1. The Shield

FX Networks
Talk about police brutality. The final season of FX's groundbreaking cop show outdid itself in emotional violence, as the bill finally came due for Vic Mackey (Michael Chiklis) and his years of rationalized corruption. As his partner in crimefighting and graft, Shane (Walton Goggins), turned on him, the ensuing spiral of revenge destroyed the very families that the Strike Team had been skimming drug money to provide for. (In Shane's case, his family's destruction was heartbreakingly literal.) After seven years, the staggering finale of this drama allowed us to see Mackey's history of misdeeds and his complicated motivations for them with fresh eyes. In a word: arresting.
(FX)

Sex, Please, We're British: London's Erotica Expo
A Brief History of White House State Dinners
Airline Bag Fees: As High as the Cost of a Seat?
Can the A380 Bring the Party Back to the Skies?
Junior Eurovision: Schoolyard Crushes with Glitter
Who Will Inherit Joel Stein's Kid?
Cartoons of the Week
The Weekly Acoustic News
Climate Central: Training Pilots to Land on Skis
Asterix at 50: The Comic Hero Conquers the World