TV Shows that add value to your life/understanding of the world?

[Reason]

Please help me make a list.

I'll start.

JERICHO
GENERATION KILL
JEREMIAH
FIREFLY
SURVIVORS
THE WIRE
ALONE IN THE WILD
DUAL SURVIVAL
SURVIVORMAN
HOW ITS MADE
HOUSE OF CARDS
MAN WOMAN WILD
ROSS KEMP - EXTREME WORLD
THE BOONDOCKS
MAN VS WILD

[MRK]

I cannot think of a single one. However I haven't turned on a TV to watch a channel in ten years.

[dannno]

Most of the shows on Food Network.

[Natural Citizen]

A new generation of curious youth will have the opportunity to experience Cosmos: A Space-Time Odyssey (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cosmos:_A_Space-Time_Odyssey) this fall.

Preceded by Cosmos: A Personal Voyage (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cosmos:_A_Personal_Voyage) ...my all time favorite.

[kathy88]

Weeds.

[Deborah K]

American Idol.

[Reason]

American Idol.

http://community.us.playstation.com/t5/image/serverpage/image-id/68579iE187EE39559843C8/image-size/original?v=mpbl-1&px=-1

[The Northbreather]

Strain Hunters
Good Eats

I think that the wire is one of the best shows ever created.

[dannno]

Strain Hunters

That wasn't on tv....

[Reason]

A new generation of curious youth will have the opportunity to experience Cosmos: A Space-Time Odyssey (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cosmos:_A_Space-Time_Odyssey) this fall.

I will watch for that to be released!

[bolil]

Future Weapons, WWII in Color.

[ronpaulfollower999]

LOST added value to my life for six years...

[satchelmcqueen]

NWA wrestling (gone now, but made me start lifting weights and kept me out of trouble all my life RIC Fn FLAIR!!!!)
married with children (truth)
that 70s show (keeps me laughing)
seinfeld (comedy at its best)
the 3 stooges (from age 3 ive loved them)
snl (late 80s-early 90s made me want to be a comedian)

[green73]

Dallas

[mikey]

Beavis and Butthead

[coastie]

MacGuyver


/thread

[Cap]

Combat! Vic Morrow and Rick Jason. TV series in the 60s. Ahead of it's time. Showed the human side of war.

[mad cow]

Watched an episode of The Rockford Files last night co-starring Shelley Fabares :).

Two things really stood out;he opened the car door for her every time and not a seatbelt to be seen in the entire show,including several high-speed chases.

It helped me understand that the world has changed a lot since 1975.

[heavenlyboy34]

I cannot think of a single one. However I haven't turned on a TV to watch a channel in ten years.
Ditto. Except it's more like 7-8 years for me...maybe more.

[The Northbreather]

That wasn't on tv....

Oh. I figured it was... I get all my video/film from the internet though I display my computer through my hdtvs.

Come at me bro

[Barrex]

The twilight zone... original not that gay twilight crap.

http://www.polishmovieposters.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/twilight-zone-300x207.jpg

I miss those old shows.

[presence]

ray mears extreme survival

the woodwright's shop roy underhill

Heimo's arctic refuge

[mad cow]

The twilight zone... original not that gay twilight crap.

http://www.polishmovieposters.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/twilight-zone-300x207.jpg

I miss those old shows.

I have no cable,but a week or so ago an over the air channel called Me popped up in my area.I do have TIVO and I am recording The Twilight Zone,Route 66,Columbo and several others.
Luv the old shows.

[amy31416]

"Wild Kingdom."

"Looney Tunes."

"Good Eats."

That old guy's cooking show from Louisiana. He's dead now.

Italian cooking shows w/Lydia Bastianich. (sp?)

Ren & Stimpy.

"What Not to Wear."

Nova

[COpatriot]

Penn & Teller's Bullshit

[kcchiefs6465]

I'll say The Wire, if you want to change your perspective on the drug war and the implications of it, or get a look into the corruption of cities from City Hall [even Congress] down to the police force, check it out. Very accurate portrayal of inner city problems. It is a five season miniseries showing how drugs are moved in, the politicians bought, the newspapers effect on City Hall, the pressure on cops from City Hall and the consequences of each. Imo the most moving tv show I've ever seen.

A lot of people can't get past the ghetto aspect but I'd urge you to give a few episodes or even a season or two. Once you understand some of the characters the corruption aspects, importation aspects, and bullshit news aspects start really showing up. Directed by a former cop so you can imagine that a lot of the scenes regarding police abuse and their attitudes about it are spot on.

I can't think of any more moving tv shows off the top of my head. I watch a lot of true crime. American Greed, Mobsters, First 48.. stuff like that. Flip between all the MSM channels until I'm disgusted and watch CSPAN1 or CSPAN2 until I'm disgusted. Generally it doesn't take long, and now that Ron Paul has a near 0% chance of being on, I sometimes just avoid the bullshit completely.

[kcchiefs6465]

I've been thinking about starting the miniseries "North and South" with Patrick Swayze. Is it worth my time? [entertaining or not?] I can decipher through the bullshit, as there's probably a fair share of bullshit in it, myself.

[kcchiefs6465]

Also any movie recommendations?

I'll speak for AF and say "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" but is there any amazing movies people want to suggest?

I'll start with "Born on the Fourth of July" with Tom Cruise. A great movie showing the unintended consequences of some of these wars. Another good one in that respect is "In the Valley of Elah" with Tommy Lee Jones. The first movie I suggested is an older one on some the consequences of the Vietnam war. "In the Valley of Elah" is a relatively new one about some of the consequences of Iraq. Great movies, and I'd recommend people check them both out.

[The Northbreather]

Heimo's arctic refuge

Nice. I'm gonna go out back and hacksaw a hunk of caribou off for dinner.

Every should at least check out Vice.com once, awesome journalism.

[cajuncocoa]

Fringe

[kcchiefs6465]

Every should at least check out Vice.com once, awesome journalism.
I watched their SOFEX special and was amazed there was such a thing. [A convention to buy all the weapons of war you could imagine] I don't know though, some of their stuff is really incredible. Them trying to buy a nuclear warhead etc. I was never sure if they were truly legit. They do have a lot of good information.

[TokenLibertarianGuy]

Hannity

[kcchiefs6465]

Hannity
Lmao. You are a funny guy.

[Anti Federalist]

That old guy's cooking show from Louisiana. He's dead now.

Justin Wilson.

I also enjoyed Jeff Smith's "Frugal Gourmet" (yeah yeah yeah, I know). Taught me to love garlic in my food and cooking. Which I've had to step into here recently again after a long absence from the galley, due to some family emergencies and obligations. I have surprised myself, honestly, at how good some of these dishes have been coming out.

As much as I bash TV, there have been a number of shows whose content made a difference, but possibly one single obscure one that really did me good:

Bob Ross' "Joy of Painting". Never painted a thing in my life outside of walls or buildings or boats, can't even do decent stick figures.

But I could have been having the single worst day of my life and just a half hour of listening to that man would "soothe the savage beast".

Yah, weird, I know.

[Carson]

Pirates of the Caribbean

http://photos.imageevent.com/stokeybob/thebegining/standard2.jpg


Gunsmoke

Rawhide

Wagon Train

[Danan]

As already mentioned The Wire is absolutely amazing. I had no intention to continue watching it after the first episode, though. It's not very rewarding on a single episode basis and defies conventional showbiz standards on purpose. However once you get into it you can't stop watching it and also talking about it to all your friends. Amazingly accurate show. Very deep, intelligent, moving and humorous and very compatible with a libertarian philosophy (although according to the creator season two was supposed to show problems with "pure capitalism"... I didn't see it that way, though. To me it was more of a prime example of how stupid, corrupt unions are in the way of workers and progress).

According to this clip:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zIom3LSbB0I
I also have to mention Breaking Bad and I will gladly do so. It also has libertarian elements in it (like Walter wondering how strange it is that a substance like alcohol is legal while his brother in law uses extreme force to stop people from using other drugs, or the libertarian chemist with the Ron Paul sticker in his notebook).

Most people probably know what the show is basically about, but I will give my own little synopsys anyway. In contrast to The Wire it's far from being realistic. It's another show concept and too much realism wouldn't serve this format very well. It's not really about the logistics of the drug business.

What the show really focusses on is being in control. And I believe it does an excellent job in describing the different forms of exercising control. In the beginning Walter is totally remote controlled. He has a sick child, another one on the way, a wife who is terribly cold towards him, basically no real friends, debt and two terrible jobs, although he is a genius chemist who helped to found a billion dollar company. He is a completely broken man who is not in control of his life. Then comes his cancer diagnosis (probably terminal). What would have been terrible news to most people wakes Walter up. He has decided not to end his life that way. He will take back control and take things into his own hands by entering the Meth business. After all, what does he have to lose now?

But once he has what he wanted he can't stop. Feeling powerful for the first time since ages changed him. He doesn't want that feeling to go away ever again. In fact he wants to expand it. Now being in control over himself is not enough any longer. He starts to control other peoples' lifes and enjoys it. "Libido Dominandi" if you will.

I'm currently watching The Sopranos. Really great too as everybody knows already. Especially the deep psychological elements. Also their family life seems to be incredibly realistic.

[TokenLibertarianGuy]

The Wire was amazing. So was The Shield.

[coastie]

Unsolved Mysteries.


You know you got the title song in your head now.

[coastie]

Doogie Howser, M.D.

[purplechoe]

Rome and The Wire...

[coastie]

Roseanne

[timreichstein]

My all time fav shows (which added value to my life as my wife and I both enjoy these)

Breaking Bad
The shield
The sopranos
6 feet under
Curb your enthusiasm

We really want to watch the wire, and game of thrones as well as boardwalk empire are pretty good so far.

[VoluntaryAmerican]

Boardwalk Empire.

[RSLudlum]

Little House on the Prairie
Bugs Bunny/Looney Tunes
Dirty Jobs

[qh4dotcom]

Stossel

[TheTexan]

Archer

[Natural Citizen]

I will watch for that to be released!

Will most likely be 2014. I'm just so used to saying 2013 regarding the project. But since you're interested then this may shed some light on what makes it special. http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&v=Dxff0k_TEzI&feature=endscreen I'm looking forward to Neil narrating it for the very reason he pointed out in his "rebuke" to Dawkins' preceding commentary.

[georgiaboy]

Antiques Roadshow

[green73]

Boardwalk Empire.

This. Government is corrupt at every level. Can't believe it was ever allowed to be made.

Breaking Bad, The Wire are also right up there. I enjoyed Rome as well; The Tutors to a lesser extent. Dexter is pretty funny. Six Feet Under I enjoyed. Full of leftism but still good. Others, hmm, Game of Thrones. Oh and Mad Men.

[Occam's Banana]

The Walking Dead. Seriously ...

You've got your social/political/economic collapse, examinations of group dynamics under stressful circumstances, interesting moral quandaries, issues of control and authority, etc.

Great stuff, and very well handled. The zombies are just icing on the cake!

[coastie]

http://www.picvalley.net/u/1813/13567265817653198781361510577LjkTNpUVPiVjs7amTDDc. JPG (http://www.picvalley.net/v.php?p=u/1813/13567265817653198781361510577LjkTNpUVPiVjs7amTDDc. JPG)

[opal]

The West Wing
Y&R
Fringe
Project runway (really. for the sewing)
props for what not to wear earlier in the thread
Sliders
Rockstar supernova (I know.. shame on me)

[Restore America Now]

In addition to the aforementioned Twilight Zone, Fringe, and The Walking Dead, I have to emphatically add Battlestar Galactica (the 2003 miniseries and subsequent 2004 TV show), not the cheesy 70s series). It has a great many political themes in it, such as the morality of suicide bombers, abortion, torture, religion, survival, and more...

[BamaAla]

Breaking Bad

Shameless

Judge Judy

Man vs. Wild

Doomsday Preppers

[Keith and stuff]

South Park
Mr. Wizard
G. I. Joe
TMNT
History's Mysteries
Penn and Teller's Bullshit
20/20 (when John Stossel co-hosted)
Many, many more shows mostly on Discovery, Animal Planet or The History Channel.

[RabbitMan]

The Game of Thrones(though you might as well just read the books)
Breaking Bad
The Wire
Freaks & Geeks (once you get a few episodes in, I guarantee you'll have some sense of nostalgia)
Battlestar Galactica (again, the 2004-9 version)
John Adams
Deadwood!!!!! Watch Deadwood. Now.

[BuddyRey]

The Twilight Zone can't be mentioned enough...more than half a century has gone by since its original run, yet it is still, hands-down, the single most well-written and socially relevant speculative fiction/sci-fi series ever, IMO.

Then there are plenty of great newish shows, like "Dark Matters" on the science channel, "Mythbusters", "Through the Wormhole", etc.

[Peace Piper]

http://img706.imageshack.us/img706/5075/spookslogo.jpg

http://img145.imageshack.us/img145/8594/spookssurveil1.jpg

How often do you get to see a CIA punk properly addressed?

http://img7.imageshack.us/img7/672/spooksadamcia1.jpg

Why we love Harry Pearce & Adam Carter - reason #27
Spooks: Makes 24 look like 2.4

[Demigod]

Brigada (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0337898/)
Sons of anarchy
Battelstar Galactica
Alo Alo (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0086659/)
Vratice se rode
Jericho
Game of thrones

[TokenLibertarianGuy]

Red Eye w/Greg Gutfeld and TV's Andy Levy

[HOLLYWOOD]

MacGuyver

/threadMacGruber

[Anti Federalist]

SquidBillies

[Barrex]

Brigada (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0337898/)
Sons of anarchy
Battelstar Galactica
Alo Alo (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0086659/)
Vratice se rode
Jericho
Game of thrones

Lol... I totally forgot about that one ;)

[amy31416]

Someone else mentioned it: Little House on the Prairie.

I think I forgot because I mostly associate it with the books, but I both read and watched the series. My daughter turns two this year, I think I'm getting her the collection of books this year or next. They may actually be the reason that I'm open to libertarianism.

[mad cow]

Something tells me you already know whose Mama wrote those books.

[amy31416]

Something tells me you already know whose Mama wrote those books.

I do indeed.

[tod evans]

Archie Bunker

Hogans Heros

[mrsat_98]

Freedom Watch , Judge Andrew Napolitano.

We have a thread winner.

[Demigod]

Lol... I totally forgot about that one ;)

It is one of the most epic dramas although it should have had a better ending.

[presence]

my life as a wild turkey

[opal]

there are a LOT of these that I've not heard of.. no actual TV in the house for years. *fires up torch*

[otherone]

http://ts2.mm.bing.net/th?id=H.4896551384319393&pid=15.1

[UMULAS]

.........

[Carson]

there are a LOT of these that I've not heard of.. no actual TV in the house for years. *fires up torch*

Fires up torch?

http://photos.imageevent.com/stokeybob/morestuff/AngryMob.jpg

Someone must have mentioned The Simpsons by now.

[QuickZ06]

Thought Man vs. Wild was faked?

[KingNothing]

Mad Men, the Wire, The Sopranos, The Simpsons, South Park, All in the Family, Breaking Bad, Cheers, Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Arrested Development, Band of Brothers, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Seinfeld, Game of Thrones.

And I would argue that Mad Men and The Wire are better than any movie that has ever been created. They're perfect in basically every way.

[emazur]

Star Trek series shows
Daria

[UWDude]

Frontline

That is all.

[V3n]

Now:
Doctor Who (current series)
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic
CNN (in an inverse manner)
Shark Tank
Duck Dynasty

Then:
Sesame Street
Mr. Roger's Neighborhood
Cosby Show
Fraggle Rock
Quantum Leap

[Natural Citizen]

The Twilight Zone can't be mentioned enough....

Yeah. Hm. About that....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NCzhsUT5Jh0

[idiom]

Babylon 5.

[opal]

Long delay in response.. today was reinstall my OS day - not by choice


Fires up torch?

.

my torrent client :)


Now:

My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic


WHERE? I used to sit and watch that with my kid.. she's pushing 30 now.

[PursuePeace]

kung fu

[V3n]

WHERE? I used to sit and watch that with my kid.. she's pushing 30 now.

There's a new series on "The Hub". The first two seasons are on Netflix-streaming, but all the episodes (in their entirety) are on youtube.
(..and if she's pushing 30 now, I promise you she's aware ((and probably into it!)))

I'm used to downvotes and neg-reps; but there's a lesson in every episode, and fun material for adults, which is why I said it in this thread.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTPqjKk_xCo

Yeah, I'm a brony! and proud of it!

[opal]

this old house
the new yankee workshop
Holmes on homes

[jonhowe]

A new generation of curious youth will have the opportunity to experience Cosmos: A Space-Time Odyssey (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cosmos:_A_Space-Time_Odyssey) this fall.

Preceded by Cosmos: A Personal Voyage (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cosmos:_A_Personal_Voyage) ...my all time favorite.


Here here!

[NCGOPer_for_Paul]

My four year old enjoys Little House on the Prairie, The Waltons, and The Andy Griffith Show.

About the only current shows I watch is Boardwalk Empire, and the occassional thing on Discovery or History.

I will watch Seinfeld in syndication and older Simpsons episodes.

Older shows I enjoyed include MacGyver, All In The Family, Battlestar Galactica (both the 70's and the 2000's versions), The Sopranos, and Cheers.

Can't say I've watched a network show in a decade or so, outside of news and sports.

[2young2vote]

South Park is the only show that i've ever learned anything useful from.

[compromise]

Freedom Watch
Penn & Teller
Stossel
South Park
The Glenn Beck Program

[XTreat]

Homeland
Californication
Hell on Wheels

in addition to the other stuff that has been mentioned. I also don't have cable or a TV but most of this stuff can be downloaded these days.

[XTreat]

Something tells me you already know whose Mama wrote those books.


I don't get this reference

[Schifference]

Leave it to Beaver
Dick Van Dyke
The Walton's
Happy Day's
Andy Griffith

[Philhelm]

ALF

[FSP-Rebel]

Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares and First 48, also Tigers baseball and watching the Lions lose.

[camp_steveo]

porn

/jk ;)

[Occam's Banana]

I don't get this reference

Laura Ingalls Wilder (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laura_Ingalls_Wilder) wrote the famous "Little House on the Prairie" books.

Rose Wilder Lane (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rose_Wilder_Lane) was her daughter (and there is some speculation that she, not her mother, actually wrote the books).

Lane was one of the three most preeminent "libertarian" women of the 20th century (the other two being Ayn Rand (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ayn_Rand) and Isabel Paterson (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isabel_Paterson)).

[fisharmor]

Any of the work Terry Jones has done for TV. Particularly:
The Crusades
The Story of One
Medieval Lives
Ancient Inventions

Also, it's been a really long time, but any of Jame's Burke's Connections (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Connections_%28TV_series%29) series.

Let's just say I have a place in my heart for shows that draw parallels that you don't find in textbooks.
For that reason I'll mention Cosmos as well, though it has a healthy dose of bullshit in it.


And if I have to choose something purely entertaining, I'm going with Samurai Jack because I'm showing it to my kids. Also because Genndy is a fucking artistic genius.

[randpaul2016]

revolution

[jdmyprez_deo_vindice]

I don't think any show has really changed my life or anything or added to my understanding or the world but there are some shows that I really enjoy. Jericho, MASH, King Of The Hill, Dexter, Little House On The Prairie and Oz to name a few.

[JK/SEA]

Gold Fever w/ Tom Massie

[misean]

South Park and Stossel

[Deborah K]

Now:
Doctor Who (current series)
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic
CNN (in an inverse manner)
Shark Tank
Duck Dynasty

Then:
Sesame Street
Mr. Roger's Neighborhood
Cosby Show
Fraggle Rock
Quantum Leap

Duck Dynasty is hilarious! The new season starts in a few days and I can't wait. Phil (the Patriarch, and inventor that made them millionaires) is my fav. Those long-bearded-red-necks keep me in stitches, and the back-story is awesome. Only in America.

[Natural Citizen]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YLO7tCdBVrA

[kathy88]

Duck Dynasty.
Nurse Jackie.
Pawn Stars.
Sons of Anarchy.

[anaconda]

Wheel Of Fortune & Followed by Jeopardy scheduled back to back.

[jmdrake]

The Unit
The Lone Gunman

[PaulConventionWV]

The twilight zone... original not that gay twilight crap.

http://www.polishmovieposters.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/twilight-zone-300x207.jpg

I miss those old shows.

Twilight is not associated with The Twilight Zone in any way except they have one word in the title in common.

[PaulConventionWV]

Futurama
South Park
Man vs Wild
Storage Wars
American Diggers
House
Pawn Stars

[Barrex]

Twilight is not associated with The Twilight Zone in any way except they have one word in the title in common.

I know I just took the chance to spit on Twilight saga.

[cjm]

BBC Horizon

[TokenLibertarianGuy]

Wheel Of Fortune & Followed by Jeopardy scheduled back to back.

Man I loved watching that right after school.

[Chieppa1]

The Wire.

I actually enjoy Homeland. As it relates to Blowback.

Boardwalk Empire just for the history and how close to home it is.

And Breaking Bad is just the work of mad scientists.

[Reason]

/////////

[trey4sports]

Breaking bad is phenomenal, and big brother (USA, UK, au,CA,Albania) is great too.

[trey4sports]

Weeds.

Jumped the shark 3 seasons ago imo

[trey4sports]

MIght I add that skins (UK) used to be my guilty pleasure. Couple other favs....


Californication
Locked up abroad
Shameless (us)
Arrested development
House of cards
Modern family
Curb your enthusiasm
Ali g show

[liberty2897]

Trailer park boys (tv series). Ricky is funnier than hell.
Shameless (UK version) I like it for some reason.
Walking dead is pretty good.

Actually not sure if any of those added value to my life or understanding of the world, but I enjoyed them.

[trey4sports]

Trailer park boys (tv series). Ricky is funnier than hell.
Shameless (UK version) I like it for some reason.
Walking dead is pretty good.

Actually not sure if any of those added value to my life or understanding of the world, but I enjoyed them.



Tpb was hilarious!

[DamianTV]

Jersey Shore
Meet the Press
NBC Nightly News
Dancin With the Stars
The History (a.k.a. Hitler) Channel
Sponge Bob Square Pants
Nova (PBS)
Science'y Shows like "Brain Games" or "Through the Wormhole"
Ron Paul Forums TV

---

Edit: Also not on the list...

Hillbilly Handfishin
Desperate Housewives of <insert city or small township here>
Deep South Paranormal

(I'll just stop because the go to list will be one billionth the size of the NOT list...)

[John F Kennedy III]

Trailer Park Boys
Dexter
Sons of Anarchy
Game of Thrones
Ron Dyrdek's Fantasy Factory
Weeds
Breaking Bad
Family Guy
Married With Children

[John F Kennedy III]

Tpb was hilarious!

IT'S BACK! :D

http://www.ronpaulforums.com/showthread.php?414266-NEW-SEASON-OF-TRAILER-PARK-BOYS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The shit winds are coming...

[Weston White]

Really, so many pages and not a single mention (unless I missed it) of X-Files or Millennium; although there was one mention of the Lone Gunmen and of the Star Trek series (which I am not certain if it was intended to include only the original or also: TNG, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Generations).