TV Series (Opinions, Recommendations, Flaming, etc) ***BEWARE POSSIBLE SPOILERS***

[slimjasi]

On 12/24/2019 at 7:14 AM, Scott Dierking said:

Finished Mr Robot with the finale last night. I thought it was great, while the wife (admittedly, not a fan of sci-fi) did not.

While not giving anything away here, it vacillated between what I thought was genius story-telling, countered by cliches of "I knew that was where they were going" that so many finales seem to devolve to.

Overall, I thought the final season was excellent. It was a rollercoaster ride of trying to figure out what was happening, then once you think you have it nailed where they are going, there are twists and turns that lead you down a totally different hallway.

One of my favorite shows of all time 

[PCP63]

Honestly, not too high on Mr. Robot. Stopped watching midway through season 2. The character just got ridiculously annoying. I'm all for weird, mentally ill characters, but the whole show was just way too crazy. With that said, that was almost 4 years ago, so perhaps my tastes have changed. Maybe I'll give it a re-watch.

 

Anyways, anyone watch wacky shows like Sick Note or Future Man? Enjoy those a lot. Same with Dirk Gently. Honestly, Elijah Wood is quickly starting to become one of my favorite actors, even though he bored the hell out of me in LoTR. Wilfred was ******* brilliant, as is Dirk Gently. 

 

Hell, I'd like to see him somewhere in the new Hitchhiker's Guide TV series. He seems a perfect fit for any Douglas Adams/Terry Pratchett universe.

[RutgersJetFan]

I was a huge fan of The Night Of a few years back, and a few minutes into The Outsider I couldn’t help but think how much it reminded me of The Night Of. Turns out Richard Price worked on this one too. Talk about a distinctive style.

[Dcat]

wow.  last night's episode of the New Pope was one of the best episodes of any show I have watched.  Very emotional.  Great show.  1st season was outstanding and this season (almost over) is really good as well.  Jude Law is great.

[munchmemory]

New season of Better Call Saul has started out as you would expect: awesome.  That show never disappoints.  Phenomenal characters and actors.

 

Am also five episodes into Hunters with Al Pacino.   It's a mess if not somewhat entertaining.  Clearly, the show's creators are fans of Tarantino.  

[HessStation]

Locke and Key is fun. The Outsider is legit. 

[HessStation]

And the Handmaid Tales is better than I would have thought fwiw

[Crushers fat gut]

On 1/28/2020 at 9:47 AM, slimjasi said:

One of my favorite shows of all time 

Me too. 

[Beerfish]

A couple of Canadian tv shows of the past with short runs that are worth (at least i found them amusing) a look if you can find them on dvd or netflix or one of those things.

 

[Integrity28]

On 2/26/2020 at 8:12 PM, HessStation said:

Locke and Key is fun. The Outsider is legit. 

I caught the final episode of The Outsider when it aired, and holy sh*t. From start to finish I don't think a single second of this show was wasteful. It kind of had everything I like... broken, flawed and complex character exploration, symbolism, oddities, dialogue, philosophy (belief systems), and realistic action... I just can't say enough good things about it.

I will say, however, I'm a bit disturbed by how much of Stephen King's content is about harming children. 

[Untouchable]

Started The Expanse around a month ago. About halfway through Season 3 at this point.

Holy sh*t what a great show

I’m thinking I should start to pace myself more so I don’t have to wait damn near a year for Season 5.

[munchmemory]

18 hours ago, Untouchable said:

Started The Expanse around a month ago. About halfway through Season 3 at this point.

Holy sh*t what a great show

I’m thinking I should start to pace myself more so I don’t have to wait damn near a year for Season 5.

Had not heard of the show.  Just viewed the first season's trailer.  Looks great.  Thanks for the recommendation.

[Jet_Engine1]

19 hours ago, Untouchable said:

Started The Expanse around a month ago. About halfway through Season 3 at this point.

Holy sh*t what a great show

I’m thinking I should start to pace myself more so I don’t have to wait damn near a year for Season 5.

I've only been screaming about The Expanse IN THIS THREAD for 3+ years. Sheesh  

[Untouchable]

1 hour ago, Jet_Engine1 said:

I've only been screaming about The Expanse IN THIS THREAD for 3+ years. Sheesh  

I remember thinking it looked interesting when they were advertising the 1st season 4-5 years ago but I just wrote it off because SyFy has produced nothing but D level garbage in the past.

But I’ve been hooked on it ever since I started

[Jet_Engine1]

31 minutes ago, Untouchable said:

I remember thinking it looked interesting when they were advertising the 1st season 4-5 years ago but I just wrote it off because SyFy has produced nothing but D level garbage in the past.

But I’ve been hooked on it ever since I started

It's getting better by the season. Very rare for TV. So much to like about the show. 

[Untouchable]

16 minutes ago, Jet_Engine1 said:

It's getting better by the season. Very rare for TV. So much to like about the show. 

Agreed

Honestly thinking about starting the novels now

[Larz]

Ok so my job and family situation means I am usually very late to catch up on adult content TV and movies 

hey guys 

that breaking bad show is awesome!!!!

[munchmemory]

48 minutes ago, Larz said:

Ok so my job and family situation means I am usually very late to catch up on adult content TV and movies 

hey guys 

that breaking bad show is awesome!!!!

Right?  Just one of the best TV shows ever.  And wait until you get to Better Call Saul, which is an off-shoot of Breaking Bad.  Fantastic.

[Tony The Wiz]

            Thank God for the now great Television we have today. Imagine if we didn't, now with this virus and curfews it is a must. Since my injury on the job disability these last 5+ years not only has college football taken a lot of my time but also great television series. And the series I watched most was Drama.... Family, Crime or War, Fantasy, Science Fiction, Suspense and Past or Present True Story Lines.  So Comedy and Musical was mostly out. But yes I do love comedy and musical, and Curb Your Enthusiasm, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel and It's Always Funny In Philadelphia are just a few of my favorites.  But this is about the other I mentioned first. In the last twenty years, Cable such as HBO, Showtime, History, Sundance, FX ,  Cinemax, AMC, Starz, TNT, Syfy and USA networks have brought us fine TV shows.  And in addition cable streaming services like Netflix, Amazon, Hulu and Sling has added more.  So yes, at least we now could relax and have the time to watch these great TV Series without sports taking up our time unfortunately. 

So here are my top 50 TV Series  and my top 30 Mini Series.  And even after this 80 wonderful shows there are even more. Some have finalized and some have more seasons to go. There are a few that I started and need to go back and at least watch the first season.   

       All 80 shows are excellent. How do you know they are excellent? When you can't wait a week to watch the next episode. 

  1. Game Of Thrones  -   Fantasy    -  An Addiction.             

  2. The Sopranos -    Mafia, mob series    No one will ever be Tony Soprano.  Thank You Mr. James Gandolfini.   

  3. Breaking Bad -   Drama, Crime      What else can you say but Classic. 

  4. Rectify   -      Drama, an emotional TV show. Riveting and great acting. 

  5. Outlander -   Fantasy -   Scottish Series.   So beautiful in so many ways. Action pack but also a love story.  

  6. The Wire -   Crime Drama  -    Probably the Best Cop Series Ever.      

  7. Ripper Street -   Old Crime Drama, British,  late 1890's   Incredible acting

  8.  X Files -  Science Fiction  -   Mulder and Sculley - Some episodes are classics 

  9. Hannibal -  Suspense -   Best NBC TV Suspense series ever.  Mads Mikkelsen  is incredible as Hannibal and Hugh Dancy as Will Graham is just as good.     

10.  Justify -    Crime Drama -  Love the characters. Timothy Olyphant as Raylan Givens reminded me of a funny Dirty Harry.   

11. The Americans -  Suspense, Drama - One of the best Spy series ever.   Based on True events. 

12. Homeland -  Suspense-  Again one of the best Spy -Terrorist series ever.  And Claire Danes as Carrie Mathison is one of the greatest female acting roles ever.

13.  Ray Donovan -  Drama, Crime Drama -  One of the greatest ensemble of actors making this one great series.  Should of won way more awards.

14.  Banshee -   Crime show, Suspense -  A gem of a series that was on Cinemax a few years back. You like action this is it. Best show nobody knew about.  

15. Broen, Bron -  Crime Show - This is a Norwegian and Swedish suspense TV Series that was remade in America called The Bridge.  But this is way better.

16.  Narcos -  Crime Show -  Mexican Cartel and the Colombian Cartel are the subjects here and this is one intense TV Series.

17.  Boardwalk Empire -  Crime Show,  Historical Mob Drama -  Love the feel of this series with great acting and guest acting.

18. Stranger Things -   Fantasy -  Here is a complete different series that has some comical elements. My son turned me on to this and I love it. 

19.  Leftovers -   Fantasy, Drama, Suspense -  The last seasons is incredible. What a ride of emotions.

20.  The Killing -  Crime Drama - The two lead actors are both fantastic as homicide cops.  In 4 years three different story lines. Excellent. 

21.   24     Drama, Suspense, Spy show -   Two Words..........................Jack Bauer !!   Thank you Kiefer Sutherland.

22.  Dexter -  Suspense, Crime Drama -   Another favorite character like Jack Bauer.  Just follow the blood. 

23.  Suits   Legal Drama  The Best lawyer show ever.   Batman and Robin of lawyers in Saint Laurent or Gucci Suits.  And best character Louis Litt !!  and hot Donna!     

24.  The Witcher -  Fantasy -  I only watched the initial season on Netflix but wow what a great show already. 

25.  The Shield -  Crime Drama -  Like The Wire and Justify one of the great Crime or Cop Drama TV Series.

26.   The Affair -  Drama -  My Wife's favorite show. Great characters and scripts for multiple years.  And nothing better than pretty women in the Hampton's !!  

27.  Better Call Saul -  Crime Drama, Suspense -  An excellent spin off of Breaking Bad.   It is like Fine Wine.  

28. Broadchurch -  British Crime Drama -  Again I love British shows and this is one of the best. Fox had their own version but the British is way better. 

29.  The Fall  -  British Crime Drama -  Starring Gillian Anderson AKA Sculley of the X Files. A great actress.  A great TV serial killer Series.  

30.  OA -    Fantasy, Paranormal  -  What a find of a TV Series. The First year was fantastic. and the second was right behind the first.  Why would Netflix cancel this?!!   

31.  Into The Badlands  -  Fantasy, Into the future -  You like fighting scenes you will love this show.  The Black Widow is gorgeous. 

32.  Bloodline  -  Drama, Suspense -  Another fine show with some great acting and writing.   

33.  Mr. Robot -  Drama, Suspense -  The First year was a beauty.  Just great writing and yes great acting.  

34.  You -    Drama, Suspense -  I am starting to watch the 2nd year of this talked about series. First year was like eating popcorn. You just couldn't stop enjoying it.  

35.  Masters Of Sex -  Drama  - Another favorite of my wife and its true characters of Masters and Johnson. And this is the show you fall in love with Lizzy Caplan. 

36.  Mindhunter - Crime Drama, Suspense.  I love series that are based on true events like this one and Masters of Sex.  Some of these criminals looked like the real ones.  

37.  Bosch  -  Crime Drama, Mystery -   Man I love this character,  who is excellent acted by Titus Welliver.  Great show on Amazon. 

38.  Spiral  -  French  Crime Drama -  A French version like The Shield.  I love the lead actress.  The writing is excellent.  It ran for 8 seasons so you know this is good.  

39.  Whitechapel -  British Crime Drama -  Like Ripper Street it goes back to the late 1890's.  Love their cases they need to solve.  

40.  The Black Spot -  French Crime Drama, Suspenseful -  Another French gem on Netflix.  

41.  Jack Taylor    -     British Crime Drama  - Anyone that watch Games Of Thrones the lead actor is a familiar face. He is terrific and the writing is excellent.

42.  The Sinner  -      Crime Drama, Suspense - A fantastic show on the USA channel with the terrific actor Bill Pullman.  

43.  DCI  Banks -    British Crime Drama  -  Another excellent present crime drama done by the English.

44.  The Knick -    Medical Drama  -  Such a great show that should of had more seasons than 2.  Clive Owens is excellent as the lead actor.

45.  Penny Dreadful  -  Horror, Suspense -   One of the great acting that no one ever talked about is Eva Green as Vanessa Ives. She should of won 3 Emmy's !!

46.  Dark   -      Fantasy, Suspense  -   A German TV show on Netflix that is still running. A time tunnel to the future.  

47.  Da Vinci's Demons  - Historical Fantasy -  Man was I upset when Starz canceled this show after 3 seasons. There was a Game Of Thrones feel here. 

48.  The Strain  -   Horror, Suspense  -  This was my Walking Dead kind of show.  I loved the characters and the writing.

49.  The Tyrant  -   Suspense, Middle East Drama   -  An excellent show that again deserved way more seasons. There was so much more here to be done. 

       So before I get to my last show I have to mention  an old show back on NBC and that is the West Wing. I don't know who would have this shows reruns but it is well worth it.  So here is my 50th TV show which is on presently for the last two years. 

50.  Seal Team -    Military Drama   -    The Best Show on CBS today.  This is one excellent Military action show.

     Shows that I need to go back and finish,    Billions........First Season,  Vikings.......First Season  and The Alienist............First Season.  All three are excellent already. So I have series of my own to watch. Others on my watch list is Kingdom, Falling Skies, Lost and Sons Of Anarchy. So many great shows that I didn't even list other series that I completed like Preacher, Counterpart, Magic City,  12 Monkeys and Rogue are again TV Series that are well worth your time.                       

 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

My Top  30  Mini Series

 1.  BAND OF BROTHERS  War Drama  Simply the greatest mini series I ever watched.  If any of your family was in WW 2 this is a must watch. Be ready to shed tears. 

 2.  TRUE DETECTIVE - SEASON 1  -   Crime Drama, Suspense.    A True Classic with incredible acting.  Riveting and dramatic.

 3.  FARGO  -  SEASON 1  -    Suspense, Crime drama.        Another true classic. 

 4.  FARGO -  SEASON 2  -   Suspense, drama, Crime family     Another amazing show by the Coen brothers. 

 5.  BITTER DAISIES  -     French Crime Drama Suspense  -    Another 5 star series from the French on Netflix.

 6.  THE TERROR  -       Thriller, Suspense    -    You need to watch this. This will make you jump out of your pants. 

 7.  FARGO   SEASON 3  -   Suspense -  Again another great Fargo series

 8.   LA MONTE -     French Suspense -     Serial Killer on the loose but many twist.  A great French series.   Netflix

 9.  ABC MURDERS  -   Suspense  -   Done in England but has the Great John Malkovich in the leading role.  An incredible performance by him.

10.  TABOO        British Suspense Historical      Tom Hardy stars and puts on one of the greatest acting jobs in television History.  Hands Down he deserved an award!!

11.  TRUE DETECTIVE -  SEASON 3  -     Great acting, Great writing and way better than Season 2. 

12.  THE OUTSIDER  -   Suspenseful, horror  -    I just completed this series based on a book by Stephen King

13.  HATFIELDS AND THE MCCOYS   - Historical Drama  -   Love this show with favorite actors Kevin Costner and the late Bill Paxton.  

14.  The Night Of  -   Suspense, Criminal Justice  -    A really tense Series and fantastic acting by John Turturro, Riz Ahmed and Michael K. Williams of The Wire fame. 

15.  THE MISSING  - SEASON 1   -   Crime Drama, Suspense  -   A fantastic whodunit.    There is a season 2 which I haven't watched with different actors. 

16.  PACIFIC   -   Military History -   Another show like Bands Of Brothers.  A well made show.

17.  I AM THE NIGHT -  Suspense, True Story   -    This is a must see true story of murders in Los Angeles in the late 1950's with a spooky feel. 

18.  TOP OF THE LAKE -  Australian Crime Drama, Suspense  - Another fantastic foreign TV series. Also another familiar Game Of Thrones actor is in it.

19.  MIDNIGHT SUN  -   A French-Sweden collaboration Suspense  -   Don't know any of the actors but guess what.............. a true gem. 

20.  PEOPLE VERSUS O.J. SIMPSON -  True Crime Drama -  Most people must of watched this award winning show. 

21.  TUT  -    Historical Drama  -   A Canadian-American  well made TV miniseries that was on Spike TV.  I loved Ben Kingsley in it. 

22.  BODYGUARD -  An English Suspenseful  Series  -   Well made. Well acted.  You want more. 

23.  THE DUBLIN MURDERS -   Irish Crime Drama, Suspense   -    Love the acting by the two lead actors. 

24.   THE INVISIBLE GUARDIAN -  Spanish Crime Drama whodunit  -  Excellent twists and wonderful acting.  Again thank you Netflix. 

25.  TRUST  -        Historical  Crime drama.     I need to watch last episode but this is a great TV Series and if you Italian you will love the scenery filmed in Italy.

26.  THE FIVE  -     A British Crime Drama  whodunit -   Loved the main characters and again the writing is superb.  Netflix once more

27.  THE LOOMING TOWER -   Spy Drama, Terrorist  -  Another true story event with again great acting by Jeff Daniels and Bill Camp.  A true story.  Was on Hulu.

28.  SAFE    -    Suspense, Crime Drama -  An English mystery starring none other than Dexter himself, Michael C. Hall.  Just completed this fine show on Netflix.

29. THE NIGHT MANAGER -  Mystery, Suspense -  as in the case of Safe this TV show has another favorite actor in House fame, Hugh Laurie. Also it has a great cast.

30.  DAMNATION    Period Drama, 1930's Iowa, Action,   -   Watched this show on the USA network and it really caught my eye. I wanted  more but it was cancelled. Why?

     TV Mini Series that should of been on this list was  The Assassination Of Gianni Versace which I need to go back and watch the rest of the series. I was interrupted and never got to finish the show. Others worth watching. The Terror........Season 2 : Infamy,   Top Of The Lake.........Season 2 : China Girl  and Rellik which is Killer spelled backwards. Again all three are excellent.   

   

  So there you have it. Hopefully this may help some of you in these times of  Non Sports.  And Yes I watched every one of these series except the final episode of Trust.   

And Yes Stay Well to All.

 

Tony

??    ??         

                           

                           

[Wonderboy]

Colombo 

 

[ljr]

Banshee  ... Holy F*cking $h*t ... best series I never knew about and just started watching!

Best fight scenes since Reservoir Dogs / Pulp Fiction

Hot naked chicks getting hardcore banged silly every episode?

 

what else good a guy want?

[Jet_Engine1]

Decent list. 

 

+5 Extra Points for Hannibal. Thought I was the only die hard fan around. Having grow up reading Harris, and Hannibal being an old friend, I think MM is the best of them. Brian Cox was a close second as "Lektor" in Manhunter. Hopkins was meh imo.

 

Unfortunately,  -1,000 for lack of Expanse. Or any other good Sci Fi (Battlestar Galactica? Stargate? Mandalorian?)

 

Sorry. 

 

LOL, stay safe Tony

[RedBeardedSavage]

3 minutes ago, Jet_Engine1 said:

Decent list. 

 

+5 Extra Points for Hannibal. Thought I was the only die hard fan around. Having grow up reading Harris, and Hannibal being an old friend, I think MM is the best of them. Brian Cox was a close second as "Lektor" in Manhunter. Hopkins was meh imo.

 

Unfortunately,  -1,000 for lack of Expanse. Or any other good Sci Fi (Battlestar Galactica? Stargate? Mandalorian?)

 

Sorry. 

 

LOL, stay safe Tony

Expanse + BSG are great. You've got good taste.

Liked the first episode of the third season of Westworld.

Peaky Blinders is great too. 

[Jet_Engine1]

3 minutes ago, RedBeardedSavage said:

Expanse + BSG are great. You've got good taste.

Liked the first episode of the third season of Westworld.

Peaky Blinders is great too. 

I couldn't get into Westworld. Didnt hear good things about season 2. 

 

I HAVE heard that Peaky Blinders was good. Have to check it out.....

 

Oh, @Tony The Wiz No "The Boys"? Bro.... don't let "genre" types keep you away from great TV. 

[RedBeardedSavage]

1 minute ago, Jet_Engine1 said:

I couldn't get into Westworld. Didnt hear good things about season 2. 

 

I HAVE heard that Peaky Blinders was good. Have to check it out.....and and @Tony The Wiz The Boys? Bro....

THE BOYS another good one. Peaky Blinders is good. I didn't like s2 of Westworld either tbh, but 3 started out well... and we all got a lot of time on our hands these days.

[rangerous]

not sure if it was listed but:

Ozarks is really good

Mandolarian is good, not great.

The Punisher

Jessica Jones.

Jack Ryan isn't that bad.

Glad to see Better Call Saul, The Wire on the list.

Braodchurch was okay but it's hard to understand people who talk with marbles in their mouths.

[Tony The Wiz]

10 hours ago, rangerous said:

not sure if it was listed but:

Ozarks is really good

Mandolarian is good, not great.

The Punisher

Jessica Jones.

Jack Ryan isn't that bad.

Glad to see Better Call Saul, The Wire on the list.

Braodchurch was okay but it's hard to understand people who talk with marbles in their mouths.

Ozarks was way to much of a Breaking Bad copy but yes The Punisher was excellent.  That was right there with my top 50 series.  I am now watching a series on Netflix called The Iron Fist which has a Punisher feel.  You need to check it out. 

[SAM SAM HE'S OUR MAN]

Fargo Season 1 was great . They got worse in 2 and 3 .

[munchmemory]

I'm two episodes into Counterpart with J.K. Simmons.  So far, I'd give it 7/10.  Interesting story, but waiting for it to ramp up a bit.  Worth checking out, IMO.

 

[Jet_Engine1]

The Last Kingdom. Season 4 back for April.  Perfect time to get caught up on a great show. 

[JoeC36]

The Walking Dead seems oddly appropriate 

[Larz]

I finished the Star Trek original series 3 weeks ago. For super cheesy sci fi they really did soooooooo many things first. 
 

into season 2 of breaking bad, wow what an amazing show. 
 

going to try to start the Witcher too 

[slowmoe57]

Agree on Banshee. Loved it

[CotcheryifyouCan]

just started mad men makes me want to drink 

[munchmemory]

1 hour ago, CotcheryifyouCan said:

just started mad men makes me want to drink 

One of the greatest series of all time with top level writing and acting.  John Hamm is incredible as Don Draper.  My favorite story arc is when he has an extended trip in California.  You've got a ways to go before then.  Enjoy the ride.