"TV worth watching" is the name of critic David Bianculli's website that celebrates what's good about television programming. It wasn't all that long ago that Mr. Bianculli wouldn't have had much interesting content to review.
It used to be hip to say "I don't watch TV." In the early 1980s, small-screen time for some was limited to watching those creative music videos on MTV, snobbily dodging the likes of The Cosby Show, Family Ties, and The A-Team.
Times have changed. TV's quality bar--which includes network, cable, and services like Netflix, the iTunes Store, Amazon Video, and Hulu, which offer old and new programming that can be viewed on a flatscreen HDTV as well as a computer screen or a smartphone--has been raised from so-so to superlative, with respected film actors like Kevin Bacon, Claire Danes, Robin Wright, Kevin Spacey, Kerry Washington, Matthew McConaughey, Bryan Cranston, James Spader and Zooey Deschanel standing alongside stars who gained fame on TV such as Idris Elba, Jon Hamm, Benedict Cumberbatch, Louis C.K., Aziz Ansari, and that bunch from Downton Abbey. And the best shows aren't all on premium cable anymore.
So what are we watching? Here's a sampling of answers from assorted Arkansans:
I'm very selective about what I watch. I don't have cable so I search out my subject matter.
I am a lover of documentaries because I enjoy seeing both sides of an issue or an event. And I have always been intrigued with the underlying stories about what makes people tick. I just finished watching Making a Murderer (Netflix). And I am currently watching The Roosevelts (PBS).
I am watching Damages (which ran from 2007-2012 on FX, now on Netflix, as are many older series). I'm a fan of legal dramas and a big fan of Ted Danson; that's probably why I have enjoyed it so much. I am also watching Grace and Frankie (Netflix) because it makes me laugh, and the subject matter is close to home.
--Nancy Nolan, commercial advertising photographer specializing in editorial portraits, art and interiors
The Leftovers: An HBO drama that I had a personal investment in as I was simultaneously working on a Rapture-based drama from the point of view of those left behind. The show's dark, depressing
storylines are balanced by its chaotically surreal imagery and at times cathartic emotional releases from the tension. The second season is miles ahead of the first as far as must-watch TV.
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia: I used to be entirely turned off by this FX show's frat-boy zaniness, but once I actually sat through one whole episode I was smitten. This comedy has been on for over 10 years and gets more and more depraved and surprisingly funny. The blooper reel at the end of each season is
funnier than any other comedy on TV. Guaranteed.
Detectorists (BBC series on Netflix): This calm, quaint, slow study in character is my palate cleanser for all things stressful. Mackenzie Crook, who you might best know as Gareth in the UK's The Office or as a gangly pirate in the Caribbean, writes, directs and stars in a series about a ragtag group of metal detectorists (don't call them detectors). The folksy theme song is equally addictive, and I could enjoy both for hours.
--Levi Agee, creative director at a local ad agency who enjoys life with his wife, daughter and dog
My preference is for shows that have a strong sense of character development and place, ensembles that reflect diverse perspectives and stations in life, and emphasis on the complex cultural and value stances/clashes of their time. There are currently three that tickle my fancy: The Mysteries of Laura (NBC), Mercy Street (PBS), and Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries (PBS).
I am thrilled by a lady detective with a complex and fairly realistic personal life who is very good at and passionate about her work. Laura is definitely a 21st-century professional who presses on with some humor despite obstacles, dilemmas, and stereotypes. Just as important, my friend and North Little Rock native Marc Webster appears in the recurring role of medical examiner.
Mercy Street is an uncommonly engaging show taking place in Alexandria, Va., during the Civil War. There is much to take in as freedmen, slaves, Union soldiers, Confederate soldiers and medical professionals struggle to find normalcy and their rightful place in a world turned upside down on one hand and going up in flames on the the other.
Sassy female roles capture my imagination. Miss Phryne Fisher is a early 20th-century Australian lady of some wealth who is living life large as a private detective and in other ways.
Miss Fisher has a knack for investigating and assisting in solving crimes whether she is invited or not. She's a boundary spanner who smokes, drinks, flirts, drives fast cars, loves the good life, and rescues folks who can use a hand from time to time. The '20s and '30s music makes me tap my feet and hum along.
--Sybil Jordan Hampton, retired president, Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation
------------
American Pickers, History Channel. I like it because two guys travel to small-town USA; the people they visit invite them into their homes and storage sheds trying to sell them collectible junk. Most of the things they find are nostalgic and interesting.
Andy Griffith Show, TV Land. I grew up watching this. Great characters. Who doesn't remember Ernest T. Bass? Good, clean, all-American fun, with a moral lesson added.
Burn Notice, USA Network from 2007-2013 (in reruns). CIA operative and former Army Ranger Michael Westin (Jeffrey Donovan) was "burned" (his true identity revealed). He finds himself back home in Miami and broke, but MacGyvers himself back into the biz with covert activities. I like the talkovers where Michael explains how household chemicals or products can be mixed together and create chaos.
--Randal Berry, snake wrangler, Little Rock Zoo
I've never seen an episode of Breaking Bad but I love Better Call Saul (AMC).
I'm a huge fan of Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt (Netflix); watched the whole first season in the first two days it was out. Which was bad planning since we're still a month away from its second season.
Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee (Crackle) is on the short list of my very favorite things on the Web. I love that Jerry Seinfeld is arguably the most successful comedian in sitcom history and this is what he chose to do--drive around in cars with his friends kibitzing and kvetching over coffee and snacks.
Rectify deserves all the accolades it's received and will receive. Kudos to Sundance Channel for picking it up and keeping it on, allowing its creator, cast and crew to shape and share the most thoughtful, honest look at family, religion, politics, crime and punishment that there is on television.
Horace and Pete, available directly from Louis C.K. (louisck.net), defies description. Not because it's something never seen before, but because it's something never done before. Kept under wraps until he released it. Written, acted, and shot with great care and craft. Funded by the artist and sold directly to his audience--he continues to be the most prolific and enigmatic creator in pop culture.
FX's The People v. O.J. Simpson is a 10-episode limited series written, cast, and shot like a feature film. It manages to be familiar, shocking, and compelling all at the same time. (Congrats to Little Rock's Brad Simpson for championing the project and producing it with his partner Nina Jacobson.)
--Tim Jackson, writer/producer in the film and television industry based in Little Rock and Studio City, Calif.
Happy Valley (made by BBC, airing on Netflix), stars brilliant British actress Sarah Lancashire, and is created by Sally Wainwright. Other favorites: The Returned (Netflix), Fargo (FX), Master of None (Netflix), Transparent (Amazon), House of Cards (Netflix) though not as good as the original British series with Ian Richardson (also on Netflix), Black Mirror (BBC/Netflix), The Knick (Cinemax), Mad Men (AMC), Rick and Morty (Adult Swim).
--Courtney Pledger, executive director of Arkansas Motion Picture Institute
------------
Bar Rescue (Spike): The show's tag line is: "Running a bar isn't just a business; it's a science. No one knows more about bar science than Jon Taffer."
RuPaul's Drag Race (LogoTV): It's a great way for me to scout entertainers and for anyone to learn about life. As Ru says, "We're born naked, and the rest is drag."
House of Cards (Netflix): Reality TV antics have polluted political coverage and discourse. For something closer to the real thing, the political junkie and journalist in me turns to this drama.
--Jason Wiest, owner and operator of Club Sway, Central Arkansas' best gay bar
My wife and I travel a lot and find Rick Steves' Europe (AETN) interesting. We also enjoy the History Channel, MSNBC (Morning Joe), Channel 7 news and ABC World News. I work out each morning watching Robin Meade on HLN's Morning Express. We don't watch any network comedies--can't stand the laugh tracks. I find it almost unbelievable that I have hundreds of channels to chose from, and I reject 95 percent of them.
--Richard Mason, Downtown El Dorado property owner and developer
I can't help but watch The Walking Dead (HBO). It hearkens to my college days when I got off work at midnight and, winding down, would catch whatever was on USA Up All Night with Taco Bell in hand. Up All Night made me a B-movie connoisseur and gave me a lifetime love of shows that involve the apocalypse, robots, monsters, and natural disasters that can be fixed only by the use of a nuclear weapon.
Another favorite is Netflix' Narcos, which appeals to my love of history and politics. Dramatizing the life of Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar, Narcos focuses on early DEA efforts to curtail cocaine distribution. This series is violent but details the cat-and-mouse game the U.S. played with the cartels, which makes for a suspenseful ride.
On the lighter side, reruns of The Office (Amazon) provide great laughs.
--Steve Straessle, principal of Little Rock Catholic High School for Boys
For years now I've looked forward to the creativity and stories of Top Chef's (Bravo) contestants as well as the judges' critical commentary. Visiting restaurants like the former Perilla in New York, where season 1 winner Harold Dieterle was chef, and August in New Orleans, owned by visiting judge John Besh, is something my husband and I look forward to doing while traveling. Our pipe dreams are of getting to taste the dishes on the show.
My guilty pleasure is 90 Day Fiancé (TLC), which invites viewers into the lives of international couples in which foreign partners have 90 days to marry a U.S. citizen before their K-1 visas expire and they must return to their home country. With immigration being such a divisive political issue and the public and families often raising their hackles regarding non-U.S. citizens' motivations to marry, I love the humanizing of these relationships offered by this show.
In a sea of 99 percent bumper stickers following the demonizing of the 1 percent, Billions (Showtime) offers up the billionaire that, at least at this point in season 1, you kind of find yourself wanting to be. Bobby Axelrod transformed himself from a paper boy to a powerhouse who doesn't say no to vengeful impulses when they seem warranted, and it's becoming easier to cheer for him even with hints that he's got some skeletons rattling. The characters are equal parts likable and abhorrent. If it keeps up, it may vie for my favorite spot against Homeland (Showtime) and Game of Thrones (HBO) for those in current syndication.
It's unlikely that any show will ever approach my decades-long love affair with The Golden Girls.
--Erin Wood, editor of Scars: An Anthology (Et Alia Press, 2015), who loves to cook, but never with a recipe
Editorial on 02/14/2016