Mensa's Top 10 Smartest TV Shows of All Time

Well, I don't know about all time but here's the list one Mensa member made:

1. Frasier
2. The West Wing
3. Boston Legal
4. Jeopardy!
5. Cosmos
6. House
7. CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
8. All in the Family
9. Mad About You
10. M*A*S*H

My thoughts?

Personally, I think it would be far more entertaining to read some of the comments various Internet posters have made about this list--including the inevitable "why didn't he include this show" complaints -- than to watch some of these TV shows.

It's not that I hate "smart" TV shows. I have to admit that I'm a sucker for any TV show that has witty dialogue and especially clever plots and that at least four shows on that list (Frasier, House, All in the Family and M*A*S*H) are among my all-time favorites.

And yet...

If it were up to me, I'd write a different list.

I guess that's why I find myself amused every time a critc goes on and on about how horrid it is why more people don't like "smart" movies or "smart" TV shows. After all, most "smart" people I meet in real life generally have radically different ideas of what constitutes a "smart" movie or a "smart" TV show. And while there's a lot to be said for TV shows and movies that encourage one to be smart and clever, it seems silly to pretend that there aren't a lot of things most truly smart people would rather do besides watch television and movies all the time.

Personally, I find that there are many times when I prefer to read a book. But then that's me... always having to be the contrarian.

Just like most smart people I know...