TASCHEN's favorite TV shows. The top shows of the last 25 years

Compulsive viewing. How the TV series became a 21st-century addiction

From Twin Peaks to True Detective, this anthology of the most important and successful recent TV celebrates one of the greatest cultural movements of our time: the small screen revolution. Featuring abundant stills, series fact files and fascinating insights into the making of television art: Who were the trendsetters? What inspired the creators? Learn something new about your favourite shows, and about those you're still to discover.

Their names are Walter White, Birgitte Nyborg and Don Draper and they are the stars of a cultural revolution. In the last decade, shows like Breaking Bad, Borgen and Mad Men have toppled cinema from its leading position in the popular culture universe and ushered in a whole new level of small screen excellence and appreciation.

With ambition to tear down the barriers around commercial television, networks such as HBO, AMC, and ABC have launched a new era of cinematic narrative, while cable TV networks, DVDs, and the Internet have brought about new, flexible ways of watching and engaging. Global fan communities devour episode after episode, season after season, independently of programs and broadcasting schedules, and probe the multiple levels of meaning in their favourite series in blogs, fan groups and online forums.

Alongside a wealth of stills, this overview of the TV revolution presents the most important and successful series of recent years, from David Lynch’s groundbreaking masterpiece Twin Peaks to current highlights like Game of Thrones, Girls and House of Cards. Who were the trendsetters? What inspired the creators? Find all of the facts about authors and actors, influences and backgrounds, sequels and spin-offs. Learn something new about your favourite shows, and about those you're still to discover.

The author:

Jürgen Müller holds the chair of Early Modern and Modern Art History at the Technical University of Dresden. He studied art history at the universities of Bochum, Münster, Pisa, Paris and Amsterdam, and has worked as an art critic and curated numerous exhibitions. He is also the editor of TASCHEN’s movies by decade series.