25 Shows of the 90s That Paved the Way for the New Golden Age of TV
One of the most influential changes to occur in the years since IMDb began is the markedly improved quality of TV series. If the New Golden Age of television (sometimes called the Platinum Age) officially began in 1999 with the premiere of The Sopranos, then soon followed by series like Six Feet Under and The Wire, and was in full swing by the time series like Dexter, Breaking Bad, and Game of Thrones were introduced, the following shows of the 90s were perhaps the giants that the Golden Age shows stood upon. Instead of voting for your favorite of the shows below, which one's influence can be most seen in the TV of the New Golden Age?
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Vote in polls about other TV eras: 70s TV here and 1940s-50s TV here.
Reminisce and analyze here
Vote in polls about other TV eras: 70s TV here and 1940s-50s TV here.
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25 titles
- StarsOlympia DukakisDonald MoffatChloe WebbThe stories of several colorful characters living in San Francisco.
- CreatorJ. Michael StraczynskiStarsMira FurlanRichard BiggsStephen FurstIn the mid 23rd century, the Earth Alliance space station Babylon 5, located in neutral territory, is a major focal point for political intrigue, racial tensions and various wars over the course of five years.
- CreatorJoss WhedonStarsSarah Michelle GellarNicholas BrendonAlyson HanniganA young woman, destined to slay vampires, demons and other infernal creatures, deals with her life fighting evil, with the help of her friends.
- CreatorDavid E. KelleyStarsMandy PatinkinAdam ArkinHector ElizondoThe lives and trials of the staff of a major hospital in Chicago.
- CreatorDavid CraneMarta KauffmanStarsJennifer AnistonCourteney CoxLisa KudrowFollows the personal and professional lives of six twenty to thirty year-old friends living in the Manhattan borough of New York City.
- CreatorPaul AttanasioStarsRichard BelzerClark JohnsonYaphet KottoAn American police procedural television series chronicling the work of a fictional version of the Baltimore Police Department's Homicide Unit.
- CreatorJoshua BrandJohn FalseyStarsSam WaterstonRegina TaylorJeremy LondonForrest Bedford is a Southern lawyer in the late 1950s, generally content with his privileged life.
- StarsConan O'BrienThe Max Weinberg 7Andy RichterConan O'Brien, a Harvard Lampoon alumnus, hosts this late-night comedy/talk-show, which is often silly and whimsical.
- CreatorDavid LettermanStarsDavid LettermanPaul ShafferAlan KalterThe Late Show with David Letterman is an hour-long weeknight comedy and talk-show broadcast by CBS from the Ed Sullivan Theater on Broadway in New York City.
- CreatorDick WolfRick EidStarsJerry OrbachJesse L. MartinDennis FarinaNew York's finest police detectives and prosecutors fight to make the city a safer place. With integrity as the guiding force from investigation to verdict, the teams weigh every perspective in their commitment to finding justice.
- CreatorWinnie HolzmanStarsBess ArmstrongWilson CruzClaire DanesA 15-year-old girl and her trials and tribulations of being a teenager and dealing with friends, guys, parents, and school.
- CreatorJoshua BrandJohn FalseyStarsRob MorrowJanine TurnerBarry CorbinA city doctor is forced to work in the remote Alaskan town of Cicely, where he encounters peculiar locals, including a former astronaut, as he adjusts to small-town life.
- CreatorSteven BochcoDavid MilchStarsDennis FranzJimmy SmitsGordon ClappDetectives from NYPD's 15th Precinct investigate homicides within their precinct.
- CreatorTom FontanaStarsErnie HudsonJ.K. SimmonsLee TergesenA series chronicling the daily activities of an unusual prison facility and its criminal inhabitants.
- CreatorDavid E. KelleyStarsKathy BakerTom SkerrittLauren HollyAn aging Sheriff tries to keep the peace in Rome, Wisconsin, a small town plagued by bizarre and violent crimes.
- CreatorBill MaherStarsBill MaherChristine O'DonnellLisa Ann WalterFour guests from the worlds of politics and entertainment join host Bill Maher for a free-wheeling and humorous discussion of current events.
- CreatorDavid GreenwaltJohn McNamaraStarsAdrian PasdarLisa DarrLisa BlountJim Profit works for a multinational company and isn't above using any means necessary to get ahead, which includes bribery, blackmail, intimidation, extortion, and even murder. Everyone at the company, including the president, Charles Gracen, are oblivious to his dark side. As a matter of fact, Gracen thinks of him as a golden boy. But when Joanne Meltzer, the company's security chief, looks into his eyes, she sees something sinister. And when her boss, Jack Walters, is looking into some irregularities at the company, he asks Joanne to investigate, and initially the person she cornered said it was Profit who was behind it. But when Profit learned of this, he convinced this person to change the story she told Joanne. But Joanne knows that Profit is evil and so she tries to get the goods on him. At the same time, Profit tries to find a way to neutralize her and anyone else who might believe her.
- CreatorRoseanne BarrMatt WilliamsStarsRoseanne BarrJohn GoodmanLaurie MetcalfA revival of the popular 1990s sitcom "Roseanne," which centered on the everyday life of an American working-class family.
- CreatorLarry DavidJerry SeinfeldStarsJerry SeinfeldJulia Louis-DreyfusMichael RichardsThe continuing misadventures of neurotic New York City stand-up comedian Jerry Seinfeld and his equally neurotic New York City friends.
- CreatorMadeleine SmithbergLizz WinsteadStarsJon StewartTrevor NoahStephen ColbertA comedy news show featuring humorous takes on top stories.
- CreatorDennis KleinGarry ShandlingStarsGarry ShandlingJeffrey TamborWallace LanghamA comedic behind the scenes look at a late night talk show.
- CreatorDavid E. KelleyStarsDylan McDermottKelli WilliamsLara Flynn BoyleWe follow the exploits and cases of defense attorneys of a Boston law firm. Bobby Donnell is the senior defense attorney and founder of the firm.
- CreatorJames L. BrooksMatt GroeningSam SimonStarsDan CastellanetaNancy CartwrightHarry ShearerThe satiric half-hour adventures of a working-class family in the misfit city of Springfield.
- CreatorChris CarterStarsDavid DuchovnyGillian AndersonMitch PileggiTwo F.B.I. Agents, Fox Mulder the believer and Dana Scully the skeptic, investigate the strange and unexplained, while hidden forces work to impede their efforts.
- CreatorMark FrostDavid LynchStarsKyle MacLachlanMichael OntkeanMädchen AmickAn idiosyncratic FBI agent investigates the murder of a young woman in the even more idiosyncratic town of Twin Peaks.