Occasionally when I'm bored, I start wandering the web looking for lists. Lists of things to like. Lists of things to hate. Lists of things to lament. Lists of things to applaud. Of late, I've been seeking out lists that help me counteract my negativity about all this "reality" I'm being asked to consume on TV. One recent list praises five television shows whose runs were cut short because the masses simply weren't bright enough to catch on. (Bionic Woman does not fall into this category.)

I expected the list to be an homage to one-hit wonders of the television world. Instead, I found a couple of one-and-done examples of sheer brilliance, but also a few shows that got more than one shot at gaining an audience. For example, I agree that Arrested Development was brilliant, but it did get a three-season run. That's a far cry from a 12-episode complete series DVD box set. So I came up with my own list of TV shows that the throngs missed out on, thus depriving the rest of us of the opportunity to see these story lines play out over more than a single season.

1. My So-Called Life

In my opinion, this was the best teen drama ever to grace the airwaves. There was no shrinking away from so-called adult issues. Those of us who did catch on to this show got a chance to watch Claire Danes develop her craft while her character, Angela Chase, and friends dealt with teenage romance, alcohol abuse, homosexuality and midterms. Oh, and despite the series' all-too-brief 19-episode run, Time magazine found a spot for MSCL on its list of the 100 best television shows of all time. … continue reading

In this Very Special Edition of She Made Me Watch This!, Lori and I discuss some of our favorite lesbian episodes and moments on American television in the last 20 years. Relive the glory days when there were actually lesbians on prime-time network TV, as we discuss (and show clips!) from lesser-known shows like Dark Angel, Once and Again and Wonderfalls, and more popular ones like Buffy, Xena, ER and The L Word.

Let us know your favorites in the comments — and look for a countdown of our least favorite lesbian TV moments in Monday's episode of Who Thought THAT Was a Good Idea? … continue reading