add another suggestion for Breaking Bad.
BB and MM are very, very different. But both are just so great. I can’t even decide which is my favorite show.
But you should pretty much start watching BB now.
By “stylized language” you mean the characters saying “cocksucker” every 3 minutes. I couldn’t get up to episode 4 because of it. If there were a drinking game where I took a shot every time I heard the word cocksucker I’d be blind drunk by the time one episode was over.
As Hello Again says, the crime is definitely not organized.
In fact, Hanna, I would say that whatever you think it is about, you’re wrong (other than it the broadest sense that it’s about crime and drugs). It will totally defy any expectations you have. Like others, I highly recommend it. The first two seasons are available on DVD. Amazon has the third on pre-order so I assume it’s coming out soon and presumably it will be available for rental then.
Keep in mind that BB is a show that really needs to be watched in order from the beginning. Season 4 doesn’t start till spring so, assuming season 3 comes out, you have time to catch up before then.
Breaking Bad is a fantastic show- but I have to say it’s probably the only show I can recall where the supporting cast are more interesting than the two main characters.
IMHO probably too much of the show is given over to Walter (the main character)'s family problems; the second series is probably the closest to “Two guys with no real idea what they’re getting themselves into become drug cooks and dealers; [del]hilarity ensues[/del] things don’t go anything like as planned and they discover how far out of their depth they really are”. The first series is sort of the set-up as to why they decided to do this in the first place and the third deals with the repercussions of events from the second series. The fourth series is going to be very interesting, I think. 
Incidentally, the third series is available on DVD in Australia, which is odd because as far as I know it hasn’t been on TV here.
Having said all that, it really is an outstanding show that I highly recommend; The Sopranos is excellent too, as is Deadwood and Rome. Mad Men is one of my favourite shows for reasons others have already outlined; but I think you have to be in the right frame of mind for it- and it’s best watched as a complete season, because it’s got quite the overarching storyline.
You find all the characters in Mad Men likeable?!?! Man, your likeability bar is subterrainian.
Yeah, they curse a lot. But it’s still stylized as hell. This youtube compilation (spoilerly across all seasons) aptly demonstrates how their sentence construction is unique compared to everything else on TV.
Sadly for us, season 4 isn’t starting until July. 
**Rome **and Breaking Bad would top my list.
*Deadwood *and The Wire are both fantastic, but for reason I couldn’t keep watching either of them.
Big Love is fun, and it’s quite good. Nowhere in the same league as Rome.
No I don’t, because that’s not what stylized means. Even if they didn’t use a single swear word in the entire series, the language would still be extremely stylized.
What are they thinking? That’s a good way to kill a show! :mad:
And we probably won’t see new Mad Men until 2012. Sepinwall says the show hasn’t been “officially” renewed – they’re still negotiating.
Deadwood’s the only other show I know of that’s remotely in the same class as The Wire, Mad Men, or The (Sorensen) West Wing. Even The Sopranos doesn’t quite make it by those very high standards, let alone the other shows mentioned here.
Deadwood’s got one thing in common with The Wire, in that you get to see a mining settlement slowly solidify to become an actual town, establishing a degree of law and order as it grows. The ruthless men who founded it must decide just how much personal power they’re prepared to give up in return for the greater profits official recognition for the town might offer. Given a few more seasons, this could have become just as fascinating a portrait of a whole town as The Wire gave us for Baltimore.
And don’t be put off by the swearing. Yes, there is a lot of profanity in Deadwood, but the intricate, very rhythmic sentence construction they use is a joy in itself. Writing this has reminded me just what a good show it was, and makes me think it’s time I watched the box sets again myself.
Ur, Mad Men is a fantastic show, but I would hardly say it exists in the real world, or that every character is likable. Mad Men exists in the dark underbelly of 'Sixties nostalgia that is just a level above David Lynch, at basically the same place as The Man in the Grey Flannel Suit or Revolutionary Road but with the addition of a wry humor.
As for characters being likable, even the most sympathetic characters regularly do things that make them pretty hard to empathize with. The protagonist, Don Draper, is a serial philanderer that makes little effort to raise his children; the charismatic Roger Sterling is six shades of asshole, and Pete Campbell makes you wish that the Russians had nuked Manhattan (although he’s had a few shining moments of decency now any again). Even Peggy and Joan, who are basically the underdogs who are largely marginalized by their male colleagues except when they can be immediately useful, do some things that are pretty repugnant at times. The genius of Mad Men is how such unlikeable, misogynistic, bigoted characters can still be compelling. Except for Betty (Draper) Francis; I can’t stand that bitch.
Deadwood is a great show, although this is in spite of the gormless lead characters, and more because of Ian McShane, Powers Boothe, Paula Malcomson. Kim Dickens, and other secondary characters that really drive the story. The way the story arcs across the growth of the Deadwood camp is very compelling (if significantly at odds with actual historical fact) as an exploration of power and sacrifice. The creator was originally going to set the story themes in the development of the Roman empire but was undercut by Rome (also on HBO), and so crafted the same themes into the more intimate setting of a gold mining camp.
The Wire is phenomenal, particularly the third series. It is clear that they overarching story was crafted from the beginning with an intended conclusion, and yet they leave enough strings dangling that there is a larger world than what you see on screen.
Although they aren’t open ended series, I would also suggest for viewing John le Carre’s Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy and the sequel, Smiley’s People, which despite being initially slow moving and not flashy, are probably the most realistic and yet compelling film treatments of the reality of espionage and the sacrifices made by those who practice the trade. They are what DeNiro’s The Good Shepherd could have been if it had been more focused and given a longer tapestry to weave out the story.
Stranger
"The Sopranos" remains the best written series on television, IMO. Intriguing but believable plots. Sympathetic characters. Doesn’t try to glamourize the violence. It can be laugh out loud funny and tragic at the same time. Give it a whirl.
HBO’s Boardwalk Empire is really well written and acted. Season 1 is already done but HBO already ordered season 2. It has ties to the creative forces behind the The Sopranos and Mad Men. Also Scorsese is involved with it.
For an older great drama or dramedy, look for Northern Exposure. This was for 4 and parts of a 5th season one of the best shows ever done. Also many of the writers on the The Sopranos apparently worked on Northern Exposure also.
I actually find very few of the main characters on Mad Men likable and absolutely hate the ex-wife. But the show is excellent.
The Sopranos and Mad Men are the best character driven shows on TV. They don’t need plots, and some of their best episodes involve just their characters interacting with each other (e.g. Pine Barrens, The Suitcase).
The Wire and Deadwood are shows about broader themes. They’re not just about individuals, but how individual actions influence and shape society. Deadwood is about the virtues of society, while The Wire is all about its failures.
Somewhere in between The Wire/Deadwood and Sopranos/Mad Men lies The West Wing (Sorkin years only) and Firefly (and other Whedon shows). They are about group dynamics and how a group of people stay together because of a common purpose. In both cases it’s fighting evil. Both shows contain the best dialog ever spoken on TV.
I have no clue where Breaking Bad falls in all of this. It’s hard to classify, and that’s why I love it. If I had to classify it, it would be part character study and part thriller. It’s the only show that can keep me in suspense because I can never guess what will happen next. The show is as unpredictable and chaotic as the meth business that Walter gets into.
Sorkin! Not Sorensen. That’s what I meant.
I think you’ve put you’re finger on one of the reasons I like BB so much (I’m not familiar with most of the other stuff being mentioned). It’s almost completely unpredictable. With nearly anything on TV (with any plot complexity) I can see what’s coming next.
I say almost because, to be fair, I was able to see things coming one or two times.
For example, it was obvious to me that Jesse would discover that the meth he had bought from the two dealers was blue and that his response would become an important plot point.In spite of the very few predictable moments it’s still way less predictable than most of what’s on.
Several months ago, my husband and I were looking for a new show. We have seen all the HBO greats (Sopranos, The Wire, Deadwood, etc.) and somehow Breaking Bad and **Mad Men **had managed to put together seasons of excellence that hadn’t pinged our radar. We decided to catch up on both, and started with Breaking Bad. Well, it’s been a BB marathon here, as we watch an episode a night, and are more than halfway through the 2nd season. The episode where Jesse visits the home of the tweakers who ripped him off–they had a little kid and an ATM and lived in utter squalor just had me sobbing.
Mad Men is on the list as soon as we’re current with Walt, Jesse, Hank, and the gang. It will be a MM marathon through the spring.
Proudest Monkey, That is one of my two favorite episodes. Part tearjerker, part belly laughs.
Jesse: “Spooge? You let yourself get jacked by someone name Spooge? Not Mad Dog, or Diesel? Spooge?” That line cracked me up. 
I said two favorites. The other one was this one (don’t read this spoiler if you haven’t seen all of season 2).
Where Walt and Jesse are stuck in the desert because Jesse left the key in the ignition of the RV.I imagine that you’re curious as hell about the business with the swimming pool. 