Nine Shows That ALMOST Made the Best of the Decade List

 Putting together a list of the best shows of the decade list wasn't much of a challenge. What was challenging was keeping it simple and -- relatively -- short. 

 Here are nine shows that almost made the list, in no particular order:

•    Curb Your Enthusiasm (HBO, 2000 to present): Wickedly, wickedly funny at times (on its best days, it outshines Seinfeld), Larry David's ode to misanthropy and petty revenge just isn't consistent enough to make it to the final list.
• Rome (HBO, 2005-2007): An addictive historical soap, told through the eyes of two soldiers, Titus Pullo and Lucius Vorenus, (Ray Stevenson and Kevin McKidd, pictured) who are far more interesting than the more famous characters (Mark Antony, Julius Caeser) whose machinations drive most of the plot. 
• Carnivale (HBO, 2003-2005): With a mythology to give Lost a run for its money, this series was visually interesting and often very creepy, and Clancy Brown eventually became a classic, underrated villain as the demonic preacher Brother Justin. 
• Six Feet Under, nip/tuck, and Alias (HBO, 2001-2005; FX, 2003-present; ABC, 2001-2006): Three series that would have been perfect...had they wrapped things up after their first two seasons. After that, one got too bleak, one too over-the-top, one too jumbled.
• Veronica Mars (UPN and the CW, 2004-2007) 2004 was an amazing year for TV. Lost, Battlestar Galactica...and this show, which like the other two, was built around an involving serial narrative and anchored by its title character (Kristen Bell), the best female protagonist on TV since Buffy Summers.
• 30 Rock (NBC, 2006-present): The often-hilarious heir to Arrested Development's throne, Tina Fey's workplace sitcom was too hit-and-miss to make the final list.
• Dexter (Showtime, 2006-present) Michael C. Hall is always great as the title character, and the first season was astonishing. But its the series started to repeat itself in the second and third season. The fourth, however, propels the show into a direction that could take it into interesting new places in the new decade.