The Best Dramas on TV.

So for this ranking, I'm going to go with the show that is the best RIGHT NOW.. not the one that's had the strongest run or has influenced the most or any other measure.. but the one that I want to see the next episode the most. I think this allows to include some younger, exciting shows along with some more established ones, but find a balance between the two. So without further ado, here are the best dramas on TV, today.

First, as a disclaimer, I haven't watched "Downton Abbey" or "Treme".. although, knowing what I know about both of those shows it seems likely that they'd be included if I were to actually watch them. Oh well, so many shows, so little time.

Honorable mentions: Southland, Sherlock, NOT The Walking Dead


9. Luther

As a disclaimer, I have a serious mancrush on Idris Elba. The dude is a vastly underrated actor.. with tremendous range and a certain unhinged menace beneath a composed and suave veneer. Aka, awesome. If you haven't watched "The Wire", get the hell off of the internet and thank me in a month after you've completed the greatest American artistic achievement of the past decade.. and Mr. Elba probably gives the best performance of the whole damn thing. Possibly surprising to "Wire" fans: Mr. Elba is VERY British. Detective Chief Inspector John Luther is a very flawed hero. Quite possibly unhinged, self destructive, yet also very brilliant, he's the best at what he does while simultaneously being a giant pain in the ass to everyone he knows. By taking unorthodox (and sometimes illegal) approaches to his investigations, Luther is always unpredictable, and always a lot of fun to watch. Only 14 episodes total through 2 seasons guys, currently streaming on Netflix.. VERY easy to catch up.


8. Fringe

TV science fiction can be a tricky business. First, the lower budgets and time constraints of TV don't allow for the same effects work that have become the hallmark of cinematic sci fi. In addition, the need to fill 20+ hours of storytelling per season can lead to some cheesy and downright ridiculous storylines. From JJ Abrams and the brains behind 2009's "Star Trek" and in the vein of the X-Files, "Fringe" follows an FBI "Fringe Division" team tasked with using "fringe" and unorthodox scientific means to investigate strange and unexplained phenomena. After starting with a largely episodic "case of the week" approach, this show truly became something special when it became serialized and began continuing stories dealing with a parallel and competing dimension that continues to be fleshed out currently, in its 4th season. Featuring some strong characters and top-notch acting from John Noble (best known as Denethor, Steward of Gondor) in particular, "Fringe" continues to deliver consistently strong storylines and a solid hour of television. Season 4 is currently airing, on Fox.


7. Luck

Since I started working on this post, "Luck" has been cancelled due to a number of horse deaths on set. This untimely and all-to-early cancellation (production on Season 2 had just started) is very, very tragic, as "Luck" was well on its way towards climbing to the top of this list. From Producers David Milch (of "Deadwood" fame) and Michael Mann (of awesome movie fame), "Luck" stars Dustin Hoffman, Nick Nolte, Dennis Farina, Kevin Dunn and a number of familiar faces at and around the Santa Anita racetrack in Los Angeles. Characters include jockeys, trainers, owners, gamblers, would-be-tycoons facing revenge, track doctors and basically detail horse racing in a knowing and almost obsessive fashion. Combining Mann's visual flair with Milch's trademark knack for interweaving narratives and highly detailed characterization, "Luck" is consistently one of the best hours of TV in any given week.. and was well on its way to becoming a great television show. With the last episode of its first season airing tonight, we can only hope that Luck's one and only season ends as well as its been thus far. Farewell, Luck.. we hardly knew you.


6. Boardwalk Empire

Despite the fact that a decision made at the end of Season 2 may have ensured that I'll no longer be watching this series (I'll leave it at that).. through the first 2 seasons, Boardwalk Empire has used sky-high production values, strong acting and compelling gangland storylines to consistently deliver excellent TV. Set in Prohibition-era Atlantic City, Boardwalk Empire follows corrupt politico fictional Nucky Thompson and a number of true to life crimeland figures (Arnold Rothstein, Al Capone, Lucky Luciano, Meyer Lansky and others..) as they attempt to carve out crime empires through the now illegal liquor trade. Unevenness among some of the characters and storylines are why Boardwalk Empire finds itself all the way down at number 6.. because when it's at its best, it's one of the 2 or 3 best shows on TV. Michael Pitt alone is more than worth the time investment. Boardwalk Empire, season 3 will be back this fall.


5. Game of Thrones

"Game of Thrones" comes back for season 2 soon, which probably should be called "Clash of Kings", but that's neither here nor there. This series, from producers David Benioff and DB Weiss ambitiously attempts to bring George RR Martin's epic "A Song of Ice and Fire" novels to TV. This is no small task, as the novels feature dozens of characters spanning across multiple continents and a kingdom approximately the size of South America. The first season found itself mostly up to the task, admirably depicting the tale of dynastic rivalry, war, intrigue, sex, incest and struggle. The Stark family are lords of the North of Westeros, and through a number of occurrences, found themselves drawn into the greater struggles of the kingdom at large. Book 1 is wild enough in and of itself, but believe me when I say that you haven't seen anything yet, as books 2 and 3 seriously ramp up the action and dramatically widen the scope of the narrative. I, for one, am very interested to see how the show manages to translate an increasingly broad and varying narrative to the screen. Epic medieval action, great acting, tremendous characterization and a great narrative made Season 1 a pleasant surprise and huge hit for HBO.. Game of Thrones is must watch TV. Season 2 premieres on April 1.


4. Justified

We're in rarefied air now, folks. "Justified" consistently delivers compelling, addictive TV, and the final 2-3 episodes of every season are as explosive and watchable as anything else out there. "Justified", created by Graham Yost (the writer of "Speed" and creator of "Band of Brothers") and based on an Elmore Leonard character, follows US Marshall Raylan Givens, a modern day gunslinger, as he finds himself increasingly drawn into the crime world of Harlan County, Kentucky, where he grew up. Each season introduces a new villain or set of villains, and Raylan finds himself on a collision course where it becomes clear that it's either him or them. Timothy Olyphant (of "Deadwood" fame) is electric as Raylan Givens, and Walton Goggins (of "The Shield" fame) steals just about every scene he's in as Raylan's boyhood friend and would be Harlan County kingpin Boyd Crowder. Once this show decided, about 8 episodes in to season 1, that it was going to deliver serialized storytelling, it became a truly great show.. one that I eagerly await weekly, and miss when its gone. Season 3 is currently airing on FX.


3. Mad Men

Matthew Weiner, who whet his teeth on "The Sopranos", is the creative mastermind behind Mad Men, the cultural phenomenon that put AMC on the map as a place noted for its original programming. Mad Men is at once a stylized look at life in the 60's, a scathing portrayal of the paper facades supporting how we view ourselves, and a character study of a man who in many ways personifies America in the 60's. Featuring incredible, complex and layered writing, strong performances, and exquisite period costumes, sets and details, Mad Men features a small New York ad agency and details the massive societal changes underway in the 60's. Season 5 started March 25, and moves us further along in the 60's.. so needless to say, it's safe to assume that the times they are a-changin', and "Mad Men" will deal with them in turn. Mad Men features perhaps the most fascinating character on all of TV, and Jon Hamm turns in a top notch performance in depicting Don Draper, the impossibly complex creative genius at the center of "Mad Men". People have their varied reasons for watching "Mad Men".. it simmers rather than burns like many of the other entrants on this list, but there's no denying that it's an important piece of art. Currently airing on Sundays on AMC.


2. Homeland

"Homeland" is simply great. Tremendous even. From some of the creators of "24" and airing on Showtime, "Homeland" follows an obsessed CIA operative and an American prisoner of war recently returned from 8 years in captivity who may or may not have been turned into a mole for Al Qaeda. The show, through the writing and performances, becomes much more than this simple set-up, and is incredibly watchable. What raises Homeland to this upper echelon is some incredible performances.. Claire Danes, Damien Lewis (Major Dick Winters from Band of Brothers) and Mandy Patinkin (best known as Inigo Montoya) all absolutely crush their parts out of the park. I watched all 12 episodes of this one in approximately 20 hours.. it is simply that good. Danes, as an obsessed and damaged analyst, is highly unreliable and yet supremely competent, and Lewis' damaged, broken Sgt. Brody and his struggles to reintegrate to the world are simply magnetic. What separates this one from Mad Men and Justified are the levels of the performances.. Danes, Lewis, and Patinkin are all simply operating at a ridiculously high level.. this kind of work on TV is simply extremely rare. Once you start this one, you won't be able to stop. Season 2 premieres in Fall, 2012.


1. Breaking Bad

As Homeland is separated from Mad Men by its performances, Breaking Bad is separated from Homeland by two performances that are just as good if not better than anything on any other TV show, and writing that is incredibly smart, nuanced and layered. "Breaking Bad" follows high school chemistry teacher Walter White who gets diagnosed with lung cancer, and decided to use his chemistry knowledge to cook meth in order to ensure his family's well being after he's gone. Walt soon finds himself deeper and deeper in to the criminal underworld and becomes a growing power in the drug world. Featuring incredible performances from Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul are the main attraction.. but Breaking Bad is simply great television top to bottom. It features the most interesting an in-depth characterizations on TV, and every episode is simply magnetic. There are 16 episodes remaining - Season 5 starts at some indeterminate point in the future. Can't wait, even if the ending is tragic.

2012: The Year in Film: "The Hunger Games" Review

Suzanne Collins' Hunger Games trilogy of books has more or less swept the nation over the past few years. This dystopian vision of a near future North America, written for young adults, seems custom-made for the big screen, so here we are, less than 4 years after the book was published, with a big budget Hollywood version. At some point in the near yet indeterminate future, the United States and North America as we know it has been shattered by an unnamed cataclysm and in its place has risen a society called "Panem" ("bread", in Latin if my limited Latin knowledge serves me correctly), a society where a wealthy "capitol" rules 12 separate "districts" that roughly correspond to regions of the continent with an iron fist. To commemorate an uprising that took place some 70 years prior, the capital decreed that each of the 12 districts must select a 12-18 year old male and female "tribute" to send to annual "Hunger Games" in a giant arena each year at the Capitol. These 24 tributes then must fight to the death, and the one winner left standing at the conclusion of the games returns home in glory and splendor. The Hunger Games are basically the 4th of July meets March Madness meets The Super Bowl... every second is aired on television and the games are an annual spectacle complete with betting, fan favorites and odds.

Katniss Everdeen resides in District 12, an impoverished coal mining region that roughly corresponds to Appalachia. Life is hard in District 12, and Katniss hunts small game in the woods outside of her settlement to supplement her family's income. Her life changes forever when she volunteers to take her sister's place as District 12's female tribute and finds herself whisked away to the Capitol.

So enough about the plot, is it GOOD is what you're wondering.. and the answer, in short, is yes. Of the three books, The Hunger Games is the strongest, and correspondingly, the most ready-made for the screen. In addition, the strength of this particular book is 1.) The Plot and 2.) the world Collins constructs, while the weakness is that she's not a tremendous writer, and that the love story and Katniss' inner monologue can feel a little melodramatic. Well, plot, setting and world are the parts of a book that are easiest to translate to screen. The hardest part? Inner monologue, thoughts, feelings, etc.


None of that would matter if the film didn't have a compelling Katniss. She's the main character and is featured in approx. 98% of the scenes.. through her we, the audience, experience the terror and heartbreak of life in a battle-to-the-death arena. Luckily for us.. one of the best young actresses working, Jennifer Lawrence (if you haven't seen "Winter's Bone".. go and watch it, now) is more than up to the task. Peeta, the other District 12 tribute, is played by Josh Hutcherson, most recognizable from "The Kids are Alright".. and he's strong as well, extremely believable. Director Gary Ross (Seabiscuit) creates a faithful, believable, great-looking world. For a relatively unproven filmmaker (at least as far as epic sci-fi goes), he does an admirable job in bringing a rather complex story and world to screen.

This is a dystopian tale of oppression and decadence and a look at a believable outcome in our world of consumerism, stylized violence and disparity in wealth, but at its heart, it's a human tale of the individuals who find themselves in these hopeless situations. At 2 hrs 20 minutes long, the film doesn't skimp on any portion of the book and really rather slavishly portrays basically every line of the book. The Good: everything looks great, Lawrence is basically perfect, Harrelson is perfect, Donald Sutherland is wise and yet menacing as President Snow, Hutcherson is strong.. top to bottom the casting is top-notch. (Lenny Kravitz's Cinna? Yep.) The Bad: Wes Bentley's Seneca simply doesn't cut it for me. Sorry, Wes. Also, some of the more sci-fi elements of the books (genetically modified creatures and such) seem a bit trippy for the film.. they could have used to have been toned down some.

So for a film that at its heart is about brutal combat between teenagers, the violence is never cartoonish or over the top. It's treated with the necessary gravitas.. this is a horrible situation, and we're never made to forget that. Like all dystopian works, this film serves as a cautionary tale. "The Capitol" is reminiscent of ancient Rome, where the patricians lived in the laps of luxury while the plebians (ancient 99%ers) slaved away in squalor. Faithful adaptation and direction, pitch-perfect casting, strong performances and a grounded character-driven approach to a futuristic tale combine to make this a worthwhile and valuable contribution to American sci-fi. Guys, we have a borderline great movie here.

8.4/10.

2012: The Year in Film: "21 Jump Street" Review

To be perfectly honest, I had less than no interest in seeing this one, I thought it looked like absolute toilet.. but then a crazy thing happened: the reviews were actually damn good. (As a nerd, I check the Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic scores of basically all upcoming releases. Here's a pro-tip: Rotten Tomatoes scores by themselves aren't all that helpful. For instance, a movie like "the Town", which is undoubtedly good but not great, has a Rotten Tomatoes score of 94%. So I look at a combination of the RT score and the average rating, listed right below. Anything over 7 is good, anything over 8 may well be great. Obviously movies are a subjective business, but if you're deciding whether or not you want to see something, you could do worse than considering the Rotten Tomatoes scores.) So something like "21 Jump Street", that I would have expected to have a RT score in the 30's, comes out with an 86% and 7.1 average? This requires investigation, and said investigation took the form of a slightly hungover weekend matinee. Going in, I knew that I liked Jonah Hill and have long been a fan, but I sort of hate Channing Tatum.. the dude is largely a rubbish actor and was pretty stiff on SNL, so my expectations for his comedic abilities were.. nil? This has been a passion project of Jonah Hill's for years and is basically the reason he got freakishly skinny, so let's check it out.

First, I have no familiarity with the late 80's show that 1.) launched the career of Capt. Jack Sparrow himself and 2.) served as the inspiration for this flick. According to my mom we used to watch it, but I have spent the last 10 years of my life memorizing trivial facts and drinking, a combination that's highly non-conducive to retaining childhood memories. However, from what I know, the show was an earnest police procedural featuring young police going undercover in high schools and other teenage settings. Jonah Hill and co. have reimagined 21 Jump Street as an action comedy in the "Pineapple Express" vein.

Schmidt (Hill) and Jenko (Tatum) are high school acquaintances (Jenko being a cool jock and Schmidt being a nerd) who become friends in the Police academy and eventually partners assigned to bike cop duty. A bumbled bust leads them to be reassigned to a revived undercover operation from the '80's, where they discover they'll be placed undercover as brothers in a local high school in pursuit of a new drug. A mix up over their identities leads to the two having vastly different high school experiences than they did the first time around as they bumble through the case and their lives.

First, this flick is significantly better than it has any right being. Hill and Tatum have great chemistry, and you really believe that this modern day odd couple are in fact good friends despite their obvious differences. There's also an undercurrent of sweet sentimentality and nostalgia as our protaganists use their second high school go-around to make up for lost time. The changes in teen culture over the last decade ("nerds" are now "cool", for one) throw our erstwhile heroes for a loop, and Jenko and Schmidt soon find themselves in over their heads in their new environment.


This flick contains a lot of funny moments and features solid comedic performances from Tatum (I know.. I was shocked as well), the always-strong Jonah Hill and Rob Riggle as a gym teacher/coach. The film is unafraid to confront certain tropes head-on and if anything is a bit TOO knowing with its snarky satire. The action scenes are over the top and feel a bit out of place.. but I'm not a huge fan of the whole "comedy/action" genre as a whole. This flick is at its best when it's being an actually strong high school flick featuring believable characters and interactions. It's often sweet, usually funny, and all in all, well worth a watch. 21 Jump Street is plenty decent, you guys.

7/10.

2012: The Year in Film: "John Carter" Review

So "John Carter" may well have fallen victim to the worst marketing campaign in the modern history of big-budget movies. From watching the trailer.. it's basically impossible to tell what the movie is about, what makes it special, and why it's anything other than just a flashy and utterly forgettable sci fi action-er rather than a legendary sci-fi franchise perhaps most deserving of a translation to the big screen. After seeing the bombardment of advertisements for this one and feeling like I was missing something, I did a little wikipedia research and discovered that "John Carter" is based on a series of novels dating from the 1910's and 1920's that are basically the grandfather of all epic sci fi. That's right, without John Carter, there's no Luke Skywalker, no Jake Sully, no Han Solo.. and that alone makes the movie worth checking out. At it's root, the John Carter books are about a Confederate War veteran who stumbles across a way to transport himself in between worlds, to Mars.. where he finds himself in the midst of a Martian Civil War. Let's throw in Timmy Riggins himself, one of the stars of "Friday Night Lights" and a cast that includes Bryan Cranston, Mark Strong, Dominic West and Wilhem Dafoe, intriguing source material and a massive budget.. and it becomes well worth seeing. So onto the movie, shall we?

It's the late 1800's, and Civil War veteran John Carter stumbles across a way to Mars, or "Barsoom" as the natives call it. On Mars, he encounters the Tharks, a noble and warlike species, as well as several warring human-like cities that threaten Barsoom itself. John Carter discovers that the martian environment has basically made him a superhero.. and he earns the respect and fear of the locals through his heroic and selfless actions. It's your classic hero's journey, so we'll leave the plot at that.



First, this movie is significantly better than I thought it would be.. and that's a good thing. The director (and writer) of Wall-E and Finding Nemo makes his transition to live-action (well, a soft transition, given all the CGI), and does an effective job.. the effects are great, there are some pretty stunning shots, and he gets a lot out of a cast that is often put into some ridiculous situations. Taylor "Tim Riggins" Kitsch is an effective leading man, and certainly has a future in the movies. Mark Strong and Dominic West aren't given a lot to do, but they (Strong, especially) are effective villains. Lynn Collins is simply great as Dejah, Princess of Mars.. she really is a revelation in what's basically her first big role. The Tharks are extremely likable, and there is a martian "dog" of sorts that is as charming as any CGI creature I've come across.

We're basically to the point where CGI looks "real" and can interact pretty seamlessly with live-action actors. The technology, cities, settings, vistas and creatures of Barsoom are incredible. There are some great action sequences as well.. Stanton clearly has a lot to offer in that regard.

I have two complaints. First, Kitsch simply isn't old enough to have played the part of John Carter. He does a good job, don't get me wrong, but the film opens in 1881, 16 years after the end of the Civil War, where John Carter was a married Captain and father. Kitsch is 30 years old and looks 28-32. Someone in their late 30's or early 40's would have been more appropriate for the role. But really, that's a minor complaint, as once the film moves to Mars it no longer matters. Second, the film sags in the middle, in an effort to explore some of the Martian mythology it sort of neglects the overarching plot. Now I understand that the studio intends to make this into a franchise.. but the actual plot of a single flick, ESPECIALLY the first flick should be paramount to the needs of the franchise or the film suffers as a result.

But all in all, those are minor complaints. There is some great source material here, well deserving of a film franchise, and it is executed well. Not perfectly, but very well. You can certainly see how much "Star Wars", "Avatar" and the Epic sci fi genre as a whole owes to the John Carter series. I was impressed, and absolutely will be watching this one again.

7.5/10. An imperfect, but well worthwhile time at the movies.

2012: The Year in Film: "Wanderlust" Review

So the Judd Apatow family of comedies is pretty much responsible for 44% of all comedies today (that's an official, verified statistic). David Wain (who directed Wet Hot American Summer and Role Models) has been around the comedy game for quite a while as well.. and writes and directs this one, which stars many familiar faces of the Apatow crowd. Paul Rudd (who's pretty much secured his position as your go-to "straight man"), Jennifer Aniston, Justin Theroux, Alan Alda, Malin Ackerman, Ken Marino, Joe Lo Truglio and Kathryn Hahn all star.

So after living the NYC ratrace, George (Rudd) and Linda (Aniston), find themselves unemployed and unable to afford their tiny, ridiculously overpriced Manhattan apartment. They head to George's brothers' house in Atlanta, where his dickhead of a brother runs a company and has offered George a job. Along the way they happen across a Bed and Breakfast, Elysium, that happens to be a hippie commune.. and the lifestyle happens to appeal to them, so they decide to stick around. Let's be honest, the strength of this one isn't the plot. This is an extremely funny, extremely broad comedy, with some great moments and strong characters, but the plot is thin to say the least. Needless to say, the hippie lifestyle isn't all that it's cracked up to be, but certainly offers some lessons for our intrepid protagonists.



The cast is the strength here. You can tell that the actors involved had a blast making this movie, and there are tons of hilarious interactions and brief scenes that offer some good, hard laughs. Theroux, Alda, Marino, Truglio and Jordan Peele are all hilarious in bits. There are some off the wall stereotypically hippie bits that are quite funny, but ultimately the film is at its best when treating these people as individuals rather than stereotypes. There are some great moments in this film, and I laughed hard several times. However, ultimately, the plot is just too broad and nondescript for it to take the next step from "funny" movie to "good" movie like some of the stronger entrants in the Apatow family. In addition, Rudd and Aniston simply don't have enough chemistry to make a believable couple. But all in all, it's well worth a watch, and probably rewarding of multiple viewings.

7/10.

March Madness: The Wire

So Grantland being Grantland (Ugh) went out and threw together a 32 character bracket of the greatest achievement in television history apparently to prove to everyone what a pisspoor organization it is and demonstrate that they watched the Wire in between episodes of Entourage and following "the Bachelor". That "bracket" was the most amateur-hour fartfest that I've ever seen. (.. and I still watch "The Walking Dead") It pains me to link to Simmons' grabasstic fratpad of a site, but here's Grantland's open-ass of a bracket: "Smacketology" (seriously, who came up with "smacketology"? a 4th grader?). So here's my bracket.. no, my opinion's not any more legitimate than Grantland's, but I did actually watch the show, which is more than they can evidently say.. it appears their knowledge of the Wire comes from Youtube clips. Besides, Simmons doesn't like "The Departed" because there's a rat at the end of it. Go watch 90210, Bill. Leave grown up media to people who don't sound like Woody Allen.

East Baltimore Region
1. (overall number one seed) Omar Little
2. Avon Barksdale
3. Clay Davis
4. Bodie Broadus
5. Chris Partlow
6. Maury Levy
7. Bill Rawls
8. Slim Charles
9. Cheese Wagstaff
10. Poot Carr
11. Leandor Sydnor
12. Odell Watkins
13. Nick Sobotka
14. Donette
15. Terrance Fitzhugh
16. Anthony Gray

Courthouse Region
1. Jimmy McNulty
2. Prop Joe
3. D'Angelo Barksdale
4. Michael Lee
5. Keema Greggs
6. Wallace
7. The Greek
8. Randy Wagstaff
9. Rhonda Pearlman
10. Butchie
11. Norman Wilson
12. Namond Brice
13. Ziggy Sobotka
14. Kenard
15. "Horseface" Pakusa
16. Judge Phelan

High Rises Region
1. Stringer Bell
2. Cool Lester Smooth
3. Marlo Stanfield
4. Tommy Carcetti
5. Felicia "Snoop" Pearson
6. Ellis Carver
7. Roland "Prezbo" Pryzbylewski
8. Brother Mouzone
9. Frank Sobotka
10. Gus Haynes
11. Spiros Vondas
12. Sergei
13. Brianna Barksdale
14. The Deacon
15. Shardene
16. Walon

Hamsterdam Region
1. "Bubbles" Cousin
2. Bunk Moreland
3. Bunny Colvin
4. Cedric Daniels
5. Dennis "Cutty" Wise
6. "Wee-Bey" Brice
7. "Herc" Haulk
8. Ervin Burrell
9. Beadie Russell
10. Mayor Royce
11. "Dukie" Weems
12. Jay Landsman
13. Stan Valchek
14. Orlando
15. Terry D'Agnostino
16. Scott Templeton