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DEADWOOD
( HBO )
The only thing wilder than the Wild West, it turns out, was the appetite of civilized capitalism. Gerald McRaney was a captivating villain as George Hearst, the mining magnate and misanthrope who brutally assimilated the gold-rush camp in this expertly written work of sagebrush Shakespeare. (No other TV show is so wonderful just to listen to, swear words and all.) Season 3, like Lost, fell a few places in my ranking for some narrative wanderings; I still could not tell you what historical or dramatic purpose the theater troupe served. But when the action focused on the inexorable "civilization" of the mining camp by Hearst's money-making machine, Deadwood's vision was clear-eyed and terribly beautiful. Backstage dealings have apparently denied the series a fourth season — an epilogue has been promised — but it rode into the sunset memorably.
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