More Friday Fluff

Zipping around the local blogosphere, thanks to Random Thoughts 101, is the “favorite TV shows ever” meme. You can read his or Buffalopundit’s, or Cliff’s or Kelly’s as well as their commenters responses at their respective sites.

Suffice it to say that after reading the comments I think some people have either been watching TV for a very, very, very short time or they missed the “Of All Time” portion of the question. Or, perhaps, I misinterpreted it. I took it to mean what five shows would you like the complete collection of episodes on DVD to take with you to the desert island. Now, I’m not sure what desert island has electricity and a DVD player, but that’s another issue.

So, my top-five:

1. Seinfeld. It’s almost a universal first-response, and well earned.

2. Simpsons. It may have lost some steam, but it’s still worthy. And besides, seasons 3-6 are just amazing.

3. Saturday Night Live. Judge it not by what it is, but what it has been. Has any show besides Seinfeld contributed so many lines and sayings to the American vernacular?

4. MASH. Sustained itself at such a high level for such a long time, while managing to switch effortlessly from comedy to drama.

5. Frasier. I catch reruns every now and again and it still manages to make me laugh out loud. The best developed secondary characters in sitcom history, plus a great mix of dry humor and slapstick.

Obviously, you see all comedies because being stuck on a desert island would require some humor. Actually, I think it’s because the same joke can make me laugh over and over, whereas the drama of an ER or CSI or some other acronym show only keeps it’s effect through one or two viewings.