Depends on your timing- you are 26 episodes back on Sons of Anarchy. If you've got some marathoning time on your hands, you can knock through them in a few weeks, DVR the ones that start this week, and be in real time pretty soon.
SOA an excellent show, and underrated because it doesn't get a lot of talk. I just burned through S2 myself to get caught up to watch S3 live. The subject matter is going to keep it from ever being as "critically acclaimed" as some of the others, but I'd really put it in the top 5 dramas currently airing with Breaking Bad, Mad Men, Friday Night Lights, and a placeholder for Boardwalk Empire. It's a slight step down from the AMC shows, but still up there. You may not quite see that in S1, because there are a few aspects where it's a little shaky, but it exploded into a top-tier show out of the gates as S2 started. (Worth noting that Kurt Sutter, the creator and showrunner, was one of the top guys in the writing room on The Shield. There are a lot of common fans between those 2 shows.)
Almost anyone who watches Breaking Bad will tell you it's one of the best- and most people tend to prefer it over Mad Men. It's got more adrenaline pumping through it than Mad Men. Bryan Cranston and Aaron Paul put up some of the best performances on TV for 3 years straight. It's not a flashy show, but its damn good week in and out. I'd put it behind SoA on the list of what you should view, because there are only 33 episodes at this point, and you have until next June to knock them out before S4 starts. Another case where the 1st season of 7 episodes is good, but not great, but keep plugging because it hits its stride with the start of S2.
The things you hear about Mad Men being slow aren't exaggerated. It's "artsy" TV. It's not for the folks that were still watching the last season of 24, for instance. If you can adjust to the pacing, it's probably the most complex drama on TV. Occasionally I wonder why I enjoy it so much, and then an episode like the one that aired last night comes on that reminds me of just how well done it is. Tough to explain why it's so great- but most anyone who watches it will tell you that you do need to convince yourself to keep pushing on in those early episodes, but if you do, you'll really appreciate it. Top notch writing, great acting, seeing that era depicted with such detail is really cool...but the pacing is unlike anything else you'll see. Often reminiscent of those "weird psychological" episodes of The Sopranos.
I don't think Dexter belongs in this conversation. It was a decent show the first couple of seasons, S3 was pretty terrible. Apparently it got better after that, but I had long since quit. It's highs aren't nearly as high as these other 3...save it for when you are done with them.
[This message has been edited by 20ag07 (edited 9/6/2010 12:57p).]
