What a year it was for TV - from record-breaking ratings to groundbreaking programming to raunchy MTV specials, 2013 had it all. We said goodbye to some amazing favorites and welcomed new ones. Cable TV is more diverse, creative, and edgy than ever before - and we can't wait to see what 2014 as in store for us! Check out our top 7 cable TV moments and don't forget to let us know what you think in the comments.
#7. BCS Championship Game - Cable's Largest Audience
ESPN
The Alabama Crimson Tide took home the gold back in January at the BCS Championship game against Notre Dame – and for the Fighting Irish, it was not pretty. Notre Dame came in as the favorite and would have made for a great story, as they had not reached a national title championship since 1989. But instead of a close game, Alabama gave Notre Dame a good old-fashioned country butt whipping. Alabama, defending champions, took home the Championship trophy on January 7, 2013 in Miami Gardens, Florida, winning the game 42-14. Surely it wasn’t the most exciting, edge-of-your-seat football game, but it goes down in history as one of the most embarrassing losses in BCS title history – and more importantly, as cable’s largest audience and highest rating for a single broadcast in two years.
#6. The Dynasty
A&E Network
Duck Dynasty made quite the splash this year, setting new records one week only to break them the next. The fourth season premiere drew 11.8 million viewers and became the most-watched non-fiction series telecast in cable TV history. The Robertson family, whose claim to fame is their family-operated duck hunting business, has truly become a cultural phenomenon. Viewers flocked to their Christmas special episode, 37% more than last year’s holiday special. Even crazier, their official Christmas album “Duck The Halls: A Robertson Family Christmas” sold almost as many copies as Britney Spears’ most recent album! We have a feeling that this memorable family is here to stay.
#5. Stephen Colbert Got Lucky
Comedy Central
We couldn’t count down the best cable TV moments this year without mentioning Stephen Colbert’s dance-along video to Daft Punk’s ‘Get Lucky.’ The electro-pop duo backed out of a performance on The Colbert Report at the last minute, leaving show runners scrambling. But Colbert pulled a gem out of his sleeve with a music video set to ”the song of the summer” with hilarious surprise appearances by Bryan Cranston, Jeff Bridges, Jimmy Fallon, Matt Damon and others. The Colbert Report caught a lucky break with Daft Punk’s bail, giving them the opportunity to put together this surely unforgettable video, rounding out our list at #5. Watch the full music video here.
#4. Lance Armstrong Coming Clean to Oprah
OWN
There were a lot of great sports moments this year, but we think the most memorable, the most shocking, and the most worthy of this list has to be Lance Armstrong’s interview with Oprah Winfrey on OWN. Millions watched live and others streamed online as we finally got the truth straight from Armstrong himself. After years of heated denials, the notoriously smug and confident cycling champion, was now disgraced and emotionless as he admitted to using performance enhancing drugs in order to win all seven of his record Tour de France championships. This was devastating to professional cycling, the Livestrong Foundation, and the sporting community worldwide – and unfortunately for Lance Armstrong, this is one moment that will not be removed from the record books.
#3. The Blood Red Wedding of Game of Thrones
HBO
Fans of the books may have known what was coming, but don’t believe anyone who says they weren’t on the edge of their couch as soon as the heavy doors closed on the fated “Red Wedding” this season on Game of Thrones. Just as Catelyn Stark began to grasp what was about to go down, the arrows flew, swords slashed, and a celebration hall full of Thrones’ key players were wiped out in one heart-pounding scene. It was a twist that changed the course of the show, and proved—once again, as if we needed the reminder—that no throat is safe in Westeros.
#2. Miley Cyrus Twerked It at the VMAs
MTV Network
You may not know how to “twerk,” but chances are you heard about (or—horror!—witnessed) Miley Cyrus’ MTV VMA performance this year. Some called it art; others called it indecent. We call it memorable, which is why Miley’s raunchy foam-fingered dance with Robin Thicke makes our list at #2. She twerked her way to the top of the charts this year, and was recently chosen as MTV’s artist of the year. The duet performance was the highest viewed video on MTV’s website, and the most buzzed about since the Britney Spears-Madonna kiss.
#1. Farewell Tour of Breaking Bad
AMC Network
No cable TV moment this year was more talked about—or not talked about as we hounded friends to get caught up, already—than the bittersweet departure of our good friends Walter White and Jesse Pinkman. We waited anxiously for almost a year for Season 5 Part 2 to start, knowing that Vince Gilligan had promised an unforgettable farewell. What he delivered did not disappoint. Walt had broken (or killed) almost everyone around him, but addicts of the show kept coming back for more and rooted for him until his fitting end on the floor of the Neo-Nazis’ meth lab. The final string of Breaking Bad episodes masterfully tied up all loose ends and concluded one of the greatest stories ever told on television.