I’d like to add to the list a fine legal drama called Damages, starring Glenn Close, if you haven’t caught it. A good, mostly tight, story arc with some good actors, most notably Close, Ted Danson, and Timothy Oliphant. Two seasons have been aired. It will return for a third season.
Some of my other favorites:
Monk, which is in its final season.
In Plain Sight, about a couple of U.S. marshals who handle people in the Federal Witness Protection program.
There was also a series aired called The Beast, starring Patrick Swayze as an unconventional FBI agent who is under investigation for misconduct. Unfortunately, it only ran one season. It will not return due to Swayze’s illness from pancreatic cancer.
No chance in hell. But humor is a very personal thing, so it doesn’t come as a surprise that someone would prefer comedy tailored to their own culture.
Dexter is one of the most addicting shows I’ve seen. Of course, for quality and fantastic writing , nothing beats The Sopranos.. (It ain’t about singing.)
No Clue Boy! It’s great to see you! I’ll alert the Zeldar…
We also watch The Mad, Weeds, Breaking Bad, Nurse Jackie
And back to the BBC, I’ll watch anything with Judi Dench, Vanessa Redgrave, or Robert Hardy in it.
And The Wire, and The Shield, and Six Feet Under, and The Sopranos…
But I agree that we’ve entered a new era for television, in which the quality is much more polarized than before. Not that long ago everything on TV was basically mediocre (and yes, I understand I’m painting with an incredibly broad brush here). It was rare to see anything stand out, shows were safe and calm and boring. But not much was true terrible either.
Now, we have the rise in truly well-written, episodic dramas. Producers and writers are beginning to understand that people can, and want to, maintain their attention for not just an hour, but years at a stretch, if the material is good enough. We have access to the Internet for research and to fill in gaps if necessary, and it is necessary in some cases. There’s no way that someone could start watching, say, Lost today and have any idea what’s going on. Think of how many characters a viewer of The Wire had to keep track of over the seasons. Viewers do so for the same reason that people struggle through War and Piece; because, if the material is great, the effort is worth it.
On the other hand, we also have the breathtakingly bad glut of reality shows, which I suppose fund the good stuff. So, bravo, Bravo. Congratulations, Wipeout! Please stay around for a few more years. We need another Battlestar Galactica.