David Simon said in a group interview on the Season 3 DVD that his intention was to create as close as he could come to a televised novel. If that notion is possible then he has suceeded here. Flawless storytelling while balancing many themes and characters without ever losing sight of narrative efficiency.

Every name on this series impresses (Speilberg, Hanks, etc)and doesn't dissappoint in execution. This series started an entire group of us to sit down every Sunday and watch 'HBO Night' along with 'Curb' and others.

Ricky Gervais gets out of a series after two seasons. You can call it cowardice, lack of constitution or a limit of creativity. I think it's just smart. Most shows can't retain much of their original potency after the first two seasons.

This series was a show-stopper every week. This show's visuals are breathtaking but they don't overshadow the writing or the characters. Unflinchingly, this series was willing to stare into a civilization before Judao-Christian values had become the norm.

The irony of this ground-breaking series is that no one was watching it amidst all it's accolades. What the Simpson's did with it's jump-away/ flashback style of comedy editing, 'Arrested' did with a two camera "sit-com".

I remember being impressed with television's capability to tell long narrative without compacting everything into 90-120 minutes. 'The Stand' started strong then sort of watered itself into King's occasional penchant for hokiness.

Holds up. You won't find Duvall better, he said so himself. What else do you need to hear? Perhaps Diane Lane?