Where would you rank Boardwalk Empire among the best shows?
I recently got around to watching Boardwalk Empire by accident. Randomly came across a trailer on Youtube and was surprised I've never heard of it until now.
Finished the entire series within a week and I must say this is some of the best television I've seen in a while. A lot of people talk about Breaking Bad and Mad Men being great shows which I agree they are. But I'm surprised how this drama was overlooked.
I know this all comes down to personal taste but I've seen some great television and it boggles my mind how this show just doesn't garner the attention it deserves.
The writing is terrific, character development is some of the best I've seen, it's thrilling, and it has some of the best acting I've ever seen.
As much as I love Breaking Bad and Mad Men, I don't think any of them grabbed me as much as Boardwalk Empire. That pilot was one of the best pilots I've seen in a long time. I did feel that the pacing starts off slow and you kind of have to "force" yourself through those moments but in the end I felt it was worth it.
The fifth season was the weakest season of the series. Which I know some of you will agree if not most. It felt like they tried to cram in so much in such a short period of time. But honestly, even at its worst the show delivers a much better story than A LOT of shows currently running on television. Season 5 was a weak season by Boardwalk Empire's standards, but it would be a terrific season on almost any other show.
I understand why many felt disappointed, but personally I thought at the end of the day with the time they were given by HBO, they did the best job they could. When I reflect back on the series as a whole, I think Terence Winter and his team told the story they wanted to tell and I think it was a perfect ending just because of everything that transpired over the course of five seasons.
I will agree that I do wish HBO would've given them the normal 12 episodes rather than 8 to finish the story, but I'm glad they ended the series sooner rather than later. There are so many series out there that have overstayed their welcome and have gotten stale.
It's definitely in my top 5.
- Deadwood
- The Sopranos
- The Wire
- Boardwalk Empire
- The Shield