1001 TV Series You Must Watch Before You Die (2015)
Created by Apu.
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This is the 1st edition (October 2015) and the latest addition to the bestselling and highly acclaimed 1001-series.
"From "Leave it to Beaver" to "Breaking Bad", "The Honeymooners" to "Homeland", this compilation of important and groundbreaking television shows is packed full of trivia and will be sure to make you want to pick up the remote or start streaming. Selected by an international team of experts and covering a worldwide spectrum of programs from the classics of the 1950s to the cutting-edge shows of today, 1001 TV Series is one of the most comprehensive books ever published on the topic of television."
This volume is virtually impossible to finish (as you have to watch every single episode of every single entry). Not to mention many of the shows are still running this very day.
If the authors instead chose to focus only on TV-series/TV-Mini-series/TV-movies you might have had a chance, but unfortunately, TV shows - including Game shows, Reality and Talk shows - are also included.
NOTE: the book contains some TV-movies or stand-alone episodes from TV-series, but the vast majority of the entries are either TV-series, TV-Mini-series or TV shows.
The genres are:
Action/Adventure: 43
Animation: 13
Awards show: 3
Biography: 1
Comedy: 246
Comedy/Drama: 31
Crime: 1
Crime/Mystery: 101
Documentary: 18
Drama: 226
Fantasy/Horror/Sci-Fi: 107
Game show: 26
Historical drama: 60
Music/Musical: 13
Reality: 31
Soap opera: 28
Sports: 2
Talk Show: 16
Variety: 22
Western: 13
= 1001
TV-series/shows/movies that, according to the introduction by Robb Pearlman, "could not be included" (it is never argued why):
The Winds of War (1983)
Lonesome Dove (1989)
Requiem for a Heavyweight (1962) [???????]
Sybil (1976)
Gia (1998)
Trilogy of Terror (1975)
Duel (1971)
V (1983)
Recount (2008)
Game Change (2012)
An Early Frost (1984)
And the Band Played On (1993)
Brian's Song (1971)
Mildred Pierce (2011)
Life with Judy Garland: Me and My Shadows (2001).
Some entries that most likely will cause some problems in terms of checking them are the Awards shows: Academy Awards (#17), Golden Globe Awards (#50), MTV Video Music Awards (#365) as well as "Eurovision Song Contest" (#32). Instead of adding every single annual event for these shows, I decided to add only the earliest entry I could locate on IMDb (as if you care about those shows and/or will finish this list anyway).
NOTE: "1001 TV Series You Must Watch Before You Die" and "1001 TV Shows You Must Watch Before You DIe" have identical entires (1948-2015) - as well as the same page total (960) - although they're two different books. Generally speaking, the only differences between the two books are:
- the introduciton is longer in "Shows" (an introduction by Robb Pearlman) whereas "Series" have a much shorter introduction and instead have an additional index (Index by Genre). The "Index by Genre" is not featured in "Shows".
- "Shows" is in hardcover whereas "Series" is in paperback.
- The front and back cover are different.
If you spot any errors (or if any of the abovementioned series/shows I've listed earlier has been added to IMDb), or if you have any questions about the entries or the list as a whole, please don't hesitate to PM me.
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18 new
The Quatermass Experiment
1953, in 0 top lists Check -
57 new
The Twilight Zone
1959, in 0 top lists Check -
91 new
The Outer Limits
1963, in 0 top lists Check -
107 new
The Addams Family
1964, in 0 top lists Check -
130 new
Dark Shadows
1966, in 0 top lists Check -
197 new
The Stone Tape
1972, in 1 top list Check -
203 new
A Warning to the Curious
1972, in 0 top lists Check -
219 new
Kolchak: The Night Stalker
1974, in 0 top lists Check -
264 new
The Signalman
1976, in 1 top list Check -
299 new
Salem's Lot
1979, in 1 top list Check -
332 new
The Day of the Triffids
1981, in 0 top lists Check -
484 new
It
1990, in 1 top list Check -
587 new
Ultraviolet
1998, in 0 top lists Check -
612 new
The League of Gentlemen
1999, in 0 top lists Check -
741 new
Garth Marenghi's Darkplace
2004, in 0 top lists Check -
747 new
Hex
2004, in 0 top lists Check -
755 new
Supernatural
2005, in 0 top lists Check -
776 new
Marian, Again
2005, in 0 top lists Check -
816 new
Jekyll
2007, in 0 top lists Check -
843 new
Apparitions
2008, in 0 top lists Check -
844 new
Dead Set
2008, in 0 top lists Check -
893 new
The Vampire Diaries
2009, in 0 top lists Check -
925 new
The Walking Dead
2010, in 0 top lists Check -
928 new
The Fades
2011, in 0 top lists Check -
962 new
Grimm
2011, in 0 top lists Check -
963 new
Teen Wolf
2011, in 0 top lists Check -
972 new
American Horror Story
2011, in 0 top lists Check -
1007 new
In the Flesh
2013, in 0 top lists Check -
1009 new
Bates Motel
2013, in 0 top lists Check -
1015 new
Hannibal
2013, in 0 top lists Check -
1016 new
Hemlock Grove
2013, in 0 top lists Check -
1048 new
The Strain
2014, in 0 top lists Check -
1051 new
Penny Dreadful
2014, in 0 top lists Check
Last updated on Nov 3, 2023; source