Top Ten TV Shows of 2010

As the year draws to a close, its time for everybody’s favorite past time, making lists! Throughout the next couple weeks ill be posting various lists for 2010. We start off with my top 10 TV shows of 2010. As always this is just my opinion and because it is just my opinion its based on shows which I have seen the majority of the episodes for the year.

HONORABLE MENTIONS

Always Sunny In Philadelphia- Not the strongest season of the show but still funny enough to earn a spot here

Party Down- One of the many sad victims of cancellation this year. Its available on Netflix so make sure you check it out for comedy gold.

Greek- Guilty pleasure all the way. Love the characters and the way they develop

Parks and Recreation- By far the toughest omission of my top 10. Just couldn’t find room for it. I am really hyped up for season 3

AND NOW ON TO THE LIST

10. Louie-FX- It’s a well known fact that Louis CK is a comedic genius. His stand ups are some of my favorite things to watch when I need a laugh. That’s why I was very disappointed by his previous attempt at a sitcom on HBO, Lucky Louie/ That was a traditional sitcom with a laugh track and while it had its moments, it really did not work. Because of this I was a little worried about this show but I was very pleasantly surprised. His comedic timing works much better in a non traditional sitcom and FX really let him make the show his own. The episode “Bully” was one of the funniest half hours of TV all year

9. The League-FX- The list starts of with 2 FX comedies and for good reason. Look no further then the talent assembled in this show to know why it warrants a spot on this list. Yes, a lot of the story lines are crazy and out of left field but that can be forgiven because the laughs are so frequent. Most of the show is improvised by the actors and that makes the conversations seem like a bunch of guys just shooting the shit.

8. Entourage-HBO- The last 2 or 3 years, this show would not have even made honorable mentions. I’ve always loved the show and have stuck with it but even die hard fans had to admit that the last couple seasons had definitely lost their way. This season was a rebirth. They took a dramatic storyline like Vince spiraling out of control and actually ran with it instead of shying away from the drama and ending everything all happy. If next season truly is the last, I am definitely looking forward to seeing how things wrap up for the Vinny Chase crew

7. Mad Men-AMC- Mad Men made what some considered to be a desperate move for a TV Show. They completely restructured the dynamics of the show by having our crew set up show in the new office. And the new business — snazzy on the outside, but financially struggling — served as an analogy for the show's recurring theme: the disconnect between surface appearances and inner reality. It made for the most entertaining season of the show since the original season and gives us hope that this fantastic show will continue to thrive in the future

6. Modern Family-ABC- The show that arguably revitalized the TV sitcom as we know it. This show cleaned up at the Emmys and rightfully so. It truly is an ensemble comedy because every person on the show really adds to the humor. Sure not every episode is a home run but unlike some other comedies ( I’m looking at you The Office) even when this show had an off episode it was still good for some laughs.

5. Terriers-FX- Good year for FX huh? By now I’ve really said

everything I can about this show. It is sad that this show joins the ranks of Freaks and Geeks of shows that were so brilliant but were still one and done. A great mix of comedy, drama and relationships helped make this show great, but by far the thing it did the best was establish its characters as real people. Rarely can a show make every person on it seem so genuine and real but Terriers was able to accomplish it. It is sad that it is gone but I’m honored to have been able to watch a great season of television.

4. Community-NBC- Modern Warfare (the paintball episode) would have been enough to put this show in my top ten by itself. The show can find a way to reinvent itself every week and that is where the greatness in it lies. Danny Pudi may very well be the funniest supporting actor and TV and the cast as a whole just works so well with each other. A third season of this show seems like a long shot at this point but I really hope we do get to see it because I would love to see everything the writers have in store for our favorite study group.

3. Chuck-NBC- The show that never gets any love. Chuck is by far the best balance of comedy, action and drama that is on TV. When is someone going to recognize Zachary Levi for the fantastic leading man that he is? To go along with great stories and even greater performances by the cast, Chuck also gets a lot of credit for using their guest stars so much better then any other show. I mean Dolph Lundgren as an assassin telling Casey “I must break you”? Yes please!

2. Friday Night Lights-NBC/DirectTV- The little show that could continues to roll to the finish line with as much momentum as it had in season 1. Like Mad Men the show entered a new structure this year with Coach Taylor leading a rag tag group against the privileged team he once coached. The show has been hitting on all levels and the episode “The Son” was the single best episode of any show this year. You would think the show would suffer as they lose cast members to “graduation” but the show is as strong now as its ever been (and remember, season 2 never happened)

1. LOST-ABC- The final season of perhaps the greatest show of all time was an easy choice for number 1. For me the finale was pitch perfect and I did not have any issues with the lack of sci fi explanations for some of the shows more out there stories. At its core LOST was about the people on that island and how they all needed one another in the point of their life they were at. That was made clear by the introduction of the “Flash Sideways” Even with 6 months to reflect on the final season I still view it as a fantastic bit of storytelling that may never be topped.