Nowadays, we often want to disconnect from the world, relax and have fun. Especially for such occasions, we remembered and selected the 50 best comedy series of all time – from classic sitcoms to modern shows and from good-natured family shows to provocative projects for adults. If you like more exciting entertainment – you may try crazy time watch live.
Chuck
What it’s about: a careless consultant from an electronics store accidentally downloads a CIA program into his brain and, without meaning to, becomes a super spy.
Before appearing in superhero films and voicing Flynn Rider in Disney’s Tangled, Zachary Levi captivated audiences in the sci-fi action comedy Chuck. There, he portrayed a charming “geek” who, by the will of fate, found himself in the center of espionage intrigues and got away with it with the help of new and old friends, as well as thanks to his courage, ingenuity, and willingness to use super knowledge and super skills for good. In essence, it was a great superhero comedy that did away with the mossy conventions of classic comics. Levy’s co-stars on the series included Yvonne Strahovski, Adam Baldwin, Josh Gomez, Sarah Lancaster, Ryan McPartlin, and Vik Sahay.
Wilfred
What it’s about: A profoundly depressed young man begins to see his neighbor’s dog as a guy in a dog suit who becomes his best friend.
Comedian Jason Gann created Wilfred for his native Australian television and then, with his American colleagues, created a Hollywood remake that developed and deepened the ideas of this bizarre project at the intersection of tragicomedy and postmodern absurdity. Surprisingly, for a seemingly outlandish show about a guy in a dog suit and his best friend, Wilfred fearlessly tackled sensitive topics like living with depression, suffering alone, and teetering on the brink of a nervous breakdown. And he found the right words to talk about it without being boring and with humor. Elijah Wood played the second primary role in the series.
Malcolm in the Middle
What: a brilliant boy survives in a family with five sons
Bryan Cranston shocked American audiences when he began playing Walter White in the 2008 crime smash hit Breaking Bad. After all, before this, he was known and adored as the kindest, loving, and childish dad from the children’s sitcom “Malcolm in the Middle.” This comedy show did not use voice-over laughter, was filmed in a film style, allowed the main character to break through the “fourth wall,” and, due to this, stood out favorably against the background of formulaic children’s comedies. It was also highly inventive. Its authors found humor in the most banal family conflicts. The show was hugely popular and became an icon of children’s shows in the 2000s. Along with Cranston, the series stars Frankie Muniz, Jane Kaczmarek, Justin Berfield, Erik Per Sullivan, and Christopher Masterson.
Alf
What it’s about: a furry alien from a distant planet lands on Earth and finds refuge in an American family
When puppeteer and ventriloquist Paul Fusco came up with the goofy, brash, yet charming and hilarious alien, he first honed ALF’s humor on comedy-club patrons and then convinced the producers working with The Muppet Show writers to create a family sitcom about ALF’s life in an ordinary family. Compared to the usual portrayal of space aliens as pompous or dangerous “superior beings”, the down-to-earth ALF seemed like a fresh idea, and he quickly captivated children and adults alike and became one of the television legends of the 1980s. Fusco himself voiced the title character. Other key Alpha characters were played by Max Wright, Anne Schedeen, Andrea Elson, and Benji Gregory.
That ’70s Show
What it’s about: Teenagers coming of age in America in the late 1970s.
The second half of the 1970s was a controversial era for American youth. On the one hand, it was the time of Star Wars, the first video games, the first VCRs, the heyday of rock and metal. On the other hand, the United States suffered from an economic crisis and was deeply affected by the political consequences of the lost war in Vietnam and the Watergate scandal. The nostalgic sitcom That ’70s Show tried to capture every aspect of growing up in that era, making it more challenging and dramatic than some of its peers. The looseness of the series helped it gain enormous popularity. The key characters in the sitcom were played by Topher Grace, Mila Kunis, Ashton Kutcher, Danny Masterson, Laura Prepon, Wilmer Valderrama, Debra Jo Rupp, and Kurtwood Smith.
Moonlighting
What it’s about: A former top model and a ditzy private investigator run a small detective agency.
The “dramedy” genre, popular in the USA, Russia, South Korea, and many other countries, appeared and took shape thanks to such hits as “Moonlight Detective Agency”. The authors of the show combined a romantic comedy in the spirit of “The Taming of the Shrew” and a criminal adventure that parodies the classic “noir” cinema about private detectives and fatal beauties. The sexy characters of The Agency, played by Cybill Shepherd and Bruce Willis, and their constant humorous sparring became the standard for later romantic shows. The Agency also paved the way for Willis, from a charming comedians to savior of humanity. Starring alongside the two leading stars was Ellis Beasley.
What We Do in the Shadows
What: Ancient vampires survive in the modern world
When vampires first appeared on screen, they seemed like nightmarish creatures from hell. However, a hundred years later, vampires hardly scare anyone, and the public is not surprised that one of the best comedy series of recent years is a sarcastic sitcom about vampires. While many recent vampire movies and shows reimagine vampire mythology to make the bloodsuckers scary again, What We Do in the Shadows meticulously recreates all the traditional legends to ultimately turn vampires and other paranormal creatures into a ridiculous joke. However, the characters in the show are charming in their way. Otherwise, viewers would not have followed their adventures over dozens of episodes. The main characters of the show are portrayed by Kayvan Novak, Matt Berry, Natasia Demetriou, Harvey Guillen, and Mark Proksch.
Father Ted
What: Three Irish priests live in exile on a small island off the coast of Ireland.
Ireland loves to joke sharply, and Catholic priests are one of the favorite topics for local comedians. Irish screenwriter Arthur Matthews came up with Father Ted when he lived in Dublin and performed on stage with sketches, and after moving to London, he, together with Graham Linehan, also from Ireland, developed his idea into a provocative and sarcastic sitcom about the antics of “bad fathers”. However, Linehan asked viewers to watch the series as a comedy about specific people and not as a comprehensive criticism of the Church, in whose ranks one can find both saints and scoundrels. Be that as it may, Father Ted became the most popular sitcom in Ireland and one of the most successful sitcoms in Britain. The three priests were portrayed by Dermot Morgan, Ardal O’Hanlon, and Frank Kelly.
The Golden Girls
What it’s about: Four older single women live together in Miami.
The idea for “The Golden Girls” was born as an ironic advertising skit that offered viewers “Miami Grannies” instead of the popular show “Miami Vice” (in English, it is “Miami Nice” instead of “Miami Vice”). Suddenly, one of the bosses at NBC decided that such a sitcom was worth making, and screenwriter Susan Harris contracted to write a show that none of her colleagues wanted to take on. Few believed in the series’ success about lively widows, but The Golden Girls turned out to be one of the most charming sitcoms in the history of American TV. Although the primary recipients of the show were the same age as the heroines, all of America, young and old, followed the adventures of grandmothers, who, from episode to episode, proved that at 50, life is just beginning. The title characters were played by Beatrice Arthur, Betty White, Rue McClanahan, and Estelle Getty.
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