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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

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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 Mystery TV Series

Top 500 most popular Mystery series, ranked by votes

Filter & sort

Genres

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

Action 223 Adult 3 Adventure 174 Animation 151 Biography 21 Comedy 425 Crime 1810 Documentary 198 Drama 2838 Family 80 Fantasy 251 Game-Show 24 History 121 Horror 477 Music 10 Musical 9 Mystery 5067 News 6 Reality-TV 53 Romance 350 Sci-Fi 187 Short 23 Sport 3 Talk-Show 6 Thriller 616 War 11 Western 4

Decades

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

2020s 2074 2010s 1614 2000s 629 1990s 274 1980s 195 1970s 146 1960s 77 1950s 46 1940s 8 1930s 2 1920s 0 1900s 0

Specific year

2026 152 2025 296 2024 326 2023 319 2022 362 2021 317 2020 302 2019 259 2018 221 2017 241 2016 176 2015 155 2014 152 2013 115 2012 108 2011 104 2010 83 2009 76 2008 77 2007 84 2006 75 2005 80 2004 55 2003 45 2002 48 2001 46 2000 43 1999 34 1998 27 1997 44 1996 25 1995 24 1994 23 1993 25 1992 21 1991 28 1990 23 1989 23 1988 19 1987 21 1986 20 1985 24 1984 19 1983 17 1982 14 1981 14 1980 24 1979 16 1978 12 1977 14 1976 14 1975 10 1974 17 1973 18 1972 16 1971 18 1970 11 1969 12 1968 9 1967 16 1966 5 1965 9 1964 7 1963 4 1962 3 1961 5 1960 7 1959 6 1958 5 1957 8 1956 7 1955 3 1954 6 1952 4 1951 5 1950 2 1949 5 1947 1 1946 2 1938 1 1930 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 10 Stuck the Landing 7 Grew the Beard 2 Rock Solid 4 Past Its Prime 0 Roller Coaster 2

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

Tone & mood

Bleak 32 Gritty 56 Dark tone 264 Feel-good 5 Cozy 22 Wholesome 1 Melancholic 37 Tense 310 Unsettling 107 Whimsical 8 Campy 11 Cynical 24 Hopeful 2 Sentimental 1 Nostalgic 4 Bittersweet 24 Chaotic energy 3 Deadpan cool 4

Pacing & structure

Slow burn 85 Fast-paced 8 Episodic 74 Serialized 231 Procedural 108 Mystery box 203 Anthology 20 Cliffhanger-driven 74 Sprawling saga 9 Tight limited run 208 Puzzle plot 71 Vignette style 0

Humor style

Dry humor 8 Absurdist 6 Satirical 11 Cringe comedy 0 Slapstick 0 Witty banter 20 Dark comedy 19 Warm humor 3 Raunchy 1 Parody 4 Ironic & meta 1

Themes & subject matter

Criminal underworld 39 Detective mystery 320 True crime 19 Heists & cons 6 Legal 28 Medical 5 Political intrigue 29 Espionage 18 War & military 3 Family saga 28 Coming of age 13 Workplace 10 School & campus 14 Love story 25 Friendship 6 Found family 11 Survival 20 Post-apocalyptic 9 Dystopia 10 Supernatural 54 Space & sci-fi 13 Near-future tech 17 Time travel 17 High fantasy 1 Urban fantasy 9 Monster horror 15 Psychological horror 22 Addiction & vice 7 Mental health 17 Faith & religion 16 Sports 2 Music scene 0 Food & cooking 0 Nature & science 6 Real history 11 Royalty & aristocracy 2 Small town 69 Big city life 7 Rural & frontier 5 Suburban underbelly 23 Class divide 25 Immigrant experience 1 Queer stories 6 Female perspective 54 Social commentary 44 Philosophical 23 Existential dread 20 Revenge 20 Redemption 2 Secrets & lies 374

Characters & perspective

Antihero lead 33 Morally gray 114 Villain's POV 1 Ensemble cast 85 Central duo 30 Strong female lead 118 Child's perspective 4 Outsider lead 16 Genius lead 29 Working class 8 Elites & privilege 28 Unreliable narrator 22 Character study 70 Banter chemistry 11

Emotional payoff

Tearjerker 10 Adrenaline 7 Intellectual challenge 24 Comfort rewatch 19 Romantic yearning 17 Cathartic 1 Wonder & awe 2 Mounting dread 14 Warm glow 0 Gut punch 18

Craft & style

Dialogue-driven 30 Visually striking 45 Stylized direction 35 Naturalistic 25 Big-budget spectacle 3 Lo-fi charm 1 Atmospheric 179 Distinctive score 11 Experimental 10 Deep worldbuilding 14 Tight writing 17

Format & audience

Sitcom 1 Adult animation 0 Anime 9 Kids & family 1 Young adult 32 Soap & telenovela 20 Event miniseries 49 Reality competition 1 Lifestyle reality 0 Docuseries 21 Sketch & variety 0 Game & quiz show 1 Talk & panel 0 Period piece 75 Contemporary life 0 Long-runner 18 Built to binge 9

Viewing-culture clusters

British TV 142 Nordic noir 35 K-drama 31 Turkish drama 3 Indian TV 33

Intensity & content character

Graphic violence 20 Disturbing 42 Sexually explicit 7 Family-safe 9 Emotionally heavy 70 Easy watching 42

Sort

500 series (top 500 shown)

The Expanse

194K 62 2015–2022

Bones

192K 245 2005–2017

Procedural · Banter chemistry

Pretty Little Liars

190K 160 2010–2017

Mystery box · Secrets & lies

How to Get Away with Murder

180K 90 2014–2020

Cliffhanger-driven · Mystery box

Sense8

172K 24 2015–2018

Queer stories · Found family

Bodyguard

172K 6 2018–2018

Tense · Political intrigue

Riverdale

167K 137 2017–2023

Soap & telenovela · Young adult

Luther

164K 20 2010–2019

Detective mystery · Tense

Taboo

164K 8 2017–2017

Antihero lead · Atmospheric

Dexter: New Blood

159K 10 2021–2022

Antihero lead · Gut punch

Desperate Housewives

155K 180 2004–2012

Suburban underbelly

IT

154K 2 1990–1990

Monster horror · Coming of age

The Sinner

153K 32 2017–2021

Anthology · Detective mystery

Dexter: Resurrection

151K 20 2025–present

Antihero lead · Morally gray

Watchmen

147K 9 2019–2019

Social commentary

Law & Order: Special Victims Unit

146K 602 1999–present

Long-runner · Procedural

The Haunting of Bly Manor

146K 9 2020–2020

Melancholic · Bittersweet

Broadchurch

143K 24 2013–2017

Small town · Detective mystery

The Night Manager

141K 13 2016–present

Espionage · British TV · Tense

Sharp Objects

140K 8 2018–2018

Character study · Atmospheric

The Fall of the House of Usher

136K 8 2023–2023

Dark tone · Elites & privilege

Lie to Me

136K 48 2009–2011

Procedural · Genius lead

The Killing

135K 44 2011–2014

Slow burn · Bleak · Atmospheric

The Leftovers

133K 28 2014–2017

Melancholic · Emotionally heavy

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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

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