List of best TV shows for 2005 comes easy

Medical shows 'House' and 'Grey's Anatomy' made it.
By SID SMITH and MAUREEN RYAN
Chicago Tribune
Believe it or not, there was very little disagreement about this list of 2005's top TV series. Sure, there were a few discussions about whether a top-notch procedural such as "Without a Trace" or an inventive comedy such as "Arrested Development" should occupy a slot, but in truth, we had very little trouble coming up with a list we both agreed on. There was so much to choose from in this excellent TV year, the most trouble we had was paring much-loved also-rans from our final tally.
But in the end, without too much bloodshed, we came up with our 10 favorite shows, and here they are, in alphabetical order:
"Battlestar Galactica," Sci Fi: There's no antiseptic, morally upright future on display here. Just a lot of confused, conflicted people, in a battle to the death with "others" who look exactly like humans -- and who say they are representatives of the one true God. The real joke on those who think "Galactica" is just another sci-fi show is that this gripping drama is, in fact, television's most topical, incisive commentary on current events in our very troubled world.
"Deadwood," HBO: A slimy mix of Shakespeare, Dickens and "The Sopranos" in the Old West, this drama got deeper and uglier in its second season. Calamity Jane may have donned a dress, but Deadwood itself seemed even more mired in animalism, corruption and, thanks to the gut-wrenching death of young William Bullock, a world incapable of sustaining innocence.
"Everybody Hates Chris," UPN: Somehow the words sitcom family have come to mean dumb, dumpy dad, needling mom and sassy, irritating children. Thank goodness this refreshing half-hour comedy came along to redeem the prototypical sitcom family and help rescue the genre from clich & eacute;s and tired joke-telling. The jokes work on "Chris" because the characters, based on comic Chris Rock's real family, feel entirely real, and the situations that young Chris goes through -- as a black kid at an all-white school -- are fresh and compelling.
"Grey's Anatomy," ABC: One of TV's most delicious treats, a habit-forming mix of romantic hanky panky -- call it intern swapping -- and sometimes outrageous, almost surreal medical black comedy and moral debate. Wrap the entire cast up as Christmas gifts, including believable everywoman Ellen Pompeo, lovably cantankerous Sandra Oh, scary-strict Chandra Wilson and Patrick Dempsey, the neurosurgeon who's all too accurately nicknamed "Dr. McDreamy."
"House," Fox: If it wanted to, this medical drama could rest on its significant strengths -- its magnetic lead, Hugh Laurie, and its ability, each week, to wrap a compelling moral quandary inside a dramatic medical mystery. But "House" often finds a way to upend expectations; stellar episodes have played with time lines, points of view and the notion of who is a "hero" -- any medical drama that does not automatically make a kid with cancer a sappy saint is certainly an audacious and ambitious piece of work.
"Lost," ABC: Sometimes hokey, sometimes silly, sometimes confounding in its flashbacks, it's TV's most original, deservedly Emmy-winning offering, irresistible watching that just about doubled its stash of castaways this second season and just about doubled the pleasure. Fantasy, adventure, thriller suspense, romance, comedy and even, at times, profound human drama amid blue skies, aquamarine seas and a not-so-friendly paradise.
"My Name Is Earl," NBC: The winning new saga of a likable rogue once destined for hell and now hell-bent on redemption. The always interesting Jason Lee wins a long overdue star turn and, as low-brow and low in principle Joy, Jaime Pressly is turning in one of the smartest, funniest performances this season. The sitcom, if that's what this original show is, survives.
"Rome," HBO: Epic, seductive storytelling blending history, tragedy and murky melodrama, played out alternately on dazzling sets and in the grimiest of alleyways, echoing its themes of the sublime and carnal in human nature. Great writing, great acting, great cliffhangers and the grandest of passions.
"The Shield," FX: "The Shield" was already one of TV's boldest dramas when it brought Glenn Close to the party. Close went toe to toe with charismatic star Michael Chiklis and the rest of the top-notch "Shield" cast last season, and the results were simply incendiary. When the show returns in January, Forest Whitaker will play an investigator who threatens to take down Vic Mackey's Strike Team; Whitaker has some pretty big shoes to fill, but you can bet we'll be watching every twisted minute.
"Veronica Mars," UPN: When it comes right down to it, the sharply written "Veronica Mars" is the story of a girl who lost her best friend and her mom in the same short span of time, and who may never get over either event. Mars, played by the effortlessly compelling Kristin Bell, investigates crimes big and small not just to help her dad out with his private-eye biz, but also in order to understand what makes people do terrible things to one another. As in all great film noirs, the lead character secretly wants to believe people can be good and selfless, but she usually ends up disappointed.