Second Day of TV Christmas- Two Terriers

In a new tradition here at the Pool, as both a way of summing up the year in television and celebrating the holidays, we will be releasing the first Twelve Days of TV Christmas series leading up to the day where I hope to receive multiple DVD box sets of my favorite shows. Whereas the Poolies celebrate the best television of the season by a number of voters, the Twelve Days of Christmas is my attempt at giving credit to the top series of the year by me and only me. Having said that, a couple of my favorite shows have been left off the list for a multitude of reasons. In the case of Chuck and Justified, it's mostly because I couldn't fit them into a numbered slot as well as some others. With Sons or Always Sunny, I just wasn't as happy with their respective seasons in 2010. So without further ado, here is the Second Day of TV Christmas. Feel free to sing along.

On the second day of Christmas my tv gave to me...two Terriers, and a paper boss in Scranton, PA.

The second show receiving credit for outstanding performance in 2010 is Terriers. The two private investigators of FX's Terriers, Donal Logue's Hank and Michael Raymond-James's Britt, really did burst onto the scene as a couple of dudes that were easy to root for. Sure it has since been canceled for lack of ratings, but that's not to say that it was not a terrific 13 episodes all on its own. Critics loved this thing, proven by Alan Sepinwall, Mo Ryan and Ryan McGee tweeting that we should be watching Terriers every Wednesday like clockwork. I wasn't as in love with the series as McGee, who placed it number one in his 10 Best of '10, but it definitely was in my top 12 of the year. Best of all was that they ended the thing in fantastic fashion. I'm sure they knew that a second season was in jeopardy, so they left things open. The arc of season one was summed up, and there was potential for a new journey from our favorite PIs. But unlike some other season finales, there wasn't too much anticipation for a second season premiere, that I got angry the show was canceled. Sad that it is not continuing? Of course. But happy with how it came together. There's nothing wrong with a solid 13 episode series done well.

Bi-Monthly Power Rankings- 20 Through 11

Yes, it is that time again. It's time for the Quiet Pool Perspective's take on power rankings. Every two months, here at The Pool, we like to let you know what you should be watching on the small screen. Just like in sports, an opinionated take on what is the best of the best is great for television. It's too bad that Tim Goodman is the only other one out there that I know of that puts out Power Rankings. His come out weekly, or any week that he remembers to do it, and that's a bit much. Every couple of months, the television landscape changes here at The Pool, and therefore we now come out with our November Power Rankings. So go grab a couple of boat drinks, turn on some reggae, and take a look at what you should be watching.

Jason Ritter as Sean Walker on The Event

Place. Show- (last time)...red=moving down, green=moving up

20. The Event- (-) Mondays on NBC
Critics can hate on it all they want, but what do they know? They only get paid to know what tv is good. I'm enjoying The Event and I know must of the other Poolies are as well. It's action packed. There are plenty of twists. And there are some crazy sci-fi elements in it. A promising start to the first season. I mean it's a great possibility that everything blows up in its face, but for now I'm enjoying the ride. Jackie Boy just mentioned to me that if Michael Giacchino was scoring this series it would jump to the top. He makes a solid point, why wouldn't Giacchino score every show on television?

19. Californication- (17) Sundays on Showtime
It will be about a year and a half since we last saw Hank when Californication comes back in 2011. The series has held steady in this late teen range over the last couple of rankings, but will it stick when the show comes back? Can they live up to the greatness of that season three finale? We shall see. It never hurts to have Rob Lowe joining your cast for some episodes.

18. Parks and Recreation- (16) Thursdays on NBC
Insert generic rant and rave about Parks and Rec not being on NBC's Thursday night lineup here. As much as I enjoyed its second season, in the long run I might be happier if it never comes back at all. If only to shut up Sepinwall, McNutt and the rest of the critics who so ridiculously claimed that it was the best comedy of the season last year. Having said that, never seeing Rob Lowe in Pawnee again would be a travesty.

Adam Scott, Nick Offerman and Rob Lowe on Parks and Rec

17. Boardwalk Empire- (-) Sundays on HBO
The biggest complaint I have heard about Boardwalk Empire by the common folk is that it is too slow and confusing, and there are too many characters. Hmmm, I think they have described the starts of The Wire and Mad Men exactly. These are two of the top three praised dramas of the past 15 years. If I were to compare the three, I'd say Boardwalk Empire is much less boring than the start of Mad Men, and much less confusing with less complicated plots than The Wire. So if you're having trouble jumping in with both feet in this one, I don't understand how you can claim to have loved The Wire or Mad Men.

16. Terriers- (-) Wednesdays on FX
Finally one where I am absolutely buying the critical hype. Terriers is loved by the pros, but is hurting in terms of ratings. It definitely is in trouble of not getting renewed for a second season and that would be a darn shame. Donal Logue and Michael Raymond James as private detectives in San Diego is a great show to watch. It has some nice long running story lines and plenty of great stand alone plots on a week to week basis. The dynamic between Logue and Raymond James, who are best friends in real life, is a pleasure to watch on the screen. If you're not watching this, you should be.

15. Treme- (19) Sundays on HBO
After watching the first season of The Wire for the first time this summer, I've somehow moved Treme way up in my Power Rankings. I have high hopes for the second season come this spring. If Treme didn't have as unbelievable a story arc as The Wire's first season, it might have had better characters. Between Davis, Creighton, Big Chief and Antoine there were four studs right there that were hard to compete with. Spoiler alert, Creighton won't be back next season, but I'm sure a few newbies will be on the scene to pick up the slack.

14. It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia- (10) Thursdays on FX

Sunny takes a bit of a drop as the opening to the season hasn't been that strong. It certainly didn't help by the fact that I knew Dee was pregnant and I could help but stare at her fat belly the entire time. They were trying to hide it behind outfits and obstacles, but it didn't work. I was distracted, but Frank's "Two dudes getting married, that doesn't seem very gay" gives you a lot of room to work with before you can drop off too far.

13. Justified- (14) Tuesdays on FX

Timothy Olyphant as Raylan Givens

So last week T-time tweeted this: "Is it wrong that the commercial for Justified is the best thing I've seen on tv all fall?" And I have no problem with his statement. I got as excited by that commercial than by any episode of Sons or Chuck this season. Sure, trailers have an easier time of building excitement, but Raylan Givens? Plus that haunting tune by Lissie? I already downloaded her album to hear more of that song. The only thing that has me a tad worried is that they killed off MC Gainey's Bo Crowder at the end of the first season. Walton Goggins getting bumped to series regular? Best move you could've made.

12. 30 Rock- (-) Thursdays on NBC
After falling out of the rankings last season, 30 Rock jumps way back up after a great start to the year. I feel like they've really just gotten back to what works. A lot of laughs from Tracy, no Jack relationship drama, Jenna not being as crazy, and Dr. Spaceman every once in a while.

11. Dexter- (9) Sundays on Showtime
A solid start to the fifth season, but nothing has me that excited so far. I continue to hate on LaGuerta and Batista, but the rest of the crew is fine. The switch in showrunners hasn't been very noticeable to me. Everything seems like business as usual, except there doesn't seem to be a single big bad thus far. I realize that season three didn't quite have that either, but Jimmy Smits's Miguel Prado was kind of Dexter's main adversary. Could that be Quinn and his investigation into Dexter? We'll see.