what TV series should i begin?

breaking bad

sunny in philly

ilx says Unopened Boxsets that I liked the look of from the Pilot: The ILX Television 51 Show Countdown Extravaganza!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

what was the last one?

there is a lot of male nudity in Oz

Sunny

I voted for 6FU even though I've still never seen the last season and have no idea how it ends.

Note: I don't think 6FU is the *best* show in this list, but it's really easy to get hooked on in marathon form.

no you guys, breaking bad, really

breaking bad or mad men would be the most rewarding of these

sunny in philadelphia and weeds seem overrated to me, judging on what i've seen of them.

have no idea how it ends.

With Sia.

i'd rank them like: west wing > lost > deadwood > justified > breaking bad > the shield > mad men > (haven't really watched always sunny or oz or dexter) >>>>> six feet under >>>>>>>>>>>>>> weeds

six feet under is great great if you only watch the first two or two and half seasons so I would rule that out if you have options like bb or mm

now i've looked back, ilx says mad men.

just watch season 6 of lost

Sunny, cuz there's nary a trace of self-importance. All the others wear it strong, whether it's earned (sometimes) or not (often).

that was then, but then breaking bad also beat mad men in a poll, the future is breaking bad xp

h8ted six feet under fyi. none of the characters were likable. it was a show about selfish and sad people doing bad things to each other.

The West Wing has a great pilot and is a horrible slog after that point. I have nothing negative to say about the others (well Lost kind of got stupid in the later season but there were still some awesome fakeouts).

Voted Oz because I love L&O

i'd say watch mad men but every few episodes sneak in an episode of always sunny.

If I might suggest an "other," Dead Like Me was great fun for its two seasons. Never NEVER watch its follow-up film though.

RE: Johnny Fever's last post.

Also, Alf.

I always meant to watch Oz some day, also True Blood. Voting for Oz.

what ~sort of thing~ are you in the mood for?

unnecessary question

Terriers!

i dunno what i'm in the mood for

i'm leaning towards west wing but i wary of getting sucked into a show that supposedly sucks for like half of its existence

If I might suggest an "other," Dead Like Me was great fun for its two seasons. Never NEVER watch its follow-up film though.

― Johnny Fever, Sunday, March 6, 2011 11:06 PM (4 minutes ago) Bookmark

love Bryan Fuller but Dead Like Me was his weakest show, Wonderfalls and Pushing Daisies both way better imo

gonna assume you've seen community

wonderfalls was bonkers, loved it.

i just finished watching the whole run of West Wing not long ago and imo it sags in the middle but a lot of the 2nd half is totally good and worthwhile, if not on par with the early seasons

then toss out 6fu and lost too xxxxp

Ugh, don't even dare with Lost. 6 years of stout devoteeism, even buying myself a Dharma t-shirt.... for the most shit finale in all television. The show's infrastructure, it's pulling power, lies in what the mystery behind the island is... you get vague, illogical explanations that seem to only cite magic (Harry Potter's universe is more coherent!)as the reason behind everything. If you do choose to invest 3782084273 hours into one of the biggest disappointments of your foreseeable life, I didn't really spoil much. If the spoiler were even worthy of a tag.

Mad Men is my second favorite show next to Buffy. Breaking Bad's pretty great as well but I just have this complete lack of interest in continuing it beyond the first season. Oz is pretty great, but like Lost, gets worse with each consecutive season.

i haven't seen any of these either except for an episode or two

my picks would be
oz
deadwood
mad men

Terriers still doesn't have confirmed deal for DVD release (although as of a couple weeks ago reports were optimistic)

gonna assume you've seen community

― mookieproof, Sunday, March 6, 2011 11:12 PM (1 minute ago) Bookmark

yeah i don't really fuck w/ it

i'm very 'journey not the destination' with Lost, have the DVDs of the first 5 seasons and will probably give them to my kid someday and tell him to just watch those and not bother with 6

i think i'm gonna watch oz eventually but i'm coming off the wire so i think i'm gonna put it off

watch the first two seasons of deadwood -- the best thing on the list. alternatively iasip is hilarious and mad men is the best drama on right now and if you catch up you can watch it when the new season airs which is no small thing. west wing sorkin seasons are great too.

I never really mentioned this anywhere but I was in a rite aid last week and saw a seinfeld version of Clue

there's prob no way i'm watching lost, i just put it in there for the hell of it

mad men

love Bryan Fuller but Dead Like Me was his weakest show, Wonderfalls and Pushing Daisies both way better imo

Never saw Wonderfalls. Meant to when it was one, and have meant to since it went off. Pushing Daisies was far too cutesy for me, though.

one of the weapons is the Big Salad

maybe I have mentioned it

i've been watching oz lately. in fact, watching an episode right now. it's brutal, but tonally so weird. i think if the theme interests you, you should check it out. but don't expect much. it's definitely from a pre-Sopranos world.

'george at the soup nazi's....with hand'

HOMICIDE is so clearly target practice for THE WIRE, but mighty fine nonetheless.

it's definitely from a pre-Sopranos world.

― Mordy, Monday, March 7, 2011 4:16 AM (17 seconds ago) Bookmark

plz tell me what this means i am v v curious

they have the chinese restaurant but no soup nazi kitchen

i totally get PD being too cutesy; i'm rewatching it lately and enjoying it less than i did at the time. Wonderfalls is a kick though, definitely check it out.

honestly i don't see how mad men could actually be interesting but a. it's obv very acclaimed b. i love love the sopranos, so the matthew weiner connection intrigues me

the mystery is Who Killed Newman or something

HOMICIDE is so clearly target practice for THE WIRE, but mighty fine nonetheless.

― Comics can't all be syringes and scalpels poised before eyes. y'know? (R Baez), Sunday, March 6, 2011 11:16 PM (16 seconds ago) Bookmark

yeah i actually meant to inquire about this -- just finished the wire

plz tell me what this means i am v v curious

I mean that how to do a cable drama wasn't so developed. So instead of just letting the ideas and stories speak for themselves the show is constantly spelling out what it means. So many of the plots are poorly thought out and so many of the characters seem completely out of place. It's obv very mature in terms of content, but in terms of aesthetics is really still grasping at kinda that future HBO-style.

kramer in elaine's apartment w/ a brass bro

imo Mad Men isn't at all interesting, but i know i'm in an extreme minority about that

honestly i don't see how mad men could actually be interesting

You and my mother are in the same club.

i did recently begin menopause

if you just want a taste of mad men, i recommend watching season 3 and just use wiki to catch up on the characters

deadwood tho is the classic on that list.

ok that's insane

I liked the first season or two of mad men but it's so one note

I thought I liked it for 2-3 seasons before realizing that I just found it kinda boring

Oz is fun trash, that's all.

voted Deadwood cuz I figured you wouldn't start The Bob Newhart Show.

ok that's insane

?

oops I meant to highlight 'imo Mad Men isn't at all interesting, but i know i'm in an extreme minority about that', the italics was my first attempt at a sentence lol tired

better yet, there's an Ernie Kovacs box on the way

I imagine starting mm w/ season 3 and using a wiki would be like reading a gamefaqs walkthrough or something

The first two episodes of Mad Men basically spelled out that however well it was written and acted, that show was just not for me. Tonally, it came across super aggressively nostalgic about sexism and racism and, while I know that morphs over the course of the show, it really put me off from pursuing it further.

i don't see the connection. season 3 is the best mad men season. why bother with shittier seasons just to get to the good one?

jordan have you watched the larry sanders show

oh man, larry sanders show A++ recommendation

because people don't read the last chapter of a book first even if it's the best chapter?

jordan have you watched the larry sanders show

― puff puff post (uh oh I'm having a fantasy), Sunday, March 6, 2011 11:23 PM (50 seconds ago) Bookmark

oh fuck -- i had totally written this down too!!

thanking u fantasy -- ok the winner of this poll comes after larry sanders

otoh you do start watching in the middle of a soap opera, so

these are cute comparisons but totally irrelevant. ppl jump off and on tv shows all the time. life is too short to be ocd about this. watch what is good.

breaking bad
deadwood
it's always sunny in philadelphia
mad men

all so good, im jealous

I didn't think J0rdan was into comedy much, judging by his Dr Morbius jokes

morbs don't read this post but plowing through tv shows is so easy w/ netflix that the thought of watching a movie seems akin to sailing around the world

downside of deadwood is that, if you dont download it, there are only like two freaking episodes per disk

I didn't think J0rdan was into comedy much, judging by his Dr Morbius jokes

― kind of shrill and very self-righteous (Dr Morbius), Sunday, March 6, 2011 11:26 PM (50 seconds ago) Bookmark

DAMN, DOGGIE

or like me listening to post-1992 hiphop

xxp

these are cute comparisons but totally irrelevant. ppl jump off and on tv shows all the time. life is too short to be ocd about this. watch what is good.

― Mordy, Monday, March 7, 2011 4:25 AM (13 seconds ago) Bookmark

haha dude way to be flippant and your point is taken and shit but sorry they're not irrelevant

lots of the deadwood disks have commentary tracks that are pretty interesting thoguh

y-you don't listen to post 1992 hip hop becuase its so easy to stream the bob newhart show?

all the SCTV volumes til John Candy left

i need to get on some fuckin deadwood

i don't even like to watch later episodes of sitcoms if i haven't seen the earlier seasons, the idea of skipping forward in a continuity-heavy drama and reading summaries is just guh

yes

in terms of the dramas:

Deadwood > Breaking Bad > Mad Men > The Shield > Justified - they're all pretty great, mind, though The Shield is a bit too long. Terriers is great too, plus it's only 13 episodes long.

Never seen Oz. Fuck Dexter, Lost and 6FU. Weeds has a couple of good seasons early on but quickly degrades.

It's Always Sunny is great but hardly needs to be watched marathon-style.

For me watching deadwood was like the tv version of taking a political philosophy of America course

oh and fuck The West Wing too

Dexter is pretty ridic for the most part.

yeah do what ian said upthread, whatever you watch just watch sunny once in a while

Dexter is hilarious sometimes awesome trash (I watch)

also remember to eat your vegetables

Also first season of damages is tops

Damages is one I need to start on myself.

basically The Shield and Justifed being the only FX shows on this list is rong to me, Terriers and Sons of Anarchy and Damages own

how do you guys watch so much tv jeez

The best thing about Dexter is his sister Deb, who I relate to in weird ways? (bad shit happens to, stupid dirty mouth, dumb clothing (I would like to not I don't have her insaniac daddy issues tho))

not in a 'I'm judging you' way, more in a practically, I don't know how I could fit 5 FX shows on my schedule xp

I'm old and boring and don't care about going out. Tv is easy.

ehhh SoA is not nearly as good as it should be, s2 was tarnished by the bullshit ending and s3 was mostly boring.

J0rdan, I can't remember...have you or have you not watched Party Down?

btw I am **glad** I read this thread just for this exciting news

better yet, there's an Ernie Kovacs box on the way

― kind of shrill and very self-righteous (Dr Morbius), Sunday, March 6, 2011 9:22 PM

Deadwood or The Shield. I'm with some dude on this though - "imo Mad Men isn't at all interesting, but i know i'm in an extreme minority about that." Watched the whole first season and loved the look of it, but was meh on everything else.

can't speak for anyone else but i've been a stay-at-home dad for the last year and a half and have been renting literally half the options in this thread while home w/ the baby

It's Always Sunny is great but hardly needs to be watched marathon-style.

― Simon H. Shit (Simon H.), Sunday, March 6, 2011 11:31 PM (3 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

only comedy ive ever watched in a marathon-style, this show is just never not hilarious to me, ive watched the d.e.n.n.i.s. system like 5 times

okay that sounds like not the worst life

I was way into Oz at some point near the end, but I went back and tried to watch it from the start and it's kind of a slog. Unlike the Wire, it works much better for 30 minutes every seven days.

J0rdan, I can't remember...have you or have you not watched Party Down?

― Johnny Fever, Sunday, March 6, 2011 11:37 PM (2 minutes ago) Bookmark

duh -- my fav show

what about Newsradio?

i faintly remember it from when it was still on, but no not really

I liked Newsradio at the time, but I've seen some episodes since and (though I always love seeing Phil Hartman do anything) I really don't like it as much now.

Like season 2-4 of Newsradio, go for it. Otherwise, please avoid.

Throwing a curveball and recommending the lone season of Clone High.

that sounds like the taco bell of tv shows

You'll never take a recommendation from me seriously again. ;_;

plowing through tv shows is so easy w/ netflix that the thought of watching a movie seems akin to sailing around the world

you Millennials tend to have short attention spans? I hadn't noticed.

morbs i did sit through three whole baseball games this weekend

that sounds like the taco bell of tv shows

― pascal's swagger (J0rdan S.), Monday, March 7, 2011 4:49 AM (8 minutes ago) Bookmark

<33333333333333

Oh, and HOMICIDE is like THE WIRE before it grew up. I sometimes think it's a "you had to be there" thing, "there" being a pree-WIRE time. It really had some FANTASTIC MOMENTS, though. More inclined to be sensationalistic due to the "please don't cancel us" state of network tv. Fantastic character work. Why didn't Kyle Secor get more work? Avoid avoid avoid the last season. AND READ THE BOOK.

Adena Watson still bugs me. Everytime Andre Braugher shows up on screen though, I kinda forgive every little misgiving.

brady bunch

clone high is so bad

"Oh, and HOMICIDE is like THE WIRE before it grew up."

missphrase. HOMICIDE is like a younger, bit more simplistic WIRE, more like.

BUFFY

THE VAMPIRE

SLAYER

clone high is so bad

My heart is sobbing right now.

I'm sorry :(

but it is

Yeah no offense when I say this but it seems you're pretty illiterate in MUST-SEE SHOWS... so I'll also throw out Buffy and Firefly as essential viewing, and two of the best series I've ever seen.

It's somewhat of a rarity that any (non-Canadian) I run across has even seen it, but everyone I've watched it with comes away liking it. idg what's not to like! xp

Buffy is a classic example of a great show that benefits from only watching the better episodes. Otherwise you're drowning in shitty monster of the week bullshit.

I think that makes it the tragically hip of tv shows

Firefly is running on Science Channel right now. Never watched it before, but gonna try to do so shortly.

fwiw my canadian friend tried to get us to watch it

It's all right. There's one ep - "Out Of Gas" - that's just mind-blowingly good.

I'm not even Canadian. I just watched it when it ran on MTV, and later bought the dvd when it came out so I could see the last few episodes MTV didn't air. xp

People watch Buffy for the plot? It was always the ~daily shenanigans~ with the Scooby Gang that kept me coming back episode to episode. Monster of the week eps > relevant to Buffy's arc. Really b/c they're so conscious of their own selves and the defiance of cliches that the show is famous for... everything you ever read in Goosebumps (if you're, erm, of that age group) is reenacted in Buffy, basically.

Never watched Buffy the show, but remember liking the movie (though I haven't seen that in eons tbh).

go play outside

People watch Buffy for the plot? It was always the ~daily shenanigans~ with the Scooby Gang that kept me coming back episode to episode. Monster of the week eps > relevant to Buffy's arc. Really b/c they're so conscious of their own selves and the defiance of cliches that the show is famous for... everything you ever read in Goosebumps (if you're, erm, of that age group) is reenacted in Buffy, basically.

― Crouching Seward, Hidden Raggett (kelpolaris), Monday, March 7, 2011 12:22 AM (5 minutes ago)

http://fourfour.typepad.com/.a/6a00d83451b8c369e20134850b083c970c-pi

xpost
Never seen the movie myself, but heard it was mostly terrible. I can only assume that the show differs in the sense that it, aside from initial episodes, totally lives and breathes in it's own self-imposed ridiculii... the existence of vamps, sewer dragqueens, space aliens, demons, etc, etc, etc comes as a near part of regular HS life.

+ imo, the overall plots blow in 4th & 5th season... p much as soon as the Scooby Gang departs HS does the series go on a coherency decline. Things get uncomfortably ridiculous, and while I still loved every episode and the consistent writing & dialog despite, I admittedly have rolled my eyes at the choices Joss Whedon made for how certain baddies would be repeated & such (season 4: employ Matrix-superpowers)

kevin: wut

*..dragons...

+ repeated = defeated. dunno what my freudian is on about.

i wasn't gonna suggest buffy cause i figured sarge would just be like 'no' cause i know it aint seem to be up u alley

i'm not SAYIN i'm just ~sayin~: its worth your time sometime.

breaking bad - never seen this, the dad was on malcolm in the middle
deadwood - love this in theory but my girlfriend wont watch it with me so ive only seen a couple episodes
dexter - seems dumb?
it's always sunny in philadelphia - really funny sometimes and sometimes not funny
justified - ya watch this one
lost - god this show got so bad at the end, i will never forgive it
mad men - so good but its probably fun to be that guy who is like "oh ive never seen mad men what is it about, angry men"
oz - lol this show is kind of hilar, idk, i love b.d. wong
the shield - only seen a few episodes, seems like there is ethically questionable behavior, gave me a lot of anxiety
six feet under - this show is about feelings
weeds - mary louise parker
west wing - mary louise parker

(other)

damages - rose byrne
battlestar galactica - rawest shit out, dont even bother with the last season and a half
southland - the guy from the o.c. is in this

i wasn't gonna suggest buffy cause i figured sarge would just be like 'no' cause i know it aint seem to be up u alley

yeah i couldnt tell if he was on some just recommend me critically acclaimed HBO shit ish but BUFFY

it's always Sunny. that show has me in stitches, I've watched 5 seasons worth in 3 months.

the shield - only seen a few episodes, seems like there is ethically questionable behavior, gave me a lot of anxiety

ha

i say oz because of the finished series i think it's the best (of the ones i've seen).

if i'm gonna do a whole series thing i get upset if i watch a whole bunch of eps and then have to wait 5 months for a new ep (ie, breaking bad, which i recently started... now i'm like damn, cause i gotta wait til the new season airs right after i got hooked in).

The Shiled takes a little too long to wrap up but it has an incredibly satisfying ending.

Speaking of shows that end nicely: Friday Night Lights.

argh "Shield," obv

Agreed. FNL was superb (barring S2).

voted for "breaking bad"

count me among the legion of other ILXors who find "mad men" to be a tedious bore/snoozefest. not alone and not a philistine yay!

actually I thought after the shaky start, S2 of FNL recovered nicely. The finale is a riot.

and by "start" I mean like "first eight episodes"

Yeah, S2 wasn't a total wash, but that initial story arc for Landry/Tyra really casts a shadow on what came after it.

deadwood is the best show on that list

I haven't seen any of these shows besides Dexter and Justified... I guess actually serious dramas don't really appeal to me. I'm gonna vote other and say you should check out Leverage. Those three are all great if you want to watch crime/procedural type dramas that aren't too hard hitting. Personally, I have always heard good things about Deadwood and 6FU.

I'm thinking of watching Deadwood myself, possibly Rome which I think I got around the same time soon.

Watched Mad Men through from the 2nd series last year, enjoyed greatly.
Ditto with Dexter which I'd only watched odd episodes of before.

Watched Weeds through from beginning to about 3 episodes before the end & only stopped there cos I needed to catch up with getting episodes. Now just need to burn to disc.

was thinking about Lost cos I never watched it when it was on tv. & friends had thought it good.

Oz I just grabbed from Demonoid, burned disc of first 3 episodes which I need to watch. Had looked up HBO series after having watched The Wire last year so got this, Carnivale which I've got to watch the last 3 episodes of series 1 of. Have heard that series 2 ends mid story thanks to cancelation. Also got Californication, found later bits of that compelling over Xmas.

6 Feet Under I enjoyed at the time it was on & have meant to compile to disc & watch through.

Other things I've watched through
Spooks, UK spy series
Dr Who All of it pretty much, though I don't think I watched all of the Hartnell & Troughton still photographe recreation episodes. do wish somebody would do a proper animation of that material or something.
Survivors the '70s original series
Doomwatch another 70s sci-fi thing.
Fall & Rise of Reggie Perrin the Leonard Rossiter stuff
UFO Gerry Anderson live action series with cool costumes.
Living In Your Car Canadian series about embezzling millionaire's redemption
Sons Of Anarchy Hamlet replayed in Californian biker gangs
Fringe some good stuff in here I think, some iffy, a few ex-Wire players
Sanctuary not sure if I'm going to finish the recent series. Have enjoyed earlier episodes.
Mongrels UK adult puppet show.
Ideal BBC comedy series about a smalltime drugdealer. Pretty funny.
Tripping The Rift Adult them,ed computer animation scatological Star Trek etc takeoff
Sherlock modern update of Conan Doyle's character from last year.

I could go on but the list is getting pretty long.

Easy vote for Mad Men. Deadwood is the only thing that came close.

the shield or oz imo

weeds - mary louise parker
west wing - mary louise parker
damages - rose byrne

haaaa

when did TV start making "great" shows, about '92, right?

HBO is central to that process yeah? Wd argue it's more a case of pre-90s great TV being predominantly sitcoms and then the talent shifting to dramas.

But sump'n like Hill Street Blues was pretty great and ahead of the curve.

The Singing Detective
Pennies from Heaven
Naked City

In closing, Sgt Bilko aka You'll Never Get Rich aka The Phil Silvers Show

british tv was better before 1992

I'm about to start watching Boardwalk Empire. I take it it's alright?

Ideal BBC comedy series about a smalltime drugdealer. Pretty funny.

Imagine the first time the word "funny" has ever been used in connection with "Ideal"

I got bored after the first episode xp

it gets boringer

i just started the danish 'the killing' and it's dope

british tv was better before 1992

Beeb 1 and Channel 4 in particular have dropped off long and hard

Maybe, certainly aren't as many good films on Beeb + Channel 4 as there used to be. Was kind of gobsmacked to find "In a Lonely Place" on Beeb 2 yesterday afternon - some mistake by programmers perhaps?

BBC1 takes no fucking chances with drama now. Not with comedy either but that might be a good thing judging by BBC3's output. Somebody confused popular with populist braindead shite at some point. Can't remember if Panorama was always as unremittingly stupid as it is now but jaysus. Ditto the vast majority of the news output.

Channel 4 is the channel I hate most in the world tho. Might as well bulldoze the fucker and run Controversial TV on terrestrial.

i think i just mean drama was better -- the writing anyway

i don't watch everything and i know it wasn't all gold back then, buuuut...

ts the new version of 'survivors' vs the old one

only gonna address what's in the poll

Breaking Bad / Deadwood - all-time classics, awesome, only three cable seasons, watch them now

Dexter / Lost - some really great shit throughout the seasons, but Lost has a big drop-off (though s4/5 are still totally worth it) and Dexter has boring seasons 3 and 5, so maybe you should skip these shows. HOWEVER - they are exactly the kind of super-addictive TV conducive to marathon viewing and essentially worthwhile. Lost especially, imo, even with the bad episodes, the quality stuff was all-time.

Justified - good stuff, only 1 season and some change to knock out to catch up to the present

Sunny - no need for marathon viewing as someone said earlier, but lots of great stuff throughout

Mad Men - watch 1 episode and see if you hate this show as much as I did. Also concur with that comment earlier about appreciating the acting/production/etc. but it's just not for me.

Note - virtually every show declines in quality halfway through or disappoints people eventually, especially if it gets to an ending, so always take those hindsight backlashes with a grain of salt

xp

yeah of course there's always been a lot of crap but what chance a Play for Today or a 21st Century Potter or Bleasdale getting a first airing on BBC1 now?

BBC1 takes no fucking chances with drama now.

True. Spends a lot more than on it than it used to, I would imagine.

Ironically, those Play For Today's cost about a fiver to make

i just started the danish 'the killing' and it's dope

Started to watch those too a few days back to see what the fuss is all about. The pace is a bit slow, it's really frustrating the way there are a few characters that seem quite dodgy from the start but who don't come under any suspicion for ages. That gum chewing is pissing me off a lot too.

i'll see where it leads but it makes brit crime dramas look incredibly contrived. the brits have some amazing actors but the writers/directors are really scared of boring the audience.

Nearly everything else I've seen on BBC3 is terrible, but I'll rep for Being Human, which is probably better than anything on BBC1, never mind BBC3.

The Shield. Just do the last two seasons if you need to move on to something else.

The first two episodes of Mad Men basically spelled out that however well it was written and acted, that show was just not for me. Tonally, it came across super aggressively nostalgic about sexism and racism and, while I know that morphs over the course of the show, it really put me off from pursuing it further.

― goth barbershop quartet (DJP), Sunday, March 6, 2011 11:22 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

whaat depiction isnt iirc the same thing nostalgia - the view of these things absolutely doesnt 'morph over time' - im not sure what else you want the show to do to demonstrate that it considers the characters prejudices to be confused miserable and wrong - maybe have them wear not such nice clothes - not be privileged - or maybe someone could give a speech abt how wrong it all is

some really crazy things have been written abt mad men on this thread jus btw - its unparalleled amongst the shows mentioned here as far as character development subtly and purity of vision - i can understand not being into cause its too slow or brutal or whatever - but thinking its just stylish window dressing is missing the point big time BIG TIME

it came across super aggressively nostalgic about sexism and racism

This is the exact opposite of what it is.

But yeah, first response in this thread is correct, go for Breaking Bad, it's fucking brilliant.

I really just haven't felt drawn in by the characters or their stories on Mad Men at all, they feel more like archetypes than people to me

This is the exact opposite of what it is.

while I know that morphs over the course of the show, it really put me off from pursuing it further

ok

what is mad men even about, angry men

the biggest thing that put me off the pilot was that they felt the need to explain what the title of the show means

man I watched mad men into the 4th season until I realized that I really didn't care when I missed episodes, themes just too repetitive, not very much plot momentum per hour of tv

don draper: i am so angry all the time
pete campbell: yes, me as well
roger sterling: all of us, so angry
don draper: you might say we are mad
[dramatic pause]
mad men
[everyone lights a cigarette]

i thought it meant 'lots of men', which isn't inaccurate

joan: welcome to the sterling cooper advertising agency
peggy: thank you, i am very excited
joan: any questions
peggy: yes, only one
joan: go on
peggy: there are so many men here
joan: yes
[lights cigarette]
there are mad men in this office
peggy: oh

actually the main problem i have with mad men is how aggressively LOL LOOK HOW MANY TERRIBLE POLITICAL ERRORS THESE PEOPLE ARE MAKING! it can be.

THEY HAVE LEFT THEIR TRASH BEHIND!

another good complaint

joan: one last thing
peggy: what is it
joan: its about the viewers of this show
peggy: i dont understand
joan: sometimes they get frustrated with us
peggy: what do you mean
joan: sometimes, they will get mad
[lights cigarette]
[whispers]
mad men

the show can be really really good though. it just has a few tics. also i guess i'd say the acting's better than the writing.

deadwood

let me warn you though, the producers are pretty flagrant with how awful and retrograde the workplace was in a lawless 19th cent mining settlement

ha

S3 of Mad Men is awesome, the rest I'd just call "very good" for the most part.

s03 is the worst imo, too much betty

this might not be along the right lines but my so-called life just appeared on netflix instant watch, and once you hit the midpoint of the single season my so-called life is breathtaking.

instant watch doesn't have rome though which i really really really want to see even if it's bad. i might have to take drastic steps, like obtain some kind of physical copy.

oh god hating betty is kind of a bad, done-to-death look though...

don's love life is the least innaresting part of the show for me

i voted deadwood too. i watched two eps of weeds and it was really really awful btw.

most shows in some way function as a "place to hang out", i.e. characters, setting, etc (treme takes this to extremes). so in breaking bad for instance, i like hanging out with these people. they feel real, i can relate to them, they're not all simply horrible. with the wire there's more voyeurism going on (to put it uncharitably) - you get to hang out in places that normal people simply aren't allowed: police stations, drug corners. with mad men, i just have no desire to hang out in that milieu. rich, beautiful people and their awful awful problems. booooo hoo.

of course, 90% of shakespeare's plays are about rich, beautiful people and their awful problems so i don't know what my point is exactly.

that mad men is like shakespeare's crappy stuff

because of the job the man mens are doing, they are a) sort of infecting us with their problems? but at the same time trying to b) understand what everyone else's problems are. 'the public' is kind of the unseen character the whole time.

breaking bad > mad men >>>>>>>>>>the rest of those shows

j0rdan arent u deep into seinfeld? if thats right than its always sunny in a walk

deadwood is the most worthwhile show listed tho

yeah it's always sunny is kind of seinfeld-y except with even more despicable characters

just started deadwood and am pretty blown away by how amazing it is.

tried and couldn't get into deadwood, all I remember is they were trying to protect a girl and there was cursing

breaking bad tho is A+++++++++, the last two eps of s3 were like high water marks of TV viewing

breaking bad is good, & id say its the 2nd best show itl but the 1st season is p dumm whereas deadwood is consistently great.

id rep for 'damages' above most of the other shows tbh

the mAD men work on MADison Avenue, ya know

I love crime fiction, and Breaking Bad is probably my favorite show on here, but I feel Breaking Bad is more enjoyable to someone who just 'discovers it' on their own, instead of finally watching it because it's so highly acclaimed & recommended by everyone on earth. I will cast a vote for The Shield, because despite its (minor) flaws it makes almost everything on this list seem stodgy, refined, and in some cases self-important. It is a raw show that aims to keep your adrenaline pumping. Don't watch it before bed!

no it's awesome if you're watching it because it's so highly acclaimed & recommended by everyone on earth, too

also idgi when ppl say breaking bad s1 was not good, never seen a show more sure straight out the gate

Watched S1 of Breaking Bad and had to kind of quit on the show because it's a little too good -- resonates with a lot of my own family drama. So that's probably a vote in its favor. But my actual click-vote is Deadwood.

ha this is many xpps but I thought it was that they're were MADison avenue ADvertising men... thus MAD MEN... If thats not what the title actually is referring to then I think I've been giving that show way more credit for governess than it deserves...

governess = cleverness, my brain must have had a ministroke or something.

and morbs beat me anyway. 0 for 2 today...

MADAD MEN

peggy: joan i have a question
joan: what is it peggy
peggy: you know how don and pete and roger call themselves mad men?
joan: no
peggy: do you think it is a play on words based on the location of their business, madison avenue, and the colloquialism for their profession, ad men, with the double meaning of "crazy male"
joan:
[lights cigarette]
peggy: joan what is sex

don's love life is the least innaresting part of the show for me

― someone_who_cares_about_hipsters (history mayne), Monday, March 7, 2011 8:23 AM (2 hours ago)

yeah. he's real easy on the eyes, esp. shirtless, but apart from that, his dalliances are kinda dull to watch -- except for the boho girl from season 1, but that was primarily because her friends and the don/boho friends interactions were good.

lol max

I wish Max was a writer on Mad Men

Mad Men - watch 1 episode and see if you hate this show as much as I did.

I think Mad Men deserves at least a half a season before you decide. I think I spent the first episode irritated about all the smoking and over-the-top sexism and lol '60s of it but after a few episodes it started to reveal the things that I currently like about it. It's a high-quality soap opera though.

Whereas with Lost ... if you don't like the first episode you're probably not going to like the show at all.

that is very true re: Lost

that is why I only ever saw the first ep of Lost

if Max wrote for Mad Men, wouldn't it be like copious long shots of Joan bent over the new copier or something?

was there ever a more depressing tv show than Oz?

seriously, Oz makes The Wire seem hopeful and happy.

i think i have a bigger crush on jon hamm than on joan tbh

I talked at a past employer reunion with a guy who worked in advertising in MM era, and he said after the drunky lunches, some people came back to the office in the afternoon and some people didn't. Cuz you see, new stuff was messengered out to the client in late morning, and they wouldn't reply til the next day. Now, INSTANT REJECTION VIA COMPUTER! and 24-hr workday.

Burdens of Oz lightened by all the beefcake.

xp - like The Wire is kinda reassuring, in context, that because D'Angelo is a Barksdale he is going to be taken care of in prison, and not get raped or fucked with like so many of the younger guys in Oz.

certainly worked out well for him

watching a sympathetic character get strangled and die quickly is far less painful than watching him get raped and humiliated day-in day-out imo.

xp - they should do a modern Mad Men where Don has to show 10 options to each client and is constantly updating his adobe software

i watched two eps of weeds and it was really really awful btw.

― congratulations (n/a), Monday, March 7, 2011 11:23 AM (1 hour ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

ditto, Weeds and Californication are such amazingly pathetic excuses for television (like television period, not just premium cable) that it amazes me every time Showtime manages a decent show

Don would also be pretty averse to social media campaigns

could see Pete coming up with the idea of sockpuppet users to tweet about the client's product though

eh, fuck it. I voted for Breaking Bad

u shd watch terriers

breaking bad freals

Breaking Bad doesn't have a lot of, you know, time involvement... which is kinda to me the reason you watch a TV show instead of read a book/watch a movie/do something... you're bored and want some sort of gratification RITE NOAW. You'll be caught up within a wk if you just watch a couple eps every night.

This is p. much the reason I don't fault Buffy's "ultimately irrelevant" monster of the week episodes... shit, I just wanna be entertained.

I would rather watch something good than something that has a lot of episodes I can kill time with.

breaking bad - I enjoyed the first 2 seasons and am looking forward to the next. Probably the darkest show on this list.

deadwood - I recall liking this and have recently been thinking about revisiting the series. My only complaint is that the hyper-stylized dialogue can be a bit much to follow (I'm slow)

it's always sunny in philadelphia - love this, but it's not for everyone. You need to be able to deal with highly offensive humor and completely hateful characters. Danny DeVito and Charlie are A++++++ though.

mad men - voted for this. I'm kind of surprised by how much hate it's getting itt. I thought ilx generally likes it. I think it's great and will only get better as it edges into the latter part of the 60s. Don + hippies = quality entertainment

the shield - liked it a lot even though it goes on way too long and gets overly repetitive. Depends how much you like slogging through 6 seasons only to have continual plot strands that reference back to minor details from 4 seasons ago.

six feet under - started out great, ended horribly. I hated all the characters by the end of this. Nate maniacally swatting at a bird with a broom is pretty much all that stuck with me, and I'm not pleased about that.

yeah, i'm sure everyone has the same mentality, but in that case i'd rather watch a movie. it's not like TV is the only medium you're allowed to experience.

xpost

Breaking Bad is darker than Oz?????????????

i liked Six Feet Under -- it was painful at times, but Brenda and Billy were really great characters, and Claire at art school was kinda hilarious.

+ p much every show - classics from The Wire, Sopranos, etc - is just bullshit drawn out for as long as possibly entertaining. You're not gaining a superior experience simply b/c longetivity.

Which is where TV shows value character a lil more... you become attached to p much any show you choose to follow for more than 1 season. And in that case, if I like the characters that much... I'm all for watching a 22ep season versus that of a 6ep.

xxpost

Breaking Bad is overrated tbh. It's a decent show, worth checking out, and Cranston is amazing but something about it is just a little too ... straight-forward or something? I'm never really that surprised by what happens and I like to be surprised. It got about twice as good once they added Bob Odenkirk.

Damages is fantastic, just watched the entire first season over the past weekend.

It got about twice as good once they added Bob Odenkirk.

i <3 bob odenkirk, i should totally watch this

xpost

Yeah, BB is unpredictable in how characters go about situations... but it's always "If you thought things were bad, wait a couple seconds!" followed by "If you thought things were bad, wait a couple seconds!". It's just an incessant piling of complications... which I guess describes all television? iono, maybe the fact that the seasons are so short makes it more obvious

unfortunately he doesn't come in until the second half of the second season.

Breaking Bad is darker than Oz?????????????

Maybe not, I haven't watched Oz...

twice as good once they added Bob Odenkirk.

I completely forgot about Bob Odenkirk, but this is totally otm, he rules on Breaking Bad, and I was totally psyched when they introduced his character.

Breaking Bad is darker than Oz?????????????

Maybe not, I haven't watched Oz...

uh ... yeah ... obviously

was there ever a more depressing tv show than Oz?

― Darin, Monday, March 7, 2011 6:39 PM (1 hour ago) Bookmark

oz is pretty funny imo

'I'm never surprised by what happens' is the total opposite of the way I see breaking bad, also I don't go through my life expecting pizzas to fly on roofs

True - the two old guys have the funniest scenes in Oz, still it's a pretty feel-bad classic

i just started the danish 'the killing' and it's dope
― someone_who_cares_about_hipsters (history mayne), Monday, March 7, 2011 12:51 PM (7 hours ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

Oz is funny a lot of the time but that doesn't offset its unrelenting grimness

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxpost

I am surprised by WHAT happens. I'm just less by that is has. "It's like...'well, things are too easy right now, time to add a plot twist..'well, things are too easy now, time to make this inconvenient' ".... My argument isn't one I really wanna defend b/c I'm in total realization that surving the the predictability of just events occuring in order to provide entertaining television isn't an argument that really somebody's going to win. sorry for the long sentence.

Breaking Bad is overrated tbh. It's a decent show, worth checking out, and Cranston is amazing but something about it is just a little too ... straight-forward or something? I'm never really that surprised by what happens and I like to be surprised.

man if you don't find BB surprising I'd like to know what surprising shows you are watching, does the main character just turn into a pelican all of a sudden

"Manimal" went off the air years ago

I don't know how to explain it, it all just seems really linear to me, plotwise. I still enjoy watching it, but mainly just because I like watching Cranston do his thing. The linearity isn't an objective flaw, it's just not what I enjoy watching. Like part of what really hooked me with Damages was not being able to figure out where things were going, who was screwing who, etc.

SPOILER
the only real surprise I can think of in the first two seasons (all I've watched of BB) is the airplane crash conclusion at the end of s2

I think the darkness on Oz is a bit overrated. Like yes, content-wise it's super dark. But the show always seems to be trying to redeem their characters and McMannis in particular is supposed to be this force for change and good who actually succeeds sometimes. I think as the show went on it maybe became bleaker but certainly the first two seasons have their up happy moments (sometimes in really weird tonally awkward ways). I kinda feel like BB actually is darker in certain ways, maybe with a more pessimistic view of the human spirit. In Oz everyone struggles but everyone can be reached and redeemed (even Schillinger has his moment where we realize he's a father who worries about his children and there are a whole lot of conversions that happen) -- like maybe bc the content is so dark they try so hard to make the themes be a bit more uplifting. Like all of those Augustus interludes where he's like, "hope dudez" and dancing around that glass rotating cell. I could barely watch BB tho -- it was so unrelenting. Not a moment of peace.

maybe bc the content is so dark they try so hard to make the themes be a bit more uplifting. Like all of those Augustus interludes where he's like, "hope dudez" and dancing around that glass rotating cell.

exactly -- or the amazingly campy music video montage in one of the later seasons.

with a little bit of distance oz mostly seems hilarious and camp

Deadwood is consistently amazing. So many awesome moments. You will know whether you'll like it or not after the first ten minutes of episode one.

I am surprised by WHAT happens. I'm just less by that is has. "It's like...'well, things are too easy right now, time to add a plot twist..'well, things are too easy now, time to make this inconvenient' ".... My argument isn't one I really wanna defend b/c I'm in total realization that surving the the predictability of just events occuring in order to provide entertaining television isn't an argument that really somebody's going to win. sorry for the long sentence.

― Crouching Seward, Hidden Raggett (kelpolaris), Monday, March 7, 2011 2:56 PM (22 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

i agree w/ you, a lot of why i end up less than thrilled with Breaking Bad and some of these other cable shows is that their creative freedom and ability to show crazy shit ends up being a burden at some point when they keep trying to top themselves, becomes a little wearying imo

Deadwood is consistently amazing. So many awesome moments. You will know whether you'll like it or not after the first ten minutes of episode one.

― Yossarian's sense of humour (NotEnough), Monday, March 7, 2011 2:16 PM (22 minutes ago) Bookmark

dunno if i'd agree with the last sentence here. it's a bit like the wire; for a while it's sort of 'just another cowboy show, by hbo', like 'just another cop show, by hbo'. it takes a few episodes for all the totally white-hot social organization foundation of the human culture stuff to start cropping up.

exactly -- or the amazingly campy music video montage in one of the later seasons.

or, i just remembered, the ridiculously awful "urban poetry" cliches of Poet (really, that's his name in the show), which we're supposed to believe is so good that it got him paroled. not one of the craziest storylines either. (and some of the storylines were barely even developed -- like when the wiseguys were blackmailing the warden bc of his brother and it's like, 'holy shit this guy is totally compromised' but then he just tells his brother to turn himself in and that's the end of that).

i agree w/ you, a lot of why i end up less than thrilled with Breaking Bad and some of these other cable shows is that their creative freedom and ability to show crazy shit ends up being a burden at some point when they keep trying to top themselves, becomes a little wearying imo

― TIGER BLOOD aka the sheendriver (some dude), Monday, March 7, 2011 1:21 PM (1 hour ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

Yeah, the problem is - what shows out there manage to avoid this endless stacking of shit upon shit entirely? I take Buffy out of the equation b/c it basically "reboots" every consecutive season... new year, new Big Bad, etc. I mean I wonder if this is just inherent to successful television... because it definitely has been the case with Lost/Oz/Breaking Bad. And countless other shows, I'm sure - things just get progressively more ridiculous until the show implodes upon itself.

yeah i mean that's definitely a recurring problem with most shows that stay on the air for any length of time, upping the ante or painting themselves into a corner, whether it's comedies getting more gross or wacky, or procedurals leaning on 'ripped from the headlines' plots, or dramas mixing and matching couples and having them do crazy shit to each other, or sci-fi shows disappearing up their own ass. but i kinda feel like most of those kinds of things it's easy to call the shows out on jumping the shark, when an Acclaimed Cable Drama takes its Gritty Unpleasant Realities over the top or to a punishing extreme i dunno it's easier to feel like some kind of wuss or philistine for not being into it.

what shows out there manage to avoid this endless stacking of shit upon shit entirely

Sopranos

and that's pretty much the only one. Altho Mad Men is doing this very well so far, and hopefully won't overstay their welcome

yeah i mean that's definitely a recurring problem with most shows that stay on the air for any length of time, upping the ante or painting themselves into a corner

i think, of this list, 6FU probably suffers the most from this, because its scope was small & domestic originally & eventually it just becomes "how many incredible things can happen to one group of ppl, before you lose any sense of realism?"

otoh good shows can use this impulse to widen & deepen the show's concept past its initial premise & to add complexity and detail to the show's world.

what shows out there manage to avoid this endless stacking of shit upon shit entirely

Sopranos

Ha! The last couple of seasons of The Sopranos were terrible.

Maybe their flaws weren't specifically about trying to stack up as many crazy situations as possible, but that didn't mean that they fared any better.

i guess fx has my number...my impulse is justified or the shield, and may also recommend damages? it is my favorite one.

i stalled out in the middle of breaking bad season 2 for some reason, but it seemed like a pretty amazing show

fuck mad men imo

we need to rename this 'official madmen backlash thread'

tréme is bullshit right?

fuck mad men imo

― horseshoe, Monday, March 7, 2011 4:34 PM (50 seconds ago) Bookmark

get in line honey!!

i wish i could vote for two.
if you want ha's: It's Always Sunny... if want omg's: Breaking Bad.

Ha! The last couple of seasons of The Sopranos were terrible.

as is well documented around here, I totally disagree. and I consider the end of the show just about the only successful long-form TV drama conclusion (apart from maybe Twin Peaks, which has an awesome final episode, albeit an absurd one)

tréme is bullshit right?

I like it plenty, but it's certainly the worst thing Simon has done.

i hadn't even read the thread so i didn't know about the mad men backlash. <3 all you people lukewarm on mad men where have you been all my life

i wouldn't say treme is bullshit exactly but i didn't finish it. it is sloooooooooow

yeah Treme's not as bad as its rep and you may enjoy it as a Wire stan, but it's not essential viewing by any stretch of the imagination. i'm holding out hope that it will justify its renewal for a second season.

horseshoe, we have secret meetings in secret basements I will send you an invite

whereas damages and the shield are fast and trashy

xp iatee i thought you liked it for some reason! <3 <3 <3

I will keep watching Treme as long as Khandi Alexander is in it. So good.

I used to think I liked it before I realized I was basically forcing myself to sit through it

khandi alexander and wendell pierce were basically what kept me watching treme.

seriously j0rdan i think you would like damages.

There have definitely been times when I felt like I had to force myself to watch Mad Men, but there have been some seriously fun episodes along the way.

i just feel like what even is the point of that show

(i stopped watching in the second season so it could have turned amazing somehow but i doubt it)

Mad Men is not even close to being the most pointless show I've ever enjoyed.

i think i'm just dumb tbh

idgi

i hadn't even read the thread so i didn't know about the mad men backlash. <3 all you people lukewarm on mad men where have you been all my life

we have been avoiding the rhapsodic praise being floated around for Mad Men by shrugging and babbling about other things

I have watched the Magic Bullet infomercial like ten times.

whoever said upthread that Mad Men is a well-made soap opera is right on -- it's attractive people having problems with other attractive people, and they live, work, and play in attractive places and have nice things.

mad men is truly cinematic in the sense that watching more episodes seems exactly as appealing as watching a 60 hour movie, I'm sure some people are into that hi morbs

If you don't want to watch attractive people drink gin in Eames chairs, we are not the same.

i think they drink whiskey or bourbon most of the time?

"I have watched the Magic Bullet infomercial like ten times."

they killed off that drunkard Berman offscreen, much like a certain Mad Men character...

lol

Hazel will outlive them all!
http://www.infomercial-hell.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2007/04/hazel_magic_bullet.jpg

I liked to think of her as "older MTV VJ Kennedy"

i've never even heard of 'damages'

i'll prob run thru 'terriers' once they put it on DVD

whoever said upthread that Mad Men is a well-made soap opera is right on -- it's attractive people having problems with other attractive people, and they live, work, and play in attractive places and have nice things.

― sarahel, Monday, March 7, 2011 10:49 PM (30 minutes ago) Bookmark

fart noise

mad men is truly cinematic in the sense that watching more episodes seems exactly as appealing as watching a 60 hour movie, I'm sure some people are into that hi morbs

not to speak for morbz, but i thought that he disliked mad men?

the backlash against the show has to do with, you know, the chattering classes (including lol ILX) having embraced it and declared it to be some sort of masterpiece and that you're an unwashed smelly Sarah Palin-voting barbarian if you don't recognize mad men for its alleged excellence. instead of an show that IMHO is kinda boring and empty with a bunch of unlikeable and/or boring characters.

the thing that irritates me about the term "backlash" is that it always gets applied to things that I never liked anyway

yeahhh I know he dislikes it I just needed an example of someone who would sit through a 60 hour moive

peggy: joan can i ask you a question
joan: hm yes
peggy: are we overrated joan
joan:
[lights cigarette]
peggy: joan i am scared
joan: hm well
peggy: of the backlash
joan: but the production design
peggy: some people are overenthusiastic in their praise joan
joan: despite the flaws
peggy: joan i am afraid someone is going to refer to us as 'stuff white people like'
joan: peggy
don:
[exits office wearing hat]
don: im going to go drive drunk
peggy and joan in unison: don

LOL

instant watch doesn't have rome though which i really really really want to see even if it's bad. i might have to take drastic steps, like obtain some kind of physical copy.

― difficult listening hour, Monday, March 7, 2011 11:21 AM (6 hours ago) Bookmark

rome is great + a ton of fun

i voted for deadwood

treme has a great cast (less so w/ Goodman gone) but that's pretty much all it has going for it imo

i need to check out some of these fx shows that everyone loves!

Damages is pretty bad-ass

me roleplaying ethan for a minute:

slumlord on March 3, 2011 at 7:29 pm
yup, we do like mad men. nothing better than a show about us hard at work. “Other” races might be more apt to enjoy a sitcom about welfare, food stamps, and waking up at noon.

^^

from the SWPL site

holy fuck

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

http://www.thewrap.com/files/u1175/breaking_bad.jpg

ILX's horrible taste in television confirmed once again

whoever said upthread that Mad Men is a well-made soap opera is right on -- it's attractive people having problems with other attractive people, and they live, work, and play in attractive places and have nice things.

― sarahel, Monday, March 7, 2011 3:49 PM (1 hour ago) Bookmark

Ugh, this is the go-to argument for any show somebody doesn't like. If only they would realize that:

Mad Men: soap opera in advertising agency
Sopranos: soap opera in criminal family
Lost: soap opera on magic island
Oz: soap opera in prison
Deadwood: soap opera in old west
Battlestar Galactica: soap opera in space
Days of Our Lives: soap opera in a house

Soap operas are given that bad rap because, yeah, they do have awful dialog and unrealistically attractive cast members. Going for blatant sexism here, ~women~ like soap operas b/c it's in a situation they can identify with. What is this cyborg shit? Why the fuck is there magic here? I don't want this shit. I just want what I want - love interests, tension, conflicts. All of which every aforementioned show HAS. The most exciting peaks of Mad Men were the sizzling relationships. People loved watching whether Kate chose Jack or Sawyer in Lost. Watching Tony Soprano fall in love with his psychiatrist qualifies like any. Human interaction IS a soap opera... it's bullshit to simply cast something off as a soap opera b/c it has beautiful people and love interests. That's life. It's what we want. At the end of the day, hormones win and vampires lose. Or something.

i like soap operas. mad men is not a soap opera imo.

People loved watching whether Kate chose Jack or Sawyer in Lost.

no, they really really really did not

TamTam i would like to know what you think of the shield if you ever get around to it

xpost

k, I didn't, but girls who I'd go to watching parties (admittedly) with definitely were abuzz with it, yelling at the screen NO!! whenever Kate forwent one or the other

TamTam i would like to know what you think of the shield if you ever get around to it

― horseshoe, Monday, March 7, 2011 7:16 PM (5 minutes ago) Bookmark

i've been meaning to check it out for years! it seems like a show that I would find stressful. but its probably good.

I need to watch more TV. THe only one of these I've watched in its entirely is Lost when I watched the whole series last summer after it ended just to see what the fuss was finally about.

Am watching Justified right now and it's pretty good so far.

I did watch all of Rome and loved it Enough to buy the DVDs actually so it might be worth it for you DLH.

I think I'd like OZ. Maybe I'll try that.

I feel like people use "soap opera" as pejorative for something that is cheaply and poorly made, plus maybe overly sentimental/hackneyed.

no, they really really really did not

― congratulations (n/a), Monday, March 7, 2011 7:16 PM (6 minutes ago) Bookmark

ha, yeah, i was gonna question this

for me what is structural to a soap opera is that it doesnt have seasons so storylines ebb and flow w/o the same kind of larger narrative. also ppl only have sex w/ ppl w/ the same skin colour as them.

but yeah i do think ppl like mad men for a lot of the same reasons they liked say dynasty

is that a good thing or a bad thing

idk it can be good or bad.

i mean thats not nec. a value statement.

i havent seen it but is anything in Mad Men as entertaining as this

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0LbLikClWnM

peggy: joan i am afraid someone is going to refer to us as 'stuff white people like'

oh fuck, some white person said this to me irl recently. mad men is 'stuff white people like'. im sure her nose will set just fine.

i havent seen it but is anything in Mad Men as entertaining as this

no, but its still p good

what about band of brothers/generation kill

the only band of brothers i have scene is from when i was in college and a guy in my class who smoked way too much weed and liked band of brothers made a load of videos where he filmed himself in a wood and cut it (ineptly) into scenes of band of brothers. we had to discuss this for two hours. based on this i would say do not watch band of brothers.

i wouldn't watch band of brothers

i did watch it, it's ok, but nah

i've been meaning to check it out for years! it seems like a show that I would find stressful. but its probably good.

― ℳℴℯ　❤＼(◕‿◕✿ (Princess TamTam), Monday, March 7, 2011 7:22 PM (28 minutes ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

it's so stressful!

i'm not even sure it's good it's just insane and completely consumed my life for months.

what about band of brothers/generation kill

― pascal's swagger (J0rdan S.), Monday, March 7, 2011 7:47 PM (9 minutes ago) Bookmark

they're both great!! in different ways though. don't listen to history mayne.

fuck i've seen far too much TV

Band of Brothers is as good as any WW2 movie in existence (considering.... yeah, well you know). I've watched the entire series dozens of time. It's incredible, and essential.

Generation Kill provides a nice look into the Iraq War, but feels as Rolling Stone as the editor who accompanied the troop... it's all SO OBVIOUS. Casualties happen, villagers are killed, mistakes are made. The military is not perfect. I personally thought the characters were unmemorable, there was no real emotional impact on me (ever)... but otherwise, it serves as a good documentation on life as a modern day soldier. Largely, it's a lot less about the dramatics.

band of brothers is great + full of hot dudes

Gen Kill: Usual soldier camaraderie accompanied by "we're going in" mission, accompanied by death of a buddy, accompanied by death of a villager, accompanied by guilt, accompanied by lack of trust in commanders, accompanied by... maybe I shouldn't have seen BoB before I started G.Kill. But even then, it's just not a well done series.

GK had a lot of emotional impact for me and I found many of the characters to be pretty memorable. it's very well done!

band of brothers is really great. really really really great. maybe the best "war movie" ive ever seen, emphasis on the war bit?

alright i'm sold

i hold max's opinion in high esteem

I don't know... I just don't remember *any* of them. The Lt. was like Major Winters redux, and then there was the suspiciosly gay-dude whom I only recall b/c I remember the actual soldier was the one playing him. Otherwise, yeesh.

I still gotta say tho, it prolly is the best representation of Iraq as you can get. If you wanna know what's going on over there... GKill is fun viewing. If you're looking for quality television, it's just merely OK.

i should note that i'm a huge SPR stan

you should really see band of brothers

shield gives me tons of anxiety, i cant watch it. BOB is kind of anxiety-inducing too but i know who wins (the americans)

band of brothers will probably lower your opinion of SPR, it's that good

oh god yeah if you love SPR see BOB, you gotta, YOU GOTTA

i also trust tam tam

i'll do it

spr is a super terrible movie tho

just u kno

What is SPR? :/

oh i see how it is

xp yeah i hate spr, but band of brothers is great. i don't even care about war movies, honestly

You should buy it (BoB).. you WILL watch it again. Plus the packaging is ~~Rather Rad~~.

spr = saving pvt. ryan

oh, of course, duh

band of brothers is great + full of hot dudes

― horseshoe, Monday, March 7, 2011 7:58 PM (7 minutes ago) Bookmark

HS this is was a very important post!!

at first I was all "what the hell does Sarah Jessica Parker have to do with WWII" before getting a clue

haha i would hope so! <3

xp

also i meant to tell you on ilnfl that i was cleaning out my childhood closet the other day & i found a bill's hat that is in zubaz print~~

x-post I was thinking it was someone's initials

bills****

BoB probably has my favorite donnie wahlberg performance ever (i mean this with no irony)

i like war and war movies more than anyone on this board

and the battle scenes in b.o.b. are pretty tight

just... it's not the_shield

it is full of handsome blokes though [there are lots of british people in it]

also i meant to tell you on ilnfl that i was cleaning out my childhood closet the other day & i found a bill's hat that is in zubaz print~~

― pascal's swagger (J0rdan S.), Monday, March 7, 2011 8:07 PM (43 seconds ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

!!!

it's also signed by someone but i can't decipher it since it's so old

i'll post a photo maybe

don: im going to go drive drunk

big laughtrack right after this! and don's like "what? did i say something wrong?"

i think somebody actually did re-edit parts of a breaking bad episode with a laughtrack

band of brothers is very.. hemingway to me in that it's all action, done really well

BoB probably has my favorite donnie wahlberg performance ever (i mean this with no irony)

― ℳℴℯ　❤＼(◕‿◕✿ (Princess TamTam), Monday, March 7, 2011 8:08 PM (5 minutes ago) Bookmark

don't sleep on Dreamcatcher, no pun intended

you better "catch" dreamcatcher, no pun intended

omg the person has done loads of them now. if you're interested google "breaking bad is on abc"

haha i was gonna add a caveat re: Dreamcatcher. that movie... is.. something...

i like soap operas. mad men is not a soap opera imo.

― horseshoe, Monday, March 7, 2011 4:15 PM (1 hour ago)

what? i like soap operas, too, and Mad Men is totally a soap opera!

people who like band of brothers might really like "days of glory" (horrible title) about Algerian soldiers in WWII

band of brothers is also soap-opery from what i can remember.
lot of don draper-style drinking going on, too.

I'm about to start watching Boardwalk Empire. I take it it's alright?

People seem a little down on Boardwalk but I'm just about to finish the first season and think it's tops. Some great period detail and some very watchable characters: Lucy, Nelson and Capone in particular. I'm even starting to warm to Michael Pitt. Bring on season #2.

Lucy > Nucky Thompson

i really dug boardwalk and was weirded out by the lukewarm reception

but then i don't watch tv the way i read--i can't talk about tv shows the way most of you guys can, so i never really got caught up in those arguments defending character arcs or whatever.

i asked my roommate who is a huge tv nerd & he said "the allan partridge show"

have a hard time completing tv series but i've been watching roseanne lately and really loving it, i guess i recommend it. they probably dont have either on netflix

"the allan partridge show"

does he mean The Day Today, Knowing Me Knowing You, or I'm Alan Partridge?

i love roseanne -- it's on syndication all the time tho so it's not something i need to seek out

because in our modern DVD and illegal download world there's no reason not to go through On The Hour -> Day Today -> KMKY radio -> KMKY TV -> IAP 1 -> Man Who Thinks He's It

yeh hes seen them all, i watched a couple episodes of knowing me knowing you last year it was insanely hilarious. he also approves of larry sanders

speaking of our modern DVD and illegal download world, someone looking to start a TV series could do a lot worse than "The Promise" which just finished airing on Channel 4 (in Britisherland). it's a four-part miniseries about Israel and Palestine, told in two intercutting time periods, 1945 and 2005. it sounds dreary, but believe me, it is tremendously entertaining.

Speaking of our modern illegal download world, I wonder how economically feasible mega-buck dramas like Boardwalk will be in 5 to 10 years time.

As long as people keep paying for HBO...

i love roseanne -- it's on syndication all the time tho so it's not something i need to seek out

― little humma boy (J0rdan S.), Tuesday, March 8, 2011 12:58 AM (5 hours ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

Roseanne was great - underrated imo. It's one of those shows I will p much always watch if I'm flicking and come across it.

boardwalk is entertaining but clumsy enough at times. I'm getting into it more with every week though.

Breaking Bad is hugely, hugely overrated on ILX. I'm up for a backlash, anyone else?

^^^ agreed, i made it through one season and then forgot about it.

I discussed this somewhere before (maybe on ILX, actually) and discovered there was a tipping point about three episodes in where a whole ton of folk went "nah, not for me".

breaking bad is only overrated because everything awesome is overrated.
it's the cost of being awesome.
better to have eggs over-awesome than rotten eggs (e.g. two and a half eggs or dharma and greggs)

I really can't say enough good things about the Showtime series "Shameless"...love it.

I only watched the first episode of Breaking Bad, and while I thought it was good, the subject matter ... is just not that compelling to me for some reason? I can't seem to make myself watch more episodes.

need a reason? danny trejo, yo. danny trejo.

So, if I can hijack this thread for a second:

Parks and Rec vs. Community?

I've seen a few (early) episodes of the former, which were amusing, but I've been hearing great things about the latter lately.

I slightly prefer Parks.

They're both really good. Parks and Rec really takes off in s2 so you could probably just start there. P&R is a little more consistent, Community has higher highs IMO.

im considering magnum PI when my current journey through the larry sanders seasons is over. i definitely want to see breaking bad tho.

i kinda trolled the Breaking Bad thread already about this, but basically thought that season 1 was good (but ran out of steam a little toward the end), then something about the first few episodes of season 2 totally turned me off and i've yet to finish it.

the 2nd season has my fav episodes in it, although they're later on. i came to a screeching halt w/ the episode that entirely took place in the meth cooking lab. couldnt force myself to watch it

been watching the larry sanders show myself, a+ lols

and for ppl wary of mad men i think it helps to realize that the show gets much better as it goes, that you start to get a feel for what theyre trying to do. early on it feels like its just reveling in the reactionariness of the period ( i never got jhoshea's snap judgement that it was amazing ... seemed outright offensive at first)

Parks and Rec vs. Community?

I like them both.

P&R is more character-based. There's a very good spirit to the show and I find myself missing the individual characters at the season's end (reminds me of Freaks & Geeks a little in this regard).

Community is more silly and absurd, but generates more laughs per minute.

jaymc watch Community, seriously, i think it's the best comedy on tv right now

watch one episode of P&R, then one episode of Community, then one episode of P&R, then one episode of Community, then one episode of P&R, then one episode of Community, then one episode of P&R, then one episode of Community, then one episode of P&R, then one episode of Community, then one episode of P&R, then one episode of Community, then one episode of P&R, then one episode of Community, then one episode of P&R, then one episode of Community, then one episode of P&R, then one episode of Community, then one episode of P&R, then one episode of Community, then one episode of P&R, then one episode of Community, then one episode of P&R, then one episode of Community, then one episode of P&R, then one episode of Community, then one episode of P&R, then one episode of Community, then one episode of P&R, then one episode of Community.

i kinda trolled the Breaking Bad thread already about this, but basically thought that season 1 was good (but ran out of steam a little toward the end), then something about the first few episodes of season 2 totally turned me off and i've yet to finish it.

― JaySeanLilWayne (some dude), Tuesday, March 8, 2011 10:24 PM (48 minutes ago) Bookmark

yeah exactly the same here

lol wth, exact same situation ^

it was just like... "hm... this again"

breaking bad brings the funny more consistently than community, but there are more episodes of community and you don't have to watch them in order.

I thought the first season of Breaking Bad was unpleasant and fairly pointless. Don't think I'll be bothering with #2.

how can a tv show not be pointless?

idk maybe just like read a book though

"pointless" in this context probably doesn't mean so much lacks an overarching thesis or isn't important in the grand scheme of things as it means that for some people there doesn't feel to be much motivation to keep watching, in terms of entertainment value or dramatic or comedic payoff

I think "unpleasant" is the key descriptor as to why people really stop watching BB. There was some discussion on a BB thread about how many of us watch it alone because or significant others find it too stressful/gross/depressing.

sorry - "our" significant others

roseanne is one of the best ever

agreed on Roseanne

I would like to go back and try to watch those last seasons at some point. I hated them at the time and probably will still hate them, but they are also sort of audacious.

how can a tv show not be pointless?

― iatee

a tv show can be rewarding just like a book can't it? I felt no emotional attachment to BB.

well everyone's kind of a jerk in that show. except maybe Combo.

BB is one of those shows that certainly is hard to watch sometimes but i cant help but respect it for accomplishing what it does even if i can pick at individual parts

just can't see how you could watch BB and not form anyyyy emotional attachment to walter's fate

not to mention Jesse!

i wouldn't say i have zero attachment, but the character not so much unsympathetic as kind of impossible to understand a lot of the time. also one of the first things you learn about him in the show is that he's doomed and his days are numbered, so i kinda feel like i'm just watching to see what happens while he runs out the clock.

it's easy to understand Walter -- he's a baaaad dude pretending to be a good guy. (Jesse is the good guy pretending to be a bad guy)
ticking death clock is OK for Statham, why not Cranston?

Crank is fun but i don't know if i actually care about the character

just can't see how you could watch BB and not form anyyyy emotional attachment to walter's fate

― iatee, Tuesday, March 8, 2011 7:57 PM (43 minutes ago) Bookmark

It's his fate following the television serial format that's the problem. The predictability and quirky feeling that comes with buying another Breaking Bad box-set to see how this dude handles his upcoming death... maybe it's not the believability it affects, but the relevance. It just doesn't feel pressing so long as you're watching it. Am I making sense?

it's like... Tune In Next Season: He Aint Ded Yet!!

but that's not what the show is trying to do, it's not 'cancer patient is gonna die, so sad'. cancer allows him to not give a shit about mortality, it drives the plot, but it's not what the show's about.

yeah the more u guys explain your position on this the more o_O im getting tbh

BB rules

i probably ruined all my cred w/ the suit shorts but i still think that 'it's always sunny' is the one that j0rdan is most likely to really love

generation kill is rad tho

i wouldn't say i have zero attachment, but the character not so much unsympathetic as kind of impossible to understand a lot of the time.

I don't get this at all, walter's one of the most clearly + cleverly sketched characters on TV. tightly wound brilliant guy who backed down from real achievement for domestic bliss is faced with his own mortality and starts acting crazy - it's a midlife crisis but with everything on 10.

I will say that there is a something cipher-like about walter, but that's in keeping with his character (smart antisocial guy) and also makes him (and the show) unpredictable.

generation kill was great, band of brothers excellent, the pacific...meh

he's not acting crazy so much as revealing his true nature. it's like they're "breaking" his shell and find the inside is "bad"
in flashbacks prior to the breakdown you can see hints of his evil being suppressed, and the heisenberg costume is his true face, a ruthless devil in a black hat.

sorry, i started watching breaking bad concurrently with L O S T

i probably ruined all my cred w/ the suit shorts but i still think that 'it's always sunny' is the one that j0rdan is most likely to really love

generation kill is rad tho

― millions now eating will never diet (Lamp), Wednesday, March 9, 2011 2:20 PM (58 minutes ago) Bookmark

lol -- i've seen some eps of 'it's always sunny' on TV and i thought it was p funny

he's not acting crazy so much as revealing his true nature. it's like they're "breaking" his shell and find the inside is "bad"
in flashbacks prior to the breakdown you can see hints of his evil being suppressed, and the heisenberg costume is his true face, a ruthless devil in a black hat.

― Philip Nunez, Wednesday, March 9, 2011 3:13 PM (40 minutes ago) Bookmark

this point is debatable - c/r any flashback where walter is portrayed as evil, think it has more to do with how his personality reacts to the stress of his current situation i.e. not well

i never read 'breaking bad' as meaning they're breaking him open and finding bad. more like anyone can break good or break bad and lately he's been breaking bad. and also, he's breaking (falling apart). how badly is he breaking? he's breaking bad.

fwiw

Q. What exactly does the title of your show mean, anyway?

A. Honestly, when I named our show “Breaking Bad” I thought everyone was aware of this bit of slang, and it turns out nobody is except for the people in my hometown. But to break bad, when I was growing up, was to raise hell. “Jim was down at the bar the other weekend, and he got really drunk and he really broke bad. He totaled his car.” The show might as well have been named “Raising Hell,” but it would have sounded like a Clive Barker thing. A detective who sends people to hell or something.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/01/arts/television/01Itzk.html

If we're picking random ones that are awesome and brit, try finding Simon Munnery's 2001 sketch series Attention Scum! - it hasn't got a DVD release but there's a TV rip floating around. It's the funniest stupidest cleverest oddist show I've seen and fans of the sillier side of Python need to see it.

"A detective who sends people to hell or something."

I swear I've seen at least two unrelated shows with this premise.