[Cali Panthers Fan]

This thread is titled, "I need a new TV series to get into old or new"

Well, here's the old...

If you have the ability to subscribe to Peacock I would do so just for this show. I've recommended it heartily before, but here we go again.

Homicide: Life on the Street.

This is the precursor to The Wire from creator David Simon. It's a gritty look at homicide detective on the Baltimore beat. It's unflinching, funny, sad, and entirely human. It's a far departure from Law and Order type shows where the detectives have a small amount of backstory, but 99% of the show is about the weekly procedural.

Instead, we are invited into the messy world of detectives. About their personal struggles, their divorces, their biases etc. We see the world of homicide as it plainly is, with lots of red under the ledger (you'll get the reference if you watch it).

You may recognize some of the actors, but first and foremost is Andre Braugher playing Frank Pembleton. Brilliant, cold, stoic, and mercurial, Pembleton's portrayal is why I fell in love with Braugher as an actor. You all go to know him later as Captain Holt on Brooklyn 99, which is sort of a send up of his Pembleton character. There are many other great performances from Yaphet Kotto, Ned Beatty, Melissa Leo, Kyle Secor, Richard Belzer, Clark Johnson as well.