drexel

Now granted I know that the majority of TV stinks but there are some real cutting edge shows and some really consistent ones right now. Shows that blow me away. 24, The shield, West Wing, Buffy/Angel, Oz, Sopranos, Curb your Enthusiasm, Malcolm in the middleGillmopre girls, Scrubs

Aleays consistent are E.R., Law & Order, Futurerama, 6 feet under, Sex in The city. Simpsonsis either huge hit or sligh tmiss

Now is this because of the popularity of HBO that is pushing the networks?? The only thing I don't understand ius how comedt's seem weak right now. 2 of the best comedies of the past 5 years didn't last a season. The Family Gut and my personal favorite, Action

shanester

There's only so much you can do with sitcoms..They've been the same format for 50 years where as dramas are always pushing the boundaries..The popularity of The Sopranos and other programming on HBO HAS forced they networks to push the envelope a little bit..I predict we will see an R rated programming in primetime very soon with REAL cursing not your usually "ass", "son of a bitch" or "damn it"

Red Dog

Drama? Yes

Sitcom? Certainly not. The golden age of sitcoms was the 1970s.

nny

I've been pretty disappointed with this season of TV so far, but the last 2 seasons have been so amazing, I definitely agree TV's the best it's ever been. As for sitcoms, Curb, Malcolm, South Park and Andy Richter are actually pushing the boundaries of the sitcom format. Plus, Gilmore Girls is more of a comedy than drama and while Buffy is primarily a drama, it's funnier than most sitcoms. I think the most interesting thing TV has seen in the last 5 years is the emergence of the dramedy. Also, I wouldn't call them sitcoms, but several of the shows on Adult Swim are absolutely hilarious. Btw, while Family Guy was cancelled every season it was on, they kept bringing it back and it made it to 3 seasons.

I generally feel that TV, movies and comic books just keep getting better and better. Prose and music are thousands of years old, but TV, movies and comics are relatively young mediums and still have a lot of space to grow. The one people most disagree with me on is movies. People in particular seem to love the 70s and hate the 90s. Even if you believe there were more great movies in the 70s than the 90s, you can't deny there were more good movies in the 90s than the 70s, especially with the growth of the independent film community.

Sorry I rambled and got a little off-topic there, but I always get annoyed when people talk about how bad TV and movies are today.

grunter

I'm thinking repeat showing of "Cops" and the continued prevalence of reality shows like "Joe Millionaire," "The Bachelorette," "American Idol," and "X-Treme Dating" pretty much handicap our current television era down a few notches.

GuessWho

Morf

If by "golden" you mean "ultra crappy," then yes.

brtcmfn

classic tv to me are classic shows like:
Burns and Allen, Car 54 where are you?, Honeymooners, leave it to beaver, the munsters, jack benny, Our miss brooks, I love Lucy, Geen Acres, etc....

calhoun07

I see some of the "classic" TV on TV Land and I have to wonder if those shows are so good, then TV back then really must have been BAD. Lucy is overrated, waaay over rated. I agree that sitcoms really hit their stride in the 70s but we did have some great ones in the 80s.

As far at drama on TV goes, I do think we are seeing some of the best TV in quite a while. While most of TV is crap, you can say that about any era of TV. You can say that about any form of media in any country, for that matter. Who cares if there are shows like Joe Millionare or Anna Nicole today, we have Sopranos, the Shield, Six Feet Under, West Wing, and so much more. And production values are up. I don't know if this is a golden age, but this is a good time to be a fan of TV shows.

lordzeppelin

Who can go wrong in this age with South Park and the Simpsons? It's social commentary and humor at it's best...

DarthMarklar

Isn't it impossible to be in a golden age? I thought Golden Age reffered to Classics? I think we need to wait a few decades before we can decide if this is a "Golden Age". Mainly because So many things come out strong, but then are forgotten about after a few years.

grunter, I TOTALLY agree about so called "Reality" shows causing a 'dumbing' down of most viewers. Thank GOD for DVD's, it keeps me away from the CRAP on tv.

calhoun07, Lucy is Over rated???? I think it's unfair to compare it to shows of today. Your examples of Sopranos, The Shield, Six Feet Under, West Wing??? In 30 years, I'm sure teens will be saying those shows are crap.

I don't know how old any of you are, but if you're under 20, then I'd have to say your tv viewing experience is a bit biased.