winterbadger | (no subject)

There are a lot of good television serials, shows with skillful writing, or clever plots, stand-out acting or inspired casting.

There are few enough that have more than one of those things, and only occasionally do I come across one that has them all, and in addition has something behind it all--not just a well thought-out and fully realized story arc but a vision, and ability to see human beings in all their pain and glory. To show us, in short, ourselves--to "hold a mirror up to nature".

For me, In Plain Sight is one of these rare shows. Its regular ensemble actors are brilliant, and they've been supplemented with some of the best talent appearing on American screens today. It does comedy without being campy, drama without being hokey, and it moves from one to the other as if they were, well, the essential and interwoven elements of daily life that they truly are.

If you haven't watched it, I suggest you give it a try. They've run three seasons so far, and a fourth is premiering in May.

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I loved that show for the first two seasons. Then I watched a show or two from the third season, and Mary had crossed the line from "endearingly cranky" to "mean as heck." I hated her so I stopped watching.

Great actors though. Maybe I'll go back to it.

I recall the third season being not as good as the first two; there was a change in production/management and they changed direction, focusing more on the cases and less on the story arc of the central characters. But I still enjoy it. And the first two seasons are some of the best TV around, IMO. Not the equal of The Wire or Treme, IMO, but as good as some of the other shows that have been my top favourites.

I love Marshall. Love Love Love Marshall.

There really is some great TV out there...my current favorites (and I'm including shows that aren't on year round, much like 'In Plain Sight'):

Parenthood
Sons of Anarchy (Katey Sagal is a Goddess!)
Friday Night Lights
Royal Pains
Modern Family
Supernatural (granted, part of that might be glandular)
Glee (ok, more for the music, but I do love me some Matthew Morrison)
Behind the Scenes of the Oprah Show on OWN
Your Own Show on OWN (caveat, I know two people competing)
White Collar
The Good Wife

Thank God for DVRs....I watch stuff so much more quickly.

I am not surprised that you love Marshall. I can so easily see why. :-)

I agree on Friday Night Lights--that's another simply excellent show, IMO. I like Royal Pains and The Good Wife a lot too.

The best television series I've seen, off the top of my head, would be

The Wire
Treme
Sports Night
The West Wing
Slings and Arrows
In Plain Sight
Veronica Mars
thirtysomething
Battlestar Galactica
Babylon 5
Firefly
Joan of Arcadia
My So-Called Life
Freaks and Geeks

There are others I'm fond of (Life on Mars, Buffy, Cold Feet, Ballykissangel, Flashpoint, ST: DS9, and a series of British crime dramas--Morse, Lewis, Frost, Rebus, The Vice, George Gently, Dalgleish, Murphy's Law) but I think those ones are in a class by themselves. Kings tried to reach there but didn't quite make it.