TiVo Community Forum banner
1 - 20 of 27 Posts

· Pro Troll Magnet
Joined
·
15,289 Posts
Discussion Starter · #1 ·
Just finished all 20+ seasons of Law & Order:SVU and I'm trying to decide what to tackle next.

One possibility is NCIS, which I never really watched, but every time I've caught an episode, I've found it interesting.

I tried watching The Wire, but couldn't get into it. Is it worth another ty?

Services we subscribe to are Netflix, Hulu, Prime and Britbox as well as access to On Demand through DirecTV. We have Cinemax and Showtime for about 2.5 more months (free from D*, but not worth paying for!). SO we can choose from any of these.

What say you, SOAK?
 

· Registered
Joined
·
2,438 Posts
Depends a lot on your own tastes. Netflix recommendations:

Frankie and Grace is hilarious.

Breaking Bad is basically the highest rated series ever, gaining popularity every season.

Dexter is great if you like rooting for the bad guy, especially the first couple of seasons.

If you're a bit (or a lot) twisted, there's Black Mirror. Kind of "Twilight Zone on Steroids". Skip the first episode if you have a weak stomach, it is easily the darkest of them all. You might want to have a therapist standing by, many of these are quite mind-bending (which is why I like them).
 

· Registered
Joined
·
27,640 Posts
Esp. in these times, The West Wing always can be a solid and reaffirming staple (I re-watch it periodically). Relatedly (Sorkin-wise), Sportsnight (it will be a faster binge), and likewise, The Newsroom (talk about acting chops).

If you're into scifi/fantasy, Warehouse 13 is fun and, even whackier, Eureka.

If the sex and subject matter is acceptable to you (sometimes cable-TV explicit), Queer as Folk is a marvelous journey of a band of gay friends and family growing and aging together, over years and seasons, with stupendous music and soundtracks from back then (the 70s and subsequent). Both the UK original and the U.S., many-seasons version (I've only seen the latter--I need to do the UK).

I'm not sure what's available where on the streaming services--I've gotten all of these from my local public library, on DVD.

Or, another romp through The Sopranos? ;)

Documentary-wise, if you like historical, personal ~re-enactments, PBS/UK television have done a bunch of different series of taking modern people and putting them in historical times, to see how they cope (and if they would survive). For me, fascinating, and highly recommended. The first of these that I saw was The 1900 House (it sounds simple, doesn't it?--it wasn't), from the UK; on the U.S. side, Frontier House (3 families sent to Montana to homestead for part of a year (including, for 1 or 2 of the families, building their own log cabins) a la Little House on the Prairie, to see if they would actually survive as pioneers--fascinating, as the families had to deal with real food deprivation (watch the physical transformations of the men especially), weather, and survival issues). General info., including as to similar series: The 1900 House - Wikipedia.

Edit: Some additions:

For the UK "versions" of the U.S.' stellar Cagney and Lacey female-led detective show, the equally stellar Scott & Bailey; and Happy Valley. Likewise stellar, DCI Banks, excellently performed and with gorgeous, brooding UK landscapes. And back to pseudo-politics, one of my favorite series of all time (sadly, all too short), The Amazing Mrs. Pritchard, with the stupendous Jane Horrocks playing a big-box-store manager who gets fed up with UK politicians and so throws her name into the ring, and becomes prime minister, and her journey as such (her induction meeting with the Queen is priceless); this was from 2006, who woulda thunk . . . .? ;) It's from the immensely talented Sally Wainwright, who also brought forth Scott & Bailey and Happy Valley.

And lastly, the fascinating Up series (starting with Seven Up!): filmed visits, from the same production team, to a group of diverse children/then adults, each 7 years since 1964, to see what they have done in life and what life has done to them. Up (film series) - Wikipedia Fascinating; and heart-breaking. The series still is going on, with the latest 7-year installment (63 Up) from earlier this year.
 

· tabasco rules
Joined
·
16,716 Posts
if you haven't tried shameless, billions, or homeland, those are three of my showtime favs, i would at least give them a preview before your sub expires - if you start and run out of time, dtv is usually very generous with adding a little free showtime, even if your free months just ran out. ;)
 

· Registered
Joined
·
126 Posts
Highly recommend Mindhunter on Netflix. Push through the first episode and then it will grab you.
"
Mindhunter revolves around FBI agents Holden Ford (Jonathan Groff) and Bill Tench (Holt McCallany), along with psychologist Wendy Carr (Anna Torv), who operate the FBI's Behavioral Science Unit within the Training Division at the FBI Academy in Quantico, Virginia. They interview imprisoned serial killers to understand how they think, with the hope of applying this knowledge to solve ongoing cases.[6]

Season one is set in 1977 to 1980, in the early days of criminal psychology and criminal profiling at the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Notorious serial killer Edmund Kemper has a recurring role in this season as he assists Ford and Tench in understanding how a serial killer's mind works.

Season two is set in 1980 through 1981 and covers the Atlanta murders of 1979-81.[7] This is based on the real case of Wayne Williams who was charged for the murder of two adult men, but was never found guilty of killing at least 28 children and adolescents."
 

· Well-Known Raconteur
Joined
·
18,711 Posts
Just finished all 20+ seasons of Law & Order:SVU and I'm trying to decide what to tackle next.

One possibility is NCIS, which I never really watched, but every time I've caught an episode, I've found it interesting.

I tried watching The Wire, but couldn't get into it. Is it worth another ty?

Services we subscribe to are Netflix, Hulu, Prime and Britbox as well as access to On Demand through DirecTV. We have Cinemax and Showtime for about 2.5 more months (free from D*, but not worth paying for!). SO we can choose from any of these.

What say you, SOAK?
Give us some idea of other shows you like. L&O and NCIS are a very specific niche, as is The Wire (which you didn't like). Making suggestions at this point may not be helpful to you.
 

· Registered
Ruler of an Unown UI
Joined
·
3,948 Posts
You're into police dramas? Try Hill Street Blues, which pioneered everything we expect from those shows today: the noisy, close-in documentary-style shots, the gritty realities of urban living, and a focus on the people who do the real work at the bottom of the pyramid, often failing, but getting no credit when they succeed. I think it's included with a Hulu sub, while others probably charge about $10 per season.
 

· He's here, he's there...he's everywhere!
Joined
·
64,195 Posts
Just realize whatever we recommend is OUR favorites and not necessarily yours.

Because nobody else has said it, Game of Thrones.

For regular broadcast TV, Lost is always interesting, if not confusing. The Good Place is an easy binge, as is Brooklyn 99. Fargo, True Detective, The Americans. I could go on and on.
 

· Well-Known Raconteur
Joined
·
18,711 Posts
Give us some idea of other shows you like. L&O and NCIS are a very specific niche, as is The Wire (which you didn't like). Making suggestions at this point may not be helpful to you.
Just realize whatever we recommend is OUR favorites and not necessarily yours.
That's why I'm waiting until TtT returns and gives us some feedback.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Steveknj

· Pro Troll Magnet
Joined
·
15,289 Posts
Discussion Starter · #13 ·
I don't really have a favorite genre per se. It's whatever captures my interest. I guess I like procedurals (I really like Blue Bloods and as a guilty pleasure, Hawaii Five-O) and good comedy, but that doesn't help much! Define 'good comedy'!!

DW is bingeing Lost at the moment, but I can't because of that dumb finale and she says that even the second time around, it's really confusing.

The Good Place is a possibility. We watched a few episodes when it first came out and I think we quite liked it. There must have been a lot going on at that time as we stopped and didn't return to it.

I never said I didn't like The Wire, just that I couldn't get into it at the time. It may be worth another try. I think The Americans may be near the top of the list. Again, we watched a good part, if not all of, the first season and just never went back to it.
 

· I make tasty water
Joined
·
595 Posts
I'll second the recommendation of Mindhunter on Netflix. We didn't like the first episode, but kept hearing it was good so we tried again. Ended up loving both seasons and look forward to the next. I think you have to be ready for The Wire. My wife and I loved it, but we were ready to get into it. We've found it helps to bounce around from something dark to something more sci fi or light so you can have a break in the action. Breaking Bad of course is all time great, but the first season was a little slow to us. Battlestar Galactica was one that we loved even if it's uneven throughout it's run. If you like the legal dramas like The Practice then you might like Boston Legal too. I loved it with William Shatner.
 

· He's here, he's there...he's everywhere!
Joined
·
64,195 Posts
I don't really have a favorite genre per se. It's whatever captures my interest. I guess I like procedurals (I really like Blue Bloods and as a guilty pleasure, Hawaii Five-O) and good comedy, but that doesn't help much! Define 'good comedy'!!

DW is bingeing Lost at the moment, but I can't because of that dumb finale and she says that even the second time around, it's really confusing.

The Good Place is a possibility. We watched a few episodes when it first came out and I think we quite liked it. There must have been a lot going on at that time as we stopped and didn't return to it.

I never said I didn't like The Wire, just that I couldn't get into it at the time. It may be worth another try. I think The Americans may be near the top of the list. Again, we watched a good part, if not all of, the first season and just never went back to it.
I would go back and finish The Americans. It's that rare series that was good throughout, no weak seasons, and the ending was fantastic. Then go back and figure out what else to watch :)
 

· Pro Troll Magnet
Joined
·
15,289 Posts
Discussion Starter · #17 ·
Just finished S1E1 of The Americans (best to start over) and it's awesome. I think this will be the next binge, followed by possible The Good Place and then, well, we'll see.

Thanks for the suggestions so far. Please keep on with your opinions - and remember, they're just that. We're all different and just because someone may disagree with your choice, it doesn't make them wrong (unless it's me, of course ;)).

Oh, and for the record, I own the barrel box set of Breaking Bad and not long ago, did a re-watch. The box set includes all the unedited and uncensored versions of the episodes and it gets better with age!
 

· Administrator
Joined
·
8,239 Posts
I binged The Americans last year after first giving up on it because I was doing other things and missed some of the subtitles. You have to give it your full attention since there's a lot of reading. :)

I liked it much more as a no distraction binge.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Steveknj

· Registered
Joined
·
27,640 Posts
I binged The Americans last year after first giving up on it because I was doing other things and missed some of the subtitles. You have to give it your full attention since there's a lot of reading. :)

I liked it much more as a no distraction binge.
Maybe that's why I didn't get into it and bailed after a handful of episodes--I need to turn back to it sometime and try again, with the Internet off. ;)
 
1 - 20 of 27 Posts
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top