The Best TV Shows on ABC

Every ABC Show Ranked From Best To Worst

Across the timeline from 1956 to 2024, ABC has presented audiences with over 20 captivating shows. Some of the best tv shows from ABC include Tony Awards and Maverick, airing in 1956 and 1957 respectively. Discover the best of ABC with our list of over 20 series, meticulously updated for September 2025.

  • The Good Doctor
    The Good Doctor (2017)8.5

    Shaun Murphy, a young surgeon with autism and savant syndrome, relocates from a quiet country life to join a prestigious hospital's surgical unit. Unable to personally connect with those around him, Shaun uses his extraordinary medical gifts to save lives and challenge the skepticism of his colleagues.

  • The Rookie
    The Rookie (2018)8.5

    Starting over isn't easy, especially for small-town guy John Nolan who, after a life-altering incident, is pursuing his dream of being an LAPD officer. As the force's oldest rookie, he’s met with skepticism from some higher-ups who see him as just a walking midlife crisis.

  • Twin Peaks
    Twin Peaks (1990)8.3

    The body of Laura Palmer is washed up on a beach near the small Washington state town of Twin Peaks. FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper is called in to investigate her strange demise only to uncover a web of mystery that ultimately leads him deep into the heart of the surrounding woodland and his very own soul.

  • Grey's Anatomy
    Grey's Anatomy (2005)8.2

    Follows the personal and professional lives of a group of doctors at Seattle’s Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital.

  • 9-1-1
    9-1-1 (2018)8.2

    Explore the high-pressure experiences of police officers, paramedics and firefighters who are thrust into the most frightening, shocking and heart-stopping situations. These emergency responders must try to balance saving those who are at their most vulnerable with solving the problems in their own lives.

  • Columbo
    Columbo (1971)8.1

    Columbo is a friendly, verbose, disheveled-looking police detective who is consistently underestimated by his suspects. Despite his unprepossessing appearance and apparent absentmindedness, he shrewdly solves all of his cases and secures all evidence needed for indictment. His formidable eye for detail and meticulously dedicated approach often become clear to the killer only late in the storyline.

  • Scrubs
    Scrubs (2001)8.0

    In the unreal world of Sacred Heart Hospital, John "J.D." Dorian learns the ways of medicine, friendship and life.

  • Castle
    Castle (2009)8.0

    After a serial killer imitates the plots of his novels, successful mystery novelist Richard "Rick" Castle receives permission from the Mayor of New York City to tag along with an NYPD homicide investigation team for research purposes.

  • High Potential
    High Potential (2024)8.0

    Morgan is a single mom with an exceptional mind, whose unconventional knack for solving crimes leads to an unusual and unstoppable partnership with a by-the-book seasoned detective.

  • Lost
    Lost (2004)7.9

    Stripped of everything, the survivors of a horrific plane crash must work together to stay alive. But the island holds many secrets.

  • Desperate Housewives
    Desperate Housewives (2004)7.9

    Looking down on her friends and family isn't a way of life for Mary Alice Young... it's a way of death. One day, in her perfect house, in the loveliest of suburbs, Mary Alice ended it all. Now she's taking us into the lives of her family, friends and neighbors, commenting from her elevated P.O.V.

  • Modern Family
    Modern Family (2009)7.9

    The Pritchett-Dunphy-Tucker clan is a wonderfully large and blended family. They give us an honest and often hilarious look into the sometimes warm, sometimes twisted, embrace of the modern family.

  • Forever
    Forever (2014)7.8

    Doctor Henry Morgan, New York City’s star medical examiner, has a secret. He doesn't just study the dead to solve criminal cases, he does it to solve the mystery that has eluded him for 200 years—the answer to his own inexplicable immortality. This long life has given Henry remarkable observation skills which impresses his new partner, Detective Jo Martinez. Each week, a new case and their budding friendship will reveal layers of Henry’s long and colorful past. Only his best friend and confidant, Abe knows Henry’s secret.

  • Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
    Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (2013)7.5

    Agent Phil Coulson of S.H.I.E.L.D. (Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division) puts together a team of agents to investigate the new, the strange and the unknown around the globe, protecting the ordinary from the extraordinary.

  • Once Upon a Time
    Once Upon a Time (2011)7.4

    There is a town in Maine where every story book character you've ever known is trapped between two worlds, victims of a powerful curse. Only one knows the truth and only one can break the spell. Emma Swan is a 28-year-old bail bonds collector who has been supporting herself since she was abandoned as a baby. Things change for her when her son Henry, whom she abandoned years ago, finds her and asks for her help explaining that she is from a different world where she is Snow White's missing daughter.

  • Scandal
    Scandal (2012)7.1

    Everyone has secrets and Olivia Pope has dedicated her life to protecting and defending the public images of the elite by keeping those secrets under wraps. Pope and her team are at the top of their game when it comes to getting the job done for their clients, but it becomes apparent that these "gladiators in suits," who specialize in fixing the lives of other people, have trouble fixing those closest at hand -- their own.

  • The Rifleman
    The Rifleman (1958)7.0

    The Rifleman is an American Western television program starring Chuck Connors as rancher Lucas McCain and Johnny Crawford as his son, Mark McCain. It was set in the 1880s in the town of North Fork, New Mexico Territory. The show was filmed in black-and-white, half-hour episodes. "The Rifleman" aired on ABC from September 30, 1958 to April 8, 1963 as a production of Four Star Television. It was one of the first prime time series to have a widowed parent raise a child.

  • Maverick
    Maverick (1957)6.8

    The Maverick boys - Bret, Bart, Beau and Brent - are a clan of well-dressed dandies, gamblers who'd much rather make their money playing cards than messing up their fine clothing with actual work. Sly and clever, none of the Mavericks are much for acts of derring do, but they can be courageous when the situation calls for it. Most often, however, they live by their wits and considerable charm.

  • The Love Boat
    The Love Boat (1977)6.3

    Passengers who search for romantic nights aboard a beautiful ship travelling to tropical or mysterious countries, decide to pass their vacation aboard the "Love Boat", where Gopher, Dr. Bricker, Isaac, Julie, and Captain Stubing try their best to please them, and sometimes help them fall in love. Things are not always so easy, but in the end, love wins.

  • Tony Awards
    Tony Awards (1956)5.9

    The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway productions and performances, and an award is given for regional theatre.