I need a new favorite show. Sell me on yours.

I'd pretty much given up on sit-coms before finding Cougar Town and its new partner, Happy Endings. Pretty funny, hi-tempo string of comedy like Scrubs. Pretty much 2-3 things from every ep that you'll be laughing at a few days later.

 

I really want to like Cougar Town, b/c of the Bill Lawrence Mancrush, but that show is lifeless. Not a single laugh the last two or three times I've watched.

 

You're an idiot. It's my favorite comedy on TV.

 

I'll jump in only because I also need some new shows to watch.

To the OP, are we talking a need for new shows currently on air or are you open to DVDs as well? Also, can you give us some other examples of (recent) shows you've liked? It'll help me make some suggestions.

In the meantime, here's a brief list of some of the shows I can't help but catch myself addicted to. Some of them have completed their runs, some of them have just started. Enjoy.

Comedy: Of the currently on air variety-> Parks & Rec, the Office, Entourage, Family Guy, Modern Family, Big Bang Theory, How I Met Your Mother, Raising Hope, Traffic Light, South Park, Outsourced (Though it's something I don't mind missing). Of the on DVD variety-> Seinfeld, Friends (I know, I know), Arrested Development (Big thumbs up), It's always sunny, Scrubs, My Name is Earl, That 70's Show, Coupling (It's a British version of friends that is much, much funnier. If you haven't seen it, watch it NOW).

Drama: On air-> House, Breaking Bad, Criminal Minds, Grey's Anatomy, Damages, Dexter (Just started watching last week, have breezed through 1.25 seasons already). DVD-> Lost, 24, NYPD Blue, The Wire, BSG, The Shield, The Sopranos, Friday Night Lights, the Walking Dead, Prison Break, Jericho, DayBreak, Kidnapped, Tru Calling.

Reality: The Ultimate Fighter, the Amazing Race, Survivor, American Idol, Tough Enough.

If you need further explanation on any of them, and why I think you might like them since I'm also a BSG nerd, feel free to ask.

 

I may have to disregard that entire post because you included reality shows.

I've never been big on watching shows on DVD. Not sure why. Maybe I'm just cheap. I did re-watch much of BSG, but those were borrowed from the library, believe it or not. Watched NYPD Blue and The Sopranos from day one to the end.

I saw about half of the first season of The Walking Dead. The other half, well, the Steelers were on Sunday night football too darn much this past season.

Definitely getting some good ideas, with Modern Family at the top of the list. Thanks all.

 

As far as shows still on the air...

The Good Wife is the best major network drama to come along in years. (Not including AMC shows in this mix.) Might be my favorite ensemble drama since The West Wing. I originally thought the premise was stupid, that it was going to be a ridiculous show that would get canceled after five shows, but my wife watched it while I tried to read a magazine, I slowly got sucked in, and it's nothing like what I expected. Nuanced characters, great intrigue, no good guys or bad guys, just well-written plots. Some of the best single episode "endings" I can remember. The writers are also clearly big fans of The Wire, because Wire actors constantly show up in minor roles.

Modern Family is a nice family comedy. But some of the fawning over it, as if it's the funniest thing to come along in 25 years, stuns me. It's often very good. It's also often formulaic. But when you get an episode where Cameron pretends to be a Native American so he and Mitchell can enroll Lilly in an elite pre-school, well, it's fall-down funny.

Parks and Rec is the smartest comedy on TV. Community is the most daring. Both deserve twice the audience they get.

Obviously, Mad Men, if you haven't seen it. Other than The Wire, it's as good as anything TV has done as far as drama. Including The Sopranos.


As for shows no longer on the air...


Veronica Mars is simply one of my favorite TV shows ever. It created a whole universe in the fictional town of Neptune. It sort of bums me out that Kristen Bell hasn't become a big-time star, because she's incredibly talented/charismatic. The first season of VM is as good as anything TV has ever done. Seriously.

Also, I never saw your name on the FNL threads. So if you haven't watched that, for shame. Best network drama ever? It's in the conversation, at least.

 

Say what you will about reality shows but the suspense in waiting to see who's going to turn on each other in Survivor and who's going to make it to the finish line first in the Amazing Race are just flat out fantastic television moments. As for American Idol? Well, everyone's got guilty pleasures.

And I can't understand your anti-DVD stance. The vast majority of shows I watch come via the DVD route as I just don't have the patience to wait a week in between episodes. That's why I'm just getting into Dexter now, courtesy of Netflix, and why I often have to hold off watching shows like How I Met Your Mother and the Big Bang Theory when they're in season.

 

Finishing it is worth your while, if only so you know why the story is where it is when the series picks up in October (assuming you haven't read the graphic novels, of course).

 

I saw the last two, so I'm caught up. I just missed a few along the way.

 

If you don't want to pay for DVDs, you can sign up for netflix, which streams whole runs of lots of shows. I'm currently watching Veronica Mars (about halfway through the first season and it's very good - not best season ever good, but I like it a lot), Dexter (through the first season, which was perfectly paced and well-written) and Downton Abbey (a BBC, early 20th century period drama that is very well-done).

I know they have Friday Night Lights on there (for me it's the best network drama ever) and Arrested Development (smartest comedy ever on air by a long shot). I watched all of Buffy via Netflix as well. If you're looking to get into new shows, it's a great way to do so and without paying for all the DVDs. If you don't like watching shows on your computer, it's pretty easy to hook a laptop up to your tv and stream it that way.

Oh, and as for shows that are on right now, I concur with the recommendations for Breaking Bad, Mad Men and Modern Family. The first 2/3s of the third season of Breaking Bad is the most suspenseful run of episodes I've ever seen. It slows down a little for a few episodes before picking back up at the end, but the beginning of that season is my favorite portion of any season of television ever.

Also, Rescue Me is coming to a close this summer. It had an uneven run, but when it's good, it's amazing. It can go from hilarious to moving in minutes. Lou is one of the funniest characters on television.

 

Wait until S1 of Veronica Mars concludes, dreunc. It just may become an all-timer (at least as far as single seasons go) yet.