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50 Best Comedy TV Shows on Netflix (2020)
Ranking the 50 best comedy TV shows on Netflix, including The Office, Friends and Parks and Recreation.
Whether it’s an animated comedy like BoJack Horseman or Big Mouth or a show with a large ensemble cast like Parks and Recreation or The Office, a well-written comedy is enough to make you forget about the stress from work or your personal life and leave your world and enter the world of the show you’re watching.
To help Netflix subscribers do the same, we ranked the 50 best comedy TV shows on Netflix, so you can start binge-watching on Netflix today.
After reading through the list, please add your favorite in the comments section at the bottom of the list or continue the conversation on our social media channels (links above) and chime in with your reactions to our list.
The list will be updated weekly as new shows come and old shows go, so be sure to bookmark the page and visit to see if your favorite can move into or keep the No. 1 spot.
50. Lady Dynamite
Release Year: 2016
Creator: Pam Brady, Mitch Hurwitz
Starring: Maria Bamford, Fred Melamed, Mary Kay Place, Lennon Parham, Bridget Everett
Maria Bamford plays a version of herself in this Netflix Original series released on May 20. Bamford was one of the rising female comics/actresses before a mental health breakdown put everything on hold.
In Lady Dynamite, we see Bamford putting the pieces back together with a sunny, cheerful, disposition that will easily win over viewers.
It’s a surreal comedy that breaks the fourth wall repeatedly in the first season and fans of another Hurwitz series, Arrested Development will notice some similarities in that regard to recurring inside jokes.
The list of stars making cameos in the first season is extensive with Patton Oswalt, Sarah Silverman, John Mulaney, Adam Pally, Wendie Malick, Ana Gasteyer and Brandon Routh among the notable guest appearances.
49. Schitt’s Creek
Release Year: 2015
Creator: Eugene Levy, Dan Levy
Starring: Eugene Levy, Catherine O’Hara, Dan Levy, Annie Murphy, Chris Elliott
The first two seasons of Schitt’s Creek were added to Netflix in early 2017 and is one of the underrated shows on Netflix. The series was created by the father and son duo of Eugene and Dan Levy who also star in the series.
Schitt’s Creek has a huge following in Canada but after airing on the Pop network in the United States, not a lot of people were able to watch the show when it aired originally. It’s just not a network found in a lot of homes. However, Netflix is and Schitt’s Creek is enjoying a second audience on the streaming network.
The series is about the Rose family who lost their wealth and their luxurious fortune and is suddenly forced to live their new lives in a trailer park town/community known as Schitt’s Creek.
48. Girlboss
Release Year: 2017
Creator: Kay Cannon
Starring: Britt Robertson, Ellie Reed, Johnny Simmons, Alphonso McAuley, Dean Norris, RuPaul, Jim Rash
The series is based on the book #Girlboss and the Nasty Gal fashion brand built by Sophia Amoruso. Britt Robertson plays the role of Sophia, a 23-year-old without much direction in her life and not much support from her family. Living in San Francisco, Sophia has a passion for fashion and she has an eye to spot great deals at local vintage shops.
When she finds a motorcycle jacket in mint condition she gets the idea to sell it on eBay in an effort to help pay her bills since she’s out of work. When the jacket sells for a small fortune, she has a light-bulb moment and she thinks she’s figured out what she’s going to do with her life. She is going to sell vintage clothes on eBay.
It’s not without some challenges along the way, however, and her personal life gets in the way too. Her love interest, her health, her friendships and her family provide some obstacles, distractions, challenges and opportunities for her to lose sight of her goal. I loved the Sophia character and Robertson’s interpretation of the role.
47. Mystery Science Theater 3000 The Return
Release Year: 2017
Creator: Joel Hodgson
Starring: Felicia Day, Patton Oswalt, Jonah Ray
The cult hit is back with a new cast as Jonah Ray hosts the remake for Netflix as he views real cheesy B movies with his robot buddies who keep him company as he’s being held captive by crazy scientists.
46. Derek
Release Year: 2012
Creator: Ricky Gervais
Starring: Ricky Gervais, Karl Pilkington, Kerry Godliman, David Earl, Tim Barlow, Arthur Nightingale
Comedy icon Ricky Gervais created, directed, wrote and stars in the Netflix original program Derek that takes us inside the walls of a nursing home and shows us a completely different side of Gervais we haven’t seen in his previous work.
Gervais plays the title character Derek Noakes who is a kind, selfless, good-natured caretaker at Broad Hill, and he loves to watch reality television, game shows and talk about animals. He has a childlike innocence and has no inhibitions which led viewers to question if he’s playing an autistic character or someone with a limited mental capacity, but Gervais hasn’t publicly said anything regarding that.
What we do know is Derek is a warm soul who brings joy to all those he comes in contact with and that can be you too if you start watching the show, which is only 14 total episodes.
45. Girlfriends’ Guide to Divorce
Release Year: 2014
Creator: Marti Noxon
Starring: Lisa Edelstein, Beau Garrett, Necar Zadegan
After the world finds out about her failing marriage, a self-help author tries to save her career as a divorcee. Lisa Edelstein is simply fantastic in the series and is reason enough to start your binge-watch of the Bravo series.
44. New Girl
Release Year: 2011
Creator: Elizabeth Meriwether
Starring: Zooey Deschanel, Jake Johnson, Max Greenfield, Hannah Simone, Lamorne Morris
After Jessica Day (Deschanel) breaks up with her boyfriend after she catches him cheating on her, the bubbly teacher needs a new place to live so she moves in with three single guys she hasn’t even met before. Nick (Johnson) is a law school dropout who likes to be alone, Schmidt (Greenfield) thinks he’s God’s gift to women and Winston (Morris) is a former athlete who has a competitive streak that won’t quit.
How can Jess mesh with this trio?
Each character is so expertly crafted to have their own humor, personality and can stand alone on their own, but together they’re a perfect quartet whose awkward moments serve as the greatest source of comedy in this Fox hit. Deschanel is just so likable, cute, funny, charming and entertaining as the new girl.
43. Documentary Now!
Release Year: 2015
Creator: Fred Armisen, Bill Hader, Seth Myers
Starring: Fred Armisen, Bill Hader, Helen Mirren
This IFC series starring Saturday Night Live alums Fred Armisen and Bill Hader is hilarious as they spoof various stories as only they can with their mockumentary makeover.
42. Flaked
Release Year: 2016
Creator: Will Arnett, Mark Chappell
Starring: Will Arnett, David Sullivan, Ruth Kearney, Lina Esco, George Basil, Robert Wisdom
Will Arnett in another Netflix as the comedic actor dives deeper into his dark and dramatic side we first saw explored in Bojack Horseman. There are parallels between the two shows that force us to look at ourselves and the decisions we make and the ramifications of those decisions.
Arnett plays Chip, a recovering alcoholic who is 10 years sober after his drunk driving accident claimed the life of a young man. Chip finds solace in Venice where he remakes himself into a self-help guru who leads AA meetings and is the unofficial mayor of the town where everyone seemingly knows who he is.
But no one really knows the real Chip, not even his best friend Dennis (Sullivan) who becomes more and more aware of the bull Chip is feeding him and the rest of the people in his life. He is afraid of change and is constantly running from his past.
Chip and Dennis are interested in the same girl, London (Kearney) and their friendship is threatened and the secrets people have buried for so long begin to creep toward the surface as one of them gets closer to London. If you try to outrun your past, you may find yourself without a future.
41. Rules of Engagement
Release Year: 2006
Creator: Tom Hertz
Starring: Patrick Warburton, Megyn Price, Oliver Hudson
A married couple, an engaged couple and a disillusioned bachelor provide their unique perspectives in this ensemble comedy.
40. Jane the Virgin
Release Year: 2014
Creator: Jennie Snider Urman
Starring: Gina Rodriguez, Andrea Navedo, Yael Grobglas, Ivonne Coll
The first two seasons of the breakthrough hit from the CW are now on Netflix. The series was nominated for the Golden Globe for Best Television Series – Comedy or Musical and the star of the show, Gina Rodriguez who plays the titular role won Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series – Comedy or Musical at the Golden Globes.
Rodriguez plays Jane who is a young religious woman working at a Miami hotel when she goes to the doctor and accidentally gets artificially inseminated. Whoops! That doesn’t sound very funny, but the tongue-in-cheek humor makes for a fun watch for the viewer. There are dramatic elements because of course there are.
Jane’s mother got pregnant with Jane when she was young and worries Jane will ruin her life by continuing with the pregnancy but her grandmother Alba (Coll) supports her decisions. The drama and comedy ensue with the baby daddy who happens to be Jane’s boss at the hotel but when his wife finds out what happens, all sorts of wildness ensues. I would tell you about it, but I won’t spoil anything.
39. Chewing Gum
Release Year: 2015
Creator: Michaela Coel
Starring: Michaela Coel, John Macmillan, Robert Lonsdale
Michaela Cole is the show and plays Tracey who tries to channel her inner queen and lose her virginity but her fellow virgin boyfriend Ronald is having cold feet.
38. Alexa & Katie
Release year: 2018
Creator: Heather Wordham
Starring: Paris Berelc, Isabel May, Tiffani Thiessen, Jolie Jenkins, Emery Kelly, Eddie Shin, Finn Carr
A new Netflix Original series aimed at teens that’s all about friendship and family. The half-hour comedy doesn’t lack when it also comes to providing some dramatic elements as Alexa is undergoing treatment for cancer in the first season. The show follows her journey with her best friend and next door neighbor Katie by her side every step of the way, even going so far as to shave her head the day before their first day of high school so she wouldn’t be singled out or feel like there was a target on her. It’s really a charming and touching series that manages to make you laugh thoroughly through some serious situations.
37. Fuller House
Release Year: 2016
Creator: Jeff Franklin
Starring: Candace Cameron-Bure, Jodie Sweetin, Andrea Barber, Michael Campion, Elias Harger, Soni Nicole Bringas, John Brotherton
Two decades after Full House went off the air, Netflix brought back the Tanner family for one of the more highly anticipated series on Netflix.
Fuller House premiered on February 26 and the pilot episode played out like a perfect bridge from the old series to the new with everyone from the old cast, except for the Olsen twins in the entire episode. It was awesome to see what the characters were doing since the old show went off the air so the nostalgia was working in full effect.
Beyond the pilot, the rest of the family makes cameo appearances throughout the series as the show focuses on D.J. who moves into the family’s San Francisco house with her three young sons after the death of her firefighter husband Tommy. Stephanie puts her career on hold to move in and help raise the kids and Kimmy moves in along with her teenage daughter as the script is flipped from the original.
It’s in the comedy rankings, but don’t be mistaken, there are plenty of dramatic moments that will pull on your heartstrings, but overall this is a comedy, with the live studio audience backing that up with plenty of laughs.
36. F is for Family
Release Year: 2015
Creator: Bill Burr, Michael Price
Starring: Bill Burr, Laura Dern, Justin Long, Haley Reinhart, Sam Rockwell
One of the more underappreciated Netflix Original series. F is for Family, starring and created by veteran stand-up comedian Bill Burr. The animated series premiered on Netflix on Dec. 18. It’s been a long time coming since Netflix initially announced the series would be coming in October of 2014, but the wait was well worth it.
Because it’s an animated show, the natural comparisons to The Simpsons, Family Guy and other animated series revolving around a family are going to happen. As it would happen, The Simpsons is an okay comparison because Price is a former writer on The Simpsons.
The six-episode first season is hopefully an appetizer for the second season that was released on May 30 and had 10 episodes. The second season was such a large improvement on the first season, which was good in its own right, and I hope the show will have a long future on Netflix.
35. The Andy Griffith Show
Release Year: 1960
Creator: Sheldon Leonard, Danny Thomas
Starring: Andy Griffith, Ron Howard, Don Knotts
The Andy Griffith Show is of the first great family comedies and one of the best family comedies of all-time. Released 58 years ago, it will be a stark contrast to the modern era of what’s considered family comedies now, but it’s also fun to reminisce and go down memory lane with the classic comedy.
Sheriff Andy (Griffith) moves to Mayberry, N.C. with his son Opie (Howard) and live with Andy’s Aunt Bee in a town where no crimes are being committed, so Andy doesn’t have much to do other than talk about life and such with his deputy and cousin Barney Fife (Knotts) and the rest is comedy gold. Knotts won four Emmy Awards for his portrayal of the incomparable Fife who is one of the best characters in comedy or drama that the small screen has ever seen. I grew up watching reruns of this show on WGN and now those who grew up watching the show can introduce their children to the show.
34. The IT Crowd
Release Year: 2006
Seasons: 5
Creator: Graham Linehan
Starring: Chris O’Dowd, Richard Ayoade, Katherine Parkinson, Matt Berry, Noah Fielding, Chris Morris
You hate having to deal with the tech department at your work and you know it’s going to be like nails on a chalkboard having to communicate with those geeks, but The IT Crowd will have you laughing like you never thought was possible.
This British comedy is set in the offices of Reynholm Industries with a trio of main characters, including Chris O’Dowd. You may know O’Dowd from his short-lived HBO series Family Tree or his role in Bridesmaids, but this gives you a chance to see him before he broke through.
He plays Roy Trenneman who is lazy and constantly avoiding doing his job. His co-worker Maurice Moss (Ayoade) is great at his job, super intelligent and a stereotypical “geek” who lacks interpersonal communication skills and still lives with his mom who dresses him and packs his lunch.
Their boss is Jen Barber (Parkinson) who is the classic inept and bumbling boss who pretends to know what she’s talking about but, in reality, has no idea what she’s talking about and Roy and Maurice know she’s phony. But Jen is determined to lie her way to the top, even if the results are disastrous, which means they’re hilarious for us.
33. Crashing
Release Year: 2016
Creator: Phoebe Waller-Bridge
Starring: Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Jonathan Bailey, Adrian Scarborough, Damien Molony, Louise Ford, Julie Dray, Amit Shah
One of the best new shows of 2016 comes from the U.K. where Phoebe Waller-Bridge created, wrote and stars in Crashing. The series follows six young adults as they all live together in an old hospital building that has gone disused. The hospital offers a type of college dormitory feel where all the residents co-mingle and have to abide by a certain set of rules to get cheap rent.
Phoebe Waller-Bridge plays Lulu, short for Louise and moves into the old hospital where her longtime friend Sam lives with his fiancee Kate and their friends. This makes Kate awfully jealous and suspicious of her because of her and Sam’s friendship so there is a bit of a love triangle element at play. I love the dynamic Lulu and Sam have but Kate is my favorite character on the show. She’s so paranoid, anal, uptight, but oh, is she funny, cute and totally relatable.
The first season is only six episodes and makes for a nice and easy binge-watch.
32. Trailer Park Boys
Release Year: 2001
Creator: Mike Clattenburg
Starring: John Paul Tremblay, Robb Wells, Mike Smith, John Dunsworth, Patrick Roach, Tyrone Parsons, Jeanna Harrison, Sarah Dunsworth, Lucy Decoutere
From Mike Clattenburg, we get the Canadian mockumentary centered around three small-time felons who live in Sunnyvale Trailer Park in Nova Scotia. The series is based on Clattenburg’s 1999 film of the same name and has stood the test of time with seven seasons that aired on Showcase and three films three feature films. The Big Dirty, released in 2006, Countdown to Liquor Day came out in 2009 and Don’t Legalize It came out in 2014.
But the best news about this show is how Netflix revived the series that ended after the seventh season and gave viewers an eighth and ninth season, similar to what they did with Arrested Development (more on them later) and gave the fans more of the Trailer Park gang.
Ricky (Wells), Julian (Tremblay) and Bubbles (Smith) are the main characters who are constantly coming up with schemes to get money while avoiding the law and drunk and nosey trailer park supervisor Jim Lahey (Dunsworth) and his assistant Randy (Roach). Just when you think the trio has pulled off a successful scheme, they fall right back on their faces which is a great comedic recipe if you ask me.
31. A Series of Unfortunate Events
Release Year: 2017
Creator: Daniel Handler
Starring: Neil Patrick Harris, Patrick Warburton, Malina Weissman, Louis Hynes, K. Todd Freeman, Presley Smith, Usman Ally, Will Arnett, Cobie Smulders
Based on the popular novels from Daniel Handler, Neil Patrick Harris plays the terrible Count Olaf who tries to bilk hi orphaned three young nieces and nephews from their family fortune after their parents mysteriously die in a house fire. But there are also many secrets the kids don’t know that they’re using their detective skills to work in order to find out some family secrets.
30. Santa Clarita Diet
Release Year: 2017
Creator: Victor Fresco
Starring: Drew Barrymore, Timothy Olyphant, Liv Hewson, Skyler Gisondo
If you’re looking for a surprisingly hilarious show about zombies, Santa Clarita Diet is the show for you. Drew Barrymore and Timothy Olyphant star as Sheila and Joel, a married couple working in real estate in Santa Clarita, California. When Sheila experienced some stomach pain and a sudden urge to vomit all over a house they’re showing, Joel finds Sheila dead. Only she’s not dead, she’s undead and now a zombie who must eat.
Sheila tries to adjust by eating raw meat and chicken but when that doesn’t work, she has to turn to eating humans to survive as a zombie. Joel is against her killing people, even people he wishes were dead, but he relents and that brings on a whole new batch of problems for them. But it also brings a ton of laughs for the viewer. Season 2 has been picked up and we hope to see it early in 2018.
29. Gilmore Girls
Release Year: 2000
Creator: Amy Sherman-Palladino
Starring: Lauren Graham, Alexis Bledel, Scott Patterson, Keiko Agenda, Kelly Bishop, Yanic Truesdale, Edward Herrmann, Melissa McCarthy
Gilmore Girls was one of the better shows of the new millennium with seven seasons of the show featuring Lorelai (Graham) and Rory Gilmore (Bledel) as the cutest, most sarcastic, fastest-talking mother-daughter team perhaps in the history of TV. This ranking also includes the Netflix revival series Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life.
Lorelai (Graham) is a 32-year-old single mother of teenager Rory which can often result in the two being mistaken for sisters, but there’s something charming about their relationship and on-screen chemistry that made Gilmore Girls a fun watch for viewers.
Besides being one of the better shows, especially for the female demographic, this show was a hybrid comedy and drama with enough romantic entanglements to provide plenty of drama to balance out the laughter. Lorelai and Luke’s (Patterson) will-they, won’t-they hooked viewers with the universal relatability about starting a romantic relationship with your best friend.
28. That ’70s Show
Release Year: 1998
Creator: Mark Brazill, Bonnie Turner, Terry Turner
Starring: Topher Grace, Laura Prepon, Mila Kunis, Ashton Kutcher, Danny Masterson, Wilmer Valderrama, Kurtwood Smith, Debra Jo Rupp
We’ve seen the coming of age TV shows for decades about teenagers navigating through adolescence and into adulthood but we haven’t seen many set in the decade of the 70s like we got with That ’70s Show. Eric Foreman (Grace) is our lead character of the group of teens, including Donna (Prepon) as his love interest and best friends Hyde (Masterson), Kelso (Kutcher) and foreign exchange student Fez (Valderrama).
Much of the time is spent in the Foreman’s basement where they have many of their “circles” where the show’s signature shot revolves around the characters as they smoke weed. Naturally, hilarity ensues among the teenagers as they try to hide all the bad things they’re doing and trying to do from Eric’s overbearing dad Red (Smith) and happy-go-lucky mom Kitty (Rupp).
The show served as the launching pad to catapult Kutcher, Kunis, Grace, Prepon to stardom in other TV shows and/or films and did a great job of incorporating the style, trends, culture and societal issues during the decade all while in suburban Wisconsin.
27. The Office (U.K.)
Release Year: 2001
Creator: Ricky Gervais, Stephen Merchant
Starring: Ricky Gervais, Martin Freeman, Mackenzie Crook
This is the show that launched the U.S. version of the series by the same name and gave birth to the mockumentary style of shows that’s been emulated by many shows since, including Modern Family, the best comedy currently on tv, but alas is not on Netflix.
The Office was also the introduction of Ricky Gervais to the American audience. Gervais created the show with Stephen Merchant and stars as David Brent, the manager of an office faced with downsizing all while the documentary crew records the employees as they go about their jobs and daily lives.
Not only was it the introduction to this style of comedy and Gervais, but also the first time many American viewers saw Martin Freeman (Sherlock, The Hobbit, Fargo) who stars as Tim, the likeable guy in the office who absolutely does not want to be there but has to put up with his bosses shenanigans.
26. Grace and Frankie
Release Year: 2015
Creator: Marta Kauffman, Howard J. Morris
Starring: Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin, Martin Sheen, Sam Waterson
Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin aren’t very friendly, but they try to make their relationship as cordial as possible considering their husbands are partners at work. But as things turn out, Grace and Frankie’s husbands aren’t just work partners, they’re also lovers and have been carrying on an affair for the last 20 years.
Martin Sheen and Sam Waterston play the husbands who divorce Grace and Frankie and begin their new relationship out of the closet. Meanwhile, Grace and Frankie try to deal with their current circumstances as best they can as they live their Golden Years without the men they thought they’d grow old with.
The cast is phenomenal and Tomlin was nominated for an Emmy and Golden Globe for her portrayal of Frankie Bergstein.
25. Freaks and Geeks
Release Year: 1999
Creator: Paul Feig
Starring: Linda Cardellini, John Francis Daley, James Franco, Seth Rogen, Jason Segel, Samm Levine, Martin Starr, Busy Phillips
Paul Feig (Bridesmaids) created this high school comedy and Judd Apatow was the executive producer for the show that launched the careers of Seth Rogen, James Franco, and Jason Segel. I mean, did you look at the actors starring in this show? It’s a list of some of the biggest comedic talents in the industry today!
Lindsay Weir (Cardellini) is our lead character who is reeling after the death of her grandmother that the mathlete starts hanging out with a group of burnouts that causes her parents and younger brother Sam (Daley) to worry about her, but she’s just going through the normal “figuring things out” stage that all teenagers experience.
Younger brother Sam fits in the geek category as do his friends Neil (Levine) and Bill (Starr) who experience bullying from fellow students for being who they are, but they find the courage to stand up for themselves.
Sadly, this show only lasted one season and 18 episodes so relish each episode, but at least, you can see many of these actors in other shows and movies since production ended on Freaks and Geeks.
24. Peep Show
Release Year: 2003
Creator: Jesse Armstrong, Sam Bain, Andrew O’Connor
Starring: David Mitchell, Robert Webb, Olivia Colman, Matt King, Neil Fitzmaurice
One of the best comedies to come from across the pond since The Office comes Peep Show. The series has eight seasons on Netflix about the series that follows a pair of friends who met in college and are now sharing a flat.
Mark (Mitchell) is the career-driven, fiscally-responsible, cynical pessimist and his roomie Jeremy (Webb) is the total opposite. He doesn’t have a real job, instead, he’s trying to make it as a musician, although he’s just not very good. However, that doesn’t hurt his self-esteem considering he’s extremely confident in his ability and his ability to pick up women.
Why it’s on this list as one of the best comedies on Netflix is because of the unique style the show is shot that gives us an inner monologue from the character with cameras mounted on the heads of the actors at the onset of the series.
23. One Day at a Time
Release Year: 2017
Creator: Mike Royce, Gloria Calderon Kellett
Starring: Justina Machado, Rita Moreno, Todd Grinnell
The Netflix remake of the classic Norman Lear series is led by Justina Machado who plays Penelope, a single women who raises her two growing children while also dealing with her live-in mother who loves to offer advice to her daughter about how to live her life. This show has really blossomed with each season as it’s proved to be timely and a great representation of shows that can come across as providing talking points about real life without coming across as too preachy. Very excited about the show’s renewal for season 3, due out in 2019.
22. Maron
Release Year: 2013
Creator: Marc Maron
Starring: Marc Maron, Josh Brener, Andy Kindler, Dave Anthony, Nora Zehetner, Judd Hirsch
Veteran standup comedian Marc Maron plays a fictionalized version of himself in the self-titled IFC comedy. Maron’s podcast lets him carve out a new way of expressing and revealing more about himself as he records his highly popular and successful podcast in his garage. He’s a neurotic mess, but he’s a funny, neurotic mess who goes after a Twitter troll in the pilot episode with Dave Foley as his guest.
Denis Leary is the guest on the second episode and Judd Hirsch appears in the third episode as Maron’s dad, Larry, who shows up in an RV and a get rich scheme. Later we see Maron get set up on a date that blows up in his face and he sponsors an ex-con he meets at an AA meeting.
Fans of Maron’s comedy and podcast will undoubtedly be fans of the IFC series, but he’s an acquired taste, so if you’re new, you may want to avoid binge-watching to start.
21. Californication
Release Year: 2007
Creator: Tom Kapinos
Starring: David Duchovny, Natascha McElhone, Evan Handler, Pamela Adlon
Who doesn’t love a show about a self-destructive, self-loathing, alcoholic, drug-addicted writer?
If you’re like me, you soak that up and that’s what we get for seven seasons from the Showtime show Californication with Duchovny playing the role of Hank Moody who can’t get out of his own way to save himself.
The show blurs the line between comedy and drama, but I always thought it featured more dramatic tones than laugh out loud moments, so it’s a drama for this exercise.
Moody, like many writers, wallows in self-despair and attempts to dig himself out of his writer’s block by filling his body with booze, drugs, women and bad decisions, none of which help him repair his relationship with his on again, off again girlfriend Karen (McElhone) and their teenage daughter Becca.
I think most of us can relate to Moody in some respects. He doesn’t have many endearing qualities, neither does his agent/best friend Charlie (Handler) but no matter how many times he screws up and betrays our trust, we still find ourselves rooting for him to fix his broken relationships.
20. Wet Hot American Summer/ 10 Years Later
Release Year: 2015
Creator: Michael Showalter, David Wain
Starring: Elizabeth Banks, Lake Bell, H. Jon Benjamin, Paul Rudd, Amy Poehler, Chris Meloni, Bradley Cooper, Michael Ian Black, Michael Showalter, Ken Marino, Joe Lotruglio
Two different titles for Wet Hot on Netflix, but it’s the same show in essence, so we’ve combined the two titles under one spot. The gang is back together for the first time since the movie of the same name. It’s silly, outrageous and taps into that nostalgic feeling that we’re back at Camp Firewood all over again.
19. On My Block
Release Year: 2018
Creator: Lauren Lungerich, Jeremy Haft, Eddie Gonzalez
Starring: Sierra Capri, Jason Genao, Brett Gray, Diego Tinoco, Ronni Hawk, Peggy Blow, Julio Macias, Jessica Marie Garcia
On My Block premiered on Netflix on March 16, 2018, with 10 episodes and they were all so good that the series makes its debut on this list inside the top 20. That’s just how great this show is about a group of friends growing up together in south central Los Angeles. The four friends are leaving middle school and worried about how things will change in high school when relationships get in the way and when of them joins a gang. This isn’t your typical coming of age story you’ve seen before in movies and TV shows. This is a fresh new twist on the coming of age story and the latest example that representation matters. The young cast may not be household names yet, but give it some time, they’re all destined for big things.
18. The Ranch
Release Year: 2016
Creator: Jim Patterson, Don Reo
Starring: Ashton Kutcher, Danny Masterson, Sam Elliott, Debra Winger, Elisha Cuthbert
This Netflix Original series reunites two stars from That ’70s Show for the first time since the old Fox show went off the air. Ashton Kutcher plays a former high school football hero named Colt who led his team to the state championship before a fledgling semi-pro career forced him to come back home to the family ranch in Colorado.
Rooster (Masterson) has been tending to the family business while Colt was out living his life and was the family’s golden son for sticking around. Sam Elliott plays the patriarch of the family and is always great, even in this comedic spin.
Debra Winger plays the boy’s mom and is still married to Elliott’s character even though they don’t really have the typical marriage. She stays in a trailer behind the local bar she runs, but they still have occasional hook-ups, so that’s nice for them.
Fans of Kutcher and Masterson will enjoy seeing them on the screen together again in this new spin on the family sitcom.
17. Frasier
Release Year: 1993
Creator: David Angell, Peter Casey, David Lee
Starring: Kelsey Grammer, Jane Leeves, David Hyde Pierce, Peri Gilpin, John Mahoney
With five Emmys for Best Comedy Series and four Emmys for Best Actor Awards for Kelsey Grammer as Frasier Crane the psychiatrist who hosts a call-in radio show in Seattle where he lives with his family. Frasier first appeared on Cheers before getting the spin-off that achieved arguably the same level of widespread appeal from viewers and critics alike.
Frasier lives with his retired father Martin who used to be a cop but now needs the aid of a caretaker Daphne (Leeves) who is the object of the affection of Frasier’s brother Niles, played by David Hyde Pierce who won three Emmy’s for Best Supporting Actor.
Don’t forget the dog Eddie who became a sensation during the show’s run in the late 90s and Frasier managed to avoid falling prey to the spin-off curse.
16. Cheers
Release Year: 1982
Creator: James Burrows, Glen Charles, Les Charles
Starring: Ted Danson, Rhea Perlman, John Ratzenberger, George Wendt, Kelsey Grammer, Woody Harrelson, Kirstie Alley, Shelley Long
You can’t call yourself a fan of television comedy if you haven’t watched the show about the Boston bar where everybody knows your name. The series that gave us a theme song that is stuck in our head three decades later, Cheers was the first great sitcom of the modern era and whose success ushered in the likes of Frasier, Seinfeld and Friends after their 11-year run.
Sam Malone (Danson) is the recovering alcoholic, womanizing, former Boston Red Sox pitcher who owns the bar where Carla (Perlman), Diane (Long) Woody (Harrelson) and Rebecca (Alley) work. And where Cliff (Ratzenberger), Norm (Wendt) and Dr. Frasier Crane (Grammer) frequent in their home away from home.
The love-hate relationship Sam has with Diane kickstarts the first season as the viewer is teased with the will they, won’t they angle, but are they too different to make it work?
Cheers is an all-timer so do yourself a favor and watch the classic sitcom tonight for the first time or for the 100th time.
15. Shameless
Release Year: 2011
Creator: Paul Abbott
Starring: Emmy Rossum, William H. Macy, Justin Chatwin, Ethan Cutkosky, Cameron Monaghan, Shanola Hampton, Joah Cusack
Shameless blends the line between comedy and drama, but we think the comedic elements shine brightest in this show about a dysfunctional family in Chicago. The Gallagher family sees the patriarch of the family, played by William H. Macy descent further into alcoholism as his six children are forced to raise themselves. Sounds like a premise for a great comedy, right?
Macy is great as Frank Gallagher and does a fine job of making you feel sorry for the guy who spends his days getting drunk and his nights trying to stay drunk. With him absent, eldest daughter Fiona, played by Emmy Rossum is forced to play both the role of mom and dad to her five younger siblings.
She is the glue holding the family together and does anything she can to make sure her brothers and sisters are doing well in school, or at the least, staying out of trouble. Sometimes her best efforts don’t produce the best results, which is where the comedy stems from.
This isn’t your typical show about a blue-collar family or a dysfunctional family dramedy, so check out the Showtime series that was recently added to Netflix.
14. Glow
Release Year: 2017
Creator: Liz Flahive, Carly Mensch
Starring: Alison Brie, Betty Gilpin, Marc Maron
The Netflix Original series follows the startup of the women’s wrestling organization GLOW.Alison Brie stars as Ruth, a struggling actress who goes on an audition for a role she didn’t think would be for a wrestling league that’s operating out of an abandoned warehouse. Marc Maron is the brains behind the operation. Betty Gilpin’s character Debbie plays Ruth’s friend who gets involved in the wrestling league after the two share a personal betrayal that spills over to the wrestling ring.
13. Portlandia
Release Year: 2011
Creator: Fred Armisen, Carrie Brownstein, Jonathan Krisel
Starring: Fred Armisen, Carrie Brownstein
From Saturday Night Live alum Fred Armisen and the rock group Sleater-Kinney’s Carrie Brownstein comes Portlandia, a sketch comedy show based on living in Portland.
Fred and Carrie play various characters throughout the series, including a few where Armisen plays a woman, like the feminist bookstore owner or the clingy girlfriend to the motorcycle riding, mustachioed Lance, played by Brownstein. Guest stars from Olivia Wilde to Kyle MacLachlan to Chloe Sevigny to Jeff Goldblum are among the celebrity guest stars in the series and they pop up in more than one episode too.
Fred and Carrie play themselves, or, at least, versions of themselves, in some sketches too but no matter who they’re playing, they’re a hilarious duo who gives us a slightly off-beat comedy that you definitely haven’t seen anything like it anywhere else.
12. American Vandal
Release Year: 2017
Creator: Tony Yacenda, Dan Perrault
Starring: Tyler Alverez, Griffin Gluck, Jimmy Tatro
The sleeper hit of 201z comes from Funny or Die and follows the silliest plot for a television ever. When class clown Dylan Maxwell is expelled after he’s believed to be the culprit who spraypainted cars in the teacher parking lot, one fellow student takes it upon himself to determine if Dylan was set up and if there’s more than meets the eye.
11. Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
Release Year: 2015
Creator: Tina Fey, Robert Carlock
Starring: Ellie Kemper, Jane Krakowski, Tituss Burgess, Carol Kane, Jon Hamm
From the creators of 30 Rock comes this Netflix Original series about Kimmy Schmidt (Kemper) who moves to New York after she is rescued from an underground bunker where she lived for 15 years after being kidnapped by a cult leader (Hamm) and tries to adjust to the world.
Kimmy finds a place to live where she shares a tiny below ground apartment with Titus (Burgess) with Lillian (Kane) serving as their landlord. She gets a job as a babysitter for Jacqueline Vorhees, the wife of a millionaire who has a million issues of her own to deal with that Kimmy tries to help her overcome.
Despite everything, Kimmy has had to deal with in her life, and we see many flashback scenes to life in the bunker, she has a sunny outlook on life and tries to help everyone she can while putting the cult leader who kidnapped her behind bars.
10. Arrested Development
Release Year: 2003
Creator: Mitchell Hurwitz
Starring: Jason Bateman, Will Arnett, Michael Cera, Jeffrey Tambor, Tony Hale, Jessica Walters, David Cross, Portia de Rossi, Alia Shawkat, Ron Howard
Arrested Development is the story of the Bluth family who lost their real estate fortune when patriarch George Bluth Sr. (Tambor) runs afoul of the law and results in a seizure of the family’s assets. The family has no choice but to rely on Michael Bluth (Bateman) to keep the family together after his father is thrown in jail and the family has to rebuild their business.
The ensemble cast features Michael’s son George Michael (Cera) who has a crush on his cousin, Gob (Arnett) as the magician-in-training bumbling older brother, Lindsay (de Rossi) as the entitled and spoiled twin sister of Michael and her husband Tobias Funke (Cross), a former psychiatrist turned analyst/therapist and the equally spoiled and entitled mother of them all, Lucille (Walters).
If Gob isn’t my favorite character then it’s definitely Buster who is in his mid-30s and still living at home and under the thumb of his mom.
The first season is easily the best in the former Fox series but thankfully for die-hard fans of the series, Netflix brought the show back from the dead for a fourth season in 2013, seven years after it was canceled, and a fifth season is in the works.
9. Love
Release Year: 2016
Creator: Judd Apatow, Lesley Arfin, Paul Rust
Starring: Gillian Jacobs, Paul Rust, Claudia O’Doherty
Love comes from co-creators Judd Apatow, Lesley Arfin and Paul Rust, who also stars as one of the main characters in the Netflix Original series. Rust plays Gus who just became single after finding out his long-time girlfriend he was living with cheated on him.
He has a serendipitous meeting with Mickey (Jacobs) at a convenience store after she had an unfortunate run-in with a pair of ex-boyfriends. The two seemingly couldn’t be any more different, but after an adventure tracking down Mickey’s wallet, smoking weed, getting breakfast and picking up Gus’ old stuff from his exes house, the two seem to have a connection that could blossom into love.
Of course, with love, nothing is ever easy and if Gus and Mickey are going to find love, they’re going to have to overcome a lot of challenges to ultimately get the one thing that everyone wants.
Season 2 was released in March of 2017 and topped the incredible first season that the show moved up more than 10 spots in our ranking after its release. Gus and Mickey have their stuff to work out but I root for this couple more than any other fictional couple since Ross and Rachel.
8. BoJack Horseman
Release Year: 2014
Creator: Raphael Bob-Waksberg
Starring: Will Arnett, Alison Brie, Aaron Paul, Amy Sedaris, Paul F. Tompkins, Patton Oswalt
The Netflix Original series BoJack Horseman is a dark comedy about the title character, an anthropomorphic horse (Arnett) who was the star of “Horsin’ Around” 20 years ago but today he’s a washed-up sitcom actor clinging to his past.
BoJack lives in Hollywood with his freeloading roommate Todd (Paul) and tries to resurrect his career with his on again/off again girlfriend and agent Princess Carolyn (Sedaris) and the first step is hiring a ghostwriter (Brie) to write his memoir.
Easily the best Netflix Original comedy and the second season was released in July so now is the perfect time to catch up so you can join all the cool kids who are talking about the show. This is easily the best performance by Arnett since Arrested Development who nails the role of the horse who struggles with coming to terms with his flaws, insecurities and decades of bad decisions.
The animation is great, the guest appearances are plenty, including a cameo from Stephen Colbert, and you can’t help but root for BoJack to resurrect his career and get his life in order and find some happiness, no matter how awful he may be.
7. Archer
Release Year: 2009
Creator: Adam Reed
Starring: H. Jon Benjamin, Judy Greer, Amber Nash, Aisha Tyler, Chris Parnell, Jessica Walter
Sterling Archer (Benjamin) is the best secret spy in the world, but he’s also got some mommy issues (Walter) and one heck of a drinking problem, but that doesn’t stop him from getting the job done. Part of the ISIS spy agency, Archer works with his on-again-off-again girlfriend Lana (Tyler), straight-laced Cyrill (Parnell) and the black sheep of the agency Pam (Nash) and Cheryl (Greer) while Malory Archer runs the show.
This animated series from FX is full of action with adventurous car chases, including one with the Pope in the backseat of one episode, and it’s not just limited to land as there are adventures on the water, underwater and in the sky. It’s a show that takes the old spy shows like Get Smart or James Bond movies and puts a modern twist on the spy narrative.
6. Big Mouth
Release Year: 2017
Creator: Nick Kroll, Andrew Garfield, Mark Levin
Starring: Nick Kroll, John Mulaney, Jessi Klein, Fred Armisen, Maya Rudolph, Jason Mantzoukas, Jenny Slate
One of the best new shows on Netflix that tackles the all-too-uncomfortable realities of going through puberty. Nick Kroll and John Mulaney play a pair of best friends with one of them becoming a man before the other which presents some awkward exchanges between the two. The inner-monologues with the hormone monster and the hormone monstress make the show so much different than a standard adult comedy. It’s so funny, so real and so worth your time.
5. Master of None
Release Year: 2015
Creator: Aziz Ansari, Alan Yang
Starring: Aziz Ansari, Eric Wareheim, Lena Waithe
The first season of this Netflix Original was released on Nov. 6 and immediately joined the list of the best TV comedy shows and with future seasons, this series could crack the top 10. Aziz Ansari stars as Dev, a 30-year-old struggling actor living in New York who is trying to navigate his personal and professional lives with his hilarious group of friends.
While his career is showing signs of potentially taking off with his casting in The Sickening, Dev’s personal life is the heart of the show. He’s feeling the pressure to settle down and get married and start a family after seeing friends do the same. But he’s unsure if he wants that life for him. But then he meets Rachel and she’s the perfect match for him, at least, the viewer thinks so. Can these two make things work?
Master of None is the definitive telling of dating in the technology and social media age.
Season 2 was released on May 12, 2017, and was well worth the wait for fans. The 10-episode second season was even better than the first and featured some incredible directing from Ansari and Wareheim in addition to their work in front of the camera. The soundtrack was incredible and felt like an Italian symphony with the Italian scenery and restaurants providing an aesthetic unseen on TV.
4. The Good Place
Release Year: 2016
Creator: Michael Schur
Starring: Kristen Bell, Ted Danson, William Jackson Harper, Jameela Jamil, D’Arcy Carden, Manny Jacinto, Tiya Sircar
The Good Place is arguably the best show on network TV today. Kristen Bell stars as Eleanor who has died and is in “the good place” which is the place where all the good people go after they die. Everything is supposed to be perfect in the good place but as the first season goes on, it turns out there is some weird stuff taking place and Eleanor thinks she’s the reason behind it. You don’t want to miss what happens in this series from the co-creator of Parks and Recreation.
3. Friends
Release Year: 1994
Creator: David Crane, Marta Kauffman
Starring: Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, Matthew Perry, David Schwimmer
The mega-hit Friends sustained the “must-see TV” theme for Thursday nights on NBC after Seinfeld went off the air as the lives of six twenty-somethings living in New York was arguably the show of the 90s. The story of life in New York while managing professional and personal lives isn’t anything new, but Friends breaks the mold because of the characters and the performances by the actors.
Rachel (Aniston) is a runaway bride who happens upon old friend Monica (Cox) in the Central Perk coffeehouse that acts as one of the show’s three central locations and Monica invites Rachel to be her new roommate in her spacious Manhattan apartment after Phoebe (Kudrow) moves out.
Monica’s older brother Ross (Schwimmer) has had a crush on Rachel since high school and after his marriage ends when his wife reveals she’s a lesbian, he waits patiently for his time to let her know his feelings. Ross’s best friends, Joey (LeBlanc) is a struggling actor and the sarcastic Chandler (Perry) live across the hall from Monica and Rachel.
The six are a family who goes through several highs and lows together through 10 seasons as the NBC hit went down as one of the best of all-time.
2. Parks and Recreation
Release Year: 2009
Creator: Greg Daniels, Michael Schur
Starring: Amy Poehler, Nick Offerman, Aziz Ansari, Chris Pratt, Aubrey Plaza, Rashida Jones, Adam Scott, Rob Lowe, Jim O’Heir, Retta
Parks and Recreation comes up just short of the top spot on the list of the 50 best comedies on Netflix, but I’ll give it the nod as having the best ensemble cast on the small screen.
Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mean to diminish the work of Amy Poehler as the ever-cheerful and determined Leslie Knope who tries to make Pawnee, Indiana the best town in America. But as delightful, funny, sweet, lovable as she is, it’s hard to beat the supporting cast with Aziz Ansari, Chris Pratt, Aubrey Plaza and Nick Offerman who steal just about every single scene they’re in during the show’s run.
The show helped launch Ansari into a worldwide comedic genius. Pratt is starring in superhero movies, Plaza has carved out her own movie career and Offerman as Knope’s boss in the Parks Department is the embodiment of a man’s man.
Adding Rashida Jones, Adam Scott and Rob Lowe to the series was a stroke of genius for the show that wrapped up its seven-season run this year, so stay tuned for the release of the seventh season to hit Netflix later this year.
1. The Office (U.S.)
Release Year: 2005
Creator: Greg Daniels, Ricky Gervais, Stephen Merchant
Starring: Steve Carell, Rainn Wilson, John Krasinski, Jenna Fischer, Ed Helms, Ellie Kemper, Craig Robinson, B.J, Novak, Mindy Kaling
A remake of the U.K. series we profiled earlier in the rankings, the American version with Steve Carell as the office manager, Michael Scott, is the funniest character on the funniest show on Netflix. The rest of the cast and how everyone fits in the puzzle makes it an all-time classic comedy.
Carell plays the bumbling manager of Dunder Mifflin, a small paper company in Scranton, PA. and while he means well, he’s not the best boss in the world, even though he drinks from a mug that says as much.
He considers his employees his friends and part of his family, but they don’t feel the same way. Although Dwight Schrute (Wilson) is the closest that’s only because he’s sucking up to be the assistant regional manager, not the assistant to the regional manager.
Dwight doesn’t think there’s a difference, but Jim Halpert (Krasinski) lets him know there’s a big difference as the two salesmen develop a fierce workplace rivalry. When Jim’s not teasing Dwight and thinking of his next prank, he’s flirting with receptionist Pam (Fischer) but she’s engaged. But they would be so perfect together!
Supporting characters Phyllis, Stanley, Creed, Kevin, Angela, Oscar, Meredith, Kelly, Toby and the office temp Ryan don’t need to do the heavy lifting but they accentuate and complement the star players. This Emmy Award-winning show takes the top spot but make sure you bookmark this page because it will update every month to reflect additions and defections from Netflix.