The Best TV Dramas of the Past 25 Years

Vulture.com, one of the best culture blogs around, is doing a series to determine what the greatest TV drama of the past 25 years is, and it got me thinking about what I consider to be the best. HBO revolutionized the TV drama, making it more about the overall narrative of the series, and less about what happens in each individual episode, and it’s because of shows like The Sopranos and the emergence of TV DVDs and DVR, that the way we watch TV has changed. We're now more likely to sit and watch an entire season in a few sittings, as opposed to waiting a week for a new episode.

My picks:
The Sopranos
Six Feet Under
Breaking Bad
Friday Night Lights
Sons of Anarchy

Notable mention goes to Mad Men. And as for #1, it’s hard to choose. My gut tells me to go with The Sopranos because I love every minute of every episode of every season, including the phenomenal cast, the acting, and the narrative, but I think each show I’ve selected brings something very different to the table. It really is impossible to compare a show like Friday Night Lights to something like Sons of Anarchy.

Happy 39th Birthday to HBO!

To the people that brought us True Blood, Six Feet Under, and the GREATEST piece of television of all time, The Sopranos... Happy Birthday.

Favourite TV Moms (In Time for Mother's Day)

Carmela Soprano
The 'Real Housewives of New Jersey' Mom. Always made-up and ready for company, she's Tony Soprano's mob wife extraordinaire, sticking by her man through almost everything. Who wouldn't love to grow up with traditional Italian-American home cooking, and someone to do everything for your pampered and bratty ass, including, sort-of threatening the neighbour into writing a college recommendation letter for you. I guess it's the thought that counts.



Kitty Forman
From her annoying-yet-endearing laugh, to her tendency to smother her son, she proved to be the most adorable, old-fashioned mom. Although a nurse by profession, she made it her priority to cook and clean for her kids (and each and every one of her son's squatting friends), even convincing Red to take in Hyde when his mom left town. She just wanted a happy, loving family and even though she tried to get that with her never-ending family bonding suggestions (remember square dancing?!), you couldn't blame her for trying.



Lorelai Gilmore
With her eclectic fashion sense (you know you wanted to rummage through her closet), and her extensive knowledge of all things pop culture, she was the ultimate free-spirited mom AND best friend. Independent since the age of 16 when she got pregnant, she still managed to finish school and end up with a successful career. She was not only the most supportive mother on TV, but the mother-daughter dynamic between Lorelai and Rory is one for the ages. She's pretty much the mom you wish yours would be more like.

Nancy Botwin
Drug-dealing, adrenaline junkie, constantly putting her family in danger but always with the best of intentions. Even if she is always on the wrong side of the law, who wouldn't want a Mom with the weed-hookup? Although she's not exactly the greatest decision maker (she's the reason her family is perpetually on-the-run), she's trying to make the best of being a widow, and loves her kids to a fault, even sacrificing her freedom for the safety of her family. For that, we can overlook the fact that she's kind of a criminal, who's addicted to iced coffee and chunky-looking shoes.

And FYI, Nancy's shenanigans continue this summer when season 7 of Weeds starts June 27th.

Ruth Fisher
Matriarch (and mostly moral, center) of the Fisher family on Six Feet Under, she could be well-mannered and soft-spoken one minute, and a bohemian wild child the next. Always full of surprises (and new boyfriends), she made it her life's work to care for her family. But regardless of the drama, she always had their best interests at heart, and we loved her for it.

I Need You So Much Closer

I randomly came across Transatlanticism by Death Cab on shuffle today and it immediately reminded me of Six Feet Under. Even though the moment in this scene is drug-induced, there's something so special and real about it. This (phenomenally-cast) group of misfits, sitting around, contemplating the meaning of 'it' all. The atmosphere the Death Cab song creates literally mesmerizes you into a dream-like state, till you can't really tell if they're on drugs or you are. It's sort of beautiful.



It got me thinking about how when you hear certain songs, they automatically make you think of a movie or TV show you heard it on. I love that about music, the way it reminds you of different moments in your life, connecting you to memories of the same emotions you may have felt when you first saw or did something that you love.

Six Feet Under - HBO's First Family of Death

"Alan Ball's all-in-the-funeral-family drama expanded on the themes of his movie American Beauty: families keep secrets, people maintain facades, and while death may be final, life is messy." - TIME

Death is such the mystery. No one can really explain it, although there are countless theories as to where we go and what happens when we die. I recently started watching Six Feet Under, HBO’s critically acclaimed drama (and sometimes comedy) about a funeral home, and two seasons in I can honestly say I’m officially hooked. Why I suddenly developed an interest in this show now, over four years since it went off the air, I have no idea.

I have nothing really in common with a story like this on the surface. It’s like when I first got into Big Love, I was somehow so interested in the concept, although I couldn’t relate to polygamy at all. There’s a certain attraction to watching something original and out of the ordinary, something that pushes the envelope. And it's definitely an interesting and unexplored idea. How do funeral directors deal with such sadness around them on a daily basis? Do they become numb to it or does it affect the way they live their life and the choices they make.

Six Feet Under is dark and morbid, depressing to watch at times, but always compelling and incredibly well-acted, challenging us with each episode. It’s more than just about funerals, delving into spirituality, relationships, and how we react to losing people, not solely through death. And at the root of the show is the Fisher family, dysfunctional at best, but with all the elements of a traditional family structure. Except of course that the Fishers run a mortuary from their home, the father’s just died, the second son (Michael C. Hall of Dexter!) is a closet homosexual, and the mom is overbearing and uptight, yet surprisingly free-spirited at times. Visually, it plays out with flashbacks and daydream sequences that are very realistic to the way we exist, distracted by memories of people and events from our past.

I'm terrible since I need to know how it all ends before I get there but even though I already googled the series’ ending, I can’t wait to see how it all plays out. Now I know what all the fuss was about.


Frances Conroy is phenomenal in her role as the Fisher family Matriarch.