Desert Island Top 5: Television Series

Let's face it.  Television, for the most part, sucks.  Series creators and network execs alike seem to have a very limited imagination.  Just channel surf through the major networks during prime time.  You get three cop shows, two legal shows and at least one "reality" show.  If it weren't for these five television series, I'd never turn my TV on.

5. The X-Files.  This was the first "must see" show for me and one I diligently watched as a lad.  The ongoing and ever bizarre adventures of two FBI agents - one a believer, the other a skeptic - could be appreciated by fans of cop dramas as well as sci-fi, horror and fantasy geeks alike.  Whether they were investigating alien abductions, murderous mutants, or any other myriad of evil forces plaguing mankind, everything was a fascinating and deeply-rooted conspiracy.  The series went on way too long and spun off two decent movies, but it's the series' first few seasons that made me a believer.

4. Sons of Anarchy.  Think Hamlet meets the Hell's Angels and you have Sons of Anarchy.  The show focuses on a gun-running motor cycle gang.  The cast is huge, comprised of fine actors and expertly written characters.  The plotting is byzantine, peeling away layer upon layer of character dysfunction and upheaval within the gang's ranks.  The show both glamorizes and condemns the outlaw lifestyle.  It's a brief, bloody existence, but - BY GOD - does it make for riveting television!  It's edge-of-your-seat entertainment, having already established that main characters can meet their bloody demise at any moment.  It is, currently, the best show on television.

3. Buffy: The Vampire Slayer.  Here's an idea.  Let's take a failed movie and turn it into a weekly television series.  Don't think it will work?  Well, it did, like gangbusters!  Joss Whedon took his vision of a vampire slaying teenage girl and turned it into a cultural phenomena and helped launch a fledgling network in the process.  The show sported fantastic writing and a great ensemble cast.  Buffy juggled her duties as vampire slayer with the perils of growing up in a most entertaining and relate-able way.  High school is hell; she's in love with a guy from the wrong side of the tracks (yeah, he's a vampire); and all the demons she's obligated to face are symbolic of the obstacles we all face(d) on the path to adulthood.  The lasting impact of the show and the continued devotion from its fans spawned a comic book series that continues the Buffy legacy well over a decade after the series last aired.

2. The Simpsons.  What can I say about The Simpsons that hasn't already been said?  The fact that it's one of the longest running series in television history is no fluke.  Year after year, The Simpsons have been consistently both hilarious and heartfelt in their depiction of family dysfunction.  The animated series has been imitated time and time again, and has enjoyed, since the beginning, some of the best comedic writing on television.  The show has brought me to tears countless times with its brilliant blend of both slapstick and subtle humor.  Whenever The Simpsons do take their final bow, the show will be remembered as one of, if not the, best series in television history.

1. The Office (US).  Who in their right mind would want to watch a documentary about a group of office workers at a mid-range paper supply company in Scranton, PA?  Enough people to keep the series going for nine seasons, that's how many.  Enter the world of the Dunder Mifflin Paper Company, a small work space with big conflicts among its colorful cast of characters, led by deluded boss Michael Scott.  The series highlights the little things and pokes fun at the minutia that makes up our lives.  The series features one of the finest ensemble casts in television history.  The writing staff, many of whom double as cast members, bring the ego clashes, love triangles and all the other seemingly mundane details to life with an incredible eye, dissecting the trivial to find the humor and heart beneath.  I've seen all of the series' nearly 200 episodes at least twice.  It's like having dinner with a group of old friends.  Though you inevitably bring up the same old stories you've shared time and time again, they never really get old and you never really get tired of sharing them.

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Share your own Desert Island Top 5 Television Series list in the comments section below.

DISCLAIMER: Before you starting yelling at me about Breaking Bad, I will get around to watching it at some point.