45 of the Best TV Shows Streaming on Netflix for 2012 (list)

Thanks to Netflix, you can now watch tons of shows you wish you caught up with in the beginning or simply watch your favorite shows all over again, right from the beginning! Here’s one huge list of some of the best TVs that are now streaming on Netflix. Some are old favorite, no longer running, but others are fairly new so you can easily catch up on new episodes in 2013!

Comedy

9.How I Met Your Mother

Catch up on all 7 seasons of CBS’ hilarious comedy about a group of tight friends as they navigate life, as it’s retold to the main character’s kids in the future.

8. The Office

Checkout 8 seasons of the popular TV show that mocks what’s it like in corporate America where the workday consists of ego clashes, inappropriate behavior, and tedium (it also based on the hit BBC series).

7. 30 Rock

Here’s another NBC comedy that’s currently streaming 6 seasons of the comedy about Liz Lemon, head writer of the sketch comedy show “TGS with Tracy Jordan,” and her daily adventures dealing  with an arrogant new boss and a crazy new star, all while trying to run a successful TV show without losing her mind.

6. Louie

FX’s comedy Louie is currently streaming its 2 seasons on Netflix, which is about a comedian in NYC who is dealing with life as he raises his two daughters.

5. It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia

Watch all 7 seasons of FX’s funny comedy that stars Danny DeVito in the show about 4 young friends with big egos and slightly arrogant attitudes are the proprietors of an Irish bar in Philadelphia.

4. Chappelle’s Show

Man, Comedy Central’s sketch comedy television series created by comedians Dave Chappelle and Neal Brennan was seriously nothing but laughs and you can catch up on 3 seasons of it on Netflix!

3. Frasier

The 90s comedy show that ran for 1993-2004 was nothing but laughs as it. It was about how Dr. Frasier Crane moves back to his hometown of Seattle where he lives with his father and works as a radio psychiatrist. Netflix is currently streaming its 11 seasons.

2. Scrubs

Most doctor shoes are serious, but this one is anything but! Laugh your ass off with 9 seasons about the unreal world of Sacred Heart Hospital, intern John “J.D” Dorian as he hilariously learns the ways of medicine, friendship and life.

1. Weeds

The Showtime dark comedy is streaming its 7 seasons on Netflix, which shows what happens to a suburban mother turned marijuana dealer.

Animated

3. South Park

Watch all 15 season of the raunchy and funny animated South Park that follows the misadventures of four irreverent grade-schoolers in the quiet, dysfunctional town of South Park, Colorado.

2. Futurama

Made by the same guy who brought us The Simpsons, watch all 6 seasons of the animated comedy about Fry, a pizza guy is accidentally frozen in 1999 and thawed out New Year’s Eve 2999.

1. Family Guy

You’ll never grow old of watching the highly popular Fox animated show, Family Guy, that’s about a wacky Rhode Island town, a dysfunctional family strive to cope with everyday life as they are thrown from one crazy scenario to another. Netflix is currently streaming 9 seasons of it.

Action

2. The A-Team

The iconic 80s TV show is now streaming its 5 season on Netflix. The show follows 4 Vietnam vets, framed for a crime they didn’t commit, help the innocent while on the run from the military.

1. MacGyver

The adventures of a secret agent armed with almost infinite scientific resourcefulness will make you wish you had his talents. Watch all 7 seasons of this old school show.

Drama

14. Sons of Anarchy

FX’s drama is pretty popular right now so see what everybody is talking about by catching up on its first 4 seasons. The show’s about a man in his early 30s struggles to find a balance in his life between being a new dad and his involvement in a motorcycle club.

13. Breaking Bad

An AMC favorite, the show follows a teacher who is informed he has terminal cancer, and as an under achieving chemistry genius turned high school teacher, he uses his expertise to secretly provide for his family making premium-grade crystal meth.

12. Luther

The British drama is streaming its two first seasons and follows the cases of a troubled yet brilliant English police detective, DCI John Luther as he solves mysteries and battles his own inner demons.

11. Twin Peaks

The show only had 2 seasons, but they were some pretty crazy episodes in this short-lived series about an idiosyncratic FBI Agent investigates the murder of a young woman in the even more idiosyncratic town of Twin Peaks.

10. Revenge

Check out the first season of ABC’s hit drama that tells the story of a young woman who is welcomed into a community filled with people who don’t know she’s only there to exact revenge on those who had destroyed her family.

9. Rescue Me

The FX series has 7 seasons streaming on Netflix, and the show is about Denis Leary’s character as deals with the fears of his job as a firefighter and seeing his ex-wife dating other men.

8. Lillyhammer

Stream the first season of the show about a New York mobster goes into hiding in rural Lillehammer in Norway after testifying against his former associates.

7. Alias

Jennifer Garner was a huge star, she starred in Alias, about Sydney Bristow who is an international spy recruited out of college and trained for espionage and self-defense. Check out all 5 seasons!

6. Breakout Kings

A&E’s drama series about ex cons teaming up with cops to catch escaped fugitives is now streaming the first season on Netflix.

5. Mad Men

Watch the first 4 seasons of one of AMC’s most popular shows about one of New York’s most prestigious ad agencies at the beginning of the 1960s, focusing on one of the firm’s most mysterious but extremely talented ad executives, Donald Draper.

4. 24

If you’re looking for something intense, catch up on all 8 seasons of the Fox show that had everybody talking. It follows Jack Bauer, Director of Field Ops for the Counter-Terrorist Unit of Los Angeles, who races against the clock to subvert terrorist plots and save his nation from ultimate disaster.

3. Hell on Wheels

For those who like Westerns, this AMC drama is a must-watch with its first season streaming right now. The show is centers on former Confederate soldier Cullen Bohannon, portrayed by Anson Mount, whose quest for vengeance, while who is struggling to escape his demons from the recently fought Civil War.

2. Nip/Tuck

Watch 6 seasons of FX’s past popular show about Sean McNamara and Christian Troy, who are two plastic surgeons running a partnership in Miami, Florida with different issues to life. It’s gritty, sexual and filled with drama!

1. Friday Night Lights

The 5 seasons of this sports drama showcases what it’s like in a small Texas town that loves high school football, with dramatic tales of the football players, their friends, family, and coaching staff.

Sci-Fi

8. The Incredible Hulk

The vintage classic has 4 seasons that stars Lou Ferrigno as the Hulk, who is fugitive scientist has the curse of becoming a powerful green monster under extreme emotional stress.

7. Alphas

The first season of this drama is now streaming, which is about Dr. Lee Rosen and his team of “Alphas”, (human beings with enhanced abilities) who investigate the death of a witness in a court case. They soon uncover more than they had bargained for and airs on the SyFy Channel.

6. X-Files

Fox’s former hottest show is about two FBI agents, Fox Mulder the believer and Dana Scully the skeptic, that investigate the strange and unexplained while hidden forces work to impede their efforts. Catch 9 seasons that Netflix is now streaming.

5. American Horror Story

Watch the first season of FX’s seasonal anthology show that follows the Harmon family, who moved from Boston to LA for a fresh start but end up living in a sinister haunted house instead.

4. Star Trek Next Generation

Star Trek fans, young and old, will definitely want to relive the journey of the new generation of Starfleet officers in a new Enterprise set off on their own mission to go where no one has gone before, with 7 seasons to catch up on.

3. Walking Dead

Check out the first 2 seasons of AMC’s show that’s based on the comic book series of the same name and about Police officer Rick Grimes as he leads a group of survivors in a world overrun by zombies.

2. FireFly

Only a season and a half is available on Netflix. The show takes place 500 years in the future, a renegade crew aboard a small spacecraft tries to survive as they travel the unknown parts of the galaxy and evade warring factions as well as authority agents out to get them.

1. Lost

Go back and watch ABC’s popular series with 6 seasons now streaming on Netflix. For those who live under a rock and don’t know anything about “Lost,” the show’s about survivors of a plane crash are forced to live with each other on a remote island, a dangerous new world that poses unique threats of its own.

Reality

2. The Hills

Watch all six seasons of MTVs drama filled show about rich kids playing nice in Beverly Hills. Actually, it’s a spin-off to their previous reality show Laguna Hills.  We know it’s complete crap, but there is nothing like sitting down to a train wreck.

1. Surviving the Cut

Watch the entire first season of the show that shows what it takes to make it as a solider in the various parts of the military on Discovery Channels brutal reality show.

Educational

6. Nat Geographic’s Science of Dogs

The documentary takes a closer look at the history of dogs, and how humans have taken an active role in shaping their appearance and behavior. It’s actually a part of  National Geographic’s “Explorer” series, the program explains how mankind manipulates science in the interest of creating the perfect pet.

5. Nova: Dogs Decoded

The documentary showcases how Nova examines the special relationship that exists between human beings and dogs, which is pretty interesting.

4. MythBusters

Catch up on 9 seasons of the science entertainment TV program in which two Hollywood special effects experts attempt to debunk urban legends by directly testing them.

3. Top Gear

For all you motor heads, check out 16 seasons of the  British television show about motor vehicles talk about everything car-related; from new cars to how they’re fueled, this show has it all.

2. Survivorman

For those who enjoy the great outdoors, this Discovery Channel show will help you survive the brutal wilderness thanks to Les Stroud. He’s is alone in the wild with no food, shelter, or fresh water — only his wits and stamina to sustain him for an entire 3 seasons that are now streaming on Netflix.

1. CNBC Originals

The first season streaming on Netflix is about CNBC correspondent Darren Rovell and how he goes inside the big business of direct response infomercials that have made products like the Chia Pet, Snuggie, ShamWow and Ginsu knife household names.