About this item
A riveting and revealing look at the shows that helped cable television drama emerge as the signature art form of the twenty-first century.In the late 1990s and early 2000s, the landscape of television began an unprecedented transformation. While the networks continued to chase the lowest common denominator, a wave of new shows, first on premium cable channels like HBO and then basic cable networks like FX and AMC, dramatically stretched televisions narrative inventiveness, emotional resonance, and artistic ambition. No longer necessarily concerned with creating always-likable characters, plots that wrapped up neatly every episode, or subjects that were deemed safe and appropriate, shows such as The Wire, The Sopranos, Mad Men, Deadwood, The Shield, and more tackled issues of life and death, love and sexuality, addiction, race, violence, and existential boredom.
About the Author
Brett Martin is a Correspondent for and a 2012 James Beard Journalism Award winner. His work has appeared in , and multiple anthologies. He is a frequent contributor to . He is the author of (2007) and
