first rec, but I quite enjoy Dexter and Weeds over at Showtime too, but HBO is hands down the best network on television. If I could figure out how to get it and MSNBC without the other 500 channels, I would be deleriously happy. Deadwood, Carnivale, Big Love, were fantastic. What a shock to lose Bill Hendrickson the way we did! I'm still not over it!

because I had to get my bill down. Then I went on the road and was introduced to Shameless and Lie To Me. Now I have to figure out how to get the damn thing back.

But it's not...so I won't.

would be seriously compromised.

I'm saying. I cannot say that programming that charges for view is the best that television has to offer. PBS is still a pretty awesome idea.

American Idol, Dancing With The Stars, CSI, etc.

Iow, homogenized crap, the exact opposite of the quality writing HBO & Showtime can air when not worried about FCC fines or stupid viewers organizing boycotts because they heard a dirty word or saw a nipple.

Though Showtime has caught up with Dexter, Shameless, Nurse Jackie and the Tuders. I hear Californication is very good too. HBO has been the standard for TV excellence for years. I am also a big fan.

on Netflix

http://movies.netflix.com/WiMovie/Californication/70140366?trkid=2361637

"Shameless," "House of Lies," and "Californication." The best two hours on television, imho.

And I hate everyone on the show except for Con's father and son. These people are the scum of the Earth. Kristen Bell is smoking though.

Probably my favorite show in television history.

...Then I don't know what.

Showtime does some good things, as does AMC. But HBO is tops.

mustn't forget Mad Men and Breaking Bad. If they took every reality show off television, I wouldn't miss them at all. I'm proud to say I have never seen a single episode of American Idol. Even as a fan of Aerosmith going back more years than I care to think about, I won't watch that crap. I am spending my Sunday night with Forrest Gump fot the umpteeth time this evening on TNT.

They whacked Jimmy!!

Six Feet Under, Queer as Folk, Shameless, Dexter are fantastic shows. On AMC you have Breaking Bad, the Killing and Mad Men. But HBO has the great one-two punch of both amazing series and made for TV movies. No network can beat that.

For our money HBO is worth every penny.

Yep, definite HBO fan.

Just when a gave show ends or takes a break, another starts.

Can't get into Luck, but then along comes Game Change to prevent me from taking a break.

Only other program I LOVE like HBO/SHO offerings is Justified on FX.

Very underrated, hilarious show in a dry humor sort of way.

And they have had some really good original programming. Six Feet Under was one of the best series ever made. As far as their movie line-up - eh. They repeat the same mediocre movies month after month.

"And The Band Played On" comes to mind. That one came out in the early 1990s. It was based on a book by the same name about the early years of the AIDS crisis. They did not go easy on the Reagan administration. Loads of big names, including Matthew Modine, Alan Alda, Anjelica Houston and Richard Gere.

I really liked the baseball series the did several years back. I particularly enjoyed the one they did on the Red Sox. Some of the parts surrounding their "curse-breaking" World Series win were a hoot.

I love a lot of their shows - Curb, Entourage (save for the last two seasons ) , Game Of Thrones, Boardwalk Empire, you name it.

And I love the standup comedy too =- specials from the greats like George Carlin, Lewis Black, Rodney Dangerfield, Bill Hicks, David Cross, Bill Maher, you name it.

for Real Time with Bill Maher. Taht's the only reason I'd get it. But I cancelled it because of the cost.

I miss Real Time. I don't miss anything else.

I loved Curb Your Enthusiasm, but I saw it on another network, for free. I used to watch Six Feet Under; it was great. Then I cancelled HBO so didn't get to see it anymore. I bought a Dexter DVD of several seasons. Great show. Loved that one.

But I try to keep my DirecTV bill under control, so dropped HBO when the cost got too high. HBO costs I think $15 month with DirecTV.

I saw were posted by the same person the night "Game Change" aired, and were really an attack on the movie. Someone mentioned that Breitbarts people had been instructed to go on websites and badmouth the movie. The person doing this posted on every game change thread using almost the exact same words each time. This person also has less than 100 posts.

I remember during season #5 of "Sex and the City" they would auction off a few of the items worn during the show on Ebay. The money raised went towards Planned Parenthood.

"Paradise Lost" about the WM3 brought immense attention to that case. A HUGE thanks to the filmmakers, and HBO for airing it. I'm not saying they would still be in prison if it weren't for HBO, and imo got a shitty deal but had to take it to get released, but I recently watched a documentary on another channel which revealed it was Echol's lawyer that actully was the one to introduce the Alford plea to the state to get them released.

FYI, Peter Jackson made a documentary on this case which I believe will be released this year.

Great post, thanks!