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| Another year behind us and another host of excellent television. |
It's December 22nd, and even as the outside is weirdly 65 degrees, Winter is in the air, especially on our televisions. To cap off the year of television, really only Ash vs Evil Dead still has episodes to air, but otherwise, it's time to look back and evaluate what we've seen this year.
The Conclusions:
Mad Men
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| I am a Mad Man that this ended! |
When looking back on those we lost this year, the name at the top of every list is Mad Men. For nine years (including the hiatus,) the 1960's workplace drama has raged on, spurring countless debates and topping countless "best show" lists. For me, though I never ranked it above shows like Breaking Bad or Deadwood, Don Draper and co. always had a special place on my screen. One of the most interesting aspects of the show was its central character: Don Draper. Like many strong male leads of late, Draper was an anti-hero, but unlike a Tony Soprano or Walter White, Draper was not an evil man, but a severely flawed one. From the moment we are introduced to him, we see that Draper is smoking, thinking of ideas, and womanizing. He's a man's man, but at the end of the Pilot, we also see that he is a family man, living a double life. As the show went on, we realized Draper was living a double life in more ways than one, also harboring a false identity adopted during his time in the war. Add to this fascinating lead a host of memorable supporting characters, and Mad Men was one of the most well-rounded shows of all time. It captured the period, it compelled with characters, and as it let out one final "Ohm," gave one of the more memorable and controversial endings in recent memory.
Justified
The Western genre is an interesting one. While there's traditional Westerns, like the pulp movies of the 50's and 60's (The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly, High Noon, etc.) television re-vitalized the genre with the nearly Shakespearean David Milch-headed Deadwood. When Justified stepped onto the scene six years ago, it was a mixture of all these aspects. First of all, it was set in the modern day, already giving it a breath of fresh air. Second of all, though it did not have the poetic dialogue of Deadwood, the show was inspired by Elmore Leonard and co-written by the man himself, making the witty banter between characters electrifying. And, add to all of this the fantastic acting jobs of the two leads: Timothy Olyphant and Walton Goggins, and we have one of the most entertaining dramas of any year. Justified never quite earned the accolades it deserved in the general critical consensus, but as it is re-watched and discovered in the future, I have hope that it will rocket into the range of great dramas. For six great years the modern day Western graced out screens and, with an epic conclusion, was sent off into the pantheon with gusto.
The League
A tale of two shows this truly was. For three straight years, The League was up there with the funniest shows on television, complete with a hilarious cast and fantastic writers. However, as I've written before about, something around the fourth season began to decline about the fantasy football-based comedy. For some reason, the writing became more slapstick and though the actors chemistry remained, it seemed like they began to find other projects to commit their time to, leaving a lot to be desired in the actual show. The ending wasn't terrible by any means, and the Larry David cameo was incredibly fun, but as a whole it is probably a good thing that the show ended. Cut before any more reputation could be damaged. Alas, the memories will be missed.
The Highlights:
The Leftovers
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| I am leftover wanting more! |
By far one of the biggest highlights of the year was the second (and as we know now, penultimate,) season of HBO's The Leftovers. After an interesting yet lacking first season, Damon Lindelof's new show was controversial. I was always a fan, but with such intense bleakness and such little payoff, many weren't able to stick with the show. The end of the first season was quite brilliant, but to get to that point, roughly six hours of depression had to be suffered through. However, in the second season, bringing our central characters to the Texan town of Jardin, there was a distinct change. All bleakness was now met with intrigue, allowing for fantastic mysterious and deep questions being asked of the audience. Gone was the Lost effect of frustration with the mysteries, replaced instead with edge-of-your-seat prospects, leading to 10 hours in which every minute was gold. When the final season rolls around in a year, the expectations are about as high as they can get.
Fargo
After one of the best debut seasons of all time, FX's Coen Brothers inspired miniseries anthology Fargo had set the bar high. And, unlike its rival for best miniseries: True Detective, it met, and surpassed this bar. The second season of Fargo, detailing the 1979 Sioux Falls massacre revolving around the Kansas City Mafia, the Gerhardt crime family, and a young couple trying to "self-actualize," the ten episode arc provided more amazing dialogue, performances, and shots in line with the first season. However, it managed to outdo the first edition by making a more well-rounded plot, less reliant on any one or two characters and more focused on a complete ensemble without a single clunky performance. Though the third season won't be here till 2017, the excitement will live on with quality like this.
BoJack Horseman and Rick and Morty
These two animated comedies are grouped together as highlights as both took excellent first seasons and turned them into absolutely bonkers second editions. BoJack capitalized on an interesting and funny world in which humans and animals coexist, talking to each other like anyone does, along with compelling characters in dramatic situations, surrounded by comedy. In the second season, the characters grew, the comedy was even stronger, and in some of the final episodes, actually compelled like many of the great dramas do. Likewise, Rick and Morty, a show with a hilarious first season, satirizing science fiction tropes, grew to be even more than just a half hour comedic romp. In the second season, it brought real emotion, along with more clever plots and writing into the equation, making us care more about plot and characters. Both shows will see a third season and in both cases, will likely make the highlight list a year from now.
Better Call Saul
When Breaking Bad ended, many declared it the greatest show of all time. When Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould brought up the idea of Better Call Saul, most, including me, thought it was a joke. Saul was a great supporting character, but doing a spin-off featuring the comic relief? Not for the "greatest show of all time." However, when it debuted, I was proven wrong about as much as one can be. By expanding on the characters of Saul and Mike, the world of Breaking Bad has new breath, allowing for yet another fascinating story helmed by the great Vince Gilligan. This show took low expectations and rocketed them into one of the best shows of the year. Once again, I will say: Never doubt Gilligan.
The Jinx
This six-episode documentary miniseries aired on HBO without a ton of advertising to make it impact. However, with hour after hour of fascinating character study of a very real and very psychopathic man, The Jinx brought in more viewers, eventually leading to a development in the ten year old case that it explored. Robert Durst is a name I never knew prior to this miniseries, but it's a name I'll never forget afterwards. If HBO is smart, more true crime and more Andrew Jarecki is sure to come as a result.
The Intriguing Ones:
Turn: Washington's Spies
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| TURNing into greatness |
The first season of Turn fulfilled my historical drama hunger, but left a lot to be desired in the main character department and the directional department. All of this seemed to be fixed in the second edition. Though not the greatest show on TV by any means, with a third season, Turn could be getting itself into the conversation. The cast became more of an ensemble, the plot was more layered, and as more characters were introduced, more historical inquiry appeared. If Turn can capitalize on this momentum, it'll be absolutely fascinating to see where this show is headed.
The Man in the High Castle
What began as the most watched Amazon Prime pilot of all time has developed into one of the more intriguing first seasons of 2015. This series, inspired by the Phillip K. Dick novel of the same name, details a world where the Nazis won WW2, and the aftermath and resistance that developed as a result. The first season was not without missteps, namely the lameness of some of the central characters, but with great supporting characters and some of the best world design in recent memory, High Castle already has me in it for many more seasons. Especially with the added science fiction twist at the end of the first season, this show has serious staying power.
Ash vs Evil Dead
Much like Better Call Saul, I kind of thought this show was a joke when I first heard about it. Fun as the Evil Dead franchise is, it didn't have enough substance to become a full show... or so I thought. However, with Bruce Campbell at the face and Sam Raimi at the helm, Ash is one of the best half hours each week, combining elements of horror, drama, and comedy in an admirable fashion. With two episodes left in its debut season and a renewal already issued, it'll be interesting to see where this show takes us, as it could be any true direction.
Mr. Robot
Coming from USA, a network not too familiar with critical success, Mr. Robot was a stunning first season. A dark story about a could-be schizophrenic hacker, Robot was one of the most original shows on TV in a while. The main character was about as weird yet well acted as they come, and the mystique around whether everything the viewer sees is real or not remains well throughout all ten debut episodes. Though not without a few missteps, Mr. Robot is one of the shows promising to take TV into a prosperous future.
The Disappointments:
True Detective
We should all know this would top the list. After an absolutely fantastic debut season, HBO's miniseries anthology had a lot of hype behind the second season, featuring a dark Los Angeles crime mystery. What we received was depressing mumbo jumbo, complete with poor acting performances, confusing plot, over-indulgent dialogue, and an underwhelming end result. Instead of building on an already fantastic premise like in Fargo, True Detective faltered under pressure, revealing the first season to be nothing but an ostensible fluke.
The Bastard Executioner
Phew - when I heard about the medieval historical/fantasy drama helmed by Kurt Sutter coming to FX, I was rightfully excited. However, in a manner reminiscent of Netflix's terrible Marco Polo, the show crashed and burned right from the start. The acting was bland, the characters felt copy and pasted from other historical and fantasy drama archetypes, and the amount of blood and gore felt unnecessary and gross. The show was unsurprisingly cancelled after the first season, leaving no one but the cast and crew upset about it.
Game of Thrones and The Walking Dead
The two biggest shows on cable television both had faulty seasons this year. Both practiced the same cheap "fakeout death" method, leaving me annoyed rather than intrigued, and though neither was downright terrible, both did not capitalize on past momentum. Plots were squandered (from Stannis to Alexandria,) characters were written off (from Bran to half the cast not focused on in TWD,) and despite a few highlights ("Hardhome" and "Here's Not Here,") disappointed in an overall sense. Neither show should stop being watched, but if they want to remain the pillars of viewership they currently are, both need to step up their quality going into 2016.
What to be excited for in 2016:
Twin Peaks
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| One chance out between two networks... |
After 25 years, that gum we like is coming back in style. David Lynch, Mark Frost, and most of the surviving cast of the 90's gem is returning to television, this time on Showtime, to bring the long-awaited conclusion of Twin Peaks. It could be a mess or the greatest thing we've ever seen, but the hype is already real for viewers to walk with fire once again.
Westworld and Vinyl
HBO is debuting two new confirmed dramas in 2016. The first, Vinyl is created by Martin Scorsese and Terrence Winter, detailing a 1970's record company and the musical scene it revolves around. With these two, magic could certainly happen and bring one of the best new shows of 2016. The other is even more intriguing: a series based off of the 1973 movie of the same name: Westworld. This Michael Crichton created and Jonathon Nolan helmed sci-fi/fantasy thriller could be absolutely fantastic if done correctly. I'm already hooked.
American Gods
Starz has been rumoring a series based on Neil Gaiman's excellent American Gods for some time, and hopefully 2016 is when it will actually bear fruit. This was one of the best purely enjoyable novels written in the 2000's, and when it debuts, will draw in an audience of book readers along with fans of the genre. My hopes are very high.
Preacher
The dark, comic-book inspired drama coming to AMC in the new year already has the internet abuzz. Said to be about a badass preacher trying to find God whilst at the same time battling vampires, this show has a lot of potential. Equally as intriguing is the fact that Seth Rogan and Evan Goldberg are venturing into dramatic television.
In Conclusion:
Though there are only so many mentions in this article, a lot of great things have happened on the small screen over the last 365 days. TV has never been more alive and thriving than it is right now, and as we head into a new year, I couldn't be more optimistic about where we're headed. More networks firing on all cylinders, more creative people doing more creative things, and more excellent television is to come. I'll be here with you all to witness it.
Finally, aside from the Benny awards coming out in the last few days of the year, this just about does it for Sultan of Television in 2015. For all readers, thank you so much for reading my rambling, and for everyone else, get in here and read!
Happy holidays! Take the time off to watch Arrested Development!Labels: Better Call Saul, BoJack Horseman, Fargo, Game of Thrones, Justified, Mad Men, Rick and Morty, The Jinx, The League, The Leftovers, The Man in the High Castle, The Walking Dead, Turn: Washington's Spies
