With every passing year, hundreds of TV shows air their pilot episode, and hundreds air their final episode. In an industry that has such quick turnarounds and constant unease regarding job security, it is hard to find a show that seems to be invincible. Although the animated sector dominates the long-running TV show market, many shows survive on topical relevance, stories that can be told with any cast, or plots centered around a mainstay environment, such as a police station or school.
These TV shows have kept the attention of fans for decades, maintaining their older fan bases while appealing to the younger generations as well. When a TV show keeps its quality throughout every new season, while still using its formula that fans are familiar with, it rarely loses fans. The following entries in this list have earned their spot due to cultural relevance and consistent craftsmanship, lighting up TV screens and bringing comfort to millions of homes every night.
10Doctor Who
Began in 1963
Doctor Whois a British sci-fi series centered around The Doctor, a multi-life alien with a time travel machine. Throughout the show, The Doctor faces off against everything, ranging from evil alien species to historical human threats. With trusty human companions almost always by his side, he is able to show off his emotional range and empathy towards humans.
Despite keeping his memories each time he regenerates, his appearance and personality change, allowing the show to explore different layers of its protagonist.
Doctor Who
Originally premiered in 1963, Doctor Who is a sci-fi series that follows a powerful being known as a Time Lord, referred to as the Doctor. Using an interdimensional time-traveling ship known as the TARDIS, the Doctor travels time and space with various companions as they solve multiple problems and help avert catastrophe as much as they almost cause it. Though the Doctor is always the same character, they experience regenerations, allowing them to be recast every few seasons as a unique immortal being with new personality traits.
Why It Works
What started with a set ending, claiming that The Doctor had thirteen lives, has now expanded to allow the show to continue. SinceDoctor Whois a show that canconstantly replace its entire castwhile still following the same formula, it allows the showrunners to tell the same beloved stories through fresh perspectives, keeping it fun and new. As the only sci-fi entry on this list, it is also a guarantee to scratch the sci-fi itch for viewers.
9Family Guy
Began in 1999
Family Guyis an animated FOX series following the adventures of the Griffin’s, a dysfunctional family, complete with a talking British baby and talking dog. The show explores every plot possible, going from aStar Warsparody to the lead character, Peter, hosting his own kids television show.
With fan-favorite characters and inventive storylines,Family Guyconstantly reinvents itself while keeping its format over itstwenty-two seasons, a key for shows to survive. Networks have tried to kill the show on no less than two occasions, but each time it refused to stay dead.
Family Guy
The animated medium opens a world of possibilities, allowing the creators to explore whatever topics they can think up. With quick punchlines, ridiculous physical comedy, and pop-culture-related jokes,Family Guymaintains its relevance with modern audiences.
The certain comfort that comes from the show, with each character generally remaining within their stereotype, lets audiences almost mindlessly watch, leaving it on for hours at a time, whether for their entertainment or simple background noise.
8South Park
Began in 1997
South Parkcenters around an elementary school in South Park, Colorado. While mainly following the lives of some of the students, it has since expanded tofeature their familiesand communities as well.
Filled with ridiculously obscene jokes,South Parkis far from a kids show, going so far as to kill one of the kids, Kenny, in countless episodes. The offensive jokes told in an animated show about kids creates an outrageous juxtaposition that just simply works, captivating audiences over multiple decades.
South Park
Similarly toFamily Guy, the animated style allows for this show to never end, as these characters never age. By focusing on current events, including specials that cover everything from the COVID pandemic to Ozempic, it can always maintain relevance, poking fun at whatever is in the news that year. With plenty of lovable and hateable characters, fans love to watch these characters continue to fall into the same habits.
7Saturday Night Live
Began in 1975
Saturday Night Liveis an NBC live sketch comedy that has produced countless talents through hilarious skits, monologues, and performances. Featuring musical acts, political impersonations, digital shorts, and so much more, this live audience show has produced high-quality content since 1975.
With names ranging from Will Ferrell to Robin Williams to Tina Fey, audiences have continually fallen in love with the featured comedians.
Saturday Night Live
The longest-running sketch-comedy/satire show on television, premiering in 1975, Saturday Night Live is a weekly series that features new hosts for each episode, with a core cast of actors and comedians that rotate over time. Episodes feature several skits that are sometimes ad-libbed on the fly, with the hosts engaging in most of them, and also provide musical guest performances that cap off each night.
As evidenced in the entries above, centering around pop culture is a big reason some shows survive, as they are always able to draw a modern audience. There’s also the fact that it has a constantly rotating cast that has proven the skill of the casting department givesSNLan abundance of staying power. As popular stars continue to host episodes, new audiences will be brought in, introducing the show to the younger generations.
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6The Simpsons
Began in 1989
The Simpsonsis a FOX animated satire on American life, focused around the iconic yellow Simpsons family. Similarly toFamily Guy,it takes on political, cultural, and social issues that are present throughout our country. The foolish dad, Homer, works at a nuclear power plant to support his family.
Beginning in 1989,The Simpsonsis the longest-running American animated series, and the longest-running American sitcom. It has also led to the creation of further media, including a movie, comic books, video games, and theme park rides.
The Simpsons
Just as withSouth ParkandFamily Guy, this series succeeds because of its ability to provide social commentary on popular culture, with many fans believing in its ability topredict world events. With it being one of the longest-running shows in America, the Simpson family is an American staple, and a major source of comfort for viewers across the country.
This family has been around longer than nearly 50% of American citizens have been alive, a staggering statistic that shows the endurance of this famed sitcom.
5Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
Law & Order: Special Victims Unitis centered around the New York Police Detectives who work in the Special Victims Unit, investigating crimes of sexual nature. One of manyLaw & Ordershows, this one moves away from the topic of murder, focusing on sexual assault survivors as they aid the detectives in their case. Starring Mariska Hargitay and the rapper Ice-T,SVUhas been on the air since 1999, showing no signs of slowing down. In fact, it’s even outpaced the original series it spun off from.
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
Due to the work environment that the lead characters are in, as police detectives,SVUshowcases an area of life that will never go away — crime. With anabundance of plot ideasand continuous relevance, this show can go on until the end of humanity while still telling accurate stories.
Adding in a plethora of guest stars, ranging from Kate Mara to Will Arnett to even Logan Paul, this show has shown Americans a darker side of the country for over two and a half decades.
4Grey’s Anatomy
Began in 2005
Grey’s Anatomyis a medical drama series that began in 2005, following a group of young doctors in a Seattle hospital. Meredith Grey, the daughter of a famous surgeon, faces high expectations and personal issues revolving around pre-existing relationships with some of the staff. Although set in a hospital with busy work days and dramatic events, the show mainly focuses on the personal relationships between coworkers, with lots of romance involved.
Grey’s Anatomy
Similarly toSVU, the coworker drama in an irreplaceable workplace lets the show’s creators input constant drama. A hospital is an always changing environment with new challenges every day, giving viewers a spectacle to stay engaged in every episode. In the same vein, the familiar format of the show lets viewers tune in and out whenever they choose, providing perfect background television. This comfort provided by the show is what has powered it through twenty-one seasons and counting.
Grey’s Anatomy Needs to Leave this Misogynistic Trope Behind
Grey’s Anatomy is filled with all kinds of personalities and craziness, but one particular character trope needs to be left in the past.
3SpongeBob SquarePants
SpongeBob SquarePantsis a Nickelodeon animated series set under the sea, centered around its protagonist, SpongeBob, as he explores life in Bikini Bottom while working as a burger cook at The Krabby Patty. With his best friend Patrick and his loner coworker Squidward, SpongeBob gets into all sorts of hijinx.
Although a popular kids show,SpongeBob SquarePantshas alarge adult audience, as it has always featured jokes that may go over younger viewers' heads.
SpongeBob SquarePants
Spongebob Squarepants is an animated comedy created by Stephen Hillenburg and starring voices from Tom Kenny, Bill Fagerbakke, and Rodger Bumpass. The series revolves around a sea sponge that goes on many misadventures with his friends Patrick, Squidward, and Sandy Cheeks in the lands of Bikini Bottom and the surrounding sea.
As the fifth longest-running American animated series,SpongeBob SquarePantshas been a staple in American society since its inception in 1999. Although it went on a brief hiatus from 2017 to 2019 after creator Stephen Hillenburg passed away, the hit show has since returned, including multiple spinoffs and movies.
With over $13 billion in revenue generated in merchandising, this is a money-making machine that the studio will not let die, and with the immortality of animated characters, it can go for as long as it wants.
2Jeopardy!
Began in 1984
Jeopardy!is an American game show in which contestants are given general knowledge clues on a chosen topic, and must produce the answer for the provided clue. Originally debuting on NBC in 1964,Jeopardy!is one of the longest running game shows of all time, airing over nine thousand episodes and holding the record for Emmy’s won with forty-five.
Jeopardy!is the go-to trivia game show, with thousands of Americans tuning in every episode to test their knowledge. The only questionable period for the show was when long-running host, Alex Trebek, passed away in 2020. However, a variety of hosts rotated to finish off that season, and showrunners have since found apermanent host in Ken Jennings, a former contestant.
Featuring celebrities, other game show winners, athletes, and more,Jeopardy!draws in audiences with its star contestants, as winners of each episode go on to compete in the next episode, stringing together streaks that create conversation. When someone wants to try their luck, all they have to do is tune in to ABC any night of the week.
1General Hospital
General Hospitalfollows the lives of the citizens in the fictional town of Port Charles, New York. Filled with romance, danger, and plot twists alike, this long-running soap opera covers everything. With over 15,000 episodes,General Hospitalhas shared every aspect of American life on screen, giving viewers a glimpse into the evolution of society.
General Hospital
First airing in 1963, it is currently the longest-running soap opera in production.General Hospitalappeals to all areas of American life, utilizingpopular guest starsand never-ending drama to retain viewers. It became the last remaining soap opera on ABC in 2012, and has continued to thrive for the following twelve years, emphasizing the staying power of this series. With no more competition on air,General Hospitalhas cemented its permanence and preserved its legacy for the foreseeable future.
