The OTHER 100 best TV shows of the 21st century (acc. to CaB not the Grauniad)

[Small Man Big Horse]

The 100 is terrible though. Not worth wasting 1% of our list for the sake of a joke.

I do like the idea of a season dvd with a CaB top 100 shows cover blurb though.

Yeah, I tried to watch it as a friend really likes it but just found it very average, fine, inoffensive (and I did hear it gets better) but nothing that special, and said friend has admitted she likes it partially because of the very attractive men in the show.

[phes]

I'll strike that off my list then

Thanks to whoever recommended Southland. I blasted through it in ten days thanks to days off and rain. That was excellent. I detected no real dip in quality in anything more than the occasional episode - if anything it strengthened towards the end. I read Cudlitz received a best supporting actor award for his role as Cooper. Not really sure how you can separate Cudlitz and McKenzie as lead and support

[Small Man Big Horse]

I'll strike that off my list then

Thanks to whoever recommended Southland. I blasted through it in ten days thanks to days off and rain. That was excellent. I detected no real dip in quality in anything more than the occasional episode - if anything it strengthened towards the end. I read Cudlitz received a best supporting actor award for his role as Cooper. Not really sure how you can separate Cudlitz and McKenzie as lead and support

Well it can be no.101. There's no reason why we should stop just because those lazy arses at The Guardian did!

[Bobloblawslawbomb]

98. You're The Worst - Funny, bleak series where Chris Geere and Aya Cash and their friends who are fucked up, selfish, shitty people but slowly become, um, slightly less so? It's also a fascinating study of depression when it comes to Aya Cash's character, and also packed with astute observations about life. Oh yeah.

Of course, great shout.

[Puce Moment]

102. The Mole

(I'm hoping this is eligible!)

Although a very well-known and successful franchise around the world, this only lasted for two series in the UK. Probably because it was bought up by Channel 5 which, in 2001, was pretty much already a well-worn byword for 'shit'. Aliens and Hitler, and occasionally at the same time.

This first went out only a few months after the first series of Big Brother and although completely different, there was a sense that that this reality show put its contestants under a microscope, with gentle pressure to make them stressed and suspicious of each other. However, unlike BB they had good reason to as one of the contestants was a mole planted by the production team to fuck tasks up as subtlley as possible, in order to remain anonymous.

I was completely hooked by this premise, and I loved that they played the long game, revealing the Mole at the end of the series. The contestants would vote on which one of them was the mole, which was very dramatic. It remains my fave reality show (other than maybe the first 3 series' of BB which had some amazing moments). But the secret of the mole was maintained extremely well, something that made watching it very immersive as you looked for clues to who it could be. I imagine it was very carefully and cleverly edited to fool the public but when the reveal came it did usually elicit a 'oh yeah! fuck!'.

I would love for it to come back, but the pressure of social media would kill it at birth.

[imitationleather]

Ah good shout. I loved The Mole.

Grabbed it all off UKNova years back and it held up to repeated viewings. Lost it several exploded hard drives ago, though.

At the end of each series there was an episode explaining how The Mole had sabotaged stuff, which was great. Also there were hidden messages through-out which no one would pick up on, such as the first word the presenter said in each episode spelling out their identity. Loved it.

[chveik]

103. Sealab 2021 (well, the first 2 seasons)

104. Tom Goes to the Mayor

[Puce Moment]

Ah good shout. I loved The Mole.

Grabbed it all off UKNova years back and it held up to repeated viewings. Lost it several exploded hard drives ago, though.

At the end of each series there was an episode explaining how The Mole had sabotaged stuff, which was great. Also there were hidden messages through-out which no one would pick up on, such as the first word the presenter said in each episode spelling out their identity. Loved it.

Yep, I loved that stuff - just very playful. I might go and try to find the American version which ran for a good few seasons, but I suspect that it will be both quite dated, and also fucking annoying.

I can remember the bloke who was the Mole in the first series. If I had put each contestant in order of who I thought was the Mole he would have been right at the bottom. The beauty of the concept was that there were 2 or 3 quite incompetent contestants who fucked up tasks by accident (in hindsight) but which really put the spotlight on them.

And the reveal of all the sabotage that had happened was great - quite Sixth Sense/Usual Suspectsy.

[Small Man Big Horse]

105. Torchwood: Children Of Earth - Not any of the other series, dear god no, but Russell T. Davies struck gold when he stopped trying to make it sexy and just made it disturbing instead.

[Brundle-Fly]

106: The Street.   Jimmy McGovern at his storytelling best!

[A Hat Like That]

105. Torchwood: Children Of Earth - Not any of the other series, dear god no, but Russell T. Davies struck gold when he stopped trying to make it sexy and just made it disturbing instead.

remember saying to a mate that the bad guy in Miracle Day would turn out to be a massive space clunge.

somewhat disappointed when it was.

[A Hat Like That]

97

Southcliffe.

Sean Harris plays a man who goes on a murderous rampage.Excellent as he always is with nice support from Rory Kinnear and Eddie Marsen.

Yes.

[Puce Moment]

This was right up my alley - just about every other BBC drama bores me because of that overblown tone. This was a nice, gritty, expressionistic work that I wish could have had a follow-up, or at least more stories told set in that 'world'.

[Blue Jam]

105. Torchwood: Children Of Earth - Not any of the other series, dear god no, but Russell T. Davies struck gold when he stopped trying to make it sexy and just made it disturbing instead.

Ohhhh yes, seconded. The one RTD made after he realised that the way to make a show more grown-up is to make it about grown-up themes, not by adding a load of gratuitous sex and swearing.

Unfortunately, he then made Miracle Day...

[PowerButchi]

107: Bargain Hunt. Yes it is. I watch it daily and it's brill.

[phes]

108: Charlie Brooker's Screenwipe

[Puce Moment]

109. A Small Problem (1987)

A one-series sitcom that seemed dead at birth. Starring the shit one from The Young Ones, it is a very bizarre dystopian sitcom about a future where small people are discrminated against and must live in ghettoes of blocks of flats south of the river. The public did not appreciate the irony or satire, and it received a decent number of complaints. Added to that poor ratings and this was a stillborn sitcom.

It doesn't make any sense, but I have a strange affection for it because I remember watching it back in the day and being completely immersed by the unlikely concept on which it rests (I had the same response to Comrade Dad). It's also nice seeing loads of actors that were in everything on the BBC in the 1980s.

https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2ir1w4

[NoSleep]

1987 suggests it's a show from the 20th century.

[sponk]

109 or 110: Ponderland

[Puce Moment]

1987 suggests it a show from the 20th century.

The fuck is wrong with me today.

[Ja'moke]

Yep, I loved that stuff - just very playful. I might go and try to find the American version which ran for a good few seasons, but I suspect that it will be both quite dated, and also fucking annoying.

I can remember the bloke who was the Mole in the first series. If I had put each contestant in order of who I thought was the Mole he would have been right at the bottom. The beauty of the concept was that there were 2 or 3 quite incompetent contestants who fucked up tasks by accident (in hindsight) but which really put the spotlight on them.

And the reveal of all the sabotage that had happened was great - quite Sixth Sense/Usual Suspectsy.

The first two American versions of The Mole are fantastic. But the ratings were poor, so after the second season they started doing "celeb" versions, which I gave up on. It was cancelled after season 4. But then it was revived in 2008 for a fifth season, back to civilian contestants, and again, well worth watching. Unfortunately, ratings were still low and it was axed again.

The original Netherlands version is still going apparently, and I believe somebody uploads the seasons with subtitles to YouTube.

[Puce Moment]

Bless your heart you TV fountain of knowledge you. I am going to seek all of those out now!

[NoSleep]

109. Home Movies I can't believe this hasn't been mentioned before now (although it started in 1999 it went on until 2004). Heads up for a recent DVD release (2017) as I don't think it's been mentioned on here.

Based around the life of an 8-year-old film director, created by Brendan Small (who went on to create 110. Metalocalypse) and Loren Bouchard (previously: Dr Katz & Science Court; later: 111. Lucy: Daughter of The Devil & 112. Bob's Burgers) and starring Brendan Small, H. Jon Benjamin & Melissa Bardin Galski. It precurses Metalocalypse in the way that music is often brought to the fore and an integral part of the story (both Small and Bouchard being musicians, Small having graduated from Berklee). Charming and funny.

[sponk]

Are you pretending you've got me on ignore or something?

[dr_christian_troy]

113. Lodge 49. Just started a thread on it and it's only on the second season, but all I can say is watch it (on Amazon Prime) and trust me.

[Small Man Big Horse]

114. The Ben Show - There's a short thread about it here: https://www.cookdandbombd.co.uk/forums/index.php?topic=35315.0 - I wasn't that excited by it in the thread but it grew on me over time and is something I'm very fond of.

[rasta-spouse]

114. The Ben Show - There's a short thread about it here: https://www.cookdandbombd.co.uk/forums/index.php?topic=35315.0 - I wasn't that excited by it in the thread but it grew on me over time and is something I'm very fond of.

I was thinking of something the other day, and I think it was from this. He's dressed as a Country & Western guy singing "Eating pussy. Sucking Dick. Kicking Ass." Kept chuckling.

Last I saw of Hoffman he was on the credits for Corden's Late Night show.