The 2000s were a great time forTV shows, but some excellent series have since been lost to time, so here are the series worth going back to. Some ofthe best TV shows of all timearrived in the 2000s, when the term “prestige TV” really started getting some usage, and for good reasons too.
The Wire,Breaking Bad,Band of Brothers,Avatar: The Last Airbender, the list goes on and on. It’s a time when “TV actor” stopped being a negative descriptor and started to mean something impressive. With so manygreat shows coming out in the 2000s, it stands that some may be forgotten about over the years.
10The O.C. (2003-2007)
Teenage Drama In A Wealthy California Town
The O.C.came in a slew of teen dramas alongside the likes ofOne Tree HillandGossip Girl, butThe O.C.was responsible for the highest highs of the genre. Yet, people tend to forget about it. The series is set in Orange County in Southern California, portrayed as wealthy and insular in the series.
The show primarily focuses on the Cohen family, particularly their two children, Ryan Atwood (Ben McKenzie) and Seth Cohen (Adam Brody), as they navigate their hometown, love lives, and friendships. There’s melodrama, comedy, and lots of romance in a series that has aged far better than people give it credit for.
9My Name Is Earl (2005-2009)
A Sitcom Dope Comes To Terms With His Problematic Behavior
When the commercial forMy Name Is Earlfirst aired, the NBC sitcom seemed like it was poised to be the next hit comedy. Its conceit is original and exciting. Earl (Jason Lee) is a crook who decides that only by righting every wrong of his life will he be happy, leading to a new adventure every episode.
It’s a charming and sweet series that is filled with plenty of laughs but also a surprising amount of tension, almost like it’s a police procedural with Earl trying to figure out how to make someone’s life better. Earl feels like a deeper character than we get on most sitcoms, willing to come to terms with his duncery.
8Desperate Housewives (2004-2012)
Mysteries And Secrets Abound In This Unusual Comedy Drama
Desperate Housewivesis a bit more of a complicated story than you may remember. The series begins with the suicide of Mary Alice Young (Brenda Strong), who then serves as the omnipresent narrator of the show as her ghost watches over her old friends and home, wondering about their lives.
The series stars Teri Hatcher, Felicity Huffman, Marcia Cross, and Eva Longoriaas the titular housewives who go through family and relationship struggles over 15 years, experiencing the pain and happiness of life. There’s a significant amount of mystery and thrills that help makeDesperate Housewivesan effective black comedy as well.
7Flight Of The Conchords (2007-2009)
Music And Comedy Combine For A Charming Series
Jemaine Clement and Bret McKenzie star as themselves in the American sitcom,Flight of the Conchords, named for Clement and McKenzie’s real-life band. Jermaine and Bret are New Zealand shepherds turned musicians who move to New York City to find fame and fortune. Instead, they find the often frustrating aspects of city life.
Flight of the Conchords formed in 1998 and have always considered themselves a comedy-musical duo.
Each episode features at least one song, and as Flight of the Conchords is a real band, there are often the best parts of the episode. Sometimes the songs are used to express an internal monologue, and sometimes they help move the action forward.It’s a captivating and fun seriesthat’s easy to digest.
6In Treatment (2008-2021)
What Happens When A Therapist Needs A Therapist
In Treatmentfollows psychotherapist Paul Weston (Gabriel Byrne), a doctor in Baltimore who, despite being 50 years old, grows concerned he’s not cut out for the business and begins seeing a therapist of his own, Gina Toll (Dianne Wiest). Gina was his mentor, but also previously had reservations about Paul in the role.
It’s a very clever story with plenty of intriguing storylines that offer many profound insights into human nature.There’s a theatricality to the show that takes some getting used to, but will eventually draw you in. The show aired for three seasons, anda fourth season unexpectedly debuted in 2021with Uzo Aduba as a new therapist, Brooke Taylor.
5Extras (2005-2007)
Desperate Actors Take What They Can Get
Ricky Gervais stars as Andy Millman inExtras, a British series co-produced by HBO and BBC andGervais' second TV showafterThe Office. The series follows the day-to-day life of Andy, a film extra, meaning someone who appears in the background of films and movies, usually in the hopes of getting a speaking role.
The series also stars Ashley Jensen and series co-creator, Stephen Merchant, as Andy’s unmotivated friends.It has just as sharp a wit as any Gervais productionand also offers a look into a part of Hollywood that we almost never get to explore. This is also the start of Gervais’s learning how to utilize celebrity cameos.
4Friday Night Lights (2006-2011)
Texas Football Is All That Matters
Based on the 1990 sports novel by H. G. Bissinger,Friday Night Lights, which was also adapted into a movie in 2004,Friday Night Lightsis set in Dillon, Texas, a small town wherehigh school football is king and for those who don’t have anything, it’s everything. Dillon lives and dies on the team’s success.
Kyle Chandler and Connie Britton star as married couple Eric Taylor and Tami Taylor. Eric is the new coach of the Dillon Panthers, and the weight of the town’s hopes and dreams drops painfully on his shoulders. The series features a talented ensemble cast and some of the best onscreen football you’re going to find.
3Better Off Ted (2009-2010)
A Truly Unique Sitcom That’s Heavy On The Laughs
Better Off Tedis a satirical sitcom filled with meta references to TV shows, including a fourth-wall-breaking performance from series lead Jay Harrington as Ted Crisp. In the show, Ted is a single father and the head of development at Veridian Dynamics, a stereotypical evil megacorporation that is happy to be known as such.
It’s an incredibly funny and extremely unique sitcom.
It’s an incredibly funny and extremely unique sitcom. The employees of Veridian do their best to mitigate the harmful effects of what the company does, but are not always successful.Better Off Tedis also a brilliant critique of capitalism and corporate structure, all done with Harrington’s perfect delivery.
2Ugly Betty (2006-2010)
Don’t worry,the title forUgly Bettyhas aged worse than anythingelse in the series, with the admittedly denigrating name of the series being more tongue-in-cheek than anything else. The show stars America Ferrera in her breakout role as the titular Betty, a Mexican-American woman from Queens.
The very unfashionable Betty manages to land a writing job at the hyper-trendy fashion magazineMode, where her enthusiasm, writing skills, and unflappable cheeriness endear her to whoever she meets. It’s an extremely funny and quick-witted series with a starmaking performance from Ferrera, who holds everything up.
1Rome (2005-2007)
The Perfect Historical Drama That Ended Too Soon
The historical dramaRomewas canceled far too soon, a result of the massive production costs, which can be seen in incredible sets and costumes thatbrought the ancient city to life like nothing that had come before it. The story follows Lucius Vorenus (Kevin McKidd) and Titus Pullo (Ray Stevenson), two fated Roman soldiers.
These soldiers are so fated because they happen to get in the good graces of Julius Caesar (Ciarán Hinds) just as he begins his plot to take control of the Roman Empire. It’s a thrillingTV showfrom the 2000s that brings together history and fiction in a fascinating, and often moving, manner that only leaves you wanting more.
