Some years ago, I posted Perfect Albums, which listed some music albums where I loved (not just liked) every song on the album. In my experience, that’s an exception to rule. Typically, I find an album has a few songs I love, a few I wouldn’t put on a playlist, and the rest are various shades of likeable.
Much longer ago, Folger’s Maxwell House coffee had the slogan, “Good to the last drop!” Caroming off the idea of Perfect Albums being rare and special, it occurred to me that TV shows that were “good to the last drop” — good throughout their run — are also rare and kinda special.
So, I made a list of some winners. And notable losers.
My notes for this post, in explanation of the title (and the theme), say “Folger’s coffee”. It wasn’t until I sat down to write this — and spent several minutes searching the Folgers website for that slogan — that I finally looked up the slogan itself and discovered I’d utterly misremembered my past (again).
[I was all set to write about how Folgers apparently had erased their past, because even their Our History page didn’t mention the slogan. Yet they kept their “other” (ha!) slogan, “The best part of waking up is Folgers in your cup.” My mind was so sure it used to hear, “Folgers, good to the last drop.” Memory is funny (in the same way that paper armor is funny). I didn’t even get right there’s no apostrophe.]
Once I realized my mistake and changed trains, there was the slogan, right on the front page of the Maxwell House website. Somehow, I’m vaguely surprised both coffee companies are still around and selling coffee. Maxwell House has been around since 1892 — 132 years. Folgers goes back to 1850 — 170 years!
Coffee companies aside, the idea here is TV series that never went down in quality throughout their run. Episodes in the last season were as good as episodes during all seasons. I’ll cut a little slack for a rough first season, maybe even a rough two first seasons if the run is long enough (looking squarely at you, TNG).
Speaking of seasons, I’ll require at least three (all good) to qualify, but look for shows with five or more. I’ll define “quality” as being both popularly and critically successful. A rough first season needs at least four seasons to qualify and going at least five seasons buys two rough first seasons (or a rough first and later off-season).
Rule details are arbitrary and elastic. The main thing is at least three seasons, preferably more, all worth watching by fans and reasonable critics alike.
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Lucifer (2016–2021; 6 seasons). The inspiration for this post was getting around to re-watching the last season of this (so I could finally take it off my Netflix Watch List). As I recall, I even thought to myself, “Damn, that was good to the last drop!” (And a post was born.)
If you’ve never seen the show and like magical realism with pretty good writing and interesting characters, Lucifer is worth checking out.
It’s a police-procedural murder-mystery odd-couple will-they-won’t-they romance with a vaguely goth-themed supernatural aspect. The characters are based on ones Neil Gaiman (and others) created for DC Vertigo.
Lucifer Morningstar (Tom Ellis), King of Hell, decides he’s bored with ruling Hell and determines to take an extended vacation in Los Angeles, where he owns a nightclub named Lux. His longtime friend Mazikeen (Lesley-Ann Brandt), head torturer demon, comes along as companion and bodyguard. In the first episode, Lucifer meets homicide detective Chloe Decker (Lauren German), and they join together as partners (and maybe more) to solve murders.
The show feels as if everyone had a ball making it, there’s a gleeful joy to it, especially in the episodes where they do something fun and different. One episode is a musical (with the best ever explanation for why everyone suddenly breaks into coordinated song and dance). Other episodes are fantasies. One takes place in the past with the actors playing different roles. Very creative show, among my all-time favorites, highly recommended.
[See The Morningstar Sets for my post about the show.]
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Black-ish (2014–2022; 8 seasons) and Grown-ish (2018-2024; 6 seasons). The first is the original and flagship of the Kenya Barris “-ish” suite of shows (comprising these two plus Mixed-ish (2019-2021), which only ran for two seasons).
The former is a family sitcom starring Anthony Anderson and Tracee Ellis Ross as husband and wife. The latter is a college sitcom spinoff that follows the two oldest children, Zoey (Yara Shahidi) at first and in later seasons “Junior” (Marcus Scribner). I very much enjoyed both shows (Mixed-ish was just okay).
[See Barris-ish AF for my post about these shows.]
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Elementary (2012–2019; 7 seasons). A very watchable adaptation of the Sherlock Holmes and Dr. John Watson canon. In this version, Jonny Lee Miller plays a young, fit, addicted, neuro-atypical Sherlock to a just-friends Dr. Joan Watson (Lucy Liu).
I re-watched the series a couple of years ago and enjoyed it all over again. Full disclosure, part of the attraction for me is Lucy Liu, so I might be biased.
And I’m a sucker for Sherlock Holmes adaptations. I’ve been a Holmes fan since I was a kid.
Not quite making this list, but worthy of mention, is an even better Sherlock Holmes adaptation, the BBC’s Sherlock (2010–2017; 4 seasons) with Benedict Cumberbatch as the Great Detective and Martin Freeman as Dr. Watson. Many of the episodes are modernized versions, or at least references, to stories A.C. Doyle wrote, and the series is generally outstanding.
But I think the last season slipped a little, and it only has four (short) seasons, so “just a little outside.”
[Full disclosure: something about Freeman rubs me the wrong way, although I don’t think that contributes to the show not making the list.]
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Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987–1994; 7 seasons). Arguably the best of the Star Trek TV shows in terms of production quality, stories, and characters. Captain Jean Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) is as famous, and perhaps even more well regarded, than the notorious Captain James T. Kirk (whose brand got badly diluted and polluted in the J.J. Abrams era).
The original series famously went downhill in its third season, and the later series never caught on the way TNG did, so it’s the only entry on this list. (Blame some of that, perhaps, on the fragmentation resulting from so many streaming platforms.)
Nothing I’ve seen about the new shows commends them to me.
[I’ve written about Star Trek a lot here.]
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The West Wing (1999–2006; 7 seasons). I thought this show was awesome and dearly wish government actually worked anything like as shown on TV. My only regret is there weren’t more seasons. The characters, the writing, the performances, the stories, and the wonderful Sorkin walk-n-talk. Another of my all-time favorite shows.
[See Ideal(ized) Politics for my post about the show.]
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M*A*S*H (1972–1983; 11 seasons). A classic, an all-time favorite, and a show that has held up pretty well over time. Certainly, its anti-war message is timeless enough. I’ve been watching episodes occasionally and very much enjoying them.
And they went out on a very high note.
[See Hawkeye & Margaret for my post about the show.]
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Honorable Mention: In fact, quite a few. Too many, as they say, to try to name them all, but here’s a quick list of some:
- Boston Legal (2004–2008; 5 seasons)
- 30 Rock (2006–2013; 7 seasons)
- Community (2009–2015; 6 seasons)
- Fresh Off the Boat (2015–2020; 6 seasons)
- The Expanse (2015–2022; 6 seasons)
- Grace and Frankie (2015–2022; 7 seasons)
- The Good Place (2016–2020; 4 seasons)
And as I made this list, I found there were actually many shows that were consistently watchable through five+ seasons though not outstanding in any way.
For example, Rizzoli & Isles (2010–2016; 7 seasons). A decent police procedural murder mystery based on the Tess Gerritsen novels.
Maybe not the best example, because the show’s two leads were a lot of the attraction for me, especially Angie Harmon. Person of Interest (2011–2016; 5 seasons) is probably a better example.
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What’s actually more notable are the failures, especially the ones that disappointed after an especially strong opening. Following are some shows where the last drops were bitter and awful.
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HBO’s Westworld (2016–2022; 4 seasons) is my canonical example of a strong start but crappy finish.
Actually, Westworld was more of what I call a Shyamalan (or sometimes “a Boston”) — an amazing first offering with each one thereafter declining and later ones being generally awful.
The first season of Westwood was amazing (and I wrote lots of posts about it including a detailed analysis of each episode). The second season wasn’t nearly as good and suffered, I thought, from some strange flaws.
The third season was bad, and the fourth was worse. The planned fifth season never happened. HBO canceled the show and, from what I’ve heard, essentially removed it from their lineup. Such a crushing failure after such a great start.
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BBC’s Doctor Who (1963–present; 26+14 seasons) is another major disappointment. Showrunner Chris Chibnall managed to bring the show from one of my top favorites to one I’ve lost all interest in. The new (returned) showrunner Russell T. Davies has apparently not only not turned the show around but gone all in on the social pandering.
The show isn’t over, hasn’t aired any last season, but it’s dead to me. The last seasons were a good example of how to destroy a beloved show. (Disney is leading the pack in this, but they’re certainly not alone.)
Again, I’ve written quite a few posts about this show.
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NCIS (2003-present; 21 seasons). Spin-off of another “good to the last drop” show, JAG (1995–2005; 10 seasons). Multiple spin-offs from this show, none of which have grabbed me. I haven’t even looked at the most recent spin-off set in Hawaii.
As with Doctor Who, this is another beloved show that eventually let me down (and is still on the air but dead to me).
[See my Gibbs’ Rules page for a list of posts about NCIS.]
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The Simpsons (1989–present; 35 seasons). Also still on the air, and I’m still watching this one, but not with much joy. The show seems to have run out of air. Every time I watch an episode, I find myself wondering why. Hard to say if the well has run dry or if there’s a decline in writing. Maybe both?
I thought about including South Park (1997–present; 26 seasons), but the only reason I’m not watching it anymore is losing access to the Comedy Central channel. From what bits I’ve seen, the show is still pretty fresh.
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HBO’s Game of Thrones (2011-2019, 8 seasons). I bailed in the early seasons (too dark for my taste), but fans apparently found the last season a crushing disappointment to a formerly excellent show. From what I’ve heard, difficulties with author George R.R. Martin didn’t help matters.
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So, there it is, a first cut at shows good throughout their run and some others that disappointed. I’m sure I’ve forgotten ones I’ll later realize should be on here.
What shows stand out for you as “good to the last drop”?
Or that disappointed you after a good start?
Stay good to the end, my friends! Go forth and spread beauty and light.
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Logos con carne 
June 25th, 2024 at 5:42 pm
Yeah, some of these shows had a good first season then they just didn’t know what to do next so they went with bad anything and see if it catches.
Game of Thrones was one of the best tv series for me along with Breaking Bad and the Sopranos.
June 26th, 2024 at 10:09 am
Some TV shows remind me a little of some blogs. People get here and think, “Hey, a blog sounds like fun!” So, they start one, maybe get off a few posts, and then they realize [a] it’s hard work [b] and they don’t have as many good ideas as they at first thought. Over the years, I’ve seen a lot of blogs come and quickly vanish. Even many that hang in there for a year or so run out of steam. Likewise, many TV shows. Hey, great idea for a TV series, let’s make it! But they only have a few episodes in their head, and after than it turns into hard work!
Never saw The Sopranos, but I’ve heard it’s one of the good ones. Good to the last drop? How did you feel about the last season of Game of Thrones?
June 25th, 2024 at 7:09 pm
Wyrd, Like you I bailed on Games of Thrones. I well understand the recent trend in narratives of the “fallen man” theme which have caught on in the last few years. I think that theme was first best executed in the award winning “Mad Men” series. Also, very well done later on in “Breaking Bad.” However, I bailed after the first episode of Game of Thrones. In my opinion it went beyond the narrative of sinful fallen man—i.e., sin being the punishment of sin. Thrones was, at least from what I saw and heard from my friends, downright nihilistic. That is different in kind not just degree IMO. Come to think of it, Thrones may be a window into the “reality” shared by those who have crawled out of the darkness in our current politics. Maybe that was its demographic.
June 26th, 2024 at 11:02 am
I realized some time back that music fell into two broad categories: music that celebrates; and music that communicates. The former is some form of “let’s party!” (or “I’ve got the blues”), and the lyrics can be almost irrelevant. The latter is poetry with a point — the lyrics are as or more important than the music.
Stories, I think, are the same. There are rip-tootin’ yarns and parables with a point. I’ve never seen any of Mad Men or Breaking Bad, but I understand [a] they were very well written, and [b] centered on some reprehensible characters. I understand you to be saying these shows involved both the sin and its wages. That is something that has changed in modern storytelling. It used to be that Bad People always ultimately failed. (At least in western fiction. I understand some cultures aren’t as tied to the happy ending as we are.) Caper films, for instance, even if the thieves were the stars of the film, always ended in failure. If the thieves were the stars, then they usually got away, but somehow without the ill-gotten gains. The original Ocean’s 11 (1960), IIRC, is an example. Again trusting my memory, I believe in the 2001 remake they do get away with the cash.
So, I think there has been a shift both in supporting the notion that crime does pay and in humanizing the villains, in making them relatable rather than despicable. I remember enjoying the HBO show Weeds (2005-2012), in which a widowed mother of two (Mary-Louise Parker) becomes a weed dealer and eventual marijuana kingpin. Good show, but I waited eight seasons for the comeuppance. Which never came. Happy ending for all. Left me vaguely dissatisfied.
All of which is to say, I can relate to what you’re saying. I can’t speak to the underlying themes of MM or BB, but Game of Thrones strikes me a nothing more than a rip-tootin’ yarn. A particularly dark and smarmy yarn with, after two seasons, only one character I could stomach (Tyrion) and no reason to watch. I’m not opposed to stories like these, especially if well-done, but they’re not my cup of tea. I tend to most enjoy stories about people, or a person, facing and figuring out a problem. Not real big on Master Villain stories or exploring the nuances of falling from grace. I typically read fiction to escape from all the real-life versions of that.
Interesting idea, but I’m not sure the Venn diagram for MAGA versus dark fantasy fiction has much overlap. Their fantasies, to my eye, have more to do with the real world. I’m not sure a MAGA mindset and fantastical imagination have much in common. I believe the audience for GoT shewed towards young adults, the same general audience that enjoys superhero and science fiction movies. The nihilism, to my thinking, starts back in the 1980s — the infamous “Me!” decade. Something of a reaction to the Hippie Nation era and Vietnam and the deconstruction that began with Watergate. Post-modern narcissism and deconstruction led to an unmooring and lonely helplessness that spirals into nihilism. A pretty pickle we’ve gotten ourselves into. Someone recently used the term “social entropy” — the inevitable breaking down resulting from lack of sustaining input — to describe what’s been happening since roughly the turn of the century. Maybe it’s just some sort of millennial malaise, but maybe we’re seeing the ending of modern culture and a slide down into who knows what. Some days I despair. Some days I hope.
Speaking of fallen man, I’m not sure whether you would enjoy Between the Bridge and the River (2006), by Craig Ferguson, but it’s one of my favorites. It’s the tale of two men, one who starts high and falls, one who starts low and rises. Very thoughtful, but also fun and fascinating, story.
June 26th, 2024 at 1:39 pm
Wyrd, a lot of meat to chew on my friend. I need to ponder it all for a while. I do enjoy these riffs of yours greatly. However I’d like to make a few quick responses. First, your comment that you “tend to most enjoy stories about people, or a person, facing and figuring out a problem.” I’m totally there with you my friend with the added emphasis that the problems must be moral dilemmas—the stuff that captivates me. Second, I actually think that the fallen man theme (and humanizing of the sinner) is not so much new as a rediscovery with some writers. For example, I contend that John Milton made the Devil quite relatable in Paradise Lost much like Walter White in BB. And the Devil’s great line: “Better to reign in Hell than serve in Heaven” sounds very modern. It directly speaks to our notions of the freedom of individual choice and personal ambition—two of the main driving values in our culture. And those values certainly got a big boost in the “Me” decade.” See, e.g., The Culture of Narcissism, by Christopher Lasch (1979). But I need to re-read your riff again and ponder a bit more.
June 26th, 2024 at 4:01 pm
Heh. You got the dubious benefit of being my first writing of the day, and I’ve found that especially when it’s a comment, I tend to wax verbose. The sheer joy of being awake again and playing in the wordpile.
Very good point about Milton. The fallen hero, the anti-hero, even the villain-hero, yeah, none of those are new. I do wonder if we haven’t become more oriented on them of late. Long ago I wrote Berman’s Vulcans about something I noticed in the late 1990s and early 2000s. That we seemed discontent with noble characters, that we seemed to need to deconstruct every role model, drag everything down to an “everyone is shit” level. A classic crab bucket mentality. Without role models, especially impossible ones we can only reach for but never grasp, we don’t have to be so hard on ourselves about ethics. I don’t know if it’s an evolution or a drumbeat that’s always been with us, but quite a few consider nobility and even decency boring. Even long ago, Superman was recognized worldwide, but many disdain his “goodie two shoes” demeanor (and worked to make him darker and “more relatable” in recent films much to their detriment).
I think it’s the combination of self-interest and self-involvement fueled by globalization and the interweb along with the growing secularism and (weirdly contrary) anti-intellectualism and hostility to science coming after the deconstruction in the latter half of the last century and a growing recognition that we’ve reached the end of the rainbow of every generation being better.
Which is exactly why “social entropy” seems so apt, seem to so exactly describe what’s happening.
If you like moral dilemma in your fiction, I’m more encouraged that you might like Between the Bridge and the River. If not already familiar to you, the title is based on a Catholic conundrum about someone who commits suicide (a sin) by jumping off a bridge but repents before hitting the water. I’ve read it at least twice, but it has been a while, so I might have to add it to my readpile.
June 26th, 2024 at 11:04 am
(I was immediately hooked by the first line: “Cloven-hooved creatures passed this way.”)
October 7th, 2025 at 2:51 pm
[…] since the last explicitly named TV Tuesday post. There were only two posts after it in 2024 — Good to the Last Drop, about great shows, and Change Winds Blowing, which was more about blogging but did mention Mr. […]