Last updated March 2024
Want to watch extraordinarily Best clever Tv Shows earning rave reviews? We compiled 30 stellar, critic- and user-acclaimed Best clever Tv Shows ready for your instant viewing pleasure. Hailed as sensationally awesome by IMDB and our own legion of discerning users, these world-class titles represent the absolute best entertainment available. Lend fellow fans a hand by voting up the titles you feel are keepers. We value members who contribute top-notch recommendations!
Breaking Bad (2008)
Plot Summary:
When Walter White, a New Mexico chemistry teacher, is diagnosed with Stage III cancer and given a prognosis of only two years left to live, he becomes filled with a sense of fearlessness and an unrelenting desire to secure his family's financial future at any cost as he enters the dangerous world of drugs and crime
Duration: 3030 min
IMDB Rating: 9.5/10
IMDB Votes: 21000000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Plot tags: criminal, cancer, peril, life turned upside down, drug dealing, drug cartel, unlikely partners, drug lord, master criminal, family problems, life is a bitch, drug, ambition, meth lab, desperation, double life, success, anti hero, hidden identity, lifestyle change, cartel, methamphetamine, chemistry, drug dealer, outlaw
The Wire (2002)
Plot Summary:
Told from the points of view of both the Baltimore homicide and narcotics detectives and their targets, the series captures a universe in which the national war on drugs has become a permanent, self-sustaining bureaucracy, and distinctions between good and evil are routinely obliterated
Duration: 59 min
IMDB Rating: 9.3/10
IMDB Votes: 367000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Plot tags: organized crime, corruption, police detective, police, urban ghetto life, life is a bitch, working undercover, fighting crime, drug dealing, surveillance, shooting, police investigation, gang, urban decay, drug lord, murder, cop, black, wiretap, team, politics, criminal, journalism, legal, dirty cop
The Sopranos (1999)
Plot Summary:
The Sopranos is an American television drama created by David Chase. The series revolves around the New Jersey-based Italian-American mobster Tony Soprano and the difficulties he faces as he tries to balance the conflicting requirements of his home life and the criminal organization he heads. Those difficulties are often highlighted through his ongoing professional relationship with psychiatrist Jennifer Melfi. The show features Tony's family members and Mafia associates in prominent roles and story arcs, most notably his wife Carmela and his cousin and protégé Christopher Moltisanti
Duration: 55 min
IMDB Rating: 9.2/10
IMDB Votes: 450000
Genere: Crime, Drama
Country: USA
Plot tags: organized crime, mafia, killings, dark humor, mob boss, criminal heroes, gangster, family life, violence, dysfunctional family, family relations, ambition, cosa nostra, parents and children, introspection, psychiatrist, criminal, death, crime boss, mobster, italian gangster, racial slur, mob hit, rise to the top, midlife crisis
Sherlock (2010)
Plot Summary:
A modern update finds the famous sleuth and his doctor partner solving crime in 21st century London
Duration: 88 min
IMDB Rating: 9.1/10
IMDB Votes: 977000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: UK, USA
Plot tags: sherlock holmes, investigation, private detective, murder mystery, mastermind, genius, friendship, british, murder, mind game, riddles and clues, prodigy, danger, partner, talented, buddies, eccentricity, intelligence, expert, friendship between men, inspector, police detective, deduction, mysterious character, teamwork
Only Fools and Horses (1981)
Plot Summary:
The misadventures of two wheeler dealer brothers Del Boy and Rodney Trotter of “Trotters Independent Traders PLC” who scrape their living by selling dodgy goods believing that next year they will be millionaires
Duration: 95 min
IMDB Rating: 9.0/10
IMDB Votes: 56000
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Plot tags: working class, cockney, family relations, grandfather, world war two veteran, black market, disorder, eccentric family, brother brother relationship, pub, short man, veteran, partner, siblings relations, dishonesty, hopes, business, brother, ambition, uncle, christmas, sketch, sketch show, cons and scams, shipwreck
Firefly (2002)
Plot Summary:
Firefly is set in the year 2517, after the arrival of humans in a new star system and follows the adventures of the renegade crew of Serenity, a "Firefly-class" spaceship. The ensemble cast portrays the nine characters who live on Serenity
Duration: 616 min
IMDB Rating: 9.0/10
IMDB Votes: 278000
Genere: Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Plot tags: outer space, space travel, space opera, spacecraft, danger, escapades, space, survival, space and aliens, captain, friendship, smuggling, preacher, spaceship, space wars, space adventure, mysterious past, psychic, mercenary, female warrior, wit, space shuttle, supernatural, young woman, space exploration
Fargo (2014)
Plot Summary:
A close-knit anthology series dealing with stories involving malice, violence and murder based in and around Minnesota
Duration: 53 min
IMDB Rating: 8.9/10
IMDB Votes: 398000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Country: USA
Plot tags: dark humor, psychopath, small town, police investigation, law enforcement, policewoman, cop, snow, killings, small town life, social relations, dishonesty, killer, female police officer, scheme, sheriff, police officer, winter, gory, shooting, blackmail, victim, crime gone awry, gangster, family relations
The West Wing (1999)
Plot Summary:
The West Wing provides a glimpse into presidential politics in the nation's capital as it tells the stories of the members of a fictional presidential administration. These interesting characters have humor and dedication that touches the heart while the politics that they discuss touch on everyday life
Duration: 44 min
IMDB Rating: 8.9/10
IMDB Votes: 83000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Plot tags: politics, politician, american politics, white house, election, president, political intrigue, government official, teamwork, chief of staff, liberal, democrat, team, head of state, workplace, workplace situations, social commentary, idealism, government, spy, psychologist, leader, political conflict, lawyer, psychiatrist
True Detective (2014)
Plot Summary:
An American anthology police detective series utilizing multiple timelines in which investigations seem to unearth personal and professional secrets of those involved, both within or outside the law
Duration: 55 min
IMDB Rating: 8.9/10
IMDB Votes: 618000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Plot tags: serial killer, police investigation, investigation, murder, murder mystery, police detective, murder investigation, murderer, drinking problem, partners against crime, insomnia, antisocial behavior, troubled, female nudity, graphic violence, uncover truth, haunted by the past, violence, partner, corrupt cop, mysterious man, buddy cop, sexual content, evidence, cruelty
Peaky Blinders (2013)
Plot Summary:
A gangster family epic set in 1919 Birmingham, England and centered on a gang who sew razor blades in the peaks of their caps, and their fierce boss Tommy Shelby, who means to move up in the world
Duration: 2109 min
IMDB Rating: 8.8/10
IMDB Votes: 621000
Genere: Crime, Drama
Country: UK
Plot tags: organized crime, gangster, gang, mafia, gang war, determination, cruelty, mob boss, power struggle, crime boss, rivalry, family relations, society, rise to the top, shooting, business venture, leader, killings, corruption, urban, world war one, brother brother relationship, criminal heroes, gypsy, fighting crime
Pride and Prejudice (1995)
Plot Summary:
Jane Austen's classic novel about the prejudice that occurred between the 19th century classes and the pride which would keep lovers apart
Duration: 327 min
IMDB Rating: 8.8/10
IMDB Votes: 91000
Genere: Drama, Romance
Country: UK
Plot tags: prejudice, love and romance, love story, wooing, fall in love, aristocracy, initially antagonists, social differences, looking for love, unlikely couple, opposites attract, couple relations, countryside, british, pride and honor, rich and poor, love hate relationship, eligible bachelor, sisters, pride, couples, estate, gentleman, family relations, heroine
I, Claudius (1976)
Plot Summary:
Tracing the lives of several Roman emperors, this is an epic of ruthless ambition, shocking debauchery and murderous intrigue set in one of history's most fascinating eras. Bearing witness to the saga is Claudius, whose stutter and limp have marked him a fool - yet whom prophecies have foretold will one day rule Rome
Duration: 669 min
IMDB Rating: 8.8/10
IMDB Votes: 19000
Genere: Biography, Drama, History
Country: UK
Plot tags: ancient, roman empire, ancient rome, political intrigue, ancient history, intrigue, ancient world, antiquity, politics, emperor, royal family, medieval, roman soldier, power struggle, roman emperor, incest, shakespeare, historical event, ambition, dictatorship, head of state, historical character, female nudity, peplum, lawyer
Six Feet Under (2001)
Plot Summary:
A darkly comic look at members of a dysfunctional L.A. family that run a funeral business. When death is your business, what is your life? For the Fisher family, the world outside of their family-owned funeral home continues to be at least as challenging as--and far less predictable than--the one inside
Duration: 60 min
IMDB Rating: 8.7/10
IMDB Votes: 145000
Genere: Comedy, Drama
Country: USA
Plot tags: funeral home, gay, dealing with death, gays and lesbians, dark humor, dysfunctional family, sibling relationship, depression, hopes, lgbt, self discovery, death, life changing experience, workplace problem, suburbs, family drama, lgbtq, lie, couples, grief, gender, women, mental illness, life changing, belief
Black Mirror (2011)
Plot Summary:
A contemporary British re-working of The Twilight Zone with stories that tap into the collective unease about our modern world. Over the last ten years, technology has transformed almost every aspect of our lives before we've had time to stop and question it. In every home; on every desk; in every palm - a plasma screen; a monitor; a smartphone - a black mirror of our 21st Century existence
Duration: 60 min
IMDB Rating: 8.7/10
IMDB Votes: 622000
Genere: Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Country: UK
Plot tags: technology, dystopia, twists and turns, human nature, satire, alternate reality, society, social decay, computers and web, media satire, dystopian future, media, dark humor, distopia, technology gone awry, gadget, media coverage, mind control, storytelling, chaos, loneliness, serial killer, social satire, cyberpunk, dehumanization
Dexter (2006)
Plot Summary:
Dexter is an American television drama series. The series centers on Dexter Morgan, a blood spatter pattern analyst for 'Miami Metro Police Department' who also leads a secret life as a serial killer, hunting down criminals who have slipped through the cracks of justice
Duration: 5076 min
IMDB Rating: 8.7/10
IMDB Votes: 753000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Country: USA
Plot tags: serial killer, crime investigation, right and wrong, hidden identity, double life, gory, vigilantism, anti hero, serial murder, loner, police station, dark humor, murder, dark secret, corpse, killings, expert, forensics, secret life, psycho, murder investigation, police detective, blood splatter, law enforcement, police department
House (2004)
Plot Summary:
Dr. Gregory House, a drug-addicted, unconventional, misanthropic medical genius, leads a team of diagnosticians at the fictional Princeton–Plainsboro Teaching Hospital in New Jersey
Duration: 7788 min
IMDB Rating: 8.7/10
IMDB Votes: 497000
Genere: Drama, Mystery
Country: USA
Plot tags: medicine, doctor, hospital, talented, mastermind, prodigy, loner, patient, expert, human nature, surgery, unconventional method, peril, insubordination, antisocial behavior, doctors and patients, teamwork, dark humor, hotshot, danger, riddles and clues, rebelliousness, medical, medical profession, team
Mad Men (2007)
Plot Summary:
Mad Men is set in the 1960s, initially at the fictional Sterling Cooper advertising agency on Madison Avenue in New York City, and later at the newly created firm, Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce, located nearby in the Time-Life Building, at 1271 Avenue of the Americas. According to the show's pilot, the phrase "mad men" was a slang term coined in the 1950s by advertisers working on Madison Avenue to refer to themselves. The focal point of the series is Don Draper, creative director at Sterling Cooper and a founding partner at Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce, and the people in his life, both in and out of the office. The plot focuses on the business of the agencies as well as the personal lives of the characters, regularly depicting the changing moods and social mores of the United States in the 1960s
Duration: 4400 min
IMDB Rating: 8.7/10
IMDB Votes: 256000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Plot tags: advertising, workplace, career, boss and employee, family problems, businessman, womanizer, cigarette smoking, advertising agency, housewife, workplace intrigue, ambition, office, drinking, ambitious, career woman, crumbling marriage, false identity, lifestyle, marketing, father daughter relationship, secretary, adultery, business, feminist
Arrested Development (2003)
Plot Summary:
The story of a wealthy family that lost everything, and the one son who had no choice but to keep them all together
Duration: 22 min
IMDB Rating: 8.7/10
IMDB Votes: 320000
Genere: Comedy
Country: USA
Plot tags: disorder, dysfunctional family, father son relationship, bankruptcy, adolescence, rivals, silly humor, immature, irresponsible, lifestyle change, workplace problem, uptight character, lawyer, sketch show, single father, sibling rivalry, stupidity, narration, sketch, workplace, twins, siblings relations, teenager, magic, relationships
Yes Minister (1980)
Plot Summary:
Set principally in the private office of a British Cabinet minister in the Department of Administrative Affairs in Whitehall, Yes Minister follows the ministerial career of The Rt Hon Jim Hacker MP, played by Paul Eddington. His various struggles to formulate and enact legislation or effect departmental changes are opposed by the British Civil Service, in particular his Permanent Secretary, Sir Humphrey Appleby, played by Nigel Hawthorne. His Principal Private Secretary Bernard Woolley, played by Derek Fowlds, is usually caught between the two. The sequel, Yes, Prime Minister, continued with the same cast and followed the events of the premiership of Jim Hacker after his unexpected elevation to Number 10 upon the resignation of the previous PM
Duration: 30 min
IMDB Rating: 8.7/10
IMDB Votes: 16000
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Plot tags: british politics, minister, secretary, government official, workplace situations, satire, british government, politician, state affairs, boss and employee, power relations, politics, lawyer, psychology, finance, humour, political satire, civil servant, bureaucracy, social satire, bureaucrat, political humor, political intrigue, manipulation, dimwit
Battlestar Galactica (2004)
Plot Summary:
When an old enemy, the Cylons, resurface and obliterate the 12 colonies, the crew of the aged Galactica protect a small civilian fleet - the last of humanity - as they journey toward the fabled 13th colony, Earth
Duration: 44 min
IMDB Rating: 8.7/10
IMDB Votes: 173000
Genere: Action, Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi
Country: USA
Plot tags: space travel, outer space, space and aliens, space wars, cyborgs, space opera, space battle, androids and robots, artificial intelligence, extinction, human in outer space, military, heroes, alien planet, robot, end of the world, female assassin, space, apocalypse, invasion, androids, spacecraft, battles, prophecy, totalitarianism
The Thick of It (2005)
Plot Summary:
Set in the corridors of power and spin, the Minister for Social Affairs is continually harassed by Number 10's policy enforcer and dependent on his not-so-reliable team of civil servants
Duration: 29 min
IMDB Rating: 8.7/10
IMDB Votes: 26000
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Plot tags: politics, political satire, state affairs, british politics, satire, workplace, politician, society, political intrigue, government official, workplace situations, british government, stupidity, lesbian, lawyer, white house, voodoo, humour, resistance, government, political humor, boss, media, mishap, coworker
I'm Alan Partridge (1997)
Plot Summary:
I'm Alan Partridge is a BBC situation comedy starring Steve Coogan, of which two series of six episodes each were produced — the first in 1997 and the second in 2002. The series followed the titular Alan Partridge, a failed television presenter whose previous exploits had featured in the chat-show parody Knowing Me, Knowing You with Alan Partridge, and who is now presenting a programme on local radio in Norwich. Both series were written by Peter Baynham, Coogan and Armando Iannucci; supporting Coogan were Felicity Montagu as his faithful, mouse-like personal assistant, Lynn Benfield; Simon Greenall as Geordie Travel Tavern handyman/BP garage attendant Michael; and Phil Cornwell as disc jockey Dave Clifton. It has been well received by both critics and fans, and was nominated for three BAFTAs, two British Comedy Award, and a Royal Television Society award
Duration: 29 min
IMDB Rating: 8.6/10
IMDB Votes: 22000
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Plot tags: satire, radio, humour, everyday life, sketch, sketch show, friendship, friends, career, hotel, showbiz, media, ambition, down on your luck, comeback, humiliation, guest, assistant, fan, lifestyle, wannabe, layoff, nothing goes right, disorder, socially awkward
Boardwalk Empire (2010)
Plot Summary:
Boardwalk Empire is a period drama focusing on Enoch "Nucky" Thompson (based on the historical Enoch L. Johnson), a political figure who rose to prominence and controlled Atlantic City, New Jersey, during the Prohibition period of the 1920s and 1930s. Nucky interacts with several historical figures in both his personal and political life, including mobsters, politicians, government agents, and the common folk who look up to him. The federal government also takes an interest in the bootlegging and other illegal activities in the area, sending agents to investigate possible mob connections but also looking at Nucky's lifestyle—expensive and lavish for a county political figure. Primetime Emmy Award-winning screenwriter and producer Terence Winter adapted the show from Boardwalk Empire: The Birth, High Times, and Corruption of Atlantic City, a book by Nelson Johnson about historical criminal kingpin Enoch L. Johnson
Duration: 55 min
IMDB Rating: 8.6/10
IMDB Votes: 200000
Genere: Crime, Drama
Country: USA
Plot tags: mafia, gangster, mob boss, organized crime, prohibition, criminal heroes, corruption, politician, female nudity, american history, smuggling, businessman, crime boss, ambitious, elimination, strong sexual content, mobster, federal agent, politics, election, rivalry, society, ambition, power struggle, mayor
House of Cards (2013)
Plot Summary:
Set in present day Washington, D.C., House of Cards is the story of Frank Underwood, a ruthless and cunning politician, and his wife Claire who will stop at nothing to conquer everything. This wicked political drama penetrates the shadowy world of greed, sex and corruption in modern D.C. House of Cards is an adaptation of a previous BBC miniseries of the same name, which is based on the novel by Michael Dobbs
Duration: 3804 min
IMDB Rating: 8.6/10
IMDB Votes: 524000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Plot tags: politics, political intrigue, political corruption, manipulation, state affairs, intrigue, blind ambition, strategy, u.s. president, lobbyist, journalism, journalist, media, media manipulation, breaking the fourth wall, usa politics, ambitious, politician, revenge, u.s. congress, marriage, dishonesty, power relations, husband wife relationship, political conflict
Atlanta (2016)
Plot Summary:
Two cousins, with different views on art versus commerce, on their way up through the Atlanta rap scene; Earnest 'Earn' Marks, an ambitious college dropout and his estranged cousin, who suddenly becomes a star
Duration: 30 min
IMDB Rating: 8.6/10
IMDB Votes: 85000
Genere: Comedy, Drama, Music
Country: USA
Plot tags: rapper, cousin cousin relationship, hip hop culture, african american, hip hop, black, starlet, satire, opposites attract, misfit, brother brother relationship, social satire, ambition, pop star, poor family, black history, black sitcom, city, glory, music business, teenage daughter, black family, business, drug lord, black cast
Foyle's War (2002)
Plot Summary:
As WW2 rages around the world, DCS Foyle fights his own war on the home-front as he investigates crimes on the south coast of England. Foyle's War opens in southern England in the year 1940. Later series sees the retired detective working as an MI5 agent operating in the aftermath of the war
Duration: 90 min
IMDB Rating: 8.6/10
IMDB Votes: 18000
Genere: Crime, Drama, Mystery, War
Country: UK
Plot tags: world war two, investigation, police investigation, police detective, war crime, spy, police, espionage, homicide detective, whodunit, detective inspector, murder investigation, investigator, law enforcement, crimes of passion, murder, cold war, village, nazism, bomb, detective sergeant, wartime, robbery, fighting crime, world war
The Crown (2016)
Plot Summary:
The gripping, decades-spanning inside story of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and the Prime Ministers who shaped Britain's post-war destiny. The Crown tells the inside story of two of the most famous addresses in the world – Buckingham Palace and 10 Downing Street – and the intrigues, love lives and machinations behind the great events that shaped the second half of the 20th century. Two houses, two courts, one Crown
Duration: 58 min
IMDB Rating: 8.6/10
IMDB Votes: 242000
Genere: Biography, Drama, History
Country: UK
Plot tags: royal family, british royal family, queen, monarchy, monarch, royalty, politics, winston churchill, british history, queen elizabeth ii, british monarchy, prime minister, british politics, power, woman, women, british government, strong female lead, female protagonist, medieval, post war, feminist, storytelling, women power, palace intrigue
The Newsroom (2012)
Plot Summary:
A behind-the-scenes look at the people who make a nightly cable-news program. Focusing on a network anchor, his new executive producer, the newsroom staff and their boss, the series tracks their quixotic mission to do the news well in the face of corporate and commercial obstacles-not to mention their own personal entanglements
Duration: 55 min
IMDB Rating: 8.6/10
IMDB Votes: 123000
Genere: Drama
Country: USA
Plot tags: journalism, journalist, politics, news, workaholic, psychologist, rebellion, ambitious, workplace, power of media, ethics, teamwork, media coverage, idealism, liberal, media, writers, reporter, psychiatrist, intelligence, colleague, rape, relationships, marketing, white house
Parks and Recreation (2009)
Plot Summary:
Hilarious ensemble comedy that follows Leslie Knope, a mid-level bureaucrat in the Parks and Recreation Department of Pawnee, Indiana, and her tireless efforts to make her quintessentially American town just a little bit more fun
Duration: 22 min
IMDB Rating: 8.6/10
IMDB Votes: 281000
Genere: Comedy
Country: USA
Plot tags: politics, political satire, satire, social commentary, female protagonist, small town life, workplace situations, workaholic, absurd humor, strong female lead, workplace humor, boss and employee, friendship, loser, ambition, ex husband, nurse, supportive coworker, employer employee relationship, feminism, women, office, serial killer, feminist, workplace
Yes, Prime Minister (1986)
Plot Summary:
James Hacker MP the Government's bumbling minister for Administrative Affairs is propelled along the corridors of power to the very pinnacle of politics - No. 10. Could this have possibly have been managed by his trusted Permanent Private Secretary, the formidably political Sir Humphrey Appleby who must move to the “Top Job” in Downing Street to support him, together with his much put upon PPS Bernard Wolley. What could possibly go wrong?
Duration: 30 min
IMDB Rating: 8.6/10
IMDB Votes: 13000
Genere: Comedy
Country: UK
Plot tags: satire, lawyer, psychology, humour, government, british prime minister, political satire, international relations, economist, political humor, secretary, responsibility, dimwit, head of state, staff, workplace, government official, dishonesty, state affairs, boss and employee, power relations, bureaucracy, political party, british politics, british government