The 2010s reshaped television through fierce competition among broadcast networks, cable outlets and streaming services, creating room for ambitious dramas, inventive comedies, animation and limited series. At the top of ShowBiz’s ranking of the decade’s standouts is “Mad Men,” followed by “The Leftovers” and “Breaking Bad.”

The selection focuses on programs that aired most of their episodes from 2010 through 2019, including some that began before the decade or concluded afterward. Consistency across seasons and lasting cultural impact were central to the ranking.

The Top Five

1. “Mad Men” (2007-2015): Matthew Weiner’s drama followed Sterling Cooper advertising executive Don Draper (Jon Hamm) through the 1960s as he wrestled with his identity and a changing clientele. The series collected four Emmys for outstanding drama series before ending in 2015, using its Madison Avenue setting to examine both historical and contemporary America.

2. “The Leftovers” (2014-2017): Damon Lindelof and Tom Perrotta adapted Perrotta’s novel into a 28-episode, three-season exploration of grief. Set three years after 140 million people vanish in the Sudden Departure, the story centers in part on police chief Kevin Garvey (Justin Theroux) and Nora Durst (Carrie Coon), who lost her entire family.

3. “Breaking Bad” (2008-2013): Vince Gilligan’s five-season drama charted chemistry teacher Walter White’s transformation into a major New Mexico meth dealer. Bryan Cranston won four Emmys for outstanding lead actor in a drama series, while the show’s success led to the prequel series “Better Call Saul” and sequel film “El Camino.”

4. “Twin Peaks: The Return” (2017): David Lynch and Mark Frost returned to the mystery left behind when “Twin Peaks” ended in 1991. The limited series brought back Kyle MacLachlan as FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper, continuing a story involving the Black Lodge, Dougie Jones and the murder of Laura Palmer (Sheryl Lee).

5. “Veep”: The seven-season American adaptation of Armando Iannucci’s British satire “The Thick of It” starred Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Vice President Selina Meyer, whose pursuit of political power included reaching the presidency and attempting a comeback. Louis-Dreyfus won six consecutive Emmys for outstanding lead actress in a comedy series.

From Crime Dramas to Surreal Comedy

6. “Better Call Saul” (2015-2022): Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould followed aspiring lawyer Jimmy McGill (Bob Odenkirk) as he became Saul Goodman. Set before and after “Breaking Bad,” the series combined his involvement in New Mexico’s illegal drug trade with black-and-white glimpses of his later life as a Cinnabon manager.

7. “BoJack Horseman” (2014-2020): Raphael Bob-Waksberg’s six-season Netflix animated series starred Will Arnett as a faded sitcom actor living in a world where humans and anthropomorphic animals coexist. Its Hollywood satire grew into an examination of addiction, self-destruction, suicide and redemption.

8. “The Americans” (2013-2018): Created by former CIA officer Joe Weisberg, the 1980s-set drama featured Matthew Rhys and Keri Russell as Soviet KGB agents Philip and Elizabeth Jennings. Their covert work, marriage and family life became more complicated when Philip befriended FBI agent Stan Beeman (Noah Emmerich).

9. “Parks and Recreation” (2009-2015): Greg Daniels and Michael Schur’s workplace comedy found its voice after an uneven first season. Amy Poehler led the ensemble as Pawnee bureaucrat Leslie Knope, alongside Nick Offerman as Ron Swanson and Adam Scott as Ben Wyatt.

10. “Fleabag” (2016-2019): Adapted from Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s one-woman show, the two-season comedy let its central character speak directly to viewers. Andrew Scott joined as Hot Priest in Season 2, which won six prizes at the 2019 Emmys, including outstanding comedy series, lead actress and comedy writing.

Rounding Out the 15

11. “Atlanta” (2016-2022): Donald Glover played Earn Marks, who manages cousin Alfred “Paper Boi” Miles (Brian Tyree Henry). Zazie Beetz and LaKeith Stanfield co-starred in the surreal exploration of Black life, which returned after a four-year gap for two final seasons in 2022.

12. “Justified” (2010-2015): Graham Yost brought Elmore Leonard’s Raylan Givens stories to television, with Timothy Olyphant playing a deputy U.S. marshal reassigned to his Kentucky hometown. Walton Goggins co-starred as Boyd Crowder. The property returned in 2023 with the limited series “Justified: City Primeval.”

13. “Game of Thrones” (2011-2019): David Benioff and D. B. Weiss adapted George R.R. Martin’s fantasy books into an ensemble battle for the Iron Throne. The series won 59 Emmys and broke Guinness World Records for television simulcast audiences, though its divisive final season kept it from placing higher. Peter Dinklage won four Emmys as Tyrion Lannister.

14. “Community” (2009-2015): Dan Harmon’s comedy starred Joel McHale as disbarred attorney Jeff Winger, who enrolls in community college and joins a study group. Its meta humor and high-concept episodes repeatedly played with television and movie conventions.

15. “The Good Place” (2016-2020): Michael Schur’s NBC comedy ran for four seasons and 53 episodes. Kristen Bell played Eleanor Shellstrop, who navigated an unconventional afterlife with Michael (Ted Danson) while the series explored ethics, human imperfection and the effort to become better.

ShowBiz Take

The ranking’s range is the real story of 2010s television. A period advertising drama sits alongside an animated Hollywood satire, a political farce, a Cold War thriller and an afterlife comedy. Several selections also crossed decade boundaries, showing that influence cannot always be contained by a calendar. Together, these 15 programs demonstrate how the era’s strongest shows paired distinctive concepts with characters whose struggles sustained years of storytelling.