Oh I am very well aware that I’m in a minority on dream on. But I found it hilarious and well acted.
I came in to say The Shield, but two posters beat me to it.
But what the hell… The Shield. In no way does it fit your “traditional police drama” contraindication. You liked The Wire, The Sopranos, and Deadwood, so I don’t think I’m going out on a limb here.
For a bit lighter fare, you might enjoy Psych.
You are practically crying out for Trailer Park Boys. Adult language, grotesque nudity (from shirtless Randy), deranged trashy situations, and massive amounts of gunfire. Plus, the greatest line ever delivered in a sitcom:
Randy: Dope and cops don’t mix, do they Mr. Lahey?
Mr. Lahey: Like shit and strawberry shortcake, Randy. C’mon, we got work to do.
Wow I’ve neverheard of that one. Definitely one to hunt down.
I’ll have to third the Psych recommendation. I don’t think there’s been a boring episode yet. The premise is completely ludicrous and they revel in it, it’s just consistently funny and always entertaining. I love the characters of Sean and Gus so much.
I have a dozen videotapes of Dream On, but they’re so old I’m afraid to play them. I may have to trade them in for a DVD. I think that show was brilliant.
Hie thee to a Netflix subscription.
I see you like your food programs and British comedies. Try a little Posh Nosh perhaps? Most of the episodes are on Youtube. Clips are on the BBC site too.
The Shield. Can’t be repeated enough.
Unfortunately/fortunately, I’m already onto Psych. I bought the whole series on Itunes. I didn’t mention it in my OP because it doesn’t quite reach my top tier of favorites, but I agree it’s a good show. I’m also already signed on to Caprica, although I haven’t yet watched the last few episodes. V has been in my Hulu queue for some time, but I haven’t yet found the time to catch up (I think the first few episodes are already expired!).
I appreciate all your suggestions. I don’t know whether or how is the best way to respond. Please don’t be offended if I don’t respond specifically to particular suggestions.
I see a lot of suggestions for The Shield. The near unanimity makes me curious, but I’m still hesitant to get into a cop show. I find the thought of it exhausting for some reason. I saw the first episode of The Good Wife, and I have no further interest in it.
Twin Peaks – I saw that when it first came out! It started out well, possibly started a mini-revolution in television drama, but went quickly downhill when Lynch seemed to get bored with it. It definitely has not aged well in my view. It doesn’t hold together as a story.
I just watched the first 27 seconds of that YouTube clip of Posh Nosh and I already love it. Richard E. Grant! That one’s definitely going on my list.
I also found a clip of “Rickyisms” from Trailer Park Boys. 56 seconds of that tells me I need to see more!
Checked out Archer promo too "Call me after if you aren’t all stretched out … " I can’t believe that I hadn’t heard of these shows before!
My viewing habits are too erratic to make a monthly subscription worthwhile. I prefer to buy from Itunes when I find something I like.
salinqmind, I can’t believe that Dream On (and Larry Sanders) aren’t available on Itunes. Jeez, folks, I’m begging you to take my money!
Lots of good ones already but I’ll add:
Archer
Three Sheets
The Loop
I must add Doctor Who! It started in 1963 and ran until the late 80’s. Just rebooted in 2005 and it’s better than ever. The storylines and characters are the best parts…the reboot also looks good, the original series suffered from low budget, so it’s somewhat cheesy.
I think we missed “Fringe” - I love this show. Walter Bishop is one of my favourite characters on television - his take on a mad genius is…well, genius. The show is nice and gory, convoluted but not so much that you never know what the hell is going on (and they seem to be weaving it all together), funny, dramatic, weird - all the things I like.
I’ll just say it’s not like any cop show you’ve seen before. Do yourself a favor and watch the first two episodes. If you’re not hooked by then, feel free to move on and accept my apologies for wasting your time.
Doctor Who - I watched pretty much all the Jon Pertwee and Tom Baker episodes in my youth. Although I liked David Tennant as the Doctor, the whole series was a disappointment to me because I was hoping for a complete reboot to serious adult drama like they did with Galactica. And I’m also dismayed by the speed of the regenerations at present.
This is awesome! I’m on the final few dvds of a tv series, and my Netflix queue is getting empty and anxious.
I am making notes…
acsenray, please allow me to chime in with another extremely enthusiastic vote for The Shield. It has brilliant writing, fascinating and (horrifyingly) psychologically consistent characters, and it’s really one of the most unique and surprising shows I’ve seen.
What good taste we all have; most of my favorites have been mentioned.
I’ll add American Gothic, Carnivale and Nip/Tuck
I second It’s Always Sunny…, The Shield and Carnivale. I still miss that show. Also, Angel (I like it better than BtVS, it’s more adult in a lot of ways). And I know you don’t want “cop shows” but Life On Mars is made of awesome (I love both the UK and US versions, but you should start with the UK).
If you like juvenile humor as much as I do, you’ll love Tosh.0.
***Chuck ***- fun action/spy/romance/comedy series–it has a little of everything. No gritty realism here, but the cast is really likeable and they have tons of chemistry with each other.
If you’ll give another sit-com a chance, try Community. It is really funny (even/especially Chevy Chase) and it has quickly become my favorite current sit-com over The Office and 30 Rock.
And Dexter, definitely Dexter.