I agree.  Some really awesome actors in the UK.  IThose tragic dramas just kill me.  I've been trying a lot of tragic books lately and, mostly, they just stop me in my tracks.

So, Serenity, you were asking about American dramas and I've been at a total loss.  It's sad to say, there really aren't any to speak of.  No dramas that can compare to the English or continent's excellence on the subject.   As a friend of mine once told me when we went to see Hamlet, "Now, Mike, you must understand that this is NOT a happy ending."  But, I've run across one show that, astonishingly surprising to me, I like.  It really is drama with high tragedy and everything.  Things don't alway work for the 'good guys'.  The term 'good guys' might not even apply, well-intentioned might be a better description.  It's just that it is set in a fictional world.  I've always despised horror movies and now I know why.  It is all of the people just running around scared silly that always drove me nuts.  They always seemed so helpless.  It is this crazy long running series about demons and monsters that I ran across that I finally had to try (couldn't stand Game of Thrones (book or series), by the way).  I mean, most American series never run past about seven or eight seasons.  This one is on its 12th season and I'm hooked.  Another reason I had to try it was because of an actor, Jared Padelecki, from Gilmore Girls, a show that has always totally embarrassed me because I like it so much.  I'm starting to believe it is due to the very normal American disoriented family life (the series portrays both sides of the coin - the normal idiocy and a more rational approach) that makes it so attractive to many Americans (that and brilliant dialogue).  And, I think that also is part of what initially made Supernatural so interesting to me.  It is a story of two brothers fighting all kinds of supernatural beings, like. Lucifer, demons, vampires, werewolves, armageddon, the darkness, god's sister (serious badass), etc.  It just sounds soooo corny.  It is the closest thing to an American drama.  What's great is that the story line, for me, is really, really creative, both on the relationship between the two brothers and the fictional universe.  There's a bit too much blood and gore for my tastes but, altogether, they keep it in check ... well, to some extent.  But, the supernatural story line is just wild.  The character casting is awesome. They also throw in enough goofiness to keep it from getting too gratingly serious.  And, I think like any series, it has its weak episodes but, altogether, I'm impressed.  And, as I started with, I'm totally shocked that I enjoy it so much with its strong flavor of horror movie.  I had a bit of a forced hiatus for awhile where I was not too interested in doing much so I watched a bunch of this show and am pretty addicted.  With a story about a totally fictional setting with any creature you feel like being thrown in, it's pretty easy to make stuff up but they always throw in these pretty cool twists that I appreciate.  Thought-provoking story lines have always caught me, I guess.  I kinda run on that fuel.  Anyways, the first season of Supernatural may be worth a try.  It gets better later but, if you don't appreciate the first season, you might as well stop there, I think.  But, if you like the first season, it just gets better and better.  Like a good band or any other creative effort, the more familiar the creators get with the effort, the more polished and astonishing that effort becomes, if  the creators are passionate about their chosen profession and the feedback is positive.  I don't think most understand just how critical that feedback loop is.  Back to the difference between this and the normal American horror movie, it is not about helpless people running around scared out of their wits.  Those usually end up dead in a hurry in this story.  The brothers go after the monsters and are not completely shaking in their boots all the time.  Fair warning, I guess it could end up seeming corny.  That is certainly what I expected.  And, make no mistake, it is gory enough.

Getting back to what you were saying about Supernatural- based in your description I'm getting tge same vibe as that other drama called True Blood about vampires. I don't really dog these sort of wacky horror dramas. However ironically i have watched Most Haunted and gave never seen a ghost...ever. The supernatural world greatly interests me as i have a very enquiring mind to try to make sense of what is beyond our realm. What else is out There?

Scientists have made discoveries of other planets so who knows? I think space exploration is an amazing thing.

I don't do horror movies at all. The woman in black absolutely set me off in the cinema. I couldn't watch the film. It stayed with me for days.

Now, this is interesting, Serenity, if you're really into science discoveries and outer space.  I guess I'm not quite as fascinated as you sound and this article describes my problem with the situation very well.  I mean  the pictures, like from Hubble, are fascinating and awe-inspiring but the actual treks and discoveries are, I don't know, not really capturing my fascination.  Like this article.  The discovery of intelligent life in the universe, more importantly sapient life which in my opinion hasn't shown up anywhere including Earth, would be profound.  But, microbes and such don't really wind me up.  I guess I just consider it a given.  Heck, I consider intelligent life, other than humanity, a given but still profound whenever we encounter it.  I'm just not betting on us finding that anytime soon.  And, speculation, like this article, is really cool and still interesting but, still, it's just speculation.  Sorry for ranting.  I'm still interested, I'm just getting impatient for something tangible, something really profound and I'm not holding my breath.  

Thanks for that on the books!

Those authors have the goldfrapp deal of approval. I actually failed to notice.

Speaking of British villains, Crowley is brilliant.