Sons of Anarchy

Sons of Anarchy follows a gun trafficking motorcycle club known as the Sons of Anarchy as they fight rival gangs and generally commit heinous crimes and brutal acts of violence. I have to say right of the bat, this show is not of the caliber of some of the other shows on this blog, but it has a simplicity and vibrancy to it that I find greatly appealing. The show reminds me a lot of a comic book, its fairly shallow and blunt but that benefits the otherwise fast moving engaging story.

The actors on the show do a great job of toning down the ludicrous nature of the show and making you invest in each of their individual plights. Sons of Anarchy may be to "shocking" for its own good, going for brutal violence simply for the primal reaction and not the greater implication of each death or killing. But it's still a oddly hypnotic show that you wont be able to put down once you start watching.

Dexter

Shows don't typically star a serial killer especially one that acts the way people secretly wishes they could but are probably ashamed of even thinking like. Dexter is a Miami Metro blood spatter analyst who prefers to dish out his own brand of justice, taking the law into his own hands and brutally killing any criminals that fall thru the cracks of the justice system.

I believe Dexter has become so successful because people secretly wish they could lash out at a world that has seemingly wronged them the way Dexter does on a weekly bases. No matter how violent and very obviously psychotic Dexter may be, people find it satisfying, maybe on some primal level, people getting what they deserve. Dexter has been around for 6 years and it always surprises me how many people love the show despite it starring a serial killer.

The Walking Dead

Daring television usually doesn't get much recognition, people tend to flock to the safety net of the things that are familiar and comforting, so it was a huge surprise when AMC launched a television show set during the zombie apocalypse and even more surprising when it shattered all ratings records to become the most viewed cable program of all time.

The Walking Dead follows a group of survivors as they traverse the zombie infested world that was. It's riveting television, deriving much of its drama not from the flesh eating monsters themselves but from the reality of living in the ruins of the known world. Its the tension and moral dilemma that cause the most drama and make for the most engaging moments and the zombies act more as the gory icing on the decaying moral fabric cake.

Doctor Who

The longest running sci-fi show has stuck around for a good reason, the fun mix of impending doom from some horrible alien race bent on destroying the universe and goofy fun and humor. The titular character and by association is changed over the years but the core has always reminded the same and no matter how how many actors play the ever revolving roles of The Doctor and his companions the tenants of the show are so universally loved that it has survived over 50 years.

 
Doctor Who and his Tardis, a time and space traveling machine disguised as a police box that is bigger on the inside, travel the universe from the beginning of time to the end of time saving alien races or entire galaxies or simply helping out historical figures. The shows whimsical tone and sense of adventure make it a huge hit for people of all ages, another in a long line of reasons for this shows long lasting appeal and popularity.

American Horror Story

American Horror Story is daring television at a time when most shows are satisfied with producing the same old boring stuff as always. The show is unique for being the only hardcore horror program to television, The Adams Family this is not, instead American Horror Story takes inspiration from a myriad of different classic horror films and mixes it into a truly frightening pot. More interestingly is the shows commitment to shocking its audience, not afraid to go a little far out with its stories including aliens. And its anthology nature allows it to come up with disparate story-lines which are then tangentially weaved together. The show is sometimes a little too over the top for its own good, going for pure shock value, making some of its revelations or violent moments fall flat.

There is one moment in the first season that is probably one of the scariest things I have ever witnessed not because of some monster or jump scare but because of how real and raw it feels. It made me wince and tighten the grip on my chair and shows simply don't illicit those kind of emotions from viewers. Its graphic, highly sexual, and very very weird but that's what makes it so hypnotic and one of the best shows on TV.