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2014 GAF TV Show of the Year Voting Thread! Cast your votes!

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Rhaknar

The Steam equivalent of the drunk friend who keeps offering to pay your tab all night.
I had to switch Hannibal and True Detective places on my list, hopefully thats allowed. I forgot how much I love Hannibal, and how much I was deflated by TD's ending
 

DOWN

Banned
1: House of Cards
2: True Detective
3: Mad Men
4: Orange is the New Black
5: The Killing
6: You're the Worst

Will add more to this later
 

Rhaknar

The Steam equivalent of the drunk friend who keeps offering to pay your tab all night.
ive never even heard of Transparent, whats it about?
 

RatskyWatsky

Hunky Nostradamus
This thread makes me wish I watched Hannibal and The Knick :|

I need to catch up on The Good Wife (is it really that good? :O), Review, Amy Schumer, Happy Valley, Jane the Virgin, Honorable Woman, and about half a dozen others. :I

What? It's on like 5 of the top 10 lists in the OP too. I like Game of Thrones. It's not really a controversial opinion to have in ones top 10. It's a fun game of chess to watch every week.

I just thought I remembered reading you say that it wasn't your type of show or something to that effect. What changed?
 

ivysaur12

Banned
I need to catch up on The Good Wife (is it really that good? :O), Review, Amy Shumer, Happy Valley, Honorable Woman, and about half a dozen others. :I



I just thought I remembered reading you say that it wasn't your type of show or something to that effect. What changed?

Oh, I didn't particularly love the first few episodes of season 1, but I went back and marathoned it like 2 seasons ago and I enjoyed it. It accomplishes a lot because of its ability to lean on material that already exists, but that also allows these complex stories that matter that are much more interesting than other shows on TV that attempt even half of what GoT does.
 
I doubt most of my choices will appear on other lists (or if some even fall within the guidelines in the OP), but here goes:

1. The Daily Show: Funny, informative, sarcastic, sardonic. Missiles of mockery hit the powerful, corrupt, absurd, and haughty with nearly perfect accuracy.

2. The Colbert Report: A self-aggrandizing send-up of self-aggrandizing cable news talking heads.

3. Game of Thrones: Beautiful landscapes, brutal imagery, and an engrossing story. What more could I ask for?

4. Impractical Jokers: Literally the funniest show on television. Not every challenge is a hit, but most are. The first and only show that regularly makes me cry laughing.

5. Comic Book Men: Show stars two of the three members of Tell 'Em Steve Dave, one of the only two podcasts I subscribe to or care at all about. I'm not a comic book fan (though I enjoy keeping abreast of pop culture), nor am I a fan of most of the scripted parts of this show. However, the unscripted banter (and insults) between the cast members/old friends makes this an enjoyable watch.

6. Hannibal: I agree with every bit of glowing praise already put forth in this thread. A must watch.

7. The Walking Dead: If this were a couple years ago, this show wouldn't even be in my top 25. But this season...

8. House of Cards: Well written, superbly acted, and features a lead character you love to hate to love. He's a dick with a heart of dicks.

9. South Park: Not quite as insightful as it once was, but far more mature (if one can call a show that stars a plump, angry, hate-speech-spewing 8 year-old "mature") than the early years. The show still has bite and can deliver laughs like few others. Still worth a viewing.

10. The Strain: Read the book series. Wasn't high art, but not bad. The series is well put together and looks to be going places. Could use some better dialog and a few special effects were horribly done, but season two should (hopefully) rectify those flaws.
 

RatskyWatsky

Hunky Nostradamus
Oh, I didn't particularly love the first few episodes of season 1, but I went back and marathoned it like 2 seasons ago and I enjoyed it. It accomplishes a lot because of its ability to lean on material that already exists, but that also allows these complex stories that matter that are much more interesting than other shows on TV that attempt even half of what GoT does.

And now you get to join in on the discussion, which is the best part! :D
 

Wiktor

Member
Oh, I didn't particularly love the first few episodes of season 1, but I went back and marathoned it like 2 seasons ago and I enjoyed it. It accomplishes a lot because of its ability to lean on material that already exists, but that also allows these complex stories that matter that are much more interesting than other shows on TV that attempt even half of what GoT does.

That's the problem I have with GoT - it's practically a straight adaptation. It's a brilliant show, but the fact that I know almost everything that will happen saps most of the fun away from it. I guess that's because plot has always been the most important part to me and when I can't get excited about "what comes next?!!" I can't get excited about the show as a whole.
 

Grizzlyjin

Supersonic, idiotic, disconnecting, not respecting, who would really ever wanna go and top that
1. Hannibal - A show that really came into its own in its second season. Such a strangely beautiful and yet horrific show...that is actually quite funny at times. Every week is just delightful and engrossing entertainment.

2. The 100 - Based off the pilot, I never would have imagined this show would find its way back into my watch list, let alone a Top 10 for the year list. But I gave it another chance and it grabbed. It has some pretty obvious CW show tropes, but for as many as it lays down, it will defy others.

3. True Detective - Stellar performances from the cast really took this show to that next level.

4. The Bridge - Probably one that won't find its way on too many lists, but the two leads are amazing, especially Diane Kruger as Sonya Cross. Very fascinating character to watch.

5. The Knick - People sleep on this show entirely, but it's one of the most well shot TV shows I've ever seen. It's lovely and disturbing at the time same time, seeing the brutal birthing of modern medicine. Like watching a train wreck in high definition slow motion.

6. Rectify

7. The Americans

8. The Affair

9. Arrow

10. Mad Men - Normally I would give this a higher place, but we honestly only got half a season. It's hard to judge until we close things up.
 
I don't watch much TV, but seeing this list and reflecting back, it seems I did watch a few. Not even close for a full ten, though.

1. Louie
I've said this before, but I'll type it out here; good comedians make the smartest actors, writers, directors...or even creatives in general. They are in touch with their own pain; they've dragged all of their emotions into the street and lit them on fire in front of the entire world. I have a friend who's hitting middle age soon. He's got two kids and is likely headed to divorce. His three word review of Louie's entire entertainment output? "He's a god."

2. True Detective
I could not wait to get back to this show every week. I was still in design school at the time, and that takes a lot out of you, but I would fucking budget this shit into my schedule every Sunday night. Woody, Matt, and Michelle all knocked it out of the park. The six minute shot is incredible. Rust's drunken ramblings on the nature of space time are amazing. Seeing where these two men ended up was a punch in the gut, and quite, frankly, made me fear for my own future. The ending was a brave fucking choice in the cold, cynical world of the show, and a breath of fresh air to see happen in the real one.

And I love how the case still ends up feeling bigger than them in the end, which has me even more excited for season two.

3. Peaky Blinders
Cillian Murphy is a stone cold motherfucker, and I was very excited to see him finally get the beautiful, dramatic, and oft unpredictable vehicle he deserves. Tom Hardy is immensely quotable in the second season, and Sam Neill is wonderful as the "slimy villain you want to just fucking go away." But the main attraction for me was seeing Paul Anderson taking the apish Arthur "Fucking" Shelby through a tremendous torrent of violent emotions. I really felt for that character, and some of the stuff between him and Tommy was downright beautiful and painful to watch. Add in fantastic music inspired by Nick Cave and Tom Waits, brilliant editing and cinematography, and you have me very excited for season three.

4. Sherlock
Good, dumb, smart, fan-service.

List of Shame:

Gotham.
Bad, dumb, stupid, fan-disservice.
 

Hasney

Member
I haven't watched a lot of TV since cutting the chord, but here's what I managed to follow

1.Lucha Underground ; Follows a different format to most wrestling shows with a well thought out continuous storyline that is going to be in regular TV show seasons

2. South Park ; I'm going to give it another watch, but it may be my favourite season of it ever

3. Last Week Tonight ; Think it managed to work better than The Daily Show with some well thought out features and brilliant writing. I think the format of once a week for this type of show works better than being on daily with an interview every episode.

4. Veep ; I was sleeping on this show, but ended up watching them all this year. Fantastic stuff.

5. Orange is the new Black ; Not as good as the first season, but still terrific

6. Bojack Horseman ; Man, it took a while to get going, but when it did, I was on the floor

7. Suits ; Finding it amazing that it's still going strong. I noticed some in the the OT saying that it had begun to wear on them, but the format still works for me

8. Silicon Valley

9. Colbert Report

10. Daily Show
 

Nyx

Member
Game of Thrones
True Detective
Bojack Horseman
The Americans
Mad Men
The Walking Dead
Fargo
The Killing
House of Cards
Rick & Morty

In no particular order..
 

roytheone

Member
1. Game of thrones
2. True detective

Aaaaaand, that kinda was it. Also watched the walking dead, but that series doesn't really deserve to be on the list.
I didn't follow a lot of recent series mainly because I only got back into watching series this year, so most of my time was spend on catching up on old series. Watched all of breaking bad, twin peaks, the past seasons of game of thrones and now I am halfway done with the second season of Sherlock. Haven't decided yet what I should watch next.
 

Joni

Member
1. The Originals: It is rare that a spin-off can actually reach high quality, but The Originals was excellent from 'start' to 'finish' in 2014. It took the best actors from The Vampire Diaries and it gave them more emotion to work with. The impact of the finale was incredible. It is really a supernatural thriller.
2. Grey's Anatomy: I remain a huge fan of this show, especially this year. It salvaged scrappy characters, had an excellent goodbye for Yang, made a fun introduction. It is still my must-watch first Thursday show despite the crapload of shows I need to watch then. Also, split seasons without breaks are really helping this show.
3. Arrow: The end of season 2 was one fast paced superhero movie after the other. The third season is slower, but I still very much like it. Best superhero show on television and a great proof DC doesn't need movies.
4. The Flash: Great debut. I'm putting it lower than Arrow because it is still in the procedural mode, but it already works on my emotions and my sense of adventure.
5. Sherlock: It had less impact than season 1 and 2, but we still got three great Sherlock movies. The reveal of episode 3 was superb. Would have liked some development on the second-tier characters like Molly.
6. Reign: I wouldn't have expected to like this based on their 2013 episodes, but it went from typical romance show to a crazy historical, supernatural drama. Really people, go watch this. It is the best show no one watches on TV.
7. Mad Men: It wasn't a spectacular season, it has problems not present in previous seasons but it is still a great watch. It also had a really suck 'season' finale which ruined points.
8. Fargo: The show tapered off towards the ending. It started excellent, but it lost its way somewhere in the last 3-4 episodes. it would have scored a lot higher otherwise.
9. How to Get Away with Murder: Great debut. I'm very intrigued by it. Still needs a bit more work to make sense logically though.

I could have put up a number 10, but I can't pick one. There are so many shows I like that are not completely up to snuff. The Mentalist, The 100, The Vampire Diaries, Constantine, Supernatural, Girl Meets World, The Big Bang Theory; The Simpsons, The Last Ship.

Shows that absolutely don't belong up there: Homeland which is everything but the original premise, The Walking Dead which had too many bad episodes, SHIELD because it's first season is in there, Game of Thrones which has fallen of a cliff a bit, Glee because why I was still watching this?, Castle that has lost all sense of interesting crime plots, COmmunity which sacrificed development for bit episodes, Two and a Half Men, which is even worse than Glee; and Falling Skies which just doesn't reach an high anymore.
 
1. The Leftovers ; Resonated with me in a way that very few TV shows ever have, there's a sense of constant sadness that imbues every scene and yet it's a bunch of characters who I really, really like and want to be around. For my money, Guest was the single best television episode this year with Carrie Coons giving the best performance of any show. And a special mention to the music, I was in a cinema when an advertisement was shown and when it played, the hairs on the back of my neck stood up, just incredible.
2. Fargo ; I don't know what to say about this series, as in I left writing this one last because I don't know what to say other than it's a great show with great performances and great humour. I guess that's all that needs to be said.
3. Mad Men ; Hard to gauge with fewer episodes but show felt better than the past couple seasons, which is saying a lot for one of the best TV shows of all time. And Cooper's exit, so good.
4. The Flash ; It's so early but it's also so good. Everyone is knocking it out the park, especially Grant Gustin and Jesse L. Martin, show is everything I want it to be and more, finger crossed they can keep it up.
5. Game of Thrones ; Finally clicked this season for me, I've liked the show but there's always been some disconnect, probably because I would need a spreadsheet to understand who half the families were. But I'm fully invested now, which makes the big moments (which were many) even bigger.
6. Arrow ; Should be much higher, the tail end of season two was top tier television but I'm been so bitterly dissapointed with the new season. But that doesn't take away from the conclusion of the island and the biggest bad ass on television wrecking havoc... and Caity Lotz in leather. Such a shame NONE OF THOSE THINGS are in your show now writers.
7. Brooklyn Nine-Nine ; Weak year for comedy but thankfully we have B99, which is probably more consistently laugh out loud funny than all the other comedies I watch combined.
8. Person of Interest ; Really great show, perhaps not as great as TVGAF suggests but still a fun ride that more people should be experiencing. Also it features Bear, the greatest canine on television.
9. Orphan Black ; Whilst certainly weaker than it's first season, it did make up for it by being one of the funniest shows on television. And at at it's worst, the show will always be the Tatiana Maslany power hour and that's a show I'll always love to watch.
10. True Detective ; Started out so strong but ended in a fizzle, same could be said for the character of Rust who felt like a parody by the end despite McConaughey's best efforts. Still the show did so much right, that it deserves a spot.

Honourable Mentions
24: It was 24 and they didn't miss a single step, for better or worse.
The Americans: Really liked the show and I'm glad it's getting some mentions, don't think it's ever going to be one of my top shows though.
Breaking Bad: Obviously not eligable, I watched the entire run over Christmas and January this year. News flash, Breaking Bad is fantastic and everyone was way too judgmental to Skylar.
Homeland: Show is pretty amazing right now with one episode left, this could creep into True Detective's slot after the season finale.
The Walking Dead: The ebbs and flows of this show are all over the place, the first few episodes of this new season were perhaps the best the show has ever been, so it deserves a mention.

Dishonourable Mentions
Hannibal: The show had felt like style over substance for quite a while but the most telegraphed twist I've seen in years insulted the audience intelligence to such a ridiculous degree, especially from a show that wants to feel it's so smart itself. The silver lining though is if you've grown to hate the show and want out, the season two finale was an amazing way to end it, I'm just going to ignore everything I know about the Hannibal Lector story and imagine him and Scully on a dimly lit beach together sipping pina coladas with all of those idiots actually being dead.
House of Cards: So, so dissapointing after the first season, I don't think there was a single thing half as compelling as the rise and fall of Peter Russo. And the hacking stuff, yikes.
Sherlock: I liked the third episode with Hannibal's big brother, it wasn't perfect but it was certainly good. That means I liked, not loved 33% of the season, quality over quantity this was not and I'm going to need to wait another 4 years before I know if they can redeem themselves.

That took way too long.
 

AngryMoth

Member
1. Fargo
2. The Americans
3. Mad Men
4. Orange Is The New Black
5. Broad City
6. Louie
7. True Detective
8. Veep
9. Sherlock
10. House of Cards

Great year for TV, lots of things I still want to check out at some point.
 
Man, I dropped and fell behind on so many shows this year. My list is going to be lacking greatly. I may get around to a couple of them, but for now this is about it.

1. Fargo : I don't know how it happened but this probably surpassed the movie in my book. Loved every minute of this show.

2. Louie : This show continues to be weird and different than anything on TV but still great in every way. For the show to go from one episode where Louie elbows Yvonne Strahovski when she tickles him to the "Fat lady" speech to a 6 part sad story about him falling in love with a woman he can't even have a conversation with to a mini movie-esque episode with his daughter getting caught smoking pot. This show is just amazing.

3. Hannibal : God Damn this second season. Just....god damn.

4. Orange is the New Black : I just hope Genji can keep up this quality with the third season. Please don't have Chapman burn down the prison and go on the run.

5. Mad Men : It's really only half a season, but those last few episodes make it worth putting on my list. The first couple episodes were kind of slow and didn't seem to leading anywhere but the last few episodes were just perfect Mad Men. Hoping to have more that in the last half.

6. Shameless : This was a really dark season and isn't really what I want from my Shameless, but it was still a great season with continually ignored great acting.

7.You're The Worst : I absolutely fell in love with this show's characters from the very first episode. The show reminds me a lot of It’s Always Sunny with a cast of horrible people ruining everyone’s lives around them except it's not as cartoony. It also reminds me of Happy Endings where no matter how I felt about the story or episode I just wanted to see more of the characters interacting and I always wanted more. I can't wait to see this return next year.

8. True Detective : The only show from my 'to watch' list that I will probably finish before the deadline. I liked it and thought it was great, but after finishing it and thinking about where I would put it on my list it was hard to find anything on my list I would say I enjoyed less. I would say the acting was great, but it's hard to tell if it was great or if it was just perfectly cast, the case and where things lead sometimes felt convoluted, but overall it was still an enjoyable watch and I look forward to what the show does next.

9. Last Week Tonight : I never really liked this type of show before. I had tried Daily Show, Colbert Report, and Totally Biased with Totally Biased being the one I ended up liking the most of but eventually I would get tired of the formula and get bored of the show entirely. With Last Week it just seemed like the perfect formula for me. I really like the big 15 min segment each week of basically Oliver saying "Look at how stupid this shit is, we should be mad." It's hilarious and continuously surprising that it keeps my interest.

10. Rick & Morty : Hilarious and great first season. Anxiously waiting for more.

Still plan on watching/catching up on and may show up on my list somewhere later: Leftovers, The American's and Review
 

mre

Golden Domers are chickenshit!!
I'm not sure what metric everyone is using to decide which shows were their favorites, but I elected to rank these based upon: (1) the shows that I preferred to watch live, (2) those shows I DVR'd but would watch without other distractions, and then (3) those shows I DVR'd but would still try to watch weekly even if I was distracted doing something else.

1. Game of Thrones
2. True Detective
3. Last Week Tonight
4. Person of Interest
5. Silicon Valley
6. Brooklyn 99
7. Surviving Jack (fuck all y'all for not watching this)
8. Blacklist
9. The Goldbergs
10. Sherlock
 

Karu

Member
1. The Leftovers ; Resonated with me in a way that very few TV shows ever have, there's a sense of constant sadness that imbues every scene and yet it's a bunch of characters who I really, really like and want to be around. For my money, Guest was the single best television episode this year with Carrie Coons giving the best performance of any show. And a special mention to the music, I was in a cinema when an advertisement was shown and when it played, the hairs on the back of my neck stood up, just incredible.
WHOOPA! Another one. :)
2x Top 1-spots. nothing else. Love it or Hate it indeed lol.
 
1. Game of Thrones ; this is an event show for my family. I've read the books, so for the most part I know what's going to happen (at least into next season anyway). I'm a sucker for fantasy (as I write the stuff too), dragons and all the political machinations. While there are some episodes that drag, you also get some of the most epic TV you're ever going to see (I'm looking at you, Battle at the Wall).

2. The Walking Dead ; Zombies are great. Again, this is an event show. We watch this starting at 9:18 (so we can skip allllll the commercials). Like GoT, this can be a train wreck at times, but then you get an episode like the church ambush or Rick going all Ricktator and it just becomes a spectacle of awesome. It's sort of like watching a football game. 3 yard gain, 8 yard loss on a sack ... OMG did you see that fucking one-handed catch!!!!

3. Vikings ; Not sure that I've seen this on anyone else's list yet. This show is absolutely amazing. The internal struggle goes on in this violent world of revenge, back-stabbing and stunning loyalty. The external struggle to take land across the sea is beginning to heat up, with real adversaries. This is epic (and historically accurate for the most part) television, with amazing locales and great performances.

4. True Detective ; at first, my wife and I were like "not another police show." But that's exactly what this wasn't. This was not just another police show. McConaughey and Harrelson gave award-worthy performances, and while the story ended with something of an anti-climax, it was a great ride. Plus, dat Daddario.

5. The Americans ; Season 2 was both bigger and better than season 1 and yet told a more intimate story. The arc that developed and how it was resolved, while perhaps not to everyone's liking, was a story of how this whole setup can go horribly wrong. And it sets the stage for how our favorite Russian spies handle their own children in season 3.

6. Outlander ; I haven't read these books, but my wife has. What we've seen so far is a beautifully shot show with amazing performances done by Catriona Balfe (Claire) and Tobias Menzies (Frank & Jack Randall). The long wait sucks but what I've seen so far has me hyped for what's to come.

7. Whose Line Is It Anyway? ; Funniest show on TV for me. The group continues to make some of the funniest things happen out of thin air, and Wayne's ability to sing pretty much any crazy-assed thing Ryan comes up with is constantly amazing.

8. Parenthood ; Heart-warming and heart-breaking in equal measure. I usually have to be in the right mood or frame of mind to watch this. As a parent of teenagers myself, with aging parents in declining health, I relate to the story very well. One of the best dramas on TV and I'm happy to see them going out on their own terms (for the most part). I really hope they don't kill off Zeke though :-(

9. Blacklist ; Watch Spader do something amazing. Okay Spader's not on, browse GAF, browse GAF, brow-- ooh Spader's back. Hear him say something funny. Hear him tell a funny story. Watch him shoot a guy. Spader's awesome.

10. The 100 ; This is the only CW show I watch. The concept was interesting in season 1, and there was enough going on on the ground to keep me involved. Season 2 has completely upped the ante by connecting dots from season 1. Clarke is great and portrayed very well. I think the characters have grown in interesting ways and I hope they get a chance to develop this show further.


Honorable mentions
The Mindy Project - Honestly this show started to click in all the right ways in season 2, culminating in a fantastic finale, and has done nothing but continue to impress in season 3. Mindy is self-absorbingly hilarious, her relationship with Danny is how I had hoped New Girl would handle Jess & Nick but failed, and adding Rhea Perlman as Danny's mom has been pure genius.

Shameless - honestly last season was good... as a drama. I mostly like my Shameless as a dramedy and there was very little that was funny about last season. I hope they get back to some of the hijinks this season.

Homeland - the only reason this makes the list is because they've finally shed themselves of the Brody Disaster from seasons 2 and 3 and have returned to getting their shit together.

Black Sails - a bit too much island-heavy intrigue at the beginning of the season, but it opened up nicely and finished with a bang. Really looking forward to what they do with season 2.
 
1. The Flash - It's refreshing to see a superhero show that's fun to watch, and not always dark and brooding. This was the best show I've watched all year.

2. Doctor Who - I didn't know what to think of Capaldi, but I like him so much more now. He's tied as my second favorite Doctor with Eggleston. He's like that old crotchety grandpa that cares, but has a weird way of showing it. The only downside to this season was that I didn't much care for Danny Pink and it seems like he didn't have as much time with Clara as I would've liked. But I'm enjoying it much more than the last Matt Smith season.

3. Agents of SHIELD - While I found most of season 1 highly disappointing, season 2 pretty much blew it away. I was not a big fan of some of the casting choices, but SHIELD became fun to watch again and the writing is much better this time around.

4. Arrow - While not as good as season 2, season 3 is still an entertaining show with lots of surprises.

5. Black-ish - I'm not a fan of Anthony Anderson, but this show reminds me so much of my family that I can't stop watching it.

6. Mike Tyson Mysteries - Damn this show is weird, but it's weirdly awesome. Another one that I can't stop watching.

7. The Walking Dead - I find myself just not able to care much about the characters anymore, but it's dumb fun. Enjoy the carnage and watch people kill zombies.

Dishonorable Mentions:

Gotham - I lasted 3 episodes before I gave it up. Found it dull, boring, and the acting pretty sub-par (aside from a few).
Selfie - Gave it two episodes. Tried to get into the Breakfast at Tiffany's type of plot, but it wasn't funny and Karen Gillian without her accent just didn't appeal to me.
 

RatskyWatsky

Hunky Nostradamus
Game of Thrones
True Detective
Bojack Horseman
The Americans
Mad Men
The Walking Dead
Fargo
The Killing
House of Cards
Rick & Morty

In no particular order..

If you want your votes to be tallied, then they will need to be ranked according to the rules in the op. Thanks!

I'd say you're a boring and predictable poster, but that would require knowing you.

PzCkDtS.gif
 

Lan Dong Mik

And why would I want them?
Only finished 8 shows this year.

1. True Detective - 9.8
2. Game of Thrones - 9.5
3. Fargo - 9.3
4. Rectify - 9.0
5. Outlander - 8.5
6. Silicon Valley 8.0
7. Sons of Anarchy - 6.5
8. The leftovers - 6.0
 

Chariot

Member
1. Person of Interest
2. House of Cards
3. True Detective
4. Sherlock
5. The Flash
6. Gotham
7. Dr Who
8. Arrow
9. Orphan Black
 

cocopuffs

Banned
1. Person of Interest ; This show doesn't get enough praise. While not entirely consistent (a nature of having 23 episode seasons), season 3 of this show (PARTICULARLY the HR three-parter arc) was some of the best television that aired this year. It's a crime that the show isn't more popular than it is.


2. Fargo ; Absolutely loved it. Terrific performances by Billy Bob Thornton and Martin Freeman. And unlike a certain other "DETECTIVE" show, it ended just as strongly as it started.


3. The Americans ; Super underrated, more people need to be watching this.


4. The Flash. ; Surprisingly, this show is really good. Unlike the rather middling Arrow right now, The Flash has been both consistently entertaining and just quality television. Most definitely worth a watch.


5. Hannibal. THAT FINAAAAAAAAALE. Not really a fan of the kindof pretentious drawn out overly long scenes (hurr the cinematography is nice, we get it) where nothing happens but this is still quality TV. And yeah, holy shit at the season 2 finale.


6. Game of Thrones. Another great season, and even more great performances from the actors (TYRION).


7. True Detective. Quality show, MM def showed his acting chops here along with Woody. Definitely didn't end anywhere near as strong as it started though. If it had, I might have ranked it higher.

 

Niraj

I shot people I like more for less.
1. Rectify - A show that is stunning in its ability to say so much in so few words. Brilliant use of silence. This is a show that will hurt you to watch, not because it relies on anything shocking or gruesome, but because it has such a firm grasp on the depths on human nature that it will crush your heart. Great acting, well-shot, and just a great show.

2. Louie - Louie blew me away this season. Much like Rectify, Louie has an amazing understanding of the human condition, and crafted a season that was incredibly touching and moving. The experimental nature of the season with large multi-part episodes ended up being a big success for me.

3. The Honorable Woman - A very smart and gripping mix of thriller and character study that makes good use of its backdrop in the Middle East. This is a show that you will want to keep watching because it is very effective at utilizing the unknown and making you want to decipher it. Maggie Gyllenhaal is phenomenal and her performance converted me into a fan. The rest of the cast is also perfect in their roles, particularly Stephen Rea as the slightly bumbling, but ultimately razor-sharp, former head of MI6's Middle Eastern department. Great cinematography and settings, and really great use of music.

4. True Detective - Aside from the highlight relationship between Rust Cohle and Marty Hart, played immaculately by Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson respectively, I really appreciated how this show incorporated the setting as a big source of fear and antagonism. They made the depths of Louisiana scary. The season was full of heart-pounding moments surrounded by sometimes overwrought dialogue, but it always was entertaining and engrossing. The single-take tracking shot in episode 4 was possibly the best thing I saw on TV all year, or at the very least the most exciting.

5. Mad Men - As this show wraps up, it continues to show that it has heart. Sally's "I love you" to Don and Peggy's slow-dance with Don were two of my top feel-good TV moments of the year. It continues to be one of the best written, best acted, and overall best shows on TV, and I will be sad to see it go.

6. The Americans - The Americans improved on its first season which was impressive considering how good the first was. Keri Russel and Matthew Rhys continue to be fantastic and multifaceted in their roles, and The Americans is one of the few shows with child actors I actually like. The show does a great job of simultaneously making you root for these Russian spies in America and also kind of hope that Noah Emmerich's Stan Beeman catches on. Great amount of tension each week.

7. Fargo - I was extremely skeptical of this show when it was announced, but my worries ending up being completely without merit. Martin Freeman, Allison Tolman, and Billy Bob Thornton were all phenomenal, and the show retained the great dichotomy of humor and morbidness that the film had. Very satisfying from start to end.

8. Person of Interest - Person of Interest is probably the best procedural show on TV. Makes great use of its cast and guest stars, and also is great at doing long story arcs which, if they are not the focus, are still touched upon in the background in smart ways. It also has the best dog on TV, Bear.

9. Brooklyn Nine Nine - What I love about Brooklyn Nine Nine is that in a world full of TV shows that are depressingly realistic, it is gloriously upbeat. Even when a character is being put down, it's not in a malicious way, and usually ends in a jovial conclusion. It draws its humor from a cast with amazing chemistry and is just a joy to watch.

10. Rick and Morty - A very smart and funny show that is endlessly quotable and never gets old.

Honorable mentions:

Justified - A bit of a misstep this season for me, particularly with the Ava side plot falling flat (sorry Ratsky) and feeling very disjointed, but aside from that, the show continues to have a great cast dynamic and the best dialogue on TV. It really hurt me to not be able to put this in the top ten because it's probably my favorite show.

24 - Sometimes you just want some schlocky fun. 24 delivered.

Homeland - Much better consistency than the last two seasons. Dumping the festering Brody family has been a great move, and has resulted in the best season since the first.

Hannibal - I love the cinematography which relishes in excess. Amazingly well-shot show.

Peaky Blinders - Cillian Murphy is great, Sam Neill is a great asshole, and Tom Hardy is great as yet another Tom Hardy character you can't understand. Seriously though, this is a very enjoyable show, and I'm looking forward to the next season.


Still might change some stuff around or add some more honorable mentions but I'm mostly satisfied with that.
 

99hertz

Member
1. Rick and Morty
2. Hannibal
3. Game of Thrones
4. True Detective
5. Fargo
6. Person of Interest
7. Supernatural
8. Nathan For You
9. Constantine
10. Grimm
 

Pryce

Member
1. Mad Men
2. The Americans
3. Fargo
4. Rectify
5. Review
6. The Knick
7. Rick and Morty
8. The Leftovers
9. Hannibal
10. Manhattan
 

Currygan

at last, for christ's sake
1) Peaky Blinders
2) The Americans
3) Fargo
4) Ripper Street
5) True Detective
6) The Musketeers
7) Hannibal
8) The Knick
9) Homeland
10) 24
 
1. Hannibal: They really have stepped it up a gear and made it the most compelling show on TV
2. Fargo: The best new show this year from start to finish, Billy Bob Thornton was brilliant as was Martin Freeman
3. Homeland: Best season since season 1, enjoyed this year a lot
4. Game of Thrones: Great moments but not the same as previous years
5. Mad Men
6. 24
7. Doctor Who
8. True Detective
9. Gotham
10. The Knick
 

ganon

Member
I only have top 3:

1. Hannibal ~ I just love that S2 finale so much

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2. The Goldbergs ~ so funny and it gives me that warm fuzzy feeling

3. Brooklyn 99 ~ now S2 is even better than S1
 

Lonestar

I joined for Erin Brockovich discussion
1. Person of Interest - Still the only "must watch" show on my list for me. Strong back half of Season 3, leading up to a Nuts finale that changed the show, and it's continued on with 2 great large arcs (The AI's and the Mob War) in Season 4. Tonight's Mid Season break was nuts...

2. 24 - Defenestrations make for good TV. Condensed, Angry Bauer is great popcorn TV.

3. Game of Thrones - Really liked the addition of some of the Dornish characters, didn't like one of the things that might be cut out of the show.

4. Agents of SHIELD - I'd have it higher if Captain America had aired sooner. The show was really hamstrung before the events of that movie happened, but have been fantastic since. I've liked Season 2 and what it's added in the mid season finale.

5. Doctor Who - Not the best season, but man, I really like Capaldi as The Doctor.

6. Brooklyn Nine Nine - Late to the party, but one of the better comedies I've seen in a long time.

7. House of Cards - Mostly because Kevin Spacey chews the screen like few others. I also like the Stamper character (Michael Kelly). Not as strong as Season 1.

8. The Walking Dead - Decent season finale in the spring, but I didn't like parts of the 2nd half of last season. The Fall season was pretty good, with a great first 2 episodes and a decent enough midseason ending.

9. The Flash - Barry is well acted, decent effects, Cavanaugh's Wells character is interesting, and Joe West is a pretty good Father Figure character. Would be higher, but I don't really care for the awkward love-ish triangle between Barry, Iris and Thawne.

10. Gotham - Weak 1st half, but the 2 mains and Penguin have really grown on me. Picked up in the latter half of the aired episodes, and have a promising changeup going into the 2nd part of the season. Debating with myself if I want to put Sherlock here or not.


Saw most or all of Sherlock, Fargo, Justified, True Detective, and Sleepy Hollow. All decent, but Justified and Sherlock didn't live up to previous seasons, Fargo/True Detective didn't connect with me like others, and Sleepy Hollow more often than not, was time killer and I could live without watching it again.

Saw a few episodes of Archer, Hannibal, Mad Men, The Goldbergs, Arrow and others that I can't remember.

I seemingly only watch TV on Sunday, Monday, and Tuesdays.
 
I feel like I've betrayed POI-GAF, but I'm gonna go ahead and stick with Hannibal as my #1 this year despite Hannibal and POI being equally balls-out fantastic
 

Hatchtag

Banned
1. Fargo: Just a fun thrillride with a great cast and an entertaining story. It's just good television.
2. Community: A really entertaining comeback after a meh 4th season. Plus it had Mike from Breaking Bad.
3. Archer: The swap to Archer Vice really made things an improvement over its relatively mehish 4th season.
4. South Park: The swap to 10 episodes in season 17 made the quality go up, but with continuity and the topics it covered, this season was really damn good.
5. Silicon Valley: Just a funny show. Needs a lot of improvement, but some great moments.
6. Mike Tyson Mysteries: One of the dumbest yet funniest cartoons I've seen on Adult Swim.
7. Parks and Rec: The worst season since season one, but there were still enough funny moments that I liked it (not sure if it's eligible since the season started in 2013).
Don't have anything past this since I didn't watch any other new shows/seasons this year. I'd give Breaking Bad and It's Always Sunny Season 9 mentions since I watched them for the first time this year, though.
 
1. The Flash ; I wasn't sure if they could do the Flash on a TV budget. They proved me wrong.

2. Arrow ; Between the second half of season 2 and the season 3 mid-season finale, this is an easy number 2 for me.

3. Game of Thrones ; Not really much to say. It's Game of Thrones.

4. Brooklyn Nine-Nine ; I used to hate Andy Samberg's stupid face, but this show has somehow made me like him. The rest of the cast is great as well.

5. The Walking Dead ; The show has its ups and downs, but I think between the second half of last season and the first half of this season, this year has been one of its best.

6. 24: Live Another Day ; Just a thrilling ride from start to finish. As good as 24 gets. Cutting it down to 12 episodes was a brilliant move.

7. Community ; A return to form after the mediocre Harmon-less season 4. It was sad to see Pierce and Troy go, but Hickey was a fun new character, and it was nice to see Professor Duncan back.

8. Parks and Recreation ; Some people say the show has gone downhill, but I still find it to be reliably fun. I can't wait to see what they do with the final season!

9. Legend of Korra ; Season 3 was really good and delightfully brutal, and Season 4 has had a lot Varrick so it's great. Hopefully the final episode gives it a good sendoff.

10. Gotham ; Apparently a lot of people hate this show? I dunno, I find it enjoyable. I'm extremely curious as to where they're going with it.


Honorable Mention: Wilfred ; Because it's an absolutely fascinating show. I watched the entire thing, and I'm still not sure if I liked it or not.


Edit: Dammit why did I get top of the page, now everyone's gonna judge my list ;_;
 
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