20 best shows like Whatever Works (2009)

Elizabeth Thatcher, a young school teacher from a wealthy Eastern family, migrates from the big city to teach school in a small coal mining town in the west.

Desperate Housewives is an American television comedy-drama-mystery series created by Marc Cherry and produced by ABC Studios and Cherry Productions. It aired Sundays at 9 P.M. Eastern/8 P.M. Central, on ABC from October 3, 2004, until May 13, 2012. Executive producer Cherry served as showrunner. Other executive producers since the fourth season included Bob Daily, George W. Perkins, John Pardee, Joey Murphy, David Grossman, and Larry Shaw. The main setting of the show was Wisteria Lane, a street in the fictional American town of 'Fairview' in the fictional 'Eagle State'. The show followed the lives of a group of women as seen through the eyes of a dead neighbor who committed suicide in the very first episode. The storyline covers thirteen years of the women's lives over eight seasons, set between the years 2004–2008, and later 2013–2017. They worked through domestic struggles and family life, while facing the secrets, crimes and mysteries hidden behind the doors of their — at the surface — beautiful and seemingly perfect suburban neighborhood. The show featured an ensemble cast, headed by Teri Hatcher as Susan Mayer, Felicity Huffman as Lynette Scavo, Marcia Cross as Bree Van de Kamp, and Eva Longoria as Gabrielle Solis. Brenda Strong narrated the show as the deceased Mary Alice Young, appearing sporadically in flashbacks or dream sequences.

The Pritchett-Dunphy-Tucker clan is a wonderfully large and blended family. They give us an honest and often hilarious look into the sometimes warm, sometimes twisted, embrace of the modern family.

Having gone their separate ways since the original series ended 19 years ago, the cast of Beverly Hills, 90210 reunites when one of them suggests it’s time to get a reboot up and running. But getting it going might make for an even more delicious soap than the reboot itself.

A whirlwind holiday romance builds as cynical Dash and optimistic Lily trade dares, dreams, and desires in the notebook they pass back and forth at locations all across New York City.

With better luck, better choices, better posture...Josh Corman could’ve been a rock star. Now he teaches fifth grade, and though he loves his students, he still struggles to find happiness and meaning in a world that sometimes feels short on both.

Liza Miller, a suddenly single stay-at-home mother, tries to get back into the working world, only to find it’s nearly impossible to start at the bottom at 40-year old. When a chance encounter convinces her she looks younger than she is, Liza tries to pass herself off as 26 and lands a job as an assistant at Empirical Press. Now she just has to make sure no one finds out the secret only she and her best friend Maggie share.

Married is a half hour comedy about being miserably in love. Russ and Lina Bowman can barely remember what life was like before kids, debt, and suburbia rained on their romance -- but every once in a while, in between the arguments about their declining sex life and who's driving carpool, they are reminded what drew them together in the first place -- they're best friends. The show also features Russ and Lina's friend AJ, who is recently divorced and pretending he's over his wife, and their other friend Jess, who is married to a much older man who can't keep up with her.

Baby Daddy follows Ben, a young man in his early 20s living the life of a bachelor in New York City with his buddy, Tucker, and his brother, Danny. Their lives are turned upside down when they come home one day to find a baby girl left on the doorstep by an ex-girlfriend of Ben's. After much deliberation, Ben decides to raise the baby with the help of his friends and his protective and sometimes over-bearing mother, Bonnie, and his close female friend, Riley.

Happy Endings is an American television sitcom that ran on ABC from April 13, 2011 to May 3, 2013. The show follows the dysfunctional adventures of six best friends living in Chicago.

Two worlds collide when Josh, a wealthy young tech entrepreneur, meets Gabi, a feisty young food blogger, looking to be his personal chef. Gabi is desperate for the job and must prove herself, mostly to Josh's aide, who prefers a famous chef for the job. When Josh enlists Gabi to prepare a romantic meal for him and his girlfriend, the dinner goes awry and Gabi finds herself in a very awkward position. With the help of her best friend Sofia and Josh's housekeeper, Gabi turns a difficult situation into an opportunity for employment and maybe even love. Gabi gets some much needed help and advice from Josh’s assistant and his housekeeper.

A woman's daring sexual past collides with her married-with-kids present when the bad-boy ex she can't stop fantasizing about crashes back into her life.

Living his best life in post-apocalyptic LA, a slacker strives to find the girl of his dreams while outwitting mindless ghouls and cliquish gangs.

Happily Divorced is an American sitcom created by Fran Drescher and Peter Marc Jacobson. Inspired by their experiences, the series, which became TV Land's third original scripted series following Hot in Cleveland and Retired at 35, ran from June 15, 2011, to February 13, 2013, and revolves around a Los Angeles florist who finds out her husband of 18 years is gay. Happily Divorced was canceled on August 23, 2013.

The sleep Pacific Northwest town of Eureka is hiding a mysterious secret. The government has been relocating the world's geniuses and their families to this rustic town for years where innovation and chaos have lived hand in hand. U.S. Marshal Jack Carter stumbles upon this odd town after wrecking his car and becoming stranded there. When the denizens of the town unleash on unknown scientific creation, Carter jumps in to try to restore order and consequently learns of one of the country's best kept secrets.

Daniel Garcia is working in the family bakery and doing everything that his loving Cuban parents and siblings expect him to do. But on a wild Miami night he meets Noa Hamilton, an international superstar and fashion mogul, and his life moves into the spotlight. Will this unlikely couple upend their lives to be together and pull their families into a culture clash?

Everything changes when Alex Rider learns that his uncle Ian has actually been killed in the line of duty as a British spy. The normal teen is approached by the head of The Department and pressured to help investigate his uncle's death. Alex reluctantly assumes a new identity and goes undercover in a remote boarding school called Point Blanc.

The New Normal was an American sitcom that aired on NBC from September 10, 2012, to April 2, 2013. The series was created and principally written by Ryan Murphy and Ali Adler. The storyline follows a wealthy homosexual couple, Bryan and David, who are living in Los Angeles. Deciding to have a child, they choose a surrogate mother, Goldie Clemmons, who moves in to their home with her nine-year-old daughter Shania.

Explore the secret life of a woman we all grew up watching: the sitcom wife. The series looks to break television convention and ask what the world looks like through her eyes. Alternating between single-camera realism and multi-camera zaniness, the formats will inform one another as we imagine what happens when the sitcom wife escapes her confines, and takes the lead in her own life.

Smart but wholesome Betty embraces her unique appearance and independent attitude in the cutthroat world of New York fashion. With the help of her proud yet far-from-glamorous family from Queens, Betty will continue to have big dreams and deal with any obstacle in her own unique style.

An irreverent look at the conflict, chaos and humor that defines teenage life through the eyes of 15-year-old Jenna Hamilton whose life begins to change when a simple accident becomes an epic misunderstanding and is blown way out of proportion. Narration in the first-person voice of Jenna's blog posts captures the humor within the struggles and experiences everyone can relate to from their formative years.

When ambitious Chicago marketing exec Emily unexpectedly lands her dream job in Paris, she embraces a new life as she juggles work, friends and romance.

Dr. Temperance Brennan and her colleagues at the Jeffersonian's Medico-Legal Lab assist Special Agent Seeley Booth with murder investigations when the remains are so badly decomposed, burned or destroyed that the standard identification methods are useless.

Aspiring singer Tori Vega navigates life while attending a performing arts high school called Hollywood Arts.

Meet Bess King, a uniquely talented performer struggling to fulfill her dreams while handling rejection, dating drama, and family issues. This is a story about finding your authentic voice—and the courage to use it.

A sheltered London professor attempts to uncover the cause of his wife’s mysterious death in Hong Kong, traveling there after discovering she died in a car accident on the mountain roads of Tai Po.

Will Freeman lives a charmed existence as the ultimate man-child. After writing a hit song, he was granted a life of free time, free love and freedom from financial woes. He's single, unemployed and loving it. So imagine his surprise when Fiona, a needy single mom and her oddly charming 11-year-old son, Marcus, move in next door and disrupt his perfect world. When Marcus begins dropping by his home unannounced, Will's not so sure about being a kid's new best friend, until, of course, Will discovers that women find single dads irresistible. That changes everything and a deal is struck: Marcus will pretend to be Will's son and, in return, Marcus is allowed to chill at Will's house. Before he realizes it, Will starts to enjoy the visits and even finds himself looking out for the kid. In fact, this newfound friendship may very well teach him a thing or two that he never imagined possible - about himself and caring for others.

A love story about a middle-aged compression sock businessman from Detroit who unexpectedly falls for his cardiac nurse, a Nigerian immigrant, while recovering from a heart attack and sets his sights on winning her over.

Inspired by the Internet’s “404” error code, Dimension 404 aims to evoke that 3 AM feeling of wandering onto the weird side of the web, stumbling upon stories that cannot be explained in the world that we know.

A wealthy man and a poor stunt girl fall in love. But things get complicated when their souls become inexplicably swapped and dark secrets surface.

When the Weavers move to a gated community in New Jersey, they discover that the entire neighborhood is comprised of aliens from the planet Zabvron. But as the Weavers and the aliens face the struggles of everyday life together, they discover that some things -- the ups and downs of marriage, the desire to be a good parent and raise a happy family -- are universal. Intergalactic, even.

Ruby is living a humdrum existence when one day she gets a text inviting her to fulfill a youthful pact, promising true love and self-reinvention, by stepping out of her life to take a journey with her oldest flame.

Halifax, West Yorkshire, England, 1832. Anne Lister attempts to revitalize her inherited home, Shibden Hall. Most notably for the time period, a part of her plan is to help the fate of her own family - by taking a wife.

New Yorker Zoe Hart has it all figured out - after graduating top of her class from medical school, she'll follow in her father's footsteps and become a cardio-thoracic surgeon. But when her dreams fall apart, Zoe decides to work at a small practice in Bluebell, Alabama.

After moving to The Coterie in Downtown Los Angeles, Callie and Mariana Foster realize that living on their own is not all that it’s cracked up to be.

In his first HBO stand-up comedy special, Ramy Youssef shares candid anecdotes about his life as an Egyptian-American comedian, writer, actor and director.

Tired of the constant comments on her relationship status, perpetually single Johanne starts a 24-day hunt for a boyfriend to bring home for Christmas.

In a misguided attempt to build up perpetually single Elsa's confidence, her friends hire a male escort. A comedy series set in Paris.

Aan irreverent and outrageous take on true family love‐and dysfunction. Newly sober single mom Christy struggles to raise two children in a world full of temptations and pitfalls. Testing her sobriety is her formerly estranged mother, now back in Christy's life and eager to share passive-aggressive insights into her daughter's many mistakes.

Yang Eun-bi is a college student preparing for her civil service exam with the dream of being a high school teacher. She accidentally encounters Cha Chi-soo, the arrogant son of the biggest food conglomerate in Korea. Both of them end up working at a ramen shop run by the lazy Choi Kang-hyuk.

A married consultant and a young IT tech kick off a flirty game that challenges societal norms — and leads them to re-evaluate their entire lives.

High school mathlete Lindsay Weir rebels and begins hanging out with a crowd of burnouts (the "freaks"), while her brother Sam Weir navigates a different part of the social universe with his nerdy friends (the "geeks").

The charming and still-single Joey, who has struck out on his own and moved to Hollywood, hoping to truly make it as an actor. After reuniting with his high-strung sister Gina, Joey moves in with Michael, his 20-year-old genius nephew, who unbelievably is literally a rocket scientist. However, what Joey lacks in book smarts he makes up for with people smarts – making him the best new friend his nephew could ask for.

Emily Owens, M.D. is an American medical drama television series created by Jennie Snyder Urman. It was picked up by The CW on May 11, 2012, It premiered on The CW on October 16, 2012, and aired on Tuesdays at 9:00 pm Eastern/8:00 pm Central. On November 28, 2012, the series was canceled by The CW. The 13th and final episode aired on February 5, 2013.

Charlie is a non-traditional therapist specializing in anger management. He has a successful private practice and he performs pro bono counseling for an inmate group at a state prison. Prior to his career as a therapist, he was a major league baseball player whose career was put on the shelf for good by his own struggle with anger issues.

Two high school best friends who make the age-old promise to get married if they are still single by 30 years old.