Rolling Stone has updated their list of the 100 Greatest TV Shows of all Time–and it has some glaring omissions due to some “canceled” stars.
For starters, The Cosby Show (1984-1992) is nowhere to be found. Rolling Stone’s original list came out in 2016 and also omitted The Cosby Show–two years after allegations of sexual abuse and rape by Bill Cosby came to light. Despite the monstrous behavior of Cosby, leaving The Cosby Show off of such a list if a serious oversight. It is undoubtedly one of the most important and groundbreaking sitcoms ever, with an all-black cast and characters like doctors and lawyers, snubbing stereotypes.
Another show notably missing is Roseanne (1998-1997), ranked on the 2016 list at #70, the magazine calling it a “blast of Midwestern blue-collar grit that made all other Eighties sitcoms look like contemptible fluff.” In 2018, Roseanne Barr’s racist tweets got both her and the Roseanne revival in hot water. It was spun off into The Conners, with matriarch Roseanne being killed off.
The biggest overall drop was Louie, which placed an astonishing #22 on Rolling Stone’s original list, with the magazine championing the “stubbornly auteurist FX sitcom” for ditching so many half-hour comedy format traditions. Undoubtedly groundbreaking for a modern show, Louie certainly deserves a spot somewhere in the top 100. Creator and star Louis C.K. faced his own sexual misconduct allegations in 2016 which were first prominently called out by, interestingly enough, Roseanne Barr.
The top 10 of Rolling Stone’s 100 Greatest TV Show of All Time, with 2016 rankings in parentheses: The Sopranos (#1), The Simpsons (#6), Breaking Bad (#3), The Wire (#2), Fleabag (unranked), Seinfeld (#5), Mad Men (#4), Cheers (#20), Atlanta (unranked), and The Mary Tyler Moore Show (#46). The inclusion of both Fleabag and Atlanta–however great and respected–seems premature, as neither has had the time to prove its longevity. A total of 17 shows that currently air made the list, with HBO’s Succession just outside of the top 10.
What are your thoughts? Should Rolling Stone have included shows like The Cosby Show, Roseanne and Louie on their list? Do you think they were snubbed because of their stars? Let us know in the comments below.