What TV SHOWS are you watching?

Some of us old farts remember Dallas. I watched a season of it, and it sucked.

GoT has boobs, blood, and dragons. It's worst episode is still above average. Why wouldn't it be popular?

RobertB wrote: Some of us old farts remember Dallas. I watched a season of it, and it sucked.

GoT has boobs, blood, and dragons. It's worst episode is still above average. Why wouldn't it be popular?

It may or may not be better than Dallas was in it's time, for that time period, but it certainly serves a similar purpose in the collective consciousness. People following it each week, waiting for the next season to start... talking about all the big moments and cliff hangers. They both kind of filled the role of being soap operas for couples.

It's been nominated for 612 awards and has won 212 of them.

Less important, in 2015 it set the record for most wins in a single year for a TV show with 12 awards out of 24 nominations

More important, in 2016 it became the most Emmy awarded show in history with 38 wins.

I know it's cool to not care what the industry, peers or public thinks, but it's the best show on television right now and one of the best shows ever made. It's excellent television.

...but it's still not enough to get me to order HBO for some reason. Yay for Youtube.

Black Barney wrote: More important, in 2016 it became the most Emmy awarded show in history with 38 wins.

That's cool and all and I'm sure it's a good show. Louie is by far my favourite show of the past decade... in my mind nothing even comes close. To be fair to the Emmy process though what other shows have that many awards? Who else have they loved?

Well, SNL, Frasier, Simpsons, Mary Tyler Moore, Cheers, Hill Street Blues, The West Wing, E.R., and Modern Family... that's their top ten.

Just to give you some idea of what kinds of shows they give awards to. Are those in the running for best shows of all time? Not in my books. I don't think GOT is a bad show but I would wager that they give out more awards these days and to see things like Twilight Zone, OS Trek, Louie, The Prisoner, SCTV (was SNL really the best variety show ever on TV? Or is most awards just because it's been around for so long?) ... not even make the list, well... I can respect GoT but I don't have to enjoy it. Something like the first season of True Detective can't make that list because one season isn't enough to get that many awards. Personally I'd rather watch that again than see the third season of GoT (I stopped after two so it would be new to me). It's not so much about being cool... it's just a taste thing. Hell it's not even my favourite show on HBO.. that would probably be Silicon Valley ...although I've only seen the first two seasons of that too.

Plus, it's almost more significant cuz it's much harder to win an Emmy now than it used to be. The competition is fierce now.

Good post JJ!. I'm on board with you with Louie though, that show is incredible. Jaw-dropping sometimes.

The comparisons to Dallas are funny. i think E.R. was very much the Dallas of that time. I loved that show but burned out on it. It was fun to talk about though.
Where did you get that top ten? I'm surprised to see Modern Family on there. SNL and Simpsons are legacies more than anything else. I of course loved West Wing but burned out on that too. Game of Thrones is the only show besides Next Generation (and I know that's not very good) where I've toughed 7 seasons. it's just always interesting and doesn't feel soap opera-ey at all. There's almost no filler. Conversation scenes are usually fairly profound and important.

Anyway, i'm glad you respect GoT at least. I agree with you that seasons 2/3 are the hardest to get through. I almost gave up at one point with the Theon torture. Enough was enough. It sure gets better though.

eh, best show in the last decade, for me, is easily...



Nothing else is as charming or life affirming. The show is a real +1 in my life. I must've seen it all the way through about 5 times now.

EDIT: anyone watch that Friends From College show on Netflix? Watched a few last night. Pretty funny.

Black Barney wrote: Where did you get that top ten?

I ripped it from here... not sure how accurate it is.

www.businessinsider.com/tv-shows-most-emmys-2016-9

I generally would never pay attention to the Emmy's... I'm not a big award show guy. Not so much because I don't trust industry insiders, I'm sure they know their shit, but more because I don't want to be biased for OR against a show based on how well awarded it is. So for example I just checked out 'writing for a variety special' noms for 2017. Louis Ck made the list with an ok special... one of his worst ones actually but it's still pretty good because it's Louis. Sarah Silverman made it with a special I couldn't even sit through. Yet Ali Wong's Baby Cobra, one of the best comedy specials in years, went without a mention (in 2016). This year Dave Chapplle and Norm Macdonald had what I thought were the best stand up specials yet no mention whatsoever. I wouldn't even know any of this if we weren't having this conversation. Maybe I'd force myself to sit through Silverman's set because it's supposed to be great. So it's not a cool factor for me it's more that I don't want to be influenced in either direction.

To be honest too BB... I have nothing against Soap Opera's... it's a very specific kind of show and there is an art to it. The acting, writing, pacing, is all specific to that genre and you find those sensibilities literally no where else. When I compare GoT to Soap Opera's it's not a put down.. Deep Space Nine is like that too. They are serial shows that keep you going from week to week unlike the more episodic shows that I normally prefer.

Jeff... I never even heard of that show. I wonder if it's available up here?

JonJacob wrote: Jeff... I never even heard of that show. I wonder if it's available up here?

IMO, it's incredible. MacKenzie Cook wanted to make a show about men and their (non-sports) hobbies and also not be at all cynical, crass, or mean. It's been a breath for fresh air and the only show in recent memory I've really connected with. You could replace detecting with board gaming, train modelling (or spotting), or whatever. The show is a love letter to niche hobbyists. Shows with shitty people doing shitty things to one another (GoT, Breaking Bad, Etc.) do nothing for me.

The theme by Johnny Flynn (who I'm a big fan of since Thrower put him on my radar years ago) is great.



EDIT: I assume you were referring to Detectorists and not my comment on Friends From College. That latter show doesn't hold a candle...it's just a mindless diversion.

No, The Confederacy is going to be this generation's Dallas.

I stuck with Turn through the first two seasons, when it moved pretty doggone slowly for today's pace of television. Season three was really good, (the ending was excellent) and season four is looking to finish the show strong. I'll admit the first two seasons were a bit tedious at times. Throw on that it's based on a true spy ring and it's pretty damn interesting in hindsight.

I shouldn't care about such things, but damn the period uniforms kick ass. They've really paid attention to details.

I personally find Game of Thrones grim as hell. I see why it's popular, but as someone who watches it with one eye while sitting with my kids reading on my Kindle it appears to be quite the bloody mess.

JonJacob wrote:

Black Barney wrote: More important, in 2016 it became the most Emmy awarded show in history with 38 wins.

That's cool and all and I'm sure it's a good show. Louie is by far my favourite show of the past decade... in my mind nothing even comes close. To be fair to the Emmy process though what other shows have that many awards? Who else have they loved?

Well, SNL, Frasier, Simpsons, Mary Tyler Moore, Cheers, Hill Street Blues, The West Wing, E.R., and Modern Family... that's their top ten.

Just to give you some idea of what kinds of shows they give awards to. Are those in the running for best shows of all time? Not in my books. I don't think GOT is a bad show but I would wager that they give out more awards these days and to see things like Twilight Zone, OS Trek, Louie, The Prisoner, SCTV (was SNL really the best variety show ever on TV? Or is most awards just because it's been around for so long?) ... not even make the list, well... I can respect GoT but I don't have to enjoy it. Something like the first season of True Detective can't make that list because one season isn't enough to get that many awards. Personally I'd rather watch that again than see the third season of GoT (I stopped after two so it would be new to me). It's not so much about being cool... it's just a taste thing. Hell it's not even my favourite show on HBO.. that would probably be Silicon Valley ...although I've only seen the first two seasons of that too.

The Emmys totally ignored THE WIRE, so fuck the Emmys as a barometer of what's good.

Sagrilarus wrote: No, The Confederacy is going to be this generation's Dallas.

I stuck with Turn through the first two seasons, when it moved pretty doggone slowly for today's pace of television. Season three was really good, (the ending was excellent) and season four is looking to finish the show strong. I'll admit the first two seasons were a bit tedious at times. Throw on that it's based on a true spy ring and it's pretty damn interesting in hindsight.

I shouldn't care about such things, but damn the period uniforms kick ass. They've really paid attention to details.

I personally find Game of Thrones grim as hell. I see why it's popular, but as someone who watches it with one eye while sitting with my kids reading on my Kindle it appears to be quite the bloody mess.

On your recommendation alone, I will give Turn another chance. I watched the first four or five episodes when it first aired and stopped. I forget why. Something struck me false but I'll watch again.

Game of Thrones is utter shit. Directionless garbage much like the books. Ultra violence and soft core porn can only do so much. Also the CGI is often laughable on a High Def TV. Although, hurray for the actors. They have the easiest job in Entertainment. Get paid a bazillion bucks to be on screen for five minutes an episode. They probably did all the shooting for their scenes in a week.

The Emmy's have as much validity as the Oscars or Grammy's. Which is to say "none".

Msample wrote:

JonJacob wrote:

Black Barney wrote: More important, in 2016 it became the most Emmy awarded show in history with 38 wins.

That's cool and all and I'm sure it's a good show. Louie is by far my favourite show of the past decade... in my mind nothing even comes close. To be fair to the Emmy process though what other shows have that many awards? Who else have they loved?

Well, SNL, Frasier, Simpsons, Mary Tyler Moore, Cheers, Hill Street Blues, The West Wing, E.R., and Modern Family... that's their top ten.

Just to give you some idea of what kinds of shows they give awards to. Are those in the running for best shows of all time? Not in my books. I don't think GOT is a bad show but I would wager that they give out more awards these days and to see things like Twilight Zone, OS Trek, Louie, The Prisoner, SCTV (was SNL really the best variety show ever on TV? Or is most awards just because it's been around for so long?) ... not even make the list, well... I can respect GoT but I don't have to enjoy it. Something like the first season of True Detective can't make that list because one season isn't enough to get that many awards. Personally I'd rather watch that again than see the third season of GoT (I stopped after two so it would be new to me). It's not so much about being cool... it's just a taste thing. Hell it's not even my favourite show on HBO.. that would probably be Silicon Valley ...although I've only seen the first two seasons of that too.

The Emmys totally ignored THE WIRE, so fuck the Emmys as a barometer of what's good.

The Wire is still #1 in my books.

Pat II wrote:

Msample wrote:

JonJacob wrote:

Black Barney wrote: More important, in 2016 it became the most Emmy awarded show in history with 38 wins.

That's cool and all and I'm sure it's a good show. Louie is by far my favourite show of the past decade... in my mind nothing even comes close. To be fair to the Emmy process though what other shows have that many awards? Who else have they loved?

Well, SNL, Frasier, Simpsons, Mary Tyler Moore, Cheers, Hill Street Blues, The West Wing, E.R., and Modern Family... that's their top ten.

Just to give you some idea of what kinds of shows they give awards to. Are those in the running for best shows of all time? Not in my books. I don't think GOT is a bad show but I would wager that they give out more awards these days and to see things like Twilight Zone, OS Trek, Louie, The Prisoner, SCTV (was SNL really the best variety show ever on TV? Or is most awards just because it's been around for so long?) ... not even make the list, well... I can respect GoT but I don't have to enjoy it. Something like the first season of True Detective can't make that list because one season isn't enough to get that many awards. Personally I'd rather watch that again than see the third season of GoT (I stopped after two so it would be new to me). It's not so much about being cool... it's just a taste thing. Hell it's not even my favourite show on HBO.. that would probably be Silicon Valley ...although I've only seen the first two seasons of that too.

The Emmys totally ignored THE WIRE, so fuck the Emmys as a barometer of what's good.

The Wire is still #1 in my books.

The show has cost Baltimore millions of dollars (that I pay part of).

Pat II wrote:

Msample wrote:

JonJacob wrote:

Black Barney wrote: More important, in 2016 it became the most Emmy awarded show in history with 38 wins.

That's cool and all and I'm sure it's a good show. Louie is by far my favourite show of the past decade... in my mind nothing even comes close. To be fair to the Emmy process though what other shows have that many awards? Who else have they loved?

Well, SNL, Frasier, Simpsons, Mary Tyler Moore, Cheers, Hill Street Blues, The West Wing, E.R., and Modern Family... that's their top ten.

Just to give you some idea of what kinds of shows they give awards to. Are those in the running for best shows of all time? Not in my books. I don't think GOT is a bad show but I would wager that they give out more awards these days and to see things like Twilight Zone, OS Trek, Louie, The Prisoner, SCTV (was SNL really the best variety show ever on TV? Or is most awards just because it's been around for so long?) ... not even make the list, well... I can respect GoT but I don't have to enjoy it. Something like the first season of True Detective can't make that list because one season isn't enough to get that many awards. Personally I'd rather watch that again than see the third season of GoT (I stopped after two so it would be new to me). It's not so much about being cool... it's just a taste thing. Hell it's not even my favourite show on HBO.. that would probably be Silicon Valley ...although I've only seen the first two seasons of that too.

The Emmys totally ignored THE WIRE, so fuck the Emmys as a barometer of what's good.

The Wire is still #1 in my books.

I just finished re-watching season two of the Wire today. Still a classic.

I absolutely adore GoT, but I don't actually think it's the best show around. I just love the story, characters, and setting.

I think the best show on right now is probably The Americans. I'm actually a season behind because I only watch it when it appears on Amazon.

Better Call Saul is also fantastic, but I think I've mentioned that one before.

I really liked The Detectorists, but my wife didn't so I wasn't able to finish it up. Good reminder for me to do that.

Another hidden gem that I think a lot of you would really like is Terriers. It was a modern detective show that only ran for one season. It's got a very unique viewpoint and some great character work. I highly recommend it for anyone looking for something different. I think it's still available on Netflix.