Fictional detectives are some of the best characters on TV: they save lives, they solve mysteries, and they don't take anyone's crap.
Now that the first season of HBO's "True Detective" is over, and now that we've sadly said goodbye to Rust and Marty, we took it upon ourselves to rank our favorite TV detectives. Sure, they're all cunning and intimidating in their own ways, but we've ranked them by how much badassery they exhibit.
29 - 28. Burton "Gus" Guster and Shawn Spencer - "Psych"
27. Jake Peralta - "Brooklyn Nine-Nine"
26. Adrian Monk - "Monk"
25. Terry Jeffords - "Brooklyn Nine-Nine"
24. Thomas Magnum - "Magnum, P.I."
23. Jane Tennison - "Prime Suspect"
22. John Munch - "Law & Order: SVU"
21. Jim Rockford - "The Rockford Files"
20. Veronica Mars - "Veronica Mars"
19. Patrick Jane - "The Mentalist"
18. Fin Tutuola - "Law & Order: SVU"
17. Kate Beckett - "Castle"
16. Lennie Briscoe - "Law & Order"
15 - 14. Sherlock Holmes & Dr. Watson - "Sherlock"
13. Alex Eames - "Law & Order: Criminal Intent"
12. Frank Pembleton - "Homicide: Life on the Street"
11. Robert Goren - "Law & Order: Criminal Intent"
10. Kima Greggs - "The Wire"
9. Mike Logan - "Law & Order"
8. Columbo - "Columbo"
7. Jessica Fletcher - "Murder, She Wrote"
6. Elliot Stabler - "Law & Order: SVU"
5. John Luther - "Luther"
4. Vic Mackey - "The Shield"
3. Marty Hart - "True Detective"
2. Olivia Benson - "Law & Order: SVU"
1. Rust Cohle - "True Detective"
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