Favorite TV 2008

Merlin from BBC-1 is my favorite TV series of the year. It's a retelling of the legend of King Arthur (who's still a prince in the series) that focuses on Merlin and his friendship with the once and future king. They are of the same age in this series. Evidences that it's not a big-budget American TV program that looks and feels like a movie  (e.g. Prison Break, 24) show up in sequences that required complex special effects, but the story itself is very engaging and the reason why I was hooked from the first episode. Its Wikipedia page says that it will be shown in the US by NBC for the Spring 2009 TV season. This series, more so than the good but rather inferior of the two, The Legend of the Seeker, could potentially usher in the rebirth of the high fantasy genre to television, which if I remember correctly was last brought about by Hercules: The Legendary Journeys and Xena: The Warrior Princess.

The Big Bang Theory from CBS is my favorite comedy series of the year. It's a sitcom about two brilliant physicists room mates (Leonard and Sheldon), their two genius friends (Howard and Rajesh), and their hot neighbor (Penny). The writers kept coming up with very funny, highly rewatchable episodes each week.

Fringe from Fox is my favorite sci-fi TV series of the year. It's about a group of government agents involved in cases that are related to what is collectively called "fringe science". Only the scientists who know real fringe science will not like this new series from J.J. Abrams, creator of Alias and Lost. The rest of us who like science fiction but don't really care whether the science in it is realistic or not will love this show. The special effects in this series are rather good and have a movie-quality feel to them. If only Merlin have the same budget.

Of course I still like and still watches Prison Break, The Amazing Race, House, and How I Met Your Mother. 24 took a hiatus this year, a casualty of the 2007 writers strike. I have a feeling that 24 would have been my favorite of the year had their 2008 season not been cancelled. But then again, tomorrow will already be January and it means the new season of 24 from Fox is just around the corner.