Rachel wound up together, or Leonard and Penny, but you shouldn’t have been. The whole “Will they or won’t they?” plot line was pioneered with Sam and Diane on Cheers. Seinfeld specifically avoided it because it was so obvious but they still toyed with the idea of Jerry and Elaine winding up together. I couldn’t even tell you the characters names but if you didn’t know who the mother was going to be in HIMYM after the first episode then you sort of suck at sitcoms.

[billfromlaketravis 11,511]

People were pissed about the HIMYM ending for two reasons : 1) Immediately killing off a likable character we waited 9 season to meet. 2) The predictability of Ted getting with Robin. 
 

It was a fun show and something to do on Monday night. It wasn’t in the same galaxy as Seinfeld or Curb or Cheers.

[WhatTheBuck 28,788]

Oh my God! Niles wound up marrying Daphne? You’ve got to be kidding me!

[WhatTheBuck 28,788]

18 minutes ago, longhornmatt said:

Did you read my post?   Yes, the part about Ted and Robin winding up together was obvious.  I even mentioned that in the rest of my post which you edited out of the quote. The avenue they chose to get there was the bizarre part.  

Wait a second, do YOU know who the mother was?  You knew after the first episode the mother was some dead chick we wouldn't meet for 9 or 10 years?  Really?

I thought the show sucked but I watched the first episode and I was amazed that anyone acted as though the outcome wasn’t set in stone from day one. Did you or did you not say the outcome was pretty damn surprising? I didn’t put those words in your mouth. You said them. I quoted you fairly and accurately. There wasn’t one thing that was surprising about that ending. I could’ve told you how the show was going to end the day after the first episode aired. 

[henrygandorf 29,192]

i loved how i met your mother as much as anyone for the first 3-4 seasons.  i think i made it 6 seasons before i bounced.  it was a show explaining one thing and i still have no interest in how it ended.  "worlds greatest couple" is probably my favorite.

parks and rec was bad for one season at the end (and the beginning), but could've been absolutely brilliant if it ended at the unity concert.  "the fight" is close to perfect.

larry sanders is in the top 10 where it belongs.  too many good episodes to call out one, but i'm doing a rewatch now.  hard to beat "hank's sex tape".

the best seinfeld episode is "the switch".  too many classic lines and all the plots are great.

"rosebud" is my favorite simpsons episode, but i recognize that it's not "the best".

"christmas present" is the best episode of everybody loves raymond, a surprisingly underrated show i never watched until reruns.

[shadow_operative 15,932]

On 5/9/2021 at 6:20 AM, ztejas said:

Another fun topic would be what are the top 100 sit-com episodes ever?

Marge vs. The Monorail is the funniest 23 mins of TV ever made - but what next? 

Some nominees off the top of my head:

Parks: Ron and Tammy, The Fight, Andy and April's Fancy Party, Unity Concert

Community: A Fistful of Paintballs/For A Few Paintballs More, Remedial Chaos Theory, Basic Lupine Urology, Paradigms of the Human Memory, Advanced Dungeons & Dragons

Always Sunny: The DENNIS System, Mac Day,  Who Got Dee Pregnant?, Charlie Work

Edited May 11, 2021 by shadow_operative

[BurntOrangeCrush 1,011]

1 hour ago, henrygandorf said:

i loved how i met your mother as much as anyone for the first 3-4 seasons.  i think i made it 6 seasons before i bounced.  it was a show explaining one thing and i still have no interest in how it ended.  "worlds greatest couple" is probably my favorite.

parks and rec was bad for one season at the end (and the beginning), but could've been absolutely brilliant if it ended at the unity concert.  "the fight" is close to perfect.

larry sanders is in the top 10 where it belongs.  too many good episodes to call out one, but i'm doing a rewatch now.  hard to beat "hank's sex tape".

the best seinfeld episode is "the switch".  too many classic lines and all the plots are great.

"rosebud" is my favorite simpsons episode, but i recognize that it's not "the best".

"christmas present" is the best episode of everybody loves raymond, a surprisingly underrated show i never watched until reruns.

The Switch...good call

 

[shadow_operative 15,932]

i'll give you an episode that i named earlier that, for whatever reason, never seems to get mentioned in these discussions (even in PnR threads), despite it being quite possibly the perfect sitcom episode, and that's "Andy and April's Fancy Party". that episode had everything. from a beautiful wedding ceremony that will make you tear up, to some of the biggest laughs ever offered by the show, including one of the best cold openings in sitcom history. some highlights:

•Andy and April Roberta Ludgate throwing a secret wedding

•Tom's up-and-down stint as Best Man ("You're not still married are you? And you're straight, right? That Jean Ralphio guy's just a friend?")

•the Animal Control guys, including the late, brilliant Harris Wittels ("What's the deal with that hot girl, April?" "What's the deal with her?" "Yeah. Like, is she good to go? Like, is she down to clown?" "She's married. She got married, like, 20 minutes ago." "Oh, my God. That's the same girl from the thing.")

•Chris Traeger's dancing/him freaking out Oren

•a suddenly super fit Andy dropping a hint that he is the Starlord 

and oh yeah, the aforementioned cold opening to the episode:

 

 

 

[RPM 26,322]

Everything Ron Swanson

[BrickHorn 18,237]

8 hours ago, shadow_operative said:

Always Sunny: The DENNIS System, Mac Day,  Who Got Dee Pregnant?, Charlie Work

The Gang Solves the Gas Crisis.