Show #10
undeadmonkey
Smallville (2001-2011, UPN, CW)
Premise: A young Clark Kent struggles to find his place in the world as he learns to harness his alien powers for good and deals with the typical troubles of teenage life in Smallville.
when i started this list i picked my top ten and forgot about them. but now that i'm actually here, i kinda wish i had put this lower. Yes, it's the longest i've watched a show, it's first few seasons were amazing and i loved the monster-of-the-week episodes, but the last few seasons i admit that i only watched because i had watched the show so long, the last season itself awful, with filler episode after filler episode to finally get to the end which was pretty mediocre. If you compared the last season to the first, they wouldn't even seem like the same show. Nevertheless, i loved the first five seasons of this show, and it is one of my favorites, so i do think it deserves a spot on my list.
PS, the supporting cast was pretty great as well. Allison mack as chloe was really fun with her wall of weird stuff. John Glover was fantastic as Lionel Luther, and of course Anette Otoole as Martha Kent was just perfect (which was another reason the last few seasons weren't as good, i think she left in season 7).
numbersix
Seinfeld (1989-1998, NBC)
If ever there is proof that the offbeat could become mainstream, this is it. When I first started watching Seinfeld in the late 90’s it came across as a real cult show, the kind of show that would play late at night to a small but dedicated audience. I had no idea how huge it was in its home country. I mean, it was the opposite of worldwide sensation Friends. Larry David and Seinfeld even had a rule of “no hugging, no learning lessons”, and instead worked hard to both satirise the rituals we hold as the norm in society (even though they’re often illogical) but also always be aware that the protagonists represent the selfish part of people (especially New Yorkers) and ensure not so much justice, but that self-absorption only leads to your own downfall.