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FINISHED | Allstar's Best Of 2014
Member Since: 12/21/2010
Posts: 51,088
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Valerie. ****ing. Cherish.
So glad our tastes align per usual. That last scene of The Comeback was just
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ATRL Contributor
Member Since: 9/2/2011
Posts: 21,728
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I love your descriptions! They're so well written and you have such brilliant thoughts.
I don't usually watch dramas but I'm happy to see Parks & Rec, Veep, and Modern Family as some of your favourite comedies. I want to get into Girls too, so maybe I'll try that next.
Also glad to see The Good Wife & Louie
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Member Since: 1/25/2012
Posts: 44,884
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LOL. brehbreh you watch so many shows.
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Member Since: 10/2/2011
Posts: 43,174
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I think you're the one who posted a video of The Comeback in LesATRLers' thread and woooo I gave a watch to some episodes and it's really good
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Member Since: 5/23/2007
Posts: 65,087
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Didn't watch any TV show in 2014 need to check them out!
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Member Since: 11/20/2010
Posts: 29,258
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Top TV Dramas
#5 - Olive Kitteridge
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I long contemplated about whether or not including 'Olive Kitteridge' on my countdown at all. A mini-series with only four installments taking away spots of shows that had to spread their material on the course of a longer run doesn't seem quite fair but it would have also been oblivious to not include it seeing as it's one of the most important shows to me personally ever. So here it is, a four-hour long HBO mini-series stealing the spotlight.
'Olive Kitteridge' is based on the same-titled book and a collection of short stories about characters set in a small town in Maine which are all connected through appearances of our protagonist - the crabby, permanently cynical, grumpy and insensitive title character who seems to hate everyone and everything. She's a woman whose sarcastic response to her husband saying she'd never apologized to him in over 40 years is 'Sorry, sorry, sorry' implying to get over it. She knows what a difficult woman she is but never ever would she apologize for it let alone a thought like this crossing her mind. A woman who smiles when her husband's very young assistant (and secret crush) accidentally runs over the kitten he gave her.
It's a problematic character to write a book or have a show revolve around and could only be made relatable and watchable by someone who's perfected the art of acting and so it comes as no surprise that Frances McDormand does this multi-layered and complex part justice delivering the best performance of 2014, whether we're talking about tv or film.
It's incredibly miserable, depressing and pessimistic as you would consider a show like this to be. That makes 'Olive Kitteridge' a very hard watch but more than anything one that can definitely enrichen your view on life and re-consider your own feelings about happiness or depression.
We're being left in the believe that the best dramas are always those with interesting and sufficient character development. This show proves that a character study about a stubborn and never-changing person can be just as gripping. 'Olive Kitteridge' is a contemplation about some of life's most important subjects and a show that has touched me and meant as much to me as only few have ever done.
Best Episodes: "Pharmacy"; Incoming Tide"; "A Different Road"; "Security"
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Member Since: 11/20/2010
Posts: 29,258
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#4 - True Detective
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When I first heard of this project I wasn't as wildly anticipating it as someone else to whom I often ruminate about shows and movies. Ironically enough, I ended up liking this show much more than her. It somehow straight-up appealed to me for various reasons. I loved the ongoing talk of Rust's nihilistic views on life. I loved how deeply it went into its thematical views and how every single bit of the show seemed thoroughly thought out. Rust and Cohle being polar opposites in many ways both wanting and resenting what the other one has; the storytelling device of flashforwards being used extremely progressively; all the symbols and metaphors having thematical depth behind them; etc. Its mood and views just insantly resonated with me.
Furthermore, 'True Detective' is one of the most well-acted shows this year with McAngelo delivering career-best work, Harrelson easily being able to live up to his peer and Monaghan being the perfect support to these two men. Aside from the strong writing and flawless production value, there's also the directing which was brilliant at times, like making a 6 minute tracking shot work so fluently.
Moreover, Rust was one of this year's best characters tv has seen and the eye-opening moment in which our usually so depressing and pessimstic protagonist declared the war of "light vs dark" as a victory for light was one of my personal favorite character moments all year. I could personally resonate a lot with such a dark show that still saw some good in life as this view correlates with my own.
So how come that a crime show so fine in almost every aspect couldn't live up in that very one it should have had? Its plot. I had long discussions about this already so I'll try to cut this shorter.
I'm confident the writers were intentionally putting the crime story on a lower pedestal to get across how ordinary crime in real life is and how most of real life crime stories aren't all one big mystery. The fact that they could have given its audience the pleasure of resolving all answers in the finale but intentionally shied away from doing so by turning off the news in the end still validates me that's what they were going for all along.
Unfortunately, though, during its last episodes True Detective almost exclusively focused on the crime story and while superbly told there was no originality or big depth hidden behind the show's plot or premise. It's easy to only look at all the things the show did right but when it takes a lot of time and lingers around in its weak spots so much there's no excuse to be made.
At first, it seemed this show might end up being the best of the year but it simply couldn't live up to the standards set by itself plummeting in quality later on. And sadly (or luckily), this year just saw more better shows arriving afterwards. Ultimately, though, 'True Detective' is one of my personal favorite shows of the year and if this countdown was only going after my favorite picks it most likely would have ranked even higher.
Best Episodes: "The Locked Room"; "Who Goes There"; "The Secret Fate of All Life"
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Member Since: 11/20/2010
Posts: 29,258
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#3 - The Americans
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'The Americans' is an FX spy drama about a Russian couple working undercover in America. It is, however, so much more than its premise seems to suggest on paper. This show is certainly very strong when it comes to the spy part of it but what puts it above everything else are different subject matters. What's it like being a parent? What are one's responsibilites and how do you stay true to yourself? What does it mean to be a spouse or a husband?
I feel like I've said this quite a few times during my countdown already but when I say that 'The Americans' upgraded heavily with its second season this is the time I mean it the most. Its debut was solid but I don't think any of us were prepared for or could have predicted that the same show would become one of the most complex and emotionally anchored series of 2014 all the while also being by no doubt the most suspenseful one of them all.
Maybe the first season had to be "just solid" in order to move our spies' marriage to a place for things to work out the way they now have. What once used to be a marriage of convenience for two "colleagues" to keep their undercover identities intact and come off as typical, credible Americans living the dream suddenly became a relationship much more real than either had probably ever suspected it to transform into. As the cracks became more apparent and trust issues were then present both started to have serious doubts about their aspirations in lives and had to deal with the big question of how real their love actually is. As our protagonists' struggles and problems turned this shockingly real they also found themselves becoming much worse at their professions and now for the first time ever had things to lose in every aspect of their lives leading to several soft and vulnerable spots for the enemy to attack. Thus, we were provided a strong plot all season that doesn't lack a bit in tight pacing, surprising twists that never put a damper on previous situations or gripping action sequences.
Furthermore, 'The Americans' depiction of this couple's two children is magnificient. Paige is a real girl maturing into a woman and feels every bit as multi-dimensional as she should be. Unlike say Jill Garvey from 'The Leftovers' Paige's struggles are real and relatable. Things got even more interesting when her brother but especially Paige herself got more and more sucked up into the rich arms of American capitalism and culture while their parents - our two spies still dancing a bumpy marital walz - can only do so much to protect them from these. Although, do their kids really have to be saved from America or is it just their instinct of obligatory loyalty making them believe so? After all the two protagonists have been mostly carelessly living in the US for decades themselves.
Because all the personal thematics are so poignant and effective it's easy to overlook the loaded political context the show holds within its core on top of everything. Casting various shadows on patriotism, national identity and allegiance 'The Americans' always provides subtle critical commentary on either political system and culture - the US' and the Soviet Union's - as well as making interesting points on all these subject matters.
The show's versatile cast spending life to what may be the most interesting supporting characters of last year has to be applauded as well: The beautiful Annet Mahendru as a working double agent who gets caught in a web of lies or Noah Emmerich as the FBI agent who happens to live next door and after a turn of events is forced to re-think all of his notions and previous life choices. However, it is Keri Russel and Matthew Rhys, our lead actress and actor, whose performances were definitely amongst the most versatile last year that shine so brightly.
With its second season the writers and showrunners have crafted 'The Americans' into a show about the miracle and the price of loyalty and carried on a complicated yet cohesive vision that put the show into the very best of an already strong year.
Best Episodes: "Comrades"; "The Deal"; "Behind the Red Door"; "New Car"; "Operation Chronicle"; "Echo"
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Member Since: 11/20/2010
Posts: 29,258
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#2 - Mad Legends
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It's sad how 'Mad Men' has been on top of its game for so long that everybody seems to have taken for granted and forgotten how actually astonishingly beautiful and superbly crafted it actually is. Well, maybe not forgotten but they've certainly come to a point where this strong level of quality is just to be expected from AMC's top drama and unfortunately therefore aren't giving it enough credit for its revolutionary consistency anymore.
Don Draper is inarguably one of the most compelling, complex and interesting fictional characters to have been created on any kind of platform and so it makes sense that the end of his journey doesn't miss out on intelligence, deep and thought-provoking pondering and messages about human's ability to change that are worth ruminating over. Peggy. Don's counterpart, might have sat in the back more than we were used to but eventually her journey that at times fully mirrors and at other times completely contradicts Don's personal journey got to where we always had hoped it was headed. In the first part of its final installment, season 7A, 'Mad Men' might have had a few bumps here and there but that is strictly only because this drama has started branching out of its comfortable yet powerful period setting and dared new brave and experimential episodes. If these mean that we're getting a dead character played by Broadway legend Robert Morse singing a gleefully ode to life or an entire episode ('The Monolith') dedicated to genius Kubrick's masterpiece '2001: A Space Odyssey" then why the hell not? At least the writers can say that even at their most unconventional all references and tries are being used to express some kind of message about life - something only ~ two other current shows can brag about.
What's especially noteworthy and to be applauded is that 'Mad Men' might have delivered its best episode so far and that after 7 years. Even if it's not the show's best episode the last two hours are certainly amongst the best of this drama and it's just a marvelous thing to see a show reaching a new peak so late into its game and close to the end.
As the final season has gained most of its momentum at the very end I have no doubt that 7B is going to be an even stronger and most likely very memorable conclusion to what is widely regarded as one of the greatest series of all time. Even if it's true that the ending Matthew Weiner has had planned from the beginning won't be satisfying to anyone we can be sure that he'll stay true to his own vision and thus are going to be rewarded with what I expect to be the most profound ending a show's ever had.
Best Episodes: "A Day's Work"; "The Monolith"; "The Strategy"; "Waterloo"
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Member Since: 11/20/2010
Posts: 29,258
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#1 - Transparent
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My, oh my. Who would have thought that Amazon would deliver a show like this? One that's instantly better than anything Netflix has produced so far and a show that is so revolutionary and has almost no source material to be inspired from ending up delivering just as strongly as it should have. 'Transparent' - the very first show ever to see a transgender character as its protagonist - is the best show of the year for me because its bravery was combined with actually strong material throughout ten consistent and almost perfect episodes.
Despite such a heavy main focus 'Transparent' is still so thematically rich that there is some relatability and resonance to be found for everyone. It speaks on raw family dynamics, brothers and sisters, on the complexity of marriage and love, sexuality and religion. It tangents topics such as the music industry in L.A. or drugs. This show has delivered so many beautiful moments, so many heart-wrenching and depressing scenes and could make you laugh and cry simultaneously. I'm just so grateful for having been gifted with an emotional experience such as this webseries has been for me during a month where there seemed to be nothing else great on tv. Jeffrey Tambor delivered what was probably the best male performance on any platform as well and I'm not saying that because of my love for tv shows. I love movies but no actor this year blossomed up as wonderfully as Tambor in his role and could give such a rollercoaster ride of a performance and provide his character with all the depth, problematics, pride and struggle it needed.
There's really not much to say about 'Transparent' anymore. Its messages are very subtle and easy to understand for everyone which is one of its strongest qualities. And yet behind every scene, every moving frame or still there is still a layer of depth hidden to underline the show's ambition and emotions. Strangely enough it's still not gathered as much buzz amongst the public as one would expect considering its originality and huge acclaim but that doesn't mean it's become something everybody should watch the minute it premiered. Wonderful.
Best Episodes: "Pilot"; "Best New Girl"; "Looking Up"
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Member Since: 11/20/2010
Posts: 29,258
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BEST TV EPISODES
- Mad Men Waterloo
- Masters of Sex Fight
- Hannibal Mizumono
- Mad Men The Strategy
- The Comeback Valerie Gets What She Really Wants
- Transparent Brave New Girl
- The Americans Echo
- True Detective Who Goes There
- Fargo Buridans Ass
- Rectify Unhinged
- True Detctive The Secret Fate of All Life
- The Honourable Woman The Ribbon Cutter
- The Missing Return to Eden
- The Mountain and the Viper Game of Thrones
- The Good Wife The Last Call
- Episode Five The Affair
- The Fall In Summation
- Homeland Halfway to a Donut
- The Leftovers - Guest
- Get the Rope The Knick
- Girls Flo
- Review - Pancakes, Divorce, Pancakes
- The Walking Dead Consumed
- Rectify Donald the Normal
- Shameless Theres The Rub
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Member Since: 11/20/2010
Posts: 29,258
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TV channels with multiple entries:
- HBO - 13
- FX - 7
- BBC - 6
- Showtime - 5
- Netflix - 3
- NBC - 3
- ABC - 3
- AMC - 2
- Sundance - 2
- Comedy Central - 2
- CW - 2
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Member Since: 8/19/2013
Posts: 11,808
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YASS @ this flawless taste
I just started Transparent
I'm on episode 7 and I'm ****ing loving it
A lot of your TV shows are actually on my list too
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I can't wait to play the lead in Allstar's first full-length, feature film
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Member Since: 9/4/2012
Posts: 23,263
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ATRL Moderator
Member Since: 10/17/2011
Posts: 20,487
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I'm so glad Transparent was #1. Thank you for suggesting that to me ages ago, love it.
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Member Since: 12/14/2011
Posts: 21,274
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Does Mad Men have a whole season left to air?
What is Transparent about, specifically?
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Member Since: 11/20/2010
Posts: 29,258
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Quote:
Originally posted by Kang.
Does Mad Men have a whole season left to air?
What is Transparent about, specifically?
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Half a season (7 more episodes).
In the main focus stans Maura's coming out to her family and their reactions and Maura fully embracing her new life but each of the siblings also deals with their own problems so family dynamics play a big part as well.
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Member Since: 12/14/2011
Posts: 21,274
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OMG
My mom's name is Maura
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ATRL Contributor
Member Since: 8/8/2008
Posts: 21,933
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Allstar I love this list. Would u mind making this into a word document? And I watched the comeback and it was so good.
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Member Since: 10/2/2011
Posts: 43,174
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The Americans
HBO slaying a bit
My dear Bruno slaying a lot more
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