Here's an argument starter: what five shows in the history of television do you think are just overrated? The ones that everyone goes ga-ga over but just leave you cold? Here are mine:
- NYPD Blue
- CSI
- Frasier
- Ally McBeal
- American Idol
Here's an argument starter: what five shows in the history of television do you think are just overrated? The ones that everyone goes ga-ga over but just leave you cold? Here are mine:


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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
8-30-2005 @ 2:16PM
sarah said...
oh for fox ache - friends!
Reply
8-30-2005 @ 2:17PM
Tom Biro said...
Ally McBeal (definitely!)
LA Law
thirtysomething
The O.C.
Farscape
Good topic - this should rock.
Reply
8-30-2005 @ 2:19PM
Vince said...
American Idol
Will & Grace
CSI: NY
Everybody Loves Raymond
American Idol
Reply
8-30-2005 @ 2:20PM
Keith McDuffee said...
My list:
1. Deadwood
2. Charmed
3. American Idol
4. Las Vegas
5. The O.C.
Reply
8-30-2005 @ 2:23PM
jen Segrest said...
I'll give you most of those, thought I love CSI. I'll throw in ANY show by David E Kelly or Joss Whedon, Everyone Loves Raymond (never saw one ep), Stella.
Reply
8-30-2005 @ 2:23PM
Josh Ozersky said...
Not much of a starter there...how about some explanations? Something! I will say that I don't agree with those five, only because none of them except Frasier really earned much critical praise, and even Frasier is seldom claimed as one of the all-time great shows. My top overrated five ever are
1. M*A*S*H
2. M*A*S*H
3. M*A*S*H
4. M*A*S*H
5. M*A*S*H
mawkish, sanctimonious, loaded with cheap laughs and shameless sentimentality. Maybe the most self-congratulatory show ever, and the least moving. Blechh.
Also overrated: All in the Family after the second season, Roots, Ed Sullivan, the Tonight Show (Carson and Steve Allen), Friends, Star Trek the Next Generation, SCTV, and Oz.
Underrated: Shogun, Star Trek's third season, the Gilmore Girls, Night Gallery, and Star Hustler.
Reply
8-30-2005 @ 2:41PM
Annie Wu said...
01 The OC.
02 Friends.
03 Leno.
04 Letterman.
05 Survivor.
Reply
8-30-2005 @ 2:44PM
Erik Davis said...
Big Brother - hey, how about we change it so the next head of household has to pay all the bills? And so when they fail, all the water and electricity gets turned off. Yay!
There's Nothing Funny About Raymond. At all. Seriously. Nothing.
Oh, and this one is sure to get me in trouble -- BUFFY!!!
Reply
8-30-2005 @ 2:52PM
kmay said...
I have got to say:
-american idol, Rockstar INXS, all those type of shows (and all other reality shows in that matter)
-the OC
-Survivor
-friends (it's a good show, but really not up to the hype..)
-Will & Grace
Reply
8-30-2005 @ 2:52PM
John Hewitt said...
1. Sopranos
Sorry, this is no better a soap opera than Dynasty, and certainly not as good as Dallas (The King)
2. Everybody Loves Raymond
Terrible acting. Everyone just mugs for the camera.
3. Queer Eye
Same exact show every week. I know how to shave . . . thanks.
4. Monk
Tony Shaloub is great. The character is great. The stories are terrible. And, this isn't a sitcom. Characters should progress.
5. (tie) Leno and Letterman
Letterman was the best talk show host ever . . . twenty years ago. Leno always stunk. These two old goats need to go. The whole celebrity pre-planned/pre-screened "interview" show needs to be relegated to syndication and E!
Reply
8-30-2005 @ 2:55PM
some dude said...
1. The Larry David Show
2. American Idol
3. Frasier
4. Punk'd
5. Hannity & Colmes
Anything with Sean Hannity is pukeworthy.
Reply
8-30-2005 @ 3:02PM
Bebop said...
1)Friends
2)Frasier
3)Ally McBeal
4)American Idol
5)The O.C.
i will always think friends was overrated and no one can convince me otherwise
Reply
8-30-2005 @ 3:03PM
_ph said...
1. 24
2. Friends
3. The Cosby Show (in fact, almost ALL of the hit living room sitcoms of the last 25 years)
4. The X Files after the middle of the 4th season
5. Sex and the City after the end of the 2nd.
Reply
8-30-2005 @ 3:04PM
wendell said...
and my top 5 most overrated TV shows...
FAMILY GUY
DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES
the new BATTLESTAR: GALLACTICA
THE OFFICE (American version)
THE SOPRANOS
runners-up
SOUTH PARK
CHAPPELLE'S SHOW
LOST
THE OFFICE (BBC version)
SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS
24
SURVIVOR
Overrated Hall of Fame
FRIENDS
SEX AND THE CITY
LAW & ORDER
and my predictions for the overated new shows:
MY NAME IS EARL
COMMANDER IN CHIEF
and after one attempted viewing...
PRISON BREAK
and that's MY opinion.
Reply
8-30-2005 @ 3:14PM
Jordan Running said...
#9, quite sadly, is right about Monk. The stories are getting ridiculous. In this season alone: Natalie's brother almost gets married to a murderess, Monk stays at an inn where a mystery ensues, a murderer delivers pizza to Natalie, and Ambrose's hallowe'en candy is linked to a murderer in his neighborhood. These characters manage to get tangled up in more coincidental murder mysteries than the Scooby Gang.
Reply
8-30-2005 @ 3:17PM
Joe said...
I could go on all day, but here are a few of the most egregious offenders.
1. Home Improvement
2. Buffy the Vampire Slayer
3. Sex and the City
4. Family Guy
5. Saturday Night Live
Reply
8-30-2005 @ 4:00PM
gd said...
1. NBC
2. ABC
3. CBS
4. FOX
5. (tie) UPN & WB
there's really not much of anything on Network TV worth spending time with.
For specific shows, two of my most overrated have to be ER & the West Wing. I mean really, enough is enough. Let the shows fade into memory and the casts go on to "celebreality" programs.
Reply
8-30-2005 @ 4:05PM
jfb3 said...
Most overrated: Seinfeld
Reply
8-30-2005 @ 4:05PM
Alec said...
1. Six Feet Under
I am so sick of people who have no idea what good tv is talking about how amazing this show is. It just makes people feel smart.
2. 24
I appreciate the fact that it has a different format but it leaves me cold due to the lack of character development
3. Desperate Housewives
Watch it every week but does not live up to its potential
4. The Sopranos
Just never gotten it
5. Prison Break
I know it was only on for two hours but I was completely underwhelmed. The Washington Post got it right with its negative review.
Reply
8-30-2005 @ 4:07PM
Virtuox, Dominican Republic said...
Please, quit CSI, this show is amazing
Reply