The 100 Best TV Shows of All-TIME

"First, I apologize. I know I left some of your favorite shows off this list. How do I know that? Because I left some of my favorite shows off this list. The happy and unfortunate fact is that there are far more than 100 great shows, and more created every year. Lists are incredibly important: they are how we define what matters to us, what we want entertainment and art to do, what we expect of our culture."
—TIME TV critic James Poniewozik

Second City Television

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Like SNL, SCTV had a history of launching comedy's Next Big Things (John Candy, Rick Moranis, Martin Short)—but without the bothersome distraction of being a massive hit. Originating in Canada, the sketch show had a certain modesty that fit the stereotype of the self-effacing Canadian; even its most popular creation, Bob & Doug McKenzie's "Great White North," was a good-natured parody of government-mandated, low-budget "Canadian culture" programs. It was wry where SNL was brash and meta where SNL was direct (each show took place in the context of a fictional low-budget TV network). That's not to say SCTV was dull and cerebral—what with the Shmenge Brothers and the blowing things up "real good"—but SCTV dared to be little, and was bigger for it.