What's a long-running TV show you just can't quit?

No show knows its audience better than Grey’s Anatomy. ABC’s medical drama is about to begin its 19th season, which means it has a deep catalog of characters, relationships, and history to mine. And boy oh boy, does Grey’s wield this weapon to emotionally lure in audiences (including me, obviously). Look no further than season 17, which brought back several characters in Meredith Grey’s dreams while she’s in a coma. You bet I’m going to excitedly watch her reunion with Derek, George, Mark, and Lexie, even if it happens in a COVID-19-induced fever dream. Even the trailer for its upcoming season introduces fresh faces while paying homage to the older ones.

The show began in 2005, and I’ve been sucked into its emotional vortex ever since, which is probably why I can’t seem to quit it. No one can deny the early seasons were thrilling and terrific, with seasons one through eight being the show’s peak. Since then, it has gone through numerous cast changes, romantic shake-ups, and many fascinating medical cases. The doctors of Seattle Grace Mercy West Grey Sloan Memorial have also suffered through gun violence, plane crashes, earthquakes, fires, and other disasters. Through all its pros and cons, I’ve stuck with it, and even Ellen Pompeo’s departure in season 19 might not make me quit. I’ve simply invested too much of my time to not know how it will end—and it should end soon to save my sanity. [Saloni Gajjar]

Only a few television series can boast the longevity of Doctor Who, now approaching its 60th anniversary (the break between new and old Who notwithstanding). The show makes it relatively easy to hop on board with each regeneration. I personally joined the bandwagon with Matt Smith’s 11th Doctor before going back and bingeing Nine and Ten. Peaks and valleys in the show’s quality are only expected after so many years on the air. When it’s good, it’s great, but because each Doctor has decades of history to live up to, the low points can be seriously rough. Yet the series’ built-in ability to reinvent itself keeps viewers like me coming back, waiting for the next exciting twist in the Doctor’s long journey. Here’s hoping Ncuti Gatwa’s upcoming tenure as the Doctor represents yet another renaissance for the sci-fi classic, but at this point, I’m committed to watching regardless. [Mary Kate Carr]

I was so excited when The Handmaid’s Tale first premiered on Hulu. I’d read the novel and was a bit let down by the original film adaptation. But ah, here was a real effort, faithful to Margaret Atwood’s vision while expanding on it in interesting ways. It was visceral, beautiful, and haunting. That’s hard to sustain, though. We root for Elisabeth Moss’ June to escape her commander and Aunt Lydia, but once she does, it’s not the same show anymore. So they have to keep finding ways to put her back into confinement. Then she’d escape again. Rinse. Repeat. Even so, I couldn’t help but tune in for season five. By the devastating end of episode two, they’d lured me back in. You’ll never guess who’s headed back to Gilead this season. And I’ll still be watching when she escapes yet again. [Cindy White]

MasterChef, Kitchen Nightmares, Hotel Hell, 24 Hours To Hell And Back, Next Level Chef. You name any Gordon Ramsay show, I watch it. But what started it all for me was his longest-running show to date, Hell’s Kitchen, which is set to premiere with its 21st season on September 29. This culinary-gauntlet reality show debuted in 2005, but I didn’t jump on board until season three. And it wasn’t just the intense contestant drama or the salivating cooking challenges that hooked me. It was Gordon’s fiery temper and unfiltered mouth. Whether he’s telling one of his bungling contestants to “piss off!” or calling someone a “fucking donkey!” his knack for name-calling never ceases to amuse me.

He serves up not only his signature dishes but also a smorgasbord of laugh-out-loud insults and one-liners that are sometimes laced with pop culture references, too: “This crab is so undercooked I can still hear it singing ‘Under The Sea!’” or “Why did the chicken cross the road? Because you didn’t fucking cook it!” or “This fish is so raw, he’s still finding Nemo” are just some of his greatest hits. The guy’s a comedian as much as he’s a culinary giant, and I just can’t get enough. So, will I be tuning in for the premiere of Hell’s Kitchen: Battle Of The Ages and beyond? You bet your Beef Wellington. [Gil Macias]

I know, ok? I know. Despite its sometimes doorknob-quality wisecracks, casual sexism, and endlessly regrettable characterization of trans people, I can’t let go of Family Guy’s raucous, ridiculous Rhode Island family. The wild, Jackass-style creativity in some of the series’ longer arcs is just a blast, and some of the enduring cutaways—Buzz Killington? The chicken fights? Stewie’s bitter attack on Colin Farrell?—wander through my mind daily. Family Guy is like your elementary school class clown’s mind on steroids: brash, creative, and often desperate to be reeled in. But inside the insanity is a classic half-hour sitcom built for rewatching, and Stewie Griffin is an entity unto himself. [Hattie Lindert]

Like most people, Saturday Night Live became a viewing staple for me during high school, which was more decades ago than I’d care to admit. And certainly, more recent seasons lack the incisive edge, and just the consistent humor, of the days of Chris Farley, or even Will Ferrell, even with standout performers like Kate McKinnon and Bowen Yang more than capably picking up their predecessors’ mantle. But even if I seldom watch it “live” any longer, I cannot help but still make a habit of cozying up on the couch Sunday mornings to check out the sketches—and feel even older when I can’t identify the musical guest—while waiting for some unholy hangover cure to be delivered by Postmates. In an era of ubiquitous sketch comedy, and an endless variety of platforms on which to watch it, SNL definitely does not retain the same cultural cache, or must-see shine, that it once did, but if any time I miss a segment—even one of those throat-clearing 12:58 a.m. closers—my weekend doesn’t feel complete. [Todd Gilchrist]

Renewed, canceled outright, revived on a different network—I’m a devoted Futurama fan, and even I cannot keep track of its many iterations. The beauty of Matt Groening’s wacky futuristic world is that it doesn’t matter; its episodic sitcom format allows diehard and casual viewers alike to check in on Fry, Leela, Bender, and the Planet Express crew whenever. And while it’s a silly animated comedy, Futurama has legitimately helped me through rough patches throughout the years (if you’re recovering from surgery and depressed, I recommend it). A high laugh-per-minute ratio and a refusal to relinquish sentimentality make it a perfect show to return to in good times and bad. [Jack Smart]

Okay, I know that most of The A.V. Club’s readership is, at best, reality show agnostic, but I need you guys to hear me out when I tell you that the first few seasons of Vanderpump Rules, a spinoff of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, are really good. I’ll admit I was once skeptical too, but seasons one through six(ish) are basically the Game Of Thrones of hot, horrible 20-somethings screaming at each other and screwing each others’ significant others.

However, the show hit several roadblocks: the cast aged, making the behavior a lot less amusing; Stassi Schroeder, arguably the protagonist, was caught doing something horribly racist, while initial antagonist Jax Taylor wound up in his own homophobia scandal. The titular Lisa Vanderpump left RHOBH after she accused co-star Dorit Kemsley of improperly returning a dog named Lucy Lucy Apple Juice to a shelter (a whole other thing that was a lot less entertaining than it sounds). Attempts at bringing in new cast members have fallen flat, and at least one of the weddings we watched seasons ago has already, predictably ended in divorce. The show is a shell of what it once was, but am I still watching it? Yeah … sometimes. I’m trying my best. [Drew Gillis]