Really Stupid Shows That Are Actually For Smart People

Updated March 2, 2021 27.4k votes 3.6k voters 54.9k views48 items

List RulesVote up the shows that seem super dumb, but are actually some of the smartest series on television.

There’s nothing wrong with a TV show being dumb. There are actually a lot of dumb shows for smart people. It’s just that everyone who wears smarty pants is worried about looking stupid for watching something that’s not aimed directly at the wine and cheese crowd. These secretly smart TV shows manage to take low-brow comedy and add in high art.

Sometimes, stupid TV with smart jokes - or a stupid, secretly smart movie, for that matter - is exactly what you want to watch after a long day at work. A 30 minute sitcom that’s layered with dense jokes needs a writer's room full of egg heads. Dumb TV shows for smart people are written by people who are on the search for the perfect dumb joke, and that takes an entire head full of brains.

Some of the stupid shows smart people enjoy have such an idiotic premise that it’s hard to imagine that anyone intelligent would enjoy them. Something like Arrested Development, a show that at its core is about rich people arguing over a property company, sounds no different than a series like Dallas or Dynasty. However, the show’s substantial amount of witty jokes makes it one of the best dumb TV series with smart humor out there.

Vote up your favorite smart TV shows that seem stupid below and add anything you feel is missing.

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It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
Charlie Day, Glenn Howerton
Premiered: 2005
Genres (Tv): Sitcom, Black comedy
Season 14 - Rotten Tomatoes Score 80%

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia (FXX, 2005) is an American television sitcom created by Rob... more
2
1,320
397
Futurama
Billy West, John DiMaggio
Premiered: 1999
Genres (Tv): Animation, Sitcom, Comedy, Science Fiction
Rotten Tomatoes Series Average - 95%

Futurama is an American adult animated science fiction sitcom created by Matt Groening and... more
3
1,313
447
South Park
Trey Parker, Matt Stone
Premiered: 1997
Genres (Tv): Animation, Comedy, Sitcom, Satire
Season 22 - Rotten Tomatoes Score 77%

South Park (Comedy Central, 1997) is an American adult animated sitcom created by Trey Parker... more
4
1,479
523
Rick and Morty
Justin Roiland, Chris Parnell
Premiered: 2013
Genres (Tv): Adult animation, Sci-fi, Comedy, Adventure
Season 3 - Rotten Tomatoes Score 96%

Rick and Morty (Adult Swim, 2013) is an American adult animated science-fiction sitcom created... more
5
1,042
364
Arrested Development
Jason Bateman, Michael Cera
Premiered: 2003
Genres (Tv): Sitcom, Comedy
Rotten Tomatoes Series Average - 75%
6
803
285
Parks and Recreation
Amy Poehler, Jim O'Heir
Premiered: 2009
Genres (Tv): Sitcom, Mockumentary, Satire, Romance TV, Comedy-drama
Rotten Tomatoes Series Average - 92%

Parks and Recreation (NBC, 2009) is an American television sitcom created by Greg Daniels and... more
7
1,093
426
Archer
H. Jon Benjamin, Judy Greer
Premiered: 2009
Genres (Tv): Adult animation, Action, Comedy
Season 7 - Rotten Tomatoes Score 100%

Archer (FXX, 2009) is an American adult animated black spy sitcom created by Adam Reed. The... more
8
995
422
Bob's Burgers
H. Jon Benjamin, Dan Mintz
Premiered: 2011
Genres (Tv): Animation, Sitcom, Comedy
Season 6 - Rotten Tomatoes Score 100%

Bob's Burgers (FOX, 2011) is an American animated comedy television series created by Loren... more
9
843
371
Monty Python's Flying Circus
Graham Chapman, John Cleese
Premiered: 1969
Genres (Tv): Sketch comedy, Satire, Comedy
Rotten Tomatoes Series Average - 100%

Monty Python’s Flying Circus is a British sketch comedy series commissioned by David... more
10
733
359
Drunk History
Derek Waters, Bennie Arthur
Premiered: 2013
Genres (Tv): Television comedy, Historical fiction, Comedy
Season 1 - Rotten Tomatoes Score 59%

Drunk History (Comedy Central, 2013) is an American television comedy series created by Derek... more
11
357
167
The Simpsons
Dan Castellaneta, Nancy Cartwright
Premiered: 1989
Genres (Tv): Animation, Television comedy, Comedy, Family Film
Season 29 - Rotten Tomatoes Score 99%

The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting... more
12
626
340
Mystery Science Theater 3000
Joel Hodgson, Michael J. Nelson
Premiered: 1988
Genres (Tv): Comic science fiction, Comedy, Puppet
Season 10 - Rotten Tomatoes Score 100%

Mystery Science Theater 3000, often abbreviated MST3K, is an American television comedy series... more
13
273
141
Robot Chicken
Seth Green, Matthew Senreich
Premiered: 2005
Genres (Tv): Sketch comedy, Black comedy, Animation, Sitcom, Satire
Rotten Tomatoes Score - N/A

Robot Chicken (Adult Swim, 2005) is an American stop motion sketch comedy television series... more

14
303
176
American Dad!
Seth MacFarlane, Wendy Schaal
Premiered: 2005
Genres (Tv): Black comedy, Animation, Sitcom, Satire, Animated cartoon
Rotten Tomatoes Score - N/A

American Dad! is an American adult animated sitcom created by Seth MacFarlane, Mike Barker,... more
15
231
128
BoJack Horseman
Will Arnett, Amy Sedaris
Premiered: 2014
Genres (Tv): Comedy, Animation
Season 5 - Rotten Tomatoes Score 98%

BoJack Horseman (Netflix, 2014) is an American animated sitcom created by Raphael... more
16
221
132
Schitt's Creek
Eugene Levy, Catherine O'Hara
Premiered: 2015
Genres (Tv): Sitcom
Season 5 - Rotten Tomatoes Score 100%

Schitt's Creek (CBC, 2015) is a Canadian television sitcom created by Eugene Levy and Dan... more
17
492
352
Doctor Who
Christopher Eccleston, David Tennant
Premiered: 1963
Genres (Tv): Sci-fi, Adventure, Drama
Season 11 - Rotten Tomatoes Score 91%

Doctor Who (BBC, 2005) is a British science-fiction television show created by Sydney Newman,... more
18
220
149
Shameless
Emmy Rossum, William H. Macy
Premiered: 2011
Genres (Tv): Comedy, Drama
Season 9 - Rotten Tomatoes Score 70%

Shameless (Showtime, 2011) is an American comedy-drama television series developed by John... more
19
98
65
Big Mouth
Nick Kroll, John Mulaney
Premiered: 2017
Genres (Tv): Animation, Adult, Comedy
Season 3 - Rotten Tomatoes Score 100%

Big Mouth (Netflix, 2017) is an American adult animated sitcom created by Nick Kroll, Andrew... more
20
66
56
Letterkenny
Jared Keeso, Alexander De Jordy
Premiered: 2016
Genres (Tv): Comedy
Rotten Tomatoes Score - N/A

Letterkenny (Crave, 2016) is a Canadian sitcom created by Jared Keeso and developed and... more
21
403
463
Trailer Park Boys
John Paul Tremblay, Robb Wells
Premiered: 2001
Genres (Tv): Television comedy, Mockumentary, Comedy-drama, Comedy
Rotten Tomatoes Score- N/A

Trailer Park Boys (Showcase, 2001) is a Canadian mockumentary black comedy-drama sitcom... more
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134
145
Wilfred
Elijah Wood, Jason Gann
Premiered: 2011
Genres (Tv): Black comedy
Rotten Tomatoes Series Average - 82%

Wilfred (FX, 2011) is an Australian-American comedy television series developed by David... more
23
325
429
Portlandia
Fred Armisen, Carrie Brownstein
Premiered: 2011
Genres (Tv): Sketch comedy
Rotten Tomatoes Series Average - 94%

Portlandia (IFC, 2011) is a sketch comedy television series created by Fred Armisen, Carrie... more

24
0
2
Housos
Melissa Tkautz, Ian Turpie
Premiered: 2011
Genres (Tv): Comedy, Documentary
Housos is an Australian comedy television series created by Paul Fenech for SBS, that screens... more
25
392
522
Saturday Night Live
Kenan Thompson, Kate McKinnon
Premiered: 1975
Genres (Tv): Sketch comedy, Satire, Variety show, Sketch, Comedy
Season 44 - Rotten Tomatoes Score- 70%

Saturday Night Live (NBC, 1975), also known as SNL, is an American late-night live television... more

Schitt's Creek