Tell me what TV show to start next!

Cafe Society
1

Okay, so for most of my life I didn’t watch TV. I only started watching TV shows in the last two years.

You’re looking at a guy who has never seen one episode of a lot of well-known, popular TV shows.

That being said, let me tell you the types of shows and things I have seen that I like and dislike, but before that, let me tell you about the (in my opinion) four different degrees of TV show story arc continuity.
To me, a TV show will fall into one of four categories regarding “story arcs”.
1 is a show that has no story arcs at all. You can watch one and enjoy it and understand it with just one episode. No backstory is needed, the characters usually introduce a problem or something and have it solved in the same episode, no reference is ever made to past happening events.
Examples: Almost every cartoon is a 1. Most sitcoms are a 1.

2 is a show in which past storylines and events happening are SOMETIMES alluded to, but not very often. As with 1, every episode can be enjoyed and understood without ever seeing another episode. Also there are some very faint story arcs, but nothing too earth shattering or requiring one to have to know about them.
Examples: All the sitcoms that are not a 1 are a 2. Having seen every episode of That 70s Show, I can say it would be a 2 (in my opinion). Same with Roseanne.

3 is a show that has one long (or a few short), very strong and constant story arcs. Where they sometimes need a “Previously on” preceding the show’s start. All the episodes are connected strongly and there is not only many references to things done in past episodes but sometimes even in past seasons.
Examples: I just finished watching all the episodes of Buffy and Angel. I’d consider both of these shows to be a 3. I’ve also seen a few episodes of The Pretender and it strikes me as being a 3, too.

and lastly there’s a 4. 4 is a show where they will almost always have a “Previously on” before a show starts…and where if you miss ONE episode, then you better find out from somewhere what happened on that show, because if you don’t, then you’re lost. These types of shows expect and require you to see every episode and know not only what went on in the last episode, but usually require you to know what’s going on for the whole season to fully understand and enjoy it.
Examples: I’m in the 4th season of Lost and it is, without a doubt, a 4 (in my opinion). I’m also in the 4th season of 24 and that’s a 4 too. I’ve also seen the first season of Jericho and that, to me, is a 4.

Now here’s how you should base your suggestions:
I mostly just like shows that are a 3 or 4.

Not interested in sitcoms, I’m looking for hour long show.
I don’t like politics or political shows (So don’t bother suggesting The West Wing or shows like it), I’m not interested in anything space-y or too hardcore on the sci-fi (examples: Babylon 5, Battlestar Galatica, Stargate, Firefly), and I’m not interested in westerns (so don’t tell me about Carnivale or Deadwood) but anything else I’ll give a try.
And lastly, I’m going to give you a list of series’ I like (that I’ve seen) and series’ I’ve heard about that I think I might like.
Mostly just hoping/wanting people to tell me whether or not they think I’d like the shows in my “might like” list and to suggest any others I might not have listed if they can think of them.

I have seen and like:
Buffy
Angel
Lost
24
I have not seen, but feel I might like:
Heroes (seems to me to be a 4)
The 4400 (seems to be a 4)
Desperate Housewives (seems to be a 4)
OZ (seems to be a 3/4)
Alias (seems to be a 3/4)
Smallville (seems to be a 3/4)
Dexter (seems to be a 3/4)
Ugly Betty (seems to be a 3/4)
Dead Like Me (seems to be a 3)
House (seems to be a 3)
The Sopranos (seems to be a 3)
Dark Angel (no idea)
Psych (no idea)
Numb3rs (no idea)
Monk (no idea)
Dollhouse (no idea)
Burn Notice (no idea)

Shows I have not seen but seem to me to be a 1 or 2 (so correct me if I’m wrong):
Six Feet Under
The Office
Arrested Development
Any of the Law and Orders
Any of the CSIs

Some shows that are 3 or 4s that I know I wouldn’t like:
The Shield
The Wire
Rescue Me
Las Vegas

So now that I’ve given you a full and extensive rundown of what I like and don’t like, can anyone give me their opinions on if I’d like the shows on my second list?
Or have suggestions of shows I didn’t list anywhere that I should try out? :slight_smile:

2

Of the ones you’ve listed:
The Wire - Watch this ASAP, it will blow your mind.
Dexter - Very enjoyable, the second season is actually better than the first (haven’t seen further than that yet). It’s light viewing, not to be taken too seriously.
Heroes - First season is extremely good, after that decide for yourself. After I found out that the second season completely copped out of the ending of season one I decided not to bother any more, but season 1 works as a very good self contained story.
Dollhouse - I’ve only seen season 1, I won’t bother with 2. Really trashy with some terrible acting. I wouldn’t say it was good by any stretch but I could at least sit through it (which is more than I could manage with Battlestar Gallactica). I’d skip it since you have so many other great shows to catch up on.

Ones not listed:
Breaking Bad - Awesome and original drama/black comedy. A must watch IMO.
Sons of Anarchy - About a biker gang. Just started this, looks pretty good so far. Good acting & production, interesting plot.
Life on Mars - British TV show about a policeman sent back in time (more-or-less) to the 70s. Lots of fun, some good characters, suffers from the occassional poor episode but worth a watch if you fancy that sort of thing.

All the above are 4s, with the exception of Life on Mars which is more of a 3. I envy you for not having seen Breaking Bad or The Wire yet, you’ve got some good times coming your way :slight_smile:

3

How could I forget?
Mad Men - Drama about the lives of 1960s NY ad men. Again very original and well made. My sister who studies script writing holds it in very high regard for it’s clever plots and excellent script. Definitely a must try.

4

On your scale Dexter is a 4 and one of my favorite shows. *The Sopranos *I wouldn’t know how to place in your scale, but also recommend. Six Feet Under is definitely a 4 and is quite good but somehow didn’t manage to grab my attention and I stopped watching during, I think, season 2. House I like but would say that it’s more of a 2 than a 3 - there are a few short and loose story arcs a few episodes long each but they don’t really matter too much; each episode revolves around an unusual medical case that is solved by House and his team. However, the relationships between the team members and a couple of other characters develop slowly throughout the show. Heroes utterly failed to grab my attention even though I tried watching it twice.

Psych, *Numb3rs *, Monk, the Law and Orders and the CSIs are somewhere between 1 and 2 - I don’t like any of them too much but *Numb3rs * can be fun for a short while before you tire of the formula and I do watch some Law and Order very sporadically (Special Victims Unit is a 2 while the others are 1s, however I feel it’s the weakest of the franchise).

Dollhouse and Burn Notice are both somewhere between 2 and 3. Unlike the majority of the dopers I liked Dollhouse quite a bit and it goes from 2 to 3 to 4 in a nice progression. I don’t know if you realize it, but it’s a science fiction show, so that may turn you off. It is set in present day USA but grows increasingly more fantastic as the story arc becomes more important. Burn Notice is very fun but I tired of it and now prefer the very similar Human Target.

Not on your list but great are Rome and Band of Brothers. I don’t know if you dislike historical fiction, but if you’ve nothing against it I can’t possibly recommend them enough. Along with The Wire I consider them the best television produced this decade. (By the way, why do you think you’d dislike The Wire?) Also, I, Claudius and Shogun are incredibly good, if a bit old now.

5

I recommend both Psych and Monk which are both 2s. I also recommend Chuck which is a 3.

6

Really, The Wire. I don’t know what your reason is for thinking you won’t like it, but it is easily the best show ever made.

7

My life would be meaningless without “House”, “Mad Men”, or “TRUE BLOOD” starting up Sunday on HBO. On a lesser level, I enjoy “Dirty Jobs”, “Mythbusters”, and “Man vs. Wild” on the Discovery Channel.

And “Carnivale” is NOT a Western. It’s a travelling carnival during the Depression and one of the scariest most awesome things on TV, EVER.

8

I watched probably 3 seasons of Oz - very good, but extremely brutal. I had to take a couple years off.

I enjoyed 4400, but they didn’t “finish” it, so I’m not sure it’s worth your time to watch what’s out there.

Alias is fantastic (IMO), but addictive - every single episode seems to end on a major cliffhanger designed to make you miss sleep/work/school. I still have about a season left to watch myself.

I’ve only watched 2 seasons of Dexter, but it’s one of the best shows out there.

Dead Like Me is brilliant (IMO) and if you like that type of show - also check out Wonderfalls (3)

Psych is a 2, with moments of 3 and just fantastic. The chemistry (no, not that type) between the two leads is a thing of beauty. Strongly recommend.

Numb3rs is good for a season or two (I watched longer), but it does get repetitive. It borders on a 3.

Monk is like Psych, a 2 that has moments of 3 and is wonderful. There’s a reason Tony Shaloub (?sp) won an Emmy multiple times for this role.

Burn Notice (I stopped watching because I didn’t have time, but would like to go back) is a strong 3, I’d say. Very good.

Dollhouse - Joss is one of my personal Gods, so take what I saw with a shaker of salt. Yes, it was troubled, but I did enjoy it. It got better towards the end of the 1st season into the 2nd. However, if you liked Buffy/Angel - I can’t imagine you not liking Firefly. I know it’s a space-western, but it is beyond brilliant. There’s a reason that fans of the show are Still bitter over it’s cancellation this many years later. But I won’t push.

Shows I have not seen but seem to me to be a 1 or 2 (so correct me if I’m wrong):
Six Feet Under

[/QUOTE]

I would classify SFU a 3. Very good series, with one of the best series finales ever (IMO). I cried for two days after watching and haven’t been able to bring myself to watch again.

9

Dead Like Me was excellent. Some people didn’t like it, but in my opinion they didn’t give it long enough. It takes until about halfway through the first season for the characters to become interesting, but it’s worth it.

10

Another vote for Psych, Monk, Law & Order and CSI. And The Office.

All of the others people are listing (Mad Men, Dexter, The Wire and even sometimes House), while excellent television, are very much story-arc-dependent.

11

The X-Files had two different types of episodes, each with a distinct fandom: The so-called “MythArc”, which had a long and complicated backstory of aliens, government conspiracies and the Mulder family, and the so-called MOTW (“Monster of the Week”) episodes, which were pretty much standalones.

I’m a MOTW fan (type 2), but, if you like long story arcs, you might enjoy the MythArc (type 4) episodes.

12

Most of the shows you seem to show interest in are quite heavy fare. If this is what you prefer, may I suggest Criminal Minds. Great ensemble cast, and while the story arcs aren’t very prominent, they do tend to influence the stories, especially later in the seasons.

However, if you’re not opposed to drama shows with some humorous aspects, you might try Boston Legal and Leverage. Both are somewhat goofy and implausible at times, but never fail to entertain me. Leverage, in addition, is possibly the best combination of action, intrigue and humor on TV today. Plus, it stars Christian Kane (Lindsay McDonald from Angel.)

13

Dexter - I may be alone in this, but the first season is by far the best and is exactly what you are looking for. The second season has great moments, and I would still recommend it, but I wouldn’t bother watching after that.

Arrested Development - It expects you to have seen every previous episode and references things from all of them. Unlike most comedies, it works well as a marathon watch.

Why don’t you think you would like The Wire or The Shield? Both are amazing.

14

Dexter, definitely. And I know you said you aren’t interested in sci-fi, but you should still watch Firefly. It’s amazing.

15

Dead Like Me - One of many that came to an end far too soon.
Pushing Daisies - Quirky but that was part of it’s charm.

I’m not a fan of procedurals (CSI etc.) but I quite enjoy NCIS, it’s got the crime and forensics but with great characters and always a bit of humour thrown in.

Alias - Definitely, always kept you guessing, and hey - Jennifer Garner - enough said…

Want a quick watch, The Unusuals only lasted 10 Episodes, but they were great while they lasted.

Deadwood - Western/Drama from HBO, This one just sort of sucks you in, caught an episode by accident (scheduling error on my PVR) and ended up watching the whole series.

Heroes - Agree with the earlier comments, the First Season was great , but went downhill from there.

16

Arrested Development is an exception: it’s a solid 3. I know you said you weren’t interested in sitcoms, but if your main reason for saying that is that you’re looking for "3"s and "4"s, Arrested Development is a sitcom you might like.

FWIW I don’t like politics either, but I love The West Wing.

I’d call Numb3rs a 2, Monk either a 1 or a 2. Each episode is a self-contained story, with a resolution at the end.

17

So, for the shows that you think you’d like:
Heroes: actually a 3 or 4 and will probably disappoint you sooner or later.
Desperate Housewives: solid 3. it’s a soap opera. it’s much more fluffy than a lot of the things you like, but it does have season long story arcs and it does have continuity
OZ: 3/4. Brutal
Alias: 3/4 - it has a lot of the same pluses and minuses that LOST has.
Dexter: 4, but the fact that you’re not interested in the Shield or The Wire makes me hesitate to recommend it.
Ugly Betty: 2.5 - it’s another soap opera, also fluffier than the things you like, but pretty solid
House: 2. It’s a procedural. There are carryover storylines, but for the most part, you can watch any episode without having watched anything before or watching anything afterwards.
The Sopranos: 3. Like Dexter, your dislike of the Shield & Wire means I’m not sure you’d like it.
Psych: 1. Psych is an hour long sitcom with a mystery thrown in. I love it, but it’s popcorn and doesn’t have the qualities that you seem to be looking for in a TV show.
Numb3rs: 1.5, procedural.
Monk 1.5, procedural.
Burn Notice: 3. There’s a series long arc that doesn’t make sense without having watched most of the episodes.

Six Feet Under: solid 3. All of the shows you said you liked tend to be very action oriented. Six Feet Under is not.
I’m going to recommend Friday Night Lights. It seems to be tonally in the same category as things you like, and also satisfy your 3/4 rule.

18

Lie to Me is a 2, bordering on a 3. Only one out of 3 people in my household like it, but that one is me, so it’s getting mentioned.

19

Let’s not forget ER! Definitely a 4.

20

Agreed. Quirky, with a very bent reality all its own. It was created by Bryan Fuller, who also worked on both Dead Like Me and Wonderfalls. On the OP’s scale, I’d say Daisies is probably a 3.