The Best Television of 2007
by Brian Tallerico

9. Reaper (CW)

"Sam, I invented therapy. Okay? So that the wicked could justify their actions." - The Devil, "Leon," 10.30.07

Another show that has steadily improved week after week, and another show that just not enough of you are watching. Where are you Buffy fans? Angel fans? Mulder and Scully fans? You should all be watching Reaper, the smartest show of its kind currently on the air and one that, if it continues its current trajectory, could soon stand next to Vampire Slayer and X-Files in fantasy TV lore. Featuring Emmy-nomination worthy work from Ray Wise as The Devil and an ensemble that has developed over the first half of the first season into one of the strongest on TV, Reaper has become one of the most enjoyable hours of TV week after week. The writers have found that delicate balance that Buffy had in its best episodes, where the characters matter as much as the supernatural requirements of the plot. Recent episodes like "Leon," featuring the great Patton Oswalt from Ratatouille, and "The Cop," with the most hilarious dream sequence of the year, stand as some of the best programming of the year. Like Aliens in America, all Reaper needs is your support. Call your cable provider and ask them where to find The CW on your system. Please. Don't make us beg.

8. Pushing Daisies (ABC)

"Then you haven't been hugged properly. It's like an emotional Heimlich. Someone puts their arms around you and they give you a squeeze and all your fear and anxiety come shooting out of your mouth in a big wet wad and you can breath again." - Chuck Charles, "Pie-lette," 10.3.07

Is Pushing Daisies too clever for its own good? Is not sounding or looking like anything else on television a good thing or a bad thing? Only time will tell, but we feel like the clock is ticking on this incredibly clever show, one that has failed to build the cult following that ABC was hoping for. It's been renewed for a full season and has more critical love than any show this year, but the ratings continue to dwindle and the blogosphere just hasn't lit up for Daisies like it did for Heroes or Lost. Maybe drawing constant comparisons to Amelie isn't something TV viewers are looking for from ABC on Wednesday night. To be honest, it seems almost impossible to watch a show like Pushing Daisies in real-time with commercials. How can the romantic fantasy stay afloat with Wendy's commercials jammed in between? It's a show made for DVRs or cable. It might not survive the ratings drain that it's seen in the last few weeks, but we'll tell you this: it will have legions of fans forever. With all of the options on all the channels, looking completely original automatically makes you a show that people will return to for years to come. And having some of the best writing on TV doesn't hurt.

7. Entourage (HBO)

"We can all drink poison Gatorade and hope that the next life is better than this one. Come on E, you drink first. - Ari Gold, "The WeHo Ho," 7.22.07

Before you start yelling about Entourage jumping the shark, you should know that no one thinks the Medellin plotline was dragged out for too long more than we do. The team behind Entourage crafted two perfect seasons - one where Vinny's star rose and one where it fell - and they clearly weren't sure where to go from there. Consequently, they spent WAY too much time with crazy Billy and his dream project, one that every viewer knew would end the way it did. We think it was the fact that Entourage did get so predictable (the minute that E said Medellin was bad, you knew he was right) that turned off so many fans this year. Having said all of that, subpar Entourage is still better than most television and the writers still found ways to shine through all the Medellin garbage. The "fuzzies" episode, which ended with a visual image forever burned in my mind, was an instant TV comedy classic, and the writers actually seemed to find inspiration in the weirdest of places - an abrasive agent and his gay assistant. The episode where Ari had to help Lloyd through a rocky patch in his relationship was one of the best half hours of the year. If they can swing the focus back from childish directors to the humanity of the characters we care about, Entourage could easily return to its prime. Don't give up on Vinny Chase.

6. Weeds (SHO)

"I can only deal with one thing at a time. If I deal with one thing at a time, I'm less inclined to shoot myself in the head." - Nancy Botwin, "The Brick Dance," 8.27.07

Some Weeds fans feel that the show jumped the shark this season by going too far over the top with its ridiculous physical comedy and situations that no one would ever be in (did Nancy really get a U-turn sign tattooed on her ass?). What they fail to realize is that Weeds was never supposed to be one hundred percent realistic. It's a satire, a form that allows creator Jenji Kohan to go outside the norm of the suburban realism you might expect from a more traditional show. She'd probably hate the comparison, but Weeds is Desperate Housewives with marijuana and the creative freedom given by Showtime. It's much smarter than Housewives in its skewering of the traditional TV family but it's a similar form of satire and anyone coming to it looking for realism should hit channel up or down on their remote. Having said that, this season was pitch perfect with some of Mary-Louise Parker and Elizabeth Perkins' best work. Justin Kirk got kind of lost in the shuffle this year and the longer-than-average season felt an episode or two too extended, but these are minor complaints for a show that produced not only some of the funniest scenes of the year but some of the cleverest.

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