Remember: children have short memories, especially for television, so there may be more new shows than shows that were a hit five or ten years ago.
On the other hand, our DVR and Netflix have come in handy in my house and a number of shows missed on first run were found when they were older, such as My Name is Earl.
Yes, they like Ten. But this is the most popular Doctor in our house. image copyright official BBC site.
Best Television:
-My Name is Earl (Corrina’s older kids) They just started watching this on the DVR. I’ve never seen them laugh so much.
-The Daily Show (Corrina’s older kids) I doubt Jon Stewart think he’s putting together a show for kids but his intelligence and humor is definitely loved in my house.
-Phineas and Ferb (Matt, his wife, and his kids and Kevin’s sons, ages 6 and 9)
-Bakugan (Ken’s kids)
-Fringe (John’s daughter, age 12) An X-Files for the modern day but this one has a mad scientist.
-Star Wars - The Clone Wars (Tony’s son, age 5) This seems to be far more interesting to kids that the prequel movies.
-MythBusters (Dave G’s Daughter age 9, Kevin’s sons, ages 6 and 9) Answering the question of “does this really work,” much to the delight of kids (and adults.)
-Invader Zim (Dave G’s Daughter age 9)
-Total Drama Island/Action (Dave G’s Daughter age 9) Survivor as an animated cartoon that allows it to get even more outrageous and funny.
-Yo Gabba Gabba!: (Z’s kids): Musical geekery for the whole family!
-Ni Hao, Kai-lan (Z’s daughter, age 1.75)
-Reaper (Kathy’s kids) A young man whose parents sold his soul to the devil must become Hell’s bounty hunter.
-Smallville (Kathy’s kids) Superman growing up. No capes, at least until this February, when the Justice Society shows up.
-Time Warp Trio (Kevin’s sons, ages 6 and 9) Yes, it is educational. But it’s also fun, even for parents. The first volume is called Passport to Adventure and that says it all.
-Big Bang Theory (Jenny’s daughter, age 
Yes, geek kids like it too.
-Dinosaur Train (Jenny’s son, age 5) A new Jim Henson productions show on PBS for preschoolers.
-Sarah Connor Chronicles (Corrina’s son, age 14) Yes, there is cool Terminator action. But at heart, the show was about how to raise a son, protect him from Terminators, and keep him emotionally sane at the same time. Even if you’re a Terminator trying to protect your AI son. The eldest son still mourns the premature death of this show.
-Doctor Who (Corrina’s older kids, 16 and 14) The son allows that he might have put Torchwood on the list but he thought the plot setup in Children of Earth was “stupid” so he left it off.) In any case, BBC America is now a channel we have memorized in our house.
