The 40 most popular 1990s TV shows, ranked. Click any show for ratings, reviews, trailers, and where to watch.


Law & Order
1990
country: United States
In cases ripped from the headlines, police investigate serious and often deadly crimes, weighing the evidence and questioning the suspects until someone is taken into custody. The district attorney's office then builds a case to convict the perpetrator by proving the person guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Working together, these expert teams navigate all sides of the complex criminal justice system to make New York a safer place.


Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
1999
country: United States
In the criminal justice system, sexually-based offenses are considered especially heinous. In New York City, the dedicated detectives who investigate these vicious felonies are members of an elite squad known as the Special Victims Unit. These are their stories.


Family Guy
1999
country: United States
Sick, twisted, politically incorrect and Freakin' Sweet animated series featuring the adventures of the dysfunctional Griffin family. Bumbling Peter and long-suffering Lois have three kids. Stewie (a brilliant but sadistic baby bent on killing his mother and taking over the world), Meg (the oldest, and is the most unpopular girl in town) and Chris (the middle kid, he's not very bright but has a passion for movies). The final member of the family is Brian - a talking dog and much more than a pet, he keeps Stewie in check whilst sipping Martinis and sorting through his own life issues.


Late Show with David Letterman
1993
country: United States
David Letterman uses mature humor to appeal to his audience in this weeknight series, which gets its music from a house band led by Paul Shaffer. Among the show's most-famous segments are the Top Ten List and Stupid Pet Tricks, the latter of which subsequently led to an additional recurring segment called Stupid Human Tricks.


The View
1997
country: United States
ABC Daytime's morning chatfest, currently featuring Whoopi Goldberg, Joy Behar, Sunny Hostin, Sara Haines, Alyssa Farah Griffin, and Ana Navarro discussing the most exciting events of the day. Hot topics in the news, the best experts in their field, celebrity interviews and general entertainment are all part of The View.


The Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn
1999
country: United States
Craig Kilborn hosted this zany talk show, which followed David Letterman's show, from 1999 until 2004. Kilborn left The Daily Show in 1999 to be this show's host after Tom Synder retired. The segment "5 Questions" was carried over from when he was on The Daily Show. Kilborn was frequently beaten in the ratings by his NBC timeslot rival, Conan O'Brien. Kilborn left The Late Late Show to pursue new opportunities.


The Daily Show
1996
country: United States
The World's Fakest News Team tackle the biggest stories in news, politics and pop culture.


Raw
1993
country: United States
A regularly scheduled, live, year-round program featuring some of the biggest WWE Superstars.


Among Friends
1998
country: Hungary
Miklós introduces viewers into the world of Money and Charm.


Goede Tijden, Slechte Tijden
1990
country: Netherlands
Goede tijden, slechte tijden, also known as GTST, is the longest-running Dutch soap opera, revolving around the lives of the families Alberts, Sanders, De Jong, Van Houten and Bouwhuis. It all takes place in the fictional town of Meerdijk.


Gute Zeiten, schlechte Zeiten
1992
country: Germany
Gute Zeiten, schlechte Zeiten is a long-running German television soap opera, first broadcast on RTL in 1992. The programme concerns the lives of a fictional neighborhood in Germany's capital city Berlin. Over the years the soap opera tends to have an overhaul of young people in their late teens and early twenties; targeting a young viewership.


Young Hearts
1995
country: Brazil
Malhação is a Brazilian television series for the teenage audience. The soap started in 1995, and was set in a fictional Gym Club called Malhação on Barra da Tijuca, Rio de Janeiro. Through the years the location varied slightly. Although the name of the soap remains the same, it is now set in the Múltipla Escolha High School.


C.I.D.
1998
country: India
A team of dedicated men and women in the Crime Investigation Department will risk everything to solve Mumbai's toughest, most complicated crimes.


Egoli: Place of Gold
1992
country: South Africa
A South African television soap opera created by Franz Marx which revolves around the daily ups, downs, trials and tribulations of a handful of families in and around Johannesburg (which is often referred to as eGoli - the City of Gold)


JAG
1995
country: United States
Harmon "Harm" Rabb Jr. is a former pilot turned lawyer working for the military's JAG (Judge Advocate General) division, the elite legal wing of officers that prosecutes and defends those accused of military-related crimes. He works closely with Lt. Col. Sarah Mackenzie, and together they do what needs to be done to find the truth.


Klan
1997
country: Poland
Family is the most important thing, and the children of Władysław and Maria Lubicz from Warsaw can always count on each other, no matter what surprises life offers.


Late Night with Conan O'Brien
1993
country: United States
Stepping into the late-late slot vacated by David Letterman, Conan O'Brien stars in a show that far outdoes its competition in sheer strangeness. Along with the celebrity interviews and musical numbers typical of late-night talk shows, this program make frequent use of odd walk-on characters and frequent "visits" from celebrity guests.


Hollywood Squares
1998
country: United States
On September 14, 1998, a Hollywood Squares revival debuted with Tom Bergeron as its host. In addition to her production duties, Whoopi Goldberg served as the permanent center square, with series head writer Bruce Vilanch, Gilbert Gottfried, Martin Mull, and Caroline Rhea as regular panelists and Brad Garrett, Bobcat Goldthwait, Jeffrey Tambor, George Wallace, Kathy Griffin and various others as semi-regular panelists. Shadoe Stevens returned to announce, although he was not given a square on the panel as he had been when John Davidson was host.


Midsomer Murders
1997
country: United Kingdom
The peacefulness of the Midsomer community is shattered by violent crimes, suspects are placed under suspicion, and it is up to a veteran DCI and his young sergeant to calmly and diligently eliminate the innocent and ruthlessly pursue the guilty.


Friends
1994
country: United States
Six young people from New York City, on their own and struggling to survive in the real world, find the companionship, comfort and support they get from each other to be the perfect antidote to the pressures of life.


DAS!
1991
country: Germany
Every evening at 6:45 p.m. sharp, a prominent guest takes a seat on the red sofa—and DAS! provides daily updates on what's hot in the north.


Touched by an Angel
1994
country: United States
Monica, an angel, is tasked with bringing guidance and messages from God to various people who are at a crossroads in their lives.
Volle Kanne
Volle Kanne
1999
country: Germany
No overview available


Frasier
1993
country: United States
After many years spent at the “Cheers” bar, Frasier moves back home to Seattle to work as a radio psychiatrist after his policeman father gets shot in the hip on duty.
N.N.
N.N.
1990
country: Colombia
Colombian Sitcom focused on the adventures and misadventures of Nerón Navarrete,(A.K.A. "NN") a nice and playful gambler with huge desire to overcome, which comes from the countryside to the city. His clumsiness, because of many contradictions, only equal to the tenderness of her character, always polite, which makes engaging in all sorts of crazy situations in their quest to conquer the world.


Pokémon
1997
country: Japan
Join Ash accompanied by his partner Pikachu, as he travels through many regions, meets new friends and faces new challenges on his quest to become a Pokémon Master.


Die Harald Schmidt Show
1995
country: Germany
The Harald Schmidt Show is a German late night talk show hosted on Sky Deutschland by comedian Harald Schmidt. The show first aired from 5 December 1995 to 23 December 2003 on Sat.1. Schmidt then moved his show to Das Erste as Harald Schmidt and Schmidt & Pocher, but he returned to Sat.1 on 13 September 2011. After cancellation on Sat.1, the show continued on Sky Deutschland in September 2012.


The Sopranos
1999
country: United States
The story of New Jersey-based Italian-American mobster Tony Soprano and the difficulties he faces as he tries to balance the conflicting requirements of his home life and the criminal organization he heads. Those difficulties are often highlighted through his ongoing professional relationship with psychiatrist Jennifer Melfi. The show features Tony's family members and Mafia associates in prominent roles and story arcs, most notably his wife Carmela and his cousin and protégé Christopher Moltisanti.


South Park
1997
country: United States
Follow the misadventures of four irreverent grade-schoolers in the quiet, dysfunctional town of South Park, Colorado.


Detective Conan
1996
country: Japan
The son of a world famous mystery writer, Jimmy Kudo, has achieved his own notoriety by assisting the local police as a student detective. He has always been able to solve the most difficult of criminal cases using his wits and power of reason.


Secret Lives
1999
country: Finland
Salatut elämät (Secret Lives) is a Finnish television soap opera that premiered on MTV3 on 25 January 1999. The series' storylines follow the daily lives of several families who live in the same apartment block in Helsinki.


Galileo
1998
country: Germany
This daily German magazine show delivers interesting facts on numerous topics centering around technology, life, and bizarre knowledge.


King of the Hill
1997
country: United States
Set in Texas, this animated series follows the life of propane salesman Hank Hill, who lives with his overly confident substitute Spanish teacher wife Peggy, wannabe comedian son Bobby, and naive niece Luanne. Hank has conservative views about God, family, and country, but his values and ethics are often challenged by the situations he, his family, and his beer-drinking neighbors/buddies find themselves in.


Siyaset Meydanı
1994
country: Turkey
No overview available


The X-Files
1993
country: United States
The exploits of FBI Special Agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully who investigate X-Files: marginalized, unsolved cases involving paranormal phenomena. Mulder believes in the existence of aliens and the paranormal while Scully, a skeptic, is assigned to make scientific analyses of Mulder's discoveries that debunk Mulder's work and thus return him to mainstream cases.


Stargate SG-1
1997
country: United States
The story of Stargate SG-1 begins about a year after the events of the feature film, when the United States government learns that an ancient alien device called the Stargate can access a network of such devices on a multitude of planets. SG-1 is an elite Air Force special operations team, one of more than two dozen teams from Earth who explore the galaxy and defend against alien threats such as the Goa'uld, Replicators, and the Ori.


Chibi Maruko-chan
1990
country: Japan
Meet Maruko, a sweet schoolgirl with a hefty dose of curiosity (and occasional laziness!). She sails through life in a cozy town alongside her loving parents, grandparents, and sister. Maruko has a band of loyal friends, including her closest pal, Tama-chan, but her playful and doting grandpa is at the heart of it all. Life is never dull in this charming series.


Charmed
1998
country: United States
Three sisters (Prue, Piper and Phoebe) reunite and unlock their powers to become the Charmed Ones, the most powerful good witches of all time, whose prophesied destiny is to protect innocent lives from evil beings such as demons and warlocks. Each sister possesses unique magical powers that grow and evolve, while they attempt to maintain normal lives in modern day San Francisco.


Beyond Belief: Fact or Fiction
1997
country: United States
Can you tell the difference between fact and fiction? Several stories of strange, mysterious and incredible occurrences are chronicled during each episode. It is up to the viewer to decide which stories actually happened and which were completely fabricated by the show’s writers. The answer is revealed by Jonathan Frakes at the conclusion of each episode.


Family Affairs
1997
country: United Kingdom
Focuses on the lives of residents in the fictional London suburb of Charnham.
1990s television was the last era of true mass audiences, when a network sitcom or a season finale could be a shared national event.