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I don’t know much about the history of television, so it would be rash to say that HBO’s series Six Feet Under is among the best shows in television history.

It’s certainly one of the best shows I’m aware of, and as of Sunday, it’s over.

I think I’ll draw out my feelings on Six Feet Under (6FU) over a couple of posts, but just start by saying that if you’ve never seen the show, now is the perfect time to check it out, because presumably all that exists of the 6FU universe has been created (except maybe some “Viva Keith” t-shirts someone may whip up on CafePress, which I would buy).

The first four seasons are now available on DVD, and if you’re quick and TiVo-enabled, the odds that HBO will be re-broadcasting all of season 5 sometime soon are fairly high. Or you can just buy the first season DVD (or Netflix it), watch at your leisure, and go from there. I’m sure the season 5 DVD will be out soon (unless there are some haggard circumstances).

Six Feet Under is a dramedy focused on the Fishers, a Pasadena family running an independent funeral home. It deals with joy, sorrow, (denial of) life, (denial of) death, the inability of people of different personality types to effectively communicate, and overall human disfunctionality honestly, which is something I find attractive, because honesty regarding these topics is so rarely found in real life.

From a enjoyment of content perspective, it’s also one of the most well-balanced and complete works of television out there. Within five seasons, the show says what it wants to say, and finishes without significant loose ends. It doesn’t end like the X-Files, in other words. I don’t forsee a 6FU movie in our future.

In my discussions (which may end here, I dunno), I will do everything I can to avoid revealing significant plot points beyond the first few episodes of the series (season 1). With that said, if you want to know more or less everything there is to know about the show plot- and character-wise, www.wikipedia.org has several good articles, and I’m sure there are more sites out there dedicated to the critically acclaimed show.

The show was created by Alan Ball (writer, American Beauty) and stars … well… these people.

Thanks to my friend Tom Sylvester for badgering me into watching the show back in 2001. I have a known tendency to not watch first-season HBO series, generally wishing to see if they stick around long enough to warrant my interest. In the case of 6FU, it was worth it from the start.

rds