TV Show Of The Week 12: Six Feet Under

Basq

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYAe0qwg9Yw

IMDb | TvIV | HBO

'Six Feet Under' was the brain-child of writer Alan Ball, who previous to it worked on a couple of US sitcoms such as 'Grace Under Fire' and 'Cybill') but his real accolade came when he won an Oscar for his wonderful screenplay to 'American Beauty'.

His next credit was probably his most acclaimed and distinguished work to date - a TV drama named 'Six Feet under' which ran from 2001 to 2005 which was lauded by critics and audiences alike:

Wikipedia wrote:

The show received critical acclaim from Variety, The Hollywood Reporter, and The New York Times, among other media, and has garnered praise from fellow television producers and funeral directors, with many considering it to be one of the best dramas ever made for television. In total, Six Feet Under won three Golden Globe Awards and nine Emmy Awards, as well as a Peabody Award. The series won the Golden Globe award for Outstanding Drama Series and Best Supporting Actress for Rachel Griffiths in 2002. Frances Conroy went on to receive the award for Best Actress in a Drama for the Golden Globes in 2004. The show also won the Screen Actors Guild award for Best Ensemble for a Drama Series two years in a row (2003–2004).

It dealt the Fisher family who owned a funeral home, and the effect a tragedy in the family has on each of the family members in turn - most notably eldest brother Nate (featuring an excellent performance throughout by Peter Krause) who returns home from Seattle to reunite with his family in the aftermath of the tragedy.

All the performances in the show are top notch - everyone from Frances Conroy to Michael C. Hall to Lauren Ambrose. The performances by the cast never seemed over-the-top or weak at any point.. quite the opposite in that it was one of the best ensemble cast I've seen on screen.

I cannot recommend this enough.. this is a show that will stick with me for the rest of my life for a couple of reasons. I always thought the show (although it dipped in quality occassionally) was truly revolutionary in how it openly and graphicly dealt with subjects such as racism, sexuality, death, grief and depression in both it's content and themes. It really is a fantastic and unforgettable series.. it's a tad bleak at times, always remains atmospheric and contains plenty of dark humour, but all this adds to it's appeal.

One thing that I will also never forget is it had probably the most satisying end to a television series ever committed to film.. so it contains major spoilers but I can't finish this post without including it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wVBiZdy6TpQ

chalkitdown1

My favourite tv show ever. It's just brilliant in every department. A shame more people haven't scene it.

genie

It's my favourite show, too. I got the complete 5 series box set (the one that looks like a grave marker!) for Christmas last year and it took me almost six months to watch it all as I rationed it because I didn't want it to end!

My brother is ploughing through it all ATM.

It was such a pity that Channel 4 didn't show Series 5 (it was relegated to More 4, I think. I had to rent it as I didn't have More 4 at the time) and RTE always seemed to show it in the middle of the night! :rolleyes:

iguana

I absolutely loved this show. And the last episode is truly exceptional. The first time I watched it as soon as I stopped crying I switched over to E4+1 and watched it again. Then I stayed up for the 2am showing, and after that switched over to +1 to watch it for a 4th time that night. I cried like a baby each time, and every time I've seen it since. It's really life affirming though.

SFU also had some great funny scenes. Peter at dinner on ecstasy, Claire on AMT at David's birthday dinner and the episode where Nate, Rico and George catch the guys trying to steal a comic out of a coffin.

claiva

i'm so glad this show is getting some recognition here....it truly was the best television show ever. There is still a hole in my life since it finished, a hole that not even Soprano's could fill..........;);)

Krieg

My favourite show of all time

Have all 5 seasons, got them the day they were released.
Have given the 1st season to family and friends ALL of who loved it and asked for the next season.

yurmothrintites

I just finished the the series there. Absolutely brilliant, definately my favorite tv series ever.

I started watching it in may and got hooked.

johnny_ultimate

I started watching this at the start of the summer after I finished the Sopranos series, but only got around four or five episodes in. Liked what I saw, but the loss of access to the college library (which has every episode on DVD) and general lack of time prevented further progression. Really must get back into it, even if its just to see this fantastic finale I've heard so much about

S.M.B.

Agree with everything already said.

Greatest TV show ever with just the slightest dip in quality during series 4.

I don't think a piece of TV/film/music will ever have the same effect on me as the final few moments of the last episode.

I was literally floored for 2-3 days after watching it.

JP Liz

one of the best tv shows ever

SprostonGreen

One of the all time greats, loved it, great ending.

ongarboy

yes, one of my all time favourites. I actually never watched it when it was on TV. I remember the tv critics always raving about it but I think like another poster said, RTE2 kept showing it at ungodly hours and moving the time from week to week so prerecording would have been difficult too - before the skyplus days!. I think C4 used to show it on Friday nights too when I was often out. It was only when my sister left the entire 5 season boxset behind when she went to Oz for a year that I started watching them. Hooked from the start.

I prefer watching any good TV series on dvd now as opposed to when they're aired on TV as I love the flexibility of watching 3/4 episodes in a row or rewinding a great scene just to watch it again. Mad Men and the Wire are the next on my shopping list but just started watching Brothers and Sisters (I'll watch Rachel Griffiths in anything - she is a fantastic actress)

cuckoo

Totally agree about it having a moving, satisfying and worthy ending.

It's been too long since i last watched it *wanders off to track down DVD box sets*

The Black Oil

I thought series 4 was a drop in quality, pretty meh, really. Apart from that it's a brilliant show. It's so well done.

lostexpectation

watched the frist two seasons i think, it was one of the first 'new TV' high quality shows, but i lost the story after that...

fisgon

This is definitely one of the greatest shows ever, like nothing before or after. Had a soft spot for Claire, thought she was a great character, and the ending was perfect, have the Sia song on my ipod and think of that car dissappearing down the freeway every time I hear it.

Am watching Alan Ball's new series, True Blood, at the moment, very different in many ways, but also brilliant.

leggo

Excellent show. Wouldn't say it's my favourite, but Top 5 would be fair. So much depth to the characters. Great, powerful scripts for each episode always punctuated with ballsy, hard drama that could be hilarious in equal doses. As a result, it towed the line between being heavy and meaningful but addictively watchable perfectly.