Random Sunday notes...

As my profile says, I spend a lot of time bouncing around the net reading about shows; always trying to find the next great show.  I heard about a show from the BBC called Luther a few weeks back as it was debuting on BBC America.  I wrote it down in my notebook(yes I make notes about things like this in a notebook) and I didn't give it another thought because; as you know my schedule is already too heavy as it is.  I had planned on coming back to it at a later date when things weren't so hectic.  But as I was browsing Twitter yesterday; I saw an interesting tweet from The Anti Critic. "This has some of the best written dialogue on television (watching Luther S01E01 via @gomiso) http://miso.io/akgOqp "  That's all it took, you tell me that a show has great dialogue and I'm all over it.  I grabbed the first season and we powered through the whole thing, this is something that I'll have to pick up on DVD's once they come to Canada and according to Amazon, the release date is March 8th 2011.  I recommend this show to anyone and everyone!  The dialogue is brilliant and the pacing of the show is fabulous.  We literally couldn't stop watching the season, my wife was screaming at the television during the last episode.  BBC usually does bring the drama very well, especially the crime drama.  It was an intense show that never really stops.  It stars the great Idris Elba from The Wire who is a fantastic actor who is finally starting to get some good work, he's also currently guest starring on The Big C right now, another show that you should watch.  Anyways, he stars as a Senior Detective in London who's so into cleaning up the streets that it basically ruins his personal life.  He builds a very fascinating relationship with the first cases suspect that lasts the entire season, to the point she's the only person he can really talk to.  I don't want to divulge too much, but this is a show people need to watch if you want to see a well written and well acted, a highly unpredictable cop drama that will have you on the edge of your seat while watching it. 

I love television more then most and really more then I should.  But after watching such a clever and well-written show, you truly see just how awful regular network television is.  It just seems so dumbed down and so repetitive.  It's really no wonder that most people have the attitude that there is nothing on television.  You just aren't watching the right shows or right channels.  I'm always on Twitter, browsing the websites for HBO, AMC, FX reading about the shows they'vee got on, their old shows, shows they've got in development.  Because they're producing far superior television.  Look at the Emmy's the last few years, most of the nominated series' aren't network television, they're mostly from the Cable Channels and there is a reason from that.  Network television really does need to improve. 

Speaking of AMC, holy crap The Walking Dead premiere was awesome and I can't wait for tonight's episode.  Does Sunday night television stress anyone else out?  The Amazing Race, Boardwalk Empire, Dexter, Eastbound and Down, Bored To Death,  The Walking Dead.  Rubicon and Mad Men just ended.  My god do all the best shows have to air in one night?  Pace it out a bit, please, for the sanity of our pvr's.

My top 5 new shows on television this season.

5) The Whole Truth

Yes it's been canceled already, but that can't mean I didn't enjoy it.  Sure it's just another legal procedural, but I really liked the two leads and I really enjoyed how they played out against each other.  The way that we got to see both sides of the case prepare to do court battle was quite neat.  Sad it got canned so early.

4) Blue Bloods

How can you not like Tom Selleck?  Another New York cop show, but with a twist.  The story lines are a bit different than the usual cop show and that's a bit refreshing.  But what I really like are those family dinners where the family discusses their sides to the legal system.  The only reason that this is so far down the list is because they keep teasing us with this conspiracy with the family, but we never really see enough of it to sink our teeth in.

3) Hawaii Five-0

I will admit that this show was way down on my radar when the fall season started up.  In fact, i fully expected to watch the pilot and never watch another episode.  Boy was I wrong.  Five-0 is a fun fun cop show with a beautiful back drop.  The stories are a bit different much like in Bloods and the chemistry between the two leads gets better every week.  They're truly turned into an old married couple and that does bring more fun to the show.  Just like in Bloods, we've got a bit of a conspiracy going on with McGarret's father and his sister taking photo's of his stuff, what was with that?  He was there initially to investigate what the mystery was with the contents of his dad's toolbox, but I really don't feel that we get enough of that.

2) Detroit 187

If you would have asked me on October 30th, "Ant, what's your favorite new show?" The answer hands down would have been, "Detroit 1-8-7, hands down" This show is fantastic, I'm loving the Detroit back drop, the chemistry between the groupings of Detectives is fantastic.  You truly would have thought that this group has been working together for years.  Michael Imperioli's Detective Louis Fitch is one of the most quirky and intelligent characters on television.  The October 21st episode Lost Child/Murder 101 was one of the saddest hours on television, it showed the Law is the Law, but sometimes the Law isn't always right.  If you didn't at least tear up during that episode, there is something wrong with you.

1) The Walking Dead

Just one episode in and I can tell you already, without a doubt the best new thing I've seen on television this season is The Walking Dead.  Some people didn't like the gore sure, but I don't know a person that truly didn't like it.  It felt like I was watching a movie and I can't see what the following five weeks brings us.  As much as I like Dexter, he's taken a back seat to the Zombies for now.

What are your favorite new fall shows?