I don’t see Rome on that list- by far the best show I’ve ever seen.
Also watch the first season of The Practice. It’s only six episodes. David E. Kelly has a habit of finding something that works brilliantly and then quickly turning into cheap melodrama. The Practice took six episodes. The last season of the The Practice got rid of half its characters and introduced us to Alan Shore. Shore later gets his own show (Boston Legal) which also becomes more melodramatic and cheesy toward its end.
Here are my other recommendations:
From HBO shows, you are missing The Sopranos, Six Feet Under, and Rome. On Showtime there is Dead Like Me, which comes from the same creator as **Wonderfalls **(I know, Fox sucks.)
If you like politics, The West Wing is definitely worth it. There is no other show like it.
If you like Buffy, you might want to watch My So-Called Life. Whedon claims this show influenced Buffy. It’s an unusually realistic high school drama that gets canceled too early.
Another show that got canceled too early is Freaks and Geeks. It’s also about high school and it’s where Judd Apatow and his crew get their start.
I’m half way through The Shield right now and I’m really enjoying it. It is not as good as The Wire, but it’s still good TV.
**House **is also worth a look. The plot gets redundant real fast, but House (the main character) never gets old. Hugh Laurie adds real depth to the character that you don’t usually see in a network TV show.
**Scrubs **is also missing from your list.
You have a lot of work to do. Good luck.
Since you mention Wonderfalls, you’ll probably want to check out the equally short-lived shows Dead Like Me and Pushing Daisies. Beyond sharing the same creator, they’ve got all got that quirky-humour-plus-magical-realism thing going for them.
I’m also going to second the motion for Dexter. It’s ridiculously good.
Another one that you may or may not like (but that I’m totally addicted to) is Big Love, an HBO series about a modern-day Mormon polygamist (played by Bill Paxton) and his three wives trying to blend into mainstream Salt Lake City society and keep their faith. The dialogue is surprisingly good, and the characters are portrayed as flawed human beings rather than perfect saints or a moral cautionary tale.
Totally wacky and out of the blue recommendation but if you like fantasy, you might want to look into The Storyteller series, by Jim Henson. It was aired in the early 90s I believe? Can’t be sure but it’s available on DVD and I enjoyed the series very much. It basically is a retelling of different classic stories with effects and puppetry from the Jim Henson people. Not entirely directed at children, think more along a Dark Crystal sort of feel.
Dr. Who especially since the relaunch in '05
Seconding:
Homicide
Rome
Mad Men
(all Excellent)
Adding:
Band of Brothers
(Excellent)
Twin Peaks
Carnivale
(both Good but Flawed)
You need Babylon 5. At least the first 4 seasons. In my book, it ranks up there with Battlestar Galactica as classic sci-fi.
Also, you might like **X-Files **and Forever Knight.
I’ll second the nomination of Band of Brothers. Very well done WWII drama.
We’ve got a lot of the same tastes in shows, I think. Except you like a little more sci-fi than I do.
Anyway, I’ve moved on to watching a ton of British TV when there’s nothing else to watch here. A lot of the stuff is available on Netflix. Or, if you’re awesome, look for a region-free DVD player and get stuff from Amazon.co.uk.
Peep Show (sitcom)
Spaced (sitcom)
Hustle (dramedy)
Jeeves & Wooster (period dramedy)
QI (panel/quiz show)
Jam & Jerusalem (dramedy)
Blackadder (period sitcom)
Trailer Park Boys (actually Canadian, sort of like Weeds + Beavis & Butthead)
The IT Crowd (sitcom)
The Office (UK) (sitcom)
Father Ted (sitcom)
The Vicar of Dibley (sitcom)
Jonathan Creek (mystery)
Sherlock Holmes, with Jeremy Brett (mystery)
Life on Mars (UK) (drama)
You have a lot of sci-fi on your list, so I think you would really enjoy Doctor Who, the new seasons from 2005-now.
Another vote for The Shield and It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia. The latter is like Seinfeld taken to an extreme, and funny as hell once you get into its rhythms.
I agree with you - all police procedurals look like Lifetime movies after The Wire. But The Shield, while obviously not as good, is as close as anything else has ever come (I even prefer it to The Sopranos).
House also has Robert Sean Leonard, the best sidekick ever.
Nobody but me recommends The Big Bang Theory? It is the funniest, geekiest show ever on the tube, and Jim Parsons as Sheldon Cooper is beyond belief. Just watch it once and see what you are missing.
It is a GEM.
I shall chime in for The Big Bang Theory, Annie. It took a few episodes to get rolling but now it is definitely LOL funny.
Fourthing Big Bang Theory, seconding the new series of Doctor Who, firsting the old series (1960s to 1980s, you want the Douglas Adams written stuff most), firsting How I Met Your Mother, half-suggesting the Doctor Who spin-off Torchwood, fully-suggesting The Sarah Jane Adventures, the other spin-off.
The first version of this post was less terse and more grammatically correct, but the internet ate it.
The Wire was one of the most amazing masterpieces of television ever, it will be nearly impossible to top, but the Shield was consistently more fun to watch than even The Wire. Though the Wire hands down is more competently put together and is totally believable whereas the Shield has a lot of fantasy to it. It requires more suspension of disbelief.
I saw one episode of Big Bang Theory and thought the gay guy was really funny but the rest of the characters were kind of uninteresting. “I wanted a griffen, but my parents wouldn’t get me the Eagle eggs and lion semen.”
What are you reading my response for, Windwalker? Run to a video store right now and rent season 1 of this show (3 discs, I believe). While you’re there, BUY Band of Brothers.
Another vote for The Shield. Season 7 was, IMO, one of the best seasons of TV ever produced. The last few episodes were ridiculous!
Another vote for Six Feet Under.
The first season of Murder One is amazing – the entire season is devoted to a single murder case. First place I ever saw Stanley Tucci or Patricia Clarkson – the cast in general is outstanding.
Wait, Sheldon isn’t gay, is he? Anyway, Big Bang is a great show.
Missing from the list…Sons of Anarchy. Starts slow, get’s awesome quickly.
The best show on TV now is Burn Notice. New episodes start 1/22 (3rd season)
And Penn and Teller’s BULLSHIT!!
I’m just going to vote on some of my favorites, most of which have been mentioned:
The Twilight Zone
House
The Office, (certain people tend to have such a passion for one of either version, it’s funny. both are quite good in my opinion, but too difficult to compare on some level, mainly because the UK version only had a handful of episodes compared to the still running US version).
The Larry Sanders Show, ([“Not Just The Best Of” is a good collection)
Arrested Development