☰

Genres

Drama Comedy Animation Action Crime Adventure Romance Reality-TV More genres →

Decades

2020s 2010s 2000s 1990s 1980s 1970s 1960s 1950s 1940s 1930s 1920s 1900s

Tags Search My ratings Sign in

Genres

Drama Comedy Animation Action Crime Adventure Romance Reality-TV More genres →

Decades

2020s 2010s 2000s 1990s 1980s 1970s 1960s 1950s 1940s 1930s 1920s 1900s

Tags Search My ratings Sign in

Best Action TV Series

Top 500 most popular Action series, ranked by votes

Filter & sort

Genres

Genres as assigned by IMDb. Selecting several means a show must match all of them.

Action 9133 Adult 36 Adventure 3572 Animation 3486 Biography 63 Comedy 1655 Crime 1441 Documentary 87 Drama 2631 Family 203 Fantasy 539 Game-Show 72 History 190 Horror 167 Music 18 Musical 3 Mystery 223 News 9 Reality-TV 82 Romance 275 Sci-Fi 450 Short 53 Sport 114 Talk-Show 2 Thriller 343 War 80 Western 16

Decades

By first-air year. Several selections widen the range; a specific year narrows within its decade.

2020s 2764 2010s 3051 2000s 1559 1990s 843 1980s 431 1970s 271 1960s 159 1950s 43 1940s 6 1930s 2 1920s 1 1900s 0

Specific year

2026 183 2025 418 2024 421 2023 473 2022 431 2021 435 2020 403 2019 345 2018 368 2017 371 2016 329 2015 321 2014 301 2013 301 2012 263 2011 257 2010 195 2009 212 2008 189 2007 196 2006 148 2005 152 2004 148 2003 140 2002 123 2001 132 2000 119 1999 116 1998 114 1997 108 1996 101 1995 81 1994 91 1993 65 1992 48 1991 63 1990 56 1989 60 1988 40 1987 48 1986 45 1985 53 1984 56 1983 43 1982 26 1981 31 1980 29 1979 41 1978 22 1977 31 1976 32 1975 19 1974 32 1973 34 1972 27 1971 23 1970 10 1969 16 1968 20 1967 27 1966 33 1965 13 1964 15 1963 14 1962 6 1961 8 1960 7 1959 9 1958 8 1957 3 1956 4 1955 5 1954 2 1953 2 1952 4 1950 6 1949 4 1944 1 1940 1 1938 1 1937 1 1929 1

Tags

Rating patterns, computed from IMDb episode-rating trajectories. Deliberately strict: only shows with an unmistakable pattern carry one, so expect small numbers.

Rating patterns

Fumbled the Finale 9 Stuck the Landing 32 Grew the Beard 21 Rock Solid 7 Past Its Prime 1 Roller Coaster 7

Taste tags, judged by our AI taste model. They cover the 5,000 most-rated shows.

Tone & mood

Bleak 32 Gritty 136 Dark tone 199 Feel-good 15 Cozy 2 Wholesome 30 Melancholic 26 Tense 239 Unsettling 11 Whimsical 57 Campy 100 Cynical 19 Hopeful 36 Sentimental 6 Nostalgic 54 Bittersweet 44 Chaotic energy 79 Deadpan cool 17

Pacing & structure

Slow burn 9 Fast-paced 138 Episodic 233 Serialized 269 Procedural 86 Mystery box 52 Anthology 16 Cliffhanger-driven 57 Sprawling saga 53 Tight limited run 75 Puzzle plot 20 Vignette style 4

Humor style

Dry humor 11 Absurdist 67 Satirical 20 Cringe comedy 1 Slapstick 37 Witty banter 42 Dark comedy 51 Warm humor 23 Raunchy 18 Parody 37 Ironic & meta 15

Themes & subject matter

Criminal underworld 143 Detective mystery 63 True crime 3 Heists & cons 21 Legal 3 Medical 4 Political intrigue 67 Espionage 84 War & military 94 Family saga 24 Coming of age 92 Workplace 11 School & campus 34 Love story 41 Friendship 58 Found family 98 Survival 77 Post-apocalyptic 47 Dystopia 25 Supernatural 83 Space & sci-fi 68 Near-future tech 22 Time travel 21 High fantasy 83 Urban fantasy 47 Monster horror 33 Psychological horror 8 Addiction & vice 2 Mental health 9 Faith & religion 11 Sports 15 Music scene 1 Food & cooking 0 Nature & science 4 Real history 52 Royalty & aristocracy 14 Small town 10 Big city life 12 Rural & frontier 11 Suburban underbelly 0 Class divide 25 Immigrant experience 4 Queer stories 12 Female perspective 24 Social commentary 34 Philosophical 24 Existential dread 18 Revenge 75 Redemption 19 Secrets & lies 117

Characters & perspective

Antihero lead 95 Morally gray 122 Villain's POV 7 Ensemble cast 173 Central duo 34 Strong female lead 114 Child's perspective 12 Outsider lead 38 Genius lead 29 Working class 10 Elites & privilege 9 Unreliable narrator 7 Character study 22 Banter chemistry 23

Emotional payoff

Tearjerker 31 Adrenaline 329 Intellectual challenge 9 Comfort rewatch 14 Romantic yearning 29 Cathartic 3 Wonder & awe 38 Mounting dread 4 Warm glow 2 Gut punch 42

Craft & style

Dialogue-driven 8 Visually striking 122 Stylized direction 89 Naturalistic 6 Big-budget spectacle 57 Lo-fi charm 10 Atmospheric 71 Distinctive score 38 Experimental 13 Deep worldbuilding 118 Tight writing 8

Format & audience

Sitcom 10 Adult animation 49 Anime 242 Kids & family 188 Young adult 39 Soap & telenovela 6 Event miniseries 26 Reality competition 4 Lifestyle reality 1 Docuseries 3 Sketch & variety 0 Game & quiz show 0 Talk & panel 0 Period piece 106 Contemporary life 0 Long-runner 39 Built to binge 8

Viewing-culture clusters

British TV 30 Nordic noir 3 K-drama 48 Turkish drama 21 Indian TV 46

Intensity & content character

Graphic violence 171 Disturbing 40 Sexually explicit 14 Family-safe 159 Emotionally heavy 52 Easy watching 168

Sort

500 series (top 500 shown)

Sleepy Hollow

67K 62 2013–2017

Supernatural · Urban fantasy

Continuum

67K 42 2012–2015

Time travel · Serialized

Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles

66K 31 2008–2009

Strong female lead · Tense

Fate: The Winx Saga

65K 13 2021–2022

Young adult · School & campus

The Recruit

65K 14 2022–2025

Espionage · Fast-paced

CSI: Miami

65K 232 2002–2012

Procedural · Episodic

Star Trek: Enterprise

65K 98 2001–2005

9-1-1

65K 143 2018–present

Found family · Workplace

Kingdom

64K 12 2019–2020

Period piece · Monster horror

Samurai Champloo

64K 26 2004–2005

Anime · Distinctive score

Parasyte: The Maxim

64K 24 2014–2015

Anime · Philosophical

Scorpion

64K 93 2014–2018

Genius lead · Procedural

Spy x Family

64K 50 2022–present

Found family · Anime · Warm humor

Sword Art Online

64K 100 2012–2020

Anime · Near-future tech

Doom Patrol

64K 46 2019–2023

Found family · Chaotic energy

The Old Man

63K 15 2022–2024

Espionage · Morally gray · Tense

Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency

63K 18 2016–2017

Chaotic energy · Absurdist

Monarch: Legacy of Monsters

63K 20 2023–present

Big-budget spectacle

Jericho

61K 30 2006–2008

Small town · Post-apocalyptic

Spider-Noir

61K 8 2026–present

Stylized direction

NCIS: Los Angeles

61K 323 2009–2023

Procedural · Long-runner

Warrior Nun

60K 18 2020–2022

Young adult · Supernatural

The Promised Neverland

59K 24 2019–2021

Child's perspective · Anime

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure

59K 193 2012–present

Stylized direction · Anime · Campy

‹ Prev 1…7 8 9…21 Next ›

Browse by decade

1900s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s 2020s

Browse by year

2026 2025 2024 2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2009 2008 2007 2006 2005 2004 2003 2002 2001 2000 1999 1998 1997 1996 1995 1994 1993 1992 1991 1990 1989 1988 1987 1986 1985 1984 1983 1982 1981 1980 1979 1978 1977 1976 1975 1974 1973 1972 1971 1970 1969 1968 1967 1966 1965 1964 1963 1962 1961 1960 1959 1958 1957 1956 1955 1954 1953 1952 1950 1949 1944 1940 1938 1937 1929

Browse by genre

Action Adult Adventure Animation Biography Comedy Crime Documentary Drama Family Fantasy Game-Show History Horror Music Musical Mystery News Reality-TV Romance Sci-Fi Short Sport Talk-Show Thriller War Western

This product uses the TMDB API but is not endorsed or certified by TMDB. Rating data from IMDb Non-Commercial Datasets.

About Contact Privacy Impressum © 2026 Bingerator