20 Best TV Comedy Shows Of The 21st Century

Darker, stranger, and funnier than Seth MacFarlane’s better known animated adult family comedy (as in, a comedy about a family for adults, maybe there’s a less confusing phrase for that somewhere), this satirical offering from The Orville creator has carved out a niche fandom without ever enjoying the broad popularity of its predecessor.

Don’t tell too many people, though—as a result, the show has been able to put its hilarious central ensemble, the Smith Family, through some truly surreal and inventive experiments which would never fly on a more widely watched show.

Whether its their many gory Christmas specials, the episode spent re-enacting the Pulitzer winning play August Osage County, or the one told in the style of a pretentious indie flick (complete with Zooey Deschanel cameo), there’s no denying this series is as off-the-wall as network comedy gets.