Don't ask me why

John Hamm. One of the sexiest humans to walk the earth.

Christina Hendricks. The Greeks and other ancient civilizations craved in stone because of women like her.

And

Acting. Unknown (relatively) actors that are even more talented than that of highest calibre HBO show, or superstar Hollywood red carpet. These men and women craft a story that is heartfelt and addicting.

If you're some plot junkie looking of robots/explosions, or some cheesy Marvel story, look elsewhere.

I know, because why ever consider anything, a book, a movie, a work of art, music, a television show, worth your while if its subject is something you'd find disagreeable?

While i agree with your point in general gmku i also have not watched a single episode of Mad Men because of its topic. Same reason i never watched Breaking Bad..

I love to read "different" novels, id possibly even read a novel about tv marketing or meth dealong but i had and have zero desire to watch it.

Now i must be off to watch Girl Meets World ;)

(Sighs, NBA playoffs aren't back till tomorrow)

I have no problem with that. BUt T&B mplied that something was wrong with a whole audience for watching a show that he personally did not like. A whole other thing than simply expressing a personal dislike.

/// survivor finale this week

when you descrfibe ANY TV show in one sentence it sounds like shit

it is a show about life, like any other good one.

survivor finale wednesday as well as David Letterman finale. will be a CBS marathon at casa instigator

watched Game of Thrones latest. lots of people talkl about how horrible Sansa's wedding night rape was but they fail to consider that many, if not most, women who were married off in the last 1000 years or more were raped this way on their wedding night. fucking horrible. I am glad we live when we live.

Bob Dylan is playing Letterman tonight!

For those who missed it last night, Eddie Vedder along with Paul Shaffer and the CBS Orchestra knocked, "Better Man" out of the park!

Now that most TV shows are coming to their Season's end......what good shows are starting this summer?

That's not what I meant to do. I was saying that what I hear about the show's concept (a bunch of 60s alpha male advertising executives smoking cigarettes and cheating on their wives) sounds pretty unappealing to me, however Mad Men gets a lot of respect. So, I was wondering if someone could say something brief and insightful about it that might help me understand why so many people like it and that might make it appealing. Something beyond the inane drivel the person said about the great acting, hot actors and it's not about superheros. Seriously what successful drama of the last 20 years doesn't have very attractive people who are very good at acting?

what sets it apart?

There isn't time to watch/read/listen/visit/etc everything that is considered great, you've got to have some kind of filter.

I am not a HUGE fan, but I have enjoyed about 70% of it as I watched with my wife.

I think what sets it apart is that it explores the workplace in both nostalgic and critical ways. I think people like shows that trans;port them to a shared past, even if it is a very exclusive, boys-club, segregated, and inherently racist and sexist past.

I would not rank it on the top ten TV dramas of all time though. Like all advertising, it is a cloud of lies and misdirection disguised as solid truth, or a solid truth disguised by a cloud of lies and misdirection.

that is TRUE. some things may be "great" but my mind does not give a fuck to find out, because I am deeply involved with other "great" things. Life is too too short to try and absorb everything.

My personal Top Ten Drama TV shows, in no particular order, and completely subjective. I do not watch too many TV dramas. I lose patience with them.

Breaking Bad
Deep Space Nine
NYPD Blue (first two seasons. HOT DAMN)
Daredevil (on the Netflix. Vincent Dinofrio is AMAZING as Wilson "The Kingpin" Fisk)
Sopranos
CSI (first two seasons were TIGHT)
Game of Thrones
Buffy The Vampire Slayer (I got into this through my first wife, and it kept getting more engrossing! damnit!)
Trek: The Next Generation
House of Cards



I never got to watch Hill Street Blues. it was a fave of my parents. My TV wtaching is ussually relegated to science/nature shows, comedies, sports, and Zimmern and Bourdain....

I believe one of the big appeals of Mad Men is when they make references to either pop culture from the past or big news events of the past as if they happened just that week. When a character talks about seeing the new episode of "Ed Sullivan" or we hear a comment about a news story on JFK there's a little bit of using "Mad Men" as a time-travelling device, where for us these things are decades old, but they are talking about it as if it's current and new. I do think there is an appeal to that for people, whether they are romanticizing the past as we tend to do, or simply appreciating it.

Rob, nypd blue actually is pretty good, been watching reruns of it too.. i prefer NY Undercover though, the hip hop alternative..

My top 12 (in no order) TV dramas

(drama = anything that is fictional but not comedy)

Homicide: Life on the Street
Twin Peaks
The Wire
Six Feet Under
The Sopranos
Buffy
Game of Thrones
This Is England
Generation Kill
The X Files

Twin Peaks and The X-Files reboots are on their way... I wonder how it will all pan out?

Not reboots, just continuations, reboots generally mean restarting a series to retell it, usually with different people or at least with different origins.

Right! Sorry. Kyle MacLachlan is returning! He rules as mayor on Portlandia. I hope Lynch does directed all episodes.

OM!!! that Coke ad is wretched. end of an era indeed. yeah, it ended on a satisfactory recap of it all note.

I never really gave two fucks about TV dramas until Breaking Bad. not even the Sopranos could interest me mainly because I didn't have HBO>

download bittorrent http://www.bittorrent.com/

visit EZTV http://eztv.it

watch Sopranos........

Has anybody watched Midsomer Murders? We're looking for a new long-running series to get hooked on. Must be available via Netflix. We are off the cable grid.

have not. Good luck

no idea but check out LUTHER. it's great. only problem is that it's fucking british and the lazy fuckers make 4 episodes and call it a season. not season. a "series". frustrating. still, pretty great.

...you're kidding right? But seriously don't do it. It's a tv programme for old ladies who drink tea with Ethel next door, and then they settle down to watch the new episode of Midsome Murders on itv.

He's gonna need more than that. Especially as there's *checks Uncle Wiki* GORDON BENNET 104 episodes to date. That's 104 episodes at 1 1/2 hours long.

thanks. I've watched some episodes on A&E but that doesn't count.

OK, thanks. I seriously had no idea. You know how Netflix is--stuff comes up in your queue supposedly based on your "tastes," what you've watched before, etc.

or, you know, if you're a citizen, netflix has them all. book the whole weekend though. i think that show was my first binge, back in the day-- 18 hours straight, i think? have coffee & snacks lined up in advance.

your local library might have them as well.

Hey, LUTHER looks like it might be more our speed. We'll check it out.

My mum watches Midsomer Murders, I'd never watch it myself but my old mum has generally good taste.

i you end up liking it, also check out WALLANDER

some blond british guy broods & pretends to be a swedish detective. but good show, based on some books. shot actually in sweeden-- looks pretty. same problem w/ the overly short "series," but best to never jump the shark.

Yep, we've watched all the Wallander that's available. Great show!

Foo Fighters play Everlong as hyper-fast montage of Letterman moments runs to end the last Late Show. https://youtu.be/yrVjOUIoo6Q

I held it together until about 30 seconds into this....

That final episode was so great, have been a long time David Letterman fan, and have watched his show for a number of years, mostly the CBS years. I just watched the Foo Fighters performance from the night David came back from his surgery and they just attacked Everlong. His final episode was a great send off, and now having insomnia isn't going to be as much fun.