Best American soap series

Zorro: La espada y la rosa (2007)

Spanish telenovela based on Johnston McCulley's characters. Don Diego Dela Vega, adopts the secret identity of Zorro. Diego born in the 1790s to a white father, Don Alejandro Dela Vega, and his wife, Native American warrior named Toypurnia. Diego learned his acrobatics and fencing skills in Spain, under a great swordmaster, than he returned to his family's California hacienda. He lives as both a nobleman and a vigilante, fighting imperialist oppression. He is backed by the brotherhood of Zorro, a secret society called the Knights of the Broken Thorn. Zorro falls in love with a beautiful young widow, Esmeralda Sánchez de Moncada. She arrives in California with her sister Mariángel Sánchez de Moncada and her father, Fernando, the newly appointed governor—and villainous dictator—of Los Angeles. The story arc focuses on mysteries concerning Esmeralda's long-lost mother and the man whose atrocities changed Diego's life forever. Their resolution threatens to shake the Spanish Empire.

Dawson's Creek (1998)

Dawson's Creek is an American teen drama that portrays the fictional lives of a close-knit group of teenagers through high school and college.

Dynasty (2017)

Follows two of America’s wealthiest families, the Carringtons and the Colbys, as they feud for control over their fortune and their children focusing on Fallon Carrington, the daughter of billionaire Blake Carrington, and her soon-to-be stepmother, Cristal, a Hispanic woman marrying into this WASP family and America’s most powerful class.

Beverly Hills, 90210 (1990)

Follow the lives of a group of teenagers living in the upscale, star-studded community of Beverly Hills, California and attending the fictitious West Beverly Hills High School and, subsequently, the fictitious California University after graduation.

Tyler Perry's The Haves and the Have Nots (2013)

Follow the complicated dynamic between the rich and powerful Cryer family and the hired help who work in their opulent Savannah, Georgia, mansion.

Melrose Place (1992)

Follow the lives of a group of young adults living in a brownstone apartment complex on Melrose Place, in Los Angeles, California.

Famous in Love (2017)

Ordinary college student Paige gets her big break after auditioning for the starring role in a Hollywood blockbuster. She must now navigate her new star-studded life and the highs and lows that come with being the new It Girl in town as well as balancing her college workload.

General Hospital (1963)

Families, friends, enemies and lovers experience life-changing events in the large upstate New York city of Port Charles, which has a busy hospital, upscale hotel, cozy diner and dangerous waterfront frequented by the criminal underworld.

Tyler Perry's If Loving You Is Wrong (2014)

This sexy, sleek drama takes viewers into the lives of a group of husbands, wives and friends that live and love in the same middle class neighborhood. On the surface they are true-to-life, relatable people – raising children, working jobs, finding and maintaining romance - but just below the veneer of happiness, their lives are entangled by heartbreak, deceit and lies that threaten to destroy everything.

Soap (1977)

Sisters Mary Campbell and Jessica Tate lead soap-opera lives with their crazy families.

Dynasty (1981)

The saga of a wealthy Denver family in the oil business: Blake Carrington, the patriarch; Krystle, his former secretary and wife; his children: Adam, lost in childhood after a kidnapping; Fallon, pampered and spoiled; Steven, openly gay; and Amanda, hidden from him by his ex-wife, the conniving Alexis. Most of the show features the conflict between 2 large corporations, Blake's Denver Carrington and Alexis' ColbyCo.

Days of our Lives (1965)

"Like sands through the hourglass... so are the Days of our Lives." These words, spoken by late cast member Macdonald Carey, open every episode of this daytime drama, chronicaling the trials and tribulations of the citizens of the fictional city of Salem.

The Young and the Restless (1973)

The rivalries, romances, hopes and fears of the residents of the fictional Midwestern metropolis, Genoa City. The lives and loves of a wide variety of characters mingle through the generations, dominated by the Newman, Abbott, Baldwin and Winters families.

Dark Shadows (1966)

Dark Shadows is an American gothic soap opera that originally aired weekdays on the ABC television network, from June 27, 1966, to April 2, 1971. The show was created by Dan Curtis. The story bible, which was written by Art Wallace, does not mention any supernatural elements. It was unprecedented in daytime television when ghosts were introduced about six months after it began.The series became hugely popular when vampire Barnabas Collins appeared a year into its run. Dark Shadows also featured werewolves, zombies, man-made monsters, witches, warlocks, time travel, and a parallel universe. A small company of actors each played many roles; indeed, as actors came and went, some characters were played by more than one actor. Major writers besides Art Wallace included Malcolm Marmorstein, Sam Hall, Gordon Russell, and Violet Welles.

Point Pleasant (2005)

A series of supernatural events begins in a small coastal New Jersey town after the arrival of a mysterious teenage girl, who apparently has the ability to influence the people and events around her.

Chicago Hope (1994)

Chicago Hope is an American medical drama television series, created by David E. Kelley. It ran on CBS from September 18, 1994, to May 4, 2000. The series is set in a fictional private charity hospital in Chicago, Illinois. The show is set to return in the fall of 2013 on TVGN in reruns.

The Bold and the Beautiful (1987)

Continuing drama combining romance and intrigue set against the glittering backdrop of Beverly Hills and the American fashion industry.

The Lord of the Skies (2013)

Set in the 1990s, these are the life and times of Amado Carrillo Fuentes, a man who became the head of the Juárez cartel. Nicknamed “El Señor de los Cielos” (Lord of the Skies) because of the large fleet of airplanes he used to transport drugs, he was also known for washing more than $200 million through Colombia to finance his huge fleet. He is described as the most powerful drug trafficker of his time.

Falcon Crest (1981)

Falcon Crest is an American primetime television soap opera which aired on the CBS network for nine seasons, from December 4, 1981 to May 17, 1990. A total of 227 episodes were produced.The series revolves around the feuding factions of the wealthy Gioberti/Channing family in the Californian wine industry. Jane Wyman starred as Angela Channing, the tyrannical matriarch of the Falcon Crest Winery, alongside Robert Foxworth as Chase Gioberti, Angela's nephew who returns to Falcon Crest following the death of his father. The series was set in the fictitious Tuscany Valley northeast of San Francisco.

Queens (2021)

Estranged and out-of-touch, four women in their 40s reunite for a chance to recapture their fame and regain the swagger they had as the Nasty Bitches—their ‘90s group that made them legends in the hip-hop world.

Knots Landing (1979)

The domestic adventures, misdeeds and everyday interactions of five families living on a cul-de-sac in a small California community.

Café con aroma de mujer (2021)

Vuelve a mí (2023)

The kidnapping of her son unleashes a storm in Nuria García's life who, in the most difficult moment, meets Santiago Zepeda; together, they find redemption in the face of adversity.

Rich Man, Poor Man (1976)

Based on the best-selling 1969 novel by Irwin Shaw, the series follows the divergent career courses of the impoverished German American Jordache brothers.

Hollywood Heights (2012)

Loren (Brittany Underwood) a smart, shy and independent high school senior who has ambitions of being a songwriter, secretly sends her song lyrics to her celebrity crush, rock superstar Eddie Duran (Cody Longo). Loren's wildest dreams come true when she not only wins a songwriting competition sponsored by Eddie, but strikes up a friendship with her idol. Eddie sees beyond Loren's potential as a songwriter and gives her a first break as a singer, and when the truth about his less-than-faithful girlfriend Chloe (Melissa Ordway) is revealed, Eddie and Loren's friendship blossoms.

Sunset Beach (1997)

Sunset Beach was a short-running American television soap opera, first broadcast in the United States on NBC on January 6, 1997, and last airing on December 31, 1999. The show followed the loves and lives of the people living in a fictional coastal city named Sunset Beach, on the coast of California. The show was co-produced by NBC and Spelling Television. It aired in over 70 countries around the world. Sunset Beach won two Daytime Emmy Awards and was nominated another 11 times. The show also received 22 nominations for various other awards.

Dark Shadows (1991)

Dark Shadows is a primetime television series which aired on NBC from January to March 1991. A re-imagining of the 1966–1971 ABC daytime gothic soap opera Dark Shadows, the revival was developed by Dan Curtis, creator of the original series.

Land of Honor (2014)

Set on horse ranches around Houston, Texas, this Spanish-language telenovela covers the three Gallardo brothers' search for vengeance against the wealthy del Junco family, following the mysterious death of their rodeo-riding sister. The brothers soon become aware of the three beautiful del Junco daughters, and entanglements ensue...

Passions (1999)

Passions follows the lives and loves, and various romantic and paranormal adventures of the residents of Harmony. Storylines center around the interactions among members of its multi-racial core families as well as the supernatural including town witch Tabitha Lenox.

Grachi (2011)

The story surrounds the life and adventures of Grachi, a teenage girl, who must learn to use her recently discovered magical powers while facing the new school, the boys, the other witches, and growing up like any teenager.