Top 5 Shows of 2011 (so far)

I'm probably ten days late for this post. Considering that July 1st marks the half way point of the year.  But that date also coincided with the July 4th weekend which is a pretty busy time for my household.  Over the next week, we will be seeing the premieres of the final season of Rescue Me and the return (finally!) of Breaking Bad, aka the Best Show of 2010.  So this is probably the best time to look at the best of this year's best new and old programs.

1. Parks and Recreation (NBC).  Honestly, every time I think about making a list of the best TV shows I usually bypass the comedies.  Since the debut of The Sopranos, we have experienced a golden age for dramatic television.  However, during that same time we have entered into a new age for the more sophisticated comedy.  And while the mockumentary style that Parks N Rec. uses may seem ubiquitous and even a cheat (see The Office and Modern Family), it is still the funniest and deepest comedy on the air right now.  

Boardwalk Empire Renewed!!!

While I am still waiting a couple more episode until I write a full review for Boardwalk Empire, HBO has decided to pick it for a second season.  And for good reason.  The premiere episode attracted 4.8 Million viewers on Sunday night.  Actually, that's 4.8 million viewers at the 9:00pm.  When you include the encore airings, a total of 7.1 million viewers checked out the Martin Scorsese directed pilot. 

TV Squad's Maureen Ryan mentioned in her interview with series creator Terence Winter that she anticipated that HBO would pick up a second season in the days following the premiere. 

The Small Screen of Book To Screen

The most commonly seen feature on this blog will be reviews and/or recaps of some of my favorite TV shows currently on the air.  With so many new and returning shows premiering in September, I figured this was an appropriate time to launch a website dedicated to TV.  One of the first programs I will be reviewing will be Boardwalk Empire (HBO, Sunday, Sep. 19th).  By Monday morning, I will hopefully have recaps of the most recent episodes of Man Men and Rubicon (AMC).  I will also review the premiere episode of network shows like Lone Star (FOX, Monday, Sep.20th) and Hawaii 5-O (CBS, Monday, Sep.20th).  Whether or not I recap these new programs on a regular basis is still up in the air.

Shows that I will regularly recap will be:

Comedies
Modern Family  (ABC)
Community (NBC)

Dramas
Mad Men (AMC)
Rubicon (AMC)
Caprica (SyFy)
Boardwalk Empire  (HBO)
Fringe (FOX)
The Walking Dead (AMC)
Friday Night Lights (when it airs on NBC, not DirectTV)
Terriers (FX)
Game of Thrones (HBO)


Not all of those shows listed are going to be airing this fall.  And I will also have news related to the development of upcoming TV projects.

I will have more posts this weekend regarding the "book" part of the blog.  So Stay Tuned.