TV's New Golden Age

Beginning of article

WHENEVER ANYONE SAYS there are so many television channels but nothing to watch, that individual usually is someone who does not watch much TV at all. What they do not know is that a good case can be made that we are living in a new golden age of television. David Chase's "The Sopranos" set the present-day standard for TV drama, eclipsing all other dramatic entertainment in the last 30 years. With HBO, Showtime, and other cable channels leading the way, we have had a cornucopia of high definition digital images spewing out of the TV screen--and most of the programs are available on DVD for uninterrupted viewing.

For those who are not put off by bizarre premises, "Dexter" and "Breaking Bad" offer extraordinary acting and well-written scripts that rival the best programs of any year. Jeff Lindsay's "Dexter" involves a serial killer and that uncomfortable idea alone stopped many people from watching, but the …