My wife and I have been making our way through NYPD Blue over the past few months. I decided to check it out after reading David Milch's memoirs.

Deadwood is my fave show, but all the NYDP Blue anecdotes in the book convinced me to check it out. I had low expectations... some cop show procedural from the 90s?

It's way better than I expected. I takes a few episodes to find its footing in season 1, but it gets good quick, and now we just have one episode left in season 3 and the past 3 episodes have been all-timers.

Milch's voice has become stronger over time, he really took over most of the writing and creation of the show and it's a good thing. S03E19-20-21 was such a great trio. Just like Milch to make all this stuff happen a few episodes before the end of the season rather than at the end, when you don't expect it.

I love how he takes the cop show procedural, but makes something more out of it. It feels more organic and messy and nuanced. Really a proto version of the prestige TV that came later.

And it's great to see NYC in the 1990s. If you want something old school, I highly recommend it. Give it a few episodes, and then it mostly keeps getting better and better. S3 is my fave so far.