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Geek Chic: Ranking the Top 10 Geeky Series This Season

Geeks are chic. One need only take a look at the current roster of fall series to see that the geek really have inherited the Earth.

From the action/adventure dramatics of NBC's Chuck to the comedic prowess of a troika of nerds (and their lovely neighbor) on CBS' The Big Bang Theory, the networks seem more fixated on the geeky than those same demos would be on, say, the latest news about J.J. Abram's nascent Star Trek feature. So it was only a matter of time before PC Magazine weighed in on their ten favorite geeky series (and their eight most missed ones).

What series ended up on the list? The aforementioned The Big Bang Theory and Chuck (natch), along with fan favorites like the Tardis-traveling Time Lord on Doctor Who, the superpowered gang over at Heroes, gun-toting mayhem on 24, the squints on Bones, and the antsy crew of Battlestar Galactica.

But lest you think that geeks know everything, be forewarned: also included in the list is The IT Crowd, which any self-respecting Televisionary geek will tell you has crashed and burned over at NBC.

What are your favorite geeky series? And which ones (ahem, Buffy, Angel, and Veronica Mars) do you miss now that they're long gone?

Comments

Seat42F said…
Not really for the series... but Marshall on Alias always cracked me up.....
10/08/2007
Amy said…
Hey, I love your blog. Just thought I'd tell you :).
10/08/2007
The CineManiac said…
Obviously "Veronica Mars" is at the very top of my list. And there's only one show that might be able to tie with it and that's "Freaks & Geeks" which is one of the best television series ever made, not to mention canceled before it's time. And it was a launching pad for some of the best talent out there today.
Also:
Buffy, Angel, Firefly, and Wonderfalls.
10/08/2007
The CineManiac said…
BTW they are talking about the British version of "The IT Crowd" they are wrong in the line about it premiering in the US. But as for the show itself, they are correct.
10/08/2007
Danielle C.F. Maris said…
Definitely Freaks and Geeks! (Which, sadly, was ahead of its time...before Geeks were chic!)
10/08/2007
Media Maven said…
What makes Veronica Mars geeky? A badass chick who solves murders? Where's the geek factor?

Also, I'd say Freaks and Geeks is incredibly overrated. People love to drop it as a brilliant but canceled show, but I thought it got very stale after about 6 episodes and I don't blame the network one bit for cancelling it. Lindsay Weir was one the blandest television leads I've ever seen.
10/08/2007
Katie Pacyna said…
I know it's going back awhile, but my vote's for "Quantum Leap." Nothing like Scott Bakula dressing in drag 3 of every four weeks of the show, but it was a brainy concept.
10/08/2007
Anonymous said…
Faves: BSG, Chuck, Doctor Who

Missed: Quantum Leap, Veronica Mars, Buffy, Freaks and Geeks

I don't know how Media Maven can say F&G is overrated. If anything it's underrated.
10/08/2007
Anonymous said…
Their list was a bit of a joke. Bones? Numb3rs? Perhaps the author of the list thought that geeks just need a geeky topic like science or math, and don't care about little things like original storytelling or characterization. Ugh. Their "8 shows we miss" list was a bit more legit.

I tried to put a little more thought into my list of the top 30 geek tv shows of the past 20 years:

http://www.greatwhitesnark.com/2007/09/20/the-best-geek-tv-shows-of-this-generation/
10/08/2007
The CineManiac said…
MM - What makes VM geeky?
The dialogue for one, it's filled with so many pop culture references that it alone makes it a geek show.
But if that's not enough how about Mac, or Beaver (before he went bad), or Max. Just to name a few.
10/09/2007
Anonymous said…
Its too easy, this question! Like shooting good tv shows in a Fox barrel!
Firefly, Buffy and Angel. Arrested Development. Wonderfalls. Dead Like Me. Can I vote for the Dr. Who with the Ninth Doctor?

Faves: BSG without a doubt. Chuck and Torchwood. Pushing Daisies.
10/09/2007
Media Maven said…
Having a geeky character in a show doesn't make the show itself geeky. Would you call 24 geeky because Edgar was a character on it and Chloe uses a computer a lot?

And since when are pop culture references geeky?

Before you do a "geeky" list, its probably better to define what you mean by geeky. Do you mean cult tv? Or do you mean shows about geeks? Or sci-fi shows?
10/09/2007
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