21 Addictive Television Drama Operas
Here is a list of addictive television series with high quality writing, cinematic style and performances. These shows can be found on DVD and many of them can be streamed online at Netflix or other video hosting sites. What's great about these big budget soap operas is they are as engaging as blockbuster theatrical movies, but they don't end after two hours. You can keep following the plot for weeks, even months depending on how many episodes you burn through in a night. Of course this is not a complete list and represents merely my opinions about the shows I've had the opportunity to see.
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- CreatorDavid ChaseStarsJames GandolfiniLorraine BraccoEdie FalcoNew Jersey mob boss Tony Soprano deals with personal and professional issues in his home and business life that affect his mental state, leading him to seek professional psychiatric counseling.Let's start with the one that started them all, The Sapranos, probably the first television show to frequently kill off its own characters. Although each episode tells its own story, the show broke new ground by including a soap opera-ish week by week continuing storyline, so that you get hooked and just have to see what is going to happen next. Think of it as an 86 hour gangster film. The Sapranos was so influential that it's hard to believe it only lasted six seasons (over eight years). It seems like it was around forever. All the following television dramas on this list owe something to The Sapranos for paving the way for the Drama Opera.
- CreatorShawn RyanStarsMichael ChiklisCatherine DentWalton GogginsDrama series following the lives and cases of dirty cop Vic Mackey and the corrupt LAPD unit under his command.The Shield runs approximately 90 hours spanning seven seasons. The main character Vic Mackey is probably the most corrupt television character ever invented yet somehow he remains sort of loveable. In the very first episode he murders a fellow police officer in cold blood, setting the pace for this intense, addictive drama about how his crew of bad cops keeps one step ahead of those who are out to bust it wide open. Forest Whitaker and Glenn Close are only a couple of the big names that co-star throughout this gritty saga.
- CreatorRobert CochranJoel SurnowStarsKiefer SutherlandMary Lynn RajskubCarlos BernardCounter Terrorism Agent Jack Bauer races against the clock to subvert terrorist plots and save his nation from ultimate disaster.24 took the idea of a continuing storyline and pumped it with adrenaline, making each season of 24 episodes depict 24 hours in a single day, as our flawed and angry hero Jack Bauer defies all laws of physics racing around in a desperate attempt to stop some terrorist attack. Over and over throughout the 128 hours of the 192 episodes over eight seasons Jack falls for the same tricks, makes the same mistakes and gets the information he needs through the same torturous means, but somehow in the frantic pacing the ridiculousness of it is suspended and even the most implausible situations become fuel for this addiction. 24's success is that it is one big, long cliff hanger.
- CreatorDenis LearyPeter TolanStarsDenis LearyMichael LombardiSteven PasqualeTommy Gavin deals with the fears of his job as a firefighter and seeing his ex-wife dating other men.With six seasons under its belt and a seventh, final season in the works, Rescue Me is one of the most intense shows ever made. Following alcoholic New York firefighter Tommy Gavin and his crew through the antics and angst of the years after September 11, 2001, this series includes some of the most intense human interaction scenes ever contained within a made for TV project. Whether they are pulling practical jokes on each other, shouting in rage or coming to blows, we intensely feel for the characters. Even though this show is emotionally draining, it also contains some of the funniest and politically incorrect moments I've ever seen on television. It's sort of an 85 hour long version of The Choirboys.
- CreatorJames Manos Jr.StarsMichael C. HallJennifer CarpenterDavid ZayasHe's smart. He's lovable. He's Dexter Morgan, America's favorite serial killer, who spends his days solving crimes and nights committing them.Who would have thought that there would ever be a television show about a serial killer, or that if there ever was one it would be this much fun? Dexter is a blood specialist on the Miami police force who moonlights as a serial killer who exclusively kills other serial killers. The continuing storyline is intriguing as Dexter plays a game of cat and mouse not only with his victims but with others on the police force as well as with his own family. There are some really creepy moments and this definitely falls within the realm of a horror series. It's kind of a mystery why we like this creep, but we do.
- CreatorPaul T. ScheuringStarsDominic PurcellWentworth MillerAmaury NolascoA structural engineer installs himself in a prison he helped design, in order to save his falsely accused brother from a death sentence by breaking themselves out from the inside.Season One of Prison Break is nothing short of a masterpiece. A guy tattoos the blue prints of a prison all over his body and then gets himself sent there in order to break his brother out. It's a wonderful 20 hour version of your favorite prison movie. I didn't watch any of the following seasons because the idea of a show called Prison Break in which all the prisoners have already broken out just didn't appeal to me, so I can only recommend Season One, but oh what a season it is.
- CreatorEthan ReiffCyrus VorisStarsMichael EalyOded FehrHenri LubattiAn American undercover FBI agent is assigned to infiltrate a terrorist sleeper cell that is planning an attack in Los Angeles.Sleeper Cell only lasted 18 hours over two seasons but it truly holds its own as a great show. As the audience, we know that Darwyn is an undercover agent infiltrating a terrorist organization, but nobody else knows, which makes the suspense unbearable at times. Will he be found out? How far will he let the plot go before he stops it? What's going to happen next? Why wasn't there a third season?
- CreatorJ.J. AbramsJeffrey LieberDamon LindelofStarsJorge GarciaJosh HollowayYunjin KimThe survivors of a plane crash are forced to work together in order to survive on a seemingly deserted tropical island.Lost takes the idea of a soap opera drama to a strange level, requiring us to tune in to watch the next episode, for nothing else but the hope that we might figure out what the hell is going on. Altogether, over six seasons, we get about 76 hours of pure mystery involving time travel, a monster made out of smoke, the bending of space and alternative universes, ending in a whopping climax that deals with the very nature of existence and life after death that ultimately answers absolutely nothing. But the ambiguity doesn't matter. The characters are likeable enough that we follow them around, through this bizarre tale of the unexplained, as if the plot was somehow cohesive. The series does drag on as they try to milk it for one final season, but if you watched the first five there's no getting out of suffering through the sixth.
- CreatorGlenn KesslerTodd A. KesslerDaniel ZelmanStarsGlenn CloseRose ByrneTate DonovanA law school graduate becomes the protégée of a successful high-stakes litigator.Glenn Close plays a high stakes seedy litigator who takes on a young protégé who's not as naïve as she's believed to be. This is like a 40 hour version of your favorite courtroom drama slash legal thriller. Close is at her most brilliant. Her performance alone is worth the hours it will take to get through it, and there's still more to come.
- CreatorBlake MastersStarsJason IsaacsJason ClarkeAnnabeth GishSet in an Irish neighborhood in Providence, Rhode Island, the series revolves around two brothers on opposite sides of the law: one a gangster (Jason Isaacs) and the other a state politician (Jason Clarke).Why Brotherhood only lasted three seasons is a mystery. It follows two Irish brothers, one a hardcore criminal and the other a cunning politician, as they oppose each other and protect each other at the same time. The acting is superb and the casting is flawless.
- CreatorDavid SimonStarsDominic WestLance ReddickSonja SohnThe Baltimore drug scene, as seen through the eyes of drug dealers and law enforcement.The Wire lasted five seasons, much of which I haven't yet had the chance to see. The first season is absolutely addictive, as we follow Jimmy McNulty through the interior workings of not only the Baltimore crime busting team that he belongs to, but the drug dealers themselves, who constantly out maneuver him. I found the second season to be off base as the storyline shifted to corrupt dock workers, but the storyline of the first season continues where it left off once we start season three. I have yet to get the opportunity to see the following seasons, but I anticipate gettting my Wire fix as soon as possible.
- CreatorKurt SutterStarsCharlie HunnamKatey SagalMark Boone JuniorA biker struggles to balance being a father and being involved in an outlaw motorcycle club.With three seasons so far, Sons of Anarchy is a top notch drama centering around a motorcycle gang that pretty much rules the fictional town of Charming. The characters are well defined and their interactions are believable. The moral issue of what they are doing is seldom brought up since we're watching this soap opera through the eyes of those who have chosen the life and who are committed to it. The gang is not glamorized. They wear nerdy looking helmets and often act like the keystone cops, but they are just bad enough to fear, so you're almost afraid to laugh at them when they bungle yet another operation. All jokes aside, this is really an intense, violent, adult oriented epic.
- CreatorDoug EllinStarsKevin ConnollyAdrian GrenierKevin DillonFilm star, Vince Chase, navigates the vapid terrain of Los Angeles with a close circle of friends and his trusty agent.With eight seasons so far, Entourage is one of my favorite TV shows. It follows Hollywood actor Vince Chase and his entourage of friends as they live the high life and have a lot of fun. Nothing bad ever happens. Nobody gets killed. The humor is adult and hilarious and, at about 24 minutes per episode, you can watch one after another after another, feeding your Entourage addiction without ever getting bored.
- CreatorVince GilliganStarsBryan CranstonAaron PaulAnna GunnA chemistry teacher diagnosed with inoperable lung cancer turns to manufacturing and selling methamphetamine with a former student in order to secure his family's future.With four seasons so far, Breaking Bad is a must see for those addicted to TV drama soap operas. High school chemistry teacher Walt finds out he has cancer and decides to hook up with a local nitwit to become a meth dealer. He ends up inventing a special blue crystal meth that catches on like wildfire and he is sent straight into the criminal life. Walt turns out to be a real bad ass, while his brother-in-law Hank, a drug enforcement agent, gains our sympathy as he continues episode after episode to have no clue. Breaking Bad is funny and scary and a little too real.
- CreatorTom KapinosStarsDavid DuchovnyNatascha McElhoneEvan HandlerA writer tries to juggle his career, his relationship with his daughter and his ex-girlfriend, as well as his appetite for beautiful women.As the name suggests, this show is about fornication. We follow author Hank Moody as he, well, fornicates his life away. Somehow we also sympathize with the struggle of his family as they attempt to function in a world where nothing is taboo, between fornications, of course. Luckily each episode is only about 23 minutes long so we're never allowed to get really disgusted by it all. In fact, there are some big belly laughs as well as quite a few heartfelt moments in this show about fornicating.
- CreatorBryan FullerStarsEllen MuthCallum BlueJasmine GuyAfter being hit on the head by a toilet seat that fell from Mir space station, a young temp clerk becomes a grim reaper in death.Dead Like Me only lasted two seasons. Boo. It follows Georgia, a young woman who has died and has been recruited into the life of a grim reaper. Unfortunately, just as you become completely addicted to the pace and formula of the episodes, they end. Not even the movie that would follow makes up for that cold turkey.
- CreatorJonathan AmesStarsJason SchwartzmanZach GalifianakisTed DansonA well-meaning but struggling writer decides to lead a sort of double life by pretending to be a private detective using the methods he read about in old detective novels.Bored to Death is actually a comedy with very little drama but it's pretty addictive. Ted Danson is fantastic as a magazine publisher who tries to reconnect to youth by going along with anything the neurotic writer and self proclaimed detective Jonathan Aimes (and his pot head buddy Ray) feel like doing. This show is fairly new and I hope it doesn't get cancelled.
- CreatorRyan MurphyStarsDylan WalshJulian McMahonJoely RichardsonTwo plastic surgeons--one a dedicated family man and one an unscrupulous playboy--strive to maintain their business whilst having to work their way through numerous hardships ranging from personal to clients with criminal connections.Nip / Tuck was one of the first television shows to actually be gory. It showed explicit scenes of medical procedures that probably paved the way for shows like CSI and its dozen copycats. I admit I haven't seen all six seasons; in fact I've seen very little of it, but what I have seen was entertaining and provocative. I think it would be worth a shot to check it out. You just might get hooked.
- CreatorJoss WhedonStarsNathan FillionGina TorresAlan TudykFive hundred years in the future, a renegade crew aboard a small spacecraft tries to survive as they travel the unknown parts of the galaxy and evade warring factions as well as authority agents out to get them.Firefly only lasted one single season with fourteen episodes yet it stands in my book as the second best science fiction series ever made, and that's only because Farscape enjoyed a longer run of four seasons and had more of a soap opera plot to it. I'm sure if Firefly had been allowed to continue, it would rank number one. Sure, Star Trek The Next Generation ranks up there, but it feels dated now and doesn't really stand the test of time like these other two shows do. It was nothing short of a sin to create such likeable characters and then just abandon them once the world was addicted to them. The movie Serenity was cool but still, that was only a two hour fix to a mega addiction. And same thing goes for Farscape (only four seasons)--and why did they have to kill off Zhaan? Dammit!
- CreatorJ.J. AbramsAlex KurtzmanRoberto OrciStarsAnna TorvJoshua JacksonJohn NobleAn F.B.I. agent is forced to work with an institutionalized scientist and his son in order to rationalize a brewing storm of unexplained phenomena.This show about the supernatural presents unique episodes like X-Files did while bringing it to a more addictive level by adding a subplot about an alternative universe that continues week by week. The characters are likeable and the stories are creative enough to keep us addicted. What is that whacky Dr. Bishop going to invent next?
- CreatorJulie PlecKevin WilliamsonStarsNina DobrevPaul WesleyIan SomerhalderThe lives, loves, dangers and disasters in the town, Mystic Falls, Virginia. Creatures of unspeakable horror lurk beneath this town as a teenage girl is suddenly torn between two vampire brothers.This is my guilty pleasure. I actually haven't had the chance to catch up on True Blood so this is the vampire saga I've been watching. It's a total Twilight rip off and it's aimed at a teenage audience, but I find the week by week soap opera of the supernatural happenings in the small town of Mystic Falls engaging. What beast will fall in love with poor Elana next? I know, you're probably like, gag.