Television Anyone recommend me any TV Shows?

LitterBug said:
So far I've watched two episodes and it is poor. There's no wow factor nor is there anything that makes me desperate to keep watching or wanting to know what will happen next. That's what series thrive on, otherwise people wouldn't keep watching. It is entertainment and so far I am not entertained but I will stick with it for at least a season to please The Wiredos!

Disclaimer: I never really liked or followed policesque series.
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Or maybe you're just racist. ;)

While I really enjoyed The Wire, I'd still rate Sopranos, Mad Men, and Breaking Bad slightly higher. On a pure entertainment level, I'd probably even have Game of Thrones higher (well the first four seasons at least). The Wire is uncomfortable viewing. The genius of The Wire is how real the characters and the city of Baltimore comes across as they interact with one another. With top-notch writing and acting, it was a social commentary filled with interesting characters about a place that nobody really knew much about. It can't be judged by a single character (there was no main character), a single episode, or even a single season. Only after viewing in totality, do you realize how great and ambitious the show really was. At least that was the case for me. But at the end of the day, it's all subjective really.
 
I don't think I've ever seen anyone call The Wire poor. I've certainly seen people who struggle to get into it, but not because they thought it was poor, because they struggled to deal with the slow pacing of the first half of the season and it just was not their cup of tea. Personally I too struggled with the first six or seven episodes, first time round, because it was quite slow and unlike anything I'd seen before (quite like Mad Men, in that regard), but from then on I was totally hooked. Best thing I've ever seen.
 
Brwned said:
You can't describe it as marmite when the vast majority who've seen it believe it's one of the best things they've ever seen. It's a long, long way away from a 50-50 split. There must be very few people who've watched the first season and not liked it. It is nothing like you've ever seen before though. It depicts some of the biggest causes and consequences of a failing society in a careful, sensible manner with brilliant writing, directing and acting throughout.
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Marmite isn't split exactly 50-50 its just some people love it and some people hate it. It might be that some people think this show is a godsend and others think it is nothing special.

Maybe being witness to both sides of the drug world means the story-line doesn't attract me. I'm still going to continue watching at least the first season and see if it attracts me more.
 
LitterBug said:
Marmite isn't split exactly 50-50 its just some people love it and some people hate it. It might be that some people think this show is a godsend and others think it is nothing special.

Maybe being witness to both sides of the drug world means the story-line doesn't attract me. I'm still going to continue watching at least the first season and see if it attracts me more.
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What do you mean?
 
Mystry said:
What? The first season was getting praised straight from the off, especially for the performances from the two leads.

Even if you want to be lenient and say it's been decent so far it is still a ways off of being as good as the first season. The writing in particular has been pretty poor.
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Not true. Most people were praising hard the opening premiere, then the episode 4 (especially that single take end scene) and the finale had mostly positive reviews, but from what I can remember the rest of the show was bashed for being too slow and leaving so many things left open. Yes, sure you had people praising the acting all the time, but the show? For the most part it was slow and boring according to almost everyone. I think this is just nostalgia talking and how people forget about the bad parts in season 1 and remember only the good. Although, I must say I personally don't like Bezzerides and Paul - they are unecessary to me.

Anyway, about the Wire, honestly as Cina said, I was quite bored in the first 4 episodes - too slow, too many characters, too weird (maybe? Something different about it) and honestly, not the best quality (since its from 2002), but the season 1 finale hooked me in. It's really the best show ever.
 
Gerrard in Istanbul said:
But again, there's really hardly any people who think it's 'nothing special'.

What? :lol:
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Brwned said:
What do you mean?
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I can see now what the first thought that's popped in your minds is :lol:

No I've never been a copper. I've seen both the dealing side and the usage side of the drug world. I still see both!

Never been myself on the dealing side but plenty of people I know and friends who do. At some point was doing coke so heavily that I was rating restaurants by the ability to do a line in their toilets!
 
LitterBug said:
Never been myself on the dealing side but plenty of people I know and friends who do. At some point was doing coke so heavily that I was rating restaurants by the ability to do a line in their toilets!
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Tbf, doubt your boys were hawking "big yellow birds" and "blue tops" from a street corner. And why were you going to restaurants when you're gacked out on yay-yo anyways?
 
Amidst all this Wire bashing, I just want to say that Breaking Bad is shit and the most overrated piece of crap to ever air on television.

*The Wire is the closest the medium of television has ever come to genius. If you disagree, it's likely something is fundamentally wrong with you.
 
Dumat12 said:
Not true. Most people were praising hard the opening premiere, then the episode 4 (especially that single take end scene) and the finale had mostly positive reviews, but from what I can remember the rest of the show was bashed for being too slow and leaving so many things left open. Yes, sure you had people praising the acting all the time, but the show? For the most part it was slow and boring according to almost everyone. I think this is just nostalgia talking and how people forget about the bad parts in season 1 and remember only the good.
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No it really wasn't.

'Most people' thought that the first 5 episodes were fantastic and that they made a complete hash of the ending, leaving lots of loose plot ends dangling and copping out with the Scooby Doo resolution. That's the general consensus for True Detective Season 1.
 
LitterBug said:
So far I've watched two episodes and it is poor. There's no wow factor nor is there anything that makes me desperate to keep watching or wanting to know what will happen next. That's what series thrive on, otherwise people wouldn't keep watching. It is entertainment and so far I am not entertained but I will stick with it for at least a season to please The Wiredos!

Disclaimer: I never really liked or followed policesque series.
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Keep going.

I didn't get into it either at first. I actually fell asleep watching the first couple of episodes then came back a few months later to try again. After 3 attempts to get into it I finally managed and now rate it as my favourite TV series. It definitely has all those things you mentioned but it is an odd one to get into.
 
Man of Leisure said:
Tbf, doubt your boys were hawking "big yellow birds" and "blue tops" from a street corner. And why were you going to restaurants when you're gacked out on yay-yo anyways?
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No its not like in The Wire but the struggle with illegality is the same. There's also no overbearing violence like I'd expect in the US but I'm only two episodes in still.

It was just a metaphor for the severity of the problem but I was actually going to check the toilet out first thing every-time I did go to one. I've put on loads of weight since that time. I think the quickest way to shed this off again is to go on a coke bender for a few months!
 
Mciahel Goodman said:
Amidst all this Wire bashing, I just want to say that Breaking Bad is shit and the most overrated piece of crap to ever air on television.

*The Wire is the closest the medium of television has ever come to genius. If you disagree, it's likely something is fundamentally wrong with you.
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Woah! Easy tiger. What didn't you like?
 
LitterBug said:
Woah! Easy tiger. What didn't you like?
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Everything from the second season onwards. I thought it was terrible. Cranston acted well, but the role was ridiculous. 5/10 for me, most overrated show because most people want to give it 11/10, ala Spinal Tap.
 
Man of Leisure said:
To each his own. Although I can understand how Breaking Bad like The Wire might not be everyone's cup of tea, but this is pure hyperbole.
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It's opinion. I don't think there's anything special to Breaking Bad after the first two seasons -- it becomes an exercise in cliff-hangers.
 
Mciahel Goodman said:
Everything from the second season onwards. I thought it was terrible. Cranston acted well, but the role was ridiculous. 5/10 for me, most overrated show because most people want to give it 11/10, ala Spinal Tap.
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That's bollocks. You might not like it but loads of people loved it while it was still going on...it wasn't all about people jumping on the bandwagon (though I suspect there is some of that).

LitterBug said:
I can see now what the first thought that's popped in your minds is :lol:

No I've never been a copper. I've seen both the dealing side and the usage side of the drug world. I still see both!

Never been myself on the dealing side but plenty of people I know and friends who do. At some point was doing coke so heavily that I was rating restaurants by the ability to do a line in their toilets!
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Yeah...I don't think that's what it is. I daresay quite a few of us have seen both the dealing and usage side of the drug world...and the drug world that we're talking about is a long way away from shooting up in the housing projects in Baltimore.
 
Mciahel Goodman said:
It's opinion. I don't think there's anything special to Breaking Bad after the first two seasons -- it becomes an exercise in cliff-hangers.
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Some of those cliff-hangers had me picking my jaw up off the floor in amazement. Sounds as if your reaction towards Breaking Bad would be much more different if it didn't receive all the notoriety that it did.
 
Mciahel Goodman said:
Everything from the second season onwards. I thought it was terrible. Cranston acted well, but the role was ridiculous. 5/10 for me, most overrated show because most people want to give it 11/10, ala Spinal Tap.
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Strange because most people I've discussed it with think that Breaking Bad got stronger as it went on and that the last season is by far the best.

Rado_N said:
LitterBug has lived B'more life, he doesn't need to watch it.
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Never said that.

Brwned said:
That's bollocks. You might not like it but loads of people loved it while it was still going on...it wasn't all about people jumping on the bandwagon (though I suspect there is some of that).



Yeah...I don't think that's what it is. I daresay quite a few of us have seen both the dealing and usage side of the drug world...and the drug world that we're talking about is a long way away from shooting up in the housing projects in Baltimore.
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It hasn't got into that yet two episodes in but I expect it will as I said above. So far the story-line is boring and I don't see how people don't agree with it. The second episode ended in the lieutenant's house with him getting up from bed and saying the kid in the hospital is blind and lost his eye. The feck of an ending is that. That doesn't make me want to watch the next one at all.
 
Brwned said:
That's bollocks. You might not like it but loads of people loved it while it was still going on...it wasn't all about people jumping on the bandwagon (though I suspect there is some of that).
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There was plenty of it.

Man of Leisure said:
Some of those cliff-hangers had me picking my jaw up off the floor in amazement. Sounds as if your reaction towards Breaking Bad would be much more different if it didn't receive all the notoriety that it did.
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Maybe if it wasn't regarded by the popular press as a modern day version of Macbeth or something I might not judge it so harshly.

LitterBug said:
Strange because most people I've discussed it with think that Breaking Bad got stronger as it went on and that the last season is by far the best.
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I loved the first two seasons, the first in particular. Downhill from Gus onwards in my opinion. (the intensification of that storyline, I mean).
 
If you're reliant on upbeat or suspenseful hooks and cliffhangers to retain interest in a tv programme then yeah, you shouldn't bother watching The Wire.

Mciahel Goodman said:
There was plenty of it.
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That doesn't detract from the fact that in there was a massive buzz in real-time about the show which tells you that the reaction to it in the media was neither here nor there for a significant portion of people. I don't think I ever paid attention to the media reaction while it was on and certainly haven't after. I still think it's brilliant. There are very shows that reached the kind of peaks of suspense and and dramatic climaxes that Breaking Bad reached.
 
Dumat12 said:
Not true. Most people were praising hard the opening premiere, then the episode 4 (especially that single take end scene) and the finale had mostly positive reviews, but from what I can remember the rest of the show was bashed for being too slow and leaving so many things left open. Yes, sure you had people praising the acting all the time, but the show? For the most part it was slow and boring according to almost everyone. I think this is just nostalgia talking and how people forget about the bad parts in season 1 and remember only the good. Although, I must say I personally don't like Bezzerides and Paul - they are unecessary to me.

Anyway, about the Wire, honestly as Cina said, I was quite bored in the first 4 episodes - too slow, too many characters, too weird (maybe? Something different about it) and honestly, not the best quality (since its from 2002), but the season 1 finale hooked me in. It's really the best show ever.
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Are you serious? The media/critics/forums were raving about series one for the entire duration of it's run. The finale took a bit of flack but that's pretty standard.
 
Critic Consensus: Though it takes its time getting started, The Wire is worth the wait, spinning a connective web of characters and delivering no-holds-barred commentary on some of America's unsettling societal problems.
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It's not an action show that's going to give you Hollywood cliff hangers in the style of 24 to retain your interest.

It's almost a social documentary, and widely regarded as the best show ever to be televised.
 
Yeah I think @Mciahel Goodman's response is an overreaction because of the show's fame. I know I've been a bit guilty of that for Breaking Bad (which I think is very good but nowhere near one of the best shows ever) and moreso with Game of Thrones, as it hurts me when I see people raving about it (when for me it's a rather boring show, very well produced and with some big cliffhangers).
 
Brwned said:
That doesn't detract from the fact that in there was a massive buzz in real-time about the show which tells you that the reaction to it in the media was neither here nor there for a significant portion of people. I don't think I ever paid attention to the media reaction while it was on and certainly haven't after. I still think it's brilliant. There are very shows that reached the kind of peaks of suspense and and dramatic climaxes that Breaking Bad reached.
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I followed it from the start as well, and was amazed at its daring early on. I just lost interest, which seemed to coincide with the huge upturn in interest from the general public (the very general public I mean) and the entirety of popular culture. Maybe I'm just a fecking snob or something but having everyone I met telling me that "X is the greatest thing ever, on par with Y" drove me crazy.

Gerrard in Istanbul said:
Yeah I think @Mciahel Goodman's response is an overreaction because of the show's fame. I know I've been a bit guilty of that for Breaking Bad (which I think is very good but nowhere near one of the best shows ever) and moreso with Game of Thrones, as it hurts me when I see people raving about it (when for me it's a rather boring show, very well produced and with some big cliffhangers).
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Maybe. The pure cultural saturation of something that I didn't particularly love probably plays a part in my dislike of it now. If it had been underrated, like some indie gem, perhaps my response would be different; but it's impossible to know.
 
Brwned said:
If you're reliant on upbeat or suspenseful hooks and cliffhangers to retain interest in a tv programme then yeah, you shouldn't bother watching The Wire.
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Rado_N said:
It's not an action show that's going to give you Hollywood cliff hangers in the style of 24 to retain your interest.

It's almost a social documentary, and widely regarded as the best show ever to be televised.
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Maybe watching recent shows have made me crave the cliffhangers, as Sopranos for example never had any of it but I still think its the best show I've ever watched.

I do hope I change my mind as I need a good binge to pass the time now that the missus is going away. Also on Sky Box sets so don't have to wait for it to load watching online!

Tarrou said:
@LitterBug just do a bump off the corner of your Nando's loyalty card. Sorted.
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They were paper in my time!
 
Mciahel Goodman said:
I followed it from the start as well, and was amazed at its daring early on. I just lost interest, which seemed to coincide with the huge upturn in interest from the general public (the very general public I mean) and the entirety of popular culture. Maybe I'm just a fecking snob or something but having everyone I met telling me that "X is the greatest thing ever, on par with Y" drove me crazy.
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Fair. I feel the same way about GoT in all honesty and ramp up the criticism in much the same way. Like I said I do understand why people don't really like it as it ramps up the intensity and becomes more and more cartoonish and implausible, but I bought into it completely. It was gripping viewing in a way I've possibly never experienced before.

I'd certainly like to find comparable shows with the same levels of suspense and intensity.
 
Gerrard in Istanbul said:
Yeah I think @Mciahel Goodman's response is an overreaction because of the show's fame. I know I've been a bit guilty of that for Breaking Bad (which I think is very good but nowhere near one of the best shows ever) and moreso with Game of Thrones, as it hurts me when I see people raving about it (when for me it's a rather boring show, very well produced and with some big cliffhangers).
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I think GoT is not only one of the best TV shows ever produced but also a wet dream for Fantasy fans (like myself) coming to the screen.

Most Fantasy series are more or less a complete joke. This is similar to Lords of the Rings. There is a lot of quality Fantasy literature out there but most movies and series are trash.
 
I think Breaking Bad is the perfect, modern Spaghetti Western in TV format and you'll be hard pushed to find another TV show that will do acting, writing, suspense and sheer drama on that sort of level. It's not worthy of being ranked alongside the other greats like The Wire and Mad Men, but as sheer entertainment in TV format I don't think much else compares.
 
I can see so many diverse opinions here this is brilliant. Lets hope I like The Wire so I can join The Wiredos and be part of something :drool:

I love GoT but never even watched Lord of the Rings @Cnaiür urs Skiötha
 
Mciahel Goodman said:
I followed it from the start as well, and was amazed at its daring early on. I just lost interest, which seemed to coincide with the huge upturn in interest from the general public (the very general public I mean) and the entirety of popular culture. Maybe I'm just a fecking snob or something but having everyone I met telling me that "X is the greatest thing ever, on par with Y" drove me crazy.



Maybe. The pure cultural saturation of something that I didn't particularly love probably plays a part in my dislike of it now. If it had been underrated, like some indie gem, perhaps my response would be different; but it's impossible to know.
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Diagnosis: hipster!
 
Breaking Bad is the 2nd greatest show of all time behind The Wire. And Omar and WW are 2 of the best characters ever!
 
I loved Breaking Bad but it's a level below The Sopranos, which is in turn below The Wire.

The Wire > The Sopranos >>>> Breaking Bad
 
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