10 Years: 10 Episodes Dash to the Finish 2006-2009

Okay, kids, time for a mad dash to the finish as this 10 eps 10 years thing has been as delayed as a new Bendis issue of Powers (that’s for you, SPM).

2006
How I Met Your Mother: The Slap Bet November 20, 2006

More great eps from The Wire, The Shield and BSG this year, but for pure entertainment purposes, How I Met Your Mother hits the list for ’06 with the series’ classic ep: The slap bet. The episode is a perfect example of the Hitchcockian theory that it’s the suspense of potential violence that will actually kill ya….as NPH’s Barney waits for the slaps to the face that he knows are coming…sometime…anytime…. (Available clip is a music video, but you get the point)




2007

Lost Through The Looking Glass May 23, 2007

Spoiler Alert: This is the one that took the show and turned it freakin’ upside down. One sentence: “We have to go back, Kate!” and suddenly the viewer realizes that instead of one of the Losties patented flashbacks, we’ve suddenly jumped forward—some crazy stuff has no doubt occurred and some of these guys actually did get off the island, the why and how and what the heck waiting for the next year’s reveal.




2008

Tie:

The Shield Family Meeting November 25, 2008
The Wire -30- March 9, 2008

I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t pick between the final episodes of two of the best in tv, I’d argue, ever. I can’t even describe ‘em properly. Just watch the shows. WATCH THEM on a dvd player near you.








2009

The Office, Niagara, October 8, 2009

Well this one shouldn’t be a surprise, as in an earlier post I went with The Office’s “Niagara” as the show that, maybe wasn’t the best of the year, but made me laugh as hard as anything I can remember. Now just the word “Twins” makes me giggle a bit.




So there ya have it, it took awhile, but there’s my list of 10 great television episodes from 2000 to 2009. Go watch ‘em, you’ll be glad you did.

10 Years: 10 Episodes: Battlestar Galactica: January 14, 2005

So it's taken me most of January to just get up to 2005 on my 10 episodes list--cut me some slack, I'm going through a whole decade here, 'natch

So here's one that may be in the running for fav. of the dec, not just this particular year. The reboot of BSG ended in 2009, but this episode, the very first one after the opening mini-series, still stands as one of the most entertaining hour this fantastic series offered during its run. The plot: nearly all of the human race having been wiped out just a short time past, the human survivors ("in a ragtag fugitive fleet," of course) are followed by their attackers and for some damn reason the bastard Cylon "toasters" show up every 33 minutes on the dot to do some mo' killing. The mounting tension as an exhausted group of pilots attempt to continually defend a fleet on the verge of collapse before it can even get started on its journey is combined with a ballsy ending makes for a hell of a start to the series and puts the fearless viewer on notice that a hell of a ride is underway.

10 Years: 10 Episodes The Sopranos: May 23, 2004

This year was a tough call for my 10/10 decision. Lost premiered with a fantastic pilot in September and a great episode with Locke's backstory called "Walkabout." The Wire had a great season (every season was great, of course) that I don't want to spoil cuz at least one reader hasn't seen yet!. Then, I thought, the finale of Angel was great, representative Joss stuff.

Still, in looking back at eps from 2004 that I saw at the time they aired the one that made me go "daaaaaaaaamn" viscerally was the Sopranos "Long Term Parking." This clip above gives you a little flavor of the excruciating extended tension that the episode gave us. You know what's coming, you don't want to watch, yet...you do anyway. That's good TV.

10 Years: 10 Episodes Arrested Development Nov. 9 2003

Ahead of its time, predictive of the economic meltdown and corporate crazyness that marked the end of the 00's, and just damn, damn, damn funny, Arrested Development was hands down, funniest comedy of the decade (30 Rock you came so very close). If you haven't picked up the DVD's (regularly on sale at Target for $14 or so) then I scoff at you. That is right--I scoff. I can't think of a bad episode over its unfortunately shortened three year run (same old Fox story, multiple time slots, failure to market, etc., etc.) The show premiered in '03 and episode two: "Top Banana" is as good as any to recognize! Check out pre-Superbad Michael Cera stealing the show constantly. And, keep in mind, there's always money in a banana stand.

10 Years: 10 Episodes 24: May 21, 2002

24 shouldn't have worked. In 2001-2002, Kiefer Sutherland was considered way past his prime after some decent movies in the 80s and was maybe best known for having ruined a relationship/engagement with Julia Roberts by allegedly enjoying strippers a little too (allegedly) much (but really, don't we all). Further, tv studios just don't like producing shows that require one to watch continuous episodes in a row because that's not where the syndication money lies. And then, strike three, right before the pilot aired with a plot involving a plane being blown up, the U.S. suffered the worst attack on its soil since Pearl Harbor--involving, you know, planes and some seriously disturbing blowing up images.

But 24 worked. Eight seasons later it's still kicking. Yes, Jack Bauer has had some ridiculously bad days. Yes, the Constitutional structure is kinda taking a beating cuz there've been way too many Presidents on this show. And, yes, season 1 has way too much of his daughter and a cougar. However, Season 1 also has the fantastic Dennis Haysbert in a charismatic performance as our first African American presidential candiate with "a real chance of winning" ('natch, who knew), and this ep, the end of Season 1, was a non stop thrill ride (spoiler alert) where Jack's wife is killed needlessly at the end as an act of revenge after you think the happy ending just hap'd. The finale of S1 established the reason I still watch the show today. You never know what kinda crazy shit the producers are gonna pull next. It's still a freaking thrill ride. (Sure, Kiefer is still a little wild offscreen, lol, but damn if that crazy doesn't come off great on the tube.)

(The clip below contains scenes from the first three years of 24--but it gives you the point)

10 Years: 10 Episodes The West Wing: May 16, 2001

Replacing Aaron Sorkin with John Wells for Season Four of the West Wing equates hypothetically to replacing Roger Ebert with, well, me (not a good idea, if you were wondering). The first three seasons of The West Wing I submit to you are as strong a body of work ever put on the home screen. That work arguably hit its zenith with the finale of Season Two. President Bartlet and God have a good old fashion mano-a mano showdown in the National Cathedral regarding the loss of treasured friend and presidental secretary Dolores Landingham in a meaningless car accident. Put your politics at the door and just enjoy the performance of the elder Sheen (who didn't get an Emmy for this merely because of the existance of someone named Tony Soprano).

10 Years: 10 Episodes Survivor: August 23, 2000

The fantastic and creative "Grant" who I gave props to in my 2009 round up for his "Week of..." series on "the book of faces" also had this interesting countdown of his favorite movie for each year in the decade (as opposed to favorite movies of the decade entirely). So I'm stealing his idea. Somewhat blatantly. However, I thought I'd apply it to TV and give you one episode from one show for each year that I (1) caught in its original broadcast and (2) made for great tubeage that year. Yes, I know the end of decade stuff was so last week--but it's never too late for a good Countdown ... right Mr. Olbermann?

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First up is the finale to the original Survivor. Everything about the show is such a cliche now that it is kinda hard to believe just how damn riviting that first 13 episode run on CBS was the summer of 2000. I got really tired of reality TV real fast thereafter--but I, and America, gathered to see Richard Hatch's butt naked tax evading self weasel his way to a well deserved victory in American Survior I (but not without taking this famous tongue lashing first).