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The best drama in television history (1 Viewer)

I think this is the best drama of all time...

  • The Sopranos

    Votes: 24 9.8%

  • Breaking Bad

    Votes: 90 36.6%

  • The Wire

    Votes: 53 21.5%

  • Game of Thrones

    Votes: 39 15.9%

  • Mad Men

    Votes: 10 4.1%

  • Other

    Votes: 30 12.2%
  • Total voters
    246
Captain Cranks

Captain Cranks

Footballguy
I spent five minutes trying to see if this had been done already and came up with nothing, so here we are.  

Let the opinions stated as facts begin.  

 
My personal top 5: 

1. The West Wing 

2. Game of Thrones 

3. Breaking Bad

4. Friday Night Lights 

5. Lost

 
Real tough call between Mad Men and The Wire. I gave the slight edge to Mad Men because the last season of the Wire was a bit disappointing. Thrones fell off once they got past the books. It has turned into all style and no substance- like a medieval superhero movie. The Sopranos were fantastic and deserve credit for creating the environment where all these other shows could flourish but the Sopranos had some stretches where it struggled a bit. Breaking Bad was really fun "page turner" but some of the dialogue and acting was laughably bad (looking at you Tuco) and Ididn't think it was very deep. 

 
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Very tough choice

But I took Mad Men by a hair over Breaking Bad.

Might not have anything to do with quality...just personal preference.

 
McJose said:
Very tough choice

But I took Mad Men by a hair over Breaking Bad.

Might not have anything to do with quality...just personal preference.
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I just couldn't get past the first season of MM.  It's so sloooooooow.  Should I give it another try knowing that it picks up?

 
CletiusMaximus said:
Its been a very long time, but my guess is it will seem very much dated.
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I like solder older shows. IMO, Mary Tyler Moore, **** Van Dyke, etc. are still really good TV. Some of my favorite movies form the 30s and 40s. However, I find old school tv dramas to have aged really poorly so I am worried your assessment will be accurate. 

 
CletiusMaximus said:
Its been a very long time, but my guess is it will seem very much dated.
Click to expand...
That's my take, too.

It was revolutionary when it happened, though. There had never been anything like it and it laid a bunch of the groundwork for most of the shows listed in the poll. 

 
I'd add Six Feet Under in there.

maybe even Battlestar Galactica reboot.

I went with the wires. love the sopranos and breaking bad and GoT... but there was something about the way the wire pulled me in to caring about every character, however small, while showing a side of life I'd never get to see... almost documentary-style. love it.

 
Three recents not on the list that I'd consider are Better Call Saul, The Americans, and Rectify. 

 
Kudos to the OP though as the ones he listed are the best five tv dramas ever. 

 
I went with The Sopranos.  It checks all the boxes.

Hard to ignore Game of Thrones though.  If the last season is stellar it may move past The Sopranos for me.

 
I ignored GOT because it is not done yet.  Out of the remaining, Breaking Bad barely nipped The Wire.  Breaking Bad also gets a side benefit of some great back story via Better Call Saul.

If GOT has a killer last season, it would likely be number 1 for me.

 
I probably haven't watched enough dramas over time as a true comparison, but I can't imagine there's a better show than Breaking Bad. It was great from the get go and never disappointed. The actors, the characters, the storyline(s) - all brilliant. And that penultimate episode "Ozymandias" will forever go as one of the best episodes of all time.

 
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Breaking Bad by a landslide for me.  It may have something to do with my wife being from Albuquerque, and that adding in a bit of extra enjoyment to me when I watch.  Better Call Saul may end up there too, but too early to say.

I'd throw a mention to Deadwood as belonging in the conversation.

 
NYPD Blue is my personal favorite, but Breaking Bad is my favorite from the list.  Mad Men was good, but I always felt like there was some level of it I wasn't getting.  Everyone raved about how amazing it was, but it just seemed like a Soap Opera where the main character was a d bag to most people most of the time.

 
bigmarc27 said:
The Wire, in particular season 4, is easily the best piece of television in history. 
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I just finished this season last night.  The realism of that show is uncanny.  It's a bunch of no-name actors, many of them kids, and you'd never know they were acting.  

 
Captain Cranks said:
I just finished this season last night.  The realism of that show is uncanny.  It's a bunch of no-name actors, many of them kids, and you'd never know they were acting.  
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It’s honestly better on rewatch. Little things like catching that Cheese (method man) is Randy’s dad pop up that you didn’t notice at first. 

 
I'd say Game of Thrones then Breaking Bad. I've never seen a lot of the others mentioned though. Still on my someday list Sopranos, The Wire, Mad Men (only watched season one a long time ago.) Also only saw a few episodes of West Wing.

 
I want to add that while (at this point) Game of Thrones would be 5th of the 5 listed as options for me, I’d say it’s by far the most fun I’ve had watching a show possibly ever. Breaking Bad was fun too especially winding down, listening to podcasts and theories, and then seeing how it all ended. I’ve got the same experience with GoT but on crack. There will be an entertainment aspect of my life missing once that goes because I consume tons of content around it. I’ve watched multiple YouTube videos dissecting the trailer, listen to podcasts, etc... and will do so after every episode through til the end. It’s a very communal viewing experience for me and I enjoy it a great deal. That wasn’t really a thing for something like the Wire which is a better show, but doesn’t have the same fun factor. 

 
Nothing had the excitement and twists and turns that Game of Thrones had although it hasn't been as consistent in recent seasons.  Lost comes close but faded even more in later seasons.  Solid list though.

 
West Wing was my favorite until Mad Men.  But i recently started watching WW again for the 1st time in a long time and now i'm not sure. The thing that strikes me weirdest about my ep-a-day rewatch is that i never reflect on the current political climate when i watch it. What does that mean?

 
Ilov80s said:
Real tough call between Mad Men and The Wire. I gave the slight edge to Mad Men because the last season of the Wire was a bit disappointing. Thrones fell off once they got past the books. It has turned into all style and no substance- like a medieval superhero movie. The Sopranos were fantastic and deserve credit for creating the environment where all these other shows could flourish but the Sopranos had some stretches where it struggled a bit. Breaking Bad was really fun "page turner" but some of the dialogue and acting was laughably bad (looking at you Tuco) and Ididn't think it was very deep. 
Click to expand...
Those are my two.

 
Uruk-Hai said:
CletiusMaximus said:
Its been a very long time, but my guess is it will seem very much dated.
Click to expand...
That's my take, too.

It was revolutionary when it happened, though. There had never been anything like it and it laid a bunch of the groundwork for most of the shows listed in the poll.
Click to expand...
Yep. Hill Street Blues and Miami Vice (80s) led to Law & Order, Homicide: Life on the Street, NYPD Blue,  and New York Undercover* (90s), which led to The Shield, CSI  & The Wire (00s).

*criminally underrated

 
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