OT: What Are You Watching Now? No Spoilers

[Braggins]

1) Twin Peaks
2) Game of Thrones
3) Tim and Eric Awesome Show Great Job!
3) Flight of The Conchords
5) Eastbound and Down
6) Freaks and Geeks
7) Community
8) Wilfred
9) Curb Your Enthusiasm
10) Its Always Sunny in Philadelphia
11) Arrested Development
12) Wonder Showzen

The Wire, House of Cards, and Fargo should be somewhere on my list but I watched them so recently that I haven't digested them enough to know exactly where they should place. When it comes to tv shows I tend to favor comedies over more serious ones (which is the opposite of how I am with most other things) so that is why almost every show on my list is more comedy oriented.

[amcoolio]

any arguments with Dexter winning worst finale of all time?

that last season was such a drag and the finale just totally ridiculous.

2 old shows that I can watch whenever they're repeated are MASH and Fawlty Towers.

Both brilliant in different and John Cleese is borderline insane. He put the co-star in hospital once with some of his slap stick comedy.

Lost is up there (surprised it has been mentioned in this thread yet).

Its been forgotten because of how disconnected and poorly written the last few seasons were and its already been 5 but the seasons 1 and 2 of Lost were 100% legit with some of the best characters ever written for television in Locke and Linus.

God I almost want to binge those seasons again. But I'm starting Breaking Bad tonight. Pretty good so far, but I knew I would like it. Just finding the motivation was difficult.

Another question for you folks, any specific season of a show that transcends the other seasons and the show itself?

For me, season 5 of 24 is fantastic. If I could just pull that season and rank that on it own it be right up there. Another show that kinda went down the tubes and ran longer than it should have, and Kiefer is polarizing but a great story.

[LamarMatic7]

my dad used to make me watch this prisoner with him when i was a kid. all i remember was this big ball that would come around chase people (or did i make that part up)?

yes, you remember that right.

it's almost the equivalent of Lost's smoke monster (not spoiling anything here, both appear in the pilot). Lost really borrowed a lot of ideas from The Prisoner.

[Braggins]

I've never seen Breaking Bad or Game of Thrones. If you had to choose, which should I start with? I just can't get motivated to start either of them even though I know I would love both.

Both are good but I would strongly suggest Game of Thrones unless you don't enjoy fantasy or think you wouldn't. Every aspect of the production value is amazing and the storylines are really complex and interesting. I would describe it as a dark political drama set in a feudal (but otherwise somewhat non traditional) fantasy setting. It has many elements similar to the dark politics you mentioned from House of Cards but taken to some brutal extremes. The seasons have a non-traditional pace with lots of buildup but there are tons of moments will shock and surprise you and plenty of action.

[LamarMatic7]

Lost is up there (surprised it has been mentioned in this thread yet).

Its been forgotten because of how disconnected and poorly written the last few seasons were and its already been 5 but the seasons 1 and 2 of Lost were 100% legit with some of the best characters ever written for television in Locke and Linus.

God I almost want to binge those seasons again. But I'm starting Breaking Bad tonight. Pretty good so far, but I knew I would like it. Just finding the motivation was difficult.

I'm a huge, huge Lost fan. For a while I considered it my favourite TV series, while I would just call The Wire the best. But with time The Wire has taken that spot.

It's just that the watching experience of Lost was something unique. I was one of the people who would watch an episode and then spend an hour on Lost forums discussing easter eggs. The wait for the next episode was unbearable and almost always the cliffhanger that would end the previous episode wouldn't be returned back to for 38 minutes.

Yeah, seasons 1 and 2 were outstanding. But I wouldn't call the latter part of the series that bad. I think people were disappointed about how far-fetched the fantasy parts of the series developed. The finale wasn't perfect, but I was somewhat okay with it. It was too beautiful for me not to like it.

One thing I was disappointed about though was that seasons 1 and 2 were genuinely scary. The same goes for the first few episodes of Twin Peaks. I mean, ****, it wasn't easy to watch some of the scenes in the woods of both of these TV series. Yet they lost that quality with time.

What was scary, more specifically

Spoiler:

was, per example, Claire being attacked during nights. Holy ****, I didn't like that feeling that some unknown human being could infiltrate their camp. I hate needles so watching one go in her belly was hard to watch.

[LamarMatic7]

1) Twin Peaks

Did you catch the fact that in the Twin Peaks finale

Spoiler:

in the Black Lodge Laura Palmer tells Coop that she will see him again in 25 years. AND now it has been 25 years since then. Holy ****, had David Lynch planned this all along? Did he know that he wouldn't have any pressure from higher-ups in the future, so he left himself an out to continue the series? I mean, he supposedly purposefully left the destiny of many characters not resolved, such as the explosion involving Pete and Audrey to spite the powers that be.

I had always dismissed the possibility of the series returning because of actor age issues and it being too long of a time. But it all almost makes sense now.

[Braggins]

1) Twin Peaks

Did you catch the fact that in the Twin Peaks finale

Spoiler:

in the Black Lodge Laura Palmer tells Coop that she will see him again in 25 years. AND now it has been 25 years since then. Holy ****, had David Lynch planned this all along? Did he know that he wouldn't have any pressure from higher-ups in the future, so he left himself an out to continue the series? I mean, he supposedly purposefully left the destiny of many characters not resolved, such as the explosion involving Pete and Audrey to spite the powers that be.

I had always dismissed the possibility of the series returning because of actor age issues and it being too long of a time. But it all almost makes sense now.

The man is a genius. I have to assume he either planned it or as you said left himself the out.

Spoiler:

In some of the Black Lodge scenes Cooper's face was wrinkled and he looked as though he had aged considerably. In Fire Walk With me Cooper is also already in the Black Lodge despite it being the prequel to the tv series. It is hard to speculate at this point about how all of this is going to come together in the story but I can't wait to find out. It is crazy how this has all played out so perfectly.

[LamarMatic7]

1) Twin Peaks

Did you catch the fact that in the Twin Peaks finale

Spoiler:

in the Black Lodge Laura Palmer tells Coop that she will see him again in 25 years. AND now it has been 25 years since then. Holy ****, had David Lynch planned this all along? Did he know that he wouldn't have any pressure from higher-ups in the future, so he left himself an out to continue the series? I mean, he supposedly purposefully left the destiny of many characters not resolved, such as the explosion involving Pete and Audrey to spite the powers that be.

I had always dismissed the possibility of the series returning because of actor age issues and it being too long of a time. But it all almost makes sense now.

The man is a genius. I have to assume he either planned it or as you said left himself the out.

Spoiler:

In some of the Black Lodge scenes Cooper's face was wrinkled and he looked as though he had aged considerably. In Fire Walk With me Cooper is also already in the Black Lodge despite it being the prequel to the tv series. It is hard to speculate at this point about how all of this is going to come together in the story but I can't wait to find out. It is crazy how this has all played out so perfectly.

I recently got to finally deciding to watch the film, yet at the end opted for Guess Who's Coming to Dinner. Now I don't have a choice and I need to see it.

Spoiler:

I thought that the film served both as a prequel and a sequel though. But, I guess, there's nothing more you can tell me until I actually see it myself.

[Braggins]

One thing I was disappointed about though was that seasons 1 and 2 were genuinely scary. The same goes for the first few episodes of Twin Peaks. I mean, ****, it wasn't easy to watch some of the scenes in the woods of both of these TV series. Yet they lost that quality with time.

What was scary, more specifically

Spoiler:

was, per example, Claire being attacked during nights. Holy ****, I didn't like that feeling that some unknown human being could infiltrate their camp. I hate needles so watching one go in her belly was hard to watch.

Twin Peaks is frightening at times and filled with strangely intense moments. The movie and even more so and some of the deleted scenes that were released recently really build on that.

[Braggins]

Did you catch the fact that in the Twin Peaks finale

Spoiler:

in the Black Lodge Laura Palmer tells Coop that she will see him again in 25 years. AND now it has been 25 years since then. Holy ****, had David Lynch planned this all along? Did he know that he wouldn't have any pressure from higher-ups in the future, so he left himself an out to continue the series? I mean, he supposedly purposefully left the destiny of many characters not resolved, such as the explosion involving Pete and Audrey to spite the powers that be.

I had always dismissed the possibility of the series returning because of actor age issues and it being too long of a time. But it all almost makes sense now.

The man is a genius. I have to assume he either planned it or as you said left himself the out.

Spoiler:

In some of the Black Lodge scenes Cooper's face was wrinkled and he looked as though he had aged considerably. In Fire Walk With me Cooper is also already in the Black Lodge despite it being the prequel to the tv series. It is hard to speculate at this point about how all of this is going to come together in the story but I can't wait to find out. It is crazy how this has all played out so perfectly.

It is mostly a prequel but the chronology of certain things starts to get non-linear. It is hard to explain without you having seen it. Fair warning, the film is more intense and a lot more graphic than the series. There a quite a few scenes that are more similar to the dark, surreal and/or intense moments from the show. It definitely has a much different tone and a lot of people were really put off by it.

I recently got to finally deciding to watch the film, yet at the end opted for Guess Who's Coming to Dinner. Now I don't have a choice and I need to see it.

Spoiler:

I thought that the film served both as a prequel and a sequel though. But, I guess, there's nothing more you can tell me until I actually see it myself.

[Braggins]

Did you catch the fact that in the Twin Peaks finale

Spoiler:

in the Black Lodge Laura Palmer tells Coop that she will see him again in 25 years. AND now it has been 25 years since then. Holy ****, had David Lynch planned this all along? Did he know that he wouldn't have any pressure from higher-ups in the future, so he left himself an out to continue the series? I mean, he supposedly purposefully left the destiny of many characters not resolved, such as the explosion involving Pete and Audrey to spite the powers that be.

I had always dismissed the possibility of the series returning because of actor age issues and it being too long of a time. But it all almost makes sense now.

The man is a genius. I have to assume he either planned it or as you said left himself the out.

Spoiler:

In some of the Black Lodge scenes Cooper's face was wrinkled and he looked as though he had aged considerably. In Fire Walk With me Cooper is also already in the Black Lodge despite it being the prequel to the tv series. It is hard to speculate at this point about how all of this is going to come together in the story but I can't wait to find out. It is crazy how this has all played out so perfectly.

I recently got to finally deciding to watch the film, yet at the end opted for Guess Who's Coming to Dinner. Now I don't have a choice and I need to see it.

Spoiler:

I thought that the film served both as a prequel and a sequel though. But, I guess, there's nothing more you can tell me until I actually see it myself.

It is mostly a prequel but the chronology of certain things start to become non-linear. It is hard to explain without you having seen it. Fair warning, the film is more intense and a lot more graphic than the series. There a quite a few scenes that are more similar to the dark, surreal and/or intense moments from the show. It definitely has a much different tone and a lot of people were really put off by it.

[Benjamin Linus]

Lost is up there (surprised it has been mentioned in this thread yet).

Its been forgotten because of how disconnected and poorly written the last few seasons were and its already been 5 but the seasons 1 and 2 of Lost were 100% legit with some of the best characters ever written for television in Locke and Linus.

God I almost want to binge those seasons again. But I'm starting Breaking Bad tonight. Pretty good so far, but I knew I would like it. Just finding the motivation was difficult.

I'm a huge, huge Lost fan. For a while I considered it my favourite TV series, while I would just call The Wire the best. But with time The Wire has taken that spot.

It's just that the watching experience of Lost was something unique. I was one of the people who would watch an episode and then spend an hour on Lost forums discussing easter eggs. The wait for the next episode was unbearable and almost always the cliffhanger that would end the previous episode wouldn't be returned back to for 38 minutes.

Yeah, seasons 1 and 2 were outstanding. But I wouldn't call the latter part of the series that bad. I think people were disappointed about how far-fetched the fantasy parts of the series developed. The finale wasn't perfect, but I was somewhat okay with it. It was too beautiful for me not to like it.

One thing I was disappointed about though was that seasons 1 and 2 were genuinely scary. The same goes for the first few episodes of Twin Peaks. I mean, ****, it wasn't easy to watch some of the scenes in the woods of both of these TV series. Yet they lost that quality with time.

What was scary, more specifically

Spoiler:

was, per example, Claire being attacked during nights. Holy ****, I didn't like that feeling that some unknown human being could infiltrate their camp. I hate needles so watching one go in her belly was hard to watch.

Pretty much feel the same way. The experience of LOST was what made it so fun. All of my friends were into it, we all had our own theories, and the wait between episodes and seasons you just build up crazy things in your head on what's going to happen next.

The writing/directing/acting is soo much better in shows like Breaking Bad but I enjoyed LOST a little more.

[Benjamin Linus]

i forgot two comedies on my current list, both HBO shows - Veep and Silcon Valley.

I definitely need to start watching Veep. I hear way too many good things about it. Silicon Valley is probably my new favorite comedy. Season one just got better every episode and the season finale was one of the funniest episodes of television I've seen in a long time.

[Benjamin Linus]

7) Community

Triple post. Cool to see Community mentioned in this thread. I effing love Community. I couldn't make a list of my favorite TV series 1) it would be way too hard 2) I don't think I could admit how high I would rank Community and the shows that I would have below them.

[EwingSweatsALot]

any arguments with Dexter winning worst finale of all time?

that last season was such a drag and the finale just totally ridiculous.

This is the main reason why it is so low on my list. The last season was just miserable to watch. The finale was completely botched and the writing for it was horrendous

Spoiler:

Hey, I don't want my son to be near me because I am a murderer so I am going to run away from him and let him go to a random country with another murderer. Totally makes sense.

The first 3 seasons are some of the best on television. I would put it up there with any other tv show, but once they got new show runners it slowly started to die.

[fatlever]

Another question for you folks, any specific season of a show that transcends the other seasons and the show itself?

i can think of a lot of shows that have had great season 1s, then just go downhill from there. prison break is one that jumps to mind. season 1 was awesome, then after that, it was just crap mostly. season 1 of homeland was awesome, then meh. season 1 of trueblood was awesome, then crap. walking dead, season 1 was by far my favorite, although i really liked this past half season.

lots of shows that start off with a great idea, but once that great idea is written and produced, the writters dont know where to go next. or they keep extended shows just to make money. one of the great things about breaking bad is that they had a story to tell and when the story was over the ended the show. from a ratings standpoint they could have dragged that show out for years and people would have kept watching.

there are a few shows that seem to get better as they age, such mad men and hell on wheels. the current season of hell on wheels has been my favorite so far.

strangely enough, sitcoms are usually have a clear peak, usually in the middle seasons. very few sitcoms peak in the first year and most are long last their shelf life by they time they end.

[fatlever]

i forgot two comedies on my current list, both HBO shows - Veep and Silcon Valley.

I definitely need to start watching Veep. I hear way too many good things about it. Silicon Valley is probably my new favorite comedy. Season one just got better every episode and the season finale was one of the funniest episodes of television I've seen in a long time.

veep is really funny and very underrated. the best part of the show are the side characters, which usually make-or-break most sitcoms. lots of great interaction between her staff.

the scene in silicon valley where they tried to figure out the math formula for how many dongs they could handle in a time period was probably the funniest thing i have seen on tv in years.

[LamarMatic7]

i can think of a lot of shows that have had great season 1s, then just go downhill from there. prison break is one that jumps to mind. season 1 was awesome, then after that, it was just crap mostly.

Prison Break had an unusually large following in Latvia. For some reason, one channel had the rights to broadcast it so it almost was up to speed with what going on in USA.

I would say that season 2 wasn't that bad as well,

Spoiler:

it was thrilling watching them out in the open and evading all kinds of trouble. Like, you could almost feel the fresh air of the woods the first they got out.

What I have against the show is that you couldn't **** trust the writers. I mean, they squeezed as much as they could out of the "prison guard is coming, yet Scofield is stealing something" idea in season 1. The show made you so tense every damn time and almost always it was for no **** reason it all. At the end the prison guard would suspiciously open the door to the, I don't know, kitchen where Scofield had stolen a knife or something, only to find an empty room with Scofield hiding behind the refrigerator. God... I'm angry even talking about it.

[fatlever]

you're right, season 2 was still pretty good and season 3? when they were in that central american prison was OK. but those last few seasons when it was all about the huge govt conspiracy, man that crap was tough to watch. i dont feel too bad about giving away spoilers for prison break. its been over for a long time. if you haven't seen it by now, too bad.

[LamarMatic7]

you're right, season 2 was still pretty good and season 3? when they were in that central american prison was OK. but those last few seasons when it was all about the huge govt conspiracy, man that crap was tough to watch. i dont feel too bad about giving away spoilers for prison break. its been over for a long time. if you haven't seen it by now, too bad.

overall, I guess season 3 was okay if you bought in to the idea and just watched it and let the show entertain you. but, I mean, the fact that he broke into a prison, AGAIN, was ridiculous.

one thing I had forgotten - I just loved William Fichtner's character (FBI agent Mahone or something) and acting in the series. I had trouble remembering the actor's and character's name and for some reason all I could come up with is that he looks similar to McConaughey. don't know why.