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Best Crime TV Series of the 1970s

303 Crime series that started in the 1970s, ranked by popularity

All Crime series All series from the 1970s
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Genres

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

Decades

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

Rating patterns

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

Tone & mood
Pacing & structure
Humor style
Themes & subject matter
Characters & perspective
Emotional payoff
Craft & style
Format & audience
Viewing-culture clusters
Intensity & content character
303 series

Columbo

★ 8.3
48K 67 1971–1998
Detective mystery · Episodic

Charlie's Angels

★ 6.6
16K 109 1976–1981
Procedural · Episodic

The Six Million Dollar Man

★ 7.1
15K 99 1974–1978
Family-safe · Episodic

CHiPs

★ 6.5
13K 139 1977–1983
Procedural · Episodic

The Rockford Files

★ 8.2
13K 119 1974–1980
Detective mystery · Episodic

Starsky and Hutch

★ 7.0
12K 92 1975–1979
Episodic · Banter chemistry

Kojak

★ 7.1
10K 117 1973–1978
Detective mystery · Procedural

Hart to Hart

★ 6.7
10K 111 1979–1984
Central duo · Episodic

Quincy, M.E.

★ 7.3
8K 148 1976–1983
Procedural · Medical

The Streets of San Francisco

★ 7.3
8K 120 1972–1977
Procedural · Detective mystery

Porridge

★ 8.3
8K 20 1974–1977
Dry humor · Sitcom · British TV

World on a Wire

★ 7.7
7K 2 1973–1973
Existential dread · Philosophical

The Godfather: A Novel for Television

★ 9.5
7K 4 1977–1977
Criminal underworld · Family saga

The Meeting Place Cannot Be Changed

★ 8.7
6K 5 1979–1979
Criminal underworld

McCloud

★ 7.0
4K 47 1970–1977
Procedural · Detective mystery

Helter Skelter

★ 7.4
4K 2 1976–1976
True crime · Disturbing

Cannon

★ 6.8
4K 120 1971–1976
Detective mystery · Procedural

The Professionals

★ 8.0
4K 57 1977–1983
Adrenaline · British TV · Episodic

Emmerdale Farm

★ 4.9
4K 10548 1972–present
Long-runner · Soap & telenovela

Barnaby Jones

★ 7.0
4K 178 1973–1980
Procedural · Episodic

Tatort

★ 7.0
3K 1344 1970–present
Long-runner · Procedural

McMillan & Wife

★ 7.2
3K 40 1971–1977
Detective mystery · Procedural

Baretta

★ 6.8
3K 82 1975–1978
Crime · Drama · Mystery

Minder

★ 7.8
3K 110 1979–1994
Comedy · Crime · Drama
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