Top 5 Drama TV Series of All Time

[Jeffrey]

Thanks, the Deadwood article is even more pathetic than I heard in 2006! Clearly, John from Cincinnati was a huge factor, and even discussed, during the same Deadwood ending conversation. HBO & Milch had, IMO, one of the greatest shows ever made and they extremely overrated and shifted to John from Cincinnati.

A good friend has made a lot of money, over the last decade, selling shows to HBO that none of us will ever see. I still don’t understand why they spend money as they still do.

[jv001]

British
Midsomer Murders
Line of Duty
George Gently
Broadchurch
Periot

American TV
24
Gunsmoke
Perry Mason
Hill Street Blues
Dragnet

That a lot of killing

[Channing]

Great topic for conversation and too hard to choose a just a top 5. Of those mentioned, my biggest regret about The Americans, West Wing, BoB, The Wire, Deadwood, 24, Ozark and others is that I've already watched them and so can't start over.

My top 5 that (i) I can remember right now and (ii) have not been mentioned (per my quick scroll of the thread) (and with lots of recency bias):

First Five:

-Sons of Anarchy
-Hell on Wheels
-Friday Night Lights
-Vikings (either iterant)
-Black Sails

Next Five (with some that are a bit more light-hearted):

-Homeland
-Warrior (new to Netflix and really really good)
-House
-The Practice
-Knightfall

[CameronBornAndBred]

My top 5 that (i) I can remember right now and (ii) have not been mentioned (per my quick scroll of the thread) (and with lots of recency bias):

First Five:

-Vikings (either iterant)

I brought up Vikings, surprised that others haven't. That being said, "Valhalla" would not be on my list, not even close. It's good, but not "top" worthy. I'm looking forward to the third/final season.

[Jeffrey]

So, I finally watched the Wire over the last month and I don’t get the hype. It’s good, but I didn’t find it close to as good as advertised.

IMO, The Wire was as realistic as any show I’ve enjoyed. As with many shows, HBO did an awesome job with their homework.

IMO, Omar is one of the greatest characters in TV history.

I really enjoyed visiting this harsh reality without any of the costs associated with a true visit. Many are born there and it’s basically all they know.

[Nepos]

IMO, The Wire was as realistic as any show I’ve enjoyed. As with many shows, HBO did an awesome job with their homework.

IMO, Omar is one of the greatest characters in TV history.

I really enjoyed visiting this harsh reality without any of the costs associated with a true visit. Many are born there and it’s basically all they know.

For those who liked The Wire, I highly recommend the John Sayles movie City of Hope.

[Jeffrey]

For those who liked The Wire, I highly recommend the John Sayles movie City of Hope.

Thanks!

[WV_Iron_Duke]

IMO, The Wire was as realistic as any show I’ve enjoyed. As with many shows, HBO did an awesome job with their homework.

IMO, Omar is one of the greatest characters in TV history.

I really enjoyed visiting this harsh reality without any of the costs associated with a true visit. Many are born there and it’s basically all they know.

The Wire is my favorite series. Around 11 years ago While rewatching the series in order, I was struck by how quickly the scenes changed/moved. Also the “corner kids” role in The Wire is very significant. One needs to watch at least the first 2 seasons to “get “ it. When I first started to watch, it was on at 10pm; and it was a bit too much as I needed to get up early for work.

[burnspbesq]

Great topic for conversation and too hard to choose a just a top 5. Of those mentioned, my biggest regret about The Americans, West Wing, BoB, The Wire, Deadwood, 24, Ozark and others is that I've already watched them and so can't start over.

My top 5 that (i) I can remember right now and (ii) have not been mentioned (per my quick scroll of the thread) (and with lots of recency bias):

First Five:

-Sons of Anarchy
-Hell on Wheels
-Friday Night Lights
-Vikings (either iterant)
-Black Sails

Next Five (with some that are a bit more light-hearted):

-Homeland
-Warrior (new to Netflix and really really good)
-House
-The Practice
-Knightfall

FNL would have made my list if not for the unholy mess that was Season Two—which is more than a liitle ironic since Jesse Plemons and Adrienne Palicki have had the best post-FNL careers.

[Duke79UNLV77]

1. Breaking Bad
2. Sopranos
3. Succession
4. Better Call Saul
5. Danny Hurley on the sideline

Jeremy Strong thinks Danny is a little too intense and should chillax some.

[lotusland]

FNL would have made my list if not for the unholy mess that was Season Two—which is more than a liitle ironic since Jesse Plemons and Adrienne Palicki have had the best post-FNL careers.

I’d say Connie Britton has done ok. Also like Bloodline starting Kyle Chandler. As far as a strictly acting, I’m a bigger fan of Jesse’s wife than he. Especially S2 of Fargo.

[Reilly]

The Wire
Justified
Mad Men
Breaking Bad
The Americans

...

Justified x5

... Omar is one of the greatest characters in TV history ...

As I tell the Puggle 3-4x/week as I repel his attacks as he's trying to chew on my arm: "you come at the king, you best not miss"

[Jeffrey]

"you come at the king, you best not miss"

Indeed!

[lotusland]

I like limited series because there’s no jumping the shark to make an unplanned S2. But I didn’t include any in my list a few pages back because telling a story over multiple seasons and then bringing it in for a landing is hard to manage. See GOT and Seinfeld ( I didn’t mind the Seinfeld ending).
Two that I didn’t mention, which did turn the trick, were The Good Wife and Marvelous Mrs Maisel. I loved both. TGW was a weekly network show so there were just a ton of episodes over 7 seasons. Understandably there were pointless diversions but the recurring Dickensian characters were just a blast (Elsbeth survived through The Good Fight to get her own show). I thought the ending was perfect but my wife disagreed.

I loved Midge in MMM. The lead was perfectly cast. Certainly there were plot holes but I thought the arc and ending were very good.

[CameronBornAndBred]

I loved Midge in MMM. The lead was perfectly cast. Certainly there were plot holes but I thought the arc and ending were very good.

Especially given the unexpected cancellation. They had to wrap things up sooner than expected and did a very good job of it. The last season was a little bumpy, but the finale was perfect.