The Best TV Shows of 2014 (So Far)

The best that TV had to offer from January through June of 2014.

Not Available Lead
Complex Original

Image via Complex Original

Not Available Lead

Warning: There may be spoilers scattered throughout the following list. None will be too major, but it’s worth including that disclaimer because, well, the fanatical members of today’s TV-watching public love saying sarcastic things like, “Thanks for the spoiler alert, asshole.”

Blame it on the social media age, a time when people in New York can’t resist live-tweeting their favorite shows even though their Los Angeles followers won’t see that same show until three hours later; a time when George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Fire and Ice novels have been available in bookstores for decades yet late-to-the-game folks are ready to crucify recappers for discussing what happened during the previous night’s Game of Thrones episode. These are hyper-sensitive times, but to properly explain why these are The Best TV Shows of 2014 (So Far), some context will be necessary. So prepare yourselves.

Even though spoilerphobes have turned television into an online bloodsport this year, that doesn’t take away from just how strong the medium’s been this year. Starting with HBO’s culture-enthralling True Detective, which sent wannabe theorists into endgame-predicting frenzies and made the network’s HBO Go service seem about as technologically evolved as Atari, the first half of 2014 has been a spoil of riches for couch potatoes and DVR utilizers alike. Our dude Don Draper began his swan song, a classic Coen Brothers movie somehow became one of TV’s best new shows despite their lack of hands-on involvement, major characters continued to flatline in Westeros, and a couple of hilarious NYC ladies turned their popular web series into Comedy Central’s funniest program since Chappelle’s Show.

To break down the rest of the year’s TV high-points, our countdown should suffice. Check it out and voice your agreements and/or disputes in the comment section. You know, the section where all of those “You spoiled everything!” complaints go.

RELATED: The 50 Best TV Dramas of All Time

RELATED: The 50 Funniest TV Comedies of All Time

Related: Best TV Shows of 2017

30. House of Cards (Netflix)

Not Available Interstitial

29. Kroll Show (Comedy Central)

Not Available Interstitial

28. Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey (Fox)

Not Available Interstitial

27. 24: Live Another Day (Fox)

Not Available Interstitial

26. Scandal (ABC)

Not Available Interstitial

25. Teen Wolf (MTV)

Not Available Interstitial

24. Community (NBC)

Not Available Interstitial

23. The Americans (FX)

Not Available Interstitial

22. Penny Dreadful (Showtime)

Not Available Interstitial

21. New Girl (Fox)

Not Available Interstitial

20. Sherlock (BBC)

Not Available Interstitial

19. Louie (FX)

Not Available Interstitial

18. The Good Wife (CBS)

Not Available Interstitial

17. Banshee (Cinemax)

Not Available Interstitial

16. Arrow (The CW)

Not Available Interstitial

15. Inside Amy Schumer (Comedy Central)

Not Available Interstitial

14. Girls (HBO)

Not Available Interstitial

13. In the Flesh (BBC America)

Not Available Interstitial

12. Silicon Valley (HBO)

Not Available Interstitial

11. Orphan Black (BBC America)

Not Available Interstitial

10. Brooklyn Nine-Nine (Fox)

Not Available Interstitial

9. Orange Is the New Black (Netflix)

Not Available Interstitial

8. Game of Thrones (HBO)

Not Available Interstitial

7. Parks and Recreation (NBC)

Not Available Interstitial

6. Mad Men (AMC)

Not Available Interstitial

5. True Detective (HBO)

Not Available Interstitial

4. Veep (HBO)

Not Available Interstitial

3. Hannibal (NBC)

Not Available Interstitial

2. Fargo (FX)

Not Available Interstitial

1. Broad City (Comedy Central)

Not Available Interstitial

Latest in Pop Culture