So in the last 2 decades of TV what'd I miss?

[Phildo]

Has anyone mentioned the first two seasons of House yet?  I stopped watching after that for no particular reason, but the first two seasons were great.

[Trippy]

Fox is getting better though...At least the Terminator series isn't canceled yet.

That's cause it wasn't on Fridays.

Greatest show they canceled was the Tick.

Which was on Fridays as was Wonderfalls (the show I'm still pissed about) and Firefly (shown out of order) and Harsh Realm and The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr. and The Lone Gunmen (okay that show wasn't good) and...

[Nerf]

I'll second the reccomendation for Burn Notice, Psych, and Monk, USA's lineup is looking pretty stellar this year.

And wings, I loved wings.

[Johny Cee]

Uh, well... ABC has Lost and NBC has Heroes. Arguably the only two shows right now with feature film production quality.

Fox is getting better though...At least the Terminator series isn't canceled yet.

Greatest show they canceled was the Tick.

Out of how many shows ABC and NBC have tried to sell over the last four years,  that's it?  And if Heroes ratings slide again, that's going to go bye-bye.

The only other show I can remember is Bionic Woman....  and during that time period there have been dozens of sitcoms, a pile of shitty cop shows, bad reality shows, etc.


Scifi/fantastic shows tend to be expensive to shoot, have an awful format for network TV (story arc based BAD, in a world of pre-empts), and generally of limited interest.


Fox also gets credit for FX in my book:  they have some great original programming.

[Bunk]

Shows I own on DVD or have Netflixed:

Sopranos
Deadwood
BSG
Farscape
Buffy
Angel

Animation I'd recommend:
Venture Bros.
Southpark
Futurama, if you like the Groenig thing (it's better than the last 37 seasons of the Simpsons)

Rome is not to be missed.
Babylon 5 if you never watched it.

Can't really think of much that hasn't already been touched on.

[K9]

Black Books, The Office (US and UK versions are both good, I prefer the US office myself) and Extras.

[schild]

I'm going to veto blackbooks. Ookii says there's a couple good episodes, but from the little bit I saw - unbearable.

[Yegolev]

I'll save you lots of effort.  I have watched TV from way back and I have a great foundation that lets me ignore 99% of what is produced today.

Firstly, watch The Honeymooners.  This will cover 80% of what you would see in any sitcom.
For the other 20%, watch I Love Lucy and you'll cover another 15% of sitcoms.  Especially Fred Mertz, who causes things like Everybody Loves Raymond to be moot.
Comedic sitcoms?  Gilligan's Island.  Just watch the black-and-white episodes if you are on a time constraint.  If you want maximum camp, watch the color episodes.
Flintstones.  This will fill any possible gaps in your sitcom repetoire as well as filling that animated-prime-time gap.  Note that Fred and Wilma Flintstone were the first married couple to share a bed on prime-time TV.

If you have some sort of 1980's campy gap, for whatever reason, you can pick from the following:
Knight Rider
The A-Team
Airwolf

For good comedy, I recommend all of Bob Newhart's series.  Bob Newhart is a fucking god, and please note that he is one of George Carlin's influences.

I assume you have watched some Three Stooges.  For the love of God.

Crime shit?  Magnum P.I. or perhaps Simon and Simon.

Hospital drama?  St. Elsewhere did it first.

Cop drama?  Hill Street Blues did it first.

Show I wish had made it?  Cop Rock.  I make no apologies.

Sci-fi?  For the Harryhausen/retro flavor, some Doctor Who (pre-Eccleston) and original Star Trek.  If you have a tolerance for space opera, the new Battlestar Galactica.  Firefly was great, but get the DVD set.

[schild]

Oh man. That's an unbearable list of shit.

In most cases, with TV, he who does it first generally does it Badly.

[Yegolev]

Are you saying TV isn't shit?

[Viin]

Are you saying TV isn't shit?

99% of Network TV - yes. 98% of Cable TV - yes. 90% of Premium Cable TV - yes.

But there are still some jewels in there if you don't mind wasting away your life on a couch.

[Yegolev]

Sort of the point of my post.  If you watch what I have listed, you'll be done with TV.

[DeathInABottle]

The Wire.

That is all.

I'd save this for when you're done watching the other shows.

Because seriously.

The Wire.

QFT.  Easily the best show ever.  EVER.

[K9]

I'm going to veto blackbooks. Ookii says there's a couple good episodes, but from the little bit I saw - unbearable.

Well it's not like the OP is short of suggestions anyway; I'm a big fan of Bill Bailey and Dylan Moran so sue me. I liked it a lot.

[Signe]

I never saw that show but I  Bill Bailey and Dylan Moran, too.  Especially Bill Bailey.  Especially on Never Mind the Buzzcocks.

[eldaec]

20 years you say?


Bobby isn't really dead, the entire previous season was just Pam's bad dream.

[grebo]

The WIRE!(again)

And when you're done with that, watch... well it doesn't matter because nothing else compares.

[MisterNoisy]

You NEED these DVDs

[Selby]

Firstly, watch The Honeymooners.  This will cover 80% of what you would see in any sitcom.

The Dick Van Dyke Show is pretty much in the same category for me as well, while being slightly more modern.  I watched 90% of the show a few years back and realized that almost every single episode I was watching was done recently on some other sitcom, and not as well.  The Honeymooners, I Love Lucy, and Dick Van Dyke to me are pretty much 99% of what you will see in any sitcom from the last 30 years - basically just no "Very Special Episodes" where kids are mainlining ice or being touched by an uncle (throw in The Mary Tyler Moore show if you want that occasionally).

Those shows and the first 4 seasons of MacGyver are guilty pleasures for me.  I can't really say I've tuned into anything beyond Family Guy and Futurama from the last 10 years with any regularity.  I watched plenty of sitcoms\comedy with the other half and was mildly amused about half of the time on a good show and not amused considerably more with the bad shows (mostly I called alot of situations that were occurring and how stupid they were).  Nothing I have seen would honestly qualify as a must-watch if you haven't.  Shows like Lost, Heroes, House, etc I just don't care enough to sit down for them or didn't care for what I saw, so my opinion doesn't count for those.  My parents got rid of cable when I was in high school, so I stopped watching TV for the most part and never really bothered to get back into it.

[Tale]

The Wire.

That is all.

I'd save this for when you're done watching the other shows.

Because seriously.

The Wire.

QFT.  Easily the best show ever.  EVER.

The WIRE!(again)

And when you're done with that, watch... well it doesn't matter because nothing else compares.

THE WIRE (me too).

I came to the thread to say The Wire. Look, there are five seasons, with each episode running about an hour. Start at season 1, watch a few episodes until you understand the style and characters, and you've got an awesome long journey ahead, through possibly the best ever TV.

It's also a good one to watch as a catch-up, because it occasionally mentions things that are happening at the time and changes in technology, so you can place the year and what you were doing while you were missing this show.

http://www.metacritic.com/tv/shows/wireseason4?q=the%20wire
Average of 21 professional reviews: 98/100
Average of 268 user reviews: 97/100

[Engels]

To be honest, I struggled with the first half of season 1 of The Wire. I got the feeling the show itself didn't quite know what it was yet. It went from gut-wrenching cruelty to attempts at 'humor' (the fuck-fuck-fuck-FUCK-fuck scene, for exampe) that were just ...I don't know, out of place.

However, once over that hump, the series took on levels of depth that were positively shakespearean. The only other show that maybe reached that level of psychological refinement were some select episodes of Inspector Morse.

[Tale]

For your entertainment - The Wire - Brothel bust
For your excitement - The Wire - A meeting of two epic characters

However, once over that hump, the series took on levels of depth that were positively shakespearean. The only other show that maybe reached that level of psychological refinement were some select episodes of Inspector Morse.

Ever seen the British version of the series Cracker? Starring Robbie Coltrane (aka Hagrid). That is some deeeeeep psychological awesomeness. A police psychologist who is a total mess himself, with awesome scriptwriting.

Scene from the original Cracker

[Murgos]

Missed in the last 20 years?

Um, 90210, Buffy, Sopranos and Sex in the City.

Everything else was skippable.  If you haven't seen at least a couple of episodes of the above though I'm thinking you probably don't understand 50-60% of pop-culture references people whiz by you.

[schild]

Missed in the last 20 years?

Um, 90210, Buffy, Sopranos and Sex in the City.

Everything else was skippable.  If you haven't seen at least a couple of episodes of the above though I'm thinking you probably don't understand 50-60% of pop-culture references people whiz by you.

lol

Joke post. FOr sure.

[Murgos]

Go to a normal person party.  Have a conversation.  They don't make references to the same sort of stuff we do.

Buffy is probably stretching it but every male under 40 has seen it so I put it in there.

[schild]

If you don't think normal people watch Boston Legal, Sopranos, etc, you're crazy. That list of shit you just put up is shit and I wouldn't inflict it on fucking anybody. Not even a 15 year old girl.

[Murgos]

If you don't think normal people watch Boston Legal, Sopranos, etc, you're crazy. That list of shit you just put up is shit and I wouldn't inflict it on fucking anybody. Not even a 15 year old girl.

Donna, Mr. Big, Evil Willow, Pauly Walnuts, Denny Crane.

Who the fuck is Denny Crane?  Oh, Shatner, yeah, then they'll get it.

[Engels]

Ever seen the British version of the series Cracker? Starring Robbie Coltrane (aka Hagrid). That is some deeeeeep psychological awesomeness. A police psychologist who is a total mess himself, with awesome scriptwriting.

Scene from the original Cracker

Yes, that was a brilliant series. The american version was good too, in its own different way, much liike the US version of the Office.  Unfortunately it didn't catch on, probably because the main guy was too liberal/intelectual for US audiences.

[Signe]

Wasn't 90210 about high school kids?  I've never seen it but I know it was very popular, probably mostly with teenagers..  I really can't imagine someone who's already grown just starting in on a show like that.  There wouldn't be the nostalgia from when you were a kid, no?  There's a lot of shows like that which are popular, too, but sort of geared towards teens. 

As for David E. Kelly stuff like Boston Legal, I always start off loving them.  Chicago Hope, Ally McBeal, LA Law... they start out with a bang but as the seasons go on, they get sillier, the stories get too weird and unbelievable, even stupid.  I think maybe he does the writing or at least heads it for a couple of years or so and then moves on.  I can't seem to ever get to the end of one of his series without feeling disgusted by where they ended up.  I lost interest in Boston Legal.  The relationship between Shatner and Spader became embarrassingly idiotic.  All the young lawyers have melted together in a pile of tired same-sounding unfunny dialog. 

Except for Picket Fences.  That wasn't on long enough and when it ended, I still loved it.

[Grand Design]

The Wire.  I'm only in season 3, and I can't stress how good it is. 
Dexter.  Holy shit.  Holy fucking shit.  I'm going to put my dvds in now.
Deadwood.  You may need subtitles and lots of whiskey to keep up.
Sopranos.  Best characters ever.
Rome.  Too good to miss.  Way too good to have been canceled too.
John From Cincinnati - I think I'm in a small minority on this, but I loved it.

Has anyone said Huff?  I fucking loved Huff, even if it psyched me out more than once.

The Office - original British series.
Extras - if you like The Office, this is in the same vein.
Curb Your Enthusiasm - Seinfeld sans the censors and scripts.
South Park - still the best at satire and social commentary.  And funny.

NYPD Blue - A bit dated, but still the best cop show ever.
House - for network tv, this is damned good.  Once you've seen the first season, you'll know just about every plot device they use, though.  Its not lupus.

And Mystery Science Theater, of course.

[schild]

It's never lupus.

[Grand Design]

It's rarely lupus.  In my House drinking game, lupus is a 'finish your drink and get another stat'.

[Koyasha]

Surprised no one has mentioned Stargate SG-1, I found that to be a good series, especially the first...eight seasons, where Richard Dean Anderson as Colonel O'Neill was still in every episode.  Stargate Atlantis is also good, if you like SG-1, especially David Hewlett as Rodney McKay.

Everything else I would say has already been mentioned, most several times, though Dr. Who hasn't been mentioned often enough in comparison, so I'll say that one too.

[rattran]

Mst3k
Never Mind the Buzzcocks (if you like music)
Life on Mars (Brit version)
Shaun the Sheep
The Fast Show / Brilliant
Top Gears
Venture Brothers
Dead Like Me
Farscape
QI
Home Movies
Big O
Bottom
Futurama
Heroes
Carnivale
Deadwood
Bullshit
Hex
4400
Bones
Black Books
Is it Bill Bailey?

That is all.

[Arrrgh]

Invader Zim gets no love?

And the Tick animated series.