For someone who watches no television 'live' (as it were) whatsoever, excepting F1, obviously, I'm something of a closet fan of dramatic fiction as delivered within the varying constraints of commercial television. Obviously I accept that, beyond the BBC, PBS and whatever Australia and Canada's public service broadcasters are, the sole purpose of a TV show is to generate advertising revenue for the network but I believe that that major constraint can often bring out the best in a team of writers, and the directors, actors and editors that transfer the writers' vision to the screen.
I was a big fan of HBO's Rome when that was on, although in retrospect it is more tame than it seemed at the time and there was often more emphasis on humour than drama.
I did watch SyFy's BSG, too, as I think Westy may have done, but became disenchanted as it degenerated into afternoon soap opera. Scandalously, it was allowed to continue to its final fifth season (or four if you count the last two years as one season) while far superior science fiction-based dramas were cancelled after one (Firefly) or two (The Sarah Connor Chronicles).
Reaching back to more artsy British TV drama, Alan Bleasdale's G.B.H. has long held a place in my heart for exceptional performances in a tragedy on a Shakespearian scale. Rome led us back to I, Claudius, which I'd probably dabbled with as a youngster but took more seriously as an adult. I found it a tad dry and ineffectual so long after its original airing.
I'll mention Mad Dogs in passing but, although I really enjoyed it, that's more to do with being a fan of Majorca than anything. I've yet to dabble with The Sopranos, The Shield or The Wire, and I'll probably steer well clear of Game of Thrones (I read the first chapter of the cretin's first book and was appalled, plus he's meant to be an horrific misogynist).
Mad Men will probably be next for us but the flavour of the month is a show that has just started its fifth and final season and is widely regarded among the top four shows so far produced on TV, and by some as the best show ever - and it's the primary reason for this thread (in the hope of enticing fellow fans into a discussion on its merits... secondary reasons are to draw attention to other quality shows).
Anyone else a fan of Breaking Bad, or of any other TV drama?
I was a big fan of HBO's Rome when that was on, although in retrospect it is more tame than it seemed at the time and there was often more emphasis on humour than drama.
I did watch SyFy's BSG, too, as I think Westy may have done, but became disenchanted as it degenerated into afternoon soap opera. Scandalously, it was allowed to continue to its final fifth season (or four if you count the last two years as one season) while far superior science fiction-based dramas were cancelled after one (Firefly) or two (The Sarah Connor Chronicles).
Reaching back to more artsy British TV drama, Alan Bleasdale's G.B.H. has long held a place in my heart for exceptional performances in a tragedy on a Shakespearian scale. Rome led us back to I, Claudius, which I'd probably dabbled with as a youngster but took more seriously as an adult. I found it a tad dry and ineffectual so long after its original airing.
I'll mention Mad Dogs in passing but, although I really enjoyed it, that's more to do with being a fan of Majorca than anything. I've yet to dabble with The Sopranos, The Shield or The Wire, and I'll probably steer well clear of Game of Thrones (I read the first chapter of the cretin's first book and was appalled, plus he's meant to be an horrific misogynist).
Mad Men will probably be next for us but the flavour of the month is a show that has just started its fifth and final season and is widely regarded among the top four shows so far produced on TV, and by some as the best show ever - and it's the primary reason for this thread (in the hope of enticing fellow fans into a discussion on its merits... secondary reasons are to draw attention to other quality shows).
Anyone else a fan of Breaking Bad, or of any other TV drama?
