Decadeworthy - Television of the Decade

Here's my picks for the Best in Television of the Decade. Yes, it was the golden age of television. Where shows were able to further blossom, delve deeper, run archs that created emotionally satisfying stories that took advantage of using the longer format. Or, the opposite, where crime procedurals flourished.

And yes, while it may seem like I watch every show out there, I actually do not. Sadly, I had real jobs to do. So no, I still haven't started The Wire or Battlestar Galactica or Big Love yet, and while I petered out on Six Feet Under and The Sopranos, I never got back into them when they apparently resurged in quality.

So I've limited to picking the shows with their best season in this decade (so thus, The Sopranos S1 was 1999 and thus ineligible, as was S2 of Sex and the City. 1999 was a good year for HBO wasn't it?), and it can't have already been mentioned on my Decadeworthy: Best of Television 1 Season Wonders List.

I also started listing them in order but kept switching the orders for days that I almost went back to alphabetical, but decided to leave the ranking, but you can probably argue a different order especially from 11+ and I could agree. So don't put too much attention to the exact order.

So here's my Decadeworthy List for Television of the Decade:


1. Friday Night Lights (DirecTV/NBC) - Season 3 (2008)

Right from the get go, Season 1 grips you into the lives of the residents living in Dillon, TX, but Season 3 is when the emotional culmination comes to full fruition in deeply moving stories that continue on in Season 4 as more characters are giving satisfying sendoffs while new players are rolled in, all with the central core of Tami and Coach Eric Taylor staying strong at its heart.


2. Lost (ABC) - Season 4 (2008)
Best Episode: "Through The Looking Glass" (Ep. 322)

The 3rd Season finale changed the game but also confirmed Lost was in fact, not completely lost, with Season 4 continuing the build on everything since the terrific first season, mixing the mystery and lore with deep looks into Oceanic 815 survivor's lives and their destiny.


3. Coupling (BBC2) - Season 3 (2002)
Best Episode: "Remember This" (Ep. 304)

A British version of Friends with Sex and the City thrown in, the show is cute and builds to comic perfection in Season 2, but Season 3 tops that with some genius devices including the "Split" and "Remember This". I would say 5 of the 7 episodes in the season are perfect and cannot be touched.


4. Buffy the Vampire Slayer (TheWB/UPN) - Season 5 (2000-2001)
Best Episode: "The Body" (Ep. 516)

Before the decade had begun, the show had already perfected the use of high school/college as allegory for bigger, more devilish themes, with a funny Scooby crew fighting off demons and vampires, but everything seemed to gather to an emotional and urgent climax to fight Gloria, as well as the incredibly moving and non-supernatural death of Buffy's mom.


5. Everwood (TheWB) - Season 4 (2005-2006)
Best Episode: "Foreverwood Parts 1 & 2" (Eps. 421 & 422)

Every season deepened the family drama about a successful surgeon and his two kids that he tries to know better after moving to the small town of Everwood, CO. Everwood managed to balance both a light and fun tone with deeper and more emotionally dark issues, all with characters we learned to love, and managed to cobble together one of the most satisfying finales despite having the show cancelled unceremoniously at the last minute.


6. Pushing Daisies (ABC) - Season 1 (2007)
Best Episode: "Pielette (Ep. 101)

A deliriously delicious romantic murder mystery that sort of defied genres. Part romantic comedy, part crime procedural, part fantasy, part gay wonderland, and all wonderful.


7. Veronica Mars (TheWB) - Season 1 (2004-2005)

A mystery film noir done for the high school set but was not for the high schooler, with the dark cases and witty repartees, Kristen Bell led a terrific cast in a sleuth show that constantly surprised with twists and turns that were both fun and actually puzzling.


8. Gavin & Stacey (BBC3) - Season 1 (2007)
Best Episode: "Episode One" (Ep. 101)

A great romantic comedy television show that wasn't schmaltzy or cliched and pushed forward in a dizzying pace with harsh realities without ever losing the dream romance at its core.


9. Arrested Development (FOX) - Season 1 (2003-2004)

O that zany Bluth family. There's no words to describe the hilarity or to make sense of it all.


10. Gilmore Girls (TheWB) - Season 2 (2001-2002)

Comfort TV at it's finest, and fastest with the witty banter between the close mother and daughter relationship of Lorelai and Rory Gilmore, but the power in the Gilmore Girls was that it was really a 3-generations relationship with grandmother Emily. The quirky townsfolk of Stars Hollow just romanticized small town living to its finest.


11. Friends (NBC) - Season 9 (2002-2003)

Some said Friends went downhill in the later seasons, but while it had its up and downs, I thought things started picking up again once Chandler and Monica started having their secret affair post Ross' London wedding, and got back into a great groove near the end when Rachel had her baby, Joey had his crush, and things started to set up for the end in the following year. The comic timing between the tight cast were down to perfection by that point, and the writing got sharper again, using the years of character history to construct new comedy gold.


12. Mad Men (AMC) - Season 1 (2007)
Best Episode: "The Wheel" (Ep. 113)

I haven't seen the latest season yet, but the series is a fun and addictive look at the 60's lifestyle of these Madison Avenue men, but the heart of the show is still its women (Peggy, Betty, Joan). The show slowly draws you into the darker underlying tones that hide under the well tailored suits and flower patterned dresses.


13. Modern Family (ABC) - Season 1 (2009)

Welcome to the new age of the family sitcom!


14. 30 Rock (NBC) - Season 2 (2007-2008)

While the overall story arcs are sometimes left at the wayside for the side-splitting insanity within each episode, but when it's that insanely funny, what's really the problem with that?


15. Glee (FOX) - Season 1 (2009)
Best Episode: "Pilot" (Ep. 101)

Do I need to explain my love for this high school musical with a black humour streak? Just don't stop believin'!


16. Desperate Housewives (ABC) - Season 1 (2004-2005)
Best Episode: "Pilot" (Ep. 101)

At it's best, the show, and especially the pilot, was a great dark satirical soap opera on the suburban lives of these desperate housewives and while it had some hiccups, the five year flashforward reinvigorated the show. Still, the first season, with the 1st mystery arc and the dark humour, worked great together.


17. The Office (NBC) - Season 3 (2006-2007)

For once, I thought the Americanized version of a show actually bettered the original UK version. I know purists will disagree but the original was TOO painful and awkward. Fascinating yes, but painful. The American version really got into its own groove in the second season mixing painfully awkward humour with a more powerful emotional impact by making it easier to relate to the office drones. By season 3, the balance had been perfected and the show really became its own entity.


18. Grey's Anatomy (ABC) - Season 2 (2005-2006)

When it was great, it was melodrama at its best.


19. Alias (ABC) - Season 1 (2001-2002)
Best Episode: "Truth Be Told (Ep. 101)

Things could not be more complicated for Sydney Bristow (a star making turn by Jennifer Garner) and the pilot episode was a wealth of information and twists and turns into her world as a secret spy living as a grad student by day. In comes spy daddy (the terrific Victor Garber) who may or may not be on her side, plus a cast of great characters in her spy world and at home, and it was the beginning of a totally wild and action packed series that eventually fell off the tracks, but boy was it fun while it was still hot.

20. The Amazing Race (CBS) - Season 2 (2002)
Best Episode: "Help Me, I'm American" (Ep. 202)

First season was brand new, but they perfected the race in the 2nd season with a perfect mix of racers including Tara and the Weasel Will, Cute brother and sister team Blake and Paige, the fabulous Danny and Oswald (who actually stopped racing to go shopping in Hong Kong AND still beat the others to the airplane), and the hunky Boston boys. Plus it's where the racers played it boldly, including the first time a team was brave enough to ask strangers for help and when the race still ended in a footrace that ended with teams so close together that it went down to the wire. Exciting and hilarious.

21. Ugly Betty (ABC) - Season 1 (2006-2007)

22. Once and Again (ABC) - Season 2 (2000-2001)

23. Entourage (HBO) - Season 2 (2005)

24. Weeds (Showtime) - Season 1 (2005)

25. Nurse Jackie (Showtime) - Season 1 (2009)

26. So You Think You Can Dance (FOX) - Season 2 (2006)

27. The OC (FOX) - Season 4 (2006-2007)

28. Better Off Ted (ABC) - Season 1 (2009)

29. The United States of Tara (Showtime) - Season 1 (2009)

30. Damages (FX) - Season 1 (2007)

31. Supernatural (TheCW) - Season 1 (2005-2006)

32. Burn Notice (USA) - Season 1 (2007)

33. Angel (TheWB) - Season 4 (2002- 2003)

34. Survivor (CBS) - Season 1

35. Bones (FOX) - Season 4 (2008-2009)

36. American Idol (FOX) - Season 1 (2002)

37. Top Chef (Bravo) - Season 6 (2009)

38. Project Runway (Bravo) - Season 4 (2007-2008)

39. Chuck - Season 1 (2007-2008)

40. Six Feet Under (HBO) - Season 1 (2001)

41. Southland (NBC/TNT) - Season 1 (2009)

42. Scrubs (NBC/ABC) - Season 2 (2002-2003)

43. Ed (NBC) - Season 1 (2000-2001)

44. Gossip Girl (TheCW) - Season 1 (2007-2008)

45. It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia (FX) - Season 1 (2005)

46. 24 (FOX) - Season 1 (2001)

47. The Big Bang Theory (CBS) - Season 2 (2008-2009)

48. How I Met Your Mother (CBS) - Season 2 (2006-2007)

49. Without a Trace (CBS) - Season 1 (2002-2003)

50. Men In Trees (ABC) - Season 1 (2006-2007)


Best Shows I Started Watching But Am Only Finished or Partway Through the First Season So I Didn't Feel I Watched Enough to Properly Place A Ranking For It But They Are So Awesome I Need to Acknowledge Them Somehow:

Breaking Bad (AMC) - Season 1 (2008)

Dexter (Showtime) - Season 1

Fringe (FOX) - Season 1

The Secret Diary of a Call Girl (SHOWTIME/ITV2) - Season 1

Shows I Know Are Good But Have Yet To See and Still on my Pile of Shows to Watch:
Big Love
BattleStar Galactica
The Wire


______________________________________

Decadeworthy - The Best of 2000-2009 Lists:
SYTYCDworthy (w/ Videos) - List Format
Theatre of the Decade
Best Films of the Decade
Favorite Films of the Decade
Television of the Decade
Television of the Decade - 1 Season Wonders

Best of 2009 Lists: Coming soon
Best of Music 2009
Best of Television 2009
Best of Stage 2009
Best of Movies 2009

Previous Best-of Lists:
Best of 2008 Lists:
Best of Music 2008
Best of Television 2008
Best of Stage 2008
Best of Movies 2008
Best of Television Fall '07 - Winter '08 List

Best of 2007 Lists:
Best of Music 2007
Best of Television 2007
Best of Movies 2007
Best of Stage 2007
Best of 2007 (The Final Wrap Up)
Best of Television Fall '06 - Winter '07 List

Best of 2006 Lists:
Best of Music 2006
Best of Television 2006
Best of Movies 2006
Best of 2006
Best of Television Fall '05 - Winter '06 List

Best of 2005 Lists:
Best of Television 2005
Best of Movies 2005



Vance at http://tapeworthy.blogspot.com

More After the Jump...

Kristen Bell Party Downz!

KRISTEN BELL is on the season finale of Party Down tonight!!! (On Starz at 10:30pm on Fridays after Head Case at 10pm, which I hear is good but haven't had the chance to check out yet. Both shows which seem to be available online on their site).



And what's with the Journey comeback? ANOTHER reference to "Don't Stop Believin'"? Is this some kind of sign for me?

but KRISTEN BELL!!! Veronica Mars! Together again with Dick Casablanca! And Vinnie Van Lowe!!!
Kristen is Uda Bengt, a rival caterer!!!:



AND Jennifer Coolidge?!!!:


I'm actually a few episodes behind on Party Down but I'm loving the series from Rob Thomas and the Veronica Mars folks AND Paul Rudd. (Yes, if you didn't know already, THE Paul Rudd is a creator and producer on this show). Plus since this show stars VM alums Ken Marino and Ryan Hansen, it's totally AWESOME (picture Hansen saying it!). Plus Adam Scott, who guested on VM as a teacher.

AND It's the OTHER show Jane Lynch is currently on. (Seriously, everything comes back to Glee this week doesn't it?). No word yet if she will continue with this series since Party Down has been picked up for a second season, which will coincide with Glee filming but I'm sure they can work it out. She can cater while they sing!

Oh, and Sulu's in the episode too! And George Takei as himself! (NSFW):



Plus I definitely want to see the outcome of this:



Vance at http://tapeworthy.blogspot.com

More After the Jump...

Tapeworthy 2000

It's my 2000th post!!!

So in the 3 years and 3 months that it's taken me to write 2000 posts, I've watched a LOT of stuff (as you may have noticed), and while the blog has expanded from its initial TV talk and as I lost my co-blogger (she found a boyfriend, moved to New Zealand and lived happily ever after. Bitch! (You know I still love ya "highbrow")), I've carried on ranting and raving about all the shows I've loved.

Since I basically write this blog just to put out my Best of Lists, I thought I'd take a look back at the shows that made it to #1 on my Best of TV lists. I however only just realized that only 3 shows have gotten that coveted spot since 2005.

Best of TV 2008
Best of TV 2007 - 2008 TV Season
Best of TV 2007
Best of TV 2006 - 2007 TV Season
Best of TV 2006
Best of TV 2005 - 2006 TV Season
Best of TV 2005

So here are the most Tapeworthy shows that were #1 on my Best of Lists since I've started the blog (in order from oldest to newest, though if you follow my blog, they're kinda obvious):

Everwood

Season 2 is FINALLY coming out June 16, 2009, 5 years after the first season DVD was released. You can watch on TheWB online in the states, or catch up on abcFamily. While the first season is a solid start, and the second season is enjoyable, it's really during the 3rd and the 4th and final season that Everwood becomes rock solid, and one of the best family dramas. And it topped my TV list during the end of its run, just as I had started this blog.

Lost

From the very first episode, and all through the first season, we were blown away as we got sucked into the lives of the surviving passengers of Oceanic 815. We discovered The Others in season 2, and while it may have gotten a little muddled around season 2 and 3, the third season finale made it all worth it and the show continued to confuse us and enthrall us during season 4. And of course, we just ended season 5, and I'm as confused as ever, and I cannot wait for more!!!

Friday Night Lights

I'm still amazed this amazingly honest and heartbreaking show still manages to be on NBC after 3 seasons (with 2 more seasons to come!). Thanks to a DirecTV partnership, the brutally realistic lives of an average Texan town are laid bare for all of us to watch, as we become as emotionally connected with the characters as they would in the townsfolks themselves.

Here are noteworthy shows that I've loved, but that just missed the top spot through the years:

Veronica Mars

I never actually put this at the top of my list but it always came mightily close in its short 3 season run. And if I had my blog a year earlier, it probably would have landed on top with its stunning first season. The second season only got deeper and richer and I'm not sure why I didn't rank it higher, because repeat viewings have not soften the gritty and witty edges of this show.

Pushing Daisies

Always a bridesmaid, the colourful show about death and life and life again never got the respect and time for growth it deserved, and had it ran longer, was probably going to top the list at some point, but alas, the show (which still has 3 episodes left to air on ABC starting later this spring, yet has aired everywhere else in the world) couldn't manage to stay alive to develop the twists and romantic turns on this mystery show.

So You Think You Can Dance

There was a lot of brilliance in this reality-tv competition and while I couldn't get into the first season, the second season sucked me in and I've never let go. From the entertaining and informative judges, the variety of thrilling choreography, and the numerous lovable dancers to root for as they get put through the choreography grind, makes the show such a fun summer watch.

The Office

While the show has faltered and risen again, the show was a splendid, superbly taut and sublime comedy especially when they managed to make their own US version its own against an already cult British original (especially during seasons 2 and 3). It always came SOOO close to topping my chart.


And here are shows that topped my list in the recent years before this blog Tapeworthy was born:

Gilmore Girls

Like a heartwarming yet sarcastic feelgood play on TV every week, and the first 6 seasons was the smartest comfort food TV since the other GG girls (The Golden Girls) were on the air. I have all the DVD's and can still watch them anytime, and I still watch it whenever I see a repeat.

Alias

Sydney Bristow kicks ass and she had an amazing team behinds her. And some great friends in her real world as spy lives, daddy issues and the blur between the good guys and the bad are blended here in an exciting and twisted first 4 seasons. It ended out messily but lets just erase that from our minds and focus on the great stuff.

Roswell

Aliens in high school but it was such an allegory for so much more, and between the emo music and the dreamy cast (I still dream of Jason Behr), the first season was beautifully written and emotionally enthralling. The following seasons lost track of its initial beauty and meaningful scripts but for the first season alone, it was all worth it.

The Amazing Race

Oh Phil! The travel porn show is always fun and exciting even during the bad seasons, but when it was great, especially when all of it was new and unknown, it was GREAT TELEVISION (especially the 2nd season).


And there are still many many many more that I haven't listed (Buffy! Arrested Development! Coupling (UK)!), some I'm still getting through (finally catching up with Dexter) but alas, that's why I've had 2000 posts to talk about them all and I'll continue to yammer away at more worthiness! Plus you can always check the sidebars including the DVDworthy section or the TVworthy sections and of course, the Tapeworthy sections for the best current shows worthy to be watched!


Best of 2008 Lists:
Best of Music 2008
Best of Television 2008
Best of Stage 2008
Best of Movies 2008
Best of Television Fall '07 - Winter '08 List

Best of 2007 Lists:
Best of Music 2007
Best of Television 2007
Best of Movies 2007
Best of Stage 2007
Best of 2007 (The Final Wrap Up)
Best of Television Fall '06 - Winter '07 List

Best of 2006 Lists:
Best of Music 2006
Best of Television 2006
Best of Movies 2006
Best of 2006
Best of Television Fall '05 - Winter '06 List

Best of 2005 Lists:
Best of Television 2005
Best of Movies 2005

Vance at http://tapeworthy.blogspot.com

More After the Jump...

Heather: Veronica, why are you pulling my dick?

Kristen Bell. Miss Gossip Girl herself? Miss Veronica Mars herself? A possible Heathers. The Musical?

I'm SOOOO there!

As for the constant Veronica Mars The Movie rumours? I won't start jumping up and down until they start filming but I would definitely pay to see Veronica reunited with papa Mars (Enrico Colantoni, now on Flashpoint) and have her trade wits with Logan Echolls' Jason Dohring.

Still, it would be SOOOOO great to finally see Bell go back to her musical roots AND live on stage.

Vance at http://tapeworthy.blogspot.com

More After the Jump...

Who Will Be Cupid's Girl?

I usually don't regularly report casting news because, well, I'm not a reporter and I'm not fast enough to catch everything during the day. Plus, I don't want to get my own hopes up for pilots that we may never see (or that will barely survive broadcast airings). I've been hurt too badly in the past (I blame you CBS. I'm still not over Love Monkey). But this news just got me too excited!:

Bobby Cannavale has been cast as Cupid, in the Rob Thomas' (Veronica Mars) remake of his own show originally starring Jeremy Piven.

That. Is brilliant casting. I wasn't sure who could be as great as Piven in a role that requires people to believe that he could be a bit freakish/psycho or the romantic cupid himself, all with comedic timing and charm, but Cannavale fits the bill!

Cannavale has proved himself in versatile roles from Third Watch, to guesting on Sex and the City, Will & Grace, and movies like The Station Agent. I always thought of Cannavale as more of a thuggish brute for some reason after Third Watch but his role in The Station Agent and then as Will's boyfriend on Will & Grace showed me how likable and charming he was. He even came up looking pretty good in the American remake of Shall We Dance. Plus he does a lot of theatre (last seen on Broadway last fall in Mauritius). Plus, he seems to take on gay roles more than the average hunky actor to shake up his beefy image. I like that. It's cool.

Now, to the important question. Who should be his Claire?

In the original, it was Paula Marshall opposite Piven's Cupid.

There are rumours it could be Kristen Bell, back for another outing with her Veronica Mars creator Rob Thomas. She's apparently mulling over working with Thomas again, but since he has 3 pilots in the works (the other two being the 90210 remake (which she had BETTER not take) and Good Behavior, a remake of the Australian show Outrageous Fortune (which Jace at Televisionary, who has read the pilot, can't see a role that would fit Bell), we don't know for sure which show she's being courted for. Either way, Bell with Rob Thomas? In perhaps Cupid? That. Would. Be. AWESOME!

But another suggestion on the boards were for Julie Bowen, which would be more suitable in age, and if you've read my Boston Legal or Lost posts, I love me some Ed alums and I LOVE Julie Bowen.

Who else would be good for the role?

More Bobby Cannavale photos after the jump. You know, just to fill space...

Bobby Cannavale and Peter Dinklage in The Station Agent:

Bobby Cannavale and Eric McCormack in Will & Grace:

Cannavale from his Third Watch days:

More After the Jump...

I Heart Cupid

Who cares about the 90210 remake. Especially when ABC just greenlit Veronica Mars creator Rob Thomas' other project revamp, a remake of Cupid!!! Now if only they can steal Jeremy Piven back from his Entourage.

Cupid was one of those shows I loved that no one saw, with a pre-Entourage Piven from a pre-Veronica Mars Rob Thomas.

More After the Jump...

Oh Brother.

Um, how did I forget to mention that Daddy Keith Mars (Enrico Colantoni) was on Brothers & Sisters as well this week? And that he's being coyly set up to be Saul's new boyfriend?

What the?

Daddy Mars and Sloan? An item? As Dan from TiFaux informed me of the pairing, that's just... weird.

Anyways, other than meeting the fantastic Liz from GlowyBox and Dan from TiFaux in person (who were even cooler and attractive in person than I could have hoped but I guess it makes sense since it matches their awesome blogs and I'm not just saying that to suck up), my life is a changing a bit this week as I start a new job today, one where I might actually have to do some work (and not blog all day because I know I can get away with it... ahem). So I may be a little sporadic in my blogging over the next while (at least there isn't that much new TV to report on anyways), especially this week since I've been slowly moving into my new place over the last two weeks but now I must REALLY make the final move, now that I have to start working again (ah, nothing puts pressure on procrastination like time running out)(and that's in addition to my weekend side gig) and the pressure is on.

On the good news side, it's on a project with a two time Oscar winner and a critically acclaimed indie movie director. The bad news is that I'm still just a small plebe in the clogs of the movie biz so it won't be me standing at the Oscar podium in 2010. (You'll just have to wait until about 2018 to see the real me, I'll find a way! Even if I have to rush the stage).

So I guess with a (most likely) future scheduling conflict, I won't be returning to the Canadian TV show I was working on (which I will publicly say was NOT Battlestar Galactica just to save people the possible excitement and then letdown (sorry Dan, plus, technically BS is not Canadian. Our budgets would only allow for Battlestar A Bit)) for the past 2 years (just after I started this blog) so I'm not sure what's going to happen this year. Then again, I did start this blog on a previous film (with 2 Oscar nominees in front of the screen and one behind! Just saying) and we were bored out of our minds then (everything was actually going right so my job of essentially being there for emergencies basically gave us a lot of free time) so maybe I will have the time here, though it's not sounding like it.

More After the Jump...

Best of Television 2007

Say what you want about the writers strike or the fall being the worst fall ever (it wasn't, may I remind you about Homeboys In Outer Space?) but it was another good year in TV. So good that I still have yet to make time to catch up on shows I hear are excellent but I don't have US cable so I never started and am waiting for moments to get to the DVD marathon (Dexter, Battlestar Galactica, Big Love, The Wire, Damages, The Riches, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia etc.).

On a side note, my selections for the Best of TV 2007 were also calculated into ModFab's The Best Television of 2007 list.

So here is the Best of Television 2007, with the ranking from the two previous lists (Best of TV - Fall 2006/Winter 2007 Season, and Best of TV 2006) in parenthesis.

1. Friday Night Lights (1, 3) - Like peaking into a real slice of America and watching the tiny dramas that unfold for the real people of a small town who hinge their hopes and dreams off the success and failures of their high school football team. It's more real than reality TV.


2. Pushing Daisies (New) - A delightfully morbid and fanciful dream that lives in some strange and colourful world full of magic touches.


3. Ugly Betty (4, 9) - Campy and heartfelt. Overdramatic and hilarious. Zippy and shocking, and very gay gay gay.


4. Lost (2, 6) - At its simplest form, it's an amazing character drama that slowly peels away at the layers of human relationships and the human soul. Add the whole mystery and shocking twist in the season finale for bonus points.


5. 30 Rock (10, Not Ranked) - Zany and twisted that still seems sweet in that New York bitter type of way. This is one wacked out comedy and all the better for it.


6. Weeds (7, 8) - As if you didn't think Nancy Botwin could get in any more trouble. Or funny. Or heartbreaking.


7. Veronica Mars (5, 5) - It was unceremoniously dumped by The CW and the network didn't help by hacking down its season long mystery arch into smaller plots, but the spirit of Veronica Mars showed more power than Dawn Ostroff ever could so even on a bad day, Veronica Mars was very very good.


8. Chuck (New) - A fun and thrilling ride led by the immensely likable Zachary Levi as Chuck, the hapless nerd herd now thrown into the milieu of the spy world, with a trusting family at home (Ellie, Morgan, Captain Awesome) and a questionably trusting spy family he must now deal with (Sarah, Casey).


9. Aliens in America (New) - A biting look at family politics, American values, our social customs and prejudices and what America looks as a whole to a naive foreigner. Oh, and it's really really funny.


10. The Office / Mad Men (2/New, 2) - Office politics both new and old and while the styling, decor and surface attitudes might have changed, the underlying politics and human desires haven't.


11. So You Think You Can Dance (Not Eligible, 16) - Yes, we think they can!


12. How I Met Your Mother (6, 10) - While it hasn't had as steady of a laugh diet as previously, when this show is ON, it is completely ON. If you don't believe me, I'll just have to slap you.


13. Brothers & Sisters (9, 18) - A terrific melodrama that verges on comedy and soap opera antics rarely falling overboard and just teetering just on the brink of each element.


14. Project Runway / Project Runway Canada (13/New, 14) - A reality show where the competition is creation, with or without the drama, it's always fun to watch.


15. Bones (14, 20) - The sole procedural that makes it onto my list because despite the morbid cases, it's one of the most humanizing and romantic shows on television.


16. Entourage (Not Eligible, 15) - It still hasn't returned to Season 2 glory but the boys were back from filming Medellin and while the director became tedious, everything else was still happy-go-lucky fun, just as the boys are.


17. The New Adventures of Old Christine (11, 17) - A traditional family four camera sitcom can still be funny as long as the material and the actors are fresh and interesting and Christine is both new and old in the best sense of the words.


18. The OC / Gossip Girl (12/New, Not Ranked) - The OC rebounded by killing Mischa Barton's Marissa Cooper off and bumping Autumn Reeser as Taylor Townsend into the forefront and who would have guessed it was their best move since the first season? As The OC came to a close, the drama moved back east to New York where gossip prevailed and Blake Lively and Penn Badgely have taken the reigns to another enjoyable soap about pretty people with ugly problems.


19. Men In Trees (16, Not Ranked) - It's always been comfort food television and it knows it, but by dealing frankly with all sorts of subjects (gays, prostitutes, religion), it manages to be enjoyable light fluff without being dumb.


20. Desperate Housewives / House (Not Ranked/Not Ranked, Not Ranked/Not Ranked) - Two shows I was about to write off came returning in the new season all freshly scrubbed and with more drama and hysterics to deal with, all with a fresh comedic return to their season one glory days.


Shows Fallen off the Top 20: Heroes, Scrubs, My Name Is Earl
Shows on the rise again: House, Desperate Housewives, Grey's Anatomy, The Amazing Race, Survivor (China)
Solid Shows that are still Tapeworthy: Supernatural, My Boys, Everybody Hates Chris, The Big Bang Theory, Samantha Who? , Notes From The Underbelly, Greek, Top Chef, Corner Gas

ModFab had also asked me to add in my picks for the best performances (individually or cast) so since I'm moving my Best Newcomers list until later this season (mainly because I haven't had time), here was what I submitted for:

Best 5 Performances of 2007:

1. The Casts of my Top 5 Shows, Friday Night Lights, Pushing Daisies, Ugly Betty, Lost and 30 Rock. Each show has amazing writing, are visually stunning and are terrifically entertaining but they also all rank in my top 5 because they all have amazing casts that are rock solid so I'm cheating here by grouping them all together but I wanted to leave room for people not in my top 5 shows, because if I didn't, Connie Britton, Zach Gilford, Kyle Chandler, Gaius Charles, Adrianne Palicki, Scott Porter, Jesse Plemons, Aimee Teegarden, Taylor Kitsch, Minka Kelly, Lee Pace, Kristen Chenowith, Chi McBride, Anna Friel, Ellen Greene, Swoosie Kurtz, America Ferrera, Vanessa Williams, Michael Urie, Becky Newton, Eric Mabius, Christopher Gorham, Mark Indelicato, Anna Ortiz, Ashley Jensen, Rebecca Romijn, Judith Light, Michael Emerson, Yunjin Kim, Matthew Fox, Terry O'Quinn, Josh Holloway, Dominic Monaghan, Jorge Garcia, Naveen Andrews, Evangeline Lily, Elizabeth Mitchell, Henry Ian Cusick, Daniel Dae Kim, Emilie de Ravin, Tina Fey, Alec Baldwin, Tracy Morgan, Jane Krakowski, Scott Adsit, Judah Friedlander and Jack McBrayer would all top my list.

2. Kristen Bell - Whether she's Veronica Mars, being a total Gossip Girl, or being Heroes to us, Ms. Bell adds a spark to the television screen that is just indescribably awesome.

3. The Cast of Brothers & Sisters - The show is basically a really good trashy dramatic soap acted by an A list ensemble. Only Sally Field and Patricia Wettig can turn a full out food fight with spaghetti being thrown around into something comically shocking and artfully dramatic. Calista Flockhart has graciously shared the screen time with Rob Lowe, and connected in incredible family dynamics with brothers and sisters Matthew Rhys, Rachel Griffiths, Dave Annable, Balthazar Getty and Emily VanCamp.

4. Adhir Kalyan and Amy Pietz on Aliens in America - If Adhir plays the "alien" Raja with a deep sense of proper morals on a easy going and lovable naive note, Pietz plays the surprised American mom with feisty zest and a do-right attitude even when she doesn't always do right. He's the zenful ying to her energetic yang and the pair, with a terrific Dan Byrd as the connector in between, gives this show the spark and the heart of the show.

5. Mary-Louise Parker on Weeds - Again, the whole cast is amazing, from Elizabeth Perkins and Justin Kirk to Romany Malco and Tonye Patano, but Mary-Louise Parker singlehandidly anchors the show with her devastating performance. Devastatingly funny. Devastatingly soulful. Devastatingly desperate. Devastatingly damn good!

Best of 2007 Lists:
Best of Music 2007
Best of Television 2007
Best of Movies 2007
Best of Stage 2007
Best of 2007 (The Final Wrap Up)

Previous Best-of Lists:
Best of Music 2006
Best of Television Fall '06 - Winter '07 List
Best of Television 2006
Best of Movies 2006
Best of 2006

Best of Television Fall '05 - Winter '06 List
Best of Television 2005
Best of Movies 2005

More After the Jump...