Best TV Shows Quiz
Heisenberg, Central Perk and the Upside Down: how well do you know TV's greats?
In "Breaking Bad," what is Walter White's street name?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Heisenberg
Walter White borrows the alias from Werner Heisenberg, the German physicist behind the uncertainty principle, to hide his identity as a meth cook.
Bryan Cranston won four Emmys for the role, and the 2013 finale drew 10.3 million viewers, the show's biggest audience ever.
How many seasons did "Friends" run for?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
10
Friends ran for 10 seasons and 236 episodes on NBC, from September 1994 to May 2004, with the six leads eventually earning 1 million dollars per episode.
The finale drew 52.5 million American viewers, the fifth most-watched series finale in US television history.
In "Game of Thrones," which family's motto is "Winter Is Coming"?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Stark
House Stark of Winterfell uses the words Winter Is Coming as a warning to stay vigilant, unlike the boasts most other great houses favor.
The Starks' direwolf sigil matched the six pups the children found in the very first episode, one for each Stark child.
What is the name of the coffee shop in "Friends"?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Central Perk
Central Perk is the Greenwich Village coffee house with the orange couch, its name a pun on Central Park a few miles north.
The set was built on Stage 24 at Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, where a replica still greets tourists on the studio tour.
Which actor plays Tony Soprano in "The Sopranos"?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
James Gandolfini
James Gandolfini played the New Jersey mob boss for all six seasons from 1999 to 2007, winning three Emmys for the role.
His son Michael Gandolfini played the young Tony Soprano in the 2021 prequel film The Many Saints of Newark.
In "The Office" (US), what company do the characters work for?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Dunder Mifflin
Dunder Mifflin is the Scranton, Pennsylvania paper company where Michael Scott manages the regional branch for the first seven seasons.
Wernham Hogg is the paper firm in the original British version of The Office, created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant in 2001.
In which city is "Seinfeld" set?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
New York City
Seinfeld follows Jerry and his friends around Manhattan's Upper West Side, although nearly every episode was filmed on sets in Los Angeles.
The exterior shown as Jerry's apartment building is actually at 757 New Hampshire Avenue in Los Angeles' Koreatown.
In "Stranger Things," what is the parallel dimension called?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
The Upside Down
The Upside Down is a cold, decaying mirror of the real world that Eleven opens a gate to, home to the Demogorgon and later to Vecna.
The boys coin the name after Eleven flips their Dungeons & Dragons board upside down to show where Will is trapped.
Which show features a character named Sheldon Cooper?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
The Big Bang Theory
Jim Parsons played the physicist Sheldon Cooper for 12 seasons, winning four Emmys, before the prequel Young Sheldon told his childhood story.
The 2019 finale drew more than 18 million viewers, the biggest audience for a sitcom finale since 2004.
In "Lost," what is the flight number of the crashed plane?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Oceanic 815
Oceanic Airlines Flight 815 from Sydney to Los Angeles breaks apart over the island in the 2004 pilot, setting up six seasons of mystery.
The number 815 echoes the show's famous sequence 4, 8, 15, 16, 23, 42, which Hurley used to win the lottery.
Which TV show is set in the fictional town of Hawkins, Indiana?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Stranger Things
Hawkins is the fictional Indiana town where Will Byers vanishes in November 1983, near the secret government lab that opened the gate.
Most of the town scenes were filmed around Jackson, Georgia, whose courthouse square doubles as downtown Hawkins.
What is the name of the dragon that Daenerys rides most often in "Game of Thrones"?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Drogon
Drogon, the largest and most aggressive of the three, is named for Daenerys' late husband Khal Drogo and is the dragon she rides into battle.
Viserion is killed by the Night King and raised as an ice dragon, while Rhaegal is shot down by Euron's fleet in the final season.
Which sitcom won the Emmy for Outstanding Comedy Series five years in a row, from 1994 to 1998?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Frasier
Frasier took the top comedy Emmy for each of its first five seasons, a streak matched only by Modern Family, which won from 2010 to 2014.
Kelsey Grammer played Frasier Crane for 20 years across Cheers and Frasier, then revived the character in a 2023 Paramount+ sequel.
In "The Wire," which city serves as the setting?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
Baltimore
Creator David Simon spent 12 years as a Baltimore Sun crime reporter and built each season around a different institution of the city.
Idris Elba and Dominic West, both British, played Stringer Bell and Jimmy McNulty with convincing American accents.
What animated show has been on the air since 1989, making it the longest-running American animated series?
Got a hunch? Pick the answer that feels right.
The Simpsons
The Simpsons premiered on Fox on December 17, 1989 and has passed 800 episodes, making it the longest-running American animated series and sitcom.
The family first appeared in 1987 as short sketches on The Tracey Ullman Show before getting their own series.
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All Entertainment quizzes →About the Best TV Shows Quiz
Television's best shows leave fingerprints on the culture. Breaking Bad turned a mild chemistry teacher into a drug lord over five seasons, Friends ran for 236 episodes and still pulls enormous streaming numbers, and The Sopranos is routinely voted the greatest drama ever made. Add Game of Thrones, which drew a record 19 million viewers for its finale, and you have a golden age worth remembering in detail.
These 15 questions span sitcoms, prestige dramas, fantasy epics and one animated institution, covering character names, settings, plot details and award records. Most are approachable for anyone who has watched the big shows of the last 30 years, with a few that reward careful attention. It suits casual viewers, dedicated binge-watchers and anyone planning a TV-themed quiz night.
You will find 15 multiple choice questions here, each with four options. Difficulty: Easy. Most people finish in about 6 minutes, and every answer comes with a short explanation and one extra fact worth keeping.
How to play
Read the question and pick one of the four answers. The correct answer is revealed straight away with a short explanation, then press Next question to keep going. At the end you get your score out of 15 and a full review of your round. Play again any time and the questions arrive in a fresh order. There is no timer and no account.
Good to know before you play
Which shows appear in the quiz?
Breaking Bad, Friends, Game of Thrones, The Sopranos, The Office, Seinfeld, Stranger Things, The Big Bang Theory, Lost, Frasier, The Wire and The Simpsons all feature.
What is considered the best TV show of all time?
Critics' polls regularly place The Sopranos, The Wire and Breaking Bad at the top. The Sopranos led the Writers Guild of America's 2013 list of the best-written series ever.
How long does the quiz take?
Most people finish the 15 questions in around five minutes. Each answer reveals an explanation straight away, so there is no waiting for a final score to learn something.
Answer key: all 15 questions with explanations
- In "Breaking Bad," what is Walter White's street name?
Heisenberg Walter White borrows the alias from Werner Heisenberg, the German physicist behind the uncertainty principle, to hide his identity as a meth cook. Bryan Cranston won four Emmys for the role, and the 2013 finale drew 10.3 million viewers, the show's biggest audience ever. - How many seasons did "Friends" run for?
10 Friends ran for 10 seasons and 236 episodes on NBC, from September 1994 to May 2004, with the six leads eventually earning 1 million dollars per episode. The finale drew 52.5 million American viewers, the fifth most-watched series finale in US television history. - In "Game of Thrones," which family's motto is "Winter Is Coming"?
Stark House Stark of Winterfell uses the words Winter Is Coming as a warning to stay vigilant, unlike the boasts most other great houses favor. The Starks' direwolf sigil matched the six pups the children found in the very first episode, one for each Stark child. - What is the name of the coffee shop in "Friends"?
Central Perk Central Perk is the Greenwich Village coffee house with the orange couch, its name a pun on Central Park a few miles north. The set was built on Stage 24 at Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, where a replica still greets tourists on the studio tour. - Which actor plays Tony Soprano in "The Sopranos"?
James Gandolfini James Gandolfini played the New Jersey mob boss for all six seasons from 1999 to 2007, winning three Emmys for the role. His son Michael Gandolfini played the young Tony Soprano in the 2021 prequel film The Many Saints of Newark. - In "The Office" (US), what company do the characters work for?
Dunder Mifflin Dunder Mifflin is the Scranton, Pennsylvania paper company where Michael Scott manages the regional branch for the first seven seasons. Wernham Hogg is the paper firm in the original British version of The Office, created by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant in 2001. - In which city is "Seinfeld" set?
New York City Seinfeld follows Jerry and his friends around Manhattan's Upper West Side, although nearly every episode was filmed on sets in Los Angeles. The exterior shown as Jerry's apartment building is actually at 757 New Hampshire Avenue in Los Angeles' Koreatown. - In "Stranger Things," what is the parallel dimension called?
The Upside Down The Upside Down is a cold, decaying mirror of the real world that Eleven opens a gate to, home to the Demogorgon and later to Vecna. The boys coin the name after Eleven flips their Dungeons & Dragons board upside down to show where Will is trapped. - Which show features a character named Sheldon Cooper?
The Big Bang Theory Jim Parsons played the physicist Sheldon Cooper for 12 seasons, winning four Emmys, before the prequel Young Sheldon told his childhood story. The 2019 finale drew more than 18 million viewers, the biggest audience for a sitcom finale since 2004. - In "Lost," what is the flight number of the crashed plane?
Oceanic 815 Oceanic Airlines Flight 815 from Sydney to Los Angeles breaks apart over the island in the 2004 pilot, setting up six seasons of mystery. The number 815 echoes the show's famous sequence 4, 8, 15, 16, 23, 42, which Hurley used to win the lottery. - Which TV show is set in the fictional town of Hawkins, Indiana?
Stranger Things Hawkins is the fictional Indiana town where Will Byers vanishes in November 1983, near the secret government lab that opened the gate. Most of the town scenes were filmed around Jackson, Georgia, whose courthouse square doubles as downtown Hawkins. - What is the name of the dragon that Daenerys rides most often in "Game of Thrones"?
Drogon Drogon, the largest and most aggressive of the three, is named for Daenerys' late husband Khal Drogo and is the dragon she rides into battle. Viserion is killed by the Night King and raised as an ice dragon, while Rhaegal is shot down by Euron's fleet in the final season. - Which sitcom won the Emmy for Outstanding Comedy Series five years in a row, from 1994 to 1998?
Frasier Frasier took the top comedy Emmy for each of its first five seasons, a streak matched only by Modern Family, which won from 2010 to 2014. Kelsey Grammer played Frasier Crane for 20 years across Cheers and Frasier, then revived the character in a 2023 Paramount+ sequel. - In "The Wire," which city serves as the setting?
Baltimore Creator David Simon spent 12 years as a Baltimore Sun crime reporter and built each season around a different institution of the city. Idris Elba and Dominic West, both British, played Stringer Bell and Jimmy McNulty with convincing American accents. - What animated show has been on the air since 1989, making it the longest-running American animated series?
The Simpsons The Simpsons premiered on Fox on December 17, 1989 and has passed 800 episodes, making it the longest-running American animated series and sitcom. The family first appeared in 1987 as short sketches on The Tracey Ullman Show before getting their own series.
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