Top 250 Tv Shows Like An Optical Illusion

A stand-up comedian and his three offbeat friends weather the pitfalls and payoffs of life in New York City in the '90s. It's a show about nothing.

In cases ripped from the headlines, police investigate serious and often deadly crimes, weighing the evidence and questioning the suspects until someone is taken into custody. The district attorney's office then builds a case to convict the perpetrator by proving the person guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Working together, these expert teams navigate all sides of the complex criminal justice system to make New York a safer place.

Comedy about the unlikely friendship that develops between two very different young women who meet waitressing at a diner in trendy Williamsburg, Brooklyn, and form a bond over one day owning their own successful cupcake business. Only one thing stands in their way – they’re broke.

Barney Miller is an American situation comedy television series set in a New York City police station in Greenwich Village. The series originally was broadcast from January 23, 1975 to May 20, 1982 on ABC. It was created by Danny Arnold and Theodore J. Flicker. Noam Pitlik directed the majority of the episodes.

Meet the Donnelly brothers: Tommy, Jimmy, Kevin and Sean. There is nothing these four Irish brothers wouldn't do to protect each other, and for them that means lying, cheating, stealing and, occasionally, calling the cops. Narrated by wannabe gangster Joey "Ice Cream," this gritty series bears witness to the Donnelly brothers' sudden involvement in organized crime, focusing on how they go from boys to mobsters, and showing how their new life affects their relationships with friends, family and lovers.

Reality series chronicling the daily operations and staff drama at an African American-owned and operated tattoo shop in Harlem, New York.

A single-camera ensemble comedy following the lives of an eclectic group of detectives in a New York precinct, including one slacker who is forced to shape up when he gets a new boss.

The misadventures of two of New York's finest in the 53rd precinct in the Bronx. Toody, the short, stocky and dim-witted one, either saves the day or messes things up, much to the chagrin of Muldoon, the tall, lanky and smart one.

Caroline in the City is an American situation comedy that ran on the NBC television network. It stars Lea Thompson as cartoonist Caroline Duffy, who lives in Manhattan in New York City. The series premiered on September 21, 1995 in the "Must See TV" Thursday night block after Seinfeld. The show ran for 97 episodes over four seasons, before it was cancelled; its final episode was broadcast on April 26, 1999.

American version of the game show where unassuming people enter the “Cash Cab” as simple passengers taking a normal taxi ride, only to be shocked when they discover that they're instant contestants! Ben Bailey, the host and driver, then drives them to their destination asking general knowledge questions along the way.

A standup comic discovers that his wife is unfaithful, leading him to reevaluate his life amidst the New York City comedy scene.

A middle-aged couple experience the pain, the relief and the trials and tribulations of a divorce in this dry, witty comedy.

After a naive Midwestern girl's big city dreams are dashed her first week in New York, she finds herself living with her worst nightmare in this hilarious, contemporary comedy about a female odd couple who are surrounded by an outrageous cast of characters.

Robert McCall is a former agent of a secret government agency who is now running his own private crime fighting operation where he fashions himself as "The Equalizer." It is a service for victims of the system who have exhausted all possible means of seeking justice and have nowhere to go. McCall promises to even out the odds for them.

Felicity Porter, a sensitive and intelligent girl from the San Francisco Bay Area, decides to give up a slot at Stanford University's pre-med program to follow her long time crush to college in New York City. Things get even more complicated when she meets her dorm's resident advisor and they fall in love.

It’s 1882 and the Gilded Age is in full swing when Marian Brook, a young orphaned daughter of a Southern general, moves in with her rigidly conventional aunts in New York City. With the help of Peggy Scott, an African-American woman masquerading as her maid, Marian gets caught up in the dazzling lives of her rich neighbors as she struggles to decide between adhering to the rules or forging her own path.

Five students at the largest public high school in Brooklyn take on a chaotic world as they fight to succeed, survive, break free and seize the future.

Life’s good for deliveryman Doug Heffernan, until his newly widowed father-in-law, Arthur, moves in with him and his wife Carrie. Doug is no longer the king of his domain, and instead of having a big screen television in his recently renovated basement, he now has a crazy old man.

Living Single is an American television sitcom that aired for five seasons on the Fox network from August 22, 1993, to January 1, 1998. The show centered on the lives of six friends who share personal and professional experiences while living in a Brooklyn brownstone. Throughout its run, Living Single became one of the most popular African-American sitcoms of its era, ranking among the top five in African-American ratings in all five seasons. The series was produced by Yvette Lee Bowser's company, Sister Lee, in association with Warner Bros. Television. In contrast to the popularity of NBC's "Must See TV" on Thursday nights in the 1990s, many African American and Latino viewers flocked to Fox's Thursday night line-up of Martin, Living Single, and New York Undercover. In fact, these were the three highest-rated series among black households for the 1996–1997 season.

When people think of the hip hop life, they think of the players - the men who shape the music and the blinged-out lifestyle that comes with success. The fact is the hip hop life is different for the women involved: the spouses, girlfriends or artists trying to define themselves in a world where men are still calling the shots.

Young, urban newlyweds Paul and Jamie Buchman try to sustain their marital bliss while sidestepping the hurdles of love in the '90s.

Set in 1960-1970 New York, this sexy, stylized and provocative drama follows the lives of the ruthlessly competitive men and women of Madison Avenue advertising.

After landing from a turbulent but routine flight, the crew and passengers of Montego Air Flight 828 discover five years have passed in what seemed like a few hours. As their new realities become clear, a deeper mystery unfolds and some of the returned passengers soon realize they may be meant for something greater than they ever thought possible.

30-year-old New York actor Dev takes on such pillars of maturity as the first big job, a serious relationship, and busting sex offenders on the subway.

Well-educated and upper middle class, Maude Findlay is the archetypal feminist of her generation. She lives in suburban Tuckahoe, New York, with her fourth husband, Walter, their divorced daughter, Carol, and grandson Phillip.

Follows some of Manhattan's most relentless realtors as they close multimillion dollar deals faster than a yellow cab runs a red light.

Laura Diamond, a brilliant NYPD homicide detective balances her “Columbo” day job with a crazy family life that includes two unruly twin boys and a soon-to-be ex-husband — also a cop — who just can't seem to sign the divorce papers. Between cleaning up after her boys and cleaning up the streets, she’d be the first to admit she has her “hot mess” moments in this hilariously authentic look at what it really means to be a “working mom” today. Somehow, she makes it all work with the help of her sexy and understanding partner, and things becomes even more complicated when her husband, ironically, becomes her boss at the precinct. For Laura, every day is a high-wire balancing act.

Fran, fresh out of her job as a bridal consultant in her boyfriend’s shop, first appears on the doorstep of Broadway producer Maxwell Sheffield peddling cosmetics, and quickly stumbled upon the opportunity to become The Nanny for his three children. But soon Fran, with her offbeat nurturing and no-nonsense honesty, touches Maxwell as well as the kids.

Night Court is an American television situation comedy that aired on NBC from January 4, 1984 to May 31, 1992. The setting was the night shift of a Manhattan court, presided over by the young, unorthodox Judge Harold T. "Harry" Stone. It was created by comedy writer Reinhold Weege, who had previously worked on Barney Miller in the 1970s and early 1980s.

Felix and Oscar are two divorced men. Felix is neat and tidy while Oscar is sloppy and casual. They share a Manhattan apartment, and their different lifestyles inevitably lead to conflicts.

Oscar's life seems almost perfect...sure he's divorced and his apartment is a mess, but he's the host of a well-known sports show, and is enjoying his bachelor lifestyle in New York City. That is until his college friend, Felix, shows up at Oscar's apartment having just been dumped by his wife. Oscar does his best to console his old buddy and get him back on the dating horse, but his attempts uncover just how unresolved his own feelings are about his ex.

John Reese, former CIA paramilitary operative, is presumed dead and teams up with reclusive billionaire Finch to prevent violent crimes in New York City by initiating their own type of justice. With the special training that Reese has had in Covert Operations and Finch's genius software inventing mind, the two are a perfect match for the job that they have to complete. With the help of surveillance equipment, they work "outside the law" and get the right criminal behind bars. 

Detective Jane Timoney finds that being a homicide detective in New York City is tough enough and having to contend with a male-dominated police department to get respect makes it that much tougher. She's an outsider who has just transferred to a new precinct dominated by an impenetrable clique of a boys' club. Timoney has her own vices too – with a questionable past – and she tends to be forceful, rude and reckless. But she's also a brilliant cop who keeps her eye on one thing: the prime suspect.

Based on the bestselling book by Candace Bushnell, Sex and the City tells the story of four best friends, all single and in their late thirties, as they pursue their careers and talk about their sex lives, all while trying to survive the New York social scene. 

Workaholic Mike Flaherty is the Deputy Mayor of New York City, serving as Mayor Randall Winston's key strategist and much-needed handler. Mike runs the city with the help of his oddball staff: an anxious and insecure press secretary; a sexist, boorish chief of staff; an impeccably groomed gay activist running minority affairs; a sharp and efficient, man-crazy accountant; and an idealistic young speechwriter. Like Mike, they are all professionally capable but personally challenged.

The story of two teenage girls who discover they were accidentally switched as newborns in the hospital. Bay Kennish grew up in a wealthy family with two parents and a brother, while Daphne Vasquez, who lost her hearing at an early age due to a case of meningitis, grew up with a single mother in a working-class neighborhood. Things come to a dramatic head when both families meet and struggle to learn how to live together for the sake of the girls.

That Girl is an American sitcom that ran on ABC from 1966 to 1971. It stars Marlo Thomas as the title character Ann Marie, an aspiring actress, who moves from her hometown of Brewster, New York to try to make it big in New York City. Ann has to take a number of offbeat "temp" jobs to support herself in between her various auditions and bit parts. Ted Bessell played her boyfriend Donald Hollinger, a writer for Newsview Magazine; Lew Parker and Rosemary DeCamp played Lew Marie and Helen Marie, her concerned parents. Bernie Kopell, Ruth Buzzi and Reva Rose played Ann and Donald's friends. That Girl was developed by writers Bill Persky and Sam Denoff, who had served as head writers on The Dick Van Dyke Show earlier in the 1960s.

Betty Suarez is smart, tough and tenacious, but also sensitive and loving. She hopes these skills will help her to get a job within the Meade Publishing Corporation. The fact that she isn’t traditionally attractive initially keeps her from getting hired by fashion bible, Mode. The magazine, however, is in flux, with power-hungry executives vying for dominance. Hoping to control the situation, the publisher gives his inexperienced son, Daniel, the position of Editor-in-Chief. He hires Betty as Daniel’s assistant after catching him in a compromising position with his secretary on his first day on the job. After a tough start, in which Daniel tries to force Betty into quitting by treating her terribly, he realizes her worth and the two pair up to be an effective team.

Mike McNeil is a decorated New York City detective whose toughest assignment is himself. He's struggling to balance a challenging personal life with a job that leaves him wondering on a daily basis if he is the last sane person in New York. His unconventional approach to his job makes him a great cop, even on the most trying days. The only thing he can't figure out is why, if he's the only sane guy around, everyone's always looking at him like he's crazy.

Police drama set in New York City, exploring the internal and external struggles of the fictional 15th precinct of Manhattan. Each episode typically intertwined several plots involving an ensemble cast.

Green Acres is an American sitcom starring Eddie Albert and Eva Gabor as a couple who move from New York City to a rural country farm. Produced by Filmways as a sister show to Petticoat Junction, the series was first broadcast on CBS, from September 15, 1965 to April 27, 1971. Receiving solid ratings during its six-year run, Green Acres was cancelled in 1971 as part of the "rural purge" by CBS. The sitcom has been in syndication and is available in DVD and VHS releases. In 1997, the two-part episode "A Star Named Arnold is Born" was ranked #59 on TV Guide's 100 Greatest Episodes of All Time.

The series stars Gary Coleman and Todd Bridges as Arnold and Willis Jackson, two African American boys from Harlem who are taken in by a rich white Park Avenue businessman named Phillip Drummond and his daughter Kimberly, for whom their deceased mother previously worked. During the first season and first half of the second season, Charlotte Rae also starred as the Drummonds' housekeeper, Mrs. Garrett.

Paper Dolls is an American prime time soap opera which aired for 14 episodes on ABC from September 23, 1984 to December 25, 1984. Set in New York's fashion industry, the show centered around top modeling agency owner Racine, her conflicts with the family of cosmetics tycoon Grant Harper, and the careers of two teenage models. The series was based on a 1982 TV movie of the same name.

New York Undercover is an American police drama The series stars Detective J.C. Williams and Detective Eddie Torres, two undercover detectives in New York City's Fourth Precinct who were assigned to investigate various crimes and gang-related cases.

The Bronx Is Burning is a television drama that debuted on ESPN on July 9, 2007, after the 2007 MLB Home Run Derby. It is an eight-episode mini-series adapted from Jonathan Mahler's best-selling book, Ladies and Gentlemen, The Bronx Is Burning. The book focuses on baseball's triumph over the turmoil and hysteria of 1977 New York City and how the New York Yankees came to embody the hopes and fears of an unforgettable summer with Billy Martin and Reggie Jackson's warfare under George Steinbrenner's leadership. The show stars Daniel Sunjata, Oliver Platt, and John Turturro. The 2007 debut of the series marks the 30th anniversary of the 1977 World Series win for the Yankees, the first under Steinbrenner.

As manager of a talent agency she inherited from her father, Sophie Paquin, single and afraid of commitment, lives through a series of events outrageous enough to make the tabloids. Double betrayals, one-night stands with lifetime consequences, secrets, lies, a temperamental mother and an ex-con brother, she survives a dizzying array of ups and downs without ever losing hope or her smile.

Beginning with the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center and ending on the morning of 9/11, the draws on detailed information from the 9/11 Commission Report to take viewers on an unforgettable journey through the events that presaged that fateful day -- to understand what went right and wrong, and what can be learned from this crucial eight-year period.

Hot Properties is an ensemble ABC comedy featuring four women working together in a Manhattan real estate office. It was first aired on October 7, 2005. Often compared to Sex and the City and the CBS situation comedy Designing Women, this show features four single women professionals, each with distinct personalities that contribute in their failure to secure dates. The comparison to these shows led many critics to describe the show as unoriginal. The women share a passion for Oprah. On November 29, 2005, ABC announced that the show would not be extended more than 13 episodes, which is usually a sign of impending cancellation. The series finale aired on Friday, December 30, 2005.

In 1985, two couples' relationships dissolve amidst the backdrop of Reagan era politics, the spreading AIDS epidemic, and a rapidly changing social and political climate.

True Life is a documentary series running on MTV since March 24, 1998. Each episode follows a particular topic, such as heroin addiction as in the first episode, "Fatal Dose." The show is created by following a series of subjects by a camera crew through a certain part of their lives.

13 Queens Boulevard is an American sitcom that aired from March 20 until July 24, 1979.

Mr. & Mrs. North is an American comedy/mystery television series that aired on CBS from October 3, 1952 to May 25, 1954. The series centers on Jerry North, a mystery magazine publisher who thinks he is a good amateur detective, and his wife, Pamela, as they solve crimes in New York City.

An intelligence analyst at a national think tank in New York City called the American Policy Institute discovers that he may be working with members of a secret society that manipulates world events on a grand scale.

Selling New York is an American television series airing on HGTV. It features real estate brokers from three Manhattan real estate companies selling real estate to New York's elite. Season I was filmed between September 2009 and February 2010. It premiered in March 2010 and concluded in June of the same year. The series was renewed for a second season for 39 new episodes. It premiered on January 6, 2011. The show is now in its fourth season. It is produced by Canadian production company, JV Productions Inc. The series has inspired Los Angeles and European spin-offs titled Selling LA which premiered October 13, 2011 on HGTV and Selling London.

Kate, Connie, Larry, and Ben are New Yorker thirty somethings searching for love in the city. When Kate and Ben meet and fall for each other, their friends remain cynical about the relationship.

Without warning, an earthquake rips through the "City That Never Sleeps," turning it into a vulnerable state of chaos: skyscrapers topple, subways are buried in the rubble, countless lives are lost and loved ones are torn apart. As turmoil reigns in the screaming streets, Mayor Bruce Lincoln and former Fire Chief Thomas Ahearn race against time to enact a city-wide emergency plan.

Former Syracuse, New York, police detective Carrie Wells has hyperthymesia, a rare medical condition that gives her the ability to visually remember everything. She reluctantly joins the New York City Police Department's Queens homicide unit after her former boyfriend and partner asks for help with solving a case. The move allows her to try to find out the one thing she has been unable to remember, which is what happened the day her sister was murdered.

This six part documentary miniseries presents the evolution of the Broadway musical from its inception in 1893 to current day 2004. It presents those influential players both on stage and behind the scenes, as well as a variety of influential Broadway shows, a handful which are known to have transformed the musical into what the audience knows it to be today.

All-American guys feel caught between two worlds, not truly knowing where they fit in.

Thom Payne is a 44 year-old man whose world is thrown into disarray when his 25 year-old "wunderkind" boss arrives, saying things like "digital," "social" and "viral." Is he in need of a "rebranding," or does he just have a "low joy ceiling?" Maybe pursuing happiness is a fool's errand? Happiness after all is pretty high bar. In a world as absurd as ours, maybe the best anyone can hope for is happyish.

Billy & Billie centers on two young adults as they fall in love. They face the usual barrage of attention from their friends and family, and the normal anxieties that come at the start of a new relationship-all further complicated by the fact that they're stepbrother and sister.

Look past the bricks and mortar and discover the history of some of the most famous buildings on Blueprint NYC. Each episode offers a nuts-and-bolts perspective behind storied sites, like the Wonder Theaters and the Highline, with walking tours and interviews with experts who have a passion for the history and architecture of New York City.

For two friends on the brink of losing everything, a dusty pipe dream of opening up an upscale restaurant in their hometown of the Bronx is all they have left to turn their lives around. Together, they take on the insanity of the New York restaurant world, and navigate its underbelly of petty criminals, corrupt officials and violent mobsters.

Jump into the daily routines of a diverse group of New Yorkers and how they light things up. “The Guy” is a nameless pot deliveryman whose client base includes an eccentric group of characters with neuroses as diverse as the city.

Picking up where the original movie leaves off, it's 1990 in New York City at the height of rap's "Golden Age" of creativity, but corporate America has been hesitant to embrace the genre. Nikki lands a dream job as the assistant to the legendary and out-of-control Barry Fouray. Her best friend and producer DeeVee is working with rapper Ahm who is currently under investigation by the police for murder. How far will these driven young people go to rise to the top of the hip-hop world?

New York, 1896. Police commissioner Theodore Roosevelt brings together criminal psychologist Dr. Laszlo Kreizler, newspaper illustrator John Moore and secretary Sara Howard to investigate several murders of male prostitutes.

Nola Darling struggles to define herself and divide her time among her friends, job and three lovers. A new take on Spike Lee's film, in 10 episodes.

While Osama bin Laden and Al-Qaeda become a global threat, the rivalry between the CIA and FBI inadvertently sets the stage for the tragedy of 9/11 and the Iraq War.

An ex-felon is shocked to see just how much the world has changed when he is released from prison for good behavior after a 15-year stint and returns to his newly gentrified Brooklyn neighborhood.

Shortly after arriving in New York City, 22-year-old Tess lands a job at a celebrated downtown restaurant. Swiftly introduced to the world of drugs, alcohol, love, lust, dive bars, and fine dining, she learns to navigate the chaotically alluring, yet punishing life she has stumbled upon.

A spoiled executive climbs his way back up the corporate ladder, one humiliating temp job at a time.

An unlikely friendship. A lost love resurfaced. A marriage at its turning point. A date that might not have been a date. An unconventional new family. These are unique stories about the joys and tribulations of love, each inspired by true events.

Former Avenger Clint Barton has a seemingly simple mission: get back to his family for Christmas. Possible? Maybe with the help of Kate Bishop, a 22-year-old archer with dreams of becoming a superhero. The two are forced to work together when a presence from Barton’s past threatens to derail far more than the festive spirit.

Loosely based on infamous crime boss Bumpy Johnson, who in the early 1960s returned from ten years in prison to find the neighborhood he once ruled in shambles. With the streets controlled by the Italian mob, Bumpy attempts to regain his piece of Harlem.

Nora Lin leans on her family as she navigates life and young adulthood in outer borough-NYC.

Opposites attract at Christmas as cynical Dash and sunny Lily trade messages and dares in a red notebook they pass back and forth around New York City.

Actor Jung Hae In becomes the producer of a documentary. He is hosting his version of the documentary Backpack Travels and chooses his first destination New York, the city where every traveler dreams about. It is a documentary about walking as he travels around the city. He will be joined by his fellow actors Eun Jong Gun and Lim Hyun Soo, and they will show their unexpected chemistry. How will their walk-documentary turnout?

Some of the New York City's most dramatic true-crime stories from the perspective of the New York Post journalists who covered the cases.

Two New York artists become hired killers to make ends meet in this dark humor web series.

A 1980's series of events revolving around Benny Zerletta (William DeMeo), a Brooklyn based Italian-American, soldier in the Colezzo crime family. Benny depicts the difficulties.

A bunch of unknown actors create a TV show about themselves. Taking on the inevitable collapse and defeat of their show in the summer of a new era.

The early years of the Madagascar heroes Alex the Lion, Marty the Zebra, Melman the Giraffe and Gloria the Hippo, as they grow up in a rescue habitat at the Central Park Zoo.

Follow the iconic cat and mouse duo as they settle in to their new digs at the Royal Gate Hotel and unleash mayhem across the big city, inciting hilarious chaos uptown, downtown and everywhere their manic escapades take them.

Inspired by the music and subjects featured in the series “Godfather of Harlem,” this documentary series brings alive the dramatic true story of Harlem and its music during the 1960s, and connects that history to our present moment.

"Empires of New York” follows titans of the 80’s who shared a singular trait: the insatiable need to win at all costs. Drawing on exclusive interviews, these titans broke rules and flaunted their wealth. And oddly, at times America came to love them for it.

Wander the New York City streets and fascinating mind of wry writer, humorist and raconteur Fran Lebowitz as she sits down with Martin Scorsese.

In official collaboration with the 9/11 Memorial & Museum, this documentary series takes viewers through harrowing moments of the historic morning of September 11, 2001.

An original series about an immigrant actress navigating through life in New York. Recipient of two Best Web Series awards and selected by over 15 international film festivals. Filmed in New York and Sofia by an international cast and crew.

In 1970s NYC, the “Torso Killer” preys on women to fulfill his grotesque fantasies while eluding police. A docuseries dive into crime’s darkest places.

A deep dive into some of the most chilling murder cases in New York City's recent history. New York City is a shining beacon of opportunity for people across the world and a true melting pot. It's a city with a gritty core, where tensions run high. A series of details to the brazen crimes that could only happen in New York and the intense work by law enforcement and civilians who race to take murderers off the streets.

Maggie and Negan travel to post-apocalyptic Manhattan - long ago cut off from the mainland. The crumbling city is filled with the dead and denizens who have made it a world full of anarchy, danger, beauty, and terror.

A revival of the 1990s sitcom centering on the trials and tribulations of a married couple living in New York.

Meet a fresh group of wealthy, sophisticated and hilarious Asian-Americans from New York City, where the quality of real estate is measured by address, not acreage. Conversations are direct, not coded. And competition – for love, for money, and for power – is fierce. Billionaires, CEOs, and fashion icons - it’s a city where you can be anything you want to be.

Each episode of "LOL with The N" provides a behind-the-scenes look at four different comedy acts at the Gotham Comedy Club in New York City.

Set in New York City in 1999, Lindsay and Miguel fall in love and discover that the single greatest obstacle to finding happiness together might just be themselves — and the memories, obsessions, fears, and fantasies that lives inside their heads.

This gripping docuseries follows New York City's frontline medical professionals as they balance the intensity of their work with their personal lives.

New York Confidential is a British-American crime drama series that aired from 1958 to 1959. The series aired in syndicated in the United States and was broadcast on London's local ITV station, Associated-Rediffusion, in the UK. It was co-produced by ITC Entertainment, Metropolis Productions, Inc., and Television Programs of America.

Murder. Extortion. Drug smuggling. Racketeering. The charges are mounting against John Gotti — but will any of them stick to the "Teflon Don"? Told from both sides of the law, this docuseries from the makers of "Fear City" follows the FBI's battle to bring down infamous mob boss.

Celebrated American pianist Vladimir Horowitz in his first televised piano recital, taped at Carnegie Hall on February 1, 1968, and broadcast nationwide by CBS on September 22 of that year.

OM CITY is the critically acclaimed, award-winning original series that follows the harried life of Grace (Jessie Barr), a yoga teacher in NYC, and her attempts to bring the humans of New York OM.