Best TV Shows of 2003
The 40 most popular TV shows that premiered in 2003, most watched first, with a vote floor so obscure titles do not crowd out the ones people remember.
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40 titles · updated 3rd October 2026
1.NCIS(2003)
7.6CrimeDramaAction & Adventure
From murder and espionage to terrorism and stolen submarines, a team of special agents investigates any crime that has any connection to Navy and Marine Corps personnel, regardless of rank or position.
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2.Two and a Half Men(2003)
7.4Comedy
A hedonistic jingle writer's free-wheeling life comes to an abrupt halt when his brother and 10-year-old nephew move into his beach-front house.
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3.Nip/Tuck(2003)
7.2Drama
Hotshot plastic surgeons Dr. Sean McNamara and Dr. Christian Troy experience full-blown midlife crises as they confront career, family and romance problems.
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4.One Tree Hill(2003)
7.8Drama
In Tree Hill, North Carolina two half brothers share a last name and nothing else. Brooding, blue-collar Lucas is a talented street-side basketball player, but his skills are appreciated only by his friends at the river court. Popular, affluent Nathan basks in the hero-worship of the town, as the star of his high…
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5.Mayday(2003)
8.2DocumentaryDramaCrime
Major real-life air disasters are depicted in this series. Each episode features a detailed dramatized reconstruction of the incident based on cockpit voice recorders and air traffic control transcripts, as well as eyewitnesses recounts and interviews with aviation experts.
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6.Cold Case(2003)
7.7CrimeDramaMystery
The Philadelphia homicide squad's lone female detective finds her calling when she is assigned cases that have never been solved. Detective Lilly Rush combines her natural instincts with the updated technology available today to bring about justice for all the victims she can.
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7.Las Vegas(2003)
7.0DramaAction & AdventureCrime
Ed Deline is a strict ex-CIA officer who went from being Head of Security to becoming President of Operations of the Montecito, whose job is to run the day-to-day operations of the casino. Following his departure, former Marine Danny McCoy, Ed's former protégé, becomes the Montecito's new President of Operations.
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8.The O.C.(2003)
7.7Drama
Ryan Atwood, a teen from the wrong side of the tracks, moves in with a wealthy family willing to give him a chance. But Ryan's arrival disturbs the status quo of the affluent, privileged community of Newport Beach, California.
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9.Arrested Development(2003)
7.9Comedy
The story of a wealthy family that lost everything, and the one son who had no choice but to keep them all together.
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10.Reno 911!(2003)
7.3Comedy
This partially unscripted comedy brings viewers into the squad car as incompetent officers swing into action, answering 911 calls about everything from speeding violations and prostitution to staking out a drug den. Within each episode, viewers catch a "fly on the wall" glimpse of the cops' often politically…
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11.That's So Raven(2003)
7.2ComedySci-Fi & Fantasy
No ordinary teenager; Raven Baxter can see glimpses of the future! Watch her schemes and misadventures as she enlists the help of friends, including best friends Eddie and Chelsea, to change life's little outcomes. Raven's younger brother, Cory, is obsessed with money and creates get-rich-quick schemes to try to earn…
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12.MythBusters(2003)
7.8Documentary
MythBusters is a science entertainment television program created and produced by Australia's Beyond Television Productions for the Discovery Channel. The show's hosts, special effects experts Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman, use elements of the scientific method to test the validity of rumors, myths, movie scenes,…
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13.Red vs. Blue(2003)
7.5AnimationComedySci-Fi & Fantasy
In the distant future, two groups of soldiers battle for control of the least desirable piece of real estate in the known universe: a box canyon in the middle of nowhere.
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14.Lilo & Stitch: The Series(2003)
7.4AnimationComedyFamily
This animated series chronicles the further adventures of renegade scientist Dr. Jumba Jookiba's beloved Experiment 626, who is now living happily as Lilo's alien buddy Stitch. Jumba’s remaining experiments have landed all over Hawaii in the form of dehydrated pods. Lilo and Stitch’s mission is to catch Stitch’s…
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15.Teen Titans(2003)
8.3AnimationAction & AdventureSci-Fi & Fantasy
Fighting for truth, justice and the last slice of pizza, these five superheroes are living proof you're never too young to save the planet. Protecting Earth and beyond, the Teen Titans use martial arts and gadgetry to battle villains.
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16.Joan of Arcadia(2003)
7.4Sci-Fi & FantasyMysteryDrama
Joan Girardi has begun acting a little strange since her family moved to the city of Arcadia. No one knows that various people keep introducing themselves as God, and then giving the teenager specific directions to do things. Unsure of what God wants, and if she's even sane, Joan tentatively begins to follow God's…
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17.Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles(2003)
7.9Action & AdventureAnimationKids
When four pet turtles were bathed in alien ooze, they began to mutate and became the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Raised in New York City sewers by their foster father and wise sensei, Master Splinter, Leonardo, Michelangelo, Donatello, and Raphael wage war against crime. Led by Master Splinter, the four turtles…
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18.Duck Dodgers(2003)
7.5AnimationComedySci-Fi & Fantasy
Duck Dodgers battles evil in the 24th century.
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19.Hope & Faith(2003)
5.4Comedy
Hope, a down-to-earth, happily married mother of three has her tidy world turned upside down when her celebrity sister moves in. Faith was living the Hollywood life as a soap opera star before her character was killed off.
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20.Missing(2003)
6.9Action & AdventureDramaMystery
Jess Mastriani was a normal person who only wanted to take over her parents' restaurant in Indiana. But that changed when she was hit by lightning. After that she began seeing visions of missing people. Jess decides to use her newfound ability to be a consultant to the FBI, helping locate missing individuals.…
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21.Tru Calling(2003)
7.3Sci-Fi & FantasyDramaMystery
A university graduate working in the city morgue is able to repeat the same day over again to prevent murders or other disasters.
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22.Carnivàle(2003)
7.9Sci-Fi & FantasyMysteryDrama
Carnivàle is an American television series set in the United States during the Great Depression and Dust Bowl. In tracing the lives of two disparate groups of people, its overarching story depicts the battle between good and evil and the struggle between free will and destiny; the storyline mixes Christian theology…
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23.Dead Like Me(2003)
7.6Sci-Fi & FantasyDramaComedy
When her life comes to an abrupt end, George discovers that death is nothing like she thought it would be. Recruited to collect the souls of others as they die, she suddenly finds herself an unwilling participant in a line of work she never knew existed: Grim Reaping!
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24.All of Us(2003)
7.1ComedyFamily
Robert James, an entertainment reporter for a local Los Angeles television station, is handsome, smart and thoroughly modern in his thinking. Recently divorced from the somewhat self-absorbed Neesee, the mother of their endearing 6-year-old son, Robert refuses to buy into the old stereotype that being divorced means…
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25.Peep Show(2003)
8.0Comedy
Two dysfunctional flatmates reveal all their inner thoughts - whether dark, stupid or embarrassing. Or, occasionally, all three...
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26.All Grown Up!(2003)
7.6AnimationComedyFamily
The former "Rugrats" tots now face preteen issues and dilemmas.
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27.Xiaolin Showdown(2003)
8.0Action & AdventureAnimationComedy
Xiaolin Showdown is an American animated television series that aired on Kids WB and was created by Christy Hui. Set in a world where martial arts battles and Eastern magic are commonplace, the series follows four young warriors in training that battle the forces of evil. They do this by protecting Shen Gong Wu from…
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28.Jakers! The Adventures of Piggley Winks(2003)
6.4AnimationComedyKids
The adventures of Piggley, a spunky eight-year-old pig, and his friends Dannan the Duck and Ferny the Bull on Raloo Farm in Ireland.
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29.Little Britain(2003)
7.1Comedy
A zany comedy show with Matt Lucas and David Walliams, featuring characters from all over Little Britain.
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30.Star Wars: Clone Wars(2003)
7.8Action & AdventureAnimationSci-Fi & Fantasy
During the Clone Wars, Jedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi leads an assault on the planet Muunilinst, home of the Intergalactic Banking Clan; and his Padawan, Anakin Skywalker, is appointed by Supreme Chancellor Palpatine to lead the Republic’s space forces. Meanwhile, Separatist leader and Sith Lord Count Dooku takes in…
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31.Evil Con Carne(2003)
6.6AnimationComedySci-Fi & Fantasy
After a failed attempt at world domination, a rich playboy/evil genius is resurrected and resumes his quest for power -- along with a search for his other body parts.
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32.Spider-Man: The New Animated Series(2003)
7.2AnimationAction & AdventureSci-Fi & Fantasy
Bitten by an irradiated spider, teenager Peter Parker gains arachnid-like powers that make him both a hero to those in need and a vigilante wanted by the police.
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33.Jake 2.0(2003)
7.0Sci-Fi & FantasyAction & AdventureDrama
Jake 2.0 is an American science fiction television series originally broadcast on UPN in 2003. The series was canceled on January 14, 2004 due to low ratings, leaving four episodes unaired in the United States. In the United Kingdom, all the episodes aired on Sky1. The series later aired in syndication on HDNet and…
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34.Tremors(2003)
6.2ComedySci-Fi & FantasyAction & Adventure
Inspired by the cult classic Tremors movies, locals attempt to coexist with the monstrous, man-eating Graboids, Shriekers, and Ass-blasters, which are now on a "protected species" list.
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35.The Cramp Twins(2003)
5.8AnimationComedyKids
The story of a pair of non-identical twin brothers, Lucien and Wayne, who live with their hygiene-crazed mother and their western/country-crazed father in a small town called Soap City. Lucien is a delicate, nature-loving boy, while Wayne is a rough antisocial bully, whose only interest in life is junk. Naturally,…
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36.Battlestar Galactica(2003)
8.2Action & AdventureDramaSci-Fi & Fantasy
A re-imagining of the original series in which a "rag-tag fugitive fleet" of the last remnants of mankind flees pursuing robots while simultaneously searching for their true home, Earth.
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37.Penn & Teller: Bull!(2003)
7.6ComedyDocumentary
This daring original series stars postmodern bad boys of magic Penn & Teller as they question many of our culture's most cherished and widely held beliefs. From the truth about palm readings and TV psychics to the reality behind Feng Shui and Ouija boards, the archly comic masters of misdirection host this…
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38.Stripperella(2003)
7.1AnimationComedyAction & Adventure
From Stan Lee, the man who brought us such popular superheroes as Spider-Man and The X-Men, comes this new kind of superhero in the form of the animated series "Stripperella". Pamela Anderson provides the voice of Erotica Jones who is stripper by night and superhero Stripperella by even later at night. A show with…
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39.Chappelle's Show(2003)
8.1Comedy
Dave Chappelle's singular point of view is unleashed through a combination of laidback stand-up and street-smart sketches.
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40.Rosemary & Thyme(2003)
7.4Drama
Brought together by professional and personal heartache, two plucky ladies plant the seeds for a brighter future. Rosemary Boxer, with a doctorate in plant pathology, and Laura Thyme, a former police constable and avid gardener, discover their shared love of green-thumbness and start a gardening business. As they…
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