Due to the writers strike, many shows stayed on the air this fall even though their ratings were poor. The future doesn't look so good for programs such as Bionic Woman, Journeyman, and K-Ville. There are, however, several dramas that cemented their places in our "must see" lists.

Top 5 Dramas:

5. "Dexter" - While this show has never really delivered on the intimate look into a psychopath that it seemed to promise in its initial previews, it does remain one of the more entertaining pieces of pulp on television. This season saw Dexter's underwater burial ground discovered, causing him to experience a newfound purpose in his life, outside killing evildoers.

Glimpses into his past also lead to his questioning the code handed down to him by his foster father altogether. "Dexter" continues to hint at the darkness of its title character, but mostly eschews the psychology in favor of police procedural and on-the-surface thrills. Fortunately for the viewer, "Dexter" tackles both better than any program on the air.

4. "Big Love" - HBO's examination of the polygamist Henrickson clan belongs in its pantheon of classics alongside "The Sopranos", "Six Feet Under", and "The Wire." The second season dove deeper into the origins of the arrangement and continued to amp up the friction between Bill's former life and his present.

The show's creators have fashioned a world unlike anything to appear before it on the airwaves, and the characters match the inimitability of the overall work. "Big Love" reaches at universal themes such as faith and family while exploring a world that remains completely bizarre to the majority of users.

3. "Friday Night Lights" - At the end of its first season, "Friday Night Lights" had attained a type of everyday realism never before realized in television or perhaps any other medium. Give most of the credit to Peter Berg's "let the camera find you" style of direction that allows for a type of stage acting from its cast that appears as though it is a documentary.

The writers also resisted the soap operatic temptations succumbed to by most authors of teen shows and tackled real issues in a manner devoid of melodrama. When its second season began in the middle of the year, the implausibility began to surface with Landry's murder of a rapist. A variety of other stories caused the show's realism to veer off track, but the overall feel and humor of the show remains, making this one of the more entertaining shows on the air.

2. "Lost" - Many people were disappointed by the third season of "Lost," but we never counted myself among them. This works with one of the highest concepts ever handled by a television program and keeps the frustration to a minimum and the entertainment to a maximum. "Twin Peaks" this is not as the main mystery continues to fascinate rather than exasperate, and the characters remain as compelling as when we knew nothing of who they were. The landmark finale was justly hailed with a shocker of an ending that is sure to keep fans guessing until the very end.

1. "The Sopranos" - There is a reason this has been called the "Sgt. Peppers" of television. This program completely broke the mold, making each episode a 50-minute movie and exploring very deep themes throughout its run while remaining extremely entertaining. In 2007, we saw those themes and storylines brought to an ingenious climax by David Chase. We saw nearly everybody close to Tony dead or incapacitated, expect for the family he held so close and feared losing from the very first episode.

A lot was made of the cut to black in the final episode, but the questions asked by the audience did not need to be answered. Tony's family was safe and had come back to him once again despite being put through some of its toughest trials as the series ended. "The Sopranos" is one of television's crowning achievements and this final season showed that to be true one last time.

Honorable Mentions: "Gilmore Girls", "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip", "Heroes"

Story by Andrew Payne
Starpulse contributing writer

-See also:
2007 Top 5 Comedies
2007 Top Performances

Stay tuned for The Worst Of '07.