Favorite TV Show(s)?

[Jennywocky]

From current -> backwards [much of the new stuff is better in quality than some of the shows I watched when young]

True Detective
American Horror Story
House of Cards (USA)
Hannibal
The Following
Breaking Bad
Orange is the New Black
Sherlock (BBC)
The Walking Dead
New Girl
Person of Interest
Glee
Robot Chicken
The Whitest Kids 'U Know
The Office
Better Off Ted
Whose Line is it Anyway (original British version)
Six Feet Under
iCarly
The Fairly Oddparents
Scrubs
Lost
Seinfeld
The Powerpuff Girls
Kids in the Hall
Millenium
X-Files
Simpsons
ST:TNG
Roseanne
Knight Rider
Cheers
Family Ties
Taxi
Thundarr the Barbarian
Little House on the Prairie
The Incredible Hulk
The Muppet Show
In Search Of
The Carol Burnette Show
Monty Python's Flying Circus
ST:TOS
The Twilight Zone
Looney Tunes

... plus a lot of crap on TruTV.

 

[serenesam]

I missed My Network Tv with the two shows called "Desire" and "Watch Over Me." That network got cancelled. Oh well.

 

[grayskies]

'00 shows:
Prison Break
Robin Hood [BBC]
My Mad Fat Diary
Merlin [BBC]
Once Upon A Time
The IT Crowd
Parks And Recreation
Sherlock
Stole Voices, Buried Secrets
Stalked: Someone's Watching
The Shift
Coldblood
Blood Lies & Alibis
Nightmare Next Door
Sins & Secrets
Wicked Attraction
Homicide Hunter
Arrow

'90's and before:
Hercules: The Legendary Journeys
Xena
Tales From The Crypt
Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman
Renegade
Highlander
The Wonder Years
All In The Family
Married With Children
In Living Color
Martin
The Love Connection - I loved when things didn't go well lol.
90210
Home Improvement
Touched By An Angel
Saved By The Bell
Forever Knight
and so on.....

 

[EyeSeeCold]

I picked up Reno 911 again, definitely enjoy it even more. Regular Show is something I didn't notice at first, it's easy to underrate. The Boondocks is back but not as good as it used to be, it's cheap humor now.

 

[Inappropriate Behavior]

Bit off topic but not worthy of making a new thread:

Does anyone use a Roku or the "Find Gary Busey!!" device?

I don't have time to watch much tv anymore but there are things I'd like to watch but don't get to when they air. I'd probably check through this thread for ideas on what I might like but no nothing about as well.

 

[Solitaire U.]

Mother Fuck! I admit it...I really enjoy Game of Thrones.

 

[Red myst]

Bit off topic but not worthy of making a new thread:

Does anyone use a Roku or the "Find Gary Busey!!" device?

I don't have time to watch much tv anymore but there are things I'd like to watch but don't get to when they air. I'd probably check through this thread for ideas on what I might like but no nothing about as well.

I use Roku. I love it and I ditched cable. Incase you were unaware, many blue ray players have built in software that is similar to Roku. There are many options, like chromecast. Or pretty much any pc or phone for that matter will do the trick. I have used netflix on my phone plugged into the tv through HDMI and it works flawlessly. I also buy used box sets of series, on eBay, watch them and resell them. I pretty much break even with that. Not to mention you could get a recording device. I find those are a bit of a hassle to set up, but that may not be the case nowadays.

 

[Inappropriate Behavior]

I use Roku. I love it and I ditched cable. Incase you were unaware, many blue ray players have built in software that is similar to Roku. There are many options, like chromecast. Or pretty much any pc or phone for that matter will do the trick. I have used netflix on my phone plugged into the tv through HDMI and it works flawlessly. I also buy used box sets of series, on eBay, watch them and resell them. I pretty much break even with that. Not to mention you could get a recording device. I find those are a bit of a hassle to set up, but that may not be the case nowadays.

Thanks, I just got one (Roku) but haven't plugged it in yet. I look forward to exploring what these things have to offer.

 

[QuickTwist]

The only TV show I would be interested in at the moment is Game of Thrones.

 

[liamliam1234liam]

1. The Daily Show
2. Gurren Lagann
3. Breaking Bad
4. Justice League
5. Community
6. Avatar: The Last Airbender
7. Scrubs
8. Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood
9. Arrested Development
10. Batman: The Animated Series
11. Cowboy Bebop

 

[Brontosaurie]

sherlock and doctor who

that moffat dude has my brain on a leash hehe

 

[Ex-User (9086)]

Not animated:
Farscape (overall a very good show)
Dexter (unfinished)
Lost (some of the characters were great, as well as the mystery created in the first season)

Besides that not many shows were good enough to keep me interested but Doctor Who gets the notable mention.

 

[Jennywocky]

Not animated:
Farscape (overall a very good show)
Dexter (unfinished)
Lost (some of the characters were great, as well as the mystery created in the first season)

Yeah, my favorite seasons of Lost were 1-3 or so; and it's mainly the characters I really miss, even if I thought some of the plot in the last few seasons lost its way.

 

[Ex-User (9086)]

Yeah, my favorite seasons of Lost were 1-3 or so; and it's mainly the characters I really miss, even if I thought some of the plot in the last few seasons lost its way.

Their motivations were so real and the conflicts between various characters were played surprisingly well. It's a rare experience, since it's not possible to give the characters enough time to develop in the movies and I haven't seen so many interpersonal developments that felt natural and in-agreement with the whole.

True, the late episodes were a deceleration from the skillfully crafted buildup towards the middle of the show.

 

[Jennywocky]

Their motivations were so real and the conflicts between various characters were played surprisingly well. It's a rare experience, since it's not possible to give the characters enough time to develop in the movies and I haven't seen so many interpersonal developments that felt natural and in-agreement with the whole.

That accurately describes it - the conflicts were really all character-driven, each character with their own various goals (some of which could be negative, some positive), and the most interesting and agonizing times were when positive goals came into conflict with each other for some particular reason. (Jack and Locke were both on the 'same team' but often came to blows due to their philosophical differences, for example.)

There were also particular personal dramas that played out in full over time (like Charlie dealing with his personal issues, including his drug habit). Some of this could be particular heart-wrenching to watch, and outcomes were often bittersweet.

The show also ended up being a trendsetter for a bit, in terms of structure... especially the flashback/flashforward/flashsideways narrative tool. A number of shows tried to rip this off in the following seasons, but none quite so successfully.

 

[EyeSeeCold]

Just a reminder: Simpsons-Futurama crossover tonight.

 

[ProxyAmenRa]

Two new shows I recommend:

Penny Dreadful
Constantine

 

[Direwolf]

Penny dreadful is awesome. When did constantine start?

Faves- game of thrones
Arrested development
Dexter
Arrow
Walking dead
Supernatural
Blacklist
Agents of shield
100
Rome
Tudors

Numerous others

 

[Jennywocky]

I just picked up Season One of "Orphan Black" since I got it pretty cheap as far as Bluray TV show seasons go; I haven't watched it yet, but it got some kudos from peeps, so...

Would like to watch Penny Dreadful as well.

But I can't even seem to keep up with AHS Season 4 (streaming, since I don't have cable), arg.

Penny dreadful is awesome. When did constantine start?

Late October. Reviews are positive in some circles, although it's unclear whether there will be enough audience to maintain it on the air... (at least, that's what I heard so far, things constantly change thought).

 

[EyeSeeCold]

The Outer Limits

I am always surprised by the high quality of some older, especially black and white, TV shows/movies .

 

[QuickTwist]

The news: for the Lawls.

 

[Frankie]

Mine is FRINGE . I generally love science fiction but this one is like the king of them all (at least to me).

 

[Brontosaurie]

"better call saul" is looking really good so far imo.

 

[Jennywocky]

^^ Three episodes in, and it's great.

 

[Teffnology]

All time TV favorites list in order:

1a- The Wire
1b- Breaking Bad
2- Seinfeld
3- Game of Thrones
4- Friday Night Lights
5- Mad Men
6- Deadwood
7- The Sopranos
8- Malcom In The Middle
9- Parks and Recreation (if only I could become the combination of Andy Dwyer and Ron Swanson)
10- Weeds (first 4 seasons only really)
11- Orange Is The New Black
12- House of Cards (this may be a little too high too soon but I have high hopes for season 3)
13- Louie
14- Transparent
15- Dexter (until he looses his family, season 5 I think)
16- Homeland (Season 1 only the rest is not good IMO but the first season was SO intense)
17- Prison Break (leading up to their first escape, after that it was a mess)
18- Doug
19- Hey Arnold
20- Rugrats


Honorable Mention:
Law and Order (who doesn't love getting sucked into a episode in the middle of the day when nohting else is on?)
Sports Night
Modern Family
Friends
Party Down
Silicon Valley
Wentworth (Women's Prison show set in Australia, more dramatic than OITNB but also more sappy)
Top of The Lake
Sherlock
Broadchurch
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia
Bob's Burgers
The Simpsons
Probably a few others I am obviously neglecting but that is the core of my TV show preferences

EDIT: Shit I forgot Arrested Development but it's in the top 20 for sure in the bottom half, wasn't a big fan of the Netflix reboot season however.

EDIT2: Add Scrubs, Fairly OddParents, True Detective, Hannibal, The Muppet Show, and Seasame Street to to honorable mention.

 

[Jennywocky]

Just started watching Transparent. It's really good -- the characters are organic, it's funny, acting is good, and it seems pretty true to the topical matter.

 

[Yellow]

Firefly
Doctor Who
MASH
The Avengers

It's been so long since I've seen any of them. I don't know how common they are, they're all old (though Doctor Who is old and new), so I made links. I will have to order a month of Netflix and catch up on Doctor Who. I think I'm two years behind. While I'm at it, I'm told Sherlock is on there and I've heard good things. I might check it out.

 

[Teffnology]

Just started watching Transparent. It's really good -- the characters are organic, it's funny, acting is good, and it seems pretty true to the topical matter.

Word.

Jeffery Tambor is phenomenal as per usual. "Hey now!"

 

[dark+matters]

Right now, mine is My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L0M5fvDumtM

So... many... colors... flashing across screen!

 

[Ms.Nobody]

Black Mirror is really interesting. Each episode is about 45 minutes and sets up a scenario that shows human nature at work. It's a bit freaky.

 

[The_Giver]

Once upon a time anyone???? Sherlock is also a favorite.

 

[Jennywocky]

Love Sherlock and have to watch the Christmas special. (By the way, the Black Mirror Christmas Special from last year is now on Netflix.)

Tried to watch Once Upon a Time, but it was aimed at teenage girls in terms of demographic and I just couldn't get interested in it long-term after reading the real FABLES graphic novels and darker stuff. I did make it through Season 1 and a few episodes of Season 2 before getting bored by all the Disney princesses showing up... Rumplestiltskin and Regina and Emma were great, though.
---

Just blitzed through the entire first season of "In Treatment" on HBO. What a great show, at least if you're into talking and the psychotherapy setting.

There were a few spots that were a bit overwrought, but I love how they take less recognized actors and give them meaty roles that they typically pull off. (There's a young Mia Wasikowska before she got famous; Embeth Davitz and Josh Charles; Blair Underwood; Melissa George; Michelle Forbes; and then of course Gabriel Byrne and Dianne Wiest, who I just love to death as an actor.) The second season looks to be more of the same -- Hope Davis shows up in S201, for example.

It originally aired every night during the week (half-hour segments), just like actual therapy occurring once a week. This can be annoying since to watch the throughline for each of the patients means either skipping four other episodes OR just taking them in order... but the episodes start to become intertwined in some spots, especially with their influence on Paul Weston, the therapist.

The camera also makes small imperceptible movements during the periods of silence (which occur a lot and are indicative of real therapy), to keep things interesting... they really blocked things out well in terms of staging and the emotions feel pretty organic. There's also a lot of painful ambiguity; the show is best when it allows the ambiguities to swallow the characters, and again this is what life changes are all about... being willing to live within the ambiguities no matter how scary or confusing and let yourself feel through things.

The first two seasons are actually taken from the original Israeli show (Be'Tipul), just with some cultural elements changed to fit HBO's American audience and bring a higher level of production quality; I can't find it with subtitles or I'd watch it just to compare. But I've heard pretty much the dialogue is lifted straight from the original, so... that's pretty cool, because I think it's extremely real.

 

[Silvermoon]

The walking dead
anyone?

 

[Alias]

Love Sherlock and have to watch the Christmas special. (By the way, the Black Mirror Christmas Special from last year is now on Netflix.)

Same here (Why else would my avatar have a deerstalker?), but I've seen the new special. It's great. It takes you back to 1800s Sherlock, which I really liked.

Not sure what my favorite show is, haven't watched tv in a while. How I Met Your Mother is up there.

 

[QuickTwist]

I know nothing of the walking dead show/movie. Never been into horror/gore/suspense type media. I have enough paranoia as it is, I don't need any more of it, no thank you.

 

[Jennywocky]

The walking dead
anyone?

I liked the new series, "Fear the Walking Dead."

I still watch TWD regularly when new episode comes out, but I think my favorite run was seasons 1-2 aside from too much time on The Farm.

it's gotten better under Gimple, but it's like they'll hit an episode or two out of the park, then turn around and ground out a few times. Every time I get excited about the show, it seems to go right back to status quo.

Or the whole Glenn mess from this season... it created a lot of buzz but seemed to be remarkably contrived and realistically unbelievable. Of course, they also had the Morgan episode around the same time (one of the great ones). That's what I mean -- something great, followed by something poorly contrived.

I still love "The Grove" episode. God.

 

[Silvermoon]

I liked the new series, "Fear the Walking Dead."

I still watch TWD regularly when new episode comes out, but I think my favorite run was seasons 1-2 aside from too much time on The Farm.

it's gotten better under Gimple, but it's like they'll hit an episode or two out of the park, then turn around and ground out a few times. Every time I get excited about the show, it seems to go right back to status quo.

Or the whole Glenn mess from this season... it created a lot of buzz but seemed to be remarkably contrived and realistically unbelievable. Of course, they also had the Morgan episode around the same time (one of the great ones). That's what I mean -- something great, followed by something poorly contrived.

I still love "The Grove" episode. God.

This last season has definitely been shaky but I hold out hope that it will pick up again. Regardless the first few season were absolutely gripping, with great characters and with a fairly original plot considering the cliche zombie trope. I would still recommend to anyone who has not seen it.

 

[grayskies]

The walking dead
anyone?

Out of everything horror-like, zombies were something I always hated. I tried to get into the show but gave up on it. Mostly I think because it became boring and took too long to get to the point. Didn't hold my interest enough.

 

[grayskies]

Once upon a time anyone???? Sherlock is also a favorite.

OUAT has been a favorite of mine since the beginning; I have some catching up to do but love it.

Sherlock is awesome - I wish there were more episodes...but it's definitely better than our Elementary.

 

[grayskies]

Two new shows I recommend:

Penny Dreadful
Constantine

How is Constantine? Is it anything to the likeness of the movie?

 

[Happy]

At the moment (It's an ever changing list):

Rick and Morty

Sherlock (BBC)

Limitless (not a great show, but a great protagonist)

Nathan For You (I've never laughed so hard at a television)

Master of None (excellent Gen Y commentary)

Sense8 (so much potential)

Ash vs. Evil Dead (for teh lulz)

Arrested Development

The Walking Dead (can't wait for the introduction of Negan - see avatar <<<< and I hope he kills Daryl because he's the only character badass enough to do so. I hope they don't censor him.)

 

[Jennywocky]

^^ There are some suspicions that Daryl (not Glenn) might be saying "Sayonara" at the end of this season. I figure the show does need to ante up, as long as it does so in a way that doesn't seem contrived. I like most of the current characters, but the whole point of Walking Dead is that death can come at any time; don't murder characters pointlessly, but don't have any sacred cows either.

Besides, what is Daryl without his crossbow? The day Michonne loses her sword, they'll probably kill her two.

----

Just finished Season 2 of The Leftovers (HBO). Damn. Lindelof uses everything he learned making Lost (along with the various missteps from that series) to generate a series in the same kind of genre (some speculative stuff involved), with the same focus on character arc/drama and a number of twists and turns but FOCUSED and HONED unlike Lost, which eventually became a weird eclectic grabbag to its detriment.

The actors are superb. Good direction. Great/Interesting character arcs. And enough curve balls to avoid predictability (and even some red herrings) and to blow the mind; I've seen a number of episodes that ended with a "WTF/Well, shit..." moment. The thing is, as I said, the writing is TIGHT and stays focused rather than going off in every direction.

Disappointing that the viewer numbers were so low (as it didn't break 1 million with any episode this season) but it's critically acclaimed. HBO bucked up for a third season, due to the quality, so that Lindelof could finish the story he wanted to tell. In a world that lost Hannibal after three seasons, I guess I will have to be happy with this much.

 

[EyeSeeCold]

It's a shame Legit with comedian Jim Jefferies was canceled but honestly the quality began the dip during the second season, which is funny because it also took a while to get good. I haven't laughed so consistently hard at a show in a long time.

A while ago I got into X-Files since I knew it from my peripheral childhood but never actually understood the show as being more than creepy. The onscreen chemistry between Mulder and Scully is really beautiful and keeps pulling you back into the show, along with the constant conspiracy drama, for that reason season 8 and 9 where the chemistry is lacking are hard to watch. The reboot was pretty decent although its finale was obviously rushed and suffers for it.

The crime drama / soap opera / psychological thriller Twin Peaks is amazing. The second season starts to drone, but by that time you appreciate the small town atmosphere and its characters. I loved the performance by Richard Beymer as Ben Horne, in all the craziness of the show I felt like he was the only sane and decent one, which given his actual motives says something about the depravity of the town.

I can't believe Trailer Park Boys had escaped my radar for so long, even if it didn't air in the US I still remember years ago seeing that gif of Randy's belly hitting a woman in the face on the bus. 15 years and 10 seasons later the show is still funny as it was in the first season, perhaps even better.

I caught Dark Matter on the SyFy network, I don't usually watch shows like this but it reminded me of the space craze of the 90s so I decided to check it out. Well you can tell they have a limited budget and the acting is often saturday-morning-cartoon-esque but overall it's a decent sci-fi show and it's easy to get hooked on the crew's interactions.

I am looking forward to more episodes of F is for Family and BoJack Horseman both are going places that other shows dare not to go in modern times.

I wish Gravity Falls and Rick and Morty would continue forever 100 times.

 

[Axwell]

South Park
Futurama
Rick & Morty
Cowboy Bebop
Shinsekai Yori
Family Guy
Game of Thrones
Firefly
Mr Robot

 

[Reluctantly]

I don't think Humans is mentioned here, but wow, Humans is great. It's about AI becoming self-aware. It deals with why humanity would even want such a thing and how conscious experience effects people/synths in different ways. Goes into a lot of philosophy on whether consciousness is worth the suffering it brings, as well as concepts of morality and justice, not to mention the difficulty people would probably have with the idea of a computerized machine having consciousness. It's really an interesting show. I think it's what Battlestar Galactica could have been had it delved into humanizing AI more, instead of the cylons vs humans aspect of the show.

 

[Jennywocky]

I don't think Humans is mentioned here, but wow, Humans is great. It's about AI becoming self-aware. It deals with why humanity would even want such a thing and how conscious experience effects people/synths in different ways. Goes into a lot of philosophy on whether consciousness is worth the suffering it brings, as well as concepts of morality and justice, not to mention the difficulty people would probably have with the idea of a computerized machine having consciousness. It's really an interesting show. I think it's what Battlestar Galactica could have been had it delved into humanizing AI more, instead of the cylons vs humans aspect of the show.

Is it better than the commercials for it? I had written it off because it looked kind of cheesy (although not "Into the Badlands" cheesey).

 

[Reluctantly]

Yeah, it's a lot better. I had the same impressions, lol.

 

[Midvar]

Sherlock
Doctor Who
Agent Carter
The Office

 

[RaBind]

West world was amazing. Everything I could ever want in a realistic sci-fi setting. I find that when you get into "high sci-fi" (i.e. like high fantasy) it becomes a lot harder to suspend disbelief and fully immerse into the story, it's also harder to relate to the story as the setting gets further removed from reality.

Westworld is placed in a relatively low-ish sci-fi setting. There has been significant progress in the development of robots to the point it is possible to create fully human-like androids and a western themed park to "role-play" in. True a.i. consciousness hasn't been developed yet but it is coming and it's development is the main plot of the first season.

I love how uncensored the show is with it's major elements such as sex, violence, morality, drama...
Another point I've heard about the show and agree with is how self contained and complete the major story arc of the first season has been. It makes the story very fulfilling.
I'm also a sucker for using beautiful landscape shots to set the scene and there's a lot of that, I'd say the quality of this aspect is on par to the Lotr and Star Wars 456 series'.
Also season 1 in total comes to around 10 hours, which is amazing for character development. I'm really glad this wasn't just a 2 hour movie or something, that would've fucked the show badly I presume.
The only gripe I have with it is felix and sylvester's side plot with Maeve, I thought that bit was a bit silly.
Overall very happy with season 1.

Bojack horseman is an awesome show.

Louie is really good too.

 

[Jennywocky]

...
The only gripe I have with it is felix and sylvester's side plot with Maeve, I thought that bit was a bit silly.

Well, you would have thought they would have some kind of protocol for dealing with a Maeve or the park would have hired people with a bit more common sense.

On the other hand, it was clear the show felt pretty dark and they wanted some comedic moments. I have to admit it was kind of delicious to watch her pwn them so effortlessly, as well as the way they wouldn't have any freaking idea what to do with her. they were putty in her hands.

It was a great freshman season that even beats some later seasons by other established shows.

Bojack horseman is an awesome show.

Yeah, once I got to episode 4 or something, suddenly I was hooked; and I binge-watched all three seasons within two weeks or something. there are no words...