Throughout the history of television, every generation has had a favorite series of shows, some of which echo throughout time and never seem to age.

The previous generation experienced shows such as Seinfeld and Friends, both of which many would classify as timeless classic. In this generation, we experienced How I Met Your Mother and even to this day, I will always binge watch it on Netflix or catch reruns on the TV channels.

But what is the measure of how one knows if a show is a timeless classic? Some fans of shows like NCIS and Game of Thrones may argue that their show is a timeless classic. The measure is purely opinion, but if you look at shows such as Seinfeld, Friends, and How I Met Your Mother, what do they all have in common? Surely fans of How I Met Your Mother and those who have never watched the show can agree, with its nine-season run, that it was not just the story of how Ted Mosby (Josh Radnor) met his wife, Tracy McConnell, the mother (Christin Milioti).

How I Met Your Mother is seen as a timeless classic in our generation because despite the comedy in it that Seinfeld and Friends also have, all of these shows are about life and a group of friends growing up together through the years. They are tales of love, friendship and just everything in life in general, and that is what makes them so great. There is no plot to each episode, just adventures in each character’s life.

Arguable, high-viewership shows and long-running shows such as NCIS can also be timeless classics because they feature each character’s life alongside an episodic crime plot. But when faced with the choice to either binge watch NCIS or How I Met Your Mother, I would rather prefer the light comedy that sums up what life is like because that is unforgettable.

Now as for cult following shows, there are specific standards that make a show fall under this category. Typically a show that has a low but dedicated viewership is considered a cult classic. Alongside that, though, most people believe that cult classics usually are original and different in nature, not part of the mainstream, and that they collide with cultural norms in television. Such cult shows would be Firefly, a western/science-fiction series that only spanned 13 episodes but to this day has a dedicated fan base, as well as Doctor Who with its wackiness, humor, lovable characters, non-linear plot, and it’s approach on time travel. Then you have the American show, Grimm, which is a set of just like every police-procedural drama but has different elements and approaches such as a secret world between creatures Wesen. The show is dark, gritty and odd in nature.

These are the shows that are remembered for being different and standing out from the crowd and have few but loyal and dedicated fans, exploring the stories of life in each generation. These are the shows that grow more popular with age. In a sense, the end is but the beginning.