Favorite Crime Dramas

[walkertexasdruid]

I probably spend to much time watching these shows (and it may have made a little paranoid:sweatdrop), but I just cannot get enough. So without further interruption, here are my favorite crime dramas:

Criminal Minds
Cold Case
CSI: NY
CSI
Without a Trace
The Mentalist
Castle
Law and Order
Law and Order: SVU
Law and Order: CI (though I lost interest when we were forced to watch Chris Noth be a jerk for no particular reason)

That is a pretty big list, though I know that I am missing out on some good shows. So now let me know what the rest of you think. I am looking forward to reading your thoughts on this genre.;)

[Magus]

NCIS was the only one I could ever really stomach since it had a likable cast of characters and was somehow less serious in tone and yet somehow more serious in plot than the likes of CSI. Of course they decided to finally spin that one off into NCIS: Los Angeles, so it's apparent that all good things must come to an end. I mean, NCIS itself is a spin-off of JAG but still. At least it had a different name instead of just putting a subtitle on there (read: sheer laziness and lack of advertising strategy).

Law and Order is okay I guess but Criminal Intent and SVU seemed quite a bit more character driven from the few episodes I've seen.

I absolutely despise The Mentalist, I can't stand that show's premise. Urgghhhh.

Also I'm still pissed at CBS for canceling Smith after three episodes when I was enjoying it quite a bit. Also ABC for canceling Life on Mars because at least you know it was a little bit original with the time travel thing.

[Toastburner B]

The only one I go out of my way to catch is Castle. But I have a man-crush on Nathan Fillion, so take that with a grain of salt.

Really, the only other ones I watch besides Castle are NCIS and NUMB3RS. I used to watch Law & Order a few years back, but it just wasn't the same after Jerry Orbach left the show. I used to watch JAG back when it was on, but that was probably because the rest of my family watched it.

I also catch the occasional episode of Psych. Does Psych count?

[Flarecobra]

NCIS. They've actually used real NCIS cases as insperation for episodes. Plus I love Abby. You never see Perkigoths in media. :D

[Hawk]

I think we can all agree NCIS is the absolute shit. Love that show. I also used to watch CSI, but then I lost track of it all after that Tarantino special.

The best show though is Jonathan Creek. Impossible crimes ==> normal, actually possible crimes.

Also;

Also ABC for canceling Life on Mars because at least you know it was a little bit original with the time travel thing.

Are you talking the original series, or the American remake? Because the British version wasn't canceled, it ended.

[synkr0nized]

Harvey Birdman: Attorney at Law

[Corel]

Life on Mars (The BBC one.) Can anyone tell me in the US one did they really end it with them going to Mars on a spaceship?

Philip Glenister's Gene Hunt is the fictional bad ass of the decade.

[krogothwolf]

Harvey Birdman: Attorney at Law

Best One Ever!

Plus Night Court!

I prefer Bones the most right now.

[Fifthfiend]

Psych is the Mentalist except with good characters and acting.

Although actually I guess Psych came first so it's more like the Mentalist is Psych but with shitty characters and acting.

Past that I hate all of them they're all the same terrible show with the same terrible plots and the same magical technology bullshit and the same "cops = right, fuck you" attitude and augh just fuck all that shit.

Seriously though Psych owns.

[Magic_Marker]

Psych is fun, Monk was good for four seasons but has been a little bleh for a while. I feel it's gone on for too long and become too predictable.

I want to like NCIS, but I can't. I've tried, believe me I've tried. But there is a part of my brain that won't believe that the NAVY has that much problem with crime.

The rest is good to have on while your web surfing but not for much else.

[EVILNess]

NCIS, Castle, Psych, and Burn Notice.

Yes, Burn Notice. I consider it a reverse crime drama since most of the shit they do is illegal.

[Fifthfiend]

Just remembered my least favorite Stock Shitty Cop Drama Plot:

Teenage girl turns up dead, turns out she was raped to death/thrown out of moving car by drunk drivers/whichever other horrible crime committed by Wasted Teens. Real villains: Parents, who knew their kids were consuming alcohol but did nothing because Hey A Little Beer Isn't That Big A Deal.

The extent to which these shows go out of their way to promote terrible conservative moral lessons and shame people for employing actual goddamn common sense via ridiculous over-the-top scare stories just drives me fucking crazy.

Yes, Burn Notice. I consider it a reverse crime drama since most of the shit they do is illegal.

I seriously like Burn Notice for the way it goes out of its way to avoid a lot of stock cliches and all of the practical tips on being a spy and/or criminal, although 1. it's kind of silly how every con the main spy-dude tries to pass off involves him having to hurt himself in some awful way 2. Any scene where he tries to Play Dumb is just painful.

[krogothwolf]

My least favourite is the school bullying were either the bullies kill the kid or the kid kills the bully when trying to get revenge

[BitVyper]

I enjoyed The Shield for its short run. Mostly just for Vic Mackey. He was a fun character.

I also like NYPD Blue.

[walkertexasdruid]

Criminal Minds is probably my favorite. I miss Mandy Patkinson, but Joe Montenia has done a great job in his place. Plus I appreciate Fat Tony from the Simpsons.

I am sorry that a few of you hate The Mentalist, because I really like the show. I like that it is a lighter side to this genre. I guess we will have agree to disagree.

I am growing tired of the Laws and Orders, especially after Orbach left the show, and Dinofrio is only there part time on CI. Is Goldbloom doing a good job? Maybe I will start watching it again.

[Sithdarth]

You know what I love about Psyche. If the USA character clip is to be believed they actually take a jab at the Mentalist for basically being a clone of Psyche in the middle of an episode. You don't see that very often especially not done in a clever manner.

[Meister]

The extent to which these shows go out of their way to promote terrible conservative moral lessons and shame people for employing actual goddamn common sense via ridiculous over-the-top scare stories just drives me fucking crazy.
Gotta love modern society. An entire subgenre of popular entertainment designed to frighten viewers into submission (if you commit a crime, the magic computer tells the police all about you, and they'll get you) and into accepting a predefined lifestyle as the only valid one (after all, it's clearly nothing but trouble associating with groups with odd hobbies), and people happily accept it, buy ringtones from it and make it into internet memes.

I'm watching Twin Peaks! Just got through the first season and it's pretty great so far. Wish I'd started making some kind of character/sinister scheme flowchart, though.

[Smarty McBarrelpants]

I'm watching Twin Peaks! Just got through the first season and it's pretty great so far. Wish I'd started making some kind of character/sinister scheme flowchart, though.

It doesn't really help unless you've got like 4 sided paper or something ridiculous. Don't do what we did which was spread out the episodes (we ended up watching 1 every two weeks). It much easier in a block.

[walkertexasdruid]

I never watched Twin Peaks, but I have heard that it is pretty interesting.

[Marc v1.0]

NCIS of course

and Bones.

Bones is addictive.

[krogothwolf]

Finally some else who watches bones!

The Booth-Bones team is a really great pairing.

[BitVyper]

I really tried to like Bones, but the characters are all just so goddamn irritating. I like David Boreanaz, but that's about it. Bones is especially annoying. Her and the artist chick. The character interaction is almost painful for me to watch. If it were awkward due to the social disorders of Bones and that other guy, it'd be one thing, but it's just... poorly written dialogue.

Okay great, you've given your characters these personality traits, now quit rubbing them in my face every five seconds. I get it; the artist is empathetic. You don't need reestablish that every episode. You're supposed to develop the character so that they're more than this one central trait you've given them. Even if her role in the cast is to be the empathetic one like that, use some bloody subtlety.

[Fifthfiend]

The above complaint speaks to another reason why Psych is so much better than every other crime drama. Lasseter was totally a flat "generic jerk cop" in the first ep and since then has been massively developed and expanded upon without ever actually changing that core role.

[EVILNess]

The above complaint speaks to another reason why Psych is so much better than every other crime drama. Lasseter was totally a flat "generic jerk cop" in the first ep and since then has been massively developed and expanded upon without ever actually changing that core role.

Lassie is a great character, and some of his best stuff comes from him trying to fit in or how he secretly actually likes and respects the Psych agency.

Also, Bones? I like the show, but her chin is GINORMOUS AND SCARES THE LIVING FUCK OUT OF ME.

[BitVyper]

The above complaint speaks to another reason why Psych is so much better than every other crime drama. Lasseter was totally a flat "generic jerk cop" in the first ep and since then has been massively developed and expanded upon without ever actually changing that core role.

See the thing with Bones is... you know how in the pilot of a series, a character will sometimes just blurt out things for the specific purpose of showing what role they will fill in the cast? You know it seems awkward, but you get that they were trying to get a lot of information out fast so as to show network execs how everything would fit together, so it's forgivable. THAT IS EVERY EPISODE OF BONES.

Despite that, it's still okay, just.... I have to take it in small doses or I start yelling.

[Sithdarth]

Lately while watching Bones I've had to fight back the urge to scream as loud as humanly possible (and I can hit over 130 dB yelling) "Rational thought does not mean you are the douchiest douche to ever fucking douche you douche!" God its like someone decided that anyone with an IQ over 80 is in some way mentally unstable and unfit to interact with the rest of society. Despite that I still somehow enjoy the show.

[BitVyper]

Lately while watching Bones I've had to fight back the urge to scream as loud as humanly possible (and I can hit over 130 dB yelling) "Rational thought does not mean you are the douchiest douche to ever fucking douche you douche!" God its like someone decided that anyone with an IQ over 80 is in some way mentally unstable and unfit to interact with the rest of society.

Yeah, that's my other problem with the show: Bones herself. I mean, she's supposed to be one of the world's foremost anthropologists, experienced with a wide variety of cultures, presumably having had to learn some kind of cultural sensitivity at some point, yet she'll walk into a Catholic church and start behaving like a strawman atheist on a web forum.

[Smarty McBarrelpants]

Yeah my problem with Bones is that Bones is just dumb. She continually tries to rationalise everything but her arguments are always trivial and based on like a high school understanding of things. You can have characters like that but you need to actually make them intelligent with good arguments.

[NonCon]

You can have characters like that but you need to actually make them intelligent with good arguments.

But if they did that they couldn't repeatedly prove the evil, compassionless atheist wrong in the face of good, wholesome, American, conservative morals.

[EVILNess]

See you guys are being all rational with your hate, I don't like her cause her chin if the stuff of nightmares.

[01d55]

So apparently this thing called Dark Blue is crazy (http://yglesias.thinkprogress.org/archives/2009/07/dark-blue-the-madness-continues.php).

[walkertexasdruid]

is it true that they are ending Without a Trace? I hope not, I really like that show.

[Dørmatte]

Nobody has mentioned Lie to Me (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lie_to_me) so far. It's basically like the mentalist and psych but they try to give it a new touch by introducing microexpressions and going into more details about how they predict the stuff; it seems more plausible to me. Only one season so far, but a second one starting in september!

Also the main character is a total asshole who'll do anything to solve the case, including manipulating his own people against their will and desires. Which is always fun.

[Hawk]

When you have 3 shows and you can say the line "it's like this and that but...", then you have one too many shows and two few original ideas.

[Dørmatte]

When you have 3 shows and you can say the line "it's like this and that but...", then you have one too many shows and two few original ideas.

You can say that about every show.

[e] almost!

[Xellos]

Psych is the Mentalist except with good characters and acting.

Although actually I guess Psych came first so it's more like the Mentalist is Psych but with shitty characters and acting.

Psych actually made a reference to the Mentalist in their latest episode. I forgot exactly what they said, though, so I'm not sure if they were poking fun or not.

[EVILNess]

Psych actually made a reference to the Mentalist in their latest episode. I forgot exactly what they said, though, so I'm not sure if they were poking fun or not.

They poked fun again during a commercial for the last season of Monk. Shawn said, and I quote, "He (Monk) is a great guy, and the second most observant person I know. Third, if you count the Mentalist."

[Fifthfiend]

Psych actually made a reference to the Mentalist in their latest episode. I forgot exactly what they said, though, so I'm not sure if they were poking fun or not.

Oh man it was great. "Have you seen the Mentalist? It's just like that. Except I'm a real psychic of course. If I was a fake psychic then it would be eerily similar. A virtual carbon copy!" Sick burn.

Also holy shit, Psych is a great TV show. Like man I forgot how great it was but it is really just totally, totally great.

[Sithdarth]

I totally mentioned that like a week ago but no one ever listens to me. :(

*slits wrists while listening to Nickleback*

[Magic_Marker]

Pssst, try listening to Bright Eyes, it'll make the blood flow more freely.

Trust me.