Although the works of creator Mike Judge were known for their acerbic wit and clever takedowns of modern life, only a few of his shows were seen to be the best. Judge worked primarily in the animated sector, and his productions in the 1990s came to define the counter-culture elements of Generation X. Although his comedy was often low-brow and juvenile, there was usually a lot of clever commentary about the nature of society hidden behind the schoolyard humor. While Judge also made a name for himself in films with movies like Office Space in 1999, television was never far from his creative radar.

First making a splash in 1992 with the release of his short film "Frog Baseball" on the TV series, Liquid Television, it wasn't long before the characters of Beavis and Butt-Head were spun off into their very own program. Judge's exploits continued throughout the 1990s, and he created a great and raunchy animated series, King of the Hill. Judge showed all the facets of his humor through his television programs, and they often ranged from over-the-top to down-to-earth without ever losing their comedic edge. Judge's longevity has been his strongest asset, and he was a major player in TV and movies in every decade since the 1990s.

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5 The Goode Family (2009)

The cast of The Goode Family pose in front of a park

Judge's reputation as a hit-maker took a blow with the release of the animated series The Good Family in 2009. The ABC program followed the lives of the titular clan as they attempted to live their ultra-liberal lives in a confrontational world. The series struggled as its humor was too muddled for audiences to see that both sides of the political spectrum were being lampooned. Critics were polarized by the series, and it was canceled after only one season on the air. Some consider it a hidden gem TV show from the 2000s, but the consensus was that it didn't get enough time to build upon its ideas.

4 Mike Judge Presents: Tales From The Tour Bus (2017 - 2018)

An animated Mike Judge holds up a record from Tales from the Tour Bus

Tales from the Tour Bus wasn't a series designed to run for a decade like Judge's other works, and its quality was concentrated into two short seasons. The animated show used the medium to bring to life infamous tales of debauchery and intrigue from the world of famous touring musicians. It employed a mix of animation styles to separate its talking-head segments from its re-enactments, and it found its humor in real-life instead of contrived plots. Each season was broken up into a different musical genre, and the episodes centered around a single legendary figure from music history (like Waylon Jennings and James Brown).

The underrated adult animated TV show aired on Cinemax, and it never gained the audience it deserved while playing on the exclusive channel. Still, it was widely praised by critics and even earned high marks on aggregate websites like IMDb (8.6 out of 10). It wasn't the usual fare from Mike Judge, but Tales from the Tour Bus came from a place of great love, and it had a lot for music fans to sink their teeth into. The show was also humorous in its own way, and Mike Judge's participation ensured that it would give the audience a chuckle or two.

3 Beavis And Butt-Head (1993 - 1997; 2011; 2022)

Beavis And Butthead eat on a couch

Few shows had their finger on the pulse of Generation X quite like Mike Judge's signature creation, Beavis and Butt-Head, and the two characters became firmly lodged in popular culture. The series followed the two flunkies as they went about their daily lives and provided their hilarious commentary on music videos. MTV had a bona fide hit on their hands with Beavis and Butt-Head and the two couch potatoes became synonymous with the station's shifting identity in the 1990s. Besides the brilliantly low-brow shorts that the characters starred in, the integration of the music videos tied it to the MTV generation and was a one-stop-shop for teenage viewers.

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Never a critical hit, the series had its supporters and detractors, and the bulk of the controversy came from the juvenile nature of the comedy and its supposed endorsement of a flunky attitude. However, its dim-witted heroes were actually Judge's clever way of poking fun at modern society, and Beavis and Butt-Head's best episodes took many jabs at the youth and the older generations with similar frequency. It was popular enough to inspire a feature film in 1996's Beavis and Butt-Head Do America, a spinoff called Daria in 1997, and even a second feature film called Beavis and Butt-Head Do The Universe in 2022.

2 Silicon Valley (2014 - 2019)

The cast of Silicon Valley pose outside

Partially inspired by Mike Judge's own experience working in the tech sector in the 1980s, Silicon Valley was his first foray into live-action TV. The HBO series followed the trials and tribulations of a tech startup company in California's Silicon Valley, and all the zany characters who worked there. No series had leveled its aim at the booming section of the economy, and Mike Judge's signature brand of humor was perfect for many of the larger-than-life characters that actually inhabited Silicon Valley. Shows like Silicon Valley began to spring up in the original series' wake, but the HBO original allowed Judge to truly enter the present with his biting criticisms.

Following the failure of The Goode Family, questions began to arise about whether Judge could stay modern, and Silicon Valley was essentially his rebirth as a creator. The series was met with almost universal critical acclaim across its six-season run, and it was nominated for an impressive 41 Emmys in many major categories. Although it only netted two total for its trouble, Silicon Valley scooped up a wealth of other major nominations and wins while it was on the air. Impressively, Judge was able to find a synthesis between his typical low-brow jokes while also remaining current and witty regarding the easily-lampooned world of tech startups.

1 King Of The Hill (1997 - 2009)

Bill, Hank, Dale, and Boomhaur stand in a line in King of the Hill

Mike Judge created two of the longest-running animated TV shows of all time, and his second magnum opus arrived in the form of King of the Hill. The sitcom followed the Hill family as they lived their average lives in the fictional Texas town of Arlen. Unlike Beavis and Butt-Head, which opted for over-the-top and cartoonish humor, King of the Hill was quite realistic in its execution and managed to be even funnier because of its relatable nature. The experiences of the Hill family mirrored the experiences of millions of viewers, and the show could be poignant and touching while also being sidesplitting.

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A critical darling from the start, King of the Hill's 13 seasons on the air established it among the likes of The Simpsons and Family Guy as a quintessential animated sitcom. Over its run, the series was nominated for an Emmy seven different times, and it won two. Though animated sitcoms typically didn't fare well critically, the best episodes of King of the Hill helped earn it a spot on Time Magazine's 100 greatest TV shows of all time list. Overall, it was celebrated for its realistic approach and for how it synthesized Mike Judge's pet themes into a digestible program.

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