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5.

This may seem like a weird choice, but I really enjoyed this show when it was on the air. A conflicted, snarky, angry, but generally wants to do good teen-aged girl faced with having God talk to her and ask her to do things, on top of the usual host of family and school drama? It sounds like it could be hokey or go the way of 7th Heaven, but it didn't. It was genuinely touching and interesting and covered a wide range of philosophical questions, and it didn't hurt that God tended to be as snarky as Joan. As always with me, it was also to characters that made it, particularly Joan's younger brother and his improbable relationship with disaffected, gruff Grace. (Plus, Joan's younger brother Luke will grow up to play young Jack O'Neill the clone, not to mention their mother being played by Mary Steenburgen. Jack would definitely approve of this show.) I was sad to see this show go.

4.

I loved this show! God, the quirk! The snappy dialog! The inanities of cubicle life, the vagaries of corporate morals, and the dangers of the lab all rolled into one. These five characters were so fantastic, so quirky, and yet totally loveable.

Ted and his snappy suits and arrogance and yet higher moral conscience than his overlords. Veronica and her icy, laser-like instincts, complete lack of moral compass and verbal filter.

Ted: What do you need, Veronica?
Veronica: We have a problem. It's about sexual... (looks at Rose) It's about sexual H-A-R-assment.
Ted: Ummm, well, I appreciate you not letting my daughter here the "har" part of that. But why don't we discuss it later?
Rose: By the way, I'm eight. I know how to spell.
Veronica: Never show your hand, sweetie. Always let the enemy underestimate you. Then when their guard's down, smash them with a phone.

Linda and her everywoman problems and snark, her tendency to never realize she's in over her head until it's way too late.

Ted: Hey. How'd your date go last night?
Linda: It depends. If a guy bites his cuticles and then swallows them, does that make him a cannibal? Because then I had an exciting date with a cannibal. And not a boring evening with a guy who has a disgusting habit.

And what is there to say about Lem and Phil? Their friendship is a thing of beauty. Their fear of Veronica, awe of Ted, and complete ineptitude to things both inside and outside of a test tube. But they genuinely love each other. Ultimate bromance for the ages.

Phil: Lem, you ever get the feeling the ooplasm cultures are looking up at you, worshiping you like a vengeful god?
Lem: No. Cytoplasm culture sometimes, but never ooplasm.
Phil: Sometimes you are a complete stranger to me.

I mean, how many shows would tackle the issues of racism in corporate America by having them invent a series of motion detectors to run everything, except, whoops, they can't detect black people.

Ted: The system doesn't see black people?
Veronica: I know. Weird, huh?
Ted: That's more than weird, Veronica. That's basically, well... racist.
Veronica: The company's position is that it's actually the opposite of racist, because it's not targeting black people. It's just ignoring them. They insist the worst people can call it is "indifferent."
Ted: Well, they know it has to be fixed, right? Please... at least say they know that.
Veronica: Of course they do, and they're working on it. In the meantime they'd like everyone to celebrate the fact that it sees Hispanics, Asians, Pacific Islanders, and Jews.

The company's completely insane solutions range from 'seperate but equal' manually run water fountains to hiring white people to follow the black employees around and activate things for them (Lem: Can you believe this? Bert: I know, isn't it great? We all get our own free white guy.)

This show is absolutely hilarious and I am still so damn sad it didn't last.

3.

Another doomed Amber Tamblyn show, poor woman. But, man, did I love this show. Mostly for Delahoy. Okay, almost entirely for Delahoy, but the others were awesome too. It's a cop show, yeah, but all of these characters are insane in their own way. And the show just managed to capture a great combination of humor, gravitas, pathos, and people running around with guns. Just this shy of a farce, really.

Detective Allison Beaumont: Here's what you need to know about the Second: Alvarez talks about himself in the third person, Banks sleeps in a bulletproof vest, and yesterday Delahoy named his mustache.
Detective Casey Shraeger: What about Walsh?
Detective Allison Beaumont: On the plus side, he doesn't stare at your boobs when he's talking to you.
Detective Casey Shraeger: The down side?
Detective Allison Beaumont: I've got great boobs. Why isn't he looking?

I mean, let's talk about the dark genius of having buddy cop partners, one of whom is secretly dying of a brain tumor, and the other who is crippled by his fear of dying at the same age as his father? Clearly I have a thing for quirky characters, what can I say. (Plus, Delahoy was blackmailing a medical examiner into being his doctor, much to her utter snarky dismay. There was bizarro ship written all over that.)

The episode "Crime Slut" is notable not only for this little exchange between Casey and Walsh: 

Det. Shraeger: I could never be a slut.
Det. Walsh: How do you know unless you try?
Det. Shraeger: I just have no interest in seeing that many penises.

But also because Delahoy spends the entire episode searching for a dead man who wandered off the slab, leaving behind nothing but a copy of Vonnegut's Cat's Cradle.

Det. Delahoy: 'All the true things I'm about to tell you are shameless lies.'

It is all done with such finesse and humor and pathos that it took me days to crawl up out over this ep.

Why weren't you given more of a chance, show?

2.

If you've been anywhere near this journal in the last six months, you probably already know of my love for this show. Chase is a show that achieves what so few have done before: it portrays women in a human, matter of fact way that does not turn them into cliches or objects or attention-seeking, woman-hating divas. The women in this show are competent, smart, good at their jobs, and know how to handle guns. But that is all secondary to the way Annie is in charge, not a woman in charge, but a person in charge. It is not treated as something weird, no one questions it, the men don't angst over answering to a woman. She's the boss. And they damn well all know it. There is a love triangle of sorts in the show. Neither of the women are demonized or try to sabotage the other. The existing relationship is not made dysfunctional to make the USTy relationship more palatable or appear a better choice. The women do not look better only in comparison of making the other women look bad. Bottom line? These female characters are humans first, and it's only glaringly obvious how refreshing this is when you are finally faced with it. The loss of this show is a great tragedy on so many levels.

Daisy Ogbaa! Annie Frost! How will I live without you?

I'm going to mourn this one for a long time. (Yes, though still not *officially* canceled, the remaining eps are not going to be aired, and actors from the show have already landed other parts, so...yeah. I think the nail is in the coffin, people. And if this premature post manages to jinx it into another season? AWESOME.)

1.

This one pretty much goes without saying, doesn't it? Amazing ensemble cast, a textured, fleshed out universe that came instantly alive on our screens. A perfect blend of humor, action, philosophy, tragedy, and human spirit. River's insanity, Mal's lost faith, Kaylee's endless warmth, Jayne's self-serving badassery, Wash's humor, Simon's focus, Zoe's cool competence. And the Shepherd, so damn lost in the real world with a hidden past. (That early scene with Inara comforting him? Gah.)  I wanted to spend years with these people. I wanted to pick up Chinese phrases for monkey balls. I wanted to see the Alliance try and control the fringe of life and fail utterly. I wanted to see Mal and Inara dance around each other until it killed them. The film only made me wonder just how fantastic watching all of that slowly unravel over seasons would have been. I think the canceling of this show shall for all time go down as one of the greatest tragedies of TV. You suck, Fox.

So, yeah. Apparently I have a thing for quirk and snark. What a surprise. Lol.

And since I know I am going to hear this, I thought I would say that I am sure most people would put TSCC and Pushing Daisies on this list, but I never let myself get sucked into either of those. Which apparently was a smart idea in retrospect. Boo!