Wow, I think you'll be pleasantly surprised then. Its nothing like Star Trek Next Gen. The new Battlestar Galactica is much, much grittier than the original. The first three series were outstanding. They've borrowed alot of the feel of Battlestar fighter ops from RL American aircraft carrier ops.

Unfortunately, like so many quality American sci fi series, BSG lost its way towards the end. It never ceases to amaze me how the original writers and creators of a series can produce an outstanding product only to have it completely destroyed a couple of series in by someone high up in a network who think they know what's best for the viewing public. Sometimes this is due to the "lowest common denominator" effect (dumbing down a program so that even the most retarded of viewers can understand what's going on), other times it seems to be inexplicable.

/ends rant/

Wow, just wow.
You really need to see the first season of the new Battlestar Galactica (BSG). Star Trek The Next Gen is just some pissweak kiddies show in comparison.
BSG is far grittier, more philosophical and far more character driven and after all of that, far more plausible in its plot.
I suppose that's what you get when you have a North Hollywood production...

Agreed, the 4th season of BSG wasn't as good as the first three, but it was still much better in my opinion than most of the Sci-Fi out there.

Caprica wasn't too bad either, not the same at all, which I think too many expected it to be, but it gave a pretty good idea of how far humanity fell once the Cylons came around.

Far from campy. Very gritty. A little like "Space: Above and Beyond" in feel.

My two cents on TV. I stopped watching about the time "Firefly" went off the air, except my wife got me into "Heroes" and "Tales of the gold monkey" on DVD. I tried watching "Baa baa black sheep," too, but couldn't take the anti-history of it.

A month ago, I got some of the music from "Miami Vice" stuck in my head, and it wouldn't go away. The next week, I see the DVDs for season 1 on sale at Half-Price Books for $15. :cool:

I've only watched a few episodes since then, but I am amazed at how vividly I remember some of the scenes. This was a show that I watched only the first 2 seasons, either with my brother or gaming pals. Friday nights, we often gamed with the TV on. I wonder if it was the action or the music that turned me on? I'm pretty sure it wasn't the clothes, I've never liked pastels.

Just to make a tenuous link to T2k, I ran a Merc game that had Miami as the home base for the PCs. Their hiring hall and weapons supplier was "Big Bob's House of Boom."

I was kind of sad when Space: Above and Beyond went off the air. Try getting DVDs of that; I've seen them in Half Price Books. Another good one is Tour of Duty; even the Vietnam vets I knew in the Army say it's pretty realistic (except for the lack of wholesale swearing).

What annoys me most about Space is the complete lack of a wrap up, or even the attempt at one. Was left COMPLETELY unresolved! :(
Talk about getting the axe without notice....

Bump to add -- it's a movie, rather than a show, but if anyone can catch Armadillo, it's very good. It's a documentary about a Danish ISAF platoon in Helmand -- well shot, kept my interest very well (even being subtitled), and compares favorably with Restrepo. Nice look at non-English speaking participants in the Afghan war.

I'm watching season 1 of HBO's The Wire right now. It's as good as the critics say it is- deep, smart, and very intense. It's well worth the time. Might be hard for non-Americans to keep up with all of the street slang, though. I have to listen extra carefully to catch all of it. Still and all, it's a great show.

In the UK keep your eyes open for "Our War" a documentary about the UK in Afghanistan with extensive footage by helmet cam.

In the midst of running a Bablyon 5 marathon to entertain the kids during summer break....always enjoyed the series, for its time, head and shoulders above the other drivel on the boob tube!

Just curious, was anyone watching the V remake?

Watched the first half dozen episodes and quit...just didn't do it for me.

Pretty much the same here...I'd kinda lost interest by half way through the first series....watched a couple of episodes from the second series (first, last, and one other)...thought the ending was....interesting...but on the whole not overly impressed.

Excellent series and, from what I've seen working in urban law enforcement, The Wire is distressingly enough the most realistic police show I've ever seen.

The same general group of people did the HBO miniseries adaptation for Generation Kill, which is another really good one.

I do miss Space above and beyond, It's hard to get in the UK now.

Invasion: Earth was a good, British TV series, worth a punt.

I'm currently watching series 1 of The Wire. I wanted something the wife and i could both watch, well, this isnt it. I'm loving it though! Just hard finding time to watch it on my own.

We are both watching Burn Notice. A bit soft or gimmicky? Hmm, maybe. Lighthearted enough for Wifey to watch. I like the way he explains plans, people, cunning tricks and why they work. Easy entertainment for now.

I was expecting Generation Kill to be 10/10. In the end i gave it an 8/10. I need to re-watch it.

OH! Almost forgot! Just finished reading the first 8 chapters (48 issues) of Walking Dead (graphic novel, or comic, your call). Outstanding! Zombie goodness is good, but the best part is how people are adapting to the new world where old laws and ways of thinking no longer apply. Survival at its best. Very T2K relevant. Please, no spoilers ... cant wait for issues 49-96 to come out in the one big book sometime in the next year. Yes its a comic, but mate, awesome read.

Cool. Then you might also enjoy The Zombie Hunters:

http://www.thezombiehunters.com/index.php?strip_id=1

I recently bought a copy from the very first print run of book one. Excellent.

I bookmarked TZH on your recomendation in an earlier post! I'm not really into comics, but i was hoping to read this one on-line.

Babylon 5 did the opposite of BSG by starting weak and closing strong... the last couple of seasons were the best.