Think of this as the "So You Think You Can Dance" of year-end TV stories.
That show doesn't pretend that its winner is America's best dancer, it proclaims him/her as "America's favorite dancer."
And I'm not pretending this top 20 list is America's "best" TV shows, it's the "favorite" TV shows. My favorites. Because it's my list.
These are the shows that I look forward to watching; shows I record; shows I watch with my family and friends; shows we talk about afterward. Shows that make me laugh and, sometimes, make me cry.
(Don't tell anybody.)
Shows that I, personally, find entertaining. Shows that I would watch even if I didn't watch TV for a living.
And this year, the show I had the most fun watching was "Glee."
And here's my annual disclaimer: I hate year-end TV lists. Because there are too many good shows to narrow it down; I think it's kind of stupid to compare wildly different shows; the end of the year is the middle of the TV season; I agonize over what's No. 8 and what's No. 9.
And I'm always afraid I'll forget something. Which I always do.
But here we go:
1. "Glee": Oh. My. Gosh. I love this show. I'm obsessed with this show. Oh, there are lots of things a TV critic could nitpick about it — "Glee" certainly has its flaws. But it's fun to watch. It's hilarious. It's heartfelt. It's incredibly entertaining. And entertaining is what television should be all about.
2. "The Big Bang Theory": Last year's No. 1 just barely slips to No. 2 on my list this year, but the show hasn't slipped at all. It's hilarious. And it just keeps getting better.
3. "Battlestar Galactica": One of the best sci-fi series of all time is also one of the best dramas. Its five-year, 83-hour run ended with a finale that ranks among the best of any show ever — exciting, unexpected and satisfying.
4. "Modern Family": This show proves that TV is all about execution. There have been a lot of comedies about families and a lot that use the faux-documentary style. But "Modern Family" is consistently, astonishingly funny. And, at the same time, the characters and situations ring true.
5. "Big Love": All the controversy aside, this show is compelling drama filled with great characters. And it keeps you on the edge of your seat waiting for the next episode.
6. "Desperate Housewives": This show has been so good for so long it tends to be overlooked. But both Season 5 and Season 6 have been great.
7-A. "Late Show With David Letterman": Dave tends to be at his best when he's fighting through adversity. And, boy, has he had adversity this year. And yet it hasn't kept him from doing what he's done for decades — turning out the best late-night talk show on TV. And a close No. 2 in that category is ...
7-B. "The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson": His 1,000th show — a puppet extravaganza — was one of the funniest hours on TV in the past year. But there's so much more to Craig than that. This show has raced past Conan and Jay and Jimmy and Jimmy.
8. "True Blood": The second season wasn't as good as the first, but this HBO series is scary, sexy, outlandish and hilarious — sometimes all at the same time.
9-A. "Scrubs": This show had one of the best series finales in TV history back in May — and then ABC renewed it. There are a few bumps as it transitions to a mostly new cast, but it remains one of the better comedies on TV.
9-B. "Cougar Town": Meanwhile, the creator/executive producer of "Scrubs," Bill Lawrence, moved on to create and executive produce this sitcom. It didn't exactly seem like my kind of show — it's about a 40ish divorcee (Courteney Cox) and her gal pals — but not only are their great male characters but the show is laugh-out-loud funny.
10. "Better Off Ted": This is one of those shows DVRs were invented for — you can pause and rewind to hear the jokes you missed because you're laughing so hard. This sly parody of corporate culture is hilarious.
11. "Lost": I still don't get what's going on, but as this show heads into its final season I can't wait to see what happens next.
12. "CSI": This has been one of the best crime shows on TV for almost a decade. And in the past year, it underwent some major cast changes and came through with flying colors.
13-A. "The Colbert Report": This deserves a place on this list for Stephen Colbert's week in Iraq alone. But, again, it's the show's consistency that makes it a winner. And you can't mention Colbert without mentioning ...
13-B. "The Daily Show": Jon Stewart proved he doesn't need a Republican in the White House to be funny. And biting. And weirdly informative while he's making jokes.
14. "The Good Wife": Yes, it's another legal drama. But it's not just another legal drama. Julianna Margulies is great as a woman betrayed, and the scripts artfully blend case-of-the-week with the ongoing storyline.
15. "Kathy Griffin — My Life On the D-list": You either love her or, well, you don't. I love her. And this show makes me laugh. A lot.
16. "Rescue Me": In its fifth season, this show was better than ever. The worst TV news of the past few months is that the upcoming season will be the last.
17. "Friday Night Lights": How about a round of applause to DirecTV for keeping this show alive? This is one of the best family dramas of all time.
18. "Southland": This is the best cop show to come along in years — and NBC canceled it before the second season began. (TNT will air the seven episodes from the first season and six unaired episodes.)
19. "Dexter": This show has always been good. More people are noticing now. And you could argue that the just-completed fourth season was the best yet.
20. "Eli Stone": At least we got a satisfying ending to this warm, winning, wonderful show that lasted only 26 episodes.
Honorable mentions: "Amazing Race," "Being Human," "Breaking Bad," "Chuck," "Curb Your Enthusiasm," "Damages," "Flight of the Conchords," "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia," "Kings," "Men of a Certain Age," "The Mentalist," "The Middle," "Monk," "NCIS," "Nurse Jackie," "The Office," "Pushing Daisies," "The Simpsons," "Sons of Anarchy," "Supernatural," "Survivor," "30 Rock," "Torchwood: Children of Earth," "Two and a Half Men," "Ugly Betty," "The Vampire Diaries," "Whale Wars."
BY THE WAY, the next time somebody e-mails me and says, "You hate everything!" I'll just refer them to this column.
(And, yes, that happens from time to time.)
There are 50 shows listed here. That's 23 on the top 20 list (sort of cheated there, huh?) and the 27 on the honorable mention list.
These are all shows I love, to one degree or another.
And I've left some out.
Some intentionally, some because, no doubt, I've forgotten to include them.
I hate making lists.
But I love my job.
e-mail: pierce@desnews.com