help! need suggestions for dvd series.

[harborshore]

My brother's 21st birthday is tomorrow. He just had knee surgery, in another three months he will have MORE knee surgery (fuck fuck fuck, I feel so bad for him) and I need a present that will help him sit still this summer when he needs to rest.

So. He and his girlfriend just finished watching all of West Wing and they LOVED it. I need long series that are just as good and engrossing, which I realize is complicated, but yes. Help? He's seen Game of Thrones, and it's also not quite long enough yet (more than 2 seasons is preferable but not absolutely necessary).

Also, I'm still taking Avengers or X-men cuddling prompts in my last post.

Comments

[pearl-o.livejournal.com]

Farscape is pretty awesome, and definitely rewards the intense, focused watching like that. And, like ... Lost isn't necessarily good, but as far as DVD watching binges go, it is about as addictive and engrossing as it gets.

[mrsquizzical.livejournal.com]

would he go for the 'avatar the last airbender' series? it's four 'books' of 20ish episodes. such a great watch!

[bunnymcfoo.livejournal.com]

Does he like Sci-fi, fantasy, comedy, crime dramas? I totally have recs, but narrowing it down would probably help. :D

[thesamefire.livejournal.com]

Friday Night Lights!

[turps33.livejournal.com]

I don't know if it's a genre he likes but I've been working my way through The Wire recently. It's gritty and hard to watch at times, but perfect for focussed watching.

I'd also second Farscape if he likes sci-fi.

[rufus.livejournal.com]

I'd offer Star Gate: Atlantis (all five (I think?) seasons) and Stargate SG-1, and also Battlestar Galactica, or Doctor Who. There's like THREE DECADES of Dr. Who he could watch. And Star Trek, whether First Generation or all of the various descendents.

Non sci-fi things, hmmm, Carnivale is supposed to be compelling but somewhat unsatisfying as it's essentially unfinished - it got cancelled before the story arc closed. Or maybe The Sopranos, or The Borgias, if he's into costume dramas. Downton Abbey, if he'd like his costume drama slightly less bloody.

I'll second The Wire recs above and add The Bill and/or NYPD Blue, if he's into police procedurals.

[spn-girl.livejournal.com]

Firefly!!! Its only short (got cancelled way too early) but has the follow-up movie Serenity to tie up most of the loose ends. Its by Joss, so of course its brilliant dialogue, great ensemble cast, and seriously amazing story telling (its my favorite show of all time, can you tell, lol?!)

[romanticalgirl.livejournal.com]

Babylon 5

[nokomis305.livejournal.com]

Sons of Anarchy! It's a biker gang Hamlet. (Assuming he's down with shows about dubious-to-nonexistent morality.) There have been four seasons, and it's utterly engrossing and compelling and amazing. I cannot rec it enough; it's probably my favorite show. I also second the rec for the Wire -- I haven't seen the complete run of it yet, but what I've seen has been stellar. Breaking Bad is great, though it's popular enough that he's probably already seen it, as is Dexter, which isn't quite in the same league as the other shows but still very entertaining. I also love Justified, which has had three seasons now, which is about a US Marshall who is reassigned to his home state of Kentucky, and in the process has to deal with the less-than-legal activities of the family he has left there. It's waaaay better than it sounds, and is one of the most entertaining (and morally ambiguous) law enforcement shows I've seen. For period pieces, the Tudors is highly entertaining, if a bit trashy, and HBO ran a series called Rome a few years ago that was amazing. It only had two seasons, but they were good ones.

...my family watches a lot of TV together, and these are the shows that seem universally loved, regardless of genre preferences.

[sunsetmog.livejournal.com]

Probably not his thing, but I've just watched all of Parks and Recreation (apart from series 1, which is NOT AS GOOD) and fallen stupidly in love.

[morebliss.livejournal.com]

Buffy the Vampire Slayer?

[takkatakkatakka.livejournal.com]

The Sopranos? Kind of old now, but it was pretty sharp.