15 Best Adults-Only Comedy Shows, From ‘Veep’ to ‘Arrested Development’

Self-destructive New York author Hank Moody (David Duchovny) moves to Los Angeles while battling a case of severe writer’s block, looking to get back with his ex, Karen (Natascha McElhone), and reconnect with his daughter, Becca (Madeleine Martin). Moody’s relatability and hilarious one-liners make for an unforgettable show.

Famous for it’s raw nature and non-traditional romances, You’re The Worst explores hefty issues through humor. When a narcissistic writer, Jimmy (Chris Geere), and cynical PR executive, Gretchen (Aya Cash), fall in love while struggling to deal with depression, destructive habits, and messy relationships, things go completely off the rails. Still, these unhappy characters and their toxic friend group make for an entertaining (if sometimes uncomfortable) watch.

This political comedy begins when Selina Meyer (Julia-Louis Dreyfus) becomes the vice president of the United States, but the job is nothing like she anticipated. Now VP, Meyer and her dysfunctional team have to work to deal with public crises, impossible tasks, and learn the rules of political games.

As best friends Issa (Issa Rae) and Molly (Yvonne Orji) approach their 30s, they are trying to better themselves, their relationships, and their careers. While Molly thrives professionally, Issa feels stuck in her career, and while Issa is in a long-term relationship, Molly is struggling to have a healthy relationship. Their vulnerability and unwavering support shows everyone what a true friendship looks like.

This mockumentary sitcom ran for over 20 years, even expanding into a franchise. In it, audiences get to know Ricky (Robb Wells), Julian (John Paul Tremblay), and Bubbles (Mike Smith), while they are living in the “Sunnyvale Trailer Park” and consistently evading jail time while committing drunken crimes and avoiding their former trailer park supervisors.

Loosely based on creator Benito Skinner’s own life, overcompensating follows Benny’s (Benito Skinner) freshman year of college as a closeted former football player in the early 2010’s. While he is struggling to accept his sexuality and find his place in college, he quickly finds a friend in Carmen. Carmen (Wally Baram) and Benny, guided by Benny’s sister Grace (Mary Beth Barone) and her boyfriend Peter (Adam DiMarco), navigate frat parties, fake IDs, and betrayal.

This unscripted mockumentary comedy pokes fun at the reality crime TV show Cops, following incompetent police officers as they respond to various outlandish situations and local crimes from public indecency to unusual animal encounters, resulting in unsuccessful crime fighting and physical comedy gags galore.

When legendary Las Vegas comedian Deborah Vance (Jean Smart) is encouraged to appeal to a “younger audience,” an unlikely mentorship forms between Vance and outcast 25-year-old comedy writer, Ava (Hannah Einbinder). Ava, banished from the industry due to a controversial tweet, is left with no option but to work for Vance.

On their own for the first time, freshman roommates Kimberly (Pauline Chalamet), Whitney (Alyah Chanelle Scott), Leighton (Reneé Rapp), and Bela (Amrit Kaur) enter college unprepared for what is to come. Dealing with complicated relationships, newfound independence, and academic pressure, this unlikely group of girls will be glad they have each other. The raunchy fun series is created by Mindy Kaling.

As Fleabag’s internal audience, she speaks directly to us each episode, thus breaking the fourth wall. Watch as this dry-witted woman navigates family troubles, grief, and running a dying business. Phoebe Waller-Bridge, creator and star, gives an unforgettable performance as Fleabag in this clever dark comedy.

This series centers on a close-knit and borderline codependent group of twenty-somethings living in their friend’s childhood home in Queens as they experience absurd situations, career struggles, and new relationships. They always have each other’s back, no matter how extravagant or insane their latest lie is, and it’s jolly good fun to watch the mayhem that follows.

While Seinfeld might be appropriate to leave on in the family room, Curb Your Enthusiasm is not. In this Emmy Award-winning show, Larry David plays a fictional version of himself who is constantly in uncomfortable social situations that he only makes worse with blunt, often cringe-inducing honesty.

This show is almost as controversial as its characters. In it, “The Gang” — a group of friends with no moral compass, consisting of Dennis (Glenn Howerton), Frank (Danny Devito), Dee (Kaitlin Olson), Charlie (Charlie Day), and Mac (Rob McElhenney) — are the worst people but make for an entertaining watch. They are always finding new ways to earn money, conspiring against each other, creating sketchy schemes, all while operating the unsuccessful “Paddy’s Pub.”

This satirical comedy is widely recognized for its clever quips and running gags, and if it weren’t for the unsuccessful Netflix revival, Arrested Development would be everyone’s favorite comedy. When a wealthy family, full of spoiled and dysfunctional members, struggles after their father (Jeffrey Tambor) is arrested, it falls on his son, Michael Bluth (Jason Bateman), to keep the company and family from falling apart. Pure hysteria and chaos ensue.

Lena Dunham solidified herself as the voice of a generation with this comedy, which follows four women navigating New York City in their 20s. Girls makes post-grad life a little less scary with a characters everyone can relate to: Her own Hannah is trying to become a writer but still an unpaid intern; Marnie (Allison Williams) is stuck in a long-term relationship that she has grown bored of; Jessa (Jemima Kirke), now jobless, returns to the city after traveling the world to live with her cousin, Shoshanna (Zosia Mamet), who is a student at NYU desperate to have a Sex and the City-inspired life.