LOST
A TV Series By J.J. Abrams
This giant question mark masked as a serial drama has its audience guessing on many levels episode to episode. Lost is full of mystery and creates an extraordinary world that crosses fantasy with reality. With a brilliant ensemble, the show manages to give and take the focus of the story so that no one character is too important for a surprising end.
As with any show, Lost has had its dry spells, but has more or less continued to grow its fan base through a communal desire to find out the truth about the island. Each character brings something special to the screen which allows discussions of enthusiast favorites and who’s right versus who’s wrong.
Some find the show frustrating due to its lack of answered questions, but since the announcement of the shows lifespan, the writers have hit their stride and clearly have an end in sight. More than anything else, Lost is an amazing week to week experience and should be sampled by all.
Website: http://abc.go.com/primetime/lost/index?pn=index
BATTLESTAR GALACTICA
A TV Series By Ronald D. Moore
Science fiction is one of the easiest genres to create, but the hardest to perfect. Ronald D. Moore is an elite sci-fi TV mind behind Star Trek (TNG, DS9, & Voyager) and Roswell, but stamps his name in the sci-fi history books with BSG.
Starting with a three hour miniseries, BSG would become one of the ultimate sci-fi stories of all time. In short, humans created Cylons (robots) who revolted, resulting in war, and after a 40 year armistice come back to destroy the human race. Although the idea of technology coming back to haunt the creator has been done before, none create a world in which it truly matters the way this show does.
Besides a few episodes when the Sci-Fi Channel changed the episodic format, the show has been solid from the start. Characters that draw you in, plots eerily relevant in a world ever affected by technology, and plot development continuing to raise the bar push this show to the top of the all time greats of the genre.
Website: http://www.scifi.com/battlestar/
SIX FEET UNDER
A TV Series By Alan Ball
Death is a subject often explored in movies and television, but none to the extent of the HBO series Six Feet Under. The Fisher family runs a funeral home, and during the first five minutes of the series, the patriarch of the family is killed in a car accident. The next 62 episodes encompass one of the best, if not the best, dramatic television series of all time.
Dealing with death is one of the hardest things a person has to go through, but what about the people who live with death on a daily basis? How would that affect a family’s dynamic and the children brought up in it? These are the questions this series has the guts to ask, and answer.
Yes, life sucks, but how one deals with it is a testament to that person’s character. No show has felt truer in its portrayal of life, and the garbage that can come with it. This series will not disappoint, and gives a new perspective on what matter most in life, family.
WARNING!!! VIDEO CONTAINS ADULT CONTENT!!!
Website: http://www.hbo.com/sixfeetunder/
SCRUBS
A TV Series By Bill Lawrence
Currently in its 8th, hopefully final, season of production, Scrubs is one of the best “Dramedies” of all time. Starting off as a long shot with a bunch of unknown faces, viewers quickly realized that the shows mix of comedy and drama had not been explored previously in a half hour comedy.
Originally with a clear focus on John “J.D.” Dorian (Zach Braff) as a hospital intern, a strong ensemble emerged, including; J.D.’s best friend Chris Turk (Donald Faison), love interest Elliot Reid (Sarah Chalke), friend Nurse Carla Espinosa (Judy Reyes), mentor Dr. Perry Cox (John C. McGinley), Chief of Medicine Bob Kelso (Ken Jenkins), and apparent sworn enemy, Janitor (Neil Flynn).
Dramatic moments are the heart and soul of Scrubs and are also what sets it apart from any other show to date. Although the last few seasons focused more on the zany than the dramatic, the final season seems to be more serious in nature and will close out a fantastic overall story and TV series.
