Well, I think I saw a movie this year. Maybe. I don't really remember. So I think I'll confine this years best of to TV.
Favorite returning show: Fringe. This show has only gotten better. The first season was shaky. The second season showed some real promise and introduced some really interesting ideas. This third season has been incredible. It's a sci-fi show, but what has been the most satisfying to me was the way they dealt with the Moonlighting problem. You know, the will they/won't they of the leads. Genius, tension-filled and heartbreaking.
Favorite new show: Archer. Those of you that know me well are familiar with the refrain, "I don't like cartoons." Except for all the cartoons I do like. Archer is a cartoon I do like. It's James Bond done with South Park's irreverence and most certainly not for kids. The first season is only 10 episodes and was on Netflix instant until very recently because the DVD is about to come out.
The rest: FX and AMC had two great but canceled shows this year. Terriers and Rubicon. Because they were on cable and not broadcast, they got to air their full season order, which I believe was 13 episodes each. If you're looking for some really good long form storytelling without a huge commitment, I highly recommend checking them out once they're on DVD.
I'd be remiss in making a best of list without including Lost. Say what you will about the final resolution (I kind of hated it), it was a great season of television.
Mad Men had another outstanding season, as did Breaking Bad.
Two miniseries out of the UK that I thoroughly enjoyed this year were Luther and Sherlock. Both crime dramas. I enjoyed this version of Sherlock Holmes more than I enjoyed the film version.
I really didn't watch that many comedies this year. The two that are consistently on my must watch list are The Big Bang Theory and 30 Rock. Neither had the greatest season, but still better than almost everything else on TV.
And, of course, I quite enjoyed this series of Doctor Who. I was worried that I would hate it, but Matt Smith plays the Doctor with such relish that I was sold from almost the very beginning. The writing wasn't as good as I would have liked, and I had to stop watching the behind the scenes stuff because the new show runner is an ass, but it's still one of my favorites.
I'll have to take a look at my DVR to see if I missed anything. I'm sure I did, so keep your eyes peeled for a follow up.
Happy New Year, everyone!
I am totally bummed about Stargate/SGU. I was never a fan of the franchise, but this one was really well done.
I followed Terriers and Rubicon as well, and enjoyed them. Surprised they are not coming back.
And I *just* discovered Archer. Awesome.
Posted by: Byrne Reese | 12/24/2010 at 01:19 PM