Top 10 Shows of 2011

With 2011 coming to an end, its time to name my top ten shows of the year.  With LOST going off the air, the number 1 spot was vacant.  Without further ado i give to you my top 10 of 2011.  In parenthesis you will find the ranking the show had last year.  NR= Not Rated

Honorable Mention:  I usually don't do an honorable mention category because it feels like such a cop out, but then i realized i was going to have a top 10 list without Chuck on it.  Sure Chuck had a down season for its standards, but it still ended with a bang and they first few episodes of what is for certain the last season has given us hope for an epic finish to what has been a fantastic ride.

10.  Modern Family (6) -  While the ratings have not suffered for Modern Family, i do think the quality has just a bit.  Back in season 1, almost every episode was a hit, but now it seems like the have an off episode every couple of weeks.  The good episodes however are still among some of the best stuff on TV.

9.  Its Always Sunny In Philadelphia (NR)  It is really rare for a show to have one of its strongest seasons so far into its run, but the Sunny crew did just that.  Every episode was a winner with the exception of "Franks Brother"  and fat Mac really was the joke that kept on giving

8.  Curb Your Enthusiasm (NR)  Curb came back from an extremely long hiatus in a big way.  "The Palestinian Chicken," "The Vow of Silence" and "Mister Softee" were 100% pure, concentrated "Curb" brilliance, and the rest of the episodes were strong to.  The New York setting really gave the show some new life.

7.  Sons Of Anarchy (NR)  Last season, i disliked SOA until the season finale.  This season was reversed as i thought it was a brilliant season that only suffered because of a lame, rushed finale.  I do like where the show seems to be going next season and there was enough fantastic acting with the addition of Rockmond Dunbar to the ensemble to overcome a bad finale

6.  Homeland (NR)  The only rookie show to make it on my list.  Homeland is such a great blend of tension plot and character development.  Featuring to award caliber performances by its 2 leads (Claire Daines and Damien Lewis)  This is a show i can only see moving up the ranks next year.

5.  Community (4)  When "Community" is at its very best (the D&D episode, the fake clip show, the alternate timelines), almost nothing else on TV can touch it.  The only down episodes they have tend to be when the show gets over ambitious, and there is no shame in that.  NBC should feel very dumb about leaving this gem off there winter schedule in favor of crap like "Whitney"

4. Louie (10)  This is a comedy that decided in a later season it would probably rather be a drama - and got better as a result. Like "Community," here was a series where you never knew exactly what kind of show you'd be tuning into in any given week - and one that tended to have a higher batting average on its experiments. What made "Louie" unlike everything else on television, was its powerful, unmistakable authorial voice. It's not just that Louis CK writes, directs, edits and helps score every episode, on top of being the only actor to appear every week. It's that the show is so unapologetically shown through his worldview, which is at once self-lacerating and yet surprisingly openhearted.

3. Parks and Recreation (5)  Its usually very hard for a straight up half hour comedy to crack my top 10.  But as  the months went along, the harder it became for me to ignore what an absolutely transcendent year "Parks and Recreation" was having. The spring episodes comprised the most flawless, satisfying comedy season I'd witnessed in years, and while the fall episodes have had a few stumbles], overall it's been a very strong season, and one that quietly, brilliantly built towards last week's fantastic Christmas episode, which summed up all the reasons why this is my number one comedy show of the year.

2. Friday Night Lights (2)  Holding steady at number 2 in its final year. Even if I'm only counting the six episodes that DirecTV aired from January on, this was still an epic, moving farewell to the people of Dillon, TX .  Almost everyone got a happy ending, but with enough bitter to keep the sweet from being overwhelming . We were reminded again and again why Eric and Tami Taylor are among the most realistic, compelling married couples in TV history, and in Michael B. Jordan's Vince, we got a latter-day character who wound up as rich and memorable as the kids we met in the first season. Thanks to the DirecTV deal, we got five seasons of "Friday Night Lights" where it otherwise might have ended after that unfortunate second one. And now we have so many great memories from the show that I will remember. Always and always and always.

1. Breaking Bad (3)  With Lost going off the air, the number 1 spot was wide open, and boy did Breaking Bad grab that spot with authority.  Season after season, the thing that impresses me most about "Breaking Bad" - yes, more than Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul's acting, more than the gorgeous cinematography, more than the moments that make me gasp and the others that make me laugh - is simply the patience of it. Vince Gilligan and company will take their time, thank you, and they will make everything better for making you wait. Just think about the boxcutter scene from the season premiere: what Gus (Giancarlo Esposito, brilliant all season) does with the boxcutter itself is riveting, but what makes the scene immortal is what happens before and after, when we watch him dress and undress twice, just because that's how Gus rolls and because Walt and Jesse have to sit there and watch him do it (twice). Or think of how carefully the show doled out Gus's backstory, until a lot of viewer sympathy swung wildly away from Walt and towards Gus. Think of how perfectly three seasons of hearing Tio Salamca ring that bell paid off in the season finale. This is a show that moves carefully, thinks through all the angles and then smacks you upside the head and down with its genius. If "Breaking Bad" season 3 put the show into consideration for the all-time pantheon, season 4 confirmed that the show belongs there. And if you don't believe me, ask The One Who Knocks

Checking In on Glee Season 3

 “I’m proud of what we’ve all done.”


Back at the end of season 2 of Glee, I wrote a post about how bad the show had become.  It really was a parody of what it was in season 1.  The performances, relationships and all the story lines seemed very forced.  It all culminated in what was an awful season finale.  When this new season started, it seemed to be going on the same path as the last.  I was basically ready to check out on this show.  But then a funny thing happened; Glee put together a string of their best episodes to date, and seems to be on track to making season 3 even better then season 1

A major reason for this renaissance has been the refocusing of the show on the students.The 'kids" in the cast are all really talented, and with so many of them being of different genders, races, religions, economic backgrounds, and orientations; the show has a lot of story to milk their.  The problem they ran into is that Jane Lynch was so good in a supporting role in season 1, they felt the need to jam her down our throats in season 2.  It is sad to say, but a major reason this season has been so strong is because Sue's screen time has been minimal compared to last year.  That is not to say that the show needs to rid itself of Jane Lynch, because the few times she has been on this season, she has been great, they just need to know how to do good things in moderation.  Another role that has been largely marginalized has been Matt Morrison's.  In his case though it was never an issue of talent being overused, i just find his role here to be really draining.  Its been shown that his performances are never popular on the show, and every story line he enters into just seems to stop the show dead in its tracks.  Are he and Emma even together right now?  I cant remember, nor do i care.  Lets keep the focus on the kids, and i think the success will continue.

At its heart, Glee is a musical television show and i think the performances have been much stronger this year.  I am very happy that they have not really had any theme episodes this year so far.  I feel like the last year, the writers would come up with a theme for an episode, and then let the them dictate their writing.  This is not the way to write a successful TV show.  The office has often had similar problems with its guest stars, announcing the starts first and then writing a character for them.  The theme episodes often seemed disconnected and boring.  This year, they have given a nice variety of songs and have been able to blend top 40 hits, oldies and songs from musicals almost seamlessly.  It also has been nice to see different people get to perform their own songs.  Last year was so heavy on Rachel and Finn, its been really nice to see people like Mike Chang, and Puck get to have the spotlight

Glee is not going anywhere anytime soon.  the ratings are still very good and the show still gets recognition come award times.  And while it could have just stayed the course after a terrible second season, i feel like they should be commended for listening to the critics and turning it around.  Usually, Ryan Murphy shows come out the gate strong and right around season 3, they start to delve into the territory of annoying and ridiculous.  It seemed like Glee was on that same path, but here's hoping this run of great episodes continues on.