Top television shows of 2004
Somewhere, somehow, the 2004-2005 television season became a goldmine of creative
and interesting shows. Who would have guessed that one of the most viewed shows
of the season would be about a group of people trapped on a desert island while
a spin-off of one of the most horrible, and successful, shows of all time (Friends)
would be struggling in the ratings? Every year people across the country hope
for a good television season, this year the networks (other than the constantly
good shows from HBO) delivered.
The best show on television this year would have to be David Milch's epic tale
of life in a real frontieer town – Deadwood.
I had been looking forward to Deadwood for some time ever since I saw
the first previews on HBO late in 2003. Set in South Dakota in the late 1800's,
Deadwood follows the boomtown of the same name. Here, the town of Deadwood
is a haven for all things criminal and illegal being located outside the United
States and out of the reach of any sort of real law enforcement. Not only is
the story beind Deadwood a good one, it features some of the best characters
to grace television screens since The Sopranos, namely Timothy Olyphant
in a career defining role of Seth Bullock and Ian McShane as the criminal head
of the town Al Swearengen.
I fell in love with the show shortly after the first episode and was watching
it religiously week after week. I know a lot of people were turned off to Deadwood
by the constant swearing by the characters in the first episode. (Which was
toned back for subsiquent episodes.) However, I feel that what Milch was trying
to show that the same ills that plague modern day society also plagued societies
of the past.
Deadwood has got what a lot of other shows lack – a sort of true
realistic grit.
The rest in alphabetical order:
Arrested Development
– Arrested Development follows the Bluth family as
they cope with the head of the family, George (Jeffrey Tambor), being arrested
for shady accounting practices at the family real-estate company. George is
thrown in prison and the courts freeze the family’s wealth. Most families
would be concerned with the father locked away in jail; the Bluths are mostly
concerned about their lost money and the fact that they might have to get jobs
and work for a living. Enter Michael Bluth (Jason Bateman), the only responsible
member of the family who’s put in charge of the company and forced into
the role of surrogate family head. Michael immediately puts himself at odds
with the family after he tells them that the easy days of expensing luxury items
to the company are over.
The comedy from Arrested Development arises from Michael trying to
do the right thing by both his family and the courts and the family trying to
stop him every step of the way in order to keep assets hidden and themselves
a few dollars richer. It’s the family from The Cosby Show only
dysfunctional in a 21st century kind of way.
Entourage – At first, I didn't care too much
for Entourage. After watching the first episode I was a bit turned off by the
characters. Sure, Entourage hit true as to what it's like for a group
of guy friends to hang out together. But I didn't feel that I could like the
characters. I was wrong. By the third episode I was hooked.
Entourage follows new hot movie star Vincent Chase (Adrian Grenier)
who is coming off a highly successful movie and is trying to land his next role.
In reality, though, the series focus is on a member of Vincent's "entourage"
and friend from back home Eric (Kevin Connolly). Eric is thrust into becoming
Vincent's manager and is tasked with landing his next role all the while Vincent
and the rest of the entourage do their best to party and spend Vincent's money.
My guess is that Entourage is the most accurate look into the Hollywood movie
industray since Fox's 1999 failed sitcom Action.
Lost – The
series follows a group of airline passengers stranded on a deserted island after
a violent crash. The survivors quickly realize that they must band together
if they have any hope of surviving. Not only do they have to deal with the lack
of food and clean drinking water, the survivors must also face a very large
“monster” roaming the island when it makes it’s presence known
by consuming the jet’s co-pilot. So far, the audience has yet to see the
beast other than as it travels through the jungle knocking down trees.
Lost is so much more than a simple tale of people crashed on a deserted
island. I would say that Lost is an interesting character study on
the effects of a high stress environment on different types of people who’ve
never met before suddenly forced to live together and depend on one and other
for survival.
Veronica Mars –
The basic plot of Veronica Mars follows teenage Veronica Mars
as she deals with high school by day while working at her father’s detective
agency by night. However, much like Lost, a simple synopsis of the show’s
plot will not suffice. Like Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Veronica Mars’s
basic plotline is a springboard into something more. Much more. There are two
levels of story in Veronica Mars.
A few years prior to the events chronicled in the show, Veronica Mars’
best friend Lily was murdered. When Veronica’s dad, then the city’s
sheriff, placed the blame of Lily’s father, the town turned their back
on him and voted him out of office. And when Veronica didn’t turn her
back on her father like everyone wanted her to, she was thrown out of the popular
group in school.
One level is the very basic Veronica solving cases. But there’s a whole
other level to the series in a second underlying sometimes-disturbing storyline
of Veronica looking for the murderer of Lily.
The Office Christmas Special
– What can I say that I haven't said before about the greatness
that is The Office? Simply put, The Office series, all fourteen
and some odd hours, was the best fourteen and some odd hours of comedy on television.
And The Office Christmas Special was the prefect ending to The
Office series. It's a shame that it's all over for the show.
Read the top television shows of 2003 (according
to Dangerous Universe) here.
By Bert Ehrmann
12/30/2004