Today's television landscape is full of all kinds of crap. From ridiculous crime dramas to outrageous reality shows, ninety percent of what you find on television isn't worth your time. So, I am going to do my part to help better the world by pointing you in the direction of a few TV shows that won't make your mind turn in to mush. So let's get this party started… the seven best shows on television that you aren't watching are as follows:
07. Community (NBC)
Community is in it’s first season, and is a must-watch comedy if for no other reason than Abed and Troy. Give this cast two more seasons and they’ll be giving 30 Rock a run for their money. The casting agents that brought in this rag-tag group of mostly no-names struck gold. This is a breakfast club for the 21st century, where Principal Vernon has been replaced by Señor Chang.
06. Supernatural (CW)
I will admit that this show isn’t exactly one that makes you think, but I can’t get enough of it. Every week is basically a popcorn B-movie. The cast of the show has great chemistry and there’s always humor sprinkled in to keep things light. The number of 70s rock music tracks and pop culture references make this a flat out fun show to watch… and yes, I can’t believe I’m talking about a show on the CW.
05. SouthLAnd (TNT)
Yet another great NBC drama thrown down the crapper, almost. Thankfully TNT stepped in to pull this show off of the cancellation pile. SouthLAnd is a dark police drama that follows various members of the LA police department throughout their duties and personal lives. This is really like no other police drama that has come before it. I’m not a cop, but I would imagine that this is probably the most realistic cop-drama to grace the channels in some time. This is the Bizarro CSI, which is a good thing.
04. Sons of Anarchy (FX)
Think the Sopranos on Harley Davidsons. Okay, maybe that is over simplifying it a bit but this gritty drama is everything you would expect from the same network that brought us The Shield, Nip/Tuck and Rescue Me. The show follows Jax, a badass biker trying to guide his outlaw motorcycle gang SAMCRO to the right side of the law. Things seemed shaky for SOA at first, but ratings soared through the end of season two, which gives you time to catch up before season three begins.
03. Fringe (Fox)
Fringe is the J.J. Abrams television show that you should be watching. LOST lost it’s luster three seasons ago, but Fringe is just coming into it’s own. I never thought I’d be recommending a show that Joshua Jackson was a part of but he, along with the rest of the Fringe cast give this weird science fiction thriller an edge missing in network television. Fringe has the highest ratings out of all the other shows on this list but it should be so much higher. The first season finale is one of the most memorable TV surprises since JR was shot in Dallas.
02. Breaking Bad (AMC)
This is a tough show to describe because it’s just so different. Basically, a brilliant high school chemistry teacher is diagnosed with terminal cancer and the news completely changes his life. Faced with mounting medical bills and the thought of leaving his family in severe debt drives this clean cut dead man to take extreme measures. This show is like no other on television, and while Mad Men gets all of the AMC raves, Breaking Bad is a far superior product… and by product I don’t mean meth.
01. Friday Night Lights (DirecTV/NBC)
Anyone who knows me well know that I have been trumpeting FNL since season one. This is one of the best dramas to ever grace the small screen. Yes, I did say EVER. The writing and acting in FNL is top notch, and easily on par with dramas that you would find on cable networks like HBO, Showtime or FX. The show is about more than just football. It is about surviving in middle America and it touches on literally every dramatic story arc that you can think of.
Well there you have it. Seven shows, on seven different networks that you should be watching. Some of these shows are in jeopardy of being cancelled (or have been and then brought back), which is a shame because these are the rare shows on TV that actually deserve to be aired. Many of these shows you can find online via Netflix, Hulu, TV.com or their individual network sites… and most are on demand if you have Comcast, so give them a whirl already!
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