TV Shows of the 2000s

The 2000s brought the rise of prestige television and long-form storytelling. Workplace comedies found new life through the mockumentary format, and serialized dramas began attracting cinematic talent.

92Shows
283Characters

Television in the 2000s

The 2000s represented a transformative era in television history, producing series that reshaped how audiences engage with the medium and established new creative benchmarks that continue to influence storytelling today. TVCeleb profiles 92 shows from this decade spanning Comedy, Drama, Romance, Sci-Fi, Action genres across networks including The WB, HBO, Fox, Shogakukan (manga) / Sunrise (studio), Nippon TV. Together, these series tell the story of an era in television that generated some of the most passionate fan communities in entertainment history.

Across these 92 series, TVCeleb profiles 283 characters who defined the 2000s television landscape. Among the most beloved and discussed are Walter White from Breaking Bad, Jesse Pinkman from Breaking Bad, Michael Scott from The Office (US), Dwight Schrute from The Office (US), Dexter Morgan from Dexter, Gustavo "Gus" Fring from Breaking Bad. Each character profile on TVCeleb includes comprehensive arc analysis, key episode guides, fan ecosystem mapping, and Fan Heat Index scoring that captures the enduring impact these characters have had on popular culture.

Whether you lived through the 2000s television revolution or are discovering these landmark series for the first time through streaming, TVCeleb provides the definitive resource for understanding what made these shows and characters so extraordinary. Our profiles go beyond surface-level plot summaries to examine themes, character psychology, cultural context, and the fan communities that keep these series alive in the cultural conversation long after their final episodes aired.

2000s Shows (92)

The WB Ended

Gilmore Girls

2000–2007 · 7 Seasons

A witty single mother and her studious daughter navigate life in a charming Connecticut small town.

ComedyDramaRomance
84
HBO Ended

Curb Your Enthusiasm

2000–2024 · 12 Seasons

A fictionalized Larry David turns the petty rules of social etiquette into elaborate comic disasters.

Comedy
85
Fox Ended

Dark Angel

2000-2002 · 2 Seasons

A genetically engineered super-soldier hunts her lost siblings in a broken near-future Seattle.

Sci-FiActionDrama
50
Shogakukan (manga) / Sunrise (studio) Ended

Inuyasha

2000-2010 · 8 Seasons

A modern schoolgirl falls through a well into feudal Japan and joins a hot-headed half-demon to recover the shards of the shattered Shikon Jewel.

animefantasyadventure
90
Nippon TV Ended

Hajime no Ippo

2000–2014 · 3 Seasons

A shy, bullied teen discovers boxing and trains relentlessly to learn what it truly means to be strong.

AnimeSportsDrama
86
TV Tokyo Ended

Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters

2000–2004 · 5 Seasons

A shy boy shares his body with an ancient pharaoh's spirit, dueling with magical Duel Monsters cards to save his friends.

AnimeAdventureFantasy
85
HBO Ended

Six Feet Under

2001–2005 · 5 Seasons

A family running an L.A. funeral home learns how to live amid the constant presence of death.

Drama
83
HBO Ended

Band of Brothers

2001 · 1 Season

Easy Company of the 101st Airborne fights across Europe from D-Day to war's end.

WarDramaHistory
93
NBC Ended

Scrubs

2001-2010 · 9 Seasons

An idealistic young doctor narrates the absurd, heartbreaking chaos of hospital life.

ComedyDramaMedical
56
ABC Ended

Alias

2001-2006 · 5 Seasons

A double agent infiltrates the spy agency she once believed was the good guys.

ActionDramaSpy
54
The WB Ended

Smallville

2001-2011 · 10 Seasons

A young Clark Kent discovers his powers in Kansas before becoming Superman.

DramaSuperheroSci-Fi
56
TV Tokyo Ended

Hikaru no Go

2001–2003 · 1 Season

A careless boy is haunted by an ancient Go master's ghost and discovers his own passion for the game.

AnimeDramaSports
83
HBO Ended

The Wire

2002–2008 · 5 Seasons

A sprawling drama examining the Baltimore drug trade and the institutions intertwined with it.

DramaCrime
92
FX Ended

The Shield

2002-2008 · 7 Seasons

A corrupt LA strike-team cop polices Farmington by any means, and pays dearly.

CrimeDramaThriller
58
BBC One Ended

Spooks

2002-2011 · 10 Seasons

MI5 agents wage a brutal, secret war on terror beneath the streets of London.

DramaThrillerSpy
54
The WB Ended

Everwood

2002-2006 · 4 Seasons

A grieving star surgeon moves his kids to small-town Colorado to start over.

DramaFamily
50
USA Network Ended

Monk

2002-2009 · 8 Seasons

A grieving, obsessive-compulsive detective turns his quirks into crime-solving genius.

ComedyDramaMystery
52
CBS Ended

Without a Trace

2002-2009 · 7 Seasons

An FBI unit races the clock to find missing people before the trail goes cold.

CrimeDramaProcedural
44
TV Tokyo Ended

Naruto

2002-2007 · 5 Seasons

A shunned young ninja carrying a sealed demon fox chases his dream of leading his village.

AnimeActionAdventure
60
HBO Ended

Carnivàle

2003–2005 · 2 Seasons

A Dust Bowl carnival becomes the stage for a cosmic war between good and evil.

DramaFantasyPeriod Drama
78
FX Ended

Nip/Tuck

2003-2010 · 6 Seasons

Two morally bankrupt Miami plastic surgeons cut, lie and self-destruct their way through paradise.

Drama
52
Fox Ended

The O.C.

2003-2007 · 4 Seasons

A troubled kid from Chino is taken in by a wealthy Newport Beach family.

DramaTeenRomance
54
The WB Ended

One Tree Hill

2003-2012 · 9 Seasons

Two half-brothers turned basketball rivals navigate love and loss in small-town Tree Hill.

DramaTeenRomance
54
CBS Ended

Joan of Arcadia

2003-2005 · 2 Seasons

An ordinary teenage girl receives cryptic assignments from God while her family weathers crisis.

DramaFamilyFantasy
46
CBS Returning Series

NCIS

2003-present · 21 Seasons

Naval agents led by gut-driven Gibbs solve military crimes as a bickering family.

CrimeDramaProcedural
54
CBS Ended

Cold Case

2003-2010 · 7 Seasons

Philadelphia detectives reopen long-buried murders, weaving present-day clues through haunting period flashbacks.

CrimeDramaProcedural
46
ABC Ended

Lost

2004–2010 · 6 Seasons

Plane-crash survivors confront the supernatural mysteries of a remote island — and each other.

DramaSci-FiMystery
87
HBO Ended

Deadwood

2004–2006 · 3 Seasons

A lawless 1870s mining camp claws toward civilization, ruled from behind a saloon bar.

WesternDramaPeriod Drama
84
HBO Ended

Entourage

2004–2011 · 8 Seasons

A rising movie star and his childhood crew chase the Hollywood dream.

ComedyDrama
80
UPN / The CW Ended

Veronica Mars

2004–2019 · 4 Seasons

A sharp-witted teen P.I. solves mysteries in a class-divided California town.

CrimeDramaMystery
82
Fox Ended

House

2004-2012 · 8 Seasons

A brilliant, drug-addicted diagnostician solves impossible medical mysteries while torching every relationship he has.

DramaMedicalMystery
58
Sci-Fi Channel Ended

Battlestar Galactica

2004-2009 · 4 Seasons

Humanity's last survivors flee killer machines across the stars, hunting a lost world called Earth.

Sci-FiDramaAction
58
ABC Ended

Boston Legal

2004-2008 · 5 Seasons

Eccentric Boston lawyers turn the courtroom into a stage for wit, ego, and conscience.

DramaLegalComedy
50
TV Tokyo Returning Series

Bleach

2004-2012 · 17 Seasons

A teen gains Soul Reaper powers and battles corrupted spirits across the afterlife.

AnimeActionSupernatural
58
NTV Ended

Monster

2004–2005 · 1 Season

A principled surgeon hunts the brilliant, calm killer whose life he once saved in a tense moral thriller.

AnimeThrillerDrama
88
NBC Ended

The Office (US)

2005–2013 · 9 Seasons

A mockumentary following the everyday lives of employees at a paper company in Scranton, Pennsylvania.

ComedyMockumentary
91
FOX Ended

Prison Break

2005–2017 · 5 Seasons

An engineer gets himself imprisoned to break out his wrongfully condemned brother from death row.

ActionCrimeThriller
84
BBC Ongoing

Doctor Who

2005–present · 14 Seasons

A time-traveling alien and their companions explore all of space and time in the TARDIS.

Sci-FiAdventureDrama
87
ABC Ongoing

Grey's Anatomy

2005–present · 21 Seasons

Surgeons at a Seattle hospital navigate life-or-death cases and tangled personal lives.

DramaRomance
84
FX Ongoing

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia

2005–present · 16 Seasons

Five depraved friends run a Philadelphia dive bar and scheme their way into escalating disasters.

Comedy
85
CBS Ended

How I Met Your Mother

2005–2014 · 9 Seasons

A future dad recounts the long, winding story of how he met the mother — and his NYC friends.

ComedyRomance
83
HBO Ended

Rome

2005–2007 · 2 Seasons

Two Roman soldiers are swept up in the violent fall of the Republic and rise of the Empire.

DramaHistoryWar
86
Fox Ended

Bones

2005-2017 · 12 Seasons

A forensic anthropologist and an FBI agent solve murders from bones and bicker into love.

CrimeDramaProcedural
52
CBS Ended

Numb3rs

2005-2010 · 6 Seasons

An FBI agent recruits his math-genius brother to solve crimes with hidden patterns.

CrimeDramaProcedural
46
CBS Returning Series

Criminal Minds

2005-present · 17 Seasons

FBI profilers get inside killers' minds to predict the next strike before time runs out.

CrimeDramaThriller
54
TNT Ended

The Closer

2005-2012 · 7 Seasons

A genteel Southern interrogator leads an elite LAPD squad and closes cases with confessions.

CrimeDramaProcedural
48
The WB / The CW Ended

Supernatural

2005-2020 · 15 Seasons

Two brothers drive a black 1967 Impala across America hunting demons, ghosts, and monsters, and end up standing between humanity and the Apocalypse in a fifteen-season saga about family, sacrifice, and free will.

DramaFantasyHorror
87
Kodansha / Artland Ended

Mushishi

2005-2014 · 2 Seasons

A wandering Mushi master roams a timeless Japan, easing humanity's eerie, beautiful encounters with primordial spirit-life.

animesupernaturaldrama
78
Showtime Ended

Dexter

2006–2013 · 8 Seasons

A forensic blood spatter analyst leads a secret double life as a serial killer who targets other murderers.

DramaCrimeThriller
88
NBC Ended

Friday Night Lights

2006–2011 · 5 Seasons

In a football-obsessed Texas town, a coach and his community navigate life on and off the field.

DramaSports
83
HBO Ended

Big Love

2006–2011 · 5 Seasons

A suburban businessman secretly juggles three wives and a fundamentalist past.

Drama
78
ABC Ended

Brothers & Sisters

2006-2011 · 5 Seasons

A wealthy California family confronts grief, secrets, and politics after the patriarch dies.

DramaFamily
50
USA Network Ended

Psych

2006-2014 · 8 Seasons

A fake psychic and his best friend solve crimes for the Santa Barbara police.

ComedyMysteryCrime
54
NTV Ended

Death Note

2006-2007 · 1 Season

A gifted student finds a notebook that kills, and a genius detective hunts him.

AnimeThrillerSupernatural
60
MBS/TBS Ended

Code Geass

2006-2008 · 2 Seasons

An exiled prince gains a power of absolute command and masks himself to topple an empire.

AnimeMechaThriller
58
Hakusensha and Bones Ended

Ouran High School Host Club

2006 · 1 Season

A scholarship student mistaken for a boy breaks a priceless vase and must join an elite academy's all-male host club to repay the debt, in a warm gender-bending comedy that lovingly parodies shojo romance.

animeromantic-comedyslice-of-life
84
Shueisha (Weekly Shonen Jump) / Sunrise Ended

Gintama

2006-2018 · 4 Seasons

In an alien-occupied Edo where swords are banned, odd-jobs samurai Gintoki Sakata and his Yorozuya crew take any gig to pay the rent.

animecomedyaction
90
Syfy Ended

Eureka

2006-2012 · 5 Seasons

In a secret town of government geniuses, an everyman sheriff uses common sense to stop brilliant experiments from going boom.

sci-ficomedydrama
74
AMC Ended

Mad Men

2007–2015 · 7 Seasons

Ad executives navigate ambition, identity, and a changing America at a 1960s Madison Avenue agency.

DramaPeriod Drama
88
CBS Ended

The Big Bang Theory

2007–2019 · 12 Seasons

Socially awkward scientists' insular world is upended by their street-smart neighbor Penny.

Comedy
83
ABC Ended

Pushing Daisies

2007–2009 · 2 Seasons

A pie maker who can revive the dead solves murders and loves a woman he can't touch.

ComedyDramaFantasy
80
FX Ended

Damages

2007-2012 · 5 Seasons

A ruthless litigator and a young protege circle each other through fractured, deadly timelines.

DramaThrillerLegal
54
USA Network Ended

Burn Notice

2007-2013 · 7 Seasons

A blacklisted spy turns Miami fixer while hunting whoever ended his career.

ActionDramaSpy
50
The CW Ended

Gossip Girl

2007-2012 · 6 Seasons

Privileged Manhattan teens chase love and power while an anonymous blogger exposes their every secret.

DramaTeenRomance
52
TBS Ended

Clannad

2007-2009 · 2 Seasons

A cynical student meets a gentle classmate and slowly rebuilds his life through friendship, love, and the bonds of family.

AnimeDramaRomance
85
Gainax / TV Tokyo Ended

Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann

2007 · 1 Season

A timid digger and his fearless brother drill out of their underground village to pilot ever-growing mecha and fight for humanity's future.

animemechaaction
88
ITV Ended

Primeval

2007–2011 · 5 Seasons

A team races to contain prehistoric and future creatures that slip into the present through mysterious time anomalies.

Sci-FiAdventureDrama
73
AMC Ended

Breaking Bad

2008–2013 · 5 Seasons

A high school chemistry teacher turned methamphetamine manufacturer descends into the criminal underworld.

DramaCrimeThriller
95
FX Ended

Sons of Anarchy

2008–2014 · 7 Seasons

An outlaw biker is torn between his club's violent legacy and a dream of redemption.

CrimeDramaAction
84
HBO Ended

True Blood

2008–2014 · 7 Seasons

In a Louisiana town where vampires live openly, a telepathic waitress is drawn into their world.

FantasyHorrorDrama
82
HBO Ended

Generation Kill

2008 · 1 Season

Marines of a Recon battalion navigate the chaos of the 2003 Iraq invasion.

WarDrama
80
CBS Ended

The Mentalist

2008-2015 · 7 Seasons

A fake psychic turned crime consultant hunts the killer who murdered his family.

CrimeDramaMystery
52
TNT Ended

Leverage

2008-2012 · 5 Seasons

A crew of thieves cons the corrupt and powerful as modern Robin Hoods.

CrimeDramaHeist
50
TV Tokyo Ended

Toradora!

2008-2009 · 1 Season

A gentle boy with a scary face and a tiny, fierce girl team up to win over each other's best friends, only to fall for something neither expected.

AnimeRomanceComedy
84
BBC Three Ended

Being Human

2008-2013 · 5 Seasons

A vampire, a werewolf, and a ghost share a house in Bristol and try to live ordinary human lives in this darkly funny British supernatural drama.

DramaFantasyHorror
78
Square Enix / A-1 Pictures Returning

Black Butler

2008-present · 5 Seasons

A boy earl sells his soul to a demon butler for revenge in gothic Victorian England.

animedark-fantasyhistorical
88
Square Enix (manga) / Bones (studio) Ended

Soul Eater

2008-2009 · 1 Season

At a school run by Death, weapon-wielding meisters and their living-weapon partners hunt evil souls and battle encroaching madness.

animeactionsupernatural
84
Hakusensha / Brain's Base / Shuka Returning

Natsume's Book of Friends

2008-present · 7 Seasons

A lonely orphan who can see spirits inherits his grandmother's Book of Friends and, aided by a mochi-loving spirit-bodyguard, sets out to return the yokai their names and find belonging.

animesupernaturaldrama
82
Syfy Ended

Sanctuary

2008–2011 · 4 Seasons

A 150-year-old scientist leads a secret network sheltering and studying Abnormals — cryptids and superhuman beings hidden among humanity.

Sci-FiFantasyDrama
72
NBC Ended

Parks and Recreation

2009–2015 · 7 Seasons

An optimistic civil servant and her quirky colleagues work to improve their small Indiana town.

ComedyMockumentary
87
ABC Ended

Modern Family

2009–2020 · 11 Seasons

Three branches of one big, lovable extended family navigate modern life in suburban Los Angeles.

ComedyMockumentary
84
NBC Ended

Community

2009–2015 · 6 Seasons

A misfit study group at a community college becomes an unlikely family in this meta cult-classic comedy.

Comedy
84
USA Network Ended

White Collar

2009-2014 · 6 Seasons

A charming con artist trades prison for catching crooks alongside the FBI agent who caught him.

CrimeDramaComedy
52
ABC Ended

Castle

2009-2016 · 8 Seasons

A bored mystery novelist shadows a sharp NYPD detective, and sparks fly.

CrimeDramaComedy
52
Fox Ended

Lie to Me

2009-2011 · 3 Seasons

A deception expert reads micro-expressions to expose the lies everyone else misses.

CrimeDramaMystery
48
CBS Ended

The Good Wife

2009-2016 · 7 Seasons

A scandal-scarred wife reinvents herself as a formidable Chicago litigator.

DramaLegalPolitical
52
Fox Ended

Glee

2009-2015 · 6 Seasons

Misfit teens chase show-choir glory while a ruthless cheer coach plots their downfall.

MusicalComedyDrama
52
The CW Ended

The Vampire Diaries

2009-2017 · 8 Seasons

A grieving teen is torn between two vampire brothers as ancient curses haunt her small town.

DramaFantasySupernatural
54
MBS/TBS Ended

Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood

2009-2010 · 1 Season

Two alchemist brothers hunt the Philosopher's Stone to restore the bodies they sacrificed.

AnimeActionAdventure
62
TV Tokyo Ended

Fairy Tail

2009-2019 · 9 Seasons

A celestial wizard joins the rowdy Fairy Tail guild and battles alongside a fire dragon slayer and his friends in a world ruled by magic.

AnimeFantasyAdventure
84
E4 Ended

Misfits

2009-2013 · 5 Seasons

Five young offenders on community service gain unpredictable superpowers after a freak storm, in a darkly comic British take on the superhero genre.

supernaturalsuperherocomedy-drama
82
Syfy Ended

Warehouse 13

2009-2014 · 5 Seasons

Two Secret Service agents are recruited to a secret South Dakota warehouse full of dangerous supernatural artifacts, and must retrieve the ones that have gone loose in the world.

sci-fisupernaturalcomedy
74

Top 2000s Characters

Explore More on TVCeleb

TVCeleb.com is the internet's most comprehensive resource for television character fandom, covering 550 acclaimed TV series with 1727 detailed character profiles and 1399 actor biographies. Our coverage spans 107 genres across 129 networks and streaming platforms, with content organized to help fans discover, explore, and engage with television from every angle.

Browse our collection by genre to find shows in your preferred category, by network to see what's available on your streaming platform, by decade to explore different eras of television history, or by curated lists that group characters by archetype and achievement. Each show page features expanded synopses, production details, and video content, while character pages include detailed arc analysis, key episodes, quotes, trivia, and fan ecosystem mapping.

Every character on TVCeleb is scored using our proprietary Fan Heat Index, which measures engagement, social activity, meme velocity, fan art density, and fandom longevity on a scale of 0 to 100. This data-driven approach provides objective insight into which characters have inspired the most passionate and active fan communities. Use the search page to find any character, show, or actor instantly, or start browsing from our homepage to discover what's trending in television fandom today.

? Frequently Asked Questions

The 2000s produced some of the most acclaimed television in history, including Gilmore Girls, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Dark Angel, Inuyasha, Hajime no Ippo, and more. These shows defined the era's creative ambitions and continue to be widely discussed, rewatched, and referenced in popular culture. TVCeleb profiles each of these series with expanded synopses, character analysis, and fan ecosystem mapping.

TVCeleb currently profiles 92 shows that premiered in the 2000s, featuring 283 characters across those shows. Each character has a detailed page with arc analysis, key episodes, Fan Heat Index scoring, quotes and trivia, and links to fan communities. This comprehensive coverage makes TVCeleb the most thorough fan resource for 2000s television.

Television in the 2000s was characterized by excellence across multiple genres including Comedy, Drama, Romance, Sci-Fi, Action, anime, fantasy, adventure, romance, Anime, Sports, Adventure, Fantasy, Game, War, History, Medical, Spy, Superhero, Supernatural, Crime, Thriller, Family, Mystery, Procedural, Period Drama, Teen, Western, Legal, Mockumentary, Horror, supernatural, drama, iyashikei, Mecha, romantic-comedy, slice-of-life, shojo, comedy, action, sci-fi, mystery, Slice of Life, mecha, Heist, dark-fantasy, historical, Political, Musical, Shonen, superhero, comedy-drama, british, procedural. Drama remained the dominant genre for critical acclaim and passionate fan engagement. Comedy evolved significantly during this period, with new formats and storytelling approaches. The variety of genres represented demonstrates the creative range of the era and the diverse tastes of its audiences.

Based on TVCeleb's Fan Heat Index, the most passionately followed characters from the 2000s include Walter White from Breaking Bad (score: 97/100), Jesse Pinkman from Breaking Bad (score: 94/100), Michael Scott from The Office (US) (score: 94/100), Dwight Schrute from The Office (US) (score: 92/100). These scores reflect engagement levels, social media activity, meme velocity, and overall cultural impact as measured across the fan community.