Ben Shapiro declares The New York Times’ 100 best TV shows of the 21st century “actively bad.”
Shapiro’s Counter List
On his show, Shapiro repeated, “Not good at all,” after calling the list “actively bad.”
He concedes the Times placed “Breaking Bad” and “The Wire” at the top two, calling them “basically right.”
Shapiro argues the remaining entries “don’t belong in the top 50” and that several deserving shows are omitted from the top 60.
He labels “Mad Men” at No. 3 “one of the most overrated shows in television history.”
He says the series follows “obnoxious people” and portrays the 1950s and ’60s as a “time of true misery,” a view he rejects.
Regarding “Succession” at No. 4, he notes it feels “like a sitcom with each episode repeating the last.”
“Fleabag” at No. 5 and “Veep” at No. 7 he deems “wildly overrated” and “hardly among the ten greatest shows,” while “30 Rock” at No. 8 is “good but not eighth best.”
He jokes that “only seven people have ever watched ‘Atlanta,’” placing it at No. 10.
Unsatisfied, Shapiro unveils his own top ten, beginning with a correction: “Band of Brothers” at No. 28 becomes his No. 1.
He keeps “Breaking Bad” and “The Wire” in his top three, then adds “Chernobyl” as No. 4, a series he calls “one of the best things in TV history.”
“Game of Thrones” lands at No. 5 with an asterisk for its final season’s decline.
“Severance” occupies No. 6, praised for its “mind‑bending writing” that keeps viewers guessing.
He ranks “Lost” at No. 7, saying its first three seasons “revolutionized TV” and remain a family favorite.
“The Office” is No. 8, which he calls “probably the best American comedy of all time and the most iconic.”
He places “Downton Abbey” at No. 9, questioning the Times’ No. 52 ranking and claiming “I don’t see 51 better shows.”
Rounding his list, he cites “The Shield” at No. 10, labeling the Times’ No. 70 placement “unthinkable.”
Shapiro gives “The Bear” (Times No. 74) and “Shogun” (Times No. 86) honorable mentions, praising “The Bear” as “competence‑porn” and “Shogun” as “beautifully produced and wonderfully acted.”
He ends by challenging America to decide whether “Mad Men” truly outshines “Downton Abbey,” framing the debate as the decade’s most pressing cultural question.
