The Matz Brothers Present: The 10 Best Network Shows of the 2010s

It's been a little over a month since the 2010's ended which has given myself and my brother, Sam, time to catch up on a few things & organize our thoughts on the best TV & film of the last decade. 

To fully explore the breadth of what the decade had to offer though we didn't merely want to throw together one long list of things we liked (Though there will be two long lists!) because our tastes might sway the whole thing too far in one direction or another. For example we might end up with a list of movies filled with dramedies & only a few action or horror films, which would be a shame because there were some amazing genre films last decade. So we've decided to break down television & film into distinct categories to create a list of top 10s before combining those into our definitive top 50 (And yes, we counted shows that started before 2010 -- though only their seasons that aired in the decade -- because, with all due respect to Sam Esmail, it's fucking dumb not to. The alternative is Breaking Bad & Parks & Rec never making/being near the top of a decade list & that's just dumb). First up we've got the best of network television, if you want to know more about our process -- like why that's a category -- read the next two paragraphs, if not you can skip down to the list. 

With film we divided primarily along genre lines: action, comedy, drama, etc., but we decided to try something different with TV. Rather than do the simple drama/comedy divide that most awards bodies do we opted to break them down by where the shows aired, in that way recognizing the different restrictions they work under & the different ways we consume them. So our four categories are Network (ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC, & the CW) which all deal with commercials & content restrictions, Basic Cable (AMC, FX, etc.) which has commercials but fewer restrictions, Premium Cable, (HBO, Showtime, etc.) which has neither commercials or content restrictions, & Streaming (Amazon, Netflix, Hulu) which takes lack of restrictions even further with varying run times & the ability to immediately binge all the episodes (save Hulu, which stuck to the weekly model). We think this makes sense because while Parks and Recreation and VEEP are both hilarious comedies half of the dialogue of the latter would be bleeped out if it aired on NBC, which is why we want to initially judge programs against those playing by the same rules before throwing them all into one top-50 batch.

Now that top-50 will include all forty shows that make up the various top 10 lists, plus 10 that narrowly missed out. And we came to our top 10 lists by individually compiling a top 20 for each category & then combining them with a first place worth 20 points, second worth 19, & so forth. I'll be posting those scores to give you an idea of which shows elevated themselves above the pack & which ones we might order differently on any given day. In addition we'll also be giving you each show's best character, season, & episode, because we're thorough like that. Alright, let's get to it.

Oh, & don't worry, we avoided any major spoilers because if you haven't seen any of these shows we'd love for you to watch them. To quote a tiger I know, they're great!

10. Superstore (NBC) -- 22 points
      Streaming on: Hulu  

Amy & Jonah aren't sure what to make of being on our top 10 list. Trae Patton/NBC

Superstore narrowly edged out another workplace comedy, Brooklyn Nine-Nine for our final slot. Anyone who's watched either show would not be surprised to learn the latter, with its dedicated coworkers as family ethos, was created by two guys who worked on/created Parks and Recreation, while Superstore, with characters working a mind numbing job with plenty of people they'd otherwise avoid, was created by a guy who worked on The Office for seven seasons. It's somewhat ironic then that the main reason Superstore overcame the greatness of Captain Holt is what it has in common with Parks, an avid interest in real world issues. It's not that B99 never does this, especially with the aforementioned Holt, but Superstore's dedication to consistently exploring the issues facing retail workers & this country -- lack of maternity leave, poor healthcare, ICE raids, the need to unionize -- have given it a vitality rarely seen in a sitcom. Of course none of that would matter if it didn't have sharp  writing & as deep a bench of hilarious actors as any on TV, but it does, plus the rare will-they/won't-they that gets better when they do get together, which is why it's a consistent can't miss show. -- J

Best Character: Jonah, because he'll help you if you get too high at your quinceañera.
Best Episode: "Tornado" (Season 2, episode 22)
Best Season: Four

9. Chuck (NBC) -- 23 points
Streaming on: Amazon Prime

Was this the most epic TV romance of the decade? Warner Bros. Television

I realize how absurd as this may sound, but no show’s end hit me with such emotional force as Chuck’s (Ok yes, I was also graduating high school and going through the teenage crisis that things would never be the same, but still!). Chuck was never the best in any specific category, but there was something wonderful about watching a show about an underachiever overachieve. Chuck never pretended to be anything it wasn’t, it was just good old plain fun for 42 minutes every week. At the heart of the show though was the central relationship between our two leads, Chuck and Sarah. The chemistry they had was undeniable and the relationship they built surprisingly thoughtful. I’m about to anger a lot of Office fans but Chuck&Sarah > Jim&Pam.* -- S

Best Character: Sarah Walker

Best Episode: "Chuck vs. the Goodbye" (Season 5,
Episode 13) Best Season: Season 3 (2 is actually the best, but it was in the 2000s) *Joe's Note: Sam's couples take is correct, also
"Chuck" had one of the best soundtrack's of the
decade.

8. Bob's Burgers (FOX) -- 24 points
    Streaming on: Hulu

The Belchers, the 2010's First Family of comedy. Fox/Getty

No show had a greater divide on our ballots, with one us putting it third & the other fifteenth,  & I think that makes sense. One of the strengths of animated sitcoms is their malleability in regards to time, characters never have to age or change in any way unless the creators what them too which allows for a great deal of comedic freedom. Tina, Gene, & Louise's schtick will never become outdated & tiresome (Hey Modern Family kids!) so long as the writers are creative in how they deploy it, but this lack of change, or growth, makes it harder to connect to the characters emotionally. So it's easy to see why something more involving like New Girl, or the pure emotion all the time of This Is Us, might stick with you in the way a great burger pun doesn't. Let's not be silly though, no show on TV has been as consistently funny & weird, though not necessarily in that order, as the one chronicling the misadventures of the Belcher clan -- TV's best family. May it run for another ten seasons! -- J

Best Character: Bob Belcher
Best Episode: "O.T.: The Outside Toilet" (Season 3, Episode 15)
Best Season: I honestly don't have a clue, but they're all good.

7. The Good Place (NBC)-- 29 points
    Streaming on: Netflix (first 3 seasons) & Hulu (final 5 episodes)

Oh God, or Judge... I'm really gonna miss these guys. NBC

When it was announced Mike Schur, creator of Parks & Recreation, was making a comedy about the afterlife starring Kristen Bell & Ted Danson, I was immediately all in. Then the first season came out & I was mildly disappointed. I liked it, but I didn't love it, until something happened in the finale that changed everything. Suddenly I was all in again & the series sprinted toward classic status. This was, quite literally, one of the smartest shows on TV for four fantastic seasons as an "Arizona dirtbag," fire squid, celebrity name dropper, & Blake Bortles fanatic, learned about ethics from secret beefcake Chidi Anagonye, with help from an omniscient (not a) robot (not a) girl, while still leaving time for some chili on the side. For good measure it was also the only live-action show to give Bob's & BoJack a run for their money on puns. Having aired this January, its final run of episodes don't technically count for this exercise, but just know that if you haven't finished, or started, the show they stuck the landing. Take it sleazy. -- J

Best Character: Janet
Best Episode: "Rhonda, Diana, Jake, and Trent" (Season 2, Episode 10)
Best Season: Two

6. Friday Night Lights (NBC) -- 29 points
Streaming on: Hulu

You can't beat Kyle Chandler & Michael B. Jordan, except for a lot of games in season 4. Bill Records/NBC

There has been no better television couple than the Taylors. Their relationship gave us a look into what a healthy marriage should be; one filled with unconditional love and humor, but without ignoring the daily struggles that come with being two talented and ambitious people/parents. Seasons 4 essentially rebooted the show, giving us a new team, and mostly new characters to root for, one of those being superstar talent in Michael B. Jordan. It became a different show, addressing race, privilege, faith, and abortion like it was not as fully able to before. Oh, and Tim Riggins still showed up to rock our world every time we needed that pick-me-up. -- S

Best Character: Tami & Eric Taylor
Best Episode: East Dillon (Season 4, Episode 1)
Best Season: Season 4 (1 is the actual best, but it was in the 2000s)

5. Hannibal (NBC) -- 30 points
Streaming on: Amazon Prime

Relationships can be complicated. NBC

When I first heard that a TV show about Hannibal Lector was being made I had very low expectations, the character seemed tired and not worth exploring more. What we ended up getting was the most visually stunning show on network television, with a new take on the character that made you believe that you could watch him for 10 seasons if Bryan Fuller (& FOX) were willing. This was unlike the Hannibal we were used to, Mads Mikellsen choosing to play him as a charismatic man of impeccable tastes. Waiting to see the gruesomely beautiful ways we would see the bodies of those murdered presented was enough on its own, though nothing compared to the constant chess match between Lector and Hugh Dancy’s Will Graham. -- S

Best Character: Hannibal Lector

Best Episode: "Mizumono" (Season 2, Episode 13)
Best Season: Season 2

4. Jane the Virgin (CW) -- 31 points
Streaming on: Netflix

For all the romance the Villanueva women were always the heart of Jane the Virgin. CW

I knew I loved this show from the pilot, and if you watch enough TV you realize how impressive of a feat that is. It gave you everything; laughs, love, and tears, but more than anything it gave you heart, so so so much heart. Its ability to remain grounded and balanced, despite its roots in the absurdly wonderful world of telenovelas was a testament to all involved, though none more than Gina Rodriguez. This was the only show that was able to take the overused love triangle and make me change my mind about which couple I was shipping (Initially #TeamRafael, later #TeamMichael). We were even given a brief visit from the Teen Wolf himself (though I’m realizing anyone who hasn't watched the show may be thinking of the great Michael J. Fox, when in fact I’m talking about loveable Tyler Posey)!* -- S

Best Character: Jane Villanueva

Best Episode: "Chapter 1" (Season 1, Episode 1)

Best Season: Season 1

*Note from Joe: Michael J. Fox guest starred in our next show, so "Teen Wolf" all around!

3. The Good Wife (CBS) -- 35 points
Streaming on: Amazon Prime, CBS All Access, & Hulu

Don't f@#$ with the women of The Good Wife. CBS

I know what you’re thinking, “A show about lawyers on CBS? That couldn’t have been good.” Well it was! One of the few shows that I have gotten so lost in that I briefly wondered “Is this the best thing on television?” We came late to it, but thanks to Joe we spent a whole summer bingeing until we were all caught up. The show builds and builds until a nearly perfect season 5 that contains one of the most tension filled scenes you will ever see on network TV. Julianna Margulies is the steady presence throughout, though Josh Charles and Christine Baranski provide the show with two equally fantastic secondary performances (Baranski being so good that she was given her own spinoff The Good Fight on CBS All Access). -- S

Best Character: Diane Lockhardt

Best Episode: "Hitting the Fan" (Season 5,
Episode 5)

Best Season: Season 5

2. Community (NBC) -- 38 points
    Streaming on: Hulu & Netflix 

E Pluribus Anus. Lewis Jacobs - © NBC Universal, Inc.

No show had a stranger journey over the course of its run than Community, escaping cancellation three times only to lose its creator/showrunner for its fourth season, then have him return in the fifth then get cancelled, then get picked up by Yahoo of all places before finally being put to rest after the prophesied sixth season (Still waiting on the movie though). It was fitting for a show that seemingly started out as a, much more diverse, take on The Breakfast Club at community college before evolving into paintball wars, dreamatoriums, & multiple timelines. It truly is a miracle it aired 110 episodes, but miracles are possible when you have a cast & crew that would go on to create Rick & Morty (Dan Harmon), write the Tom Holland Spider-Man films (Chris McKenna), direct the highest grossing movie of all-time (Russo brothers), win an Oscar (Jim Rash), win Emmys (Donald Glover & Jon Oliver), & Grammys (Glover again), be a literal doctor judging a masked singing competition (Ken Jeong), & *spoiler alter* be in three of the ten best shows of the decade (Alison Brie). And that's without mentioning Joel McHale, Yvette Nicole Brown, Gillian Jacobs, Danny Pudi, & Chevy Chase, among others. It was a special group of people who made a special show that had a ton of heart &, at its best, was funnier, & more adventurous, than any show I've had the pleasure to see. -- JM

Best Character: Abed Nadir
Best Episode: "Remedial Chaos Theory" (Season 3, Episode 4)
Best Season: Two

1. Parks and Recreation (NBC) -- 40 points
    Streaming on: Amazon Prime, Hulu, & Netflix

The Parks and Rec gang are thrilled to be our #1 Network show. 

So much of comedy is built on conflict, insults, and bad behavior, which is why its all the more impressive that Mike Schur & his phenomenal cast could craft a show whose foundation is the love the characters would learn to have for each other & an optimism that, no matter how crazy it gets, the world can become a better place (Go to 8:10). Their Pawnee, Indiana was a place where someone who struggled to find a problem she, & thus the government she worked for, couldn't solve could have a loving & respectful relationship with a government abhorring libertarian. That may seem like a bygone era now, but that makes it all the more important to hang onto that hopefulness. Of course, it was also really fucking funny, & consistently so, without the characters mistreating each other (save Jerry/Garry/Larry/Terry). While other shows stumbled in middle-age, Parks just kept chugging along, buoyant as ever, taking its cues from its energizer bunny of a protagonist, the irrepressible Leslie Knope (Or, alternatively, the never discouraged Jean-Ralphio). And my God... that cast. I won't bore you with a long list the way I did with Community, but Amy Poehler's work was as good as anyone's from the last decade & thank God it brought Nick Offerman & Aubrey Plaza into our lives. It was brilliant from beginning (of the second season) to the end, & much like Lil'Sebastian it will forever live in our hearts. -- J

Best Character: To quote an episode from the last season, Leslie and Ron.
Best Episode: "The Flu" (Season 3, Episode 2)
Best Season: Three

As you can see NBC dominated our best shows list, if not the ratings, with 7 of the 10, while CBS, FOX, & the CW grabbed one apiece. ABC came up empty, with its highest ranked show being the 13th ranked Happy Endings. So congrats to the peacock on its resounding victory. 

Next up we take a look at the best of basic cable.