Gems to unearth

Catching up on under-the-radar shows worth watching

One of the difficulties of maintaining a biweekly television column is that there isn’t much space for exploration. Trying to hit the high notes of what’s captured the zeitgeist in such a sprawling medium in just 1500 words a month means rarely veering away from the mainstream. Between Netflix, Hulu Plus, HBOGo and the myriad streaming sites, damn near every television show is available with the click of a mouse, which creates a never-ending series of Sophie’s Choices: Do I write about “Game of Thrones” or “Mad Men”? “MasterChef” or “The Leftovers”? “Orange is the New Black” or “Fargo”? Something’s always falling through the cracks.

In that spirit, here are several under-the-radar series that have been unfairly ignored by this column. A few are idiosyncratic favorites, others are widely acclaimed by critics but haven’t necessarily found an audience to match. All are worth watching.

Southcliffe (Netflix)

At first glance, this British Channel 4 miniseries (available in the U.S. exclusively through Netflix) is yet another pitch-black drama about a community coping in the wake of a horrifying tragedy. What sets “Southcliffe” apart from the more generic iterations of the premise (“The Killing,” “The Bridge,” “The Leftovers”) are both the hellish depths of its despair and the cold restraint of director Sean Durkin and writer Tony Grisoni. Based loosely on a real event, the series, told non-linearly in four chapters, examines the circumstances surrounding a mass shooting in a small English village. Durkin, employing the same formalist bag of tricks used to such great effect in his debut “Martha Marcy May Marlene,” refuses to cater to audience bloodlust, only showing glimpses of the massacre. Grisoni writes killer Stephen Morton (Sean Harris) as a tragic figure, a disturbed Gulf War veteran whose lonely, dead-end existence finally pushes him over the edge. The series requires a patient, steely resolve to get through—its molasses pacing and relentless bleakness will prove too much for escapists—but connoisseurs of miserablist storytelling should immediately add “Southcliffe” to their queues. 

Face Off (SyFy)

SyFy Channel’s appealing reality show, currently in its seventh season, is a competition in the vein of “Project Runway” and “Top Chef.” A handful of aspiring movie make-up artists compete to create the most impressive sci-fi/fantasy/horror characters. Each episode features a new theme (aliens, monsters, wizards, etc.) to which the contestants must adhere. We follow them from conceptual art through sculpting, molding, prosthetic application, wardrobe design and final judgment from a panel of Oscar-winning artists. The results, even from the losers, are rarely less than impressive. One of the refreshing things about “Face Off” is the dearth of contrived drama; contestants and judges alike are all about the art. 

The Writer’s Room (SundanceTV)

Screenwriter and actor Jim Rash (“Community,” “The Way, Way Back”) hosts this 30-minute roundtable series that’s a must-watch for TV geeks and aspiring writers. Each week, Rash invites the writing staff of a particular series to discuss the painstaking process of writing for television. The six-episode first season is available on Netflix and features the writers from “Breaking Bad,”  “Game of Thrones,” “Parks and Recreation,” “Dexter,” “New Girl” and “American Horror Story.”

Banshee (Cinemax)

Cinemax is receiving a lot of attention for Steven Soderbergh’s “The Knick,” a breakout series for the cable channel long known for its sleazy late-night programming. But before “The Knick,” there was “Banshee,” a soapy small-town noir entering its third season in January. Artistically, it doesn’t hold a candle to “The Knick.” It’s a goofy, testosterone-fueled, exploitation thriller set in the corrupt Amish-country burg of Banshee, Pennsylvania. The premise is simple: ex-con and professional thief Lucas Hood (Anthony Starr) assumes the identity of Banshee’s new sheriff in an effort to reconnect with a past lover and fellow thief now living in the town. The gratuitous, low-rent sex and violence carries the unmistakable sheen of Cinemax sleaze, but the pulpy, hard-boiled storytelling from accomplished novelists Jonathan Tropper and David Schickler is addictive.

Ray Donovan (Showtime)

When I mention “Ray Donovan” in casual conversation, people’s eyes always seem to glaze over. My relentless praise for the first season fell on deaf ears, so when season two premiered in July I resigned myself to watching it alone—which is a shame, because this is a show begging for water cooler discussion. Essentially “The Sopranos” transplanted to Hollywood by way of Boston, “Ray Donovan” is a crime drama about family bonds, show business and masculine identity anchored by two hypnotic lead performances from Liev Schreiber as the eponymous Hollywood bagman and Jon Voight as his ex-con father. It also features one of the most impressive supporting casts this side of “Game of Thrones.” Showtime just renewed it for a third season, so somebody must be watching.