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100. "Divided We Stand," Steptoe and Son (1972)
Anyone who's shared a bedroom with a sibling has eventually hit upon the idea of dividing the room down the middle with some "uncrossable" tape.
99. "Opie's Ill-Gotten Gain," The Andy Griffith Show (1963)
Not an earth-shaking plot, but the show hits the right note in conveying what a big deal this is to a little boy. You can believe that it's actually a life-changing experience for Opie.
98. "Lucy and the Loving Cup," I Love Lucy (1957)
You can be sure that Lucy Ricardo spends most of this episode asking herself, "Why? Why did I have to do something so dumb?" And that's a feeling everyone has had at some point or another.
97. "My Musical," Scrubs (2007)
It was inevitable (and I mean that in a good way) that a single-camera sitcom would attempt a full-episode musical after new Broadway shows like Avenue Q started attracting younger audiences.
96. "Showdown (Part II)," Cheers (1983)
"Showdown" also gives us a romantic relationship that's more about lust and one-upsmanship than about the love we've seen displayed between the Ricardos, Petries, and even the Bunkers on other sitcoms.
95. "Gracie Writes About Silky Thompson," The George Burns and Gracie Allen Show (1952)
Gracie has a presumably unwitting ability to create as much havoc — and lob as many insults — as Bugs Bunny.
94. "The Librarian," Barney Miller (1981)
What I like about the later years is that the show covers such a wide range of themes, thanks to its format of having so many one-shot characters (mostly criminals and victims) come through the small, two-room set.
93. "Seinfeld," Curb Your Enthusiasm (2009)
Here we get a philosophical debate over the definition of "favor": If you ask someone on the job, like the deliciously named Mocha Joe, to do something completely unrelated to his work, do you still have to tip him?
92. "Big Haas and Little Falsie," Designing Women (1988)
The lesson is that we should be happy with the way we are — which is odd, considering all the commercials between scenes that tell us the opposite.
91. "The New Car," The Odd Couple (1973)
The pair are at each other's throats before they realize that they actually have a perfect relationship — as long as they keep out anything new that might upset their delicate balance.
90. "Daphne's Room," Frasier (1995)
Just as we seem to be losing privacy in real life, sitcom characters seem to have run of hiding places.
89. "Big Brother," Yes, Minister (1980)
The British satire, which pits well-meaning but rather cowardly cabinet minister Jim Hacker against red tape and bureaucracy, can be enjoyed by those on opposite sides of the political spectrum.
Who can resist a campaign ad warning of Hillary Clinton's plan for an "all-homosexual" army?
87. "Cousin Liz," All in the Family (1977)
Edith shames Archie away from blackmailing a lesbian schoolteacher by simply saying, "I can't believe you'd do anything that mean."
86. "Mac Bangs Dennis' Mom," It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia (2006)
The four guys and a girl on Sunny are unrelentingly selfish, but they're almost invariably driven by a desire to connect with someone (arguably more so than the chilly Seinfeld quartet).
85. "Ted's Change of Heart," The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1976)
Ted has an on-air heart attack and becomes endlessly fascinated by spider webs.
84. "In Luton Airport, No One Can Hear You Scream," One Foot in the Grave (1990)
Victor's exasperation at his incredibly bad fortune is a main source of comedy, but his stubborn refusal to lay down and die is what keeps the audience from feeling too sadistic.
83. "It May Look LIke a Walnut," The Dick Van Dyke Show (1963)
The episode makes a common object seem threatening just by multiplying it and putting it in places we don't expect — in the same way a common word can suddenly seem strange if we stare at it long enough.
82. "Theo's Economic Lesson," The Cosby Show (1984)
The main plot involves son Theo's terrible report card, and it's essentially a rebuttal of "Opie's Ill-Gotten Gain" (No. 99 on this list), with Cosby playing a trick on the studio audience.
81. "A Stash from the Past," Roseanne (1993)
Dan's "we'll never, ever do this again" is an echo of George Costanza's "I am never doing that again" in Seinfeld's "The Contest" a year before this episode, and we all know how that turned out.
80. "Talk to Your Daughter," Everybody Loves Raymond (2002)
This is a Don't Look Down episode, in which characters stop to consider where they are — and freak out about it.
79. "First Stop," I Love Lucy (1954)
This episode could logically end with The Twilight Zone's Rod Serling stepping out of the shadows to tell us that the gang never leaves the crummy diner and "motel" where they seem to be the only customers.
78. "Business School," The Office (US) (2007)
Michael may be more sympathetic here than in any other episode, as the paper merchant stands athwart the Digital Age yelling "Stop!
77. "Corporal Punishment," Blackadder Goes Forth (1989)
Blackadder is sentenced to death for the crime of trying to stay alive.
76. "The Rye," Seinfeld (1996)
Going out to buy a specific food item and not returning with it is about the most emasculating experience a New Yorker can have (far worse than handing your wallet to a mugger).
75. "Edith's Accident," All in the Family (1971)
Edith accidentally dents a stranger's car with a can of "mmm mmm in heavy syrup."
74. "Hank's Night in the Sun," The Larry Sanders Show (1994)
The measured performance by Jeffrey Tambor as Hank introduces a cringe factor when he does act like an ass, making him something of a forerunner to Ricky Gervais and Steve Carrell in the British and US versions of The Office.
I like this episode as a stand-alone comic short story, and I wish the series had continued in this direction, as a kind of anthology series about real or imagined wartime exploits — kind of like the westerns Death Valley Days and Gunsmoke,
72. "That's My Boy??" The Dick Van Dyke Show (1963)
This is a great example of how Van Dyke and the show's producers managed to create a central character who's both a straight man and a clown.
71. "Bret Gives Up the Dream," Flight of the Conchords (2007)
This is a musical sitcom, something rarely attempted since The Monkees in the 1960s, and it covers an impressive range of musical styles, in addition to creating a fine set of characters.
70. "Reverend Jim, A Space Odyssey," Taxi (1979)
axi operates on the principle that a random meeting in, say, a bar can turn one's life around. And it's why so many introverts, perversely, choose to live in big cities with lots of forced interaction with other people.
69. "Wine, Women, and Aunt Esther," Sanford and Son (1973)
Another example of a lesson that has been showing up again and again in this Top 100 list: Be thankful for the people who are already in your life.
68. "Slow Donnie," Just Shoot Me! (1999)
David Cross, who has played a variety of characters whose stupidity or stubbornness is more creepy than endearing, is a perfect fit for the role, especially as he keeps turning on and off his "slowness."
67. "The Canister," Everybody Loves Raymond (2001)
This is sort of a MacGuffin episode, except the object at the center is not "the stuff that dreams are made of" (as Humphrey Bogart's Sam Spade described The Maltese Falcon) but is more a repository for grudges and resentments.
66. "Baby Picture," Leave It to Beaver (1959)
By the end of the episode, Ward comes up with an elegant solution to the problem and even apologizes to Beaver for his rotten parenting.
65. "The Germans," Fawlty Towers (1975)
Basil has an anti-id: Ashamed of his own pleasure drive, he constantly tries to thwart everyone else's.
64. "Twelve Angry Men," Hancock's Half Hour (1959)
This series is in a small genre I'd call flâneur-coms, after the French term for someone who likes to walk through a city and take in all its experiences.
63. "Kim's O," Lucky Louie (2006)
Louie and Kim are adult characters who can never completely disregard each other's feelings even when they get obsessed with some pretty animalistic urges, and much of the show's comedy is from their frustration with this conflict.
62. "The Deal," Seinfeld (1991)
Julia Louis-Dreyfus is great as Elaine, trying to be both alluring and dispassionate as she and Jerry rationalize their way to the bedroom.
61. "Lou's First Date," The Mary Tyler Moore Show (1973)
There's a hopeful theme in some sitcoms that's typified by Mary's advice to Lou about a supremely awkward blind date in this episode: "Mr. Grant, why don't you just go through with it?"
60. "Daniel Radcliffe," Extras (2006)
Because this is a Ricky Gervais show, none of the misunderstandings get sorted out, and apologies for social offenses only make things worse.
59. "The Saga of Cousin Oscar," All in the Family (1971)
The death of Cousin Oscar, whom we never see, is more mysterious than bizarre, but the bits of information we get about him conjure up a fairy-tale ogre.
58. "Critical Film Studies," Community (2011)
For a few minutes, Jeff believes that Abed can become the confidant he desparately needs, someone with whom he can drop all of his artifice.
57. "Hash," Barney Miller (1976)
This is a silly, broadly acted episode of a typically low-key, semi-serious sitcom, and that contrast may explain why it's one of the best-remembered episodes of the 1970s.
56. "A Night In," Porridge (1974)
The British, perhaps because they don't send as many people to the Big House, have been more successful in utilizing the prison setting, and Porridge was one of the more popular UK sitcoms in the 1970s.
55. "The Two Faces of Rob," The Dick Van Dyke Show (1962)
One great thing about this episode is the revelation that Laura Petrie, so often concerned with maintaining a proper appearance, is really into role-playing.
54. "Racial Sensitivity," Better Off Ted (2009)
It's hard to top the pungency of "Racial Insensitivity," in which the Veridian company blithely installs separate, manually operated drinking fountains for the convenience of its black employees.
53. "Ink and Incapability," Blackadder (1987)
The best thing about this series is its demolishment of the idea that people were ever nobler than they are now.
52. "The Hamptons," Seinfeld (1994)
Jerry and company are never able to relate to other people as anything more than threats to their self-image, and it's kind of reassuring to see that a change of scenery does them no good whatsoever.
51. "A Touch of Glass," Only Fools and Horses (1982)
To the British, this episode includes a scene as iconic as Lucy in the candy factory, or Sammy Davis Jr. kissing Archie Bunker.
50. "Home-Ec," Roseanne (1991)
This is a key moment in the real-world education of Darlene Connor, but it's not in Very Special Episode territory. The biggest revelation is that Roseanne has been tricking her kids by putting cheaper cereal in "name brand" boxes.
49. "TV or Not TV," The Honeymooners (1955)
Ed wants to watch Captain Video and imagine himself traveling to Mars. He's childish, but maybe his less-attainable fantasies are what makes him happier with his real life, in contrast to the ever-scheming Ralph.
48. "Bowling," Malcolm in the Middle (2001)
Alternate timelines are explored, and Hal's insistence on following a complicated good-luck routine every time he rolls the ball is a hilarious foreshadowing of Bryan Cranston's role as the routine-obsessed Walter White on Breaking Bad.
47. "Flu Season," Parks and Recreation (2011)
People react to sickness in all kinds of different ways. Some of us feel guilty for neglecting our health (or touching a door handle in a rest room), some feel a kind of relief at having an excuse to slack off, and some just refuse to acknowledge being sick.
46. "Complaint Box," NewsRadio (1997)
The complaint box, which is supposed to bring some order to the griping about colleagues' behavior that goes on in any office, is more like a toy thrown into the monkey cage at a zoo.
45. "Dinner Party," Frasier (1999)
The episode is a pretty big wink to the audience, given the gay subtext on Frasier. "She thinks we're some sort of... couple," Frasier pouts to his brother.
44. "Diane's Perfect Date," Cheers (1983)
"Diane's Perfect Date" might have worked as a full-length screwball comedy in the '30s, but the fluid nature of Sam and Diane's relationship feels contemporary. When do colleagues, platonic friends, and even friends with benefits become something more, and who makes the first move?
43. "Baggage," Everybody Loves Raymond (2003)
Even though I've never been married, I can believe that a husband and wife would leave a suitcase on a landing for weeks without talking about it, and that the husband would try to force the situation by hiding a piece of pungent cheese in the suitcase before leaving on a business trip.
42. "Off to Florida," I Love Lucy (1956)
Since so many sitcom stories involve household members or co-workers learning to get along with each other, it's fun to find an episode that puts strangers in temporarily close quarters like this; it's more like a mini road movie (Edna Grundy: The Original Easy Rider).
41."Louie Goes Too Far," Taxi (1981)
Louie is short, balding, and overweight (he must dream of being as attractive as George Costanza), and he's obviously had to deal with people mocking or ignoring him for all of his life. Worst of all, he just looks like someone who's going to say something nasty, so people undoubtedly have a negative reaction before he even opens his mouth.
40. "Pilot," Arrested Development (2003)
I hate that every high-aspiring sitcom has to follow Arrested Development's rules now, but the show is still damn funny. The pilot episode is a masterpiece in introducing its large cast of distinct characters and setting up future situations
