Buffy The Vampire Slayer

"The Sopranos" was sublime, Tina Fey and Ricky Gervais gave us the giggles, and the fictional towns of Dillon, Texas, and Stars Hollow, Conn., became beloved TV destinations.

After weeks of debate about the past decade’s small-screen offerings, the writers and editors of The Canadian Press settled upon a list of 10 of their favourites.

Here they are, in alphabetical order:

"Arrested Development" (2003-2006) - It may be the most successful unsuccessful TV show of the decade, an irreverent, wacky sitcom that thrilled its faithful audience and critics while bewildering countless others with its non-sequitur sense of humour and out-there plotlines. Executive produced by Hollywood mogul Ron Howard, the story of the impossibly dysfunctional Bluth family was bolstered by inspired casting, including then-unknown Canadian actors Michael Cera and Will Arnett, comedian David Cross, and Jason Bateman and Portia de Rossi. And then there were the unforgettable, unexpected guest stars, including Liza Minnelli and Charlize Theron as love interests - one vertigo-prone and one mentally handicapped. For years rumours have circulated about a film adaptation, but fans are still waiting - and hoping - for a return of the Bluths.

"Buffy the Vampire Slayer" (1997-2003) - Before the rabidly popular "Twilight" book and film series took a stab at dissecting teen angst with romantic fantasy, this nuanced dramedy sunk its teeth into adolescent pain with a disarming realism that belied its lighthearted, supernatural premise. Sure, bloodthirsty vampires and demonic curses abounded, but human threats were the ones that ultimately proved the most devastating for blond heroine Buffy and her friends - failed love, a sick parent, male violence. By the time the bubbly ex-cheerleader made it to the 2000s, the wacky goofiness of earlier seasons started to give way to a darker, more serious tone that divided fans but didn’t stop bold experiments from creator Joss Whedon. From the stark soundscape of "The Body" to the exuberant musical numbers of "Once More, With Feeling," "Buffy" was one of the few shows to willingly play with form while establishing a female heroine who was sexy, smart, funny and strong. Young "Twilight" fans would be well-served with a look back at this genre-bending show.

"Friday Night Lights" (started 2006) - Perhaps nowhere did America seem more real in the past decade than in Dillon, Texas, where residents confronted the Iraq war, racism and unemployment as they cheered on their beloved Panthers. The documentary style of "FNL" offered up a startling authenticity, transporting viewers to pungent locker rooms, rundown houses and the local Applebee’s. But it was the superb cast that elevated this hour-long drama into something truly special. Zach Gilford was a marvel as gawky rookie quarterback Matt Saracen, while Kyle Chandler, as coach Eric Taylor, could convey volumes with a single exasperated look. And his relationship with wife Tami (Connie Britton) gave us one of the most realistic marriages ever portrayed on TV.

"Gilmore Girls" (2000-2007) - The argument from "Gilmore Girls" skeptics about why they don’t like the show is almost always the same: real people don’t talk like that. And no, the breakneck babble shared between every character on the beloved WB program, like something torn from a ’40s screwball comedy, is not realistic. Neither is Stars Hollow, the cosy, impossibly idyllic Connecticut hamlet where the show takes place, filled as it is with unanimously quirky, lovingly drawn characters. And of course, that’s also what makes the whipsmart family drama such a rare joy. Single mother Lorelai Gilmore (Lauren Graham) and her precocious daughter, Rory (Alexis Bledel), are such meticulously drawn characters that, after seven seasons, they feel like old friends: each triumph and mistake truly resonates. And while the mother-daughter duo’s Mamet-esque crackerjack chats flash by, life unspools slowly, as the Gilmores confront professional disappointment, relationships that unravel with no easy answers as to why and toxic familial situations that ultimately prove impossible to escape. So while the pair’s nimble nattering might not sound real, the show’s slow-burning focus on the frustrations and joys of everyday life was a revelation. "Gilmore Girls" is the ultimate comfort-food television.

"Lost" (started in 2004) - Yes, the show includes a Smoke Monster, time travel and labyrinthine subplots. But "Lost" is not just for hardcore sci-fi fans. With compelling characters, spellbinding storylines and mythical symbolism, the Emmy and Golden Globe winning series - about a bunch of plane-crash survivors on a mysterious tropical island - has brilliantly bridged the gap between the genres of sci-fi and big-network drama. It’s also evolved into a cutting-edge multi-platform experience, with clues popping up in fiction-based websites, podcasts and other places. Are the Oceanic Six - including tough and beautiful jailbird Kate, played by Canadian actor Evangeline Lilly, and conflicted leader Jack (Matthew Fox) - stuck in a time warp, a giant science experiment or in purgatory? Creators J.J. Abrams, Jeffrey Lieber and Damon Lindelof have vowed to tell us when the show wraps its sixth and final season in 2010.

"The Office" (U.K.) (2001-2003) - Not only hilarious and unnervingly clever, this British breakout reinvented the sitcom on both sides of the pond with its awkward humour and sly, deadpan delivery. Created, written and starring comic Ricky Gervais, "The Office" seemed the very antithesis of the standard TV comedy, from its drab cubicle setting to its average-looking cast to its portly, incompetent hero. As loser boss David Brent, Gervais elevated cringe comedy to new heights while cultivating a devoted fanbase that would earn him unprecedented podcast success and a Hollywood career. The show, meanwhile, spawned international adaptations including a Quebec version and a U.S. hit and helped usher in an onslaught of single-camera sitcoms that defined the decade, among them "Curb Your Enthusiasm," "Arrested Development," "30 Rock" and "Parks and Recreation."

"The Sopranos" (1999-2007) - When creator David Chase introduced New Jersey mob boss Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini) to the world, he instantly lifted the traditional pop-culture Mafioso image from one-dimensional caricature to a nuanced enigma. From Tony’s couch confessions with his therapist (Lorraine Bracco) and his ruthless and philandering ways, to his anxiety problems and tender moments with his wife (Edie Falco) and kids (Jamie-Lynn Sigler and Robert Iler), viewers have felt both affinity and abhorrence for the New Jersey organized crime leader. The paradoxes continued with his gaggle of goons, who - while committing shocking crimes - provided comedy gold. When Paulie (Tony Sirico) and Christopher (Michael Imperioli) get stuck in the woods and fight over their only sustenance - ketchup packages - viewers couldn’t help but howl despite having just witnessed one of their murders. Touted as the most financially successful cable series in the history of television, "The Sopranos" has won five Golden Globes and has become the subject of analysis for many a university class. Fans are also still debating the polarizing and unforgettable conclusion that left Tony’s fate up in the air.

"30 Rock" (started in 2006) - The impossibly clever one-liners and self-referential storylines on "30 Rock" are hard to explain to those who don’t watch the show (and many don’t - it’s been perennially on the brink of cancellation). But for viewers in the know, a new episode of this smart half-hour comedy has become something to savour. As Liz Lemon, Tina Fey became the decade’s Mary Tyler Moore, wowing us with her clever jabs at NBC and pithy pokes at product placement. And as Jack Donaghy, Alec Baldwin revealed himself as a comic genius, making us all but forget that he’d ever done big-screen dramas. But the stellar performances didn’t stop there: Tracy Morgan, Jane Krakowski and Jack McBrayer all helped turn hyper-articulate scripts into comedic magic, creating a host of memorable inside jokes that rivalled those on "Seinfeld." Who could forget the Black Crusaders, the Tracy Jordan meat machine, "The Rural Juror," a meatball sub with extra bread, "MILF Island" and Dr. Spaceman - just to name a few?

"Veronica Mars" (2004-2007) - "Veronica Mars," like "Buffy," featured a premise - a once-popular teen outsider works with her private-investigator father to right wrongs - that only hinted at its true ambition. In fact, the short-lived UPN series was something of a high-school noir, from its masterfully plotted first-season murder whodunit to the way that even its sunny Southern California environs were always shaded in dark, foreboding tones. But "Veronica Mars" was perhaps most notable for its titular heroine, a tangle of contradictions and one of the most complex teen characters ever depicted on television. As portrayed by Kristen Bell, Veronica is brash, intelligent, vengeful, sweet, prickly, unyieldingly independent and loyal, a fantastically flawed heroine whose piercing gaze wreaks havoc on the corrupt local sheriff’s office, morally dubious politicians and a high school where the schism between the haves and the have-nots is wide enough to drive one of the rich kids’ Hummers through. Yet, through it all, the persnickety pixie retains an appealing vulnerability - or as faithful friend Wallace tells her in the pilot: "underneath that angry-young-woman shell there’s a slightly less angry young woman who’s just dying to bake me something."

"The Wire" - (2002-2008) U.S. President Barack Obama has said it is his favourite show, as have countless critics who have suggested it’s not only the best show of the decade, but TV’s best show of all time. The gritty procedural crime drama methodically examined the crooks and cops in crime-plagued Baltimore, giving equal face time and character development to both the so-called good and bad guys. Show creator and former crime reporter David Simon mined his old notebooks to create compelling figures, including low-life drug slingers who are alternately despicable and endearing, and line-crossing police officers who break the rules for the greater good or to suit their own needs. Each of the show’s five seasons examines a different theme - drugs, corrupt unions, dirty politicians, the failings of the education system, and the media - and how they relate back to society’s underbelly of crime and poverty. Despite enthusiastic reviews, the show was never a ratings hit, possibly because the seasons typically start unapologetically slow to establish new characters and their lives. Viewers with short attention spans who gave up early on "The Wire" may want to take Obama’s advice and give it a second chance.

HONOURABLE MENTIONS: "Band of Brothers," "Freaks & Geeks," "Rescue Me," "Survivor," "Curb Your Enthusiasm."