The Vine: March 18, 2011
My fiancé and I are huge fans of “marathoning” shows (as in get a show we’ve never seen that’s got at least 3 seasons on DVD and start Netflixing them until we’ve either caught up to live episodes or the show ends). We’ve been doing this for several years and absolutely love it. Our most recent successful pick was Burn Notice, but we’ve finished the episodes available on DVD and now have to wait for more.
I’m looking for recommendations on other shows we can do this with. I’m including a list of shows we love and some minimal criteria and hopefully you and the rest of the nation can give us some ideas. I’m going to say one more thing, and please don’t hate me…no Mad Men. We’ve tried…twice. Gotten through 2 discs. CANNOT get into it. We just don’t get it. I’m not sure why, it’s a well-written show, but we just don’t love it.
Major criteria: Preferably an hour-long show. We really like dramas that are snappy and mixed with humor/smart-ass remarks, basically we’re fans of snark. Also fast-paced dialogue (a la Sorkin…love it). Our other firm preference is that if it’s a show that is no longer on the air, we want it to have been a planned-out end (as in West Wing, or Buffy); not so excited about watching a show that has 2 great seasons and then gets canceled so you’re left hanging (Joan of Arcadia and Dead Like Me, I’m looking at you).
Some of our favorites are:
- West Wing (LOVE LOVE LOVE)
- Psych
- Studio 60
- Lost
- Dr. Who
- Stargate
- Stargate Atlantis
- Supernatural
- Buffy
- Firefly
- Angel
- Deadwood
- Burn Notice
- True Blood
- Dead Like Me
- ER (but only to a point…you know what I mean)
- Dawson’s Creek (ok that’s just me, not the fiance)
Hopefully you get the gist of what we’re into. Basically it can be any genre, what we’re interested in is quality entertainment value, we’re not married to a specific subject.
Thanks in advance for the help!!
Lis
Dear Lis,
I’ll confine myself to three recommendations here (and I’ll ask that readers do the same, so that comments don’t get too unwieldy in length):
1. Sports Night. I’m a bit surprised not to see it on your list, since you like Sorkin; in my opinion, it’s his best work (i.e., the highest proportion of what makes his writing good, without some of what can make him off-putting). It may not qualify for you guys, as it’s only two seasons and only half an hour…and Dana’s dating plan is maddening, but if you know it’s coming, you can take it less seriously, and Guillaume is tremendous.
2. Six Feet Under. A wildly uneven show, but at its best, it’s extremely rewarding.
3. White Collar. Still in progress. Charismatic leads and a fun premise.
Readers, help us out here. Your three top marathonables, based on Lis’s list. Go.
Tags: Ask The Readers popcult
Firday Night Lights! So very good.
Everwood
Dark Angel
Lis, your list is 100% awesome! I’m the same, because my boy and I don’t get TV but we do have a television set, so I’m all about the DVD boxed sets. I love Mad Men myself, but I know what you mean, it’s not to everyone’s tastes. My recs are:
The Wire
Yeah, I know, everyone and their dog recommends the Wire BUT I think you’ll like it if you like Deadwood, and it’s got some awesome characters in it. It might take an episode or so to get into it, but you’ll most likely be totally hooked
NYPD Blue
Annoyingly only S1-4 are available on DVD with no plans to release past that but it’s great. Police procedural, good character actors, surprisingly funny. Again, if you like Deadwood you’ll like this and David Milch wrote both
This Life
This is a UK show from the 90s, it only ran for two seasons but it’s great. It might not be that easy for you to get hold of, but it’s good fun, about a group of young professionals sharing a house in London and trying to get on with their lives. Like Friends, but realistic, with swearing and sex, and set in London. All good fun!
It breaks your rule about shows that were prematurely canceled, but Veronica Mars is one of my favorite shows of all time. There’s tons of snark, great dialogue, and terrific acting. The first season has some fantastic story-telling.
You might also like Alias, though it starts to fall apart around season 3 and it takes a LOT of suspension of disbelief. Come for the Michael Vartan, stay for the Bradley Cooper and Victor Garber.
It’s not so snarky/snappy, but I would strongly recommend the reboot of Battlestar Galactica. It’s four seasons plus a couple of miniseries specials, it had a planned ending, it’s all available on DVD, and I love it. For context, I also love Psych, Firefly, Doctor Who, and Buffy, so we might have convergent tastes there.
If you can get hold of it, the UK series of Being Human. 3 seasons in (8 eps each), and a fourth confirmed.
I know you said Mad Men isn’t for you, but I’d strongly recommend AMC’s other amazing show, Breaking Bad. Can be very heavy but definitely qualifies on the snarky dialogue and is extremely marathonable (I know several people who have ripped through all three seasons.)
Other one I would give my highest recommendation to is Justified. It’s only midway through Season Two, so you may want to wait a bit at least until the current season comes out on DVD, but it’s got super dialogue and is also very well done. Plus: Tim Olyphant!
Chuck — fun, snarky, snappy…
Battlestar Galactica — awesome, and since I see the poster likes sci-fi
Friday Night Lights — one of the best hour long dramas ever made for TV!
1. The Wire: I marathoned it a few years ago right as the final season was getting started and loved it. This is definitely the kind of show that works well in marathon viewing.
2. Battlestar Galactica (new version): Like Lost, it has an ending that was quite divisive, but I found it immensely satisfying.
3. Arrested Development: I know it’s not a drama, but this is one of the most rewarding repeat marathon viewing experiences I’ve ever has with a TV show, what with all of the callbacks, background jokes, hidden jokes, looped stories and just everything about it.
I’m sure I won’t be the only one to suggest this, but Battlestar Galactica! it’s like methadone for Lost fans.
1. I will cast another vote for Six Feet Under. It is great and totally compelling.
2. Being Human, the British version. Seriously, avoid the U.S. one like the plague.
3.Weeds. Especially the first two seasons.
I’m glad @Sarah mentioned In Plain Sight because I’ll recommend that. It’s streaming on Netflix and it comes back May 1, so if you like it, you can just jump in when the fourth season starts. The dialogue is right up your alley, it’s an ongoing West Wing reunion, and Fred Weller is hot. The pilot is kind of lame but it picks up after that.
Also, I marathon’d Yes (Prime) Minister last spring. It’s a half-hour comedy, so not really in line with your list, but it’s hilarious and intelligent and I think everyone ought to try it. It’s all over YouTube, anyway.
1. Fringe, though I recommend starting with Season 2 and then going back to the beginning when you feel like you want more backstory, because S2 is where it started to get very good. If you start at the beginning, you might give up. Don’t.
2. Justified. Dark, funny; wonderful characters, excellent writing, The Olyphant.
My boyfriend and I have been doing this this year also. The most satisfying option, by far, was, of course, The Wire. That’s pretty much all we did last June and the first week of July. Totally worth it.
We also did all of Friday Night Lights starting in December, and we caught up with the Directv airings with about five episodes to go. As far as I’m concerned, the first season is by far the best, and the series never quite got up to that level again (although it was very good in Seasons 3 and 4).
Currently, we’re doing Breaking Bad. If you like the Wire or crime shows generally, I highly recommend it. I’ve been known to insist on a second episode immediately after the one we just watched.
A quick second for early seasons of House and the jewel of a single season that was Freaks and Geeks. It is 18 episodes (I think) so you really do get your money’s worth, and it’s probably my favorite anything, ever. Wire included. This includes books, movies, etc. (Although not food.)
Arrested Development – definitely snarky, lots of blink-and-you-miss-it jokes
Breaking Bad – yes, it’s an AMC drama, but it’s a lot less “I’m having a melancholy existential crisis” than Mad Men. The second and third episodes of the first season are pretty disgusting, but the gross-out factor lets up after that.
1. Battlestar Galactica
2. Dexter
3. Vampire Diaries
I highly recommend The Wire. Incredible show, and, IMO, marathoning it is the only way to go.
I also very much liked Six Feet Under overall, although, as Sarah says, it is uneven and frustrating at times.
My husband and I both loved Everwood, although after season 2 DVD availability might be an issue. We resorted to cheap Chinese imports on eBay. Talk about frustrating…
Slings and Arrows. Fantastic.
I second (third? fourth?) Veronica Mars! Lots of awesome snark. Love it. I also second Coupling, because it’s roll-on-the-floor funny.
Check out the British version of Skins. It’s available for instant streaming now, and it’s highly addictive. And I know you said no shows that leave you hanging because they got canceled, but Freaks & Geeks is an excellent show. I’m in the middle of a Greek marathon. Despite the fact that it was on ABC Family Channel, it’s filled with smart adult humor (and if you were in any way involved in the Greek system in college, it’ll bring back a lot of memories).
I love marathoning TV shows! I’ll be watching the comments for more suggestions. Here are mine:
Babylon 5 – best sci-fi long-running drama out there. It’s five seasons, and has a definite ending. Stick with it for at least a season and a half – if you really hate season 1 you probably won’t like the rest, but the show takes a while to catch its stride, so if you’re just “eh” on it keep watching.
Murder One (at least season 1) is a great crime drama. I couldn’t get into season 2 at all, but season 1 is a complete arc with a distinct ending, so you won’t miss anything if you don’t bother with season 2.
I was also going to recommend Cracker, a British crime drama starring Robbie Coltrane, but it’s not available on Netflix. That said, if you really like British crime dramas, and you don’t mind shows that are, well, not exactly “happy” in tone, it’s really worth checking out – and you can get the DVDs for not too much money on Amazon.
I would also throw my vote in for Six Feet Under.
Babylon 5 is an older sci-fi show with a tremendous story, some witty repartee, great makeup, and laughable CGI (hey, it was the 90s). Five seasons, hour long episodes, and several movies that provide additional story.
I guess my last suggestion would be Oz, although it doesn’t really fit in with your favorites. I put it out there just because we seem to have similar tastes and I liked it. It’s not snarky or witty, but it’s well written and well acted. It is pretty vulgar and disturbing, though, so if that’s not your thing, stay away.
(I would have recommended Carnivale, even though it was a short two seasons, but it ended VERY unsatisfactorily, due to not being renewed. If the last shot would have been cut, it would have been a decent ending, but the ending shot turned it into a cliffhanger. Boo.)
Leverage! Timothy Hutton stars as the mastermind behind a group of misfit thieves who pull off elaborate cons to help out the little guy. Also stars Christian Kane (Lindsey of the Evil Hand from Angel) and Gina Bellman (Jane from the British version of Coupling) If Ocean’s 11 (Clooney version) and The A-Team had a baby, it would be this show. Airs on TNT — Season 4 starts in June so you’ve got time to catch up.
Seeing what other TN readers post just confirms for me what good taste we all have because the three shows I was going to recommend have already been listed a couple of times. But it can’t hurt to have a show seconded (or thirded, fourthed, etc…)!
1)Torchwood: for the Doctor Who connection, also Captain Jack is just awesome.
2) Vampire Diaries: Yes, it’s on the CW and, as such, is full of impossibly pretty teenagers, but it’s actually REALLY well done. Really! It’s well-written, well-paced (none of this, lets drag a storyline on for 2 seasons parceling out nuggets of info and plot bit by tiny bit like some shows I know [looking at you, LOST]), intense but doesn’t take itself too seriously, and the continuity people actually seem to be doing their jobs!
3) I was going to suggest Dexter, but that’s already been mentioned loads of times so I’ll give my third vote to Supernatural. Yes, it’s another “spooky” CW show chock full of pretty people but it’s just a lot of fun. Also, it’s surprisingly dude-friendly (beautiful vintage car, classic rock, frequent ass-kicking). Bonus points because Jim Beaver is on it and I loved him so very much on Deadwood.
Oooh! Slings and Arrows. It’s a Canadian series that ran 3 seasons. You can usually find it at B & N if you don’t want to do the internet search.
1. Alias (though the last season goes a little off the rails, the first few are great)
2. Dexter (no snark here, but a great series. I find this season a bit frustratingly pointless, but last season was fantastic.)
3. Fringe (lots of meat in this show, but you have to get through the tedious first season).
I miss shows like the West Wing and Studio 60. I love watching people say things seemingly off the cuff that no regular human would ever think of so quickly. Nothing makes me happier than glib dialog.
Though, not really marathon-able, since it’s only in its second season and is only a half hour long, but have you seen Modern Family? It’s more snark than you usually find in sitcoms. I find myself actually laughing occasionally when I watch it, which is fairly unusual when I watch a modern comedy.
I’m also going to recomment Farscape. It is the bomb-diggity. Just make sure you include the ‘Peacekeeper Wars’ miniseries, as that is the proper end.
Leverage. Great, fun caper show. I miss it when it’s not airing.
Have to nth Gilmore Girls, but maybe not the last couple seasons.
Boston Legal was a show I didn’t think I’d like, but we totally marathoned.
I could second almost everything that’s been mentioned here! Does this mean I watch too much TV?
I will only mention things I haven’t seen listed so far –
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
I know, I know, Star Trek, if you’re not already a Trek person, you probably won’t start now. But DS9 is the most character-based and ongoing-storyline-y of the Treks (as opposed to the original series and the Next Generation, which can be kind of alien-of-the-week). Give it a try! Maybe starting with season 2! Seven seasons total, if you get into it.
Danger: UXB
Not many people have seen this 1980s British series about unexploded bomb defusers in World War II London. Super exciting and nerve-wracking, but also very character-driven. I think it’s two seasons, total.
How I Met Your Mother
Most of the shows you like are hour-long drama/comedy/action, and this is a sit-com, but it’s got the rare quality in a sitcom of an almost Lost-esque level of apparently carefully crafted continuity and callbacks. Still ongoing, but you get the feeling there’s a specific ending planned. Sort of takes a nosedive after season 3, but season 2 is brilliant. I marathoned seasons 1 and 2 in a weekend once and it was the best weekend ever.
Lis here! WOW Thanks Nation! You all rock (not that this is news, but still, YAY!) I’ve got to go through everything now, but I can already see that there are a ton of shows that I’ll be throwing in the queue… I suppose I’ll have to give the Wire a try now… I’ve been avoiding it because of our mishap with Mad Men (and the not liking it) so I’ve been a tad apprehensive about another highly recommended show, but if the Nation says so I’m going to have to listen! hee! Thanks again, and keep em coming! This is awesome!
My two biggest recommendations (because they were generally missed by everyone them while they aired) have only 10-12 episodes a piece, but each episode is *brilliant*, and you will not regret watching them: KINGS (Ian McShane, amazing writing, strange, wonderful world), and TERRIERS (just recently finished its first amazing and only season — snappy dialogue, yes! original stories, yes! scruffy detectives, yes!)
I agree with a lot of the other suggestions here so the only other one I’ll mention is the Canadian show SLINGS & ARROWS. It stars a pre-fame Rachel McAdams and a bunch of other great Canadian actors as a struggling Shakespearean theater company. I haven’t finished it yet, but am enjoying the episodes via Netflix instant watch (extra convenience!).
Multiple people have mentioned these already, but my votes are:
1. The Wire
2. Battlestar Galactica
3. Veronica Mars
Currently I’m rewatching/marathoning Roswell, and am enjoying the hell out of it even though I get why it was mocked so much on TWoP.
I don’t know about Lis, but you guys have convinced me to watch Eureka and Alias!
Gilmore Girls and Veronica Mars!
1. I’ll join the chorus for The X-Files. C had it right, seasons 1-5 are gold, 6 & 7 are silver, and 8 & 9 didn’t place. Though a few of the stand alone episodes in 8 & 9 are pretty good on their own merits (it helps if you pretend they’re part of an anthology show.)
2. In Plain Sight, still ongoing but it’s a USA show so there’s long gaps between seasons. I think season 4 is starting sometime in May. Anyways, it’s got lots of snappy, snarky dialogue and if you love curmudgeonly protagonists you’re covered. Plus the lead is a buttkicking woman who actually looks like she’s physically capable of kicking butt.
3. Fringe. The first few episodes aren’t stellar, but stick with it. It’s so worth it.
No one’s mentioned it, but I did a marathon of Leverage and was quite taken with it. Also, you liked Deadwood and Lost – would you be willing to give Carnivale a whirl?
And I’ll second all recs for Farscape, Veronica Mars and BSG.
Argh! I could easily give you 10 titles, at least! Those mentioned many times above, I won’t repeat–many great suggestions.
I will throw another vote for Fringe. It’s a really great show with compelling stories, and some great acting. Refer to Entertainment Weekly article last week about why this show is so great & why everyone should be watching!
Another vote for Dexter – dark show, but I love it.
Has no one suggested Breaking Bad yet? Also a very compelling, riveting show with some great acting, suspense, etc.
@Amanda – Good point about IPS being an ongoing West Wing reunion. I heard Bradley Whitford is making an appearance this season. Now all we need is for Martin Sheen and Stockard Channing to show up (preferably as Jed and Abby Bartlett)! Season 3 was kind of meh but I have high hopes for Season 4! And Fred Weller IS hot.
@Lis – you’re going to need to take some time off from work to get through all these shows.
I’m feeling inspired to marathon a few classics now…
Wow, your list looks like mine.
1) Spooks/MI-5 – If you find S1 tricky to get into, you can easily start at S6 or S7 with very little back-story trouble. And I echo Attica’s comment re hotness quotient, which is always, always fine, but ramped up hard in S7.
2) X-Files – it must be done.
3) Being Erica – it’s a Canadian drama with comic elements, currently ongoing (just finished S3), with S1 & S2 available on DVD.
Oh man, I know I already said mine, but the new BBC Sherlock is FULL of snark and is also super exciting.
But it’s only three episodes. But they 1.5 hours!
Bones!
Did no one mention My So-Called Life? It’s heavier on the drama than the humor, but still quite funny.
Chiming in for Veronica Mars.
And, bookmarking this entry so that I can steal everyone’s suggestions for myself. :)
Sports Night for sure, I love it.
Veronica Mars
Castle – just for fun and for Nathan Fillion
Bonus short lived show – Better off Ted. So wrong, so funny.
Nothing to add to the great ideas but I am having a total geek moment… being a HUGE Dr. Who / Torchwood fan: Torchwood is an anagram for Doctor Who.
First I say that I also vote for all the suggestions listed by previous commenters. I’m a huge marathoner myself and I’ve watched almost all these shows. Scary. But to add some that I haven’t seen recommended yet (I tried to read all the comments but I sort of skimmed):
(1) MI-5 – it hasn’t ended yet, but there are maybe 7 seasons on Netflix? Something like that. Great twisty, thrilly, well-written British spy series.
(2) Inspector Lewis – also not ended, but there are at least three seasons on Netflix. It’s a spin-off of the long-running Inspector Morse series and I really enjoy the detective characters. Each season is short, but each episode is long so it would be a shorter marathon, but I think you’d enjoy it.
(3) The Last Detective – British detective show about a sad-sack, kind, much-maligned and made-fun of member of a suburban London police force. But in spite of being universally mocked he somehow keeps managing to solve the crime (because he’s actually quite good at his job), but almost always in a way that makes his position on the force even MORE untenable than it was before. I’ve just gotten into this one so don’t know how it ends, but I like it quite a bit.
1) Leverage. Humorous-yet-serious crime capers, C’MON!
2) Veronica Mars, though the Hubs and I are only halfway through season 1 (we watch ’em slower) so don’t spoil it for me! ;-)
3) Babylon 5, seasons 1-4. (They wrapped the plots at the end of s4 when they thought it was going to be canceled, and then they were greenlighted for a 5th season anyway, so the whole 5th season is kind of iffy.)
Based on your like of Burn Notice, I recomend Leverage.
I also recommend Veronica Mars. The first season was fantastic, and I don’t think the second and third lived up to it? But they were still a lot of fun, and I think it meets your criteria for ending itself gracefully.
I’m not sure whether The Closer fits your criteria – I really enjoyed it when I was watching it regularly, but Kyra Sedgewick is not for everyone. I’m also in a period where all I watch on TV is baseball and Masterpiece Theater, so I don’t even know whether it’s still good (or even on tv) anymore.
Bones, if you like procedural shows that are a bit snarky (and it sounds like you do) and Criminal Minds, although I haven’t watched it lately so I can’t judge the newest season.
This sounds fun!
1. Sopranos
2. Twin Peaks
3. Dexter
Cannot believe you don’t like Mad Men!
I do the same with my boyfriend now that we live the life on money-saving date nights.
1. Dexter. LOVE Dexter.
2. Veronica Mars
3. I’ve just started Lie to Me on netflix, but so far, so good.
The Shield. Oh, sweet fancy Moses, The Shield. The show is gritty, but if that’s not a problem for you, you should put it at the very top of your queue. Brilliant performances, great writing, and they knew when they were ending so they wrapped everything up in a way that both satisfied me and haunted me. Haunted me.
You’ll finish an episode and wonder how the poor people who watched it on TV were able to get through a week until the next episode. You’ll stay up way too late because you’ll say to yourself, “Oh, just one more episode. I don’t have to be that alert at work tomorrow.” Your waking thoughts will be consumed with the plotlines. You’ll ask yourself, “How did I not know about Walton Goggins before? What else is he in? Because I need to find out and watch that.” (The answer to that last question is Justified, and yes, you do need to watch that.)
In short, The Shield. The Shield!