10 Detective TV Shows Without A Single Bad Season

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Few television genres are as timeless as the detective show. For decades, we've spent countless hours watching our favorite intrepid investigators solve mysteries, uncover conspiracies, and police the boundary between good and evil. These plots are fertile ground for storytelling, and detective dramas tend to be some of the longest-running shows out there. But the longer a show airs, the more room there is for missteps or unfavorable re-treading of familiar ground. Simply put, it's hard to find detective shows that maintain their genius over the course of numerous seasons.

Even some of the best detective shows ever made have regrettable seasons or dips in quality, particularly when they run for 7 or 10, or even 12 seasons. The shows that made this list are quality programs through and through, with consistent writing and fresh narratives from season to season. Some of these shows are classic procedurals, while others feature season-long mysteries that keep the viewer guessing until the very end. Keep reading to explore 10 detective shows without a single bad season.

Sarah Lancashire's work in the British drama "Happy Valley" is one of the most astounding TV performances we've ever seen, and her searing portrayal of a woman in pain will leave you winded and wanting more. For three incredible, expertly crafted seasons, Lancashire played Catherine Cawood, a police sergeant living in Halifax, West Yorkshire. Despite the show's title, it is not a happy town. Catherine is busy raising her daughter's son after her death from suicide, and supporting her sister as she recovers from a heroin addiction.

Much of the series' central conflict revolves around Tommy Lee Royce (James Norton), the man who Catherine blames for her daughter's death. In the first season, Catherine plots revenge against Tommy, unaware of his involvement in a broader criminal enterprise. Catherine is a complex character, juggling family responsibilities and job stress through pure brute force and a stoic countenance. (In many ways, she recalls Kate Winslet's character in "Mare of Easttown.")

The show is both an emotional wallop liable to leave you in tears and a tense thriller that will have you on the edge of your seat. Though writer/creator Sally Wainwright centers the characters' emotional journeys above all else, the tangled plots they weave are electrifying. Wisely, Wainwright and her team never rushed the series or pulled the story too thin, releasing three perfect seasons over the course of nine years.

Dedicated fans of British TV are likely aware of the acclaimed series "Line of Duty," but it remains severely underrated stateside. Arguably the greatest British crime drama ever made, "Line of Duty" tells a police story we rarely see on TV. Created by "Bodyguard" showrunner Jed Mercurio, the series follows the British version of Internal Affairs, known as the Anti-Corruption Unit. Our protagonist is Steve Arnott (Martin Compston), who winds up in the unit after refusing to going along with corruption on his previous team. He's paired with Kate Fleming (Vicky McClure), a whip-smart undercover officer.

Riveting and action-packed, the show does a brilliant job of ramping up the tension and making the viewer question who's in the right and who's in the wrong. Each season features a new guest star playing a cop accused of corruption, including the likes of Keeley Hawes (who appeared in two seasons), Thandiwe Newton, and Stephen Graham. "Line of Duty" is well-known for its electric interrogation sequences, which can sometimes last for nearly an entire episode. Another fascinating conspiracy involves the identity of "H," a shady official who leads a cohort of corrupt officers.

Though some seasons are slightly more compelling than others, the fresh guest stars, fascinating moral ambiguity, and ongoing mysteries make "Line of Duty" a five-star watch throughout. The show concluded its sixth season in 2021, but a seventh is on the way (set to air in 2027), and we're crossing our fingers that it won't blemish the series' perfect record.

One's favorite Sherlock and Watson pairing is a matter of personal taste, but we're willing to go to bat for "Elementary" as the most consistently excellent Sherlock Holmes adaptation, and one of the most underrated to boot. In the CBS series, Jonny Lee Miller plays Sherlock, who in this universe has moved from London to New York after spending time in rehab. Sherlock's father, Morland (John Noble), hires a sober companion to live with him so he stays the course of recovery. She is Joan Watson (Lucy Liu), a brilliant former surgeon who waits on Sherlock with equal parts patience and exasperation.

Of course, there is crime-solving too. Sherlock offers his services as a detective to the NYPD, and Watson reluctantly joins him. What begins as a forced arrangement between the two blossoms into something much more profound — a true partnership. There is never a hint of romance between Sherlock and Joan, and the show is better for it. Their platonic relationship is just as profound, if not more so, than any romantic relationship, and the show allows their partnership to shift and evolve over the course of seven seasons, never growing stale or keeping the characters captive in their roles.

Sherlock and Watson's connection is the core of the series, but there are plenty of other stimulating characters and plotlines, including some thrilling twists involving Sherlock's former paramour, Irene Adler, and his nemesis, Moriarty. Despite a truncated seventh season, "Elementary" managed to stick the landing.

One of the most critically acclaimed crime dramas in recent years, BBC One's "Luther" is the gold standard for dark, brooding detectives. Idris Elba plays one such character, the London-based DCI John Luther. Luther is a monster hunter of sorts, stalking the streets of London to catch the city's most vicious serial killers — by any means necessary. He's got an incredibly sharp mind, but he's quick to anger, and his hatred for the bad guys often leads him to color far outside the lines. His commitment to this brutal (especially when done the Luther way) job also wreaks havoc on his personal life, which only pushes him deeper into the darkness.

Oddly enough, Luther's most consistent relationship is with one of the killers he initially chases. We meet Alice Morgan, played by the captivating Ruth Wilson, in the first episode of the first season. Luther immediately identifies her as a murderous sociopath, but she's quite clever and avoids capture. Their relationship grows over the course of several seasons, and Alice helps Luther further get inside the mind of killers.

We like some seasons of "Luther" better than others (Wilson's Alice immediately elevates every episode she appears in, and we mourn her absence), but there's no bad season. Some are shorter than we'd prefer, but "Luther" has always been good at leaving us wanting more.

Let's be clear: we love the "Magnum P.I." reboot, but it's time we give some love to the original series and the mustachioed man at its center. Tom Selleck, who became a superstar thanks to his starring role in the show, plays Thomas Magnum, a Vietnam War veteran working as a private investigator in Oahu, Hawaii. He lives on the estate of wealthy novelist Robin Masters, which is managed by the scrupulous, rule-following Higgins (John Hillerman). His uppity British manner contrasts with Magnum's laid-back, 'crack open a cold one with boys' vibe. Magnum lives in Hawaii with his best friends from the army, bar owner Rick (Larry Manetti), and helicopter pilot T.C. (Roger E. Mosley).

If you've only seen the opening credits of "Magnum P.I.," you probably have an idea of what the show's like. Fast cars, scantily-clad women, gunfights, and a ton of Hawaiian shirts. While this description isn't untrue, there's more to "Magnum P.I." Co-created by "NCIS" leader Donald P. Bellisario, the show boasts solid writing, exciting mysteries, and more depth than you might expect from an '80s action show. Standout episodes include a two-parter from Season 5 in which Sharon Stone plays a woman with a supposedly evil sister, and a Season 7 episode featuring Frank Sinatra.

Unlike other long-running detective shows from this era, such as "Columbo" or "Murder, She Wrote," "Magnum P.I." never went through a creative slump or overstayed its welcome, delivering eight solid seasons of satisfying TV.

Stephen King once argued that "The Shield" changed TV forever with its gritty portrayal of an antihero, and he's not wrong. The influential yet often underrated series premiered on FX in 2002 and ran for seven excellent seasons. Michael Chiklis plays Vic Mackey, a cop in charge of the Strike Team, a dubious department within the LAPD. Their task, broadly speaking, is to reduce crime and restore order in the area, and they will do so by any means necessary. This includes using extreme violence, committing crimes themselves, and taking home spoils from their raids, just for the fun of it.

Detective Mackey is the worst of the bunch, and he's willing to lie, cheat, and kill to keep his job, though this becomes more difficult as the series goes on. Chiklis is surrounded by an incredible cast of actors that includes Glenn Close, who helped save the show from cancellation, Walton Goggins, CCH Pounder, and Forest Whitaker, who had an interesting experience with fans of the show. Created by "The Night Agent" showrunner Shawn Ryan, "The Shield" remains clear-headed about its protagonists' depravity, and the series-long character arcs are immensely gratifying. The show has one of the best series finales of all time, and it maintained its high quality throughout.

"Monk" is a wonderfully cozy detective show, one that consistently adheres to its formula without ever getting stale — an admirable feat for such a long-running show. Tony Shalhoub plays Adrian Monk, a former detective with the San Francisco police department. He left the force after the death of his wife, and his mental health struggles and phobias, including OCD and germaphobia, left him confined to his house. When we first meet Monk, he's beginning to overcome his fears with the help of his assistant, working as a private detective and consulting with the police.

Unlike some of his fictional detective peers, Monk isn't an unstoppable investigator with a heroic, impenetrable manner. He is, in fact, very stoppable, and his personality traits often hinder his work as a detective. But with the support of his friends and colleagues, Monk learns to live with his unusual brain and work through his grief.

Though it deals with some dark subject matter, "Monk" balances out these heavier topics with lighthearted humor that makes it an immensely enjoyable watch. The show sticks to a classic case–of-the-week whodunit, and it's pleasingly slow-paced compared to many of its contemporaries in the genre. There are no huge plot twists, shocking character deaths, or salacious affairs. Just good-old-fashioned detective work, an odd but relatable protagonist, and a refreshing lack of cynicism. This formula worked for all eight seasons of "Monk," culminating in a satisfying finale.

In the acclaimed HBO series "The Wire," crime isn't black and white. Everyone in the city of Baltimore is just trying to survive, from the criminals on street corners to the frustrated cops trying to catch them to the bystanders caught in the crossfire. Created by former journalist David Simon, who previously explored the gritty underbelly of Baltimore in "Homicide: Life on the Street," "The Wire" looks at crime from several different vantage points.

We follow the Baltimore police, including Detective Jimmy McNulty (Dominic West) and Lieutenant Cedric Daniels (Lance Reddick), as they try to balance bureaucracy, following the rule of law, and their personal lives. In the first season, we're introduced to characters involved in the drug trade, such as kingpin Avon Barksdale (Wood Harris), his partner Stringer Bell (Idris Elba), and legendary stick-up man Omar Little (Michael K. Williams).

We follow these characters over the course of the series, though each season introduces a new element of Baltimore's world of crime, including education, the shipping yard, and journalism. This format is one of the reasons "The Wire" remains so compelling over its five seasons — it offers a holistic look at crime, zooming out while simultaneously zeroing in on the show's most captivating characters. The fifth season, which introduces a group of reporters, is one of the best final seasons of any TV show.

Prime Video's "Bosch" is one of the most dependably good crime shows out there. Based on the novels by Michael Connelly, the series follows Harry Bosch (an excellent Titus Welliver), an LAPD detective fighting his way through L.A.'s seedy underbelly, taking down dangerous criminals at every turn. Bosch has an unshakable moral compass, and he's not afraid to break the rules to get justice. His old-school methods and frequent shirking of authority earn him some enemies within the LAPD and on the city's mean streets, but he's surrounded by many reliable allies played by an excellent supporting cast. They include the likes of "The Wire" alum Lance Reddick, Jamie Hector, Amy Aquino, and Madison Lintz.

Every season of "Bosch" follows the titular detective as he investigates a new case, or a series of cases, while following up on issues that plagued him in previous seasons. For example, alongside his roster of current cases, he also continues to investigate the unsolved murder of his mother many years prior.

Because the show is adapted from Connelly's books (many seasons are an amalgamation of two or three novels), the writers of "Bosch" are never flying blind, and they use this source material to great effect. There are no bad seasons of "Bosch," including the spin-off, "Bosch: Legacy," which is basically just a continuation of the original series. For ten seasons, Welliver delivers a consistently awesome performance, the plotlines are thrilling yet slow-burning, and the characters are all complex and sharply drawn.

The ITV series "Broadchurch" is a masterclass in storytelling, unspooling a character-driven yarn that leaves you breathless and itching for more. The show only ran for three seasons, but they're all excellent. In Season 1, the most discussed of the series, we meet our two lead detectives, Ellie Miller (Olivia Colman), a local detective in Broadchurch, and Alec Hardy (David Tennant), who's brought in from out of town. They're paired up to investigate the death of 11-year-old Danny Latimer (Oskar McNamara). While Ellie manages tensions in the town, Alec struggles to deal with his guilt over failings in a previous child murder case. In addition to the investigation, much of the season focuses on the grieving Latimer family.

Season 2 explores the fallout of Season 1's investigation and shocking arrest, including Ellie's emotional state, the Latimers' response to the arrest, and the frustrating behavior of the accused. Though it doesn't have the mystery element of Season 1, it's beautifully written and acted, and explores aspects of crime not often depicted in detective dramas. 

In Season 3, our detectives have worked to overcome their past traumas and begin investigating a new case involving a serial rapist. More of a typical detective story than the previous season, it's nonetheless an emotionally grounded, riveting piece of work. With three seasons released over four years, "Broadchurch" never missed, though some fans were left hoping for more episodes.