TV Favorites of 2005
01-19-2006
by Aaron Dicer

I love television… a lot.  So much, in fact, that I recently had to sit down with a pen and paper and methodically chip away at the 42 or so hours of shows I was trying to digest per week.  I know what you are thinking, you’re thinking, “He doesn’t really know what I’m thinking.” But beyond that, you are probably thinking that I have way too much time on my hands, thus the pen and paper.  So now I’ve cut it down to 23 hours or so, and since I Tivo everything it really only amounts to 16, maybe 15 once the commercials are skipped (consider that, 8 minutes out of every half hour of TV is commercial, what a waste), and of course not everything airs every week, so you could probably subtract another 4… OK, you win, I still watch too much TV.  Here are my favorites from this past year.

Honorable Mentions

Alias – Usually in my Top 5, this year was down as Jennifer Garner’s pregnancy kept her from being the super agent we all know and love.  The only reason I include it at all is that the last few episodes of the year started to really pull things together and tie up all those lose ends from every season.  It looks like my old Rambaldi notebook might just come in handy after all.

CSI: Miami – More fun than a bag of hammers (or was that dumber than a barrel of monkeys?).  This one is more of a guilty pleasure than anything else.  I know it’s corny, I know it’s overacted, but I… just… can’t… look… away.  Horatio has to be the coolest guy on TV.  You can tell by the way he takes his sunglasses off every episode with such purpose.  I mean, I haven’t seen sunglass removal work this good week in and week out since the immaculate deshadings of Officer Francis Llewellyn Poncherello on CHiPs.  (Google it kids, it worth it just to hear the theme song.)

Extreme Home Makeover – Yes, I know it’s really called “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition”, but that’s just way too wordy.  In fact they should probably drop the dated words Extreme and Makeover and just call it “Home” but then it might get confused with number 3 on my list.  It doesn’t matter what they call it, because it is one of the most emotional and powerful hours of TV.  I love the fact that the peeps at EHM understand the difference between just giving people nicer material possessions and using material possessions to positively impact peoples lives.

The Top Ten:

10.  The Simpsons – Sometimes I think the show deserves credit for just still being around into it’s 17th season (yeah, you heard me, 17) But the reason it’s on my list is because as other shows lose momentum and get lazy, these guys continue to write the sharpest, most poignant satire on TV.  It’s a weekly look at what makes our culture tick and isn’t afraid to point it’s lens at anyone who could use a little skewering. (and yes, that includes us Christians).  If we can’t laugh at ourselves, then we really shouldn’t be laughing.

9.  Arrested Development – Speaking of laughing (which I guess is better than laughing at speaking, that would just be rude.), I do most of mine when the Bluth family is on.  I’m shocked on two levels that this has been cancelled.  First, that after three hilarious seasons and a few Emmys and Golden Globes it hasn’t caught on with more than the 7 million or so who watch it every week, and second that FOX can’t make money with a product that 7 MILLION PEOPLE WATCH EVERY WEEK.  There is definitely something wrong with the system.

8.  Prison Break – I’ve often said that the two crucial elements to a great TV series are concept and characters.  This is the show that proves it.  The acting and writing both leave a lot to be desired, but the basic premise of a man tattooing escape instructions to his body for a prison he helped design, to then be intentionally incarcerated to lead his Death Row brother out, I mean, seriously, how could you not watch this?

7.  24 – The most tortuous show on TV (in more ways than one), I am in utter pain waiting the full seven days to see what happens next.  I’m convinced that FOX is doing these non-stop seasons of 24 (where they air new episodes every week instead of taking time off like most series) because too many people were being shipped out to insane asylums when they heard the promo announcer say, “In three weeks, on a new 24…”.  My fingernails are just now recovering from Jack Bauer’s latest escapade, just in time for Season 5.

6. Survivor: Guatamala – This is the only edition of Survivor (besides the pitiful Survivor All-Stars, which I still refuse to actually classify as Survivor) to fall outside of my Top 5 shows of any year.  To see Steph and Bobby Jon again was nice, but it got annoying real quick, and I wasn’t even convinced the winner, Donni?... Denni?... Danni? was even on the show until the last episode.  Still, Survivor almost always delivers great drama and the episode where Gary found the hidden Immunity Idol was one of the best hours of TV I saw all year.

5. CSI – Still a great show and still a great concept (even if the two namesakes are diluting it a bit) but what made this past season special was Quentin Tarantino’s unbelievable season finale.  It was absolutely the most amazing TV experience of the year and it left me exhausted and invested in the Vegas gang more than I had ever been before.  The DVDs of last season are worth buying for that episode alone.

4.  My Name is Earl – I love the heart of this show even if the foundation is quite a bit off.  Jason Lee has never been better and he is flanked by the great performances of Jamie Pressley (his ex) and Ethan Suplee (his brother).   Great concept, great characters, works every time.

3.  House – I think they call it a dramedy (which I suppose is because comma was already taken), and it basically means a show is both a comedy and a drama.  House fits both worlds just fine, meaning you are just as likely to laugh out loud as you are to teeter on the edge of your seat with suspense.  Hugh Laurie plays the titular character, Dr. Gregory House, to perfection, as a cranky, mad-man, doctor who cares more about fixing patients than those pesky morals/ethics.  You will never have more fun debating right and wrong than in watching this genius show.

2. Survivor: Palau – Otherwise known as the Tom Westman show, the tough and ready NY Fireman who took on a strong leadership role and yet somehow nobody sees straight enough to vote him out before it’s too late.  The man killed a shark with a pointy stick, people, he’s not gonna hand you the game, which I guess is why they handed it to him.  A season also made wonderful by the absolute desolation of one of the tribes.  Congrats Steph, you are the last remaining Survivor on your tribe, too bad there are still 7 other people left on the other one.  Probably one of the top 5 Survivor seasons ever.

1. Lost – It’s not even close.  There is simply nothing on TV like it.   No other show even comes close to matching the talent and depth in this series.  It requires investment, brainpower, and deftly explores so many of the issues that make us human.  It’s also amazing how the show remains so mysterious, while at the same time continuing to directly answer so many questions each week.  I’m not sure how long they can keep this level of excellence up, but as long as they do, Jack, Kate, Locke, Sawyer, Hurley, Charlie, Claire, Michael, Sayid, the Tailies, and the others will be part of my home’s weekly Wednesday diet.  (OK, I just counted the words in each of the preceding six sentences and now I’m really freaked out, maybe I really should give up TV for a while.)

(Aaron Dicer is Program Director and does the morning show at 101.7 “The Fuse”, in Saginaw, Michigan.  He has also spoken around the country at youth events and seminars on how a Christian can interact with culture in a positive way. Every Week he will offer a new review on a TV show, Movie, or other piece of pop culture.  You can hear him at wprj.org, read more articles at hookedonsiphonics.com, or be his friend at myspace.com/aarondicer.  Questions, comments, opinions, ideas? Email him at dice@cmcentral.com)