I struggle to call The Wire a "cop drama." I mean, it IS but that seems like a poor category to slot it in. Its certainly not in the general category of procedurals that litter TV and I'd struggle to put it with the likes of NYPD Blue or The Shield since at its most "cop drama" 50% of the show is still about the criminals. And there we're only even talking about the first season or 2 and not the later seasons when they start to bring politicians, students, teachers, and the media in as major elements of the show that take even more time away from the cops. Again, its a "cop drama" in so much as its a drama with cops. But its not really a drama ABOUT cops, IMO. As a whole its a show about the whole damn city of Baltimore, but even from episode-to-episode or season-to-season its not a show about the cops chasing the criminals so much as its a show about the crimes being committed and everything around that including the cops chasing them.

That being said, I'd bet money you'd hate the show based on previous stated tastes so skip it anyway. Even if I wholeheartedly agree with Eric that its one of the best shows ever made.



And Eric, I don't know if you've ever actually seen any of Firefly but I suspect you WOULD like it. Much like I resist calling The Wire a "cop drama" I resist calling Firefly "sci-fi". I mean, it IS science fiction, obviously. But that's not the point, its just the setting. At its core its a character driven show with heavy doses of comedy and action. I just get the sense from other shows I know you like that you might really take to Firefly for the same reasons most of its fans do. Witty dialogue, awesome characters, and cool action... not spaceships. And as someone who also doesn't really care for sci-fi I do feel the need to point out that spaceships is about the extent of the sci-fi. There are some other elements that pop up as you'd expect but a lot less then I expected going in.

How does this make me dumb? I didn't say Eric was going to kill you (which wouldn't have made me dumb, either, but at least I'd see your point). A few people mentioned how this was bracketed wrong and was top heavy, with you being in the "easier" bracket. Also, you beat Baron by 1 vote, after he beat Demko by one vote and you had beaten Psycho by 1 vote while Eric dominated over Solly, who had dominated over me, who had beaten a very strong BTR and Eric also won pretty easily over his other two opponents.

Ha ha. You're dumb for saying I'm dumb.

I really like some of Angst's shows. Batman Animated Series is one of my all time favorite tv shows, bar none. I own the dvds and have passed the shows on to my 6 year old nephew, and one day to my children too. Great noir animation and amazing music. The voice work is top notch. And you can't go wrong with Mark Hamill as The Joker. Venture Bros is one of my current favorite toons. Not only is the show hilarous and off the wall, but I am always entertained with their storylines. GI Joe and Transformers were two of my grade school favorites. Loved both toy lines as a kid too. I didn't cry when Optimus Prime died in the toon movie, but when Optimus Prime's voice did the opening voiceover in the first Transformer live action movie, it gave me chills and goosebumps of my childhood. Robotech, while I didn't watch it that often as a child, I will give it it's just props. Great show. I've caught a few episodes of Clerks, and I really enjoyed it. The State, what can I say? One of the most underappreciated and not widely known comedy show many years ago when MTV actually had great tv. I wanna dip my balls in it. I used to watch Remote Control on that same MTV network. Funny, original, and where Adam Sandler got one of his first breaks in the biz. I like TNA Impact, and I wish I caught it more often, hopefully I will since they signed Desmond "Don't call me Nigel McGuinness" Wolfe. I really liked World Series of Pop Culture, and wished they kept it going into the 3rd season. I was ready to enter my team, and mark my words, we would have won. As for American Gladiators remake, you gotta go with the original or nothing at all. Larry Csonka and Joe Theismann! And who could forget Mr. Mike Adamle!!! Other than that, I don't know what else I'd watch religiously. Maybe I'd catch Spaced. Never seen an episode, but I love Simon Pegg. I like Mythbusters, but I feel I'd only watch it if I happen to be flipping channels. I'd give Firefly a chance, I've heard good things about it. I'm not really a Trek fan or a Battlestar fan. I know they're probably awesome, especially the latter, but I somehow fell through the cracks and never caught them. Though Grace Park is an asian hottie. And there's a character named "Dr Gaius", not Dr. Zaius. Rad.

Now, on to Beer Baron's Better Know a TV Show! As I flip through my networks wonderful offerings of cinematic joy, I realize that some of my choices may not be widely known. The crew at punhouse is a pretty sharp bunch, but for those who don't know or don't remember some of the finer details of my shows, that's why it's time to better know my shows! First up is a wonderful example of American animation in the mid 1990s. I give you Exo Squad! This show is set in the beginning of the 22nd century and covers the interplanetary war between humanity and Neosapiens, a fictional race artificially created as workers/slaves for the Terrans. We generally follow Able Squad, an elite Terran unit of mecha pilots in their battles against the Neo Sapien race and their fight to reclaim Earth, Venus, and Mars. Thanks wikipedia! In regards to the storyline, Exo Squad has been called the animation equivalent of Battlestar Galactica. Not too shabby. And the leader of the NeoSapiens, Phaeton, drew comparisons to Hitler. I don't think it's a kid's show anymore! We gotta stop Blue Hitler! Here's this for you if you're interested: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exosquad
and the show's 1st season opening:


Next up is The Pirates of Dark Water. This series followed a group of adventurers on a quest to collect the Thirteen Treasures of Rule, which possessed the combined power to stop an evil substance known as "Dark Water" from consuming the alien world of Mer. And the animation was top notch Hanna-Barbera style. However, they only made 21 episodes, and only found 7 of the legendary 13 Treasures of Rule.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Pirates_of_Dark_Water
Here's the intro, and a side note, the character Ioz was voiced by actor, Hector Elizondo. And the wonderful Tim Curry voiced the pirate Konk.


This brings me to Transformers Beastwars. The show's run was from 1996-1999, and it was set in the set in the future of the "original" Transformers universe as a sequel to the first Transformers series. The show was animated 100% with computer animation, and it's production designer won an Emmy for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Animation in 1997. I did not know that. As you can read on the wiki link, ( en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beast_Wars ) this storyline starts with the crash landing of both the Maximal(good guys) and the Predacon(bad guys) vessels on what seems to be a prehistoric Earth. Both groups must take forms of animals dead or alive in order to survive the large deposits of energon on the planet. Sounds pretty straightforward, right? Well, until the show's creators decided to include the Golden Disk which had a secret message left on it by Generation 1's Megatron!
A Golden Disk?!? Wel, let's see what the mysterious Golden Disk has to say...


And if that's not enough of "holy shit moment," then for all the Gen 1 fan's this is a treat. Beastwars Megatron enters the Gen 1 Autobot's Ark to do what only Megatron can do...


Hopefully you've gotten to know three of my favorite tv shows just a little better. At least to go watch and enjoy a series that may have escaped you in your adult years. I was raised on cartoons, and they are near and dear to my heart and always will. As an adult, I love the toons that have a great storyline and really capture the essence of what I used to enjoy as a child. I'll spotlight a few more of my shows next time. Till then, I'll be at the bar.

This, incredibly close call though.

What a difference a year makes, Creep.

Too bad both guys couldn't move on - congrats Angst

Eric keeps on rolling on...

Baron squeaks by to the Final Four

Poor Byrnie

18-4? Jesus Christ, that was brutal. Better luck next year, SG.

Hodgey is teh whinner.

AngstBrad moves on.

BC loses (again). Sorry Bradley.

Creepy wins... this is on the level of USA 4, USSR 3. What an upset.

Punker moves on... great matchup.