Good TV hits different when you’re lifted, and the best TV shows of all time reward:
- A slower pace
- Sharper visuals
- A plot you can actually sink into
That’s the small screen synergy we’re chasing for our curated weed watchlist. From prestige crime drama to 420-friendly animation, we round up the top shows built for full-immersion viewing.
Watching with company? Pair a pick from this list with a round of stoner games if the night first calls for something more interactive.
The Best Crime & Prestige Drama Shows
Vince Gilligan built his name on slow-burn dread and meticulous plotting, writing on The X-Files alongside Gillian Anderson before creating Breaking Bad and cementing his legacy. His shows trust the audience to sit in discomfort and watch consequences unfold in real time.
Gilligan proved that a drama can be a character study first and a crime story second, and that formula still shapes prestige TV a decade later. Here’s where the countdown starts.
10. Boardwalk Empire
Boardwalk Empire traces the rise of Atlantic City power broker Nucky Thompson during Prohibition. Martin Scorsese directed the pilot episode himself, setting the tone for every hour that followed. Stephen Graham, who later anchored Adolescence, plays a young, hot-tempered Al Capone clawing his way up the Chicago underworld.
Scorsese won an Emmy for that pilot, and the series streams on HBO Max. It’s a slower, richly detailed watch built for a proper session rather than background noise.
9. Breaking Bad
Breaking Bad follows chemistry teacher Walter White as he builds a meth empire in Albuquerque. The transformation from mild-mannered teacher to ruthless kingpin remains one of TV’s most complete character arcs. Bryan Cranston’s performance earned him four Primetime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series.
The series took home 16 Primetime Emmys from 58 nominations across its run, including back-to-back wins for Outstanding Drama Series.
8. Adolescence
Adolescence tells the story of a 13-year-old accused of murder, and Netflix shot every episode in a single continuous take. That technique turns each hour into an unbroken gut punch, following the boy’s family, his classmates and the detectives trying to understand why it happened.
The limited series won eight Emmy Awards. It’s one of Netflix’s most-watched original series and proof that a small British cast can dominate the awards season. 15-year-old star Owen Cooper became the youngest male actor ever to win a Primetime Emmy for his role.
The Best Comedy Shows & Dramedy Series Right Now
Long before Fleabag broke the fourth wall, Ricky Gervais did it first as David Brent in the UK version of The Office. Garry Shandling built the mockumentary format around a fictional talk show host in The Larry Sanders Show. Tina Fey then folded that same self-aware wit into network comedy with 30 Rock.
Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Michaela Coel picked up that lineage, turning raw, confessional stories into some of the sharpest comedy series ever produced. Their instinct for cringing, painfully honest comedy reshaped what the genre could look like on streaming.
7. Fleabag
Fleabag follows a grief-stricken woman in London who narrates her worst decisions straight to camera. That device turns every scene into a shared secret between her and the audience. Phoebe Waller-Bridge created, wrote and starred in the show, which streams on Prime Video.
Season two swept the Emmys, winning six awards, including:
- Outstanding Comedy Series
- Outstanding Lead Actress
- Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series
Add two Golden Globes to that haul, and it remains the gold standard for dark comedy that earns its laughs.
6. Chewing Gum
Chewing Gum follows Tracey Gordon, a religious 24-year-old shop assistant on a London council estate, determined to lose her virginity and figure out the world. Michaela Coel created, wrote and starred in the hit series, which moved from Channel 4 to HBO Max streaming.
The show won Coel a BAFTA for Best Female Comedy Performance. Its loose, sketch-like energy makes it an easy, funny watch for a low-key session. Coel later returned with the heavier I May Destroy You, but Chewing Gum remains her purest comedy.
5. The Studio
Apple TV’s The Studio follows a newly appointed film executive trying to survive Hollywood without losing his soul. Seth Rogen’s satire of the industry lands because it clearly comes from the inside.
The series won 13 Emmy Awards in its first season, the most ever for a freshman comedy. That record alone puts The Studio near the top of any best comedy conversation right now.
The Best Sci-Fi Shows & Mind-Bending Series Available to Stream
George R.R. Martin’s novels proved fantasy could carry the moral weight of prestige drama. That same appetite for big, high-concept swings now defines Apple TV’s sci-fi slate. Patrick Stewart brought that same gravity to Star Trek: Picard, giving a beloved character a genuinely adult second act decades later.
Vince Gilligan carried that ambition into Pluribus, his first original series since Breaking Bad ended. These are shows built for full attention, the kind you want to watch once your head is clear enough to follow every thread.
4. Pluribus
Award-winning hit Pluribus follows novelist Carol Sturka in a transformed world. She’s one of the few humans left unhappy after a signal merges humanity into a hive mind. Rhea Seehorn stars, reuniting with creator Vince Gilligan after her acclaimed run on Better Call Saul.
Pluribus blends horror, dark comedy and genuine philosophy about what happiness actually costs. The Apple TV series launched to a perfect critics’ score and has already been renewed for a second season.
3. Severance
Severance imagines a company where employees surgically split their memories between work and home. Their office selves have no idea what their outside selves are doing. The Apple TV sci-fi series led every show at the 2025 Emmys with 27 nominations.
It converted those nods into eight wins, including a historic Outstanding Supporting Actor win for Tramell Tillman, the first Black actor to take that award. Severance rewards close, sober attention to every hallway and every flickering light.
2. Star Trek: Picard
Star Trek: Picard brings Patrick Stewart back as Jean-Luc, facing mortality, regret and the weight of decisions made decades earlier. It streams on Paramount+ and gave longtime fans a genuinely emotional continuation rather than a nostalgia lap.
The series leans into slower, character-driven sci-fi over spectacle. It’s a rewarding watch for anyone who grew up on the franchise and wants to see it treated with real weight.
The Best 420 Friendly Show to Stream Right Now
Adult animated series like Big Mouth and Rick and Morty spent years building the case that stoner-friendly TV could still be smart. This year’s most 420-appropriate release skipped animation entirely.
Jimmy Kimmel has been building 4/20 programming for years. In 2026, he took it a step further with a full documentary anthology built around cannabis history itself. Treating the plant with respect while keeping things fun drives our entire philosophy on THC420 culture.
1. 4X20 Quick Hits
4X20 Quick Hits is a four-part documentary anthology executive produced by Jimmy Kimmel, streaming on Hulu. Each 20-minute film covers a different corner of cannabis culture. From the making of Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle to the origin story of High Times magazine, it brings real depth to every angle.
Kimmel built the series around the idea that 4/20 deserves its own programming the way Christmas gets a whole channel. It’s a genuinely fun, fast watch for anyone who wants their cannabis history with a good chuckle attached.
Your Weed Watchlist: Where the Crowd Gathers for the Best TV Shows
At The High Crowd, we curate high-demand content that cuts through tired stoner tropes to spotlight elevated entertainment built to be felt, not just skimmed. Every pick on this list earns its place through clever craft, not because it name-checks weed culture for cheap laughs.
We exist at the intersection of 420 culture, music, fashion and entertainment. From deep-dive television features to style and music curation, we filter out the noise as a dedicated lifestyle hub for modern cannabis enthusiasts.
Join the crowd for the best in puff-puff press. Follow us on Instagram, Facebook and X for real, culturally rich media curated for a crowd that demands substance over static.
FAQs About the Greatest TV Shows of All Time
Here’s what South African viewers ask most about the best shows out there.
Are Sex and the City & NYPD Blue good picks for a weed watchlist?
Both shows are stone-cold classics. NYPD Blue and Sex and the City both hold permanent spots on Rolling Stone’s top 100 Greatest TV Shows of All Time. They’re genuinely among the best television ever produced.
What makes them slightly trickier for a high session is pace. Both lean on dense dialogue and season-long relationship arcs that reward close, sober attention, so they tend to work best as a focused rewatch. Neither is going anywhere in a 100 best TV shows of all time conversation.
Save them for a clear-headed night, and lean on looser, more visual picks like Boardwalk Empire or Chewing Gum when you’re lifted. If a session ever tips into ‘weed anxiety’ territory, knowing how to fix a bad high beats forcing your way through a dense, dialogue-heavy episode.
What are the best television shows on streaming services like Netflix, Prime Video, Apple TV, Disney Plus or HBO Max right now?
Apple TV currently leads on prestige sci-fi with Pluribus and Severance, while Netflix holds the edge on limited series with Adolescence. Prime Video’s strongest pick is still Fleabag, and Disney Plus carries 4X20 Quick Hits through Hulu for international viewers.
What are some critically acclaimed anthology series worth watching?
American Horror Stories and Black Mirror remain the genre’s most consistent anthology series, each swapping cast and setting every episode while keeping a signature tone. Fargo also belongs in the conversation, translating the Coen brothers’ style into a different true-crime-adjacent story every season.
What are the best workplace comedy shows of all time?
Brooklyn Nine-Nine, led by deadpan captain Andre Braugher, and Abbott Elementary both prove that ensemble cast workplace comedy still works when the writing is sharp. The Office, in both its UK and US versions, remains the format’s defining reference point for mockumentary-style humour.
Which TV shows are considered the greatest sitcoms & dramedies from the 21st century?
Tina Fey’s 30 Rock and The Comeback, starring Lisa Kudrow as faded actress Valerie Cherish, rank among television’s sharpest industry satires. Garry Shandling’s The Larry Sanders Show set the blueprint both series borrowed from. Shows like Issa Rae’s Insecure and Atlanta, created by Donald Glover and co-starring Brian Tyree Henry, later evolved the format completely.
What are the best series most-watched on television right now?
Adolescence currently sits among Netflix’s most-watched original titles worldwide, and it’s driving fresh interest in British limited series and miniseries generally. While these three popular TV shows may be older, they are still frequently cited as examples of the format done right:
- Linda Cardellini earned an Emmy nomination for the dark comedy Dead to Me.
- Gillian Anderson delivered a chilling, critically acclaimed performance as DSI Stella Gibson in The Fall.
- Matthew Rhys won an Emmy for his masterful portrayal of an undercover Soviet spy in The Americans.
Which TV shows have won the most Golden Globe & Emmy Awards?
Severance and The Studio both dominated the most recent Emmy cycle. Fleabag remains one of the few comedies to sweep Emmys and Golden Globes in the same season. Prestige projects backed by major names continue dominating award conversations. Highlights include George R.R. Martin’s House of the Dragon and Martin Scorsese’s producing credits.
What are the best political drama shows to watch when you're high?
Veep is the easiest entry point, turning Washington dysfunction into breezy comedy that never demands too much focus. For something moodier, Ben Whishaw won an Emmy for his supporting role in political drama A Very English Scandal.
Borgen and The Diplomat both work too, trading procedural tension for character-driven political manoeuvring. None of these needs the same close attention as a crime procedural, making them solid picks for a relaxed session.
What are some of the most popular shows in TV history?
M*A*S*H is proof that popular shows and prestige shows aren’t always the same thing. Led by Alan Alda as Hawkeye Pierce, it still holds the record for the largest single-episode audience in American television history with its 1983 finale.
What are the top trending shows in stoner & cannabis culture?
4X20 Quick Hits is the newest entry, but Broad City, High Maintenance and Weeds all helped build the genre before streaming caught up. Each show treats cannabis as part of everyday life rather than a punchline, which is exactly the tone The High Crowd looks for.
Did we miss your go-to watch? Leave a reply below with your top pick, or hit us up directly to share what we should review next.