I can never decide which show I preferred.
Both are magnificient but obviously totally different in many ways.
Anybody have a firm view or am I missing the true TV Gem from the last 10 years ?
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I can never decide which show I preferred.
Both are magnificient but obviously totally different in many ways.
Anybody have a firm view or am I missing the true TV Gem from the last 10 years ?
Both shows are quite accomplished as they've had widespread appeal among critics,intellectuals and the common people.
The West Wing had the benefit of having a star like Martin Sheen but soon got viewers hooked with sharp scripts although the finals series' went slightly downhill.
While The Sopranos had potential from the start but truly found it's level by the second series and kept improving.
So Sopranos for me since it had better character and story development while we could all live vicariously through them.
However,special credit must be given to Family Guy,it's the funniest show ever to come out of America.Catch it before it's cancelled again!
The US has produced some gold like Six Feet Under,Oz,Friends,Law & Order,Deadwood and South Park.
The Wire beats them em both (and I love the Sopranos). I'm on the third series of the West Wing but after an excellent first series it feels like we're in treading water territory. I might give up on buying the other boxsets because
Trust me and go out and buy the Wire boxsets and you will not look back. It's intelligent, well written, funny, dark, well acted and to sum up a masterpiece. I've also just started on Deadwood series 1 and it has impressed me greatly.
Sopranos, although Oz is better than all of them
Love the West Wing despite a tendency to veer towards sentimentalism the scripts were razor-sharp and ocassionally very very funny.
Have to agree that the 4 and 5th seasons were pretty poor though(which coincides with Sorkin leaving as script-writer around this time)...the last couple of seasons were a return to form though as they shifted emphasis from the White House to the elections.
if you liked West Wing it would be well worth checking out the short-lived "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip"....
Abso-damn-lutely. The Wire is the best TV drama ever made (in my humble opinion). It's intricate, beautifully plotted and paced, superbly acted and ultimately much more rewarding than any other programme I've seen. It's not for the casual viewer though. The creator David Simon compares each series to a novel, and like a novel you can't pick it up at say, chapter 4, again at chapter 7, and expect it to make sense. That's why it's ideal for box-set purchase. To anyone who hasn't seen it, I can't recommend it highly enough.Quote:
Originally Posted by shakermaker1982
I am also a fan of the West Wing and Sopranos - they are probably the best 3 drama series of the last 10 years.
Brotherhood.
As Dr Ogba & Tony D say get "The Wire" best show ever imo, "Sopranos" great too, with "OZ" in 3rd
Seen it on digital menu there a few times looks like its got potential.Quote:
Originally Posted by Anto McC
Based in Boston? Summit to do with Irish Mob?
Am I close?
Hold on.... Agent Harris is in it!!!!!!!!!!
Soprano's for me, but I have to say, Deadwood is brilliant.
Deadwood line:
FARNUM: "I can't engage him in further conversation! When I hear his voice I see the inside of his skull. Phantoms grin out at me leaking gruesome goo."
SWEARENGEN: "Slide this under his door then."
The Wire is on my to do list.
I would recommend Dexter (recently started on ITV & due on Channel 6) if like an edge to your crime/cop show. Originally shown on Showtime in the US but now picked up by one of the Networks.
Just finished Sopranos and enjoyed it. Going to start on West Wing now.
To do with a set of Brothers of Irish desent and it's based in Rhode Island.Quote:
Originally Posted by Only1Rovers
Neil - start on the Wire 1st. You won't regret it!!!Quote:
Originally Posted by NeilMcD
Gimme a list and I'll make a poll, so I can vote West Wing.
Just bought the Wire season 1 in HMV there on people's recommendations here (pay day this week so impulse purchases galore!) - better be good or i'll track yez down!! {insert shaking fist smiley here}
to me The Wire is the best show HBO ever did, better than Oz, Deadwood even the Sopanos, unfortunately the fifth season is the final season and the final episode is this Sunday in the U.S. If anyone wants to see most of the 5th season they can check out this linkQuote:
Originally Posted by Dr. Ogba
http://www.watchtvsitcoms.com/thewire.php
How about we keep it to the Wire, Sopranos, West Wing, Oz and one other? (ER, or Deadwood perhaps?)Quote:
Originally Posted by dahamsta
also took the plunge on arrested development on ebay based on almost universally popular reviews (having not seen any episodes either....damn you credit card!!!) - anyone a fan?
Love it, funniest show since SeinfeldQuote:
Originally Posted by Dr. Ogba
The Wire (The best show never watched) then Oz. Nearly finished the 3rd series of The Wire and have the 4th sky+ courtesy of TG4.
good stuff, between that and the Wire I'll have plenty to keep me going.Quote:
Originally Posted by jebus
On a side note, why were these shows never picked up by channels over here? Surely there must be a slot for them somewhere? Same thing has happened with one of my favourite shows of late: Entourage - they had the second season on at some mad hour on network 2 and never bothered showing the third (or fourth for that matter) :mad:
BBC2 have never rated American imports, Arrested Devolpment was given the same treatment as Seinfled and Larry Sanders and thrown on at 11pm on a non-descript weekday. That said I think we get American humour more than our British counterpartsQuote:
Originally Posted by Dr. Ogba
Wire also on my to do list. Have the first three seasons of it on my hard drive but havent watched it yet. Dexter is a quality series though. The best show i've seen in years. Prob followed by heroes and then Jericho.Quote:
Originally Posted by pete
In fairness, The Larry Sanders Show was always likely to be on late enough.Quote:
Originally Posted by jebus
I don't mind BBC too much as they are at least producing their own shows of some value - RTE bang decent imports on late when prime time is full of crap as well. They had The West Wing starting at 11.30 most of the time, for example.
Just noticed the Wire Series 1 -3 is on Amazon's uk site as the DVD deal of the week for anybody that was interested in buying them.
saw an ad on rte for their schedule for April and Entourage was on it....anyone know if this will be season 3 or 4?
ITV4 are showing series 4 at the moment. Just started last week. I know you get lost pretty much the same time as sky one does.Quote:
Originally Posted by Dr. Ogba
Just bought the Boxed set of Season 4 of The Wire (made a mess of recording it on TG4 recently.) Oh My Christ, it is quality. Best season yet I think. Amazing show. (Can I vote for it again to even the scores up:D)
Seriously though, how many people, who have seen all of both series would rate the Sopranos above the Wire ? I'm interested.
Me.Quote:
Originally Posted by TonyD
Not saying the Wire is anything less than magnificent either
I have never seen the Wire :eek: but I like what I am hearing about it.Oz was very good.Love the Sopranos.Have to say I found a few of the scenes in OZ shocking.The scene where the Nazi(schindler?)nails that paedophile priest to the floor..oh Lordy.Quality though.The fact that people on here rte the Wire higher than the Sopranos has me intrigued.West Wing is of course quality.
I'll go one better, never heard of it:eek:.Quote:
Originally Posted by cheifo
I would guess this is season 3. Fairly sure they showed 1 & 2 back to back last time even though I did not watch on RTE. Great escape TV though.Quote:
Originally Posted by Dr. Ogba
shocking :DQuote:
Originally Posted by sligoman
I loved the Soprano's but think the Wire is much more consistent - no filler episodes.
I voted for The Wire in the poll. The Sopranos was fantastsic, but the writing in The Wire is something else. But then I thought the Shield was better than the Sopranos.Quote:
Originally Posted by TonyD
Just finished season 4 myself.
Season 1 - good introduction - a bit slow but addictive.
Season 2 - I thought it was brilliant, some great 1 series characters - the Sobotkas and the Greek.
Season 3 - Better than the 2nd, goes back to the streets. Highlight - Brother Mouzone and Omar - the odd couple.
Season 4 - The school - well that was class :p, school system, politics and mad Marlo.
I hope McNulty features a lot more in season 5. Only 10 episodes though which is a bummer.
just bought season 2 there...can't ruddy wait to watch it...Quote:
Originally Posted by lofty9
4th Series of The Wire starting next Monday night on FX if anybody wants to watch it.
Season 3 starting on Monday night - 10.55 on RTE 1Quote:
Originally Posted by Dr. Ogba
The Sopranos is number one. By a mile.