Entertainment For Lively Minds
What's next?
Posted by Chris Young on 23 July 2009 - 4:26pm.
The West Wing has been the backbone of our TV entertainment here at Young Towers for some months now but last night we reached the end of series seven and as Bartlett would say, "Whats next?"
We have series one of both the Sopranos and The Wire siting on the shelf but what others should we be considering?
I feel sure this sort of thread has been done before so apologies for any repetiton but I would really appreciate any views and personal recommendations.
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Six Feet Under
Apart from the two that you mention, this is the other jewel in the HBO crown.
Yes
We watched Six Feet when it was first shown but I think for some reason missed the last season. Brilliant opening credits as I recall.
The last series is very good
My wife and I watched about the last six episodes in one, emotionally exhausting, marathon sitting.
Thanks
Sounds like we missed out. Maybe time to give it another go.
One of my favourite TV scenes of all time was towards the end, maybe at the end of one of the series of Six Feet Under when the older brother (David?) is talking to his dead father who suggests that anyone can change how his life is just by making the change. David replys that it isn't as easy as that to which the dead father responds yes but what if it is.Inspirational stuff.
Six Feet's under a favourite here -
to my mind one of the best things on TV/DVD in the last 10 years. The cast, even when in short-lived or cameo roles, is terrific, as is the writing and directing throughout.
That said, anyone who found it pretentious to have dead characters in voiceover (c/o American Beauty - another Alan Ball project that preceded it) may find the occasional device of dead characters speaking to the living, or in conversations with the living, is not for them.
A viewing of the pilot should be enough to decide if you love or hate the setup.
You'll need to buy more than series 1
FFS fella, don't start the W*re or Sopranos with only one series on the shelf, you'll need the full whack once you start. In box set form they are unputdownable - or whatever non-publishing industry cliché applies here.
Bodies
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Bodies-Complete-BBC-Collection-Box/dp/B000GUJZR8...
Brilliant series -- and usually can't be arsed with british drama.
The Shield
Just finished series 1 & 2 ... it's a little episodic but it seems to have potential.
Seconded
Half way through series three, with 4-6 on their way from Amazon as we speak.
Also would recommend Dexter and Mad Men.
We only watch DVD box sets now, it seems...
Thanks for Mad Men
I'd forgotten that. I love box sets. We're working our way through Frasier with the kids too. Great fun.
Frasier
I can watch over and over and still find it funny.
Clever writing and great cast....not many sitcoms can do that.
Buffy
It's not for kids. It's brilliant. That is all.
first season, short, and perhaps a bit so-so. Then it hits its stride and barely lets up. There's a completely silent episode, a Hollywood musical episode, and one that, bravely, has absolutely no background music during it at all.
That silent episode
scared the bejeesus out of me when it was shown on TV. You have been warned!
Wife and thirteen year old daughter watched series one
and enjoyed. It didn't really speak to me. Perhaps I should have another go.Sounds as if there are more interesting thngs in later series.
There are
But be warned that Series 4 is a bit of a duffer. Seies 5 though- - wonderful television!
I refer the honourable Gentlemen (ha!)
to my previous post:,
http://www.wordmagazine.co.uk/content/anyone-see-premier-new-hbo-show-tr...
Buffy was utterly groundbreaking and utterly engaging - yes, there were the occasional misfiring episodes, but it had an emotional pull on me that no TV show should have a right to. Even series 4, the purported 'duff' season, boasted the aforementioned 'Hush' (the silent episode)and 'Restless', focussing on each character's psychological dreamscapes. These episodes alone are outstanding television, well worth investigating.
I could go on, but you either 'get' Buffy or you don't, regardless of my attempts at evangelical conversion :-)
i well remember your earlier post
good sir. I thought about chiming in with a 'me too' but didn't bother!
Spike is one of the finest comedy characters ever committed to whatever it is they commit comedy characters to. The rest of the cast are wonderful, well able to pull out the funnies, the pathos, the bewilderment and the scaries.
That's before the, quite frankly, sparkling Bufffyspeak which shouldn't work but does. Beautifully.
Buffy 4 - Possible plot spoilers
The main problems with Series 4 were the absurd (yes, yes, I know) underground paramilitary base, and, more seriously, the failure to write a character for Riley. Not only did he spoil the Scooby Doo Gang dynamic of the group but he added nothing in return. Oh, and they weren't sure what to do with Giles for a whole series.
I've got all The Sopranos series boxsets
and watched them all to death, but they completely stand up to repeated viewing. Everything is right- the photography, the characters, the actors, the soundtrack. Top notch.
Trying to get into Mad Men at the moment.
Oh, and Six Feet Under is fabulous.
So dark it's like...beyond black.....
Suggestions
Rescue Me
The Office (US)
seconded
Rescue Me is excellent and is there a better character than Lou on TV. his comedy timing is wonderful
E.R.
I am currently working my way through every episode. I was a bit unsure at first, but four or five episodes into the first series and I was hooked. There are also 15 seasons in all, so it will take a while to get through them. At least the first ten seasons can be bought on t'internet for under a tenner each.
Mad Men
Dexter, & Californication.
Dexter and Arrested Development
Especially the last one if you fancy a bit of a laugh(although the US Office is damn good too)!
Mad Men
Mad Men really is something very special.
i agree
.
Battlestar Galactica
Not the original series, the 're-imagining'. Some people can't get past that it is sci-fi, but it is so much more than that. Superb production values, great acting, intense storylines.
Seconded -
just finished the final series. Superb consistently from the pilot to the end.
Also just finished Series 1 of 'Carnival' which was excellent in a David Lynch style, although tarnished by the knowledge that it got cancelled at the end of Series 2.
Thirded
Re BSG - if you can just accept the premise of sci-fi staples such as sentient machines and faster-than-light travel, the scripting, plotlines and performances are all excellent.
Fourthed
In fact, I've got the last episode of season 3 lined up for tonight. It's the only series that I've been able to get into since The Wire. It's certainly not flawless - about one episode in every four screams out "filler while we figure out where the hell this is going", and the guy who plays Col. Tigh often takes the term "ham" to a whole new dimension - but in general it's well-written, well-acted and well-made, with intelligent storylines, intriguing subplots and credible characters.
Firefly
and the film they made after the series was cancelled Serenity are great if you liked Star Wars and wondered what it would be like if most of the characters were Han Solo instead of po-faced Jedi Knights.
Sorry, came over all fan boy for a second there.
I really liked the Minnie Driver/Eddie Izzard series The Riches if you can get hold of that, two series so far. They are Travellers who take on the identity of a dead lawyer and his family. Great stuff.
Mad Men series 1 and 2 are available from Amazon in one collection for about 25 quid, that's brilliant tv.
Weeds is another great series, well worth a watch...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weeds_(TV_series)
Yes! Weeds!
& Deadwood.
I've said this before but
I recommend "Sports Night", the pre-West Wing Sorkin. Great ensemble stuff of the kind he does so well.
You can get it from Amazon, but it'll come from the States via one of their sellers - Caiman are good. Box set of the complete thing for about 30 quid.
Studio 60 On The Sunset Strip does as well - more Sorkin.
Another vote for Californication as well. Natasha McElhone eh? Nudge nudge, wink wink, say no more...
I love
The Smurf!
House
thoroughly enjoyed the first few series of this medical what/whodunnit, although series 4 i thought was a bit patchy. Currently watching series 5 on sky +(essential in order to forward through the ridiculous amount of commercials), and it seems to be back on track
The West Wing
I've watched the first series and was wondering if it changes much. I've found it all a bit syrupy and unrealistic so far. It's selling a very idealised picture of American politics that I find annoying. I also find it a bit dull. Does it change at all or should I give up on it?
Probably not for you
There is an element of unrealism in just how decent a person the President is - and the rest of his team, for that matter.
And if you're not excited by all the fast walking-and-talking stuff, then there's probably not much to pique your interest in the later series.
Thanks
Think I'll give up then. Found the prospect of another 6 series with that self-satisfied gang a bit daunting anyway.
Stay with it...
...it's worth it.
Mad Men
I'd recommend 'Mad Men'. Put it this way, I avoid most US TV drama like the plague, because even the supposedly great stuff like 'The Wire' bored me to tears. But I found myself utterly engrossed in 'Mad Men'. If you're HD capable, the Blu Ray versions are well worth it.
Or if you fancy something a little lighter, what about '30 Rock'?
Northern Exposure
A bit of a blast from the past, this one, but still worth checking out. A charming, quirky take on the Town Mouse/Country Mouse fable. The GLW and I have been getting through the DVD box sets on a sporadic basis and thoroughly enjoying it.
Chris In The Morning!
Apparently, "he's lovely"
My wife enjoys his scenes just a little too much for my liking!
As I remember it
he was a great dj.
I may be wrong and it's just the passing of time [it's been a while] , but I'm sure he played top, top tunes.
Undeniably
He would definitely be on my radio alarm clock, if he were real. Even though I never recognised a single tune that he played, they all sounded great!
Northern Exposure
One of my favourite tv series of all time.
What was the pilot's name? Maggie? Ah. ;)
Chris for the girls, Maggie for the boys
Twin Peaks
As far as I know, only Season 1 is out on DVD, but it is essential viewing if you like small-town weirdness, telepathic logs, backwards-speaking dwarves, suspected filicide, damned fine coffee, plaid skirts, adultery, misogyny, madness and cherry pie.
Season 2...
...is available on region 2 in Mainland Europe. I got the boxset from Holland last year.
Damages
Glenn Close is brilliant and Rose Byrne is beautiful and Ted Danson is evil and it's all good.
NYC lawyers, only in America
agreed
it is brilliant. second season is not quite as good but still a cut above.
Life On Mars
Season 1 and 2.
Our Friends in the North
Best TV ever - with a future James Bond, a future Dr Who and the wonderful Gina McKee.
More to the point, for Word readers, music is an important thread all the way through from the 60s to the 90s.
Box Sets
I'm kicking it old skool and costumed at the moment. Have just finished revisiting Brideshead and have Jewel In The Crown and Fortunes Of War waiting on the shelf. You can pick classic series up extremely cheaply on Amazon and the like currently.
Cant go wrong with
the beeb's 1970s versions of War & Peace and I Claudius. Claudius is £18 on Amazon at present.
The US Office
Start on season 2, season one is too similar to the UK version and doesn't really stand up to it. But seasons 2 and onwards are (dare I say it) even better than the original. Brilliant!
And The Wire, of course.
Huff
Huff is the best thing I've seen since The Wire. It's a comedy/drama with an American Beauty feel about it. The plot follows psychiatrist Hank Azaria going through a mid-life crisis but sadly only one series on dvd. Also highly recommended are HBO drama series' Carnivale and Big Love.
Prison Break
Prison Break, great entertainment, gripping, edgy, good characters and plain DAFT!
Have to agree with everything already said about The Sopranos, if you only own one DVD boxset it has to be Tony and his clan.