The list comes with a few notes. All shows (except Dora the Explorer, because pilots don’t count) were broadcast after 2000. Longer running series were ignored, even if some did manage to innovate. How can we forget Play School’s journey through the gay window?

This isn’t to say that the decade wasn’t free from some absolute STINKERS. This year’s Dirtgirl World being an excellent example.

If you were to take anything away from this, with the variety and number of dedicated children’s channels (ABC 2, ABC 3, all the regular FTA programming and all of the Pay TV channels available) there is great potential to drown in waves of shit children’s content, but this seems to be the opposite of what’s happening. There is a lot of good television being made and some of it is exceptional.

10: LazyTown

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AlzaWU0I1s8[/youtube]

Lazy town is weird. It’s lovely, but it’s weird. Latex puppet people, flawed characters, gluttony, excercise, fruit is called “sports candy”. It’s all about the positive message. What makes this show great, especially from an Australian point of view, is that the show operates in a really unique way, which a fascinating approach to storytelling. This is in part to its Icelandic origins (how many shows from Iceland do you normally get to see?) and also the writer/producer/director/star/gymnast Magnús Scheving.

9: Big Cook Little Cook

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KNKfTrrJVJI[/youtube]

Wikipedia tells me “The programme is set in the kitchen of a café, with two principal characters, Big Cook Ben and Little Cook Small. Ben is a full-sized adult, but Small is only a few inches tall and flies around on a wooden spoon.” Really, that’s all you need to know, each episode cooks a special fairy-tale themed meal based on whichever fairy tale character walks in for something to eat. For a very cheap show, it really works. It shows that you don’t need much to make a good show, and some great lessons in food preperation and kitchen safety. Also, try and get the theme song out of your head.

8: The Adventures of Bottle Top Bill and His Best Friend Corky

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQx7ZZSwaD8[/youtube]

This show is great, and it’s nice to see an Australian on the list. Bottle Top Bill and Corky live in a world where everything is constructed like a some craft project, but on meth. The show works with conflict resolution and fixing problems, and while the characters are generous and eager to help each other, it isn’t the forced charity and civility of some kids shows (The Mickey Mouse Clubhouse for example). It’s great to see a world lovingly created (literally) and with such creative detail. It also lends itself to some nice construction games on the ABC website.

7: Charlie and Lola

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OswURUAJeLI[/youtube]

Charlie and Lola are brother and sister, living with their (unseen) Mum and Dad. What makes this show special isn’t just the charming and unique storytelling and animation (although it could be on the list for that reason alone), but the wonderful characters found in the siblings and their friends. The interaction between the two is loving but complicated, and doesn’t come as forced as kid’s TV often is; shows seem more interested in either telling kids to be nice and how to behave, or even worse, show one sibling as an awful bully who needs to be combated. Another thing about this show that appeals, is the portrayal of children living inside an apartment, because honestly children don’t all live in Postman Pat style villages. This quite possibly could be the nicest and most charming show ever made!

6: Dora the Explorer

You can’t think kids TV of the ’00s without thinking of Dora, the multi-billion dollar powerhouse, and received much attention this year with talk of a more grown up “tweeny” version. Dora the Explorer is an amazing educational tool, for so many reasons other than the Spanish/English bilinguality (which is great, don’t get me wrong). Dora teaches kids how a digital environment works and how interactive environments can be manipulated, with the whole show framed as an immersive educational video game. There is puzzle solving, task structure, repetitive visual and aural motifs that have even very young children actively engaging with the show. Active engagement is the key, that all of these shows seem to maintain, because otherwise we’re just setting kids up in front a time wasting box and teaching them to be passive consumers.

5: Humf

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnxYX4xdwBE[/youtube]

If Charlie and Lola is the most charming show of all time, Humf would be a very close second. The show shows the young hairy monster Humf living in an apartment (like Charlie and Lola) with a very realistic life of visits to parks, public pools, and shopping trips. The characters are wonderful and the way we see the young “child” interact with the world is absolutely heart warming, the narration by Caroline Quentin really adds to this. What really makes this show is the characters trying to understand friendship, queuing in shops, working parents, and housework. There are also parents trying to share the care of Humf’s friend Wallace, and Loon’s absent father, which teaches a more realistic world view without forcing an idea of how the world “should be”.

4: Something Special

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n33Ip8MX4Lw[/youtube]

Something Special is a very unique program, designed for differently abled children, which has a variety of ways to communicate with the audience, through song, dance, sign-language, stories, and animation. What makes the show excellent for disadvantaged children also appeals to younger children, providing a safe space with pleasant stories and songs. The show goes one step further by having an “outing” section of each show which shows children, normally special needs, many in wheel chairs, interacting with a variety of locations. For special needs children to be able to see representations of themselves on screen is really important, and the normalised way its done is also important for all children to watch. The show has a very specific remit, which is very different from other kids shows.

3: The Backyardigans
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PE0C3ed6es8[/youtube]

The Backyardigans is a charming show, using a variety of CG animation and motion capture, to immerse kids in a world of fun and play. The five friends with neighbouring gardens each day go out a play, and create an entirely imaginary world to play in. The stories are interesting, and the unique music composed for each episode is exceptional. The show is wonderfully anti-materialistic, with the only items being needed are things like soccer balls and hats, to start a wonderfully imagined story, which thankfully doesn’t cost a lot of money for their parents. This really is quality TV. Also the only Canadian show to appear on a mostly British list.

2: Yo Gabba Gabba

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5dsLs9KMwTc[/youtube]

There is something about Yo Gabba Gabba that has allowed it to absolutely take over the world! Stage shows, breakfast TV appearances, merchandising, costumes!It has its own internal logic, the characters don’t make sense, the colours are insane, and the music belongs in a night club. This being said, it is some of the most entertaining kids TV ever made. The songs are surprisingly preachy, especially about eating vegetables, but they really put outfits like Hi-5 to shame which the high calibre music. The show is pretty formulaic, finishing each show with a remixed version of the days events and music. As a media type, I really appreciate this remix at the end, giving kids an introduction to song and dance based shows, but also the role as being both a user and producer of media, and remixing and controlling your own media environment. It’s also the place to see some of the best indie bands performing for children some undeniable musical artistry.

1: In the Night Garden

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=evlnQG-CHVo[/youtube]

In the Night Garden is this quiet little unassuming show, that provides an excellent social function, but from watching it as an adult, you may not entirely understand why. The Night Garden is a magical land that you drift off to when you sleep, where Iggle Piggle, Upsy Daisy, and Makka Pakka play. The show is designed to relax children, and is an integral part of the show. EP Anne Wood says “”We became very aware of the anxiety surrounding the care of young children which manifested itself in all kind of directions [...] So this is a programme about calming things down whereas most children’s TV is about gee-ing everything up!”. The show has characters playing in a safe space, and everybody loves each other unconditionally, which provides a relaxed and safe place for children to lose themselves in. In a very anxious world, with environmental issues, financial crises, and the threat of terrorism, on top of the regular arguing/divorcing parents, In the Night Garden provides a happy and safe space for children.

First is the fact that the decade is responsible for some AMAZING shows. As easy as it is to complain that there is never anything good on television, this past decade has been responsible for delivering the highest quantity of high quality shows than any other decade in the history of the medium.

The second issue is that the very nature of television means that you have shows that last for several years. It’s not like film, where one could easily pinpoint, say, The Baader Meinhof Complex as being the best film released in 2009 (it was). Instead a show may have several great seasons, followed by several duds, thereby diminishing it as a whole (re: Entourage). Or a show may have started prior to the 00′s, making it difficult to incorporate it into the list. For this reason, this list will only feature shows that started in 2000 or later. Thus, The Sopranos and The West Wing simply won’t make it into the list, despite their best episodes airing in the 00′s.

So, what qualifies shows on this list above other worthy series? I was looking for shows that have something to say, are able to push the boundaries of their respective genre’s or form, and (above all) make for an exciting televisual experience.

10. Curb Your Enthusiasm
This is not a show for everyone. It’s coarse, its protagonist is an awful human being, and there are moments which have the audience cringing even harder than when they hear use of the word ‘fingerbang’. Larry David, having placed enough time between his work on Seinfeld and the commencement of a new show created a series that is a more pure form of the Larry David experience. While Seinfeld employed a similar type of humour, it was a far more accessible program. David, as a stand-up, was often considered to be a ‘comedians comedian’. He requires the audience to go an extra mile with him with a destination that proves itself to be far more rewarding. CYE was exactly the same. If a viewer is after easy laughs, the show just isn’t for them.

CYE was one of the first shows to succeed primarily from its talented cast improvising most of the dialogue. As a result, some of the performances are lacking and some liberties are taken with natural responses to situations, But, in looking past its flaws, its difficult to find a comedy show from the 00′s that was funnier and more rewarding.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LgedBRXw7fY[/youtube]

09. The Amazing Race
The reality television phenomena has led to the creation of a lot of uninspired television. At its core, each of these shows are about human drama and interaction. Some of these shows have great potential. Big Brother, for example, is a great idea. Watching a group of people living in a completely artificial environment being toyed with by an ever-present god-like figure should make for cracking viewing. But, it doesn’t. Other shows make for good diversions. Miami Ink is a great example of this. The spin-offs are a completely naff idea, but an observational series about the goings on in a tattoo parlour is actually quite watchable. It doesn’t really make for memorable television, however.

Heads and shoulders above all the other reality shows is The Amazing Race. As one of the premium, high budget reality shows currently on US television, its strength is in watching people under great physical and mental stress being forced into locales and situations that exist completely outside of their comfort zone.

TAR wins Emmy Award after Emmy and deservedly so. The locations they take the contestants to are gorgeous. The production values are stunning, with excellent editing and music that heightens the emotional impact of each situation. The show knows to run with the nail biting ending just as well as to focus on the raw emotions of contestants who may have just encountered a moment of abject failure.

Most certainly, TAR does stumble with occasional seasons in which it hasn’t been cast correctly. Sometimes contestants are just a little bit too perfectly American. But, with its near perfect concept, excellent execution, and very few mis-steps during its 15 season run, The Amazing Race places its bar impossibly high.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wWqNZwPL3L0[/youtube]

08. Wonder Showzen
Little known and little seen, Wonder Showzen is the very definition of being the best show you haven’t been watching. It’s horribly inappropriate, mean-spirited, and straight-out filthy. It’s also the funniest sketch comedy program to come out of the US in years.

Screened on MTV2 in the US, the show is a pastiche of kids programs like Sesame Street and The Electric Company. With a combination of puppets, archive video footage, and live sketches with kids, it looks and feels just like those programs we grew up watching. Content-wise, it’s very different. With VERY black comedy masked by its very pure visual style, Wonder Showzen pushes the envelope on what a sketch comedy program can be. The show explores all manner of comedic devices, playing with structure and form. It can be annoying and downright painful to watch at times, but as with any sketch comedy show, not every joke can be a winner.

Providing genuine belly laughs, an innovative style that can never be repeated with such success, and a lingering dirty feeling you’ll never wash off, Wonder Showzen is a show you can’t help but marvel at.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UdL2jiM601U[/youtube]

07. Top Gear

It has a format that shouldn’t be as accessible as it is. Every so often, the stars simply align and somehow taps directly into the zeitgeist in a way that nobody expects. Top Gear has done exactly that. It’s format should be restrictive to those with an interest already in motoring, but instead it is able to spread its net wider and has captured the attention of viewers worldwide.

Top Gear is a handsome-looking show. The production values are high and obviously it’s a show that has quite a bit of money put into it. What makes the show such a charming and entirely watchable show to those beyond motoring enthusiasts is the hosts of the show. There’s something undefinably likeable about the trio. They’re passionate about their cars in such a way as to make it infectious. Quite simply, Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May are a joy to watch on-screen.

SBS’ attempt to replicate the show with an Australian version this year failed. The success of the show lies as a combination between the format and the on-screen talent. To take one of these elements away is to doom the show to failure.

Top Gear is simply a show that works. To over-analyse it would be to remove the fun out of it entirely. It’s a show that can simply be.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n5xd97HeY70[/youtube]

06. Peep Show

In a fair and just world, Peep Show should be the most popular show on the planet.

The show is seemingly about two British men who live together and are complete opposites, yet best friends. One is your typical British man. Mark is obsessed with not rocking the boat, wants to just live his life as quietly as possible, and craves nothing more than being able to drink some tea while enjoying his modestly-sized television in his modestly-sized flat. The other is a typical British lad. Jez is mooching off Jeremy until his electronic music career takes off, he believes he’s quite successful with the ladies, and is more than willing to change who he is if there’s an interesting fad. Ultimately, the show is about the fall of traditional Britain and the emergence of a less-proper society.

Utilizing a unique POV camera style (each shot is shown from the viewpoint of Jez or Mark – a stylistic choice that the producers believe is directly responsible for the show not being a hit), and voice-overs of the protagonists thoughts, Peep Show is one of the more unique-looking shows currently on the air. The ratings for it have always been abysmal, but a dedicated fan base who have bought the DVD sets in high numbers have kept the show afloat. Peep Show has consistently been sharper and wittier than anything else on TV for years.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J4GLXUw2qaI[/youtube]

05. The Colbert Report

Stephen Colbert is Stephen Colbert. As a direct reaction to the increasing absurdity of opinion driving 24-hour cable news channels, Stephen Colbert is the compere Fox News wishes it had. You see, Stephen Colbert is American. To disagree with him is to disagree with America.

While initially Colbert was a parody of Fox News’ Bill O’Reilly (‘Pappa Bear’), the show has developed into something that transcends parody. The show is a self-propagating ego-driven event show taking place on a nightly basis. While it seeks to satirize the daily news in the US, it has also constructed a false reality that surrounds it. The shows viewers are included into the faux-reality construct so heavily that analysts have established the existence the Colbert-bump – an immediate success that follows any person or product endorsed on the show by the charismatic Stephen Colbert.

The Colbert Report is one of the finest studio-based TV shows the medium has ever produced. Despite the pure absurdity of the character and situations built around him, the show manages to highlight fundamental truths that exist within a changing US culture.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QquTUR9nbC4[/youtube]

04. Lost

Lost is complex and layered in a manner that works perfectly to the structure set in place by the confines of the hour-long US TV drama. Each episode plays with structure, often working thematically with different timeframes and differing narrative structures. Episodes then also work as season-long narratives, with each season then providing different narrative structures to comprise of the shows entirety.

For the first 2.5 seasons of the show, Lost came dangerously close to losing the wheels from the cart. What was intentioned to be a densely plotted show was being undone by the fact the show lacked a clear end date. ABC, to their credit, did what no other network had previously dared dream of for a popular show – they allowed the shows producers to determine how long they needed to tell their story. As such, the writers could then determine when and where to hit certain story beats. Lost suddenly kicked into over-drive. Long gone was the feeling that the show was being made up as it went along. Instead, Lost feels as though it is firmly entrenched in the very capable hands of Carlton Cuse and Damon Lindelof.

Some viewers have been alienated by the complex plots and the fact the show they are watching was not exactly what they had pre-conceived, however the viewers who have recognised Lost for what it is continue to be rewarded for their attention and dedication to what has developed into one of the finest examples of the medium.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ljHt7mdmQTY[/youtube]

03. The Office (US)

The first season of the US adaptation of The Office was awful. It stands up okay in retrospect of seeing where the series went, but in its own right, the first season points to being a show that should by all rights be cancelled at the conclusion of its six episode run. Using modified scripts from the original UK series, The Office (US) simply lacked a voice or reason for existing.

In the second season of the show, the program found a voice that differed radically from the UK version and very quickly, the show took off. The performances and writing suddenly came to life and the show absolutely crackled. The Office continued to use the setting of the office environment, but elements of abstract comedy and absurdist character traits became the flavour of the show. In the hands of less talented writers, the show should not continue to work, but instead it has flourished in a way that allows characters to engage in the most ridiculous of circumstance, yet still keep the show completely grounded.

The Office may be a comedy about the foibles of people working in an everyday mundane office, but the shows characters  seem to sneak up on you and make you care. Regular viewers care just as much about Dwyghts beet farm as they do Andy’s pining for the new receptionist. It’s a show that has embraced the lessons learned through the most successful sitcoms of the past. It delivers comedy every bit as sharp as in shows like Seinfeld, Taxi, and Mary Tyler Moore, but also owes a great deal of success to the Soap-like melding of sitcom and serials. The end result has viewers caring about the characters in a way they haven’t since Cheers in the 80′s.

The US adaptation of The Office certainly doesn’t introduce anything particularly new to the sitcom genre, but it stands alongside the mediums very best examples.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RUlyqnmU0N0[/youtube]

02. The Wire

One of the finest series in the 90′s was the great Homicide: Life on The Streets. The show was gritty police procedural at a time where such a genre was a novelty. While the show was ground breaking, it was still very traditional. Episodes concluded with A and B story-lines being wound up at the conclusion of the hour. The Wire has the advantage of existing on cable television in a post-Sopranos environment. Story-lines here stretched across multiple episodes, if not seasons.

Much like Lost, The Wire uses the strength of the medium to its advantage in its structure. In many ways, each season of The Wire is like a book in a series. Each 13 episode series managed to tell the story of a different power-structure in Baltimore. The first season the low-level drug pushers in the city’s ‘projects’. Season two looked at the port system. Season three, the government and bureaucracy that exists within. Season four, the education system. And season five, the media. Each of these were viewed through the eyes of the police department. Characters were just as flawed as the systems they depicted.

If The Wire is to be criticised for anything, it may just be that the show is just too dense and restrictive for many viewers to indulge in. The casual viewer is in no way accommodated for in The Wire. Instead the viewer simply must commit to the show from the first episode and dedicate themselves. It’s easy to do after a few episodes as viewers realise that the show is being written by people with a firm idea of what the shows message. The writing and performances are absolutely of the highest calibre.

This is a show that can only be properly watched in an era of DVD consumption. In many ways it represents what television can achieve in the current era.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Y3rVGW24wc[/youtube]

01. Mad Men

It’s great when you can be so wowed by something for being clever and doing it well. Mad Men is clever. And it does what it does VERY well.

Mad Men sets its focus on the 1960′s and the advertising agency of the fictional Sterling Cooper. At its core is the exploration of notions of truth. Each of the characters have secrets they’re hiding from the world  whether it be the case of a stolen identity in the case of the series protagonist Don Draper, the illegitimate child of progressive female copy-writer Peggy Olson, or simply just the not-so-hidden insecurities of account manager Pete Campbell. Within the advertising world, truth surrounds them. Either they are working to uncover the truth of what a campaign is about, or they are selling a constructed truth to consumers.

Through the series progression, the viewer is given an insight into the changing power relationships that existed in the US throughout the 60′s. Sexual and racial equality was being achieved, with the white male confronting a new society developing around them. As an advertising agency needs to reflect the attitudes of society in order to sell a product, Mad Men presents the ideal venue by which to depict a society in flux.

Mad Men manages to be thorough in its exploration of the shows characters, knows what it wants to say without being too overt, and offers an insight into the complexity of where the US as a society is heading. Like no other show, the show is firmly positioned as the next evolution of television to follow on from The Sopranos. Both are explorations about modern day America, each through their respective genres.

Ultimately, Mad Men is engaging, funny, touching, accessible, surprising, involving, and downright entertaining. Its a show that is getting better with each season and more confident of what it can achieve. No other show this decade has matched the integrity, progression, and validity that Mad Men offers the medium of television.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R2bLNkCqpuY[/youtube]

* * *

1999 shows deserving of such a list: The Sopranos, The West Wing, Freaks and Geeks, and Oz.

Shows that are very good that were strongly considered: Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, Undeclared, Sunrise, and John Adams.

Shows that people really like a lot and will complain that I didn’t include them: Arrested Development, Firefly, Dexter, and Deadwood.

During the 90′s, TV networks became savvy about ways to maximise their advertising-driven profits by cutting a few corners. Fewer series had an opening title sequence anymore. They were replaced with the simplicity of a title card. And for those shows that were allowed an opening sequence, they were often restricted to being just a few seconds long.

The 00′s introduced a new element to the world of scripted television with the continued success of high quality drama series on HBO. In 1999 they found success with The Sopranos, prompting them to try and build upon that – a business strategy adopted by their fellow cable TV competitors. The result for viewers is a wealth of excellent television offerings. The fact that cable TV derives much of its income from subscriptions than advertising means that in the 00′s we saw the return of opening title sequences. This time, with massive amounts of money spent on them.

We wanted to recognise the skill and beauty that exists within these opening title sequences, and so have created this list of what Televised Revolution see to be the top ten produced over the past decade.

10.Battlestar Galactica

The 2003 remake of the 70′s classic series is one of the most visually arresting shows to have aired in the past ten years. As such, the opening credits, which are mostly comprised of edited shots from the show itself, absolutely crackles on screen. Add to that the hauntingly beautiful voice which emotes the sense of pain and desperation shared by the survivors in the show and you have yourself one great opening sequence.

What sells the opening sequence completely, however, is the quick edits that close out the sequence each week. Each are scenes from the episode itself, teasing the viewer to stick with the show for the next 40 minutes. It’s just darn nifty.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yd4_G0Uky5U[/youtube]

9.  John From Cincinnati

HBO started the decade out strong, but lost their way a little bit in the second half. While John From Cincinnati was creatively sound, it simply didn’t resonate with audiences at all. And understandably so. The show was a little off-beat with even regular viewers not entirely certain what the show was about.

The show had a very specific vibe to it that isn’t entirely easy to define. What makes this such a strong title sequence is the way that it managed to capture the mood of the program while going that little bit further. For a show that depended so heavily on the history of the characters and their relationships prior to the pilot episode, the use of archival surf footage makes the title sequence note perfect.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UrWZlh7DnBE[/youtube]

8. Dead Like Me

Can an opening sequence be more charming and whimsical? Dead Like Me’s protagonist is a recently dead girl who discovers that she is to be a grim reaper. The show was very much a street-level look at people living in the afterlife.

What better way to depict this than an opening title sequence in which grim reapers go about their day to day lives? It’s certainly not as artful as other opening title sequences, but it conveyed the mood and point of the show perfectly.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xM7xSSDd7TQ[/youtube]

7. Dexter

It’s difficult not to be impressed by this sequence. Dexter, the series about a serial killer working as a forensic scientist, has this delightful open each week which starts by focussing on the hair folicles of the shows protagonist. Dexter then goes on to cook and eat some fleshy meat for breakfast, before moving on with the rest of his morning.

The extreme voyeuristic focus on skin, hair folicles, juices, and other residues left behind by the meticulously careful Dexter is captivating. The opening sequence tells us nothing about the shows focus, but once it’s made aparent, the challenge is then not to giggle with glee everytime you experience this opening title sequence.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cSjvLWHgaPI[/youtube]

6. Weeds

This is a series that has always played it loose with their opening titles. The first season was this wonderful depiction of the sterility of the housing estate lived in by the characters of the show. The gated community of Agrestic is depicted as a monotonous existence in which actions of the residents are repeated by one another and everyone looks the same.  It’s a clever intro that speaks volumes about the evironment that the characters exist within.

The second season replaces the theme song performed by Malvina Reynolds with cover versions of the same song, Little Boxes, performed by a different artist each week. The fourth season ditches the title sequence entirely as the characters move on from Agrestic/Majestic.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5mGTLrI8rxQ[/youtube]

5. Desperate Housewives

While the sequence looks complicated, big, and brassy, the concept of this title sequence is fairly simple in its design. Taking images of women from well-known artwork, the sequence attempts to show women from all walks of life. While the women in the art are generally constructs, this cuts to the heart of the women depicted in the show. Through its faux-reality, Desperate Housewives makes no attempt to pretend that the women in the show are in any way real. They’re caricatures to an extent, and unashamedly so.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UCzpPQzLNHU[/youtube]

4. Big Love

Polygamy is often looked at as a male fantasy. Not so in this drama series. A viewpoint made very clear though the opening titles for Big Love.

The Big Love opening title sequence is not only lushly shot, but works beautifully to serve the underlying themes of the show. The cracks forming beneath Bill Henrickson and his brides serve to illustrate the fact the characters family structure is at risk from the stresses that their larger family place on them, as well as the general threat from the wider community who deem polygamy immoral.

The credits look great, have a strong metaphor that cuts to the heart of the show, and have that great Brian Wilson track ‘God Only Knows’ as the theme song. It’s difficult not to be enamoured with this sequence.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9y9c2Sfo1hM[/youtube]

3. Flight of The Conchords

This one makes the list due to the spirit of the sequence.

First, it is worth noting that its a great looking title sequence. The music crackles and the fact that it looks like a music video works wonderfully for this music-infused sitcom. It exudes the cool, indie folk-rock fun that this show is known for.

What makes it truly noteworthy, however, is that the sequence completely ignores the obvious route, which is to use a Flight of The Conchords song as the theme. Instead, it’s a pure instrumental affair – void of any jokes in itself. It’s great for establishing the general mood of the show, yet plays to the strength of the show by offering the unexpected.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ALEQDC-NjoU[/youtube]

2. True Blood

This title sequence is an outstanding achievement. It couldn’t be more captivating. Embracing the humid smouldering sexuality of Louisiana and combining it with the delicious swagger of the accompanying theme song, the True Blood opening sequence compells you to take notice.

With its sharp editing between its shots of traditional Louisianan religious iconography interspliced with lust-driven imagery, and a nod to the racial conflict-inspired culture of the region throughout its history, these are opening titles that manage to be arousing and generally creepy all at once.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dwXuZ14-d6M[/youtube]

1. Mad Men

This was a given and its doubtful that anyone can argue against this being the finest title sequence produced this decade.

Heavily inspired by the Saul Bass opening titles of the 60′s, the title sequence centers on the sillhouette of a man falling from the security of his office (and past advertising campaigns).

Mad Men sets its focus on Don Draper and the ad agency of Sterling Cooper as the characters deal with the changing social and political world that surrounds them. The falling sillhouette perfectly captures the anxiety and despair of the characters lives changing with such rapid pace. While the sillhouette is assumed to be Don Draper, it could just as easily be any of the characters in the show.

As in the show itself, the advertising campaigns witnessed in the title sequence are a representation of the way that society is being packaged. An advertisement offers a time capsule into the ideologies of an era. The falling sillouette passes each of these campaigns, reflecting different attitudes of a society in flux.

The Mad Men title sequence has achieved mass pop cultural recognition. While the show itself has a niche viewership, the credit sequence is well known to all. It’s inspired a Simpsons parody and has become the visual touchstone by which people now know the show. It’s this recognition, combined with the elegance of the sequence, that confirms its position as the finest title sequences offered in the 00′s.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eQdihTFaKj8[/youtube]

Honourable mentions: Carnivale, Deadwood, Six Feet Under, Lost, Satisfaction, Bored To Death, United States of Tara, House, and The IT Crowd.