The Most Brilliant TV Detectives

Ranker ^ | no date given | no author given

[Leaning Right]

Just for fun, here's a list of the top 100 TV detectives as determined by the Ranker community.

[Leaning Right]

Something nonpolitical for a Sunday. Here are their top ten. As usual, your mileage may vary.

1. Sherlock Holmes
2. Columbo
3. Adrian Monk
4. Olivia Benson
5. Fox Mulder & Dana Scully
6. Hercule Poirot
7. Leroy Jethro Gibbs
8. The Scooby Gang
9. Temperance "Bones" Brennan
10. Gil Grissom

I have a bit of a problem with the list, as Andy Sipowicz only came in at #49.
And Homer Simpson didn't make the list at all.

[rktman]

Worthless and useless if Joe Friday isn’t on it. LOL!

[GSWarrior]

Jim Rockford, anyone?

Any fans of the British TV show The Detectorists here?

[Leaning Right]

Joe Friday came in at #38. He should have been ranked higher, but few people under 50 know who he is.

[sevlex]

Perry Mason wasn’t a detective.

Neither was James Bond, mush less on TV.

[Dr. Sivana]

Nero Wolfe came in at #150?! Behind Michael Knight in Knight Rider?!

Heck, Wolfe is Top 5, And Archie Goodwin is Top 20. Also, Perry Mason is more lawyer than detective, but Paul Drake deserves a Top 100 rating.

And while Sherlock Holmes is an ideal, he never really shone on TV.

[catman67]

Didn’t see:

Thomas Magnum
Jesse Stone
Dan Matthews (Highway Patrol)
Mike Stone/Steve Keller (Streets of SF)
Heck Ramsey (Original cowboy detective)

[bgill]

Brilliantly sexy!

[EdnaMode]

Jessica Fletcher should be higher.

[yarddog]

I have never heard of most of these.

They left out some of the best: Boston Blackie, Paul Drake, and The Hardy Boys, not to mention that Chinese guy whose name escapes me right now.

[OKSooner]

There were really only two TV detectives, those being Sergeant Friday and Officer Gannon.

All the rest are imitators with their own schtick, like the guy in the 70's with his rumpled coat playing dumb until he nails 'em.

Whatever keeps 'em tuning in, one would suppose.

[bigbob]

Top two and done.

[yarddog]

Charlie Chan, I just remembered.

[catman67]

Elliot Ness

[MichaelCorleone]

Absolutely.

And those are just the facts, rktman!

[Political Junkie Too]

The contributors show the limits of their knowledge when they failed to include Adam Flint from Naked City.

-PJ

[Excellence]

William Murdoch.

[SkyDancer]

The writers were the more brilliant. Those people just acted out what was written.

[GreenLanternCorps]

This is Jim Rockford. At the tone leave your name and message. I’ll get back to you.

“Jimmy, it’s Angel. Don’t pay no attention to my other message. You’re out of it. You’re clean, no trouble at all. Just ignore the first message.”

[Zirondelle]

Nick and Nora!