This week's issue of TV Guide featured that magazine's picks for the best dramas of all time. It's not a simple discussion, because there are and have been so many fantastic drama series on TV over the ages - some of which have gotten recognition and others that have flown largely under the radar. Here, then, is BFTV's list of the 12 best drama series I've seen over the last three decades - and why they've earned that recognition.

The following were the criteria for inclusion:

01) It had to be a series that I'd seen at least one full season of. It's not really fair to call something the "best ever" when it was only on for a handful of episodes (no matter how much I love Lone Star), and I can't accurately judge a show if I've only seen three episodes (sorry, Breaking Bad).

02) The list was composed strictly on personal opinion. This is not a list of the most popular drama series or the ones that are great right now or anything other than the 12 shows that I'm going to look back on in 20 years and say, "I'm really glad I watched that." Don't berate me if I excluded your favorite - because I may not like it as much as you do or I may not have seen it (see Rule 01).

03) It had to be a show that was consistently good. There are even more shows that I've liked half of, or certain seasons of, or certain episodes of. That doesn't make a show the "best ever."

In alphabetical order, the 12 Best Drama Series Ever...