I'd love to see what this user-base has to recommend. I figure I'll knock out some of the obvious choices to start off with. These are shows that I think you really, really should check out.
Comedy:
Party Down, Peep Show, Freaks & Geeks, Monkey Dust, Nighty Night, Arrested Development, It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia, Eastbound & Down, Workaholics, Trailer Park Boys, Bored To Death, Summer Heights High, Kroll Show, Kenny vs. Spenny
Drama:
Breaking Bad, House of Cards, The Wire, Oz, Game of Thrones, Homeland, The Sopranos
I thought I'd knock those out as some of the "obvious" ones, so maybe we can go help each other find out some new stuff!
I've been watching the show Wilfred and its really funny. As you mentioned Always Sunny is great.
I feel like Wilfred doesn't get nearly enough credit. It's a lot more subtle and interesting than most comedies. Funny and quirky on the surface, but with a lot of darker underlying themes.
Wilfred has entertained me on rainy days for the past few months. It has several interesting and thought provoking concepts and I highly recommend it. It's easily one of the most underrated shows. Seasons 1 & 2 are on Netflix if you'd like to give it a try.
Holy shit! I just started watching that last week. I've only seen the first episode but I really really like it. Have you seen AMC's The Killing? I watched season 1 of that and loved it. They have similar feels to them. I'm so behind on TV in general. I need a full weekend of nothing but lounging and tv ASAP.
The Killing season 1 and 2 are amazing. It was cancelled after season 2, but then picked up again after people threw a fit. Then season 3 was only ok, and it was cancelled again. I was upset the first time it was cancelled, but I don't care as much this time around.
A great show. I"ve only seen however much is on Netflix but I remember wishing there was more.
Black Books. It's on Netflix. There's only 18 episodes so you can just marathon them all if you want to.
I really enjoyed this series. It's by Graham Lineham, the same guy who created the I.T. Crowd (which incidentally, the finale of aired last week). It's not as popular, but I think it's a ton better than the I.T. Crowd. If you like either of those, he has another series called Father Ted which I haven't gotten around to watching yet, but a friend highly recommends. I'm pretty certain all of these are on Netflix.
Gravity Falls is one of the best things on TV right now. It just finished its first season, with intermittent shorts tiding over until season two begins late in 2014. Damn. Anyway, it has Kristen Schaal and Chris Parnell in it, making it one step away from being a 30 Rock reunion. Also, the guy who wrote the Homestar Runner cartoons writes on it as well. I wholeheartedly suggest y'all check it out.
As the others mentioned, it's the latter, but it's on a classic Simpsons level on quotability. Girl, why you ackin' so cray cray?
The latter. It's pretty cool though, and the art's really good.
I saw an episode once on a plane while there was nothing else on, definitely seemed to be more of an 'adventure time' kids show, drawing adults. mainly geared toward children with some things thrown in for adults as well
I'll admit, I tried to watch the first episode, and it just felt ultra low-brow American Pie dick jokes teenage boy comedy. Is that a fair assessment? No judgment on your part - I can definitely get down with that sort of stuff on occasion, but it's not entirely what I look for in a television show these days.
No I don't take any offense! It's all a matter of taste! Yes, it is crude humor and college themed, so it appeals to a younger audience. It makes me laugh and is useful for killing time. OH. And Archer. Man I love that show. It's more adult themed but also has sexual themes and crude humor. This show is worth a view too.
For drama, if you don't have anything against anime, cowboy bebop is amazing. Based on a sci-fi western background, It follows four bounty hunters trying to find or escape their past. It also has one of the best soundtracks I have ever heard. There are around 20 episodes around 24 minutes each. If you want a taste, watch episode 5: Waltz for Venus.
Garth Marenghi's Darkplace will always be my all-time favourite comedy. I'm surprised no-one has mentioned it yet, but I guess that shows how 'lesser-known' it is. Also, a sitcom called 'Ideal' which 'revolves around the eclectic array of characters who visit Moz to buy cannabis, socialise or both.' The former is one of funniest spoof comedies you'll watch, everything about it is absolutely perfect. The latter is masterclass in making a very entertaining show out of a limited premise.
British classic comedy: Dear John - wonderful, poignant sitcom about a man joining a social club for divorced people Father Dear Father- very funny 1960s series, at times endearingly old fashioned but also surprisingly progressive for its time Absolute Power - oddly under-known TV comedy starring Stephen Fry as a masterful, amoral PR manipulator. Biting, accurate satire on the UK media, celebrity culture and politics, in some ways the "Yes, Minister" of its time
Episodes is really good. Not sure if it well known in America or not. Kind of like a behind the scenes look at two people trying to recreate a British TV show in the US. Matt LeBlanc stars as a fictionalised version of himself and is surprisingly good. The humor is a blend of dry British humor and the more broad american style
Comedy The League * http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1480684 * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_League Brooklyn Nine-Nine * http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2467372 * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brooklyn_Nine-Nine 8 out of 10 Cats * http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0465315 * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/8_out_of_10_cats Mock the Week * http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0463827 * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mock_the_Week Drama Six Feet Under * http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0248654 * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Six_Feet_Under_(TV_series) The Wire * http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0306414 * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wire The Walking Dead * http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1520211 * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Walking_Dead_(TV_series) Sherlock * http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1475582 * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sherlock_(TV_series)The League is an American sitcom that premiered on FX on October 29, 2009. The series, set in Winnetka, Illinois, is a semi-improvised comedy about a fantasy football league, its members, and their everyday lives.
Brooklyn Nine-Nine is an American comedy television series that premiered on September 17, 2013 and airs on Fox as part of the 2013–14 American television season. ... The show follows a laid-back New York City Police Department detective (Andy Samberg), as his strict new captain (Andre Braugher) tells him to "respect the badge" and grow up.
8 Out of 10 Cats is a British television comedy panel game produced by Zeppotron (a subsidiary of Endemol UK) for Channel 4.
Mock the Week is a British topical celebrity panel game hosted by Dara Ó Briain. The game is influenced by improvised topical stand-up comedy, with several rounds requiring players to deliver answers on unexpected subjects on the spur of the moment.
Six Feet Under is an American drama television series created and produced by Alan Ball. ... The show depicts members of the Fisher family, who run their funeral home in Los Angeles, and their friends and lovers. ... The ensemble drama stars Peter Krause, Michael C. Hall, Frances Conroy, Lauren Ambrose, Freddy Rodriguez, Mathew St. Patrick, and Rachel Griffiths as the show's seven central characters.
The Wire is an American television crime drama series set and produced in and around Baltimore, Maryland. ... Each season of The Wire introduces a different facet of the city of Baltimore. In chronological order they are: the illegal drug trade, the seaport system, the city government and bureaucracy, the school system, and the print news media. The large cast consists mainly of character actors who are little known for their other roles. Simon has said that despite its presentation as a crime drama, the show is "really about the American city, and about how we live together. It's about how institutions have an effect on individuals. Whether one is a cop, a longshoreman, a drug dealer, a politician, a judge or a lawyer, all are ultimately compromised and must contend with whatever institution to which they are committed."
The Walking Dead is an American horror drama television series developed by Frank Darabont. It is based on the comic book series of the same name by Robert Kirkman, Tony Moore, and Charlie Adlard. The series stars Andrew Lincoln as sheriff's deputy[2] Rick Grimes, who awakens from a coma to find a post-apocalyptic world dominated by flesh-eating zombies. He sets out to find his family and encounters many other survivors along the way.
Sherlock is a British television crime drama that presents a contemporary update of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes detective stories. Created by Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss, it stars Benedict Cumberbatch as Sherlock Holmes and Martin Freeman as Doctor John Watson.
Whitest Kids U'Know was a great sketch comedy that ran on Fuse and then IFC for awhile. They only made it through 5 seasons, which is a bit of a shame. Probably for the best, though. Even at 5 seasons it was evident they were running out of ideas. They only have season 5 on Netflix, but you can find pretty much any skit from the show on YouTube.
Not so much 'lesser-known' but 'under-appreciated', New Girl is currently on it's third season and it's actually really good. It reminds me a bit of Scrubs and Community with it's wacky sense of humour. Once you get past the title and the focus on Zooey (factors that have been known to turn people off the show), and begin to focus on the other characters and the group dynamic, then you'll realize that it's actually a really good show. I knocked out two seasons in around three days.
I don't know if Oz is lesser known, but just a little old so people may overlook it now if they missed it when it aired. The first few episodes may turn people off because of the 90s style editing and music, but it really picks up and the acting is brilliant.
Borgen - sorta West Wing meets Denmark. Black Mirror - future-stuff. Extremely well written, edgy, thought-provoking. Just 6 episodes in two seasons. A must-see.
The West Wing. It's on Netflix currently. Lesser-known now, but used to be insanely popular and won a many awards. Besides, if Game of Thrones, Sopranos, and Breaking Bad are "lesser known", then I'm going to pretend The West Wing is lesser known too. Also, The Newsroom is a really good show, and made by Sorkin, who also made The West Wing. I have a goal to ruin peoples lives by getting them sucked into this show for a few months, one person at a time. Thenewgreen has recently felt the wrath of West Wing time-sink goodness.
Comedy: The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret. David Cross & Will Arnett. David Cross lies his way to an accidental promotion and continues to lie and dig himself into an increasingly big hole.
Oh, I agree, I just thought it was a fun watch. Wasn't trying to make a "must-see" list.
I really enjoy getting into the more obscure non-american shows Hulu has. Fresh Meat (comedy) is probably one of my favorites.