GENERAL DISCUSSIONS

TV Guide: The Top 30 Cult TV Shows Ever

POSTED BY: CLJOHNSTON108
UPDATED: Monday, July 9, 2007 14:47
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Friday, June 29, 2007 2:27 PM

CLJOHNSTON108


Saw this posted on SF Signal, and I really liked the commentary and discussion...

SF Signal: TV Guide: The Top 30 Cult TV Shows Ever
http://www.sfsignal.com/archives/005280.html

Joss made the list twice!

The article also asks: "Did the big-screen Serenity help or hinder Firefly's under-the-radar cachet?"

TV Guide Names the Top Cult Shows Ever - Celebrity and Entertainment News | TVGuide.com
http://www.tvguide.com/news/top-cult-shows/070629-01

*Denotes newcomer to the list

30) Strangers with Candy (1999-2000)*
29) Absolutely Fabulous (1994-2003)
28) Stargate SG-1 (1997-2007)*
27) H.R. Pufnstuf (1969-1971)
26) Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman (1975-1978)
25) Firefly (2002-2003)*
24) Twin Peaks (1990-1991)
23) Dark Shadows (1966-1971)
22) Doctor Who (1963-present)
21) Freaks and Geeks (1999-2000)

20) The Avengers (1966-1969)
19) Quantum Leap (1989-1993)
18) Veronica Mars (2004-2007)*
17) Beauty and the Beast (1987-1990)
16) Babylon 5 (1994-1998)
15) Family Guy (1999-present)
14) Battlestar Galactica (2003-present)*
13) Mystery Science Theater 3000 (1989-1999)
12) Pee-Wee's Playhouse (1986-1991)
11) Jericho (2006-present)*

10) Xena: Warrior Princess (1995-2001)
9) Twilight Zone (1959-1964)
8) The Simpsons (1989-present)
7) The Prisoner (1967-1968)
6) Monty Python's Flying Circus (1969-1974)
5) Lost (2004-present)*
4) Farscape (1999-2003)
3) Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997-2003)
2) The X-Files (1993-2002)
1) Star Trek (1966-1969)


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Friday, June 29, 2007 3:17 PM

FREEBAGEL


Most of my favorite shows are on this list, including Firefly, B5, BSG, Jericho, and Lost.

As a fan of all five, I would put none of the latter three ahead of Firefly and B5, yet they all appear higher on the list seemingly just because they were more popular, which shouldn't be how this works..

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Friday, June 29, 2007 5:21 PM

DRU


I would have kept Forever Knight on the list..

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Saturday, June 30, 2007 5:24 AM

MARYLOU


Methinks Jericho gets cult status merely because of the NUTS thing...and if that's not a small, devoted fanbase, what is?
(And, I don't know particularly why, I LOVE that show, even though I came into it post-nuts...it's like Lost, somehow, without the smoke monsters...)

Lost, although I love it, does not belong on this list. I believe that yes, too much widespread popularity (in the news and popular media, especially) disqualifies it. In my opinion, if everyone is talking about last night's episode around the water cooler (or school hallway) the next morning, it's not cult.
The same can go for The Simpsons (yay!!) and Family Guy (eeewww), too, though not to the same degree...even though, I confess, I know very little of their fanbases.

I'm not sure about Doctor Who...I LOVE the new series, but I understand that it's quite popular in Britain, so does that make it go the same way as Lost? Can a show be cult in one country, but not in another?

Oh, yeah. And Firefly is love, obviously. :D

- \\// Mary Lou


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Sunday, July 1, 2007 8:19 AM

IRISHWASH


good list, nearly all my favourite shows are there including,
buffy, firefly, farscape, SG-1 and the absolutely brilliant doctor who and it deserves to be on this list, but will agree with lost and the simpsons as being to mainstream

irishwash

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Sunday, July 1, 2007 2:35 PM

LEXAN


The Prisoner shouldn't be #7...It should be #6.

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Sunday, July 1, 2007 3:01 PM

CLJOHNSTON108


Quote:

Originally posted by Lexan:
The Prisoner shouldn't be #7...It should be #6.


Hehe, yeah!

Of course, I thought numbering the Crybaby #6 was a nod to The Prisoner.

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Tuesday, July 3, 2007 6:53 PM

LEXAN


Arrested Development should probably also be there...

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Wednesday, July 4, 2007 1:45 AM

ANOBJECTINSPACE


Quote:

I'm not sure about Doctor Who...I LOVE the new series, but I understand that it's quite popular in Britain, so does that make it go the same way as Lost? Can a show be cult in one country, but not in another?


Dr. Who should still have cult status. Even though they don't really distinguish the new revived version to the old one the Cultiness of the old one should be able to keep it up and alive in the cult catagory.

I think B5 should be up a lot higher. It was the defining series for an enclosed series. In that the creator wanted his five seasons to tell a story and he got it and his story out.

4) Farscape (1999-2003)
3) Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997-2003)
2) The X-Files (1993-2002)
1) Star Trek (1966-1969)

The Top four makes me orgasm. It is brilliant and I would agree with it whoel heartedly. They get Kudos for that.

I think though, The Simpsons, Lost, Jericho and the New BSG don't really deserve to be there. The Simpsons and Lost are too mainstream and have been for a long while. Jehricho, despite the nuts campaign, and the new BSG just don't have that cult TV show feeling to them.

Finally, OMG I can;t believe they put AbFab on there. That is brilliant!

.....
"It's just an Object"
[IMG][/IMG]

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Thursday, July 5, 2007 9:29 AM

THEHOPGOBLIN


Erm. Am I the only one who remember's Space: Above and Beyond? The first Fox-downed sci-fi show that had a big following? Its only been 10-12 years :( . It should be up there more than some of those. Twin Peaks? C'mon - the following stopped after about 1-2 years.

Is the cult-statis simply the popularity at the time and shortly thereafter, or popularity still today?

Strangers with Candy?? Pee-Wee's playhouse??? Freaks and Geeks????
Some of these seriously need to be reconsidered.

When the hell did Pee-Wee's play house get a bunch of 'brown-coat'-like folks together to beg, plead, petition to get the show back on air?

Me = Very not happy with the position of Firefly and Space, or BSG for that matter.

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Thursday, July 5, 2007 10:40 AM

MSG


still pissed they managed to ressurect Jericho...what about us. WE are far more devoted fans !!

"I'm not all that interested in the mental health of people who want to kill me. "- Leroy Jethro Gibbs


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Friday, July 6, 2007 9:40 PM

MISSTRESSAHARA


Amen MSG. It's not even a good show, forget great show, it's minimum fluff mainstream crap. (sorry, I just really hate that show)

Why in the hell is Heroes not on there? Don't tell me cause it's mainstream. Hell it hit cult status the first episode. Lost is on there, Jericho is on there, Simpsons is on there, why the hell not Heroes dag nammit?

A lot of shows on there I never watched once, and the ones I have should be much higher on the list. (xena? God I hated that crap, it and hercules raped the greek myths to nothing)

That list needs a revisit.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
~*Peter* Peter*; power *re-peater*~
`@/
/Y
/_)

*Petrelli for President. Together we can soar.*
**********~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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HEROE'S IS MY CRACK!
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Saturday, July 7, 2007 11:49 AM

ECCLES


*shakes head* Well, apparently this poll only takes into account those of us living in the northern hemisphere...As an Aussie, I've never even heard of half of these shows...!

And what bright spark decided the new (and IMHO, blasphemous) Battlestar Galactica gets cult status, when I'm damn sure I remember the original version getting far more accolades than the new one could ever hope for?

No, I'm looking at that list and thinking that whoever collated it had - as the genie of Aladdin would say - "one too many hits with the snake..."

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Saturday, July 7, 2007 12:19 PM

MARYMAEVE


HAS ANYONE NOTICED THAT THE MAJORITY OF THE "CULT" SHOWS ARE SCIENCE FICTION OR SCIENCE FICTION RELATED? DOES THIS SAY ANYTHING ABOUT S/F PEOPLE?

MARYMAEVE

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Saturday, July 7, 2007 2:07 PM

MISSTRESSAHARA


What's with the screaming Mary? Can get annoying after awhile.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
~*Peter* Peter*; power *re-peater*~
`@/
/Y
/_)

*Petrelli for President. Together we can soar.*
**********~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
**********~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
**********~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
**********~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
**********~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

HEROE'S IS MY CRACK!
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~


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Saturday, July 7, 2007 7:40 PM

MARYMAEVE


sorry, I rally did not notice the caps lock was on until I wa done, Too lazy to fix. But what aboui almost of the "cult shows being S/F? That seems more worthy of comment that shouting. just saying.

marymaeve

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Sunday, July 8, 2007 4:40 PM

MRPITHER


Quote:

Originally posted by msg:
still pissed they managed to ressurect Jericho...what about us. WE are far more devoted fans !!

...


cbs is smarter (or not as stoopid) as fox.

---
you can't take the sky from me...

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Monday, July 9, 2007 2:47 PM

STROKINGMYPETER


well i think this list is for the most part totally screwed up. firefly deserves to be way closer to number one. however, i cannot express my jubilation at seeing The X-Files, my personal favorite television show ever, at number two, though i think it should be number one.

go mulder!!!

dreams are answers to questions we havn't yet figured out how to ask.

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