# The most consistent television series **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 30, 2018, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-consistent-television-series/818824 "2018-07-30T18:50:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Aescwynn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/73ab20/32.png) [@Aescwynn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aescwynn)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2018, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-consistent-television-series/818824/61 "2018-08-01T14:56:11Z")
Has anyone mentioned Taxi? And who can forget Leave It to Beaver? ---
**Author:** ![JohnGalt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johngalt/32/184_2.png) [@JohnGalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnGalt)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2018, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-consistent-television-series/818824/62 "2018-08-01T15:42:52Z")
The obvious answer is _Police Squad_. What do I win? Or is six episodes too short to qualify? ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2018, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-consistent-television-series/818824/63 "2018-08-01T16:15:38Z")
> [@digs](#): > > I guess _someone_ got caught… with their barn door open!" [removes sunglasses] The show was NOT CSI: Scooby Doo. And Freddy was not played by David Caruso. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Infovore](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/infovore/32/420_2.png) [@Infovore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infovore)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2018, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-consistent-television-series/818824/64 "2018-08-01T18:45:59Z")
I thought the old \*Cupid \*(the original with Jeremy Piven, not the reboot) was consistently good. _The Brady Bunch_ (at least pre-Cousin Oliver) and _Gilligan’s Island_ were both consistent. Not consistently _good_, but as after-school comfort food for kids, they maintained a pretty even keel. So far, \*Riverdale \*has been consistent. The plots keep getting more and more melodramatic and implausible, but within their weird Twin Peaks-meets-high-school-soap opera vibe, they’re keeping on. ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2018, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-consistent-television-series/818824/65 "2018-08-01T19:20:50Z")
Happy Days was pretty good up until Fonzie, you know, jumped the shark. > [@dalej42](#): > > The only other show I can think of that was reliably consistent is Murder She Wrote, that show went on forever but I can watch any episode and enjoy it. The reason it was consistent is the same reason oatmeal is always consistent. It was formulaic and there was never a great show. > [@SykoSkotty](#): > > M_A_S\*H was always funny, I can’t recall a single episode I would call “inconsistent” I agree. After a few seasons they experimented with different things to keep from getting into a rut (like a show with no laugh track; addressing serious issues; etc.), which wasn’t exactly consistent but kept it consistently good. ---
**Author:** ![caligulathegod](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/caligulathegod/32/9685_2.png) [@caligulathegod](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/caligulathegod)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2018, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-consistent-television-series/818824/66 "2018-08-01T20:21:20Z")
MASH was really two different shows. The early sitcom version transitioned into a dramedy. Both worked on their own level, even with Hawkeye Sue. Happy Days kind of did the reverse. It started as a single camera show that had humor and pathos but it evolved into a traditional 3 camera gag sitcom. I prefer the early version with Fonzie being a bit more hoodish and sadly spending his Christmas alone eating beans from a can. Mrs. Cunningham was a racist in one episode. When they changed to 3 camera, it became the magical Fonzie Goodtime half hour show. Andy Griffith Show was great until Barney left and it went to color. It was almost as drastic a change as MASH made. Seinfeld was great until Larry David left and then it became more silly. Still funny, but not in the same way. Now, after a decade of mainlining Larry David on Curb, it is really easy to spot the episodes he wrote on Seinfeld. Usually involving obsessions and unreasonable characters. Shows I remember being consistent to their level (that is, there was never a “the (early or) late ones sucked”) were largely already mentioned. Along with Cheers and Frasier, I’ll add Wings (very underrated show), WKRP in Cincinnati (original network version), All in the Family (it did start to go off the rails that last season that transitioned into Archie Bunker’s Place), and I’m sure I’ll think of more. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2018, 8:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-consistent-television-series/818824/67 "2018-08-01T20:52:00Z")
> [@caligulathegod](#): > > I prefer the early version with Fonzie being a bit more hoodish and sadly spending his Christmas alone eating beans from a can. Ravioli. It was ravioli. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![janeslogin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@janeslogin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/janeslogin)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2018, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-consistent-television-series/818824/68 "2018-08-01T21:26:19Z")
OP asks about consistency. I would say Dick Van Dyke and I Love Lucy were consistently BAD. No exceptions. Not one. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2018, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-consistent-television-series/818824/69 "2018-08-01T21:28:17Z")
> [@janeslogin](#): > > OP asks about consistency. I would say Dick Van Dyke and I Love Lucy were consistently BAD. No exceptions. Not one. Heresy! :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Infovore](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/infovore/32/420_2.png) [@Infovore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infovore)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2018, 10:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-consistent-television-series/818824/70 "2018-08-01T22:05:26Z")
Thought of another one: _Frasier_. I have all 11 seasons on DVD, and while I’m sure there were some that weren’t as good as others, IIRC the writing for all of them was fairly consistently good. ---
**Author:** ![caligulathegod](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/caligulathegod/32/9685_2.png) [@caligulathegod](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/caligulathegod)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2018, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-consistent-television-series/818824/71 "2018-08-01T22:16:32Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > Ravioli. It was ravioli. 😉 I’m impressed you could make that out. I just rewatched it and couldn’t tell what it was. Still brought a tear to my eye, though. [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/GFkGd5H1d6E/hqdefault.jpg "A Happy Days Christmas") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GFkGd5H1d6E) ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2018, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-consistent-television-series/818824/72 "2018-08-01T23:36:09Z")
[quote=“caligulathegod, post:71, topic:818824”] I’m impressed you could make that out. I just rewatched it and couldn’t tell what it was. Still brought a tear to my eye, though. [/QUOTE] I remember Richie telling his parents that Fonzie wasn’t going anywhere for Christmas; he’d just seen him in his apartment (above the garage?) heating a can of ravioli (in a saucepan full of water, I think it was). ---
**Author:** ![goldmund](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a4c791/32.png) [@goldmund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/goldmund)\ **Post date:** [August 1, 2018, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-consistent-television-series/818824/73 "2018-08-01T23:57:33Z")
I’ve never seen a bad episode of _Monk_. There were some annoying moments, like the jackhammer scene in _Mr. Monk Takes Manhattan_, but I enjoyed every episode in the series. If _Fawlty Towers_ had enough episodes to qualify, then so did _Firefly_. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2018, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-consistent-television-series/818824/74 "2018-08-02T00:13:31Z")
In nine seasons, _ **Foyle’s War** _ never had a bad episode. Neither did _ **Danger UXB** _ during its run. Except for part of the first season, where the show departed notably from the books, the original \*\*\*Poldark \*\*\* was consistently excellent. Even when it did diverge, it was still good. (Haven’t seen the reboot, so I can’t comment on it.) The first two seasons of _ **A Place to Call Home** _, with a Holocaust survivor forced to deal with antisemitism, were great. Like _ **House** _, however, they stretched it out well beyond the second season (which even had a “The End” in the closing scene) until it became nothing but another soap opera, and an especially silly one at that. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2018, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-consistent-television-series/818824/75 "2018-08-02T02:07:28Z")
In terms of “If you’ve seen one, you’ve seen 'em all!” I’d have to put _ **Hell’s Kitchen** _ and \*\*\*Dragon’s Den \*\*\* (or _ **Shark Tank** _, if you prefer) at the top of the list. Except for the one with batshit crazy Amy, _ **Kitchen Nightmares** _ comes close, as does _ **Pawn Stars** _. I grew tired of all of these long, long ago. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2018, 9:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-consistent-television-series/818824/76 "2018-08-02T09:53:38Z")
> [@janeslogin](#): > > OP asks about consistency. I would say Dick Van Dyke and I Love Lucy were consistently BAD. No exceptions. Not one. There are hundreds of consistently bad series, that’s shooting fish in a bucket. The OP is asking for examples of consistent quality. from the OP: > [@dalej42](#): > > I’ve been watching Cheers on Netflix and it struck me as how there’s never a bad episode…The only other show I can think of that was reliably consistent is Murder She Wrote, that show went on forever but I can watch any episode and enjoy it. Also, having seen 157 (Dick Van Dyke) and 192 (I Love Lucy) “BAD” episodes of a show, I’m curious to ask why you stuck around for the 158th and 193rd episodes (and are thus qualified to state “No exceptions. Not one.”)? mmm ---
**Author:** ![Banquet\_Bear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/banquet_bear/32/373_2.png) [@Banquet\_Bear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Banquet_Bear)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2018, 12:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-consistent-television-series/818824/77 "2018-08-02T12:13:07Z")
…Leverage for me. I can dip into the series at any stage and enjoy any episode. There is continuity between episodes from first to last, consistent and lasting character growth, two long-game-slow-burn-romances, and a perfect ending. It never got boring, the main characters were competence-porn personified but they did make mistakes which made it all the more interesting. A few episodes towards the end of the final season were a bit dodgy IMHO, but I’ll give them a pass because I can 🙂 I got into the show because of [Mark Watches review](http://markwatches.net/reviews/category/past-shows/leverage/) of the series, so if you haven’t seen it and want to consider it then have a read of the reviews of the first few episodes. ---
**Author:** ![Snake\_Plissken\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bc79bd/32.png) [@Snake\_Plissken\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snake_Plissken_1)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2018, 5:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-consistent-television-series/818824/78 "2018-08-02T17:04:22Z")
“The Wire” had a five year run on HBO and was really good the whole time. Creator David Simon knows his cop shows. ---
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2018, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-consistent-television-series/818824/79 "2018-08-02T18:04:15Z")
> [@digs](#): > > The Dick Van Dyke Show. Granted, my enjoyment meter flops to zero whenever Richie (the whiny, wooden son) is on camera, but redlines again as soon as he’s out of frame. I must disagree. Not about the DvD Show being consistently funny, which it was, but about Richie not being enjoyable. Larry Mathews may not have been the best kid actor ever, but Carl Reiner created a quirky character who said some pretty damn inappropriate stuff, and Mathews’ usually exuberant delivery sold it nicely. I watched an episode recently in which Rob is upset about having to miss Richie’s school play. He askes Richie if all the other dads will be there. Richie replies, “No, Tommy Martin’s dad won’t be there… 'cause he’s DEAD!” with a big grin on his face. Cracked me up. Plus, he was hiding in cupboards a couple decades before Randy did it in _A Christmas Story._ ---
**Author:** ![FatOrangeCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/cab0a1/32.png) [@FatOrangeCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FatOrangeCat)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2018, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-consistent-television-series/818824/80 "2018-08-02T20:06:51Z")
I can’t believe that no one has mentioned “The West Wing” [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-consistent-television-series/818824.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-consistent-television-series/818824.md?page=5)