Must Watch Series
 

All this talk about series, how network TV Sucks, and how hard it is to find quality shows, and some excellent shows that fly under the radar, I need a comprehensive review of all the series I need to see.

For good entertainment, I would be willing to buy DVD sets. But I've recently picked up HBOGO by kiping it from my parents, and recently got Netflix and Amazon Prime.

Here is a listing of shows that I currently own or have seen all the episodes of. If it isn't on the list, just assume I haven't seen it.



Here is a listing of shows that I'm currently watching


Here is a listing of shows on my list to watch (mostly due to this thread)



I work a ****ton, so it is hard for me catch a series while it is on to get it on the DVR, but I recognize the entertainment value and am willing to go after the Must See shows. Accordingly, I'm not necessarily looking for anything that is still running. I'm up for watching stuff that has run its course.

So what say you, Planet? Which shows should I see?

UPDATED for the shows I've seen recently.

Here are a few. I could list a bunch, but we'll start with some favorites...

Firefly
Arrested Development
Battlestar Galactica
Deadwood
Friday Night Lights

If you like Chuck, you might enjoy Warehouse 13 and Eureka.

Breaking Bad

In my opinion, its the best show on tv.

Lost
Mad Men
Breaking Bad
Friday Night Lights
Battlestar Gallactica
The Office
Parks and Recreation
Six Feet Under
Game Of Thrones
No Reservations

I figured Firefly would suck. I'll see if I can't find the first few episodes. It looks pretty good. Thanks

I'll check out Arrested Development. I've heard good things.

Tell me about Battlestar Galactica. I never looked into it.

I'll get Deadwood.

Friday Night Lights? Really? The promos looked like balls when it came out.

Friday Night Lights pretty much got rave reviews the entire run. Bill Simmons even had an entire podcast on it.

I tried Warehouse 13. Wasn't too impressed.

I might check out Eureka. The promos looked OK.

I mainly like Chuck because of Yvonne Strahovski :D There is some decent comedy in there, but it has been going downhill since the 2nd season. The series isn't my all time favorite, but Yvonne Strahovski is DEFINITELY my favorite.

I'll check it out. I've seen the ads, but missed the first few episodes so never got into it.

.

I don't think I'll get into Lost. I've heard what happens.

Mad Men is good? I never heard much about it.

What is Parks and Recreation about?

What is Six Feet Under about?

I've been wondering if Game of Thrones is good. I am kind of a sucker for medieval stuff.

No Reservations as in Anthony Bourdain?

i hate my life

Dead Like Me is another good one.

Sure thing. You're choice. But it's easily one of (if not THE) best network TV dramas out there. Outstanding journey. And I really loved where it went.

Mad Men is amazing. Mad Men or Breaking Bad (take your pick), a case could be made for either being the best show on television right now.
A mocumentary style comedy (from the producers of the US version of The Office). It's about a group of people that work for the Parks and Rec department in Pawnee Indiana. Stars Amy Poehler, Rashida Jones, Aziz Ansari, Nick Offerman and Aubrey Plaza. Hysterical. It's pretty brilliant.

HBO series about a family that runs a funeral home from their house. Great writing, great acting.

Then watch this immediately! It's outstanding.

Yes. By far, the best "non-scripted" reality based show on TV, I think. It's really the only "reality" show that I watch. Except for Bourdain's The Layover. Which is also pretty sweet.

Jesus Christ, what an awful ****ing list. I mean, those aren't all terrible shows, but there's not a single show on there that is worth watching every episode of.

Also, how the **** has The Wire not been mentioned yet?

I've only mentioned shows I've seen, and therefore can vouch for. The Wire is on my short list, though. And now that I have HBO GO it shouldn't be too long before I've knocked that one out. I'm really looking forward to it.

Oh! Also, Beuhler, if like sitcoms, and it seems like you do, based on That 70's Show and Scrubs, I'd really recommend How I Met Your Mother.

I just got HBO GO for that and started with The Wire, it's pretty serious

Camelot?!?! CAMELOT?!?! That show was a piece of shit.

Chuck is good fgt.

It was awful. But I've seen all the episodes so I included it.

Eva Green's tits are exemplary though.

Yeah. I've got some garbage on there. The comedies were my wife's doing. But it was a good tool to spend time with her.

But Burn Notice is great. I really enjoy White Collar also. And I can't get enough of Yvonne Strahovski. House is worth a watch too. At least through season 6. Suits is worth the time and Spartacus is awesome. I you don't like the two new seasons, the first one is excellent.

While I acknowledge I have a crap list, I must disagree that none of them are worth watching. That's why I started this thread. To make my list better.

Friday Night Lights kicked ****ing ass. That show was so damned good. Coach Taylor 4 LIFE!!!!!

Life on Mars the UK version, not the shitty US version.

Probably because people have asked about best shows a bajillion times and the overwhelming consensus is that the big four is.

The Wire
Deadwood
The Sopranos
Breaking Bad

It feels unoriginal to cite them all over again. The merits have been discussed ad infinitum.

Mad Men should be added to that.

ARCHER

If there's anything funnier out there, I haven't seen it. Animated series about spies - imagine James Bond as a narcissistic douchebag with mommy issues set in an office environment. Twisted, irreverent, absolutely un-PC, fantastic. It's also a half-hour show, which would fit well into your working a **** ton lifestyle. And after a shitty day of working a **** ton, it WILL make you laugh. It might even make you pee a little bit.

Yeah, you could probably pull up any random clip from the show and if it doesn't appeal to you right away, it's probably not your cup of tea [and you're a weirdo].

The Chicago Code. From Shawn Ryan, the guy who brought you "Terriers". Canceled after just one season due to poor following. Fantastic show though, from the first episode to the last. Also, a lot of great acting. Luckily, they wrapped up the bulk of the storyline by seasons end, you'll want more, but it won't leave you hanging.

Fox actually loved the show, it just didn't get the audience it deserved. You can watch it on Netflix. I highly recommend you do.

This brings to mind, by way of Jennifer Beales

Jordan Peele of Key and Peele made an astute observation on a recent Sklarboro Country podcast.

Maniac

"She's a maniac, maniac, out on the floor. And she's dancing like she's never danced before."

Does that mean she's dancing BETTER than ever before [the clear intent of the lyric], or a more straightforward reading of the syntax? She's dancing like someone who has never attempted to dance before in her life.

:spock:

I think it means she's doing a simple variation of her usual dance, not that it's better, and not that she has never danced at all.

If you want to get in on the ground floor, OMFG Veep is slaying me from episode 1. I haven't had a laugh to footage ratio for as long as I can remember.

For those familiar, it's from the creator of In The Loop, a brilliant series from Britain.

Perhaps the highlight was Julia Louise-Dreyfuss' speech at about the 20 minute mark. She'd come out promoting corn starch spoons as more environmentally friendly than plastic. This pissed the whole executive branch as oil/plastics was the backbone of their whole admin. She had a speech composed about the virtues of corn starch spoons, but an admin lackey came in and redacted nearly everything, leaving her with nothing to say, and she vamped HORRIBLY [the veep refers to it as the pres 'pencil ****ing' her]. Right up there with the most painful moments in the BBC 'The Office.' MoF, if the premiere is any indication, this might be the best comedy series since BBC's 'The Office.' Hope people appreciate the gravity of that assessment.


For a sense of how funny it is, after the disastrous impromptu speech, an advisor tries to placate thing by saying 'it might not be too bad, what if Tom Hanks dies' regarding the media cycle.

So should Dexter.

Don't overthink this folks, it's a humorous semantic observation.

This is good to hear. I of course adore JLD, and was caught up in all the promotional materials, but I don't have HBO. It's something to keep on my radar, then.

Is it overtly political?

The Wire is as good, or better, than the Sopranos

Recent: American Horror Story and Walking Dead....good fun.

No, from what I've heard, you'll never know their political party and will never see the actual president [JLD said this expressly on The Daily Show]. Going back to the BBC Office, how much do you know about partisanship from that show [outside of maybe Gareth]? It's a show about process and interpersonal relationships.

The ep also features a pimp reference that is the best since Kramer's 'coat of many colors' episode.

And another where there was a gathering for the Veep where no one showed up. An advisor told her to mingle and JLD replied 'there's no one here, did Simon and Garfunkel mingle?"

I told you that the show was packed with laughs.

Mrs. FMB! and I watched Veep last night - hilarious!

I'd like to add Terriers to this list. Even though it had only one season, it did complete its story arc.

Yeah, Veep is hysterical. Though I wonder about it's potential longevity. Hopefully they can keep it fresh. I'm on board, though.

Check out "Game of Thrones" immediately it's amazing. A couple comedies that haven't been mentioned that I enjoy....

"it's always sunny in Philadelphia"
"community"
"raising Hope"
"the IT crowd"

Thanks again guys.

Watched The first season of Game of Thrones. ****ing out****ingstanding. I know I probably should have read the books, but realistically there is a very small chance I will commit the time to it. But the first season is ****ing super. Didn't see much of anything except the dragon hatch happening. It is very well produced and acted as far as I'm concerned.

I started Mad Men also. It is very different than I expected, but I love it. I'm not quite through the first season, but I can't quit thinking about it. I really like the format. It is really difficult to find a production without much music or even plot. It is an exquisite character driven piece. I love it.

Rescue Me

It might seem obvious due to the recent awards but Homeland is a home run.

Just finished watching the entire series on netflicks. Took me a long time because the wife hates all things Sci Fi. It is nothing short of outstanding. Hot Chicks, violence, betrayal, Imagine part two of the Alien moie series Aliens but 4 seasons of it. and even if you watched the original as a kid, it doesn’t matter because when you think you know what is going to happen... more often than not you are wrong.

This....one of my all time favorites.

you should definitely record Workaholics too. Funniest show since AD. You don't need to watch them in order either.

My top 13 list...and I will include old ones since i am old...and I know bunches of you will pan DS 9 and Cheers, but that's ok...

13) DS 9
12) X-Files
11) Hill Street Blues
10) The Sopranos
9) Firefly
8) MASH
7) Lost
6) The Wire
5) BattleStar Gallatica
4) MadMen
3) Cheers
2) Seinfield
1) All in the Family

So is Spartans, what's your point?

So I made it through all the Mad Men series. ****ing amazing. Great acting, plot keeps it's claws in you. Out****ingstanding. It is absolutely refreshing. Not only is it an interesting and excellent concept, but it is amazingly executed and acted. It is really great.

In other news, I'm surprised (pleasantly) that it is successful. In the ****ing trash-reality, ADD society we live in, it is not mindless entertainment. It is precisely the opposite of Michael Bay. And while I love the shit out of it, I'm surprised there is enough viewership that loves it too. Maybe there is hope (probably not)

I also caught Firefly. Some of the production was weak, but I really liked it. A lot. Damn disappointed it didn't get a second season.

Also about to finish House up. It is probably time for it to go, but I really like the the series. I think it will probably go down as one of my favorites.

I have to add Longmire and Hell on Wheels to the list of must sees. I'm into them now and they don't disappoint.

Justified also is fandamntastic. I'm not caught up yet, but it is excellent. Hopefully this winter I can hit some of the ones I haven't seen hard.

I just listened to the audiobook for The Cold Dish (first Longmire book), and I think I'm going to like the book series even more than the show. Which I already like a lot.

Seasons 1-5 of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

I know, it sounds ridiculous. I refused to watch it for years, despite the fact that the critics were calling it the best show that nobody watches.

Turns out the seasons 1-5 were fantastic. Seasons 6 and 7 were garbage. Don't waste your time on them.

Along the same lines: Seasons 1-4 of Dexter. Seasons 5-8 were garbage.

I just picked up the full series of Buffy on Amazon for $60. I'm hoping that it's as good as people say.

I missed Grimm when it first came out and am just now going through Season 1. It's a really fun show (it also helps that I recognize a lot of the places plus there are frequent Beavers sightings). I don't know if Season 2 is as good but Season 1 is definitely recommended. It's only $25 on Blu-ray.

Goldbergs is a great new show on ABC.

Updated for the shows that I've picked up since I started this thread.

Reading through the cancellations thread makes me remember how many shows I don't know about.

Also, there seem to be a lot of decent shows that are coming out of Amazon and Netflix. I want to see House of Cards, but I watched a pilot for the Rebels which looks decent enough, but it's really hard for me to keep track of what actually hits production.

Time to revive this thread. I very much appreciate all the input. It's really led me to some really good shows.

I will say I was pleasantly surprised by Falling Skies. It wasn't paradigm shifting, but it ended up being a lot better than I anticipated.

The Good Wife is another I didn't expect to be very good and it turned out to be borderline excellent.

Surprisingly enough, Robin Hood on BBC was pretty damned campy at times, but did a good enough job, I wanted to see how it ended. That and it threw enough haymakers in there it just kept me hooked.

Arrow is better than I anticipated. Save the Nolan trilogy, it's better than anything DC has put out in a decade or so.

No True Detective?

If you have HBO, watch the series On Demand or through HBOGO. It was incredible.

Peep Show - British comedy that uses 1st person camera angles and interior dialogue to great effect. It's reached a bit of cult status overseas. Series 1-8 are all on Netflix with a possible 9th entering production in the next year hopefully.

Oh hell. I watched the first 2 episodes and decided I had better finish the other ones I had going. I forgot to add it to the watch list.

I'll look into it. Thanks.

The whole series is incredible, but episodes 4-5-6 are three of the best episodes of anything ever.

What's the word on Boardwalk Empire? I thought there was a thread here, but couldn't find it on my tablet.

Pretty good. Next season will be the last. Though I think they killed off the most interesting character last season.

True Blood!!

Another nomination for Dexter.

This.

If you haven't finished this you should quit posting until you do...

Really? It looked kind of hokey. Is it that good?

Rescue me is really good but its all kinds of ****ed up

I thought it lost a lot of steam by the end.

I'd call it uneven but passionate. Sometimes hilarious pranking, sometimes deeply emotional, sometimes frighteningly angry and violent.

Basically post 9/11 firefighters and their messed up significant others and kids dealing the aftermath and personal drama.

There were plenty of WTF moments, Franco who found of he had a daughter and one day Susan Sarandon [absolutely no relation to them] just takes off with her never to be mentioned again, the time Tommy unambiguously raped his estranged wife and suddenly they're back together.

The kinda gay kinda dumb Mike was fun, as was the legit dumb Garrity. Michael Lombardi was always awesome as Stilleti. Comedian Lenny Clarke is hilarious.

It does also push pretty hard on 12 stepping. All of Tommy's family are hardcore alcoholics, because Irish. And they rotate being hardcore on the program and preachy then relapsing epically.

When it's good it's great, when it's more uneven you can still get through it. It's worth a binge watch.

Just seasons 1-4 though.

I love British comedies, but the camera work/style on this show really bugged me, so I never could get into it. Those guys did a movie called Magicians which was pretty entertaining.

My Wife figured out how to watch shows on HBO Demand. She just started watching this series again starting at season 1. :banghead: :cuss: :deevee:

Updated the OP. Breaking Bad, True Detective, and House of Cards were all fantastic. Watch those now, if you haven't.

Hung ended up being pretty shitty. Arrow (first season only, I missed the start of season 2) ended up being pretty good.

What about Lillyhammer and Happy Valley? Has anyone watched those?

Yes lilyhammer is cool. Also, check out the killing on netflix