I've previously argued (http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/yabb/index.php?topic=33559.0) that TV is going through a golden age. Well, things might not be as good today as they were in 2008, but a list of the year's best television shows proves that things are still pretty good inside the idiot box:
25 Best TV series of 2010 (http://www.avclub.com/articles/the-25-best-television-series-of-2010,49229/)
45 Other Standout TV Episodes (http://www.avclub.com/articles/best-tv-2010-part-two-45-standout-episodes-from-se,49277/)
In particular, I would spotlight:
Louie
Terriers
The Venture Bros.
Better Off Ted
Mad Men
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
Lone Star (all... 2 episodes)
The Ricky Gervais Show (based on the podcasts)
Breaking Bad is a show I should catch up with. I wasn't quite on board with the first season, but apparently it has only gotten better.
In addition to these (I'm a big fan of Mad Men and Always Sunny especially) I would add:
Boardwalk Empire
Treme
The Walking Dead
Luther
There's been some great stuff in recent years!
TEH OFFICE! FOR SU' FOO! :D
Here are some of my current day favorites in no particular order
Burn Notice
Fringe
Doctor Who
Eureka
No Ordinary Family
... Some of my old time favorites
Hogan's Heroes
McHales Navy (btw there was a real life Quinton McHale who commanded a PT boat in WWII)
Bonanza
Barney Miller
... And this must see web series; short but very funny
Two Guys Drinking at a Bar (http://twoguysdrinkingatabar.blogspot.com/) - http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=ABCAAF06D204BDD1
Community, Castle, Dexter, How I Met Your Mother (is funny again), Lie to Me, Eureka, Warehouse 13, Big Bang Theory, 30 Rock, Burn Notice.
The ones I watch :P
House, Fringe, Dexter, Sherlock, Doctor Who, The Walking Dead, Mad Men, The Event, Dirk Gently, Misfits
For Strictly Comedy shows, I'm enjoying the Office, Community (if you haven't seen it, see it), How I met your mother, Grandmas House, Peep Show, The Thick of It.
Also, for a curve ball, radio shows I'm enjoying: Adam and Joe on 6 Music, The Now Show on Radio 4, Simon Mayo on 5live.
Bones [emily deschanel :P]
I watch Bones, but it has started grating on me as almost borderline sitcom. That irritating psychiatrist's girlfriend, and Bones' completely implausible lack of social skills, in an attempt to be funny, goes overboard too often.
Quote from: Babar on Wed 22/12/2010 15:10:44
I watch Bones, but it has started grating on me as almost borderline sitcom. That irritating psychiatrist's girlfriend, and Bones' completely implausible lack of social skills, in an attempt to be funny, goes overboard too often.
^ This.
Bones used to have tension.
True.
Quote from: Zooty on Wed 22/12/2010 14:02:46
, Mad Men,
I am surprised you didn't mention this 73 more times (not that it doesn't deserve it.)
Also I forgot to mention Lost, which ended this year, and will always remain one of my favourite things.
I don't watch TV shows, really.
Although endless Simpsons and Friends reruns make awesome background noise.
Darkplace
Forever Knight Seasons 1-2
Code Monkeys
Monty Python's Flying Circus
X-Files Seasons 1-4
Sledge Hammer!
The IT Crowd
It's very rare that I find a tv series I stay with for the entire run (especially as I don't watch tv anymore), and as you can see only one of these series is even still going. I've somewhat lost interest in IT Crowd since season 4, though. It seems to have lost its way creatively like so many shows do, and as much as I like Graham Linehan's work, I think he overestimated the value of the character of Jen compared to Roy and Moss, who were much more interesting in the first two seasons and have since been gradually toned down with more screen time made for her comparatively useless and boring character. Sadly, they've pretty much destroyed Richmond's appeal as well as of the finale. I'd much rather have seen Roy, Moss, and Richmond if they needed a trio than have Jen as a primary character. She really holds back the brilliance of the show, imo, and her segments are pretty much entirely centered on her own self-centered, lying nature and how it ruins her relationships. The show is called the IT Crowd, not 'my romances are shit because I'm a lying bitch' for a reason, and I think Linehan's really lost sight of where the appeal for the show lies.
AH! Finally someone else who knows Sledge Hammer...I don't know anyone who knows that show. I love it :D but my all time favourite tvshow is without doubt OZ
I thought Fringe was actually gonna make it right and make it more about the cases, but it just all went so "the chosen one", it's just annoying. I liked Castle and Big bang theory for a while.
Scrubs went on for too long. House has it's moments but it is getting old. American television shows just get too greedy and even the shows that are good at the start get to be more like a soap opera and stale.
British/original The Office and Black Adder quit while they were ahead and wrapped everything up. Those remain in fond memories.
And as was said, Friends and Simpson re-runs do make for a great background noise. Still are funny.
Quote from: anian on Thu 23/12/2010 13:52:10
I thought Fringe was actually gonna make it right and make it more about the cases, but it just all went so "the chosen one", it's just annoying.
I prefer shows with a proper arc and to me Fringe has gone from a good bit of fun to a seriously awesome TV show since it started getting heavier on the mythology. It's the same as the X-files... There needs to be a balance for it to be successful. Some people prefer the 'monster-of the-week' episodes so that they could dip in and out witout feeling alienated if they miss an episode. But some people, like me, prefer the over-arcing mythology episodes (probably why I'm a fan of Lost).
Quote from: RickJ on Wed 22/12/2010 08:02:01
Burn Notice
Fringe
Doctor Who
Eureka
No Ordinary Family
Quote from: voh on Wed 22/12/2010 13:32:48
Community, Castle, Dexter, How I Met Your Mother (is funny again), Lie to Me, Eureka, Warehouse 13, Big Bang Theory, 30 Rock, Burn Notice.
Quote from: Zooty on Wed 22/12/2010 14:02:46
House, Fringe, Dexter, Sherlock, Doctor Who, The Walking Dead, Mad Men, The Event, Dirk Gently, Misfits
For Strictly Comedy shows, I'm enjoying the Office, Community (if you haven't seen it, see it), How I met your mother, Grandmas House, Peep Show, The Thick of It.
Quote from: Arj0n on Wed 22/12/2010 14:03:19
Bones [emily deschanel :P]
I feel like we're drifting from the point, or maybe we're talking about different things. They may be an enjoyable way to pass the time, but are you really saying that shows like
Burn Notice,
House,
Bones,
The Big Bang Theory or
The Walking Dead are bona fide great shows, as in future classics?
The Thick of It is a great addition, though.
That also made me think of
Misfits, which I hesitate to call great, but is easily the best live-action superhero show since
Buffy.
I'd say Community is a future classic. It's got some top notch writing.
Also Louie is one of the best shows I've seen this year, I know you mentioned it in the original post, but it really is fantastic.
Supernatural and The Big Bang Theory.
Quote from: Snarky on Tue 28/12/2010 10:16:22
...are you really saying that shows like [...] The Walking Dead are bona fide great shows, as in future classics?
Yes.
Future classics? I'd say HBO produced a good deal of those. Shows like Carnivale, Rome, Deadwood and more recently Boardwalk Empire really hit the sweet spot with a great mix of top-notch writing and a stellar, talented cast. Something that always reels me in when it comes to big HBO productions is the unconventional subject matter or setting they pick to build their story around. Carnivale would be a perfect example of that.
Sons of Anarchy is on track to become a classic, even if the third season didn't end with as much of a bang as the previous two seasons did. Arrested Development also comes to mind, it's a show that I'll remember for years to come.
The British are also experiencing a great run of television shows. Misfits is bound for glory, Sherlock shows great potential and Doctor Who is still going strong. Psychoville brings a much needed dose of black humour to television, but it just finished its first season so I'm not going to delve into that.
House isn't consistent enough in quality for me to call it a classic, but it definitely isn't a show I'd easily forget about. Supernatural jumped the shark with the start of season 6 and I'm slowly starting to believe that, as much as I love the show, they should have wrapped it up with season 5 as intended.
Breaking Bad is worth watching for Bryan Cranston's performance alone and it's one of my favourite shows.
Also, I'm a bit surprised nobody mentioned Californication yet.
There's a lot more shows I could mention as 'future classics' and potential classics, stuff like Spaced, Coupling, Generation Kill, Hung, Kings, Modern Family, My Name Is Earl, Nikita, Party Down, Supernatural, Torchwood, True Blood, Wonderfalls and so on and so forth, but I don't really have the time or energy to cover all of them.
My three favorite show/series (surprised nobody has mentioned them)
Firefly
Probably won't be a "classic" because it's achieved "cult" status instead. But what, really, is the difference? It's the best. Ever. Thanks to narrow minded (idiots) at Fox who, in their infinite wisdom, put the show on Friday night and decided to air it out of order, we only got a 1/2 season of the show. Freakin' morons.
Band of Brothers
Another notch in HBO's belt. Incredible character development, deep emotional content (not just a war picture) and based on real events of the "greatest" generation. Probably doesn't appeal to some 'cause it's American but such close-mindedness is okay (as long as you're not an American)
Battlestar Galactica
SOOOOooooo much more than just sci-fi. Deals with religion, politics, society/culture, race, tolerance, I could go on! It's amazing television and, I should say, is the only show to ever make me stand up and cheer involuntarily (end of the new-Caprica episodes ... you know what I'm talking about).
Hilarious to see somebody mention Sledge Hammer. I still remember the scene where he was at the hospital because a lady's baby was kidnapped and the woman says, "I haven't even give him a name" and Sledge says, "How about Rob?" Timeless.
I would probably have mentioned ALF because the humor is still golden. However given the [horrible] 1980s object lessons crammed into every episode and the will they/won't they end-it-cut-off-final-season-cliff-hanger I think it's more in limbo (for me).
I agree with 2 of the 3 you mention Darth (not watched BSG yet), but I was trying to stick to things from this year.
If I were going to mention things from the last decade or so, my list would be much much much longer. I heart TV at the moment.
Quote from: Stupot on Tue 28/12/2010 17:57:54
Quote from: Snarky on Tue 28/12/2010 10:16:22
...are you really saying that shows like [...] The Walking Dead are bona fide great shows, as in future classics?
Yes.
Well, I would disagree with that. The writing, plotting and characterization on that show is just too uneven to really qualify as great. At least every other episode there would be moments of such head-banging stupidity it made you wonder how this collection of TV stereotypes could possibly have survived even the first day of a zombie apocalypse.
Frank Darabont apparently fired the entire writing staff after the first season, and I can't say I'm too surprised (though I'm inclined to think he and Kirkman share a lot of the blame for the badness).
poltergeist listed a lot of great shows from the last decade, but like veryweirdguy I wanted to focus on stuff from 2010. The best TV shows
right now.
QuoteI still remember the scene where he was at the hospital because a lady's baby was kidnapped and the woman says, "I haven't even give him a name" and Sledge says, "How about Rob?" Timeless.
This actually happens at the police station but you were close enough to earn the Sledge Awareness perk, which grants you +1 manliness in all situations.
Quote from: veryweirdguy on Tue 28/12/2010 21:30:27
I agree with 2 of the 3 you mention Darth (not watched BSG yet)
Do yourself a [huge] favor and watch it! I'm currently re-watching the entire series (Tarah got it for me on bluray for Christmas) and it's even better the second time through!!
Quote from: ProgZmax on Wed 29/12/2010 05:07:44This actually happens at the police station but you were close enough to earn the Sledge Awareness perk, which grants you +1 manliness in all situations.
The
Sledge
awareness
perk! I love it!
Sticking with 2010 I'd still have to drop good ol' BSG (it ended this year). But as I think is [very] apparent I'm a bit of a fan-boy (and proud of it) :)
Quote from: Snarky on Tue 28/12/2010 23:16:07
poltergeist listed a lot of great shows from the last decade, but like veryweirdguy I wanted to focus on stuff from 2010. The best TV shows right now.
Sorry, should have paid more attention while reading your posts.
Here's a 'filtered' list, then:
Definite future classics - Boardwalk Empire, The Office, Doctor Who.
Boardwalk Empire, despite only recently finishing its first season, deserves a spot here. Great cast, great writing. It's an HBO production, you can't go wrong with that.
The Office is a classic already. It's consistently funny (99% of the time) and I always look forward to seeing a new episode. It might be jumping the shark with Carell's departure at the end of this season, but that's still some way out in the future.
Doctor Who. I know, it already is a classic, but seeing as Matt Smith took over as the new Doctor after Tennant's brilliant run in the shoes of the character, and did it unexpectedly well, I'm listing this series (with the eleventh Doctor) as a definite future classic. Also, I'm crushing hard on Karen Gillan,
but that's not the point.
Potential classics - Californication, Sherlock, Misfits, Sons of Anarchy, Modern Family, House.
Californication is amazing, it really is, and it should be a definite future classic. Why is it listed here, then? I honestly have no idea, but for some strange reason I can only see it as a 'cult clasic'. Somehow I don't see people taking it seriously for what it is, most of them only watch it because its about Fox Mulder and sex with Fox Mulder.
Sherlock might be a series of TV movies, but it's still a series. Benedict Cumberbatch is an amazing Sherlock Holmes even though he might not look the part, but it's this air of creepy surrounding him that makes the character more interesting. The storyline behind this Sherlock is full of twists and turns so I've set my expectations high for the next season.
Misfits is nothing short of brilliant. It's the gritty British take on superheroes and I love every second of it. The second season lived up to the expectations built up by the first, but the writing still isn't consistent enough. The good news is you only get one bad episode per season. The bad news is that the bad episodes are really, really cheesy.
Sons of Anarchy, like I said last time, it's a great show, but the third season left much to be desired.
Modern Family is gunning for greatness here. It's extremely entertaining, but I'd wait for the third season before calling it a classic.
House is kind-of a classic already, but I fear that's only because Hugh Laurie is acting in it. To tell you the truth, it's getting kind of old and uneventful, so hopefully they'll either pick up the pace or pull the plug before its too late.
Not quite there yet - Nikita, Supernatural, The Walking Dead.
Maggie Q is a great
Nikita. I don't remember much about the first show, but this one is keeping me interested and I'm looking forward to seeing what they have planned for the season finale. It's in the "not quite there yet" category because it's literally not quite there - the show is still in the middle of its first season. But it does show promise.
Supernatural jumped the shark with the start of season 6. I guess it kind of went downhill from there. If you're sticking to seasons 1-5 then it's a definite potential classic.
The Walking Dead had a great pilot episode, but there are more bad episodes than there are good ones. Spread that out over the six episodes from its first season and you can see why its only redeeming quality right now are the zombies.
Just no - The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret.
This could have been very good (not great) but it quickly grew stale and old. It's more of a "thanks for trying" thing, now.
You list some interesting choices, poltergeist. If you haven't watched them, I would highly recommend that you sample some of the ones listed in my first post, in the linked articles and by veryweirdguy.
Quote from: poltergeist on Wed 29/12/2010 07:49:52
Boardwalk Empire, despite only recently finishing its first season, deserves a spot here. Great cast, great writing. It's an HBO production, you can't go wrong with that.
I haven't seen it yet, but have heard mixed things about it. A lot of people seem to think it's heavy on the schtick and short on compelling drama.
If we're naming current HBO shows, I would go with
In Treatment. There is something hypnotically fascinating about watching Gabriel Byrne delving incisively into the subconscious of his patients, then repeatedly fucking up his own life because he's at the complete mercy of his own irrational impulses.
QuoteThe Office is a classic already. It's consistently funny (99% of the time) and I always look forward to seeing a new episode. It might be jumping the shark with Carell's departure at the end of this season, but that's still some way out in the future.
Personally I think it ran out of steam years ago. It was a great show in its day, but nowadays it's just another comedy that remains on TV because of residual affection (cf.
The Simpsons).
It's been mentioned a few times already, but
Louie has got to be the best, instant-classic (or cult classic) comedy on TV right now. More than perhaps any other show on TV, it feels like one person's vision, a unique comic sensibility that is as strong as Larry David's in
Curb Your Enthusiasm, but much more humane and melancholy.
QuoteDoctor Who. I know, it already is a classic, but seeing as Matt Smith took over as the new Doctor after Tennant's brilliant run in the shoes of the character, and did it unexpectedly well, I'm listing this series (with the eleventh Doctor) as a definite future classic. Also, I'm crushing hard on Karen Gillan, but that's not the point.
I've been watching this latest, Steven Moffat-run season, and been enjoying it quite a lot. The format is a very clever way to do an anthology SF series like e.g.
The Twilight Zone, but with some recurring characters and longer arcs. I can see the Christmas Special as a future classic, definitely. But I guess you're either a raving Who fan or you're not; much as I enjoyed it, this season didn't have anything as good as
Blink, and the fairly frequent cheesiness and tendency to wrap up every civilization-ending threat in a TV-hour keeps it out of the top rankings in my book.
I have to admit that few sci-fi TV shows do it for me.
Firefly left me indifferent, and I gave up on
Lost,
Fringe,
Supernatural,
Heroes etc. within a few episodes (and in some cases less).
Battlestar Galactica was addictive but maddeningly uneven,
Dollhouse occasionally brilliant but usually pretty bad.
The last live-action sci-fi show I pretty wholeheartedly enjoyed was
The Middleman, which was firmly tongue-in-cheek. But even that was more of a guilty pleasure than a show of genuine greatness. That leaves
The Venture Bros., which is unapologetically awesome, but again a comedy first and foremost.
QuoteCalifornication is amazing, it really is, and it should be a definite future classic. Why is it listed here, then? I honestly have no idea, but for some strange reason I can only see it as a 'cult clasic'. Somehow I don't see people taking it seriously for what it is, most of them only watch it because its about Fox Mulder and sex with Fox Mulder.
I watched a little of it to begin with. It seemed like a clone of
Weeds, trying to be shocking and all that, only without the wit and charm (back when
Weeds was good).
QuoteSherlock might be a series of TV movies, but it's still a series. Benedict Cumberbatch is an amazing Sherlock Holmes even though he might not look the part, but it's this air of creepy surrounding him that makes the character more interesting. The storyline behind this Sherlock is full of twists and turns so I've set my expectations high for the next season.
Yes, a promising adaptation, but when your season is only three episodes, one that is straight-up bad (the second one) is not an impressive hit rate.
QuoteMisfits is nothing short of brilliant. It's the gritty British take on superheroes and I love every second of it. The second season lived up to the expectations built up by the first, but the writing still isn't consistent enough. The good news is you only get one bad episode per season. The bad news is that the bad episodes are really, really cheesy.
I just got into
Misfits, and have to agree that when it's on, it's one of the best shows out there. I think what holds it back is that it over-relies on "freak of the week" storylines, which makes me think of
Smallville S1. No show that aspires to greatness should ever make you think of
Smallville! Oh, and I have suspension-of-disbelief issues with the apparent complete police indifference to the number of disappearances and murders taking place in one community center. (Call it the Sunnydale High problem.)
QuoteSons of Anarchy, like I said last time, it's a great show, but the third season left much to be desired.
I gave up on this after a couple of episodes. The writing just didn't seem very good, and the characters were too clichéd. But I hear it got better towards the end of the season, and that S2 was actually quite great.
The Shield (which is clearly one main template for
Sons) didn't start out with great depth either, and that eventually got brilliant.
I would still rather watch
Justified or
Terriers on FX, and among shows I don't watch I would be more interested in getting into
Breaking Bad.
QuoteModern Family is gunning for greatness here. It's extremely entertaining, but I'd wait for the third season before calling it a classic.
I know a lot of people love it, but I couldn't stand it. At least in the first episode, all the comedy just seemed to be based on the stereotypes of the characters, like a very tired sitcom dressed up to seem modern (see also:
My Name Is Earl). Maybe I'm missing something; it does sometimes take a while to get on a new show's comedy wavelength.
Anyway, in response I would offer
Community.
QuoteHouse is kind-of a classic already, but I fear that's only because Hugh Laurie is acting in it. To tell you the truth, it's getting kind of old and uneventful, so hopefully they'll either pick up the pace or pull the plug before its too late.
It's almost axiomatic to me that a procedural cannot be a classic, because they're so formulaic. I agree that Laurie has created a great character, but the constraints of the form makes it impossible for anything really meaningful to happen to that character.
Quote from: Snarky on Wed 29/12/2010 12:23:28
It's almost axiomatic to me that a procedural cannot be a classic, because they're so formulaic. I agree that Laurie has created a great character, but the constraints of the form makes it impossible for anything really meaningful to happen to that character.
It really depends on how you are defining classic, can a classic not be a show that did something really well? House can formulaic but is not afraid to stray away from the formula, see episodes "The Mistake" from season 2 or "The Right Stuff" from season 4 or the excellent "Three Stories" from season 1. All examples of them bending the formula, even leaving it completely behind to try something different. Also worth a watch is the double bill from the end of season 4 which is excellent if just for Character Development alone.
I agree that the Big Bang Theory is probably not a classic, american comedy produces less Great comedy because the Sitcom is such an overfilled genre on the networks over there, I think you could put Arrested Development into the category of Classic, as well as Friends which, whether you like it or not, is undeniably a milestone in the genre.
Quote from: Snarky on Wed 29/12/2010 12:23:28
Boardwalk Empire, despite only recently finishing its first season, deserves a spot here. Great cast, great writing. It's an HBO production, you can't go wrong with that.
I haven't seen it yet, but have heard mixed things about it. A lot of people seem to think it's heavy on the schtick and short on compelling drama.
If we're naming current HBO shows, I would go with
In Treatment. There is something hypnotically fascinating about watching Gabriel Byrne delving incisively into the subconscious of his patients, then repeatedly fucking up his own life because he's at the complete mercy of his own irrational impulses.[/quote]
I thought the same about
Boardwalk Empire after first seeing the pilot episode, but after some time I gave it another shot and it quickly grew on me. To tell you the truth, I tend to like everything with Buscemi in it, so I'm not that surprised.
I've heard about
In Treatment before but I never got a chance to check it out. Consider me intrigued!
Quote from: Snarky on Wed 29/12/2010 12:23:28
It's been mentioned a few times already, but Louie has got to be the best, instant-classic (or cult classic) comedy on TV right now. More than perhaps any other show on TV, it feels like one person's vision, a unique comic sensibility that is as strong as Larry David's in Curb Your Enthusiasm, but much more humane and melancholy.
I gave
Louie a chance a month or two ago, back when the internet was constantly going on about Louis C.K.'s comedic genius. It didn't sit quite right with me. I see the appeal in it, I do, but it just isn't my type of show (if that makes any sense).
Curb Your Enthusiasm, on the other hand, I love to catch up on every now and then.
Quote from: Snarky on Wed 29/12/2010 12:23:28
I have to admit that few sci-fi TV shows do it for me. [...] I gave up on Lost, Fringe, Supernatural, Heroes etc. within a few episodes (and in some cases less).
Same here for
Lost,
Fringe and
Heroes. I also understand why someone would give up on Supernatural, I'm tempted to do the same, but the brotherly moments Sam and Dean share often remind me of my brother and myself so that's kind of why I keep coming back to the show.
Quote from: Snarky on Wed 29/12/2010 12:23:28
The last live-action sci-fi show I pretty wholeheartedly enjoyed was The Middleman, which was firmly tongue-in-cheek. But even that was more of a guilty pleasure than a show of genuine greatness. That leaves The Venture Bros., which is unapologetically awesome, but again a comedy first and foremost.
I haven't seen
The Middleman (I'll check it out, though), but I whole-heartedly agree with you on
The Venture Bros.. It's my favourite Adult Swim show, along with
Metalocalypse.
Quote from: Snarky on Wed 29/12/2010 12:23:28
Yes, a promising adaptation, but when your season is only three episodes, one that is straight-up bad (the second one) is not an impressive hit rate.
That's a good point...
Quote from: Snarky on Wed 29/12/2010 12:23:28
I would still rather watch Justified or Terriers on FX, and among shows I don't watch I would be more interested in getting into Breaking Bad.
I've seen the first few episodes of
Justified and I thought it was pretty good. I have no idea what's stopping me from watching more, I should get back to that show. I've read about
Terriers and it sounded interesting, but it also reminded me a bit of
Psych (which isn't necessarily a bad thing) because of the whole buddy detectives angle.
Quote from: Snarky on Wed 29/12/2010 12:23:28
I know a lot of people love it, but I couldn't stand it. At least in the first episode, all the comedy just seemed to be based on the stereotypes of the characters, like a very tired sitcom dressed up to seem modern (see also: My Name Is Earl). Maybe I'm missing something; it does sometimes take a while to get on a new show's comedy wavelength.
Anyway, in response I would offer Community.
I know what you mean, I might be experiencing the same with
Louie.
I tried
Community, liked it, then gave up on it after a while because I grew tired of Chevy Chase. Perhaps the show has gotten better, I should try and get back on track.
Quote from: Snarky on Wed 29/12/2010 12:23:28
It's almost axiomatic to me that a procedural cannot be a classic, because they're so formulaic. I agree that Laurie has created a great character, but the constraints of the form makes it impossible for anything really meaningful to happen to that character.
Another good point. People will think back to
House, that's for sure, but the show itself can't bring us anything new or refreshing other than a not-so-average doctor.
A definite TV Classic, though its not been on the air a few years now, The Wire.
I just got the boxset for xmas, looking forward to spending a large chunk of the next few weeks watching it.
Quote from: Zooty on Wed 29/12/2010 13:23:14
It really depends on how you are defining classic, can a classic not be a show that did something really well? House can formulaic but is not afraid to stray away from the formula, see episodes "The Mistake" from season 2 or "The Right Stuff" from season 4 or the excellent "Three Stories" from season 1. All examples of them bending the formula, even leaving it completely behind to try something different. Also worth a watch is the double bill from the end of season 4 which is excellent if just for Character Development alone.
Yes, there can be excellent individual episodes, but then next week they have to go back and do the same thing over again. And I would argue that within a season, maybe after just one episode (say, "Three Stories"), you've learned all there is to know about Dr. House. Hugh Laurie is an excellent actor, so he keeps your interest, but it's really just the same points over and over again.
I would say a classic can't just be doing the same old thing but doing it well. It then at least has to offer a new take, a new distinct "voice". I think that goes for procedurals (police shows, lawyer shows, doctor shows etc. that focus on the "case of the week") and also for sitcoms.
Quote from: poltergeist on Wed 29/12/2010 13:50:34
I thought the same about Boardwalk Empire after first seeing the pilot episode, but after some time I gave it another shot and it quickly grew on me. To tell you the truth, I tend to like everything with Buscemi in it, so I'm not that surprised.
I plan to give it another shot in the future (I tried watching the first episode on my iPod while working out, which... didn't work out). I also like Buscemi a lot, and I enjoy the period patter enough that I might watch it just for that.
There are a lot of HBO shows I want to catch up with some time:
Band of Brothers,
The Pacific,
Generation Kill,
Treme,
Rome. If there was time, I wouldn't mind watching the rest of
Oz, either.
QuoteI gave Louie a chance a month or two ago, back when the internet was constantly going on about Louis C.K.'s comedic genius. It didn't sit quite right with me. I see the appeal in it, I do, but it just isn't my type of show (if that makes any sense). Curb Your Enthusiasm, on the other hand, I love to catch up on every now and then.
Yeah, I think it's the nature of really distinctive comedy that it won't appeal to everyone. If you gave it a shot, fair enough. Did you see the episode "Bully", which is probably the most sublime in the first season?
QuoteI've read about Terriers and it sounded interesting, but it also reminded me a bit of Psych (which isn't necessarily a bad thing) because of the whole buddy detectives angle.
It's really nothing at all like
Psych. I would say it's more like
Veronica Mars by way of
The Big Lebowski, but with more heartfelt drama and lighter on the wisecracks.
QuoteI tried Community, liked it, then gave up on it after a while because I grew tired of Chevy Chase. Perhaps the show has gotten better, I should try and get back on track.
Personally I actually think the second season is not quite up to the level of the first, but I believe I'm in a minority there. I never felt like Chevy Chase was a big element on the show: the breakout characters are Abed and Troy (Danny Pudi and Donald Glover) for comedy and Annie (Allison Brie) for sex appeal. But I think once the show became aware of this and started playing it up consciously, it became a little forced.
Quote from: [Cameron] on Wed 29/12/2010 14:59:17
A definite TV Classic, though its not been on the air a few years now, The Wire.
I just got the boxset for xmas, looking forward to spending a large chunk of the next few weeks watching it.
Quote from: Zooty on Wed 29/12/2010 13:23:14
I think you could put Arrested Development into the category of Classic, as well as Friends which, whether you like it or not, is undeniably a milestone in the genre.
Yes, if I were to pick the best comedy and the best drama of the decade, it would have to go to
Arrested Development and
The Wire. But as they ran back in 2003-2006 and 2002-2008, respectively, and are already recognized as classics, I kind of considered them out of the running here.
Quote from: [Cameron] on Wed 29/12/2010 14:59:17
A definite TV Classic, though its not been on the air a few years now, The Wire.
I just got the boxset for xmas, looking forward to spending a large chunk of the next few weeks watching it.
SNAP!
I've already seen the whole thing, but my ladyfriend got me it for Christmas, and golly gosh do I look forward to seeing it again.
I finished Season One of Boardwalk Empire today, and thoroughly enjoyed it. Very glad it's been picked up for another season. It's not as good as Mad Men or Treme yet, but it has potential.
Speaking of the office, I also find the English version of it with Rick Gervais to be quite sad at times and incredibly funny also. Just more witty at times.